1 A NARRATIVE INQUIRY INTO LANGUAGE TEACHER RESEARCH MOTIVATION IN A CHINESE UNIVERSITY

The study reported in this article aimed to understand teacher research motivation in relation to Chinese college English teachers' agency and the particular institutional contexts in which they work. Drawing on self-determination theory, particularly basic psychological needs theory, this stud...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:European Journal of Applied Linguistics and TEFL 2023-05, Vol.12 (1), p.3
Main Authors: Xun, Xiaoming, Barkhuizen, Gary
Format: Article
Language:English
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:The study reported in this article aimed to understand teacher research motivation in relation to Chinese college English teachers' agency and the particular institutional contexts in which they work. Drawing on self-determination theory, particularly basic psychological needs theory, this study adopts a narrative approach to explore teachers' research motivation from their perspectives. The findings are configured into two teachers' professional working stories, which are then discussed in terms of three needs, namely, relatedness, competence and autonomy embedded in the teachers' research motivation development. To conclude, recommendations are made to empower teachers to transit from being externally-motivated teachers to autonomous teacher-researchers. KEYWORDS Teacher research, research motivation, teacher agency, institutional contexts.
ISSN:2192-1032