Correo Electrónico
DNINFOA - SIA
Bibliotecas
Convocatorias
Identidad U.N.
Published
An Integrative Literature Review on English Teachers as Agents of Change
Una revisión integral de la literatura sobre los docentes de inglés como agentes de cambio
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v27n1.113092Keywords:
English language teachers, social change, social competence, teacher agency (en)agencia docente, cambio social, competencia social, docentes de inglés (es)
In this article, we attempt to understand English teachers’ perceptions, practices, and challenges concerning social agency through an integrative literature review to build and draw an interpretative framework and generate new knowledge. To achieve this, 58 empirical studies published in a period of seventeen years—2006 to 2023—were selected from the Scopus and Web of Science databases. Results showed that English language teachers’ perceptions of agency were closely related to structural factors. Practices such as interactions with communities and humanistic approaches can make agency meaningful. Challenges in agency were more related to collective agency and reflections. In conclusion, English teachers’ agentic actions are not dampened by structural factors; on the contrary, this review confirms the potential of English educators to transform education.
En este artículo, se pretende profundizar en las percepciones, prácticas y retos relacionados con la agencia social de los docentes de inglés mediante una revisión bibliográfica integral para elaborar un marco interpretativo y generar conocimiento. Se revisaron 58 estudios en Scopus y Web of Science, publicados entre 2006 y 2023. Los resultados indicaron que las percepciones de los docentes sobre la agencia están influenciadas por factores estructurales. Las prácticas como la interacción con las comunidades y la adopción de enfoques humanísticos confieren sentido a la agencia. Los retos identificados se relacionaron con la agencia colectiva y las reflexiones. Finalmente, se destaca que, aunque la agencia docente puede estar condicionada por factores estructurales, no está determinada por ellos. Antes bien, se confirma el potencial de los docentes para transformar la educación.
References
Ahmad, H., & Shah, S. R. (2022). Teacher agency and professional development: A study on Cambridge English teacher program in the Arabian Gulf. Cogent Education, 9(1), 2080352. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186X.2022.2080352
Athanases, S. Z., & De Oliveira, L. C. (2008). Advocacy for equity in classrooms and beyond: New teachers’ challenges and responses. Teachers College Record, 110(1), 64–104. https://doi.org/10.1177/016146810811000101
Bakadorova, O., & Raufelder, D. (2018). The essential role of the teacher–student relationship in students’ need satisfaction during adolescence. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 58, 57–65. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.appdev.2018.08.004
Balyer, A., & Özcan, K. (2020). Teachers’ perceptions on their awareness of social roles and efforts to perform these roles. South African Journal of Education, 40(2). https://doi.org/10.15700/saje.v40n2a1723
Bandura, A. (2000). Exercise of human agency through collective efficacy. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 9(3), 75–78. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8721.00064
Barahona, M., & Toledo-Sandoval, F. (2022). Exploring Chilean student teachers’ development of teacher identity through Perezhivanie. Journal of Language, Identity & Education, 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1080/15348458.2022.2075875
Benesch, S. (2018). Emotions as agency: Feeling rules, emotion labor, and English language teachers’ decision-making. System, 79, 60–69. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2018.03.015
Burnett, J. (2011). Two case studies of secondary language teaching: A critical look at the intersection of management and the local and social realities that shape our classrooms. The Modern Language Journal, 95(1), 4–26. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4781.2011.01240.x
Chang, C.-F., Hall, N. C., & Horrocks, P. T. M. (2022). Exploring teachers’ social goal orientations with the job demands-resources model. Current Psychology, 42, 24326–24338. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-022-03570-5
Cheung, C., & Lee, T. (2009). Improving social competence through character education. Evaluation and Program Planning, 33(3), 255–263. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2009.08.0063
Choi, J. (2022). The interplay of teacher identities and agency: A case study of two native English-speaking teachers in South Korea. Teaching and Teacher Education, 117, 103804. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2022.103804
