“Would I Be a Good Enough Teacher?”: Dialogic Identity Development During Pre‐Practicum Experiential Learning

Language teacher professional development has lately been conceptualized as relational and situational identity work. Drawing on Bakhtinian notions of identity as dialogic, this case study explores the identity work of eight pre‐service ESOL teachers in dialogue with their students, peers, and teacher educator. Connecting this relational view of identity with commitment, the study also investigates how the identity work of pre‐service teachers was related to their commitment to teaching. The study took place in an introductory TESOL teaching methods course at a U.S. university. During the course, pre‐service teachers partnered with a university‐preparation ESL class to teach several lessons throughout the semester, and they discussed peers' lessons in real time with their teacher educator. Data included course materials, observations, written reflections, and interviews. Findings show ways that the pre‐service teachers enacted and imagined their teacher identities in response to their professor and students, as well as how these identities ultimately informed their commitment to teaching. Implications of this study point to potential benefits of early exposure to classroom experience for teacher identity development and commitment, as well as the essential role of the teacher educator in shaping pre‐service teachers' professional identities.