Post structuralist perspective on identity

A second perspective on identity construction, one that is often labelled as a post structuralist position is one that stresses the need to recognize and ac- commodate power into a process of identity construction which is best under- stood as a negotiated process (Block, 2007). From a post- structuralist perspec- tive, there are competing understandings of what being a teacher means, some of which are seen as more powerful in ascribing or assigning a particular under- standing of what it means to be a teacher than others. These views will be re- flected in the relationships teachers have with others, and the ways in which

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they are viewed in school settings, but a post structuralist understanding of identity also stresses the ways in which individuals life history particularly their previous experience of teaching and learning will help shape teachers’ below, identity can be experienced as a ‘site of struggle’ (Norton, 2006).

The scholars who take a post-structuralist view of identity construction see iden- tity as formed in “the shifting space where narratives of subjectivity meet narra- tives of culture”(Zembylas, 2003, p. 221). In other words, they seek to examine the influence of wider norms and values and individuals own understandings of themselves in the construction of identity and in doing so are interested to ex- plore the role of power both in terms of acknowledging macro political forces in society (Sfard et al., 2005) and the micro political dimensions of identity con- struction in our interactions with others. Regarding micro political aspects of identity construction, these are seen to include the individuals own socially- constituted agentive efforts to be seen and heard and as such from a post- structuralist perspective, identity construction is a process of negotiation and can also be a site of tension and struggle. To quote Zembylas: “each of us struggles in the process coming to know, we struggle not as autonomous be- ings …but as vulnerable social subjects who produce and are being produced by culture” (2003, p. 221). In what follows I will consider first the post structural- ist stance on macro political dimensions of identity construction and then move to consider the micro political dimension of identity construction and the role of agency within this.

A number of different perspectives on the micro political nature of identity con- struction are drawn upon by those who adopt a poststructuralist stance on iden- tity construction. These are ones that seek to uncover the process by which identity is shaped and negotiated with others at a local level. These highlight how while wider discourses frame interactions between people, that inform ra- ther than determine the outcomes of these processes and as such highlight the role of individual agents in interpreting the meanings of these discursive realities in the ways in which they engage with and act with others. Among these, posi- tioning theory originally developed by Harre (et al., 1999) and his colleagues is seen as helpful in explaining the role of discourses of power in the dynamic dia- logic construction of self (Hermans, 2009). Drawing upon Austin’s speech act

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theory, Harre (et al., 1999) was interested to understand the role of power in in- dividual interpretation of the meaning of utterances in conversations. He pro- posed the term positioning to describe “the discursive process whereby people are located in conversations as observably and subjectively coherent partici- pants in jointly produced storylines” (Harre et al., 1999, p. 97) and sought to de- scribe different sorts of positions that operate in these storylines (or conversa- tions). While Harre’s focus was on developing an understanding of individual positioning in conversational exchanges and therefore see discourse as refer- ring to discrete linguistic entities, the conversational metaphor and the position- ing theory developed by Harre has been seen as helpful in building an under- standing of the ways in which people negotiate their identities with others within discursive realities which are understood, as explained above to be comprised of forms of knowledge and ideology rather than merely linguistic in nature (Pavlenko & Blackledge, 2004). For these researchers, the term identity posi- tioning is a way of conveying the ways in which power operates at a micro polit- ical level.

Harre (et al., 1999) distinguished between two dimensions of positioning in their theory; first and secondary positioning, and interactive and reflective position- ing. First positioning refers to the position that others seek to impose on us and secondary positioning the position that we want to take up which may or may not be different from the one that others want us to adopt. In terms of the pro- cess of positioning, a distinction is drawn between the role of interaction in posi- tioning and the role of individual reflection in positioning. Interactive positioning will lead an individual to recognize the position that we are expected to assume, whereas reflective positioning will lead to how we want to positon ourselves vis a vis the position that others would like us to assume. Our ‘final’ position will be variable and will depend on how far it is possible to renegotiate the identity posi- tion (Harre et al., 1999). Thus, with respect to identity construction, the identity positions I assume are the outcome of our understanding of the possibilities of- fered us within wider societal discourses and the degree to which we elect to contest or challenge these understandings.

From the above, it can be seen that to embrace a concept of identity as negoti- ated and a possible site of struggle implies that individuals are active agents in

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the process of identity construction and that they have the capacity to act. How- ever, for post structuralists, agency is not free will, but is socially constructed meaning that the sorts of capacity individuals have is limited by the sociocultural reality within which they operate (Ahearn, 2001). As Giddens (1991) argues, for example, it is important to highlight that there is a relationship between agency and rules and resources and as such how this is affected by larger questions of social power (Pennycook,1995, p.119). Thus while, individuals can elect to re- sist the ways they are positioned by others, in many cases they may lack the resources to do so or be constrained from doing so. Moreover, the ways in which they choose to contest will reflect in no small part the sorts of resources they have at their disposal.

These ideas are important for my own study into teachers professional identity as they highlight the ways in which the construction of professional identity among teachers will reflect a complex interplay between wider discourses of professionalism, and teaching in Polish society as well as those underpinning the reform on the one hand (which will position them in certain ways) and their own perspectives on the other hand (their own preferred positions). As was not- ed in chapter 1 above, it periods of reform are unstable times and are times when teachers professional sense of self are thrown into sharp relief. Teachers need to forge new forms of professional identity as a response to reforms. While reforms may be experienced as repressive, these also offer the opportunity for teachers to forge new forms of identity which result in professional growth. However, as Helsby (1999) notes, how teachers respond to reforms will depend on whether teachers feel their own sense of self is threatened or supported. Where this feels threatened, teachers may potentially resist changes brought on by reforms or feel disempowered but unable or unclear as to how to act. As cru- cial stakeholders in educational reforms, finding ways to help empower teachers to develop as professionals during periods of reform, such as by providing pro- fessional development opportunities, is therefore seen as crucial and can help ensure that teachers maintain or adopt positive professional identity positions regarding the reform (Day,2002). Another thing that is seen as particularly im- portant for positive professional identity construction in the context of reform is the extent to which teachers perceive they have a voice (Canagarajah, 1999) as without this teachers can often feel helpless and ignored.

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In light of the above, in my the study into the professional identity of young learner teachers in Poland, it is important to consider the ways in which power is significant to both the sorts of professional identity positons that teachers feel able to construct and their agentive responses to the changes they are facing. It is therefore important to investigate teachers’ professional identity construc- tion and potential feelings of disempowerment as well as the extent to which teachers feel able to gain a voice and what sort of strategic actions they are tak- ing to empower themselves.

2.3 Factors impacting on teachers’ professional identity construction