Exploring Queer Teachers' Professional Identity Through LGBTQ+ Inclusivity in the ESOL Classroom

Although queer issues in language education have been investigated extensively for the last few decades, there still exists a critical gap in the professional life of LGBTQ+ language teachers. Research has mainly focused on their sexual identities and practices of queer inclusivity while neglecting the fact that they are above all teachers with professional identities. As professionals, queer teachers develop unique identities and expose themselves to certain risks when attempting to introduce LGBTQ+ materials in their classrooms. This project, therefore, expects to examine this issue by exploring how LGBTQ+ ESOL teachers construct their professional identities through the inclusion of queer-related materials in their pedagogical practices. It explores the complexities of professional identity through the Identity Triangle Framework, which features three aspects: psychological, relational, and behavioural. The project is qualitative in its nature, employing Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis to analyse the data collected from teachers' journals and semi-structured interviews. The results are expected to raise underrepresented voices and bring changes to the educational sector in both Vietnam and other similar Global South contexts as well.