Peace, emotion labor, and language teacher identity in times of war: The stories of two Ukrainian English university teachers

Abstract

Abstract The purpose of this interview‐based study was to explore the experiences of two university teachers who fled war‐torn Ukraine and currently reside in Poland. We collected the data through two individual interviews to illustrate the dynamism and complexity of the participants' language teacher identities (LTIs) and emotion labor when striving for inner and interpersonal peace, using positioning theory as a theoretical framework. Findings show that in response to the forced migration, the participants continuously strived for inner and interpersonal peace, which is an indispensable element of their language teaching practices. The participants' longing for inner and interpersonal peace needs to be understood as a dimension, reflecting the multilayered, complex nature between peace and tensions. Further, data reflected that participants' longing for inner peace directly shapes their emotion labor and language teacher identities. The manuscript ends with a discussion of the findings by referring to the concept of well‐being in language learning and teaching.