This book brings together empirical, theoretical, and reflective contributions that examine how English language teachers and teacher educators in Chile construct, negotiate, and reimagine their identities and agency within these shifting social, institutional, and epistemic conditions. It advances the field of TESOL and language teacher education by positioning Chile, a context rarely foregrounded in global discussions, as a critical site for theorizing teacher identity and agency under neoliberal and colonial pressures. It also offers an integrated framework that connects local experiences to global questions about linguistic justice, epistemic inequality, and professional transformation. By situating Chile within transnational debates on English, neoliberalism, and postcoloniality, this book transcends its national boundaries. It also examines the struggles and strategies of Chilean teachers, which mirror global challenges faced by educators in similarly stratified systems, thus making this book relevant to readers across Latin America, Asia, Africa, and other Global South regions.

This book provides conceptual and empirical insights applicable to educators, policymakers, and researchers seeking to engage with teacher agency and identity beyond Western-centric paradigms, and readers will gain a nuanced understanding of how English language teachers in a Global South context navigate, resist, and reimagine their professional roles.

Leonardo Veliz is an associate professor in Language and Literacy in the School of Education at the University of New England, Australia. He is also an adjunct professor at Facultad de Educación, Universidad San Sebastián, Concepción, Chile. His research critically explores multilingualism, multiculturalism, and broader sociopolitical dimensions of language education, with a particular interest in equity, linguistic justice, and decolonial perspectives. He has published widely in reputable academic journals, contributed to numerous edited volumes and monographs. In addition to his authored works, Leonardo has edited several influential volumes, including "Critiquing the Teaching and Learning of English in Chile: Challenges and Opportunities for Transformative Practice" (Routledge), "Multiculturalism and Multilingualism in Education" (Brill), "Reimagining Literacies Pedagogy in the Twenty-first Century: Theorizing and Enacting Multiple Literacies for English Language Learners" (Bloomsbury), and "Language Teacher Agency: Navigating Complex and Diverse Educational Contexts" (Bloomsbury), among others.

Dr. Mauricio Véliz Campos is the dean of the Faculty of Educational Sciences at the Universidad de Talca, Chile, and a researcher in Applied Linguistics and TESOL. He holds a doctoral degree in TESOL and Education from the University of Exeter, United Kingdom (UK), and has led or participated in multiple externally-funded research projects on L2 aptitude, working memory, foreign language motivation, and phonological development. His research critically examines the interplay between language aptitude, affective variables, and prosody in English as a foreign language. He has authored and co-authored numerous articles in Scopus-indexed journals and book chapters published by Brill and Springer. Dr. Véliz’s work bridges research, teacher education, and policy, contributing to more equitable and research-informed English language teaching in Chile and beyond.