Framing pre-service English language teachers’ identity formation within the theory of alignment as mode of belonging in community of practice

Abstract

This study investigates the identity formation of pre-service English language teachers in a multilingual setting, through examining their narratives and interviews under the lens of Wenger's (1998) alignment as a mode of belonging in a community of practice (CoP). It was found that the alignment manifested by the participants lacks negotiability and shared ownership of meaning, which inhibits them from moving towards full participation in the CoP. What eventually results in this form of alignment is a language teacher identity rife with notions and practices anchored on monolingualism, native-speaker norms, and subtractive multilingualism.