The Professional Development (PD) Paradox
How Policy Shapes English Teacher Identity and Constrains Authentic Learning in Thailand
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 22048291 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Phatchara Phantharakphong (0000-0002-8682-0741, Khon Kaen University, corresponding author), INDIKA LIYANAGE (0000-0001-6459-4977, Beijing Normal-Hong Kong Baptist University) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 16 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 117 |
| Publication date | 2026-01-13 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Education Sciences (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2227-7102 • E-ISSN: 2227-7102 |
| Publisher | MDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT) |
| DOI | 10.3390/educsci16010117 |
| OpenAlex | W7123426255 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 27 |
Better outcomes in English language learning through improving the quality of teaching is a policy objective in Thailand’s school system. Mandating continuing professional development aims to support the interaction of teachers’ practice, learning, and unique individual strengths and needs in development and refinement of their identities as professionals capable of optimising learning outcomes. The study reported in this paper used data obtained in interviews with five Thai English teachers to investigate how the teachers’ understanding of participation in PD influences their conceptions of professional identity in the Thai context. We found teachers view continuing learning and development as integral to their identities as effective teachers, yet they approach PD offerings/experiences with ideas about development as a teacher that are associated with linear relations between learning and practice and with teaching as technical activity. We conclude that policy prescribing mandated PD and association of PD participation with professional status and career structures shifts understanding of PD away from the needs of teachers and learners as unique individuals. Achieving quality English teaching and learning in Thailand through PD needs to focus on the complexity of negotiating identities in local contexts and engaging teachers in identification of their professional needs
Faculty Development · Focus group · Negotiation · Professional development · Professional learning community · EFL/ESL Teaching and Learning · Innovative Education and Learning Practices · Teacher Education and Leadership Studies
Communities of Practice
A complex dynamic systems perspective on teacher learning and identity formation
Teacher Identity in Language Teaching
Conceptualizing Teacher Professional Learning
Towards a complex framework of teacher learning-practice
Teacher professional learning and development
Teacher agency and professional practice
Why do teachers vary in their instructional change during science PD? The role of noticing students in an iterative change process
Reflecting on reflexive thematic analysis
How can a dialogue support teachers’ professional identity development? Harmonising multiple teacher I-positions
Teacher educators’ task perception and its relationship to professional identity and teaching practice
Becoming a secondary school teacher
Who and how? Preservice teachers as active agents developing professional identities
Using thematic analysis in psychology
Sampling, Qualitative (Purposeful)
| Citations per year | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |