Discovering professional identities: A networked theatre in education approach to support early career teachers

This chapter demonstrates and explores how a collaborative network, made up of university academics, teachers and Theatre in Education practitioners, supported early career teachers (ECTs) entering the teaching profession with the formation of their teacher identity through a hybrid Theatre in Education approach and research. Extending the professional education of ECTs beyond their university training and into their professional contexts creates challenges around professional identity formation. However, by becoming aware of changes in teacher identity through artful pedagogical approaches, the community of discovery questioned how professional identities can affect new ECTs in creating their own.