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Teachers in the U.S. are facing a growing crisis of job satisfaction and public trust, with only about a third reporting high satisfaction, according to Pew Research. Post-pandemic shifts—ranging from changes in funding to the rapid adoption of digital tools—have made teacher identity and agency critical to the profession’s future. These concepts, while underexplored in U.S. policy discussions, are essential to understanding how educators navigate their roles and challenges today.
Professor Suxian Zhan, Chair of the Academic Committee at the School of Foreign Languages at Tianjin University of Science & Technology (TUST), Tianjin Municipal Discipline Leader, and Tianjin Key Discipline Leader, has dedicated her career to researching these themes and their role in teacher professional growth. Her latest book, Research on the Relationship Between Teacher Identity Recognition & Agency in the New Era, explores the complex relationship between identity and agency, offering fresh perspectives on educational reform. Drawing on interdisciplinary methodologies, Zhan’s emphasizes the urgency of creating supportive environments that empower teachers to meet modern demands with confidence and purpose.
Understanding teacher identity & agency
Teacher identity refers to how educators perceive and define their role within the educational ecosystem. It evolves over time, influenced by personal experiences, professional challenges, and societal expectations. “A robust teacher identity contributes to resilience and professional satisfaction, enabling educators to persist in a very demanding career,” explains Professor Zhan. Conversely, a fragmented or unstable identity—and even identity crises—can undermine effectiveness and lead to burnout, one of the profession’s most pressing challenges according to RAND.
Teacher agency, on the other hand, is the capacity of educators to make meaningful decisions and shape their practices in professional lifelong learning, teaching, and research. Agency empowers teachers to innovate, advocate for their students, navigate systemic challenges, and pursue professional growth. “These two factors are deeply intertwined,” Zhan notes. “A strong teacher identity empowers agency, while active agency reinforces and evolves identity.”
Despite their significance, discussions around teacher identity and agency are often sidelined in discussions focused on student performance and resource allocation. Zhan’s research aims to change that focus, demonstrating how prioritizing teacher identity and agency can lead to better outcomes for both educators and students.
For educators: building supportive educational ecosystems
Zhan’s book highlights the importance of cultivating conducive ecosystems that nurture both teacher identity and agency. At TUST and Baoding primary schools in the Hebei Province, she has demonstrated the transformative power of professional learning communities (PLCs), which provide collaborative spaces for teachers at various levels of schooling to reflect, innovate, and grow in the context of curriculum and educational reform.
“Teaching is a communal act, but many recent policies don’t seem to take this into account,” she argues. “PLCs provide a safe space to co-develop solutions, reinforce their sense of purpose, and enhance their collective responsibility for student learning. And they’re urgently needed today.”
Zhan emphasizes that these communities are also valuable in helping educators adapt to technology’s growing role in the classroom. While digital tools could disrupt traditional teaching practices, she sees their potential to foster connection and innovation when implemented thoughtfully. Her own curriculum integrates online learning tools and massive open online courses (MOOCs), demonstrating how technology can complement traditional teaching methods and provide both teachers and students with rich learning resources to explore, synthesize, and tailor to their individual needs.
For policymakers & administrators: practical implications
Professor Zhan’s work extends beyond theory to offer practical insights for stakeholders. She advocates for reflective practices and emotional intelligence training to help teachers manage identity crises and strengthen agency. “Educators shouldn’t feel alone in their challenges,” she says. “They need platforms that allow them to collaborate, share these experiences, and learn from one another.”
For administrators, Zhan stresses the importance of professional development programs tailored to the diverse needs of today’s teaching workforce. These initiatives should prioritize mentorship, skill-building, the cultivation of agency, and offer a sense of collaborative belonging—ensuring teachers feel supported and valued.
Policymakers, meanwhile, are urged to adopt a more humanistic approach to educational reform, with a focus on providing resources and infrastructure that enable teachers to thrive. “Teachers must be central to policy decisions,” she asserts. “When educators are empowered, the ripple effects can benefit entire schools and communities, and most importantly, our students.”
Leading the way in U.S. and global education’s next chapter
As the new Editor-in-Chief of the Language and Communication Quarterly academic journal, Professor Zhan is poised to bring her globally recognized expertise to U.S. academia. Her decades of research into teacher professional development, identity, and agency provide an invaluable foundation for addressing the challenges facing American educators today.
Zhan’s contributions to the field have earned her numerous accolades. From receiving the National Study Abroad Scholarship from the China Scholarship Council and the Macquarie University International Research Scholarship from Australia, to earning titles such as Outstanding Returned Overseas Chinese in Hebei Province, Famous Teaching Master in Baoding, and the Outstanding Contribution to Education Award at TUST in 2023, Zhan’s career exemplifies an unparalleled commitment to advancing education. Her ability to bridge diverse cultural and educational contexts offers unique opportunities for U.S. institutions to benefit from her global perspective.
Academia’s call to action
As educators and policymakers navigate the complexities of the post-pandemic academic landscape, Zhan’s research offers a roadmap for addressing the challenges ahead. Her findings encourage institutions to rethink their approaches to teacher development, urging them to honor the nuanced interplay between identity and agency. “Investing in teachers is investing in the future of education,” Zhan concludes.
Readers can explore these themes further in her book, Research on the Relationship Between Teacher Identity Recognition & Agency in the New Era: An Empirical Study Based on the Professional Growth of English Teachers in Tianjin Universities, available now from the Beijing Institute of Technology Press.
