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CHAPTER 2

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

2.1 Introduction

2.1.1 Science Content Knowledge

Research into „alternative conceptions‟ over several decades has provided a wealth of

information into the ideas held by people about natural phenomena.31 This alternative

conception research suggests that many erroneous ideas held by school pupils are also

held by their teachers (and other members of the public). If teachers‟ ideas are at odds

with scientific theories, mistakes held by pupils will not be rectified and erroneous ideas will

be perpetuated. I believe that it is part of my teaching responsibility to remediate

erroneous ideas where possible. For this reason, I include in methods courses, a

„diagnostic test‟ of the knowledge of selected scientific concepts held by student teachers.

In this thesis, I report on the erroneous ideas initially held by the students participating in

the study.

I am aware that the philosophical underpinnings of cognitive constructivism are very

different from those of, for example, situated learning which is referred to in this thesis. I

firmly believe, however, that it is essential to gain some inkling of what a person

understands about science concepts before one can comment on that person‟s science

identity. According to Wenger (1998) what one learns influences identity. In this way, as

we learn science we learn that we can (or cannot) do science. Learning that we can do

science is the ideal situation but it is not always achieved.

For similar reasons, I investigate the self-efficacy beliefs about science knowledge and

science teaching among the student teachers participating in this study.

2.1.2 Self Efficacy and Outcome Expectancy

Bandura (1977) posited the self efficacy construct, which is a useful frame of reference to

describe teacher attitudes particularly in terms of specific situations. Self-efficacy is a

31

Many educationists who conduct such research rely on cognitive constructivist theories to provide explanatory weight.

In this chapter, I mention both science content knowledge and self-efficacy and outcome expectancy of student teachers in the construction of their science teacher identities. I then argue that these two constructs are insufficient in explaining and comparing the identity development of a group of people so diverse in numerous ways. A case for a nexus of learning theories is then made, pointing in particular towards situated learning theory, communities of practice and cultural studies. The nature of identity is theorised with particular reference to the work of Etienne Wenger (1998).

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person‟s belief or perception in his / her own ability to achieve certain results. It follows,

therefore, that this belief determines whether or not a certain line of action is pursued by

the individual holding the belief. Self-efficacy, according to Bandura, is context-specific,

which means that a person‟s self-efficacy may be high in certain situations and low in

others. Results from research into primary teachers‟ perceptions of science teaching

would suggest that in general, primary teachers have low self-efficacy beliefs about

teaching science. (Gunning and Mensah 2011: 172). Self-efficacy is not static and will

alter as the context of a task alters. Teacher educators, then, are charged with the

responsibility of changing the self-efficacy beliefs of the student teachers they mentor. In

this particular context of science teaching, self-efficacy is composed of two distinct

dimensions:

a person‟s belief in his/her own ability in a specific situation [personal science

teaching efficacy - PSTE]

a person‟s belief that a certain course of action will result in a desirable outcome

[personal science teaching outcome expectancy - STOE]

According to Bandura (1997), self efficacy may be enhanced in a number of ways. These

are:

Mastery experiences which are successes encountered by individuals through

their active participation.

Vicarious experiences which are characterised as successes by „social models‟

with which participants identify.

Social persuasion which involves verbal and non-verbal expressions of support.

Stress reduction involving the elimination of obstacles and negative experiences.

Brand and Wilkins (2007: 304)

If these concepts are applied to the preservice science teacher situation, mastery

experiences occur when the student teachers themselves engage in successful science

teaching. These occasions may well take place when student teachers are engaged in

micro-teaching activities with peers during methods courses. Closer to reality, however,

mastery experiences would occur during actual science teaching practice32 at real schools,

with real intermediate phase children in real situations33. For this reason, both the

methods course and the school teaching experiences are investigated in my study.

32 In this case the word „practice‟ takes on a specific meaning - practice as in a community of practitioners. 33

The concept of situated learning will be explicated in section 2.2.2.2.

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Vicarious experiences, in the present context, occur when student teachers observe

successful science lessons. These lessons may be modelled by the lecturers responsible

for presenting a variety of courses; by the supervising teachers in the schools to which the

students are assigned or by their peers when presenting particularly successful lessons.

Verbal persuasion depends on interaction between students, between students and

supervising teachers and between students and mentors. Personal experience suggests

that science-diffident students need constant reassurance that their ideas and efforts are

valued and that they do have the capacity to understand and teach about science

concepts. Stress reduction appears to depend on the previous three factors, where a

„cycle of success‟ is entered, each positive experience reinforcing previous ones and

paving the way for those which follow.

Because self-efficacy is a situation-specific construct, measurement of self-efficacy

requires situation-specific instruments. Riggs and Enochs (1990) developed an instrument

to measure science teacher efficacy beliefs i.e. the Science Teacher Efficacy Belief

Instrument (STEBI). Later in 1990, the instrument was adapted for use with preservice

primary teachers, and is referred to as the STEBI - B. (Enochs and Riggs, 1990).

Therefore, the notion of self-efficacy is used to help explain certain behaviors of the

student teachers as they engage in the practices of science teaching.

2.2 Selecting Theories of Learning

2.2.1 Cognitive and psychological theories

As I have mentioned, I consider content knowledge of vital importance in the teaching of

science concepts, particularly in the area of erroneous ideas or misconceptions. I have

also indicated that self-efficacy, as outlined by Bandura (1997) is influential in the teacher‟s

role of delivering content or constructing knowledge. However, I suggest that these two

constructs are, by themselves, insufficient when considering the science teacher identities

of a group of students whose languages, cultural practices and socio economic standing

are widely diverse. To include these and other modifying factors, other theories should be

considered.

2.2.2 Beyond Cognition

In 1992, Michael O‟Loughlin presented an epistemological critique of Piagetian

constructivism and its variants, bringing together various issues and concerns raised by a

number of critical theorists. The major criticism to emerge from O‟Loughlin‟s work centres

on the subjectivity of the learner and the socio-historical nature of meaning making. When

one considers a child / learner as an epistemic subject only and restricting questions to

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those like „What do you know about . . .‟ there is a tendency to forget or at best to sideline

the social and cultural roots of that same thinking and knowing. Henry Giroux (1994: 7)

expresses his ideas like this:

“In this context, pedagogy deepens and extends the study of culture and power by

addressing not only how culture is produced, circulated and transformed, but also how it is

actually negotiated by human beings within specific settings and circumstances.”

Shorn of the cultural context, the subject, according to Kang In-gu, (2002: 3) her/himself

becomes, like thoughts, an abstracted unity, with „no social class, sex, nationality, culture

or personality‟. For Paulo Freire, (1989) abstraction is in itself a source of mystification

and oppression because the subject (learner) learns to place value on the idea, rather than

on its social production. Following the argument, if all emphasis is placed on content

knowledge, social conditions are taken for granted, and no means is sought to change

them for a more just and equitable society.

As far as natural science teaching and learning are concerned, the social conditions

mentioned above could refer to the notion (for example) that working class individuals

cannot do science. If ideas of this nature are taken for granted and never challenged,

societies will continue to struggle to open the doors of science and science teaching to all

citizens.

