Irish Post-Primary Teachers’ Perception of Professional Identity in the Context of Educational Reform

Abstract

Abstract Stephanie Morris Irish Post-Primary Teachers’ Perception of Professional Identity in the Context of Educational Reform This empirical inquiry sought to explore Irish post-primary teachers’ perception of professional identity in the context of educational reform. Teacher identity was used as a theoretical lens to examine the perceptual make-up of teachers in relation to self- conception of identity as well as the concept of professionalism. Thus, the author’s stipulative conception of professional identity comprises two variables: the personal and the professional. The definition of identity employed in this study is in agreement with Akkerman and Meijer as an “ongoing process of negotiating and interrelating multiple I-positions in such a way that a more or less coherent and consistent sense of self is maintained throughout various participations and self-investments in one’s (working) life” (2011, p. 317). Two elements of identity are notable from this interpretation: the individual and interactions with others. Thus, identity is a perceptual construct that is situationally and socially variable where one constructs his or her identity from a subjective and social point of view. Many important questions guided the inquiry into professional identity, among them: what are teachers’ perception of professional identity? What conceptual components of professionalism are evident in teacher discourse? Is teacher identity being stress tested by educational reform? What are the central emotional themes of teachers’ lives? A mixed methods approach was employed to investigate professional identity. The research was conducted in two phases: a quantitative research phase and a qualitative research phase. The main findings show a definite relationship between the personal and professional variables that encompass individual professional identity. In addition, teacher attitudes to change uncover the affective influence of educational reform on professional identity.