Language teacher education through social activity: the cultural-social-historical perspective from Brazil to the BRICS

This article analyses how language teacher education in Brazil can be reimagined through the lens of cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT), addressing broader educational challenges shared across BRICS countries for social transformation (Tanzi Neto, 2021). Drawing from a Critical Collaborative Research (PCCol) (Magalhes, 2007; Liberali, 2012) project with five English teachers in Technological Higher Education, the study proposes Social Activity (Liberali, 2009, 2025) as a central curricular principle in the teaching-learning of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) (Hutchinson Waters, 1987; Valente Ribeiro, 2023; Diegues, 2025). It seeks to answer the following guiding question: How can language teacher education in Brazil - when grounded in Social Activity and cultural-historical principles - contribute to culturally responsive and socially transformative pedagogical practices within BRICS contexts? To explore this question, a series of reflective workshops was conducted with English teachers at a Technological Faculty in So Paulo (FATEC-SP), Brazil. Based on participants local realities, the workshops aimed to foster critical pedagogical reflection and collaboratively develop teaching practices that meaningfully respond to the sociocultural contexts of their students. Findings reveal that a reflexive, collaborative approach to teacher education - deeply rooted in teachers lived experiences and social demands - enhances professional agency, intercultural awareness, and reconfigures teacher identity. The Brazilian case study highlights potential pathways for BRICS nations to resist instrumentalist, neoliberal educational paradigms and to adopt transformative, contextually grounded language education practices.