Lerman (2000:36-38) suggests that the biggest challenge for educational researchers is to

„develop accounts that bring together agency, individual trajectories and the cultural,

historical and social origins of the ways people think, behave, reason and understand the

world‟. He goes on to suggest that the unit of analysis be extended from „person-in-

practice‟ to „person-in-practice-in-person‟. These comments resonate with several aspects

of this research which investigates student teacher trajectories in social and cultural

contexts while bearing in mind the individual identities of the participants. At the same

time, attention is paid to both agency and structure. Although the existence of structural

factors cannot be denied, they can be altered by people acting of their own volition. In

other words, and pertinent to this study, social structures may inhibit the development of a

science identity but it is possible that human agency could enable this development in

different ways.

Driver, Asoko, Leech, Mortimer, and Scott (1994:11), undertaking a clarification of different

perspectives of learning science, assert that there are both social and individual elements

in learning and remark that „. . . although learning science involves social interactions, in

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the sense that the cultural tools of science have to be introduced to learners we have

argued that individuals have to make personal sense of newly introduced ways of viewing

the world.‟ Similarly Cobb (1994) argues that mathematics learning is 34both a cognitive

reorganisation and a participation in a social and cultural activity. I make reference to

both social interaction and individual cognition because I believe they cannot easily be

separated. It is to the socio cultural model of learning that I now turn.

2.2.2.1 The Socio-cultural Model

Of the theorists in this paradigm, one of the most influential is Vygotsky. Social interaction

is at the centre of his theories of learning and development. His view is that learning

arises from interaction between rather that exclusively within persons. Through the use of

cultural signs - especially language - social factors are central to cognitive development.

For Vygotskians, it is essential to examine pedagogy in context. In sociocultural theory,

the unit of analysis is the co-operative i.e. social activity or event, whereas for Piaget, the

unit of analysis is the individual.

One way of describing this social event is by considering a dyad. Such a unit may consist

of two people - a learner and one other, a more able peer, a teacher, mentor or parent.

Through the interaction of these two, meaning is socially constructed and knowledge is

created. In this scenario, the teacher and learner are seen as equal partners in meaning

making. Consciousness, in other words, is socially constructed.

Still on the idea of a dyadic relationship, some of Vygotsky‟s key constructs need to be

explicated. One of these is the zone of proximal development (ZPD). Officially the ZPD is

explained as the distance between one‟s actual capabilities, tasks performed alone, and

one‟s possible capabilities, tasks performed with help. Examine again the dyadic unit of

analysis. Vygotskian theory considers a child learning to do new things, with the help of an

adult or more able peer. The zone, then, represents the future and the space, the arena,

where learning takes place. The more able member provides a bridge, lends a helping

hand, or in Vygotskian terms, scaffolding, so that the learner moves across the zone - now

able to accomplish more demanding tasks.

Scaffolding is important when one considers learning which takes place in a social setting.

The metaphorical scaffold provides cognitive and other support to the pupil. The pupil

gradually learns new tasks, assisted by others. If a person is constantly interacting with

her environment (human and other elements) the zone seems to be pushed outward as

more and newer boundaries are formed. „Old‟ ZPDs are left behind as our knowledge and

34

The emphasis is mine in both cases.

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abilities are extended. Learning then, precedes development. To put the matter

differently: development takes place as a result of learning which occurs in a sociocultural

setting.

Our best teachers35, then, are those who push us without deserting us, providing more and

more complex challenges thereby extending the outward limit of the ZPD and helping us to

develop further as we learn. It should be noted how different this explanation is from the

Piagetian perspective. For Piaget, development (or a certain stage thereof) must occur

before learning occurs. For Vygotsky (1978), learning fosters development and there is a

dialectic relationship between development and learning - one spurring the other.

Common understanding of the ZPD is that it represents the „space‟ beyond what one can

accomplish at present. If the task is too easy, new abilities are not fully structured and no

development takes place. If the task is too difficult, it is possible that the learner will revert

to rote memorisation if applicable. It seems that teachers, during interaction with learners,

need to shift to and fro, finding „the space‟ where shared meaning is located. Further

discussion regarding the nuanced meanings of the ZPD is beyond the present scope.

Finding „the space‟ leads to another vital concept of Vygotskian theory, and that is the

notion of intersubjectivity. Meaning is constantly negotiated and renegotiated by the

protagonists in a sociocultural setting until mutual understanding is reached. Teachers,

learners, mediators must shift understandings until they are „on the same page‟ or

„speaking the same language‟, to put it informally. Wertsch (1984) provides an example of

a child learning arithmetical manipulations during a dialogue with the teacher, to illustrate

the point. At each step, the child offers a suggestion, to be validated by the teacher and,

validation achieved, further progress is made.

For student teachers, learning to teach science, the situation is similar. They are very

likely to enter a methods course with views about science teaching which are not

compatible with current theories. These views are also likely to have been instilled there

by their own school science experiences. As Michael Hayes (2002:147) suggests „. . .

new teaching practices, such as inquiry, demand that preservice teachers engage in a

(much more) difficult process of reconceiving their roles and identities as teachers.‟ In

other words, student teachers are now obliged to renegotiate meaning, shift understanding

and move beyond their current thinking into unchartered realms. They are required to put

aside old views and embrace the new and unfamiliar. Not only are they required to teach

35

Our best teachers also provide appropriate scaffolds

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science confidently, they are required to teach science in a learner-centred way.

Hopefully, these difficult adjustments are affirmed and mediated by the teacher educator.

Mediation, too, is a key Vygotskian concept. Mediation occurs through the use of tools or

signs, especially language. These signifying systems help one to apprehend one‟s

environment. In a formal educational setting, let us assume that the „environment‟ is a

textbook. The good teacher-mediator uses appropriate signifying systems (signs,

language, pictures, anecdotes and examples) to mediate between the learner and the

incomprehensible. In so doing, the teacher-mediator is also providing a type of scaffold.

However, for Vygotsky (1975), the learning experience does not end here. Learning

occurs on two planes, the intersubjective and the intrasubjective. Intersubjectivity was

discussed previously, where one considers two or more persons engaged in the

negotiation of meaning. Having accomplished this negotiation, the learner or mentee

internalises what has been learned, holding an internal dialogue with herself or himself. In

other words, speech is turned inward becoming a manifestation of thought. The

implication is clear. A person is first a social being, then an individual.

The ideas of Vygotsky hold great sway, because the system takes cognisance of the social

as well as the cultural. Vygotsky‟s insistence on the examination of pedagogy in context

means that a child's development cannot be understood by a study of the individual only.

We must also examine the external social world in which that individual life has developed.

Following Cole (1997), I would argue that, as a logical extension of this view, investigation

of the historical context is also essential. For this reason, I examined in detail the

backgrounds of the case-study participants in this research. Social worlds and social

structures do not arise in a vacuum but as a result of historical processes.

Macdonald (2002) following Vygotsky, goes on to explain that the higher mental functions

are created in the acts of knowing and learning. Her work with English second language

children learning science through the medium of English has provided invaluable insights

for many of us interested in meaning-making and intersubjectivity in the teaching and

learning of science. Scaffolding, intersubjectivity and other Vygotskian precepts are

engaging, too, because their value in classroom practice is evident. Other educationists

agree, as illustrated below.