Cots, J. M., & Nussbaum, L. (1999). Schooling, language and teachers: Language awareness and the discourse of the educational reform in Catalonia. Language Awareness, 8(3–4), 174–189. https://doi.org/10.1080/09658419908667127
Cross, R. (2010). Language teaching as sociocultural activity: Rethinking language teacher practice. The Modern Language Journal, 94(3), 434–452. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-4781.2010.01058.x
Cruz-Arcila, F. (2020). Rural English language teacher identities: Alternative narratives of professional success. Íkala, Revista de Lenguaje y Cultura, 25(2), 435–453. https://doi.org/10.17533/udea.ikala.v25n02a05
Flynn, N., & Curdt-Christiansen, X. L. (2018). Intentions versus enactment: Making sense of policy and practice for teaching English as an additional language. Language and Education, 32(5), 410–427. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500782.2018.1475484
Fogle, L. W., & Moser, K. (2017). Language teacher identities in the Southern United States: Transforming rural schools. Journal of Language, Identity & Education, 16(2), 65–79. https://doi.org/10.1080/15348458.2016.1277147
Foley, Y., Anderson, C., Hancock, J., & Conteh, J. (2022). Exploring the professional identity and agency of student teachers in multilingual classrooms. Language and Education, 36(2), 106–121. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500782.2021.1991369
Fu, Y., & Weng, Z. (2023). Examining ESL and bilingual teachers’ agency after NCLB: Expanding the ecological perspective. International Multilingual Research Journal, 17(3), 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1080/19313152.2023.2201090
Gao, Y., & Cui, Y. (2022). English as a foreign language teachers’ pedagogical belief about teacher roles and their agentic actions amid and after COVID-19: A case study. RELC Journal, 55(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/00336882221074110
Gao, J., Xu, Y., Kitto, E., Bradford, H., & Brooks, C. (2022). Promoting culturally sensitive teacher agency in Chinese kindergarten teachers: An integrated learning approach. Early Years, 42(1), 55–70. https://doi.org/10.1080/09575146.2021.1901661
Gómez Jiménez, M. C., & Gutiérrez, C. P. (2019). Engaging English as a foreign language student in critical literacy practices: The case of a teacher at a private university. Profile: Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development, 21(1), 91–105. https://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v21n1.71378
Gómez-Vásquez, L. Y., & Guerrero Nieto, C. H. (2018). Non-native English-speaking teachers’ subjectivities and Colombian language policies: A narrative study. Profile: Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development, 20(2), 51–64. https://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v20n2.67720
Haneda, M., & Alexander, M. (2015). ESL teacher advocacy beyond the classroom. Teaching and Teacher Education, 49, 149–158. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2015.03.009
Hernández Varona, W., & Gutiérrez Álvarez, D. F. (2020). English language student-teachers developing agency through community-based pedagogy projects. Profile: Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development, 22(1), 109–122. https://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v22n1.76925
Hurdus, J. (2023). The relational actor: How teachers in bilingual schools distribute their political agency. Linguistics and Education, 74, 101152. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.linged.2023.101152
Ishihara, N., Carroll, S. K., Mahler, D., & Russo, A. (2018). Finding a niche in teaching English in Japan: Translingual practice and teacher agency. System, 79, 81–90. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2018.06.006
Jiang, Y., Li, J., & Wang, Q. (2022). An ecological approach to understanding university English teachers’ professional agency in implementing formative assessment. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.916980
Kayi-Aydar, H. (2015). Teacher agency, positioning, and English language learners: Voices of pre-service classroom teachers. Teaching and Teacher Education, 45, 94–103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2014.09.009
Kepe, M. H., & Linake, M. A. (2019). Teaching English as a social practice: A practical guide. South African Journal of Higher Education, 33(5), 146–168. https://doi.org/10.20853/33-5-3600
Kirsch, C. (2018). Dynamic interplay of language policies, beliefs and pedagogy in a preschool in Luxembourg. Language and Education, 32(5), 444–461. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500782.2018.1487452
Kong, D., Zou, M., & Chen, J. (2022). English as a foreign language teacher engagement with culturally responsive teaching in rural schools: Insights from China. Frontiers in Psychology, 1–15. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.990363
