The Construction of Teacher Identity: an analysis of school practicum discourse

As schools implement language‐other‐than‐English (LOTE) programmes in response to government policy, increasing numbers of overseas born and educated people satisfying the proficiency requirements in Asian languages have recognised the potential for employment in education. They have been, and will continue to be attracted to teacher‐education courses. This paper is part of a case study which examines the experiences of two Chinese‐born and educated postgraduate students on a three‐week practicum in separate Melbourne secondary schools. The study focuses on the students’ relationships with their supervising teachers; and from the perspective of critical‐discourse analysis, it compares the ways in which the students are positioned and the identities which are constructed for them by their supervising teachers. The study raises concerns about the possible existence of racist discourse within schools and the implications for teacher education.