Motivation and professional agency among Teacher-Bloggers: An ethnography of teachers’ digital practice in a constrained context

While research has explored teachers' use of social media for professional learning, fewer studies have examined how teacher-bloggers cultivate professional agency and motivation in digital spaces. This qualitative digital ethnography investigated 11 Iranian teacher-bloggers’ motivations for sustained engagement on Instagram through one year of observation and interviews. Findings revealed two dimensions shaping their motivation: Reconstruction involved professional agency, strategic self-branding, and emotional expression, through which teachers redefined meaning in their pedagogical and personal lives; Emancipation encompassed resisting institutional constraints, enacting professional ideals, and challenging dominant norms, reflecting a pursuit of freedom and self-determination. The study contributes to understanding teacher learning and identity in constrained contexts, conceptualizing teacher-blogging as an ecology of digital motivation and professional growth across personal and institutional levels.