TEACHER IDENTITY AND AGENCY IN INTEGRATING MORAL EDUCATION INTO COLLEGE-LEVEL ENGLISH INSTRUCTION IN CHINA

Abstract

This review explores the evolving theoretical and empirical landscape of teacher agency and professional identity within the context of Language Policy and Planning (LPP). As scholarship in LPP undergoes a significant human turn, the focus has shifted from state-led structuralism toward a critical, ecological perspective that recognises teachers as primary policy arbiters. In the specific context of China’s Integrating Moral Education into College-level English Instruction (IMECEI) mandate, this transition necessitates a fundamental role reconstruction for educators from linguistic facilitators to moral guides. By synthesising contemporary research, this review identifies a persistent bifurcation between macro-policy deconstruction and micro-pedagogical description, which often overlooks the complex, lived experiences of practitioners. The findings highlight the profound discursive tensions, emotional shocks, and the curatorial burden teachers face while navigating Chinese cultural aphasia and the broader Global South struggle for cultural sovereignty. Ultimately, this review points to significant theoretical and methodological lacunae, calling for future scholarship to adopt more integrated, multidimensional perspectives to understand how identity and agency are achieved in high-stakes ideological landscapes.