Investigating the Contribution of Blogging Interactions to Preservice English Language Teachers’ Reflection and Construction of Teacher Identity

The purpose of the study was to investigate the contribution of blogging to preservice teachers’ reflection and construction of teacher identity. A blog tool was integrated in the Teaching Practice course in order to address the need for more interaction caused by limited in-class hours. An action research study was carried out in two cycles, in the fall semesters of 2011-2012 and 2012-2013, with a total of 15 preservice teachers studying at the Foreign Language Education Department of Eastern Mediterranean University. Data comprised semi-structured interview reports and preservice teachers’ blog posts (i.e., teaching practice lessons reflection blog entries, movie critiques, final reports and comments). Frequency analysis was conducted to find out about the preservice teachers’ blog participation. The results show that all the preservice teachers in the first cycle took part in the blogging by posting the required blog tasks. However, since participation was on voluntary basis in the second cycle, not all participants posted their blog tasks. Preservice teachers’ interactions with one other on the blog were found to be at different levels. A number of hindering reasons such as lack of participants’ familiarity with and attitudes towards the blog tool, perceived adequacy of written expression, and group dynamics were discovered. An adapted framework was used to reveal the levels of reflections in preservice teachers’ teaching practice lessons reflection blog entries. The results indicated that most of the participants’ reflections were at descriptive level which included their feelings and teaching practice experiences. It should be noted that only a few participants linked these to theories and elaborated on their future plans for improvement. Possible-selves theory guided the analysis of data to understand the contribution of preservice teachers’ blogging interactions to construction of their teacher identity. According to the results, sharing reflections on teaching practice experiences and reflecting on various teacher characteristics influenced how they shaped their concepts about qualities of good teachers. This in turn led to the emergence of expected and feared possible selves. Preservice teachers mostly articulated what kind of teacher they expect to be and avoid becoming, in the areas of interpersonal relationships, instructional strategies and classroom management. Little emphasis on professional qualities was stated. Based on the results, more structured scaffolding and training on reflective practices were proposed. Also, integration of professional qualities into instruction of formal education courses was suggested to promote professional qualities of teachers. Keywords: preservice teachers, blogs, reflection, teacher identity construction, possible-selves theory