AUTHOR=Karalis Noel Tiffany 

TITLE=Identity Tensions: Understanding a Previous Practitioner’s Decision to Pursue and Depart the Teaching Profession

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Education

VOLUME=6

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/education/articles/10.3389/feduc.2021.586212

DOI=10.3389/feduc.2021.586212

ISSN=2504-284X

ABSTRACT=<p>Framed by symbolic interactionism, this study used narrative inquiry to share a teacher’s story about her decision to pursue and depart the teaching profession within four years of graduating from a traditional undergraduate preparation program in the Midwest United States. The participant, “Banjo,” participated in a qualitative analysis that consisted of four interviews conducted during the first year following her departure from the field. Findings revealed several conflicts surrounding Banjo’s sense of pre- and in-service teacher identity and teacher preparation experiences that ultimately influenced her decision to leave the teaching profession. Banjo’s story provides critical insights about how to prevent similar challenges among early-career practitioners and facilitate progressive change in preservice teacher education writ large.</p>