CHAPTER 2: TOOLS REQUIRED TO CARVE A MASTERPIECE AROUND
2.3 THE THREE COGNITIVE PROCESSES OF SOCIAL IDENTITY
2.3.2 Social identification
According to Tajfel & Turner (1979), once a person has been categorised into a group based on his or her similarities with those in the group, then the process of identification begins. The person internalises the identity of the group, and their subsequent actions tend to reflect the acceptable norms of the group. Tajfel and Turner (1979) described how the person now openly identifies with the group and even emulates the activities of the people within the group. Similarly, Ashford and Mael (1989) explained how during this process the person adopts the identity of the group that they have categorised themselves as belonging to, and that the chosen category now determines the behaviour and action of the person. Being part of the group helps to bolster their self-esteem. There is also an emotional significance to the identification, because their self-esteem starts to become bound with the group identification and creates a sense of belonging (Tajfel & Turner, 1979). Teaching can be viewed as a social activity that allows for such social identification within a social group. This idea is supported by Cochran-Smith (2005), who described teaching as not just an intellectual or technical process, but an amalgam of sophisticated personal and social practices that encompass the whole person.
Olsen (2012) also stated that
teacher identity encourages a view of teachers both as three-dimensional individuals (with particular lived experiences that become personal/professional influences and effects) and as social beings simultaneously constrained and empowered in relation to the groups, structures, and roles in which they participate
— and even those in which they do not. (p. 1124)
I therefore resolved to adopt Rodgers and Scott’s (2008) teacher identity theory as a lens through which I could examine and understood the personal and professional identities of teachers as social beings within social groups. This theory offered me the tools to better understand teachers as a holistic being who have been influenced by their socialisation, both primary and secondary, in addition to the various contexts and circumstances that
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they have to negotiate (Tajfel & Turner, 1979). It is these experiences that they draw on as teachers to negotiate their experiences at school.
Rodgers and Scott (2008) elaborated on the concept of identity by indicating that contemporary conceptions of identity share four underlying assumptions. They noted that identity is dependent upon and is formed within multiple contexts, which bring social, cultural, political, and historical forces to bear upon that formation; that identity is formed in relationship with others and involves emotions; that identity is shifting, unstable, and multiple; and that identity consists of the construction and reconstruction of meaning through stories over time (Rodgers & Scott, 2008, p. 733).
2.3.2.1 Context as an external force influencing identity
Context has been described as an external factor influencing identity (Beauchamp &
Thomas, 2009; Rodgers & Scott, 2008). While Clandinin and Huber (2005) referred to context as previous and present environments in which teachers live and work, Coldron and Smith (1999, p. 714) spoke of context as a matter of “space and location” and the identity of a teacher as “a matter of where, within the professional pertinent array of possibilities, a particular person is located”. Britzman (2003) also viewed identity as being dependent upon the context within which one engages and participates. For teachers, these could be within their families, their social context and their school.
Context is an essential component, as context inevitably shapes our ideas of who we identify ourselves to be, and how others identify us (Rodgers & Scott, 2008). Hence, the experiences of teachers will differ depending on where they live and work, and who they are (Jacklin, 2001).
Context has the potential to influence teacher identity. A backward glance at the history of South Africa shows how context under apartheid structured the experiences of teachers within the educational landscape (Msila, 2007). Context is still vital for schooling in particular, which still experiences specific challenges due to the socio-economic legacies inherited from years of colonial and apartheid rule (Finn, Leibbrandt & Oosthuizen, 2014.
Many sectors of the population, according to Smith (2011), were and are still marginalised. They are still denied economic opportunities and quality education as a result of politics and where they are located as a result of their race (Smith, 2011). The
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contextual challenges experienced by certain race groups, brought on by years of deprivation and neglect, have the potential to impact teachers within the context of their respective school quintiles (Msila, 2007). This view was supported by Meiring, Kannemeyer and Potgieter (2018), who maintained that there is still inequality between the different race groups in terms of the unequal distribution of resources, especially for the lower classes, the majority of which is made up of Black people. Finally, while I accept that our identity is being influenced by our social surroundings and our contexts (Connell, Ashenden, Kessler, & Dowsett, 1982), I subscribe to the view that individuals can also construct and shape their own identities, that the self is created rather than inherited (Vignoles, 2017), and that one can be reflective and provide a biographical narrative of one’s subjective selves, and the journey to one’s present situation and positioning in life (Giddens, 1990).