According to Tharp and Gallimore (1988: 6-7) „This view [the sociocultural perspective] has

profound implications for teaching, schooling, and education. A key feature of this

emergent view of human development is that higher order functions develop out of social

interaction. „Through participation in activities that require cognitive and communicative

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functions, children are drawn into the use of these functions in ways that nurture and

“scaffold” them‟. Kublin et al. (1998: 287) succinctly state that „Vygotsky (1934/1986)

described learning as being embedded within social events and occurring as a child

interacts with people, objects, and events in the environment‟.

In sociocultural theory, the unit of analysis is the co-operative i.e. social activity or event,

whereas for Piaget, the unit of analysis is the individual. Many of Vygotsky‟s ideas are

played out in everyday good classroom practice, possibly in situations where the teacher

has not heard of Vygotsky, but simply functions by instinct. Good classroom practice and

the theories behind it are taught and practiced in the methods course as described in

chapter one. As McGinn and Roth (1999) put it, standard textbooks, cookbook laboratory

activities and lectures are insufficient for participation in a technological society and that

school science should provide the springboard for legitimate peripheral participation36

for citizens in a number of everyday activities, not necessarily formal science activities. I

would like to take the argument one step further and suggest, by paraphrasing McGinn

and Roth (ibid), that science teaching methods courses should provide the springboard for

student teachers to participate in a number of science teaching activities which enable

them to move from peripheral positions closer to the centre of the practice.

For the purposes of this research, I refer to the socio cultural model in a specific way. In

considering the written science histories of the student teacher participants, I speculate

that if no scaffolding is provided, no participative discussion is allowed, no social

interaction takes place during the early years of science learning a non science identity

could develop. By this I mean that out-of-date teaching methods like copying notes from a

text in silence and rote memorisation could all too easily lead to a pupil‟s alienation from

science. Similar comments are made by Ewing (2004) drawing on insights from research

with students claiming non-mathematical identities. However, I have added an historical

dimension to the socio-cultural because a person‟s history in part defines identity.

Supporting the use of multiple theoretical frameworks when considering identity,

Grootenboer, Smith and Lowrie, argue for a nexus between 3 dominant views of identity in

the literature, namely the psychological, socio-cultural, and post-structural. I have not

used precisely these 3 frameworks, but I have used those which are appropriate to my

study. These are situated learning, cultural studies and socio-historical cultural theories. It

should be noted that although these views of identity are discussed separately; there are

positions where they overlap. This overlapping will be referred to again later in this thesis.

36

This concept was introduced in chapter one and will be dealt with at some length in the following section, Situated Learning.

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2.2.2.2 Situated Learning

Before discussing situated learning theories themselves, it may be useful to discuss their

metatheoretical underpinnings, and to do that, one needs to look at where Jean Lave and

co-workers are „coming from‟. In 2002, Lave and McDermott present a terrifying

comparison between capitalism and education. By paraphrasing Marx, they illustrate just

how the education system can reproduce the relations of production. Of greater interest to

the present discussion is the strong suggestion that formal education is an ideal site for the

creation of alienated identities. From the foregoing brief introduction, it can be inferred that

Lave is extremely critical of formal education as it stands, and seeks for viable alternatives.

One of these alternatives appears to be „situated learning‟, to be understood as learning in

situ where the situation is not necessarily a school or university. Rather it is a place where

participants in a practice meet and conduct their common practice. Lave and Wenger

1996 (and others, variously) discuss apprenticeship-type learning to illustrate what is

meant by „participation in a practice‟. The participation concept is easy to understand in

the contexts they describe which involve types of apprenticeship.37 In other words, they

discuss learning in specific situations. Similarly, Rose (1999: 153), in discussing the

education of a group of physical therapists, remarks, „The situational framework has

pushed us to think hard about the ways learning is narrowly conceptualised and

measured.‟ In other words, we educators need to extend our notion of learning so that it

encompasses all aspects of the learner‟s identity.

The student teachers participating in this research also learn in specific situations. These

situations include:

general methods courses which they attend in their first year of study and other

(non-science) methods courses which they attend in their second year of study

natural science methods courses which they attend in their third and possibly fourth

years of study

practical teaching experiences which they undergo at schools during each of their

undergraduate years

au pair and tutoring work they undertake after university hours38

37

Examples provided include tailors, non-drinking alcoholics, butchers and others. 38

This voluntary work is not undertaken by all students but I mention it for the sake of completeness

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For Lave and Wenger (1991: 98), the context for learning is crucial. An important concept

they use is community of practice. They define a community of practice as „a set of

relations among persons, activity and the world over time and in relation to other,

tangential and overlapping communities of practice.‟ We can visualise science teachers,

primary teachers and primary science teachers as belonging to „tangential and overlapping

communities of practice‟ with some commonalities but also with several different common

goals. The participants in these communities will have different identities but with

something in common. In other words, they are all teachers, but they teach different

disciplines, different communities of pupils and at different levels.

Brown, Collins, and Duguid, (1989: 212) discuss learning as a process of enculturation,

insisting that learning activities must be authentic; that is „situated in the ordinary practices

of the culture‟. Authentic activities for student teachers would include teaching a class of

pupils, arranging an outing and preparing learning materials. I would argue, therefore, that

student teachers who engage in these authentic activities - and their learning-about-

teaching - are in fact situated in a practice no less that their counterparts in the practices

described by Lave and Wenger (1991).

2.2.2.3 Communities of Practice

After two years of studying to be a teacher many, if not most, students who continue their

studies have adopted, perhaps unknowingly, some of the behaviours of members of a

community of practice. At this stage, the community of practice is student teaching or pre

service teaching, possibly apprentice teaching. Yager et al. (2008: 9), with reference to

their research with student teachers, consider this type of community a „quasi community‟,

having „. . . no experts handing down practice over time‟. I believe it is rather more than

that because lecturers at the university, supervising tutors and supervising teachers at

schools are „old timers‟ and do model practice as I shall indicate in the next few

paragraphs.

Moreover, during their undergraduate years, student teachers are taught about educational

theories, curriculum, various disciplines and they are taught about teaching. In all of these

endeavors, they are taught by other teachers who may be positive or negative role models.

At times, this teaching is very explicit – unlike the tacit form favoured by Lave and Wenger

– but at other times the teaching is implicit.

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To change the description of their education now from the passive to the active voice, I

suggest that that they also learn something. In the lecture halls they may learn by

example.39 They may learn the best and the worst ways to teach but they may not always

appreciate the differences between these ways. Duguid (2005) cites the case of a child

whose family was visited by a „great musician‟ who was to teach the child music. The

author comments that musical knowledge was not learned the way the musician intended,

but the child gained much by „stealing‟ knowledge from the musician. Theft, in this case,

was accomplished by watching, listening and trying to emulate the musician in diverse

settings or situations. By watching the musician playing his instruments and feeling his

involvement with his music the child was able to understand and perhaps appropriate the

social practice of playing music. Does the same happen with student teachers? Whether

it does or not, I contend that learning-to-teach40 is located in the practice of teaching or of

being taught.

