Journal of ELE Praxis

Journal of ELE Praxis, Volume 3, Issue 1, 2026, 72-89

Publication date: Nov 05, 2026

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This paper explored how women English language teachers construct, negotiate, and reflect on the professional growth. Teaching is not just a 9 am to 4 pm job but a continuous process of reshaping and renovating identity through social and cultural interaction. In the Nepalese context, women English language teachers faced unique challenges because of political and social factors that shape their professional identities and career trajectories. I adopted narrative inquiry as a research method to examine the lived experiences of women English language teachers and conducted in-depth interviews with the participants to understand how their identity evolves through personal stories, professional practices, and interactions within schools. Data were analyzed and interpreted using Saldana’s (2013) coding framework, which helped us identify patterns. The findings showed that women English language teachers experienced that identity was a complex and dynamic process that was highly shaped by the socio-cultural context. The participants revealed that feelings of marginalization among less senior women teachers were a result of political favoritism and gender discrimination in accessing senior positions, recognition, and decision-making power. I also observed intra-gender discrimination: discrimination between two women English language teachers due to power and jealousy. This study contributes to the broader discourse on teacher identity, gender, and professional empowerment, emphasizing the need for suitable institutional policies and supportive environments where women teachers thrive and flourish.

identity construction Narrative inquiry socio-cultural environment

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The author acknowledges the support and encouragement received from family, supervisor, mentors, and research participants. 

 AI Declaration

The author used ChatGPT (open AI) to receive ideas regarding language refinement.

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