Professional vulnerability in adopting a CLIL pedagogy at a neoliberal restructured university in Kazakhstan

The adoption of content and language integrated learning (CLIL) practices has expanded in recent years as higher education institutions adopt a top-down English medium of instruction (EMI) language policy in the hope of entering the international knowledge market (De Costa et al., 2022; Isidro & Lasagabaster, 2019). However, research focusing on the effects of EMI policy on content teachers needing to implement CLIL, especially within trilingual contexts such as Kazakhstan, has been marginal despite drastic alterations to teachers’ professional context and expectations (Karabassova, 2022b). Such changes may result in teachers’ feelings of professional vulnerability— an emotion that often arises when changes in professional expectations and professional context disrupt one’s professional identity and pedagogical practices (Kelchtermans, 2009). Our case study focuses on the professional vulnerability experienced by a Kazakhstani in-service teacher as she negotiated a CLIL pedagogy for the first time. Relying on semi-structured interviews, recorded classroom observation, field notes, and developed material, our findings highlight how macro (e.g., societal) and meso (e.g., institutional) language policies can affect teachers’ lived experiences and pedagogical practices within their classrooms. Lastly, we provide ways in which administrators can assist teachers in overcoming professional vulnerability as institutions adopt language policies such as CLIL. Copyright © 2025 BFSU, FLTRP, Walter de Gruyter, Cultural and Education Section British Embassy.