“Clowns, Actors, Entertainers, or Comedians?” Metaphorical Identity Conflicts of Native English-Speaking Teachers: A Narrative Inquiry in China
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15282/Keywords:
EFL setting, Identity conflict, Native English-speaking teacher, Teacher identityAbstract
Teacher identity is shaped through continual negotiation of personal and professional roles, and this negotiation often gives rise to tensions when teachers adapt to new contexts and expectations. Although interest in teacher identity has grown, limited research has examined how native English-speaking teachers (NESTs) deal with conflicting identities in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) settings. This study investigates the identity conflicts experienced by four NESTs from the United States and the United Kingdom teaching at two Chinese universities. Using a narrative inquiry approach and guided by Pennington and Richards’ competencies of language teacher identity, the study analyses teachers’ metaphors, such as clown, actor, entertainer, and comedian, to explore how they position themselves within the Chinese EFL context. The findings highlight several sources of identity tension, including the influence of bilingual backgrounds, discrepancies between teaching experience and institutional expectations, racialised perceptions linked to white-skin privilege and vulnerability, and ideological conflicts surrounding English norms and pedagogy. The study extends current understandings of NEST identity construction and underscores the need for more informed teacher education and institutional practices in multilingual EFL environments.
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