Development of Professional Identity - Essay Example

Independent Research: Development of Professional Identity Name Institution Professor Course Date Part One A professional identity is not just about learning particular things but it is about coming to be a particular type of person … who can operate successfully in a changing world”. Introduction In the twenty-first century, classroom teaching places diverse demands upon people than it did over the last few decades. These demands include collegiate working, novel structures, liaison with outside agencies and augmenting utilisation of novel technologies. The twenty-first century requires a professional who can respond to rapid change and when needed, drive the change. Therefore, a teacher’s professional identity is not about learning certain things but it is about becoming a certain person. To attain this, educators require to be secure in their understanding of their place within their profession and their teaching identity as well as the place of the education profession in policy making. This essay ascertains that, professional identity is not just about learning particular things, but it is about coming to be a particular type of person who can operate successfully in a changing world. In light of this statement, the essay discusses the concept of professional identity and its connection to being an educator in the twenty-first century. Professional entails following a given occupation as a means of livelihood or for a gain while identity entails the kind of an individual one is recognised as being at a particular time. In education, professional identity describes the knowledge, values and perception of teachers and their given understanding of themselves as practitioners within their educational context. Professional identity is known as a powerful force that drives and shapes the actions and behaviours of teachers within and outside the classroom. According to Sutherland, Howard & Markauskaite (2010), professional identity is viewed as one element of multiple perspectives of an individual’s identity, the element linked with their professional status as educators. Professional identity is shaped by an individual position within the society, interactions with others and interpretations of experiences. A Teacher’s sense of professional identity is elemental to the teaching self, personal, teacher, efficacy and image. Teachers identity are not only formed from the more technical factors of teaching but is also conceptualised because of an interaction amid personal experiences of teachers and institutional, cultural and social environment in which they operate on daily. Currently, teachers are needed to comply with an ever more intrusive set of controls: over teaching methods, curriculum, management, performativity measures, predetermined targets and outcomes and requires principals to be attained in terms of professional conduct. Teachers require contributing and taking forward policy into practice if they are to promote achievement. In this view, teachers require to reclaim their professionalism to allow them to establish their identities. According to Zhu and Zeichner (2010), the teachers’ sense of professional identity is essential to teaching. One of the complexities for novel teachers is coming to a greater understanding of the range and entirety of professional identity as it applies to educators in the contemporary world. Shifts in a global scale in terms of expectations of public education necessitate educators to anticipate novel roles in an attempt to keep up with constantly diversification society, increase in access of knowledge and development of knowledge. In most nations of the world, learning institutions are now expected to satisfy functions of socialization that were once the jurisdiction of organisations, religious or family. In a rapidly changing global society, educators are experimenting with their roles and re-establishing their professional identities in relation to the contexts that surround them, contexts that are changing, sometimes in unpredicted ways. This reality can make establishment of a powerful professional identity even more intricate for the twenty-first century educators. According to Thomas and Beauchamp (2011), the development of professional identity is an dynamic and ongoing process which involves the making sense and interpretation or reinterpretation of one’s experiences and values that may be influenced by cognitive, social and personal factors. The twenty-first century teachers are not described in terms of their teaching conductor in the instructional environment only, but also the description should put into consideration their skills and knowledge, beliefs about instruction, knowledge, their identity, their professional mission and their capacity to adapt to changes and be drivers of the changes. The twenty-first century teacher must be an adaptor. Harnessed as educators are to an assessment-oriented education framework, the twenty-first century educator must be in a position to adapt the curriculum and its needs to teaching through application of digital tools. The teachers must be in a position to adapt hardware and software designed for a business model into tools appropriate for education and specifically for a diverse abilities and age group. Teachers must also be in a position to adapt to a dynamic and ever-changing teaching experience (O’Sullivan, 2008). In addition, educators in the 21st century must be able to comprehend and apply diverse learning styles. These teachers must be able to adapt their style of teaching to inclusive and different learning modes. The twenty-first century teachers must match the preferred style of learning by students. Besides, the twenty-first century teacher must understand the temperament in which professional identity and knowledge is established. The professional identity of the 21st century educator is