Leal, P., & Crookes, G. V. (2018). “Most of my students kept saying, ‘I never met a gay person’”: A queer English language teacher’s agency for social justice. System, 79, 38–48. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2018.06.005
Leijen, Ä., Pedaste, M., & Lepp, L. (2020). Teacher agency following the ecological model: How it is achieved and how it could be strengthened by different types of reflection. British Journal of Educational Studies, 68(3), 295–310. https://doi.org/10.1080/00071005.2019.1672855
Leontjev, D., & deBoer, M. (2022). Teacher as creator: Orchestrating the learning environment to promote learner development. Language Teaching Research, 1–22. https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688221117654
Limbada, Z., & Kajee, L. (2020). Teacher narratives of social (in)justice: Early experiences shaping pedagogy. International Conference on Multidisciplinary Research, 84–97. https://doi.org/10.26803/MyRes.2020.07
Liu, Y., Wang, H., & Zhao, R. (2020). Teacher agency and spaces in changes of English language education Policy. Current Issues in Language Planning, 21(5), 548–566. https://doi.org/10.1080/14664208.2020.1791532
Mesa Villa, C. P. (2017). The socialization of a novice teacher of English: Becoming an agent of change. How Journal, 24(1), 83–100. https://doi.org/10.19183/how.24.1.318
Miller, E. R., & Gkonou, C. (2018). Language teacher agency, emotion labor and emotional rewards in tertiary-level English language programs. System, 79, 49–59. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.system.2018.03.002
Miranda, N., & Valencia Giraldo, S. (2019). Unsettling the ‘challenge’: ELT policy ideology and the new breach amongst state-funded schools in Colombia. Changing English, 26(3), 282–294. https://doi.org/10.1080/1358684X.2019.1590144
Mirzaee, A., & Aliakbari, M. (2018). “They now respect me and send me to the best schools!”: Identity construction of an Iranian EFL teacher. Critical Inquiry in Language Studies, 15(1), 21–42. https://doi.org/10.1080/15427587.2017.1327794
Namgung, W., Moate, J., & Ruohotie-Lyhty, M. (2020). Investigating the professional agency of secondary school English teachers in South Korea. Asian-Pacific Journal of Second and Foreign Language Education, 5. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40862-020-00083-1
Nguyen, M. H., & Ngo, X. M. (2023). An activity theory perspective on Vietnamese preservice English teachers’ identity construction in relation to tensions, emotion and agency. Language Teaching Research. https://doi.org/10.1177/13621688221151046
Olivero, M. M. (2023). Teaching English in challenging situations: Interviews with those in the trenches. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2023.2171046
Palmer, D., & Martínez, R. A. (2013). Teacher agency in bilingual spaces: A fresh look at preparing teachers to educate Latina/o bilingual children. Review of Research in Education, 37(1), 269–297. https://doi.org/10.3102/0091732X12463556
Pantić, N. (2017). An exploratory study of teacher agency for social justice. Teaching and Teacher Education, 66, 219–230. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2017.04.008
Pillay, A. (2017). How teachers of English in South African schools recognize their change agency. South African Journal of Education, 37(3), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.15700/saje.v37n3a1296
Quintero-Polo, Á., Duarte-González, C., & León-Castro, A. (2022). Identity as a source of agency for transformative English language teachers. Educación y Humanismo, 24(43), 110–128. https://doi.org/10.17081/eduhum.24.43.5758
Robayo Acuña, L. M., & Cárdenas, M. L. (2017). Inclusive education and ELT policies in Colombia: Views from some Profile journal authors. Profile: Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development, 19(1), 121–136. https://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v19n1.61075
Rodrigues, L. A. D., & Duboc, A. P. (2022). Student teachers’ knowledge production processes within socially just educational principles and practices in Brazil. Teachers and Teaching, 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2022.2062719
Rostami, F., & Yousefi, M. H. (2020). Iranian novice English teachers’ agency construction: The complexity dynamic/system perspective. Asian-Pacific Journal of Second and Foreign Language Education, 5. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40862-020-00082-2
Ruan, X., Zheng, X., & Toom, A. (2020). From perceived discrepancies to intentional efforts: Understanding English department teachers’ agency in classroom instruction in a changing curricular landscape. Teaching and Teacher Education, 92, 103074. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2020.103074
Ruiz Ortega, F. J. (2022). Emociones epistémicas en la enseñanza de la argumentación en ciencias. Revista Brasileira de Pesquisa em Educação em Ciências, e39184. https://doi.org/10.28976/1984-2686rbpec2022u11671185