Furthermore, student teachers demonstrate in various ways, indicators of mutual

engagement, joint enterprise and shared repertoire which are, according to Lave and

Wenger (1991) and Wenger (1998), three dimensions of a community of practice41.

Mutual engagement is demonstrated by the ways the students work within and between

groups as they discuss and complete assignments and other tasks with each other. They

also telephone and email each other with information or questions. This type of

engagement is obvious both during term time and during teaching experience at schools.

In both these spheres mentioned above, student teachers engage with the practice of

learning to become a teacher by fulfilling, at least in part, the requirements for qualification.

On a more social level, they may wear items of clothing with the name of the institution and

year of study affixed. Sometimes they plan birthday surprises for each other and visit

class members who are ill, providing assistance with work which was missed. They „do

things together‟ (Wenger 1998:73).

Their joint enterprise involves negotiating with lecturers and course presenters as to the

extent and time frame of work the courses demand (Yager et al. 2008). They develop

accountability to each other, in varying degrees, in terms of work time, university demands,

free time and individual „space‟. Although the enterprise is a joint one, the term does not

imply that individuals and their coping strategies are identical. By their very diversity the

39

notwithstanding misconceptions about what entails good teaching as outlined by Rusznyak 40

for good or ill 41

These dimensions are summarised in diagram format in Wenger 1998: 73.

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students contribute in individual ways to the success of the enterprise42. In explicating the

concept of a joint enterprise, Wenger (1998: 78) refers to „. . . daily practice with its mixture

of submission and assertion‟. Submission by an individual to an imperative is not of one‟s

own volition, whereas the word „assertion‟ does imply an active agent. Therefore on this

occasion, I take the terms submission and structure to have the same meaning. Similarly,

I take assertion and agency to be synonymous. Therefore, Wenger‟s remark, quoted

above, is taken to refer to the dialectic between agency (submission) and structure

(assertion). The whole, if performed in a concerted way, helps make the complexity of

one‟s situation manageable.

A shared repertoire is strikingly evident in speech and action. Their developing

„vocabulary about education‟ is used with increasing confidence as time passes and as

they gain access to the discourse and its concepts. They are aware that their listeners, if

members of the same community of practice will understand what they are saying.43They

use terms like „RNCS‟, „special needs‟, „ADD‟, „scaffolding‟, „notional time‟, „prep‟, „lesson

plan‟, „unit of work‟ and others with some authority. In addition, having spent two years

together, they share knowledge of historical events, stories, tools and artifacts.

At this point, I have simply argued that student teachers in their third year of a four year

degree are in the process of developing a young community of practice or joining an older

one. For this reason, I also argue that using a community of practice framework is

appropriate when discussing student teacher identities in this context. Following Wenger

(1998), I use other concepts, such as engagement, imagination and alignment44, to

analyse the ways in which student teachers participate (or not) in the developing

community of practice.

I have argued further that a primary teacher identity is quite obvious in most of these third

year intermediate student teachers. A stated purpose of this research is to investigate the

science teacher aspect of these primary teacher identities. I use primary teacher as a

starting point and then during natural science methods courses used as context, I examine

developing (or otherwise) primary science teacher identities.

42

The enterprise in this case is becoming a teacher. 43

This point about discourse is taken up at a later stage when the concept of identity is elaborated 44

These concepts are explained later in this chapter.

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Therefore, for the purposes of this research, I consider that involvement in the methods

course45 and teaching in real schools during a practicum is a legitimate form of

participation; sometimes peripheral and sometimes more central. Furthermore, student

teachers, as they learn about teaching from „old-timers‟, belong to a community of practice,

and are offered opportunities to move from peripheral to more central positions. In the

same way that learning about science contributes to a science identity, learning (by

doing) about science teaching will contribute to a science teaching identity46, which may or

may not be a positive one.

2.2.2.4 Cultural Studies

The field of cultural studies has its origins in literary criticism (Johnson 1983) and later in

the 1970s in sites such as the Birmingham School for Cultural Studies in England and

elsewhere. As an interdisciplinary field, it draws its insights from a variety of sources such

as political economy, critical theory, sociology and cultural anthropology. Johnson (1983:

41) refers to cultural studies as a „vigorous but fragmented field of study‟. However, the

notion of class structure and class struggle are central to the field and further issues of

race and gender are raised. The field includes the constructs of ideology, interpellation47

(Althusser) and hegemony48 (Gramsci) as well as cultural (and economic) reproduction

and resistance. Cultural studies proponents seek to explain the ways in which social

phenomena are formed, retained and contested.

Within cultural studies emerged two paradigms (Hall, 1980), those of culturalism, giving

primacy to agency and structuralism, giving primacy to social structure or power. Wenger

(1998) refers to these two paradigms, somewhat obliquely, in his explication of his social

theory of learning which is located at the intersection of two research traditions. Modern

(and postmodern) versions of cultural studies acknowledge the dialectic between the two

and concede that „men (sic) make history . . . under conditions not of their making‟ (Marx

1852). In a critique of postmodern cultural studies, Katz (1997: paragraph 48) postulates

that „The logical consequences of the prevailing tendency in cultural studies are therefore

the replacement of classes by “identities” as the agents of social transformation‟. I would

argue that identities are certainly influenced by, and can influence, the class structure and

other social formations.

45

Details of these courses appear in chapter one where it will be seen that students are required to carry out certain teaching tasks at these times. 46

I am aware that Lave and Wenger do not include schooling in their discussion of situated learning. 47

Interpellation is a concept having a meaning similar to being „hailed‟ or „called‟ in such a way that a response is inevitable. 48

This term has been subjected to much debate but, in brief, it refers to a situation in which a particular way of life in a society is dominant and held that way by the interdependent factors of force and consent (Sassoon 1982:94)

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Schools and schooling are part of society and social processes. It is in educational

institutions that cultural practices (of distinct groups) play a significant if silent role. The

middle classes, according to Bernstein (1996) use schooling as a means of perpetuating

their own position in society. In chapter one of this thesis, I asserted that it would be

difficult to understand the science identities of student teachers without knowing something

about their cultural, historical and class backgrounds. In similar vein, Henry Giroux (1994)

provides cogent reasons for an analysis of schooling within a cultural studies framework.

He points out that cultural studies „. . . challenges the ideological assumption that

educators are professional, scientific and objective‟ arguing that „ . . . teachers always work

within historically and socially determined relations of power.‟ Further he points to the

relevance cultural studies has in illuminating the ways in which identities are produced in

various contexts, including schools.

In South Africa, past and present, schools have indeed functioned as „Ideological State

Apparatuses‟, with varying degrees of repression and coercion. Those not subscribing to

and those not part of the dominant culture are interpellated in quite different ways from the

ways in which those of the dominant culture are interpellated. In like manner, the

unquestioning acceptance of the alleged superiority of mathematics and the physical

sciences needs to be understood in the context of cultural practices and hegemony.

For the purposes of this research, I have taken a broad view of culture as a set of social

practices within whole societies and sub-sets thereof. One‟s cultural practices – language,

religion, ethical standpoint - affect identity. Similarly, in analyzing the critical incidents and

conversations of student teachers, I have drawn on sociological critiques of race, class and

gender politics which influence identity in multiple ways.

