Anabalon Schaaf, Rommy;
(2025)
The making of precarious female English language teachers: A sociolinguistic ethnography of ourselves.
Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).
Abstract
This thesis explores the precarisation of female English language teachers in Chilean higher education through a feminist, critical sociolinguistic, and decolonial ethnography of ourselves. Drawing on the unitary theory of patriarchy and capitalism (Ferguson, 2020), it examines how gender, class, and language intersect within a marketised university system, revealing how these undervalued and emotionally exploited teachers navigate systemic challenges tied to the reproduction of labour power. The research employs a feminist decolonial and critical sociolinguistic ethnography to investigate how teachers’ affective-discursive practices (Wetherell, 2012)—framed within the pedagogy of love—function as both a survival strategy and a form of resistance. These practices are critically situated within capitalism’s exploitation of women’s unpaid and reproductive work (Federici, 2020; Jaffe, 2021). Fieldwork conducted at a non-selective private university in Santiago, Chile, over two periods (March-July 2019 and March-August 2020) during the COVID-19 pandemic and the intervening social uprising, reveals the complexities of precarisation in daily teaching practices and broader institutional frameworks. The findings show that, despite low pay, job instability, and the devaluation of their work, the teachers resist marginalisation through love, care, and solidarity. However, these same practices also contribute to maintaining their precarious position, reinforcing traditional feminine roles. The thesis demonstrates how power operates through language and affect, with affective-discursive practices playing a key role in both resisting and perpetuating precarisation. Part one begins with Chapter 1, reflecting on the author’s journey as a female English language teacher and the shared challenges faced by other women. Chapter 2 introduces the theoretical framework, combining feminist economics and decolonial theory to analyse the exploitation of gendered labour. Chapter 3 develops a sociolinguistics of precarisation, exploring how power, affect, and language influence precarisation. Chapter 4 details the methodology, incorporating feminist, critical sociolinguistic, and decolonial ethnography. Part two begins with Chapter 5, analysing the hierarchical governance of the MU and its impact on female teachers. Chapter 6 examines the pedagogy of love, affective-discursive practices that help teachers navigate work and support students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Chapter 7 explores how these practices were intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic. Chapter 8 reflects on the continued impact of precarisation on the teachers and the author. This research contributes to debates on the intersection of gender, language, and labour, calling for recognition of the emotional and affective labour that sustains both the workforce and the educational system, while highlighting women’s vital contributions to life-sustaining processes.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Qualification: | Ph.D |
| Title: | The making of precarious female English language teachers: A sociolinguistic ethnography of ourselves |
| Language: | English |
| Keywords: | Chile, Ethnography, Higher Education, Sociolinguistics, Teachers |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education > IOE - Culture, Communication and Media |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10209087 |
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