“I Received a Hundredfold in Return” – Exploring Identity Construction of Primary School Teachers through Narrative Interviews
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37205/TEL-hun.2025.2.04Keywords:
teacher identity, professional identity, narrative interview, thematic field analysis, identity modelAbstract
This study explores the construction of teacher identity through narrative interviews with five retired elementary school teachers. Using thematic field analysis, five core pillars of teacher identity emerged: 1) career choice and predisposing factors, 2) essential pedagogical skills and traits, 3) personal teaching practices and their roots, 4) institutional context and attitude to it, and 5) the role of family. The findings highlight both shared patterns and unique personal experiences, suggesting that professional identity is shaped by broader themes but deeply individualized through life histories. The study contributes to ongoing discussions about professional identity formation and narrative approaches in educational research.
References
Adler, J. M., Dunlop, W. L., Fivush, R., Lilgendahl, J. P., Lodi-Smith, J., McAdams, D. P., McLean, K. C., Pasupathi, M. & Syed, M. (2017): Research Methods for Studying Narrative Identity: A Primer. [Manuscript submitted for publication] Social Psychological and Personality Science. https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550617698202 DOI: https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/cz3q3
Assmann, J. (2004): A kulturális emlékezet. Írás, emlékezés és politikai identitás a korai magaskultúrákban. Atlantisz Kiadó.
Barkhuizen, G. (2016): Narrative Approaches to Exploring Language, Identity and Power in Language Teacher Education. RELC Journal, 47(1), 25–42. https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688216631222 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0033688216631222
Bauer, J. J., McAdams, D. P. & Pals, J. L. (2008): Narrative identity and eudaimonic well-being. Journal of Happiness Studies, 2008(9), 81–104. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-006-9021-6 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-006-9021-6
Beauchamp, C. & Thomas, L. (2009): Understanding Teacher Identity: An Overview of Issues in the Literature and Implications for Teacher Education. Cambridge Journal of Education, 39, 175–189. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057640902902252 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/03057640902902252
Beijaard, D. (2018): Teacher learning as identity learning: models, practices, and topics. Teachers and Teaching, 25(1), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2019.1542871 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2019.1542871
Biesta, G. & Tedder, M. (2007): Agency and learning in the lifecourse: Towards an ecological perspective. Studies in the Education of Adults, 39(2), 132–149. https://doi.org/10.1080/02660830.2007.11661545 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/02660830.2007.11661545
Bükki E. (2018): Ágencia-értelmezések a munkahelyi tanulás kutatásában és a tanári ágencia modelljei [Nem publikált kézirat].
Chong S. & E.-L. Low (2009): Why I want to teach and how I feel about teaching - formation of teacher identity from pre-service to the beginning teacher phase. Educational Research for Policy and Practice, 8(1) 59–72. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10671-008-9056-z DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10671-008-9056-z
Clandinin, J. D. (2006): Narrative Inquiry: A Methodology for Studying Lived Experience. Research Studies in Music Education, 27, 44–54. https://doi.org/10.1177/1321103X060270010301 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1321103X060270010301
Garner, J. K. & Kaplan, A. (2018). A complex dynamic systems perspective on teacher learning and identity formation: An instrumental case. Teachers and
Teaching, 25(1), 7–33. https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2018.1533811 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2018.1533811
Lénárd, S., Czirfusz, D., Horváth, A. & Rapos, N. (2024): A tanárszakos hallgatók tanári identitásának alakulása a pályaszocializációs gyakorlatok során. Neveléstudomány: Oktatás – Kutatás – Innováció, 12(3), 47–72. https://doi.org/10.21549/NTNY.46.2024.3.3 DOI: https://doi.org/10.21549/NTNY.46.2024.3.3
Martin, A. (2019). Teacher Identity Perspectives. Encyclopedia of Teacher Education. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-1179-6_222-1 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-1179-6_222-1
McAdams, D. P. & McLean, K. C. (2013): Narrative Identity. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 22, 233–237. ttps://doi.org/10.1177/0963721413475622 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721413475622
McLean, K. C. (2008): The Emergence of Narrative Identity. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 2, 1–18. ttps://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-9004.2008.00124.x DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-9004.2008.00124.x
Mosquera-Pérez, J. E. & Losada-Rivas, J. J. (2022): EFL Teachers’ Professional Identity: A Narrative Study With Colombian Graduate Students. Profile Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development, 24(2), 47–62. https://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v24n2.91744 DOI: https://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v24n2.91744
Németh, K. (2018): Életvilág-értelmezések. Utak felbomlott világokhoz. Argumentum Kiadó
Olsen, B. (2011). “I am large, I contain multitudes”: Teacher identity as a useful frame for research, practice and diversity in teacher education. In Ball, A. F. & Tyson, C. A. (Eds.), Studying diversity in teacher education (pp. 257–273). Springer. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5040/9798881815714.ch12
Orianne J.-F. & Eustache F. (2023): Collective memory: between individual systems of consciousness and social systems. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1–14. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1238272 DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1238272
Rushton, E. A. C. & Reiss, M. J. (2020): Middle and high school science teacher identity considered through the lens of the social identity approach: a systematic review of the literature. Studies in Science Education, 57(2), 141–203. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057267.2020.1799621 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/03057267.2020.1799621
Sik, D. (2008). Habermas életvilág fogalmán innen és túl. In Némedi, D. & Szabari, V. (Eds.). Kötő-jelek. (pp.145–151). ELTE TÁTK.
Simon, G. (2011). A kritikus-barát módszer. Pedagógusképzés, 9(38), 47–64. https://doi.org/10.37205/TEL-hun.2011.1-2.04 DOI: https://doi.org/10.37205/TEL-hun.2011.1-2.04
Tókos, K. (2024). Tanárjelöltek szakmai tanulásának és identitáskonstruálásának támogatása – a videotréning lehetőségei a tanárképzésben. Pedagógusképzés, 22(50), 5–33. https://doi.org/10.37205/TEL-hun.2024.1.01 DOI: https://doi.org/10.37205/TEL-hun.2024.1.01
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 The author(s)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
