The fragmented educator 2.0: Social networking sites, acceptable identity fragments, and the identity constellation
Abstract
Social Networking Sites (SNS) have been used to support educational and professional
endeavors. However, little research has been done to understand the relationship between
educator identity and participation in SNS or to examine the implications that institutional
regulation of such media may have upon educator identity. Using grounded theory, in this study
we developed a framework for understanding how a group of teacher education students viewed
their developing identities within social networking sites as they began the life transition to
becoming educators. The theory that emerged from this study proposes that educator identity
consists of a constellation of interconnected acceptable identity fragments, which are each
intentional, authentic, transitional, necessarily incomplete, and socially-constructed and -
responsive. This view of educator identity contrasts sharply with previous views of identity by
highlighting the complicated, negotiated, and recursive relationship that exists between educator
participation in SNS and educator identity. Additionally, this perspective suggests that educator
participation in SNS is neither fully representative of authentic identity (as prominent SNS
models imply) nor dramaturgical. These findings yield important implications for educators,
researchers, educational institutions, lawmakers, and SNS developers alike, because they lead to
a more sophisticated understanding of identity and online participation that is essential for
developing mechanisms to support moral and legal judgments, professionalism, and social
interactions relative to SNS.
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