Who is a Teacher Educator? Enactment of Teacher Educator Identity through Electronic Portfolio Development

Abstract

This study examines how participants in the Teacher Educator Standards Cohort enacted their identities through the creation of standards-based portfolios. Fourteen teacher educators participated in the cohort for 1 year. Data sources included the electronic portfolios, focus group interviews, and individual reflections. Findings point to five facets of teacher educator identity: Teacher, scholar in teaching, collaborator, learner, and leader. Participants primarily constructed their identities as teachers, but individual responsibilities and levels of experience may have affected how they enacted other facets of identity. The findings also highlight the discussion about who a teacher educator is and about the move to define a multifaceted profession that is shaped by the discourses in which teacher educators' practice is nested.