2.3.2.2 Identity as relational and emotional
Rodgers and Scott (2008) revealed that teacher identity is relational and emotional, and that the identities of teachers are co-constructed through collaboration with others in social and cultural practices. As such, teachers within various contexts establish multiple relationships with family, colleagues, learners, parents and other stakeholders. These relationships, in turn, give rise to numerous aspects of the self and also aid in socialisation (Tajfel & Turner, 1979). However, in informing these relationships, the question of emotions is addressed, as emotions can be manifest in their relationships (Rodgers &
Scott, 2008). Therefore, over the last couple of years, there has been an increasing emphasis on the importance of teacher emotions in teaching, with particular reference to the relationship between emotion and identity (Fried, Mansfield & Dobozy, 2015; Sutton, Mudrey-Camino, & Knight, 2009). For that reason, the emotional aspect of teaching is a vital ingredient in identity formation because to have an identity, according to Gee (2001), you have to be recognised by others as a particular kind of person. Zembylas (2003) also supports the view that emotions are an essential component for identity formation.
The importance of identity as being relational and emotional has a bearing on this research. Teachers located within challenging school spaces are called upon to be more than just technical implementers of the curriculum. They are called upon to offer love and
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engage in an ethics of care, especially within contexts of deprivation and lack. This action calls into play the emotional aspect of teaching. However, while the emotional aspect is important, the relational or interactive aspect of teaching also needs consideration.
Teachers need to be seen as approachable and welcoming, especially within trying school contexts. This approach is vital in a society that is experiencing social and economic difficulties, such as child-headed homes, poverty and unemployment. For a child, the teachers who embrace them with love and attempt to understand their plight may be the only loving contact they experience.
2.3.2.3 Identity as shifting and multiple
According to Rodgers and Scott (2008, p. 736), “when teachers’ identities are shaped, at least in part, by the external forces of context and relationships, identity necessarily becomes a multiple and shifting affair, in-process and changeable”. Gee (2001) wrote that the “kind of person” one is recognised as “being”, at a given time and place, can change from moment to moment in the interaction, can change from context to context, and, of course, can be ambiguous or unstable” (Gee, 2001, p. 99). Thus identity is regarded as a continually evolving (Beauchamp & Thomas, 2009) and relational phenomenon (Rodgers
& Scott, 2008).
2.3.2.4 Identity as the construction and reconstruction of meaning through stories over time
Rodgers and Scott (2008) consider identity to be storied. They deliberated on a way to make sense of the complex construction of identity, and the solution to this conundrum was to view identity as storied. They indicated that identity is both interpreted and constructed through the stories that someone tells of themselves and others. These stories are modified and adapted depending on context, and are contingent on the relationships fostered. This is because of the dynamic, shifting and multiple nature of identity.
Teacher identity thus incorporates two features: personal and professional identities.
Teacher personal identity includes the meanings made by the teachers of life outside the school (Claessens et al., 2017). These may include the teachers’ subjective history,
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present life experiences, family and social relationships (Bolívar, Domingo & Pérez- García, 2014), the different roles they undertake (Stets & Burke, 2000), their gender and ethnicity (Deaux, 2001), and the identities that they have foregrounded in their lives (Stryker, 1980).
According to Thomas and Beauchamp (2011), teachers may also experience identity shifts in the course of their careers as a result of their interaction with others within the context of the school and also within the school community at large. These shifts and changes can be the result of factors both internal or subjective, such as emotion (Rodgers
& Scott, 2008), or external to a person, such as job and life experiences in particular contexts (Flores & Day, 2006; Rodgers & Scott, 2008). Identity is also regarded as a process that is constantly progressing and changing, and is therefore dynamic rather than stable (Beijaard et al., 2004).
The importance of exploring how teachers are called upon to teach diverse groups of learners in diverse contexts as embodied beings is an essential aspect of this study. With the dismantling of apartheid, and with the integration of schools, teachers have been faced with learners of different racial, social, economic and cultural backgrounds. A teacher who knows himself or herself will accept this integration without passing judgement on the learners (Kohn, 2005). In addition, according to Rogers (1969), instead of condemning learners (for their race, gender or class), a decent and worthy teacher will approach a learner with compassion and care. Only a teacher who is able to identify with the learners will understand those learners (McCallum & Price, 2010). Hence, when considering school quintiling and the inherited inequalities experienced by rural or township schools, teachers are called to be compassionate and to undertake actions to help alleviate the plight of those learners deemed less fortunate (Wolpow, Johnson, Hertel
& Kincaid, 2011). Only a teacher who identifies that a need exists will be able to take the necessary action. Compassion and care, especially within trying school contexts of poverty and lack, will help a good teacher to make a difference in the life of the child (Mbuva, 2016). It is, therefore, important that teachers have a positive self-concept of themselves, because how they view themselves will affect their response to their learners (McCallum & Price, 2010).
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