Accidental Language Teachers: TESOL Students’ Narratives of Motivations for Entering and Continuing in the Profession

In previous survey-based research, pre-service second language teachers have reported strong intrinsic and altruistic motivations to enter the profession. This qualitative study draws on oral memoir narratives with graduate-level TESOL students to explore the ways in which they narrate their motivations for entering and/or continuing as second language teachers. Findings show that a majority of focal students describe themselves as accidental teachers who originally came to second language teaching not entirely intentionally. In addition, students’ stories reveal complex intrinsic and altruistic motivations that are sometimes in conflict with extrinsic factors perceived as demotivators. The importance of language teaching experience as a context for developing intrinsic interest in teaching is discussed, with implications for second language teacher education programs.