Community building among early career teachers: opportunities and tensions

Early career teachers (ECTs) experience a variety of institutional interactions, ranging from those with people in positions of authority to more informal networks, for example with their departmental peers or cross-disciplinary interactions through teacher education programmes. These all contribute to the process by which ECTs are exposed to the expectations and norms of the various communities in which they find themselves. These agendas, while colouring the environment, may engender conflicting demands on the individual’s attempts to develop their sense of belonging and enact their principles and practices.

This session considers the following questions. How do ECTs construct their identities? Where does their learning take place? What is the affective impact of different interventions and experiences on ECTs? Does participation in a number of different communities support them or set up conflicts of interest? If so, what are the implications for those working with early career teachers?