English language teachers’ professionalism on social media: a sociomaterial perspective

Abstract As a result of platformization, professionalism is situationally configured based on the online audience and the material aspects of social media (e.g., user interface design, algorithms, follower counts, likes, views, and shares). This dynamic configuration of professionalism presents both challenges and opportunities for redefining our understanding of teacher professionalism. Using a sociomaterial theoretical framework, this study explores how professionalism is defined and perceived among English teachers active on Instagram. We collected qualitative data from 14 English language teachers who actively engage in branding on Instagram. The analysis focused on the teachers’ perceptions of and responses to the emerging notion of professionalism shaped by the material conditions of the platform. Our findings indicate that teachers’ traditional perceptions of professionalism – centered primarily on educational credentials and research-based pedagogical knowledge – were challenged by the new configurations of professionalism afforded by Instagram’s material features. Confronted with these shifting definitions, the teachers negotiated and adapted their teacher identities and professional practices within the social media environment. The study highlights the dynamic and contextual nature of professionalism in the age of platformization. It shows how Instagram’s material affordances, such as algorithms and engagement metrics, interact with social constructions of professionalism, leading to a redefinition of what it means to be a professional teacher.