As can be seen from Figure 2.11, I have suggested that these three theoretical outlooks

are linked to identity formation and sometimes to each other. The following paragraph

attempts to articulate these inter-connections.

Learning is a socio-cultural activity involving inter-personal interaction, sometimes

between pupil and teacher. Being a teacher is part of who one is or part of one‟s identity

and learning to become a teacher is situated in the practice of teaching, learning and

education as a whole. Understanding the different pathways to science teacher identity

and the constraints under which some students struggle requires insights derived from the

broad field of cultural studies.

- 44 -

The central concept in the framework is of course, identity. Research pertaining to identity

is dealt with at length in the Literature Review. At this stage, I shall outline several basic

precepts to give coherence to the theoretical underpinnings of this work.

2.3 Identity

In this section, I shall discuss one main aspect of identity in the literature, namely the views

of several theorists on the nature of identity, in other words, what identity is. In the

following chapter, i.e. the Literature Review, I shall discuss reports by researchers and

theorists on work conducted with respect to identity construction and authoring.

2.3.1 The Nature of Identity

This thesis deals with the construction of student teachers‟ science and science teacher

identities. Knowledge about the world and one‟s place in the world contribute to one‟s

identity. Knowledge about the world of science and science teaching therefore contribute

to one‟s science and science teaching identity. The idea that knowledge, and therefore

learning is situated in a community of practice has been articulated by Lave (1996), by

Lave and Wenger (1991), and by Wenger49 (1998). The focus is on the person-as-a-

member-of-a-community of practitioners from the viewpoint of the community-in-the-

person. This point is more than semantic restructuring. The point being made is that the

knowledge, the learning, the community is part of a person‟s being – in short, part of one‟s

identity. Wenger‟s (1998) notion of the components of learning is a useful departure point

at this stage.

2.3.2 Wenger‟s Views

2.3.2.1 Identity and learning

As can be seen from Figure 2.1, learning may be envisaged as consisting of four

components, viz. meaning, practice, community and identity.50 These are defined as

follows:

1 Meaning is a way of talking about our ability to experience the world as

meaningful. This statement implies that as we learn, our appreciation and understanding

of the world are heightened. Thus we are able to bring greater significance to our

experiences. Ideally, as student teachers learn about science and how it is taught, their

understanding of science education is enriched and they see greater significance in what

49

It should be noted that I have drawn heavily on insights from Wenger (1998) to inform this work. Therefore I have quoted from him quite extensively. 50

I am aware that Graven (2002) has indicated that confidence, as a component, should be included in the scheme, but I shall retain Wenger‟s four component diagram of learning as an organizing framework. Following Cakiroglu and Boone (2002) I shall group science teaching self-efficacy beliefs (in other words, confidence) and conceptual understanding together, and refer to these outside of Wenger‟s framework.

- 45 -

happens in science classrooms. They could also start to understand how science

classroom „happenings‟ contribute to the learners‟ identity.

2 Practice is a way of talking about shared historical and social resources,

frameworks and perspectives that sustain mutual engagement in action. In other words as

we learn, our actions and our practices become embedded in our ways of thinking and

doing. In fact, actions and practices become part of our selves and our identities. In this

way, community activities affirm and reinforce each other. Ideally, in the case of primary

teachers, much of their science teacher development will be obvious in the way they

handle their science lessons while on teaching experience, for example. Their actions or

practice (handling science apparatus, explaining scientific concepts, assisting less

experienced participants) will become part of themselves and their identities. Also ideally,

as time passes, their actions influence the community of primary science teachers for the

better. In this way, the community influences and is influenced by the developing member

of that community.

3 Community is a way of talking about the social configurations in which our

enterprise is defined and our participation is recognisable as competence. This statement

suggests that as we learn, our participation in a community becomes more sharply

focused. Our contribution to the community is of some consequence because by the very

act of participation, we transform the community. Ideally, as student teachers learn to

become primary science teachers, they participate more actively in the activities of the

community. They develop a sense of belonging and their contributions are valued and

Community

Identity Practice

Meaning

Learning as

belonging

Learning as

becoming

Learning as

experience

Learning as

doing

LEARNING

FIGURE 2.1 Components of a social theory of learning (Wenger 1998:5)

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valuable. This sense of belonging contributes to a positive identity in terms of that specific

community.

4 Identity is a way of talking about the ways learning changes the people we are. By

this we can understand that as we learn, we become a different person. Possibly we

become more competent, more confident and more aware. In subtle ways, aspects of our

identities change. Ideally, for primary student teachers, their identities expand to embrace

the identity of primary science teacher. They become primary science teachers, or more

modestly, teachers of primary science. The distinction between these terms (following

Graven 2002) was outlined in chapter one. At this time in South Africa, it is not policy to

appoint dedicated science teachers for the intermediate phase.

As Wenger (1998) has indicated, the four components of learning which he identifies are

intricately tied with each other so that when one component is brought into focus, other

components are, of necessity, subsumed within that analysis.

From the perspective of this study, it is envisaged that the student teachers, as members

of a community of learning-to-become-primary-science-teachers

negotiate meaning as they participate in processes of „making, designing,

representing, naming, encoding and describing‟. (Wenger, 1998 p. 59.)

participate in the practice of science teaching both during their methods course

and during practice teaching in schools

are de facto members of a community of practice51 (or more accurately, several

intersecting communities of practice/s)

gain experience of themselves and their changing identities as they become (or do

not become) more competent in the science classroom.

2.3.2.2 Identity and society

Wenger (1998) explains how he locates his social theory of learning at the intersection of

two main axes of intellectual traditions as shown in Figure 2.2. In the figure, the vertical

axis deals with theories of social structure and theories of situated experience. The poles

of this axis correspond loosely to the „two paradigms‟ of cultural studies and are explicated

under that heading. Theories of social structure provide insights into varieties of social

formations and how practices arising from these social formations affect our lives – almost

at an unseen level.

51

The construction of the community is my responsibility to the extent that when designing the course, I aim to structure a

community of practitioners. However, participation (or otherwise) in this community must be the student teachers‟ decision.

- 47 -

Theories of social structure interrogate taken for granted practices which are underpinned

by i.a. relations of class, race and gender. An extremist view, giving primary to structure,

norms and rules, may contend that we are powerless functionaries in a pre-ordained

theatre with no individual agency or ability to rewrite the script.

FIGURE 2.2 Two main axes of relevant traditions (Wenger 1998:12)

At the other end, theories of situated experience or agency provide explanations about

how rules are changed or subverted, how norms shift and how persons, resisting the

dominant structures, act of their own volition and write their own stories. In any case, this

axis forms a backdrop to Wenger‟s work while the horizontal axis is the one which deals

with theories of social practice and theories of identity. It is this horizontal axis with which

Wenger‟s work is mostly concerned and to which I now turn.

Theories of social practice provide insights into everyday social and cultural activities like

going to work, school or a place of worship, among others. These theories therefore

provide some insights into what we do in social settings, how we dress and how we speak.

