Exploring teacher emotions in a university ESL writing classroom

Abstract

Second language acquisition research has been steadily moving towards recognizing the importance of emotions as they relate to language teaching and learning. Indeed, the language classroom - especially in the context of English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction - is often an intensely emotional place for both teachers and students. This study explores the following question: As a university ESL teacher in a writing classroom, what emotions do I experience in the classroom, and what emotional work do I put in to address these emotions? Using autoethnographic methods in my own classroom, including reflexive journals, classroom observations, and student artifacts, I examined my own emotional journey throughout a semester teaching university ESL students. Guided by both emotion labor and emotion regulation theories, I used a grounded theory approach to analyze data. In doing so, I found that the majority of negative emotions I experienced stemmed from expectations I placed on myself. In addition, I also discovered that my emotions are influenced by my reactions to my students' behaviors, and various external factors outside the classroom. I also documented the emotional work I performed in response, discovering a wide range of behaviors and reactions. The study concludes with a teacher action plan to help future ESL teachers map out their own emotions and create a successful classroom environment for their students.