An Investigation of Turkish EFL Teachers’ Perceptions of Professional Identity

Abstract

Teacher professional identity molds teachers’ interpretation of their roles, educational reforms, changes in curricula, classroom practices, use of methods and techniques, and their relation to other significants in the educational context. From this point of view, this study aimed to find out Turkish EFL teachers’ perceptions of professional identity in relation to their commitment to ‘student needs’, ‘school issues’, and ‘personal growth and development’. This research also attempted to explore whether there was a significant difference in terms of teachers’ perceptions of professional identity according to various variables. The data were gathered from 200 EFL teachers. In this mixed method research, Teacher Professional Identity Scale and semi-structured interview questions were used to collect data. For quantitative data, descriptive, inferential, and correlational statistics were used while content analysis was carried out for qualitative data. The results unearthed that Turkish EFL teachers had a very strong professional identity and were mostly committed to personal growth and development, student needs, and school issues, respectively. Moreover, it was found that female teachers had a stronger identity and were more committed.