Identity: learning and becoming

A key aspect of situated learning in CoPs is identity formation. Participation in CoPs is not only about learning by acquiring knowledge and skills, but it is also about learning to be (Lave and Wenger 1991). Curtin (2006, p. 170) shares Wenger’s (1998, p. 151) view that identity is social because it is created as a lived experience of participation in CoPs. Socialisation also has a significant impact on one’s identity formation because the social aspects of one’s identity

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necessitate the presence of others such as tutors, colleagues, family, friends (Malešević, 2013, p. 9). The presence of Libyan students in a multicultural classroom and their social participation in shared practice with their colleagues and tutors are likely to be significant aspects for identity construction. Wenger argues that “issues of identity are an integral aspect of a social learning theory and are thus inseparable from issues of practice, community, and meaning” (Wenger, 1998, p. 145). From Lave and Wenger’s perspective, identity is embedded in the context in which learners co-participate. The link between identity and practice is one of the most powerful aspects of situated learning in CoPs theory. Lave and Wenger elucidate:

Learning implies becoming a different person with respect to the possibilities enabled by these systems of relations. To ignore this aspect of learning is to overlook the fact that learning involves the construction of identities.

(Lave and Wenger, 1991, p. 53)

It can be inferred from this that identity construction is central to learning as social participation. This perspective moves away from the concept of identity as an individual matter to the concept of identity as emerging in social interaction. This view is similar to Bamberg, De Fine and Schiffrin’s (2011, p. 178) view. Lave and Wenger recognise the impact of learning as participation in social practice on one’s competence and identity construction; however, according to Fuller et al. (2005, p. 66), the notion of identity is not fully addressed in relation to particular learners. Colley et al. (2003, pp. 474-475) indicate that immersion in the social, cultural and emotional aspects are crucial factors that affect learning and build an identity (becoming). Learning as participation is an ongoing process of negotiating the self through engagement in activities and relationships with others (Lave and Wenger, 1991). Wenger _{points out that “learning depends on learners’} ability to contribute to the collective production of meaning because it is by this process that experience and competence pull each other” (Wenger, 1998, p. 203). Through participation in shared activities and relationships with others,

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learners’ identities can change or develop. Learning as participation helps the “development and the transformation of identities” (Wenger, 1998, p. 13). In the context of this study, the interaction of Libyan students with British and international students in shared activity _{within their master’s community is crucial} for their learning and identity formation. Through their relationship and interaction with others in shared practices, Libyan students are quite likely to acquire and develop their knowledge and skills and their identity might be developed or formed as a result. However, as international students, marginalisation is possible and a sense of risk or insecurity may undermine people’s participation.

Engagement in practice is a “double source of identification: we invest ourselves in what we do and at the same time we invest ourselves in our relations with other people” (Wenger, 1998, p. 192). Through engagement in practice, learners know who they are, explore their abilities to engage with each other (i.e. what they are able to do and what they are unable to do) and how they can participate in activities (Wenger, 1998). Identity in practice is “an experience of the familiar and the unfamiliar” (Wenger, 1998, p. 193). This is significant because Libyan students like other international students may shape or reshape their identities through their confrontation with the unfamiliar.

3.8 Summary

Situated learning in communities of practice theory provides an important explanation of learning as part of social participation in shared practices and it raises relevant issues for all international students. The knowledge that is constructed through collaboration and interaction by participants in a situated context is significant for participants’ learning and for their sense of self or identity. Employing this conceptual framework makes a significant contribution by considering learning as it involves the whole person in relation to social communities. Legitimate peripheral participation describes the progression that newcomers undergo gradually to become full participants in a community of practice. The community of practice is a tightly bounded relationship between

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newcomers and old-timers; however, in the context of this study, there are different groups, distinguished as follows: tutors as dominant old-timers; British students as mid old-timers, and international students who had been in the class for a term as mid-newcomers. Language is significant for newcomers to gain access to a community of practice and in order to interact and build a relationship with their colleagues and tutors. This is true for all students, but there are additional issues that might relate to international students. Although Wenger describes communities of practices by using connotations of peace and harmony, communities of practices are not without conflicts and tensions. The theory does not adequately address the backgrounds and dispositions that newcomers may bring to communities of practice when it considers them as tabula rasa or novices. Lave and Wenger also consider that newcomers move to be full members or participants as part of a linear process which this research suggests may oversimplify the process. Communities of practice have three essential components: “mutual engagement, joint enterprise and shared repertoire” (Wenger, 1998, p. 73). These elements define a community of practice and distinguish it from others.

The link between identity and practice is a powerful aspect of CoPs theory. Identity is social because learning as social participation in shared practices with other members affects individuals. This is because individuals acquire knowledge and skills through interaction, and this is quite likely to affect their sense of self or identity.

The next chapter will focus on methodology and will explore the data collection and analysis through the methodological lens.

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