Some theorists elucidate the ways in which these practices are embedded in social and

historical contexts and also in relations of class. Highland (Scottish) dancing, for example,

serves as a reminder of the Scots‟ struggles for independence, the right to wear traditional

dress and to speak Gaelic. In South Africa, too, the wearing of traditional dress and the

bearing of traditional weapons has been a site of struggle for many years.

Theories of identity, at the other end of the horizontal axis, provide a framework for

understanding the formation and construction of the person. Of course, issues of class,

SOCIAL

THEORY OF LEARNING

Theories of social structure

Theories of identity

Theories of situated

experience

Theories of practice

- 48 -

race and gender among others, are addressed and acknowledged as having influence on

identity. In this case, however, it is the multifaceted identity of the individual which is

considered. It is to be understood that this identity is not formed de novo, but is formed

and reformed in social settings.

Wenger further refines the picture by adding diagonal axes as seen in Figure 2.3. In this

figure, identity theory is placed between power and subjectivity. Power (of socio

economic and political structures) and subjectivity (of the agent) are dialectically engaged

in identity construction, deconstruction and reconstruction. Identity is also influenced, as

previously argued, by what is learned and how it is learned.

2.3.3 Other views of Identity

In recent years a social theory of learning (taking cognisance of identity) as a unit of

analysis has been taken up by science education theorists such as Helms (1998), Olitsky,

(2007) and Varelas, House and Wenzel (2005) among others. The concept of identity is

complicated because diverse researchers define and use the concept in different, although

not mutually exclusive, ways. Several of these ways will be outlined below before I

attempt to clarify the way in which I will use the concept in this thesis.

For instance, Len Holmes (2002) has considered identity in terms of the extent to which it

is claimed or disclaimed by the identified and others (persons whom we could consider as

identifiers). As can be seen from Figure 2.4, identity, for Holmes, depends not only on how

we view ourselves but also on how others view us. It is the intersection of these views

Theories of social structure

Theories of identity

Theories of situated

experience

Theories of practice SOCIAL

THEORY OF LEARNING

Theories of collectivity

Theories of meaning

Theories of power

Theories of subjectivity

Theories of identity

Theories of situated

experience

Theories of subjectivity

FIGURE 2.3 Refined intersections of intellectual traditions (Wenger 1998: 14)

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which, for Holmes, highlights the „resultant‟ identity. It is clear that a state of conflict arises

when we are in disagreement with those around us in terms of understanding who we are.

FIGURE 2.4 Holmes' views of identity

If we claim for ourselves an identity which is negated by others and/or the figured world

which we inhabit, such identity is described as having „failed‟ as pictured in Zone 2.

Similarly, Zone 3 illustrates an imposed identity affirmed by others yet disclaimed by the

individual him / herself. Zone 1, an area of „indeterminate identity‟ demonstrates the result

of an identity disaffirmed by both the individual and by others. In this case, one is

described in terms of what one is not. This view of identity in terms of what one is not is

entirely congruent with Wenger‟s (1998:164) point that „non-participation is, in a reverse

kind of fashion, as much a source of identity as is participation.‟ However, it is

indeterminate because it is not clear who or what one is. A more settled state exists when

the identity claimed by the individual is also affirmed by others as shown in Zone 4. Mutual

affirmation of this kind is likely to reduce both internal and interactive conflict. However, it

would be destructive and defeating if the claimed and affirmed identities were couched in

negative terms like „stupid‟, „horrible‟, „ugly‟, „worthless‟. Finally, in Zone X, there exists an

undefined and uncertain „grey area‟, where a particular identity is neither claimed nor

disclaimed, neither affirmed nor denied.

Claimed by individual

Disclaimed by individual

Affirmed by others Disaffirmed by others

ZONE 1 Indeterminate Identity

ZONE 3

Imposed Identity

ZONE 4 Agreed Identity

ZONE 2

Failed Identity

ZONE X Underdetermined

identity

- 50 -

The student teachers participating in this research show either one of the personal

responses (claiming a science identity) or the other, being quite adamant in their

disclaiming of an unwanted science teacher identity. When a student claims a science

identity which is strongly disaffirmed by teachers and others, a conflicted state could well

arise. Later, when citing case studies, I shall illustrate how structural issues as well as the

statements of others influence these claimed or disclaimed identities.

According to Sfard and Prusak (2005) a major role in one‟s identity construction is played

by identifiers or, as they put it, „significant narrators‟, because these are the people for

whom the identified has great respect. For students of any age these people could well be

teachers, supervisors, professors. I shall return to this point when students‟ science critical

incidents are discussed. Sfard and Prusak (ibid) locate identity construction within

discourse, and refer to identities as stories or narratives about persons. These stories may

be told by the identified and about the identified by others. The critical incidents and other

remarks of the student teachers discussed in this paper illustrate the notion of identity

negotiation as narrative particularly well.

Identities may be seen as designated (future) or actual (present). Ideally, the experience

of learning (as becoming) should enlarge, not limit, the range of possible designated

identities. For some student teachers whose experiences are reported here, possibilities

were indeed limited. Tucker-Raymond, Varelas, Pappas, Korzh, and Wentland (2007:

561) define identities as multi modal narratives and assert that because identities are built

up over time, ’as interlocuters we can help construct experiences and possibilities for

identity’. Teachers and teacher educators, therefore, have some responsibility for the

construction of these possibilities. Tucker-Raymond et al. (ibid) assert that from an early

age a scientist identity is a distinct possibility for some children but an unlikely scenario for

others. Such seems to be the case with many of the primary student teachers participating

in this research.

Gee (2001) considers identities in yet another way. For Gee, one‟s identity has

components i.e. the nature (N) component, the institutional (I) component, the discourse

(D) component and the affinity (A) component. These components function together and

are not mutually exclusive. In other words, we embody these four different components at

once. Thus one can be a female (N) student teacher (I) who has leadership qualities (D)

and is a Rastafarian (A). Figure 2.5 illustrates this idea in diagram format. However, some

aspects of our identities may be fore grounded at certain times and back grounded at

others, so that we are recognised as certain kinds of persons depending on circumstances

- 51 -

and audience, time and place52. In a science classroom, one‟s science learner / teacher

identity would usually be fore grounded. In fact, when visiting schools, our Rastafarian

students cover, tie back or remove their „dreadlocks53‟ However, in any learning situation;

various aspects of one‟s identity come into play, influencing and being influenced by the

fore grounded identity54.

There exists some commonality among the ideas of Holmes (2002), Sfard and Prusak

(2005), Gee (2001) and Tucker-Raymond et al. (2007) as outlined above. The verbs they

use such as claim / disclaim; affirm/ disaffirm (Holmes); stories and narratives (Sfard and

Prusak); are recognised (Gee); multimodal narrative (Tucker-Raymond et al.), imply some

sort of discursive practice. Indeed, Gee (2001:112) refers explicitly to a discourse identity

and comments „I cannot make sense of anything or interpret anything without a language

or other sort of representational system within which to do so.‟

These views of identity just described, all have descriptive power and also contain

common and overlapping elements. It will be noted that from time to time, I refer to these

identity theories when discussing student behaviours. However, I rely on Wenger (1998)

to a greater extent, because of the concepts of engagement, imagination and alignment.

