Thank you for your reflective and humorous comment, Paul! Your analogy about choosing favourite animals as a metaphor for self-awareness and identity resonates nicely with our concept of teachers’ “becoming” or evolving professional identities. Indeed, just like your third animal, teachers’ lived experiences often challenge and deepen how they view themselves and their roles. It’s always a pleasure to see how ideas connect in unexpected yet meaningful ways!

Thanks so much for your wonderful comment, Laura! It’s fantastic to hear that our post resonated deeply with your research. We’re thrilled to see how closely our ideas align, and we foresee exciting avenues for interdisciplinary research that we could explore together. We’d love to hear more about your ongoing work exploring non-native language status and professional identity. Let’s definitely stay connected!

Let’s not forget number 3, Laura. As I approach my 173rd birthday I’m reminded of that old parlor game back in the day when Britannia ruled the waves and waived the rules. ‘Twas quite a special game in that it’s possible to play it only once with complete honesty if one is really and truly true to oneself.

Name your 3 favorite animals.
Number one and two usually come to mind rather easily but number 3 often brings on some reflection, which is because, say some psychologists from those halcyon days, that the characteristics of number 1 reveal the way we see ourselves and the characteristics of number 2 demonstrate how others see us while the characteristics of number 3 personify the reality of the person in question