Pre-Service Physical Education Teachers’ Discourses on Learning How to Become a Teacher: [Re]Constructing a Professional Identity Based on Visual Evidence

Abstract

Identity has been used as an analytical tool to capture how teachers work, learn and develop professionally. This paper takes chiefly Gee's [1] discursive notion of identity to examine the discourses that pre-service physical education teachers used about themselves and others in discussing their teaching practices in the context of their practicum training in school. More specifically, this study aims to identify and characterize the situations of concern [roles, individuals, groups, events, meanings] to the pre-service teachers when learning to be a physical education teacher and when [re]constructing their professional identity through a dialogic relation between talk and images. Nine preservice teachers from the Faculty of Sport, University of Porto participated in this study. Data were gathered using photo elicitation interview technique: photographs and videos, produced by the participants, were used as prompts for discussion in two focus group sessions [2,3]. We adopted an inductive approach to thematic analysis based on the Grounded Theory coding principles [4,5], supplemented by a situational analysis [6] to map visual discourses and construct photo-essays

Informal learning contexts in the construction of physical education student teachers’ professional identity

“…Keating et al (2017) pointed out that PETE is unlikely to change PE teacher identity unless specific identity-related interventions are embedded in the programme. Previous studies have reported that central supportive elements of PETE in professional identity formation in general include practicum (Alves et al, 2012;Da Cunha et al, 2014) and social recognition from colleagues, instructors (Alves et al, 2012;Da Cunha et al, 2014;Sirna et al, 2010) and parents (González-Calvo and Fernández-Balboa, 2018). Furthermore, students' emotions reportedly play an important role in supporting and guiding the professional identity construction process (Alves et al, 2018).…”

Mentoring PE Student Teachers in Wales: Lessons from a Systematic Review of the Literature

“…Two further core categories were identified relating to developing student teachers' sense of identity (four papers) and creating learning communities (eight papers). Relational attributes were identified as important for helping to create an environment where student teachers can be guided and supported to develop their teaching abilities, whilst developing in a learning community (Faucette and Nugent, 2012;Young and MacPhail, 2016;da Cunha et al, 2014). Albuquerque et al (2014) suggest that a supportive developmental process helps to nurture a sense of identity in the student teacher.…”

Development of the Pre-service Physical Education Teachers' Teacher Identity Scale

“…TI has been defined as a person's lived experiences and stories around dominant discourses in several areas: personal beliefs (MacDonald, 1998; MacDonald and Kirk, 1999), physical education pedagogies and learning (Wrench and Garrett, 2012), sport-related discourses (Dowling, 2011; Garrett and Wrench, 2007; MacDonald and Kirk, 1999; Virta et al, 2019), and physicality (Garrett and Wrench, 2007; MacDonald and Kirk, 1999; Virta et al, 2019). From a symbolic interactionist perspective, TI includes a set of labels and categories identified by PPETs, which are also recognized by others (Alves et al, 2012; da Cunha et al, 2014; Fletcher, 2012; Fletcher et al, 2013). Only two studies were based on theories concerning TI and action, where TI referred to PPETs' identification with the role of a teacher, which became the salient part of their selves, informing and guiding their intentions and behaviors in teaching (Faulkner et al, 2004; Solmon et al, 1990).…”

“…While the ongoing, reflexive, and fluid features of TI in a specific context have been explored in these studies, the stable, enduring, and universal features of TI have been overlooked (Keating et al, 2017). So far, only one study has investigated the characteristics of PPET-TI (da Cunha et al, 2014), which provided a detailed and rich narrative answer to identity questions such as “who am I?” and “what do I do?”(Gee, 2000). Although we acknowledge the importance of understanding how TI forms and develops, researchers first need to have a certain level of agreement on what constitutes TI.…”

“…Through a review of existing studies, we summarized the following characteristics shared among PPETs across studies. PPETs perceived themselves to be people who: (a) care for planning teaching, delivering content, and assessing students' learning (da Cunha et al, 2014; Ferry, 2018); (b) actively search for professional excellence and develop mastery of content knowledge, practical knowledge, and predominately, sport skills (da Cunha et al, 2014; Dowling, 2011; Wrench and Garrett, 2012); (c) individually and collectively reflect upon their teaching practices (Alves et al, 2012; Dowling, 2011); (d) create enjoyable experiences in physical education to help students counter risks of obesity and lead a physically active lifestyle (da Cunha et al, 2014; Ferry, 2018; Sirna et al, 2010); (e) desire to challenge stereotypical images associated with physical education and physical education teachers, and reform school-based physical education programs (Alves et al, 2019; Wrench and Garrett, 2012); and (f) actively participate in physical activities to maintain a fit and healthy body appearance (Faulkner et al, 2004; Sirna et al, 2010; Virta et al, 2019; Wrench and Garrett, 2012).…”