Who am I—Teacher or practitioner? Teacher-practitioners’ experience of identity in higher education—A phenomenological view

Practitioners entering academic careers in higher education face many challenges in teacher identity formation. This article is based on ongoing research and aims to understand the phenomenon of experiencing teacher identity in teacher-practitioners who have interrupted their academic careers in the field of healthcare and social sciences in Estonian higher education institutions. Empirical data was collected using semi-structured interviews. Data analysis was based on a phenomenological approach and the content analysis method. The experience of the identity of the teacher-practitioners is contradictory and can be understood as a subjective and collective phenomenon. The findings showed that teacher-practitioners with a strong specialist identity are not stable in their academic careers. Their identity is characterised by fragility and is associated with decisions to continue or interrupt their academic careers. The study suggests that the efforts of teacher-practitioners in academic settings need to be professionally supported by the provision of individual, collective and targeted institutional support. The article contributes to studies of professional identity from an interpretative phenomenological perspective.