Abstract
Professional teachers’ identity is a combination of instructional goals, pedagogical decisions, based on integrating their theoretical and pedagogical knowledge, values, and contextual features of their classroom (Pennington & Richards, 2016). It is a context-related concept, strictly connected to the environment (Shafiee et al. 2022), physical or virtual classroom, where the teaching process takes place. During the pandemic years the world of education experienced a dramatic change of context, teachers and students were forced to a quick transition from a face-to-face context to a screen-mediated classroom. The virtual context required an adjustment of old teaching paradigms to new scenarios, which led the teachers to question their own role and skills so far employed. Many online teaching experiments developed during the pandemic years were considered successful and are now maintained by universities and schools. In June 2020, the Foreign Languages Center of the University for Foreigners of Siena (UNISTRASI) introduced Online Italian as L2 courses, which became a steady part of the linguistic offer of the Center. Questionnaires and focus groups were carried out with teachers and students to evaluate the courses and from the data several interesting reflections emerged about the complexities of teaching a foreign language in online contexts. Starting from the gathered data from the Unistrasi experience, the contribution aims at exploring the concept of the professional identity and roles perceived by the online Italian as Second Language in digital environments. We will try to offer a more comprehensive definition and description of the different aspects and implications of teaching foreign language in digital environments answering the following research questions How do the teachers cope with, and integrate teaching, communicative and technical skills? Which roles do they need to play to be an effective Foreign Language Teacher? How do they perceive their professional identity in an online context?
Abstract Summary
The professional teachers’ identity is a combination of instructional goals, pedagogical decisions, based on integrating their theoretical and pedagogical knowledge, values, and contextual features of their classroom (Pennington & Richards, 2016). It is a context-related concept, strictly connected to the environment (Shafiee et al. 2022), physical or virtual classroom, where the teaching process takes place.
The contribution aims at exploring and defining the concept of the professional identity and roles perceived by the online Italian as Second Language in digital environments working in the Online Italian as L2 courses at the Foreign Languages Center of the University for Foreigners of Siena.
Author Information
Alice Gasparini, University for foreigners of Siena, Italy
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