Satyro, D. (2022). Affectivity and agency in English teaching for youth and adult education. Revista Brasileira de Lingüística Aplicada, 22(1), 94–124. https://doi.org/10.1590/1984-6398202218360
Sierra-Piedrahita, A. M. (2018). Changing teaching practices: The impact of a professional development program on an English language teacher. Íkala, Revista de Lenguaje y Cultura, 23(1), 101–121. https://doi.org/10.17533/udea.ikala.v23n01a08
Sierra Piedrahita, A. M., & Echeverri Sucerquia, P. A. (2020). Governmental professional development initiatives for the implementation of language policies and curriculum guidelines: Secondary school teachers’ experiences, challenges and views. Íkala, Revista de Lenguaje y Cultura, 25(1), 137–152. https://doi.org/10.17533/udea.ikala.v25n01a13
Song, J., Howard, D., & Olazabal-Arias, W. (2022). Translanguaging as a strategy for supporting multilingual learners’ social emotional learning. Education Sciences, 12(7), 475. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci12070475
Svalberg, A. M. L. (2018). Researching language engagement: Current trends and future directions. Language Awareness, 27(1–2), 21–39. https://doi.org/10.1080/09658416.2017.1406490
Tarnanen, M., & Palviainen, Å. (2018). Finnish teachers as policy agents in a changing society. Language and Education, 32(5), 428–443. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500782.2018.1490747
Torres-Rocha, J. C. (2017). High school EFL teachers’ identity and their emotions towards language requirements. Profile: Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development, 19(2), 41–55. https://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v19n2.60220
Tumelius, R., & Kuure, L. (2022). Pre-service teachers’ professional vision and agency emerging in orchestrating language learning in a hybrid space. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1080/09588221.2022.2092154
van der Heijden, H. R. M. A., Beijaard, D., Geldens, J. J. M., & Popeijus, H. L. (2018). Understanding teachers as change agents: An investigation of primary school teachers’ self-perception. Journal of Educational Change, 19, 347–373. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10833-018-9320-9
van der Heijden, H. R. M. A., Geldens, J. J. M., Beijaard, D., & Popeijus, H. L. (2015). Characteristics of teachers as change agents. Teachers and Teaching, 21(6), 681–699. https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2015.1044328
Vandeyar, S. (2017). The teacher as an agent of meaningful educational change. Educational Sciences: Theory & Practice, 17, 373–393.
Varghese, M. M., & Snyder, R. (2018). Critically examining the agency and professional identity development of novice dual language teachers through figured worlds. International Multilingual Research Journal, 12(3), 145–159. https://doi.org/10.1080/19313152.2018.1474060
Wallen, M., & Tormey, R. (2019). Developing teacher agency through dialogue. Teaching and Teacher Education, 82, 129–139. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2019.03.014
Wang, L. (2022). English language teacher agency in response to curriculum reform in China: An ecological approach. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 1–18. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.935038
Watson, A., Kelly, L., Foley, J., Kneen, J., Chapman, S., Smith, L., & Thomas, H. (2022). Teacher agency in the selection of literary texts. English in Education, 56(4), 340–356. https://doi.org/10.1080/04250494.2022.2085550
Weng, Z., Zhu, J., & Kim, G. J. Y. (2019). English language teacher agency in classroom-based empirical studies: A research synthesis. TESOL International Journal, 14(1), 37–61. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ1244103
Wu, X. (2022). A longitudinal study of EFL teacher agency and sustainable identity development: A positioning theory perspective. Sustainability, 15(1), 48. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15010048
Yılmaz, A., & Söğüt, S. (2022). Language education for social justice: Reproductions or disruptions through technology. Computers & Education, 187, 104535. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2022.104535
How to Cite
APA
ACM
ACS
ABNT
Chicago
Harvard
IEEE
MLA
Turabian
Vancouver
Download Citation
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Lina Betancurt, Liliana del Pilar Gallego
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
You are authorized to copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format as long as you give appropriate credit to the authors of the articles and to Profile: Issues in Teachers' Professional Development as original source of publication. The use of the material for commercial purposes is not allowed. If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you may not distribute the modified material.
Authors retain the intellectual property of their manuscripts with the following restriction: first publication is granted to Profile: Issues in Teachers' Professional Development.
