6533b856fe1ef96bd12b2455

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Language teacher identities as socio-politically situated construction: Finnish and Brazilian student teachers’ visualisations of their professional futures

Maria Ruohotie-lyhtyAnne Pitkänen-huhtaRodrigo Camargo AragãoRodrigo Camargo Aragão

subject

05 social sciences050301 educationIdentity (social science)Student teacherTeacher educationEducationSituatedPedagogy0501 psychology and cognitive sciencesSociologySociocultural evolution0503 educationFutures contract050104 developmental & child psychologySocial statusQualitative research

description

Abstract The process of envisioning the future is central to teachers’ identity construction, but different environments create distinct sociocultural conditions for the process. This qualitative study drawing on visual-textual methods compares Finnish and Brazilian student teachers’ desired and feared professional futures. Two different perspectives on future identities were detected: a desire for status and a desire for meaningfulness. The results revealed the radically different social status of teaching in the two countries and the role this played in the envisioned identities. The study highlights the importance of awareness of the socio-political nature of identity construction in developing teacher education.

yearjournalcountryeditionlanguage
2021-04-01Teaching and Teacher Education
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2020.103270