not only based on personal values but also on novel and changing relationships, novel technologies and forms of communications, new work forms and widening gaps. According to O’Sullivan (2008), the perception of teachers about their personal selves is an essential element in establishing the manner in which they view and present their professional identities. Being an educator in the twenty-first century requires teachers to be visionary. A visionary educator can look at other individual’s approaches and ideas and determine how they can be used in a class. The educator also searches across the disciplines and curricula and establishes relationships that strengthen and value learning. According to Babione (2015), teachers much like visionary leaders must work for the betterment of self to do ones best, to serve others and community and in so doing, create a better world. Teachers should adopt novel roles in the postmodern society as they reinvent their possible-selves as teachers. Being a twenty-first century teachers requires an individual to see the potential in the web technologies and emerging tools and understand and manipulate them to serve the needs of students. In addition, being a 21st century educator requires collaboration. Educators must collaborate: contributing, adapting, inventing and sharing ideas. The role of the teacher is that of a moderator, referee and facilitator who shapes conversations, lead by example and refocus discussions. The 21st-century is also a risk taker prepared to tap into learners’ knowledge and skills. This is because the highest knowledge retention is attainable via teaching and learning from others. Being an educator in the 21st century requires teachers to absorb knowledge and experiences, and stay current. For instance, in subject areas such sciences, understanding, knowledge and technology are dynamic and fluid. They are ever evolving and changing. In this regard, educators must learn, change and adapt as landscape and horizons shifts. More so, being a teacher in twenty-first century requires teachers to be communicators who must also learn to facilitate, stimulate, control and manage communication. In conclusion, the roles that educators play in the twenty-first century are complex. This because educators must be subject experts, frequently administrators, often counsellors and leaders. Teachers must be able to adapt to the dynamic and constant changes in the twenty-first century. The professional identities of educators can be influenced by shifts in the socio-cultural and policy over a career, lives and wok. In this respect, the professional identity is not just about learning particular things; but is about becoming a particular person who can function successfully in a changing world. Professional identity is linked to the professional roles that an educator can take and how well they adapt to the different roles of educators in the ever-changing world. Part 2 In making the transition from student to teacher, pre-service teachers create their own professional identity As I transition towards graduation, I see myself as a true blend of blend of social representations. I believe that I am competent and skilfully educator with the ability to handle any challenging and changing teaching and learning environment. This is because I have developed a series of attributes for my practice with respect to pedagogy, student learning, content, classroom management and an ability to engage in reflection. In addition, my current position has been motivated by the professional identity that I have developed in the course of my education. The development of my professional identity has been a series of intertwining expeditions of different duration and with different achieved and aspired destinations. My competency and skills have not been as a result of learning certain things only, but are as a result of who I am, my identity. I have learnt to become a risk-taker, adapter, collaborator, leader, visionary, learner and a communicator. All these aspects have helped me to develop a feasible professional identity and attain my current position as a pre-service teacher. I believe that the professional identity of an educator in the contemporary world is a continuous and a vibrant process of explanation and reinterpretation of evocative experiences throughout the life a teacher’s life path and profession practice. The development of professional identity is created and recreated by social experiences. The development of my professional identity has been influenced by my position as aspiring educator the society, interactions with others and interpretations of my experiences. Interactions with teachers and learners help one to understand the requirements of the profession and focus on attaining the requirements. Interpreting and reinterpreting meaningful experiences helps one to focus on the characteristics that are essential in the changing society. My acquired skills and knowledge, the process of becoming a teacher, meaningful experiences and the art of learning how to teacher has considerably helped in shaping my professional identity. References Babione, C.(2013). Practitioner teacher inquiry and research. UK: John Wiley & Sons. O’Sullivan, K-A .(2008). Seeking the Self: professional identity and the teaching of English. Illuminations: Journal of the Arts, English and Literacy Education Research Network, 1 (1), 44 -54. Sutherland, L., Howard, S., & Markauskaite, L. (2010). Professional identity creation: Examining the development of beginning teachers’ understandings of their work as teachers. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26, 455-465. Thomas, L., & Beauchamp, C.(2011). Understanding new teachers’ professional identities through metaphor. Teaching and Teacher Education, 27 (2011), 762-769. Zhu, X., & Zeichner, K,(2013). Preparing teachers for the 21st century. USA: Springer & Business Media. Read More