52

These subtle identity revelations at different times are not due to deliberate falsehood, however. It is simply that certain

aspects of the conglomerate of identities are more or less obvious at different times. 53

„Dreadlocks‟ are the colloquial name given to the long twisted locks of hair favoured by many Rastafarians and others. 54

I am aware that in many cultures, identity is not as individualistic as portrayed in this thesis. However, I am working within a western view at present and will not attempt to discuss others.

FIGURE 2.5 Gee’s Identities

AFFINITY DISCOURSE

INSTITUTIONAL

NATURE

- 52 -

These concepts are particularly valuable when one examines the ways in which the

student teachers shift (or otherwise) between identities, because of the subtle differences

between them. When one considers identity as being and becoming, the notion of

trajectory also provides explanatory value.

2.4 Identity and Discourse

In line with Sfard and Prusak (2005), Holmes (2002) and Gee (2001), I consider identity

negotiation to be partly constructed in discourse. With Wenger (1998), I believe that

narrative is crucial in the construction and alignment of identities. However, like Wenger

(1998) I believe that identity is more than narrative or story. Identity is constituted by the

past and the present and projects into the future. It is the lived experience of acting and

participating (or not) in communities of practice.

Identity is built up of fragments of everyday experience in cultural practices, fragments of

memories of speech by and about ourselves, fragments of interactions in our communities

of practice and fragments of inner thoughts and inner dialogue. These fragments arise in

part from our human agency and from the social structures which both bind and release

us.

If identities are indeed partly constructed through language, the implications for students

who are working in languages other than their mother tongues could bear even more

scrutiny. This point is relevant for the academic identities of many participants in this

research who are not first language English speakers. It should also be noted that

although English is the language of learning and teaching in South Africa, it is not the

language of the majority. As Maulucci (2008: 38) has pointed out, „Language acquisition

and appropriation in science are nested in issues of cultural reproduction and domination,

raising important questions about the hegemony of science and science language’.

Similarly Atwater, (2000) argues that intersections between race, class, gender, language

and religion should be considered when issues of identity are raised (emphasis mine).

Calling on personal experiences, Dhingra (2008) and Moore (2007) separately illustrate

how English second-language speakers may be marginalised in Anglophone societies.

Brown, Reveles, and Kelly (2005) propose the construct of discursive identity remarking on

the power of language emphasising that it acts as a marker of superiority (or otherwise).

They suggest that we (as speakers) select genres of discourse with the knowledge that

others will interpret the discourse, affirming the speaker‟s right to belong to a specific

cultural group. Lave and Wenger (1991:105) also refer to the role of language suggesting

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that „learning to become a legitimate participant in a community involves learning how to

talk (and be silent) in the manner of full participants‟.

In South Africa (and elsewhere) we are concerned not only with language proficiency but

also with accents as a sign of cultural capital. While a foreign accent (French for instance)

may seem delightful, to some listeners, a local (African or Afrikaans) accent is not seen to

be high on the class scale55. Student teachers of African (Black) origin face enormous

difficulties when speaking in English in front of their peers or when on Teaching

Experience in front of groups of English-speakers.

In this thesis, I shall point to the responsibility of significant narrators in the construction of

identities. I shall also compare the ways in which student teachers affirm or disaffirm

designated identities.

2.5 Identity as Being and Becoming

From what has been argued previously, it should follow that identity is not static and

immutable. Identities are dynamic, in a state of flux and are subject to influences from a

variety of sources (Jang 2004). Varelas, House and Wenzel (2005) raise the notion of

conflicting „multiple identities‟ among science teachers and Enyedy, Goldberg and Welsh

(2006) also stress the complex nature of identity as they report on the experiences and

identity challenges faced by two very different teachers as they implement a new

curriculum. In the first chapter of this thesis, I outlined the changes in curriculum in South

Africa and suggested that the demands these changes make will cause many teachers to

engage in identity work. Emphasising the possibility for changing identities, Holland et al.

(1998: 281), remark that „remembered stories, recreations of one‟s story – can be used

purposively to redirect one away from negative experiences in science to interpose new

actions and to cast oneself as a new actor in a new social play.‟ This point resonates with

the notion of „mastery experiences‟ as a means of enhancing self-efficacy.

Holland, Lachicotte, Skinner and Cain (1998) introduced the concept of figured worlds as

„socially and culturally constructed realm[s] of interpretation‟. Figured worlds function as

contexts of meaning which distribute people – often unequally – and in which new

identities can be formed. Identity is formed through participation (or not) in cultural

practices – and science identity is at least partly formed during participation (or not) in

science teaching and learning. In an environment where a student‟s science ability is

questioned or negated, the student would develop an idea of a science world where s/he

55

This well-known „accent prejudice‟ is referred to, mockingly, in a humorous publication by Simon Kilpatrick (2010).

- 54 -

must be excluded. To put it differently, the student would „figure‟ out who s/he is and who

s/he must be in relation to science and to other people.

Reconstruction of a negative science teacher identity into a more positive image takes

work and courage on the part of the individual as s/he becomes a different person.

Therefore science educators and science teacher educators are given important

opportunities when confronted with pupils / students with negative science identity

perceptions. An „interlocutor‟, identifier or „significant narrator‟ is placed in a strong

position to help effect a change in identity

In this thesis, I shall discuss the construction and reconstruction of science teacher

identities by pre service primary teachers. It is emphasised that this particular professional

identity is influenced by, i.a. primary teacher identity and science student identity. I shall

refer to the power-agency dialectic, locating these both in social structures (Hird 1998;

Wenger 1998; Eick and Reed 2002) and in persons.

However, that is not to deny the crucial role played by discourse, in the ways we talk about

ourselves and in the ways others talk to us and about us. Other influences contribute to

the whole, not always obvious at first sight. For example, as Moore (2008) contends,

ethical background or religion may play a part in the authoring of identity. In this thesis, I

shall illustrate the different ways in which some student teachers integrate (or not) their

science identity with their religious / ethical allegiances.

It will be recalled that Wenger (1998: 5) constructs a strong argument for learning as

(being and) becoming; in other words for learning as a change in identity. It is to Wenger‟s

theses that I now return.

2.6 Returning to Wenger

The views of identity outlined thus far offer very useful frameworks to help us understand

some of the various aspects of identity which are found in the discourse at present. From

time to time in this thesis, I shall refer to these in discussing student teacher identities

formed and in formation. However, when attempting to explain some of the details of how

and why students participate (or not) in various practices, I find Wenger‟s constructs of

participation and trajectory, among others, most useful.

- 55 -

2.7 Identity as Belonging

Wenger (1998) identifies three distinct modes of belonging to a community of practice

when considering identity formation and learning. These are

engagement(for example forming and being part of a community)

imagination (for example generating scenarios of other possible worlds)

alignment(for example directing and focusing energy to a common purpose)

Wenger (1998) elucidates these ways of belonging which I have summarised below:

Engagement

This way of belonging is evidenced by active involvement in mutual processes of

negotiation of meaning including:

ongoing negotiation of meaning

formation of trajectories

unfolding of histories of practice

shared histories of learning

relationships

interactions

practices

These take place through each other and contribute to a mode of belonging. There is an

essence of mutuality in engagement where persons interact with others, within and outside

the community. This type of engagement gives rise to communities of practice which

strengthen over time. Engagement has a bounded character in time and space because

there are limits to what we can do. In the case of the student teachers discussed in this

thesis, an indicator of engagement could be deliberately choosing to teach natural science

in preference to all other options56.

