Reflective Essay: Defining Identity

It is not entirely possible to give a sufficient answer to the question ‘what is identity’. The term identity is surprisingly difficult to define adequately in the sense that it is a contradictive phrase expressing both sameness and uniqueness. Many theorists such as Erickson have attempted to answer this difficult question but rather define the process and identify influences as there is no exact definition for this complex process. The word itself derives from Latin ‘Idem’ which means identical supporting the fact that people often express common identities with others such as women, men and like ourselves teachers. However in contradictory sense people also achieve a sense of uniqueness on not being something else and this combination ultimately represents a balance between self and other. Identity is believed to form in adolescents and is influenced by both social and individual elements as one tries to identify themselves striving for self-satisfaction and the desire to achieve criteria or profile in order to feel

I now realise that identity is vital to help me see myself as a teacher and it helps others to see me as a teacher. It is a matter of arguing and then redefining an identity that is socially legitimated. I believe that a teacher should be sensitive to the changing and developing identity of the students they see before them because as Marcia highlighted adolescents is a key time in the development of our identity and also not to forget the very students we see before us on a daily basis could be participating in their apprenticeship of observation. My identity as a teacher will influence the construction of my student’s identity and their decisions in life. As a student teacher I have to remember that it is a delicate process which will sculpture my student’s perception of a teacher’s identity and what they associate with a particular