Forging New Paths for Language Teacher Agency: Concluding Remarks

The aim of this volume was to explore language teacher agency by examining how teachers assert agency amidst systemic socio-cultural and socio-political pressures to not only advocate for their students, but also innovate pedagogically and sustain their passion and commitment in complex and evolving educational landscapes. The volume has been structured around three interconnected themes of language teacher agency and identity, language teacher agency and practice, and language teacher agency and social justice. Chapters addressing teacher agency and identity have focused on how teachers’ sense of identity interacts with capacity for agency, presenting a dynamic imagining against a backdrop of institutional demands, personal aspirations, and cultural norms. The second theme for this volume has focused on agency and practice, exploring the multifaceted strategies employed by language teachers as they shape, adapt, and refine their practices to meet pedagogical challenges, both anticipated and unexpected. The third and final theme, focused on agency and social justice, illustrates language teaching as an intrinsically political act—one that can either perpetuate established hierarchies or inspire critical consciousness and transformative action. The narratives here traverse critical pedagogy, racial and linguistic identities, and educational equity, demonstrating both how language teachers are influenced by socio-economic and political milieus, but also how teachers can be supported to develop the agency to question and alter these realities.