However, engagement can be narrow. Its power to sustain identity as a practitioner in a

particular community can lead a person to develop „tunnel vision‟ or to become insular and

isolated. Thus border crossing and boundary work could be minimised or even excluded.

In identity theory, the term „border crossing‟ refers to the crossing of borders or boundaries

between communities of practice. A „boundary‟ trajectory is represented in diagrammatic

format in Figure 2.10. An example of such crossing could be a language teacher who

participates in technology projects, thus linking, by his/her participation, two apparently

diverse interests. It will be noted that this example has similarities to Gee‟s identities.

56

Indicators are drawn from the data and will be explained later in this thesis.

- 56 -

Imagination

In the context of belonging, imagination is not a flight from reality, but the ability so see one

self in other contexts or imagined worlds. Possibly this mode of belonging foresees a

trajectory in diverse ways including:

creating images of possibilities

creating images of the world

creating images of ourselves

recognising images of past and present

recognising own experience in broader patterns

balancing a delicate act of identity, playing with participation and non-participation,

inside and outside, actual and possible.

In the case of the student teachers discussed in this thesis, an indicator of imagination

could be envisioning oneself teaching a science lesson to a class of children where one

could see the children and environment „in the mind‟s eye‟. To the imaginer, the scenario

is a distinct possibility. On the other hand, not many of us „see‟ ourselves traveling in a

spaceship.

However, imagination can involve stereotypes by projecting onto the world assumed

(rather than actual) practices. For instance one could assume that to be science teacher

one must wear dowdy clothing57. Such unsubstantiated assumptions can remove one

from reality and leave one in a kind of vacuum.

Alignment

As a way of belonging, alignment is broad in scope, involving a person in

discourses

styles

compliance

complexity

coordinated enterprises

becoming part of something big

a scope of action writ large unlike imagination and engagement

fitting oneself into broader structures (demand of employer or government)

directing and controlling energy

57

Such stereotyping is discussed fully in the Literature Review under Drawings of Scientists and Science Teachers.

- 57 -

A student teacher, for example, could direct her energy towards adopting the style and

discourse of „outcomes-based education‟ thus becoming part of the new curriculum

movement.

However, alignment can involve power in a destructive way, where adherents simply

conform to demands made on them allowing identities to be crushed. Using the example

of the new curriculum above, with a different type of alignment, teachers may simply teach

in an outcomes-based way complying with demands made on them, suppressing their own

instincts and teacher identity.

As far as the tasks set for the student teachers throughout the one or two years described,

it is to be understood that not all tasks lend themselves to participation in exactly the same

way. In other words, some tasks like the student‟s drawing of him / herself looks to

imagination while another task, like teaching a science lesson according to curriculum

demands, would focus more on alignment, for instance.

2.8 Identity Trajectories within Participation

Within these modes of belonging are embedded forms of

participation(which can be understood as the ways in which and the extent to

which we engage in the practices of the community)

non participation (which can be understood as the practices in which we do not

engage – and is as much a component of our identity as is participation)

A coherent identity, therefore, is a „mixture of being in and being out‟. (Wenger 1998:

165)

A degree of interaction between these forms (i.e. participation and non-participation)

defines

Trajectory (being the route or pathway a participant follows upon entry into the

practices of the community).

Different degrees of interaction imply different experiences, different trajectories and

different forms of participation / non-participation in the social practices of the

community. Wenger makes the distinction between two main modes. These are

Peripherality (in which participation takes the dominant role and non-participation

is an enabling component which facilitates learning and enables later full

participation).

- 58 -

Newcomers to any community are peripheral to the community and its practices on

entry, but as they engage more fully with (or participate more) in the practices, they

may well embark on an inward trajectory, becoming „insiders‟ and later „old timers‟ as

they learn. This type of trajectory is very unlike that of

Marginality (in which non-participation is dominant and full participation is not

achieved).

Marginalisation may or may not occur with the consent of the marginalised. This issue will

be explored later in this thesis, which reports on the modes of belonging to the science

teacher community of a number of student teachers. Wenger identified a number of

trajectory types which I visualise diagrammatically as shown below. I have represented

the community of practice as a circle because Wenger (1998) uses the terms „central‟ and

„peripheral‟ and these positions are seen clearly on such a figure. I have represented the

trajectory as a pathway in the vicinity of the circle to illustrate the position of the individual

over a period of time.

Peripheral trajectories are those which do not lead to full participation

but may provide limited access to a community. This limited access

nevertheless could well benefit the „participant‟.

Inbound trajectories are seen when the newcomer moves towards

the centre of the practice, becoming a full participant in time.

An insider trajectory occurs after the newcomer becomes a full participant.

Later s/he encounters new challenges and renegotiates identity from within

the community.

FIGURE 2.6 Peripheral trajectories

FIGURE 2.7 Inbound trajectories

FIGURE 2.8 Insider trajectories

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Outbound trajectories are those in which participants move from a central

to a peripheral position, possibly out of the community.

Boundary trajectories illustrate how a participant spans boundaries

between communities and possibly links them.

2.9 Summary

For the purposes of this research, therefore, with Gee and others, I hold that identity is

composed of parts which influence each other and which need some level of mutual

coherence for wholeness. In describing and analyzing the changes (or otherwise) in the

identities of student teachers, I have used (from Wenger) the concepts of participation and

non-participation; trajectory, marginality and peripherality; engagement, alignment and

imagination.

FIGURE 2.9 Outbound trajectories

IDENTITY

Cultural studies

Situated cognition

Socio-cultural /

historical theories

FIGURE 2.10 Boundary trajectories

FIGURE 2.11 Theories contributing to theoretical framework

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To summarise, Figure 2.11 illustrates the interactions between the theories I have used to

build a complex theoretical framework.

These theories represent positions which show some overlap. For example, socio-

historical cultural theories with have reference to cultural studies; while situated cognition

feeds into socio-historical cultural theories. These overlaps I have attempted to

demonstrate with the use of curved arrows in Figure 2.11. However, I have dealt with the

theories separately because in each, there exist unique elements. Socio-historical cultural

theories, as the name implies, place emphasis of the historical nature of activity. Situated

cognition, likewise, emphasises learning in specific situations. The theories support each

other rather than act in a discordant way.

I maintain that science teacher identity, under the circumstances I have described, is

influenced by science knowledge or knowledge about science concepts. This knowledge

is likely to have some bearing on self-efficacy or confidence. Knowledge, which influences

identity, is mediated by tools such as language in a social situation (socio-cultural

theories). Knowledge about science and about teaching science is situated in the practice

of teaching and learning science (situated cognition). People, however, do not exist as

isolated minds in a particular time and place. Each of us has a past. We have identities of

race, class and gender not of our making. We also envisage futures or histories which we

aim to make (socio-historical theories) under conditions not always of our choosing

(cultural studies). In chapter 4, I explain how these theories are used to gain insights into

the development of science teacher identities of the student teachers participating in this

research.