Date of Graduation

12-2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy in Curriculum and Instruction (PhD)

Degree Level

Graduate

Department

Curriculum and Instruction

Advisor/Mentor

Endacott, Jason

Committee Member

Blair, Alissa

Second Committee Member

Goering, Christian

Keywords

identity; internship semester; pre-service teacher

Abstract

This descriptive multiple-case study investigates how five secondary pre-service teachers constructed and negotiated their professional identities during the internship semester. Guided by a single overarching research question—How do pre-service teachers form and narratively negotiate their identities as educators within the liminal space of the internship?—the study conceptualizes identity as a dynamic, socially mediated, and storied process. Sociocultural theory and narrative identity theory provide the analytical framework, emphasizing development through interaction, participation, and reflective meaning-making. Participants were enrolled in a Bachelor of Arts in Teaching program and completed internship placements in middle and high school classrooms. Data were collected through pre-internship surveys, classroom observations, semi-structured interviews, reflective inquiry journals, weekly supervisory conversations, and post-internship interviews. A hybrid coding protocol integrated a priori theoretical constructs with inductive thematic analysis. Findings demonstrate that identity formation unfolded through three interrelated mechanisms: (a) the mobilization of personal biography as a cultural tool, (b) dialogic exchanges with distributed “more knowledgeable others,” including mentors, peers, and students, and (c) reflective engagement with critical incidents that disrupted assumptions and prompted re-storying. Across cases, interns transformed idealized images of teaching into situated practices marked by boundary-setting, differentiation, and relational accountability. The study argues that teacher education should treat identity as curriculum. Intentional mentorship, structured reflection, and relationally safe spaces are essential to support interns as they become teachers.

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