How a Beginning Science Teacher Deals with Practical Work: An Explorative Study through the Lens of Identity

Through the lens of teacher professional identity, in this case study, we examine how a beginning science teacher deals with practical work in a physics classroom. We explore how various interactions occurred between personal, interpersonal, and situational dimensions of his identity as a beginning physics teacher when dealing with practical work. Various kinds of data were collected over a period of 10 months: 3 semi-structured interviews, 26 classroom observations, 32 brief interviews, as well as various artifacts and lesson plans. The analysis was done through a constant comparative method, and it was grounded within the three-dimensional framework of professional identity: personal, social, and situational. Four main themes emerged through the analysis of the data that represent the main features of the participant’s identity enactment as a beginning physics dealing with practical work: (a) personal characteristics, (b) sense of agency, (c) contextual constraints, and (d) ongoing interpretation of experiences with practical work. These findings are presented through a narration of the participant’s identity with regard to practical work alongside authentic extracts and quotes from the data. Drawn upon these findings, we offer a set of recommendations for future research.