Date Approved

5-4-2026

Embargo Period

5-4-2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Ed.D. Educational Leadership

Department

Educational Leadership

College

College of Education

Advisor

Joanne Connor, Ed.D.

Committee Member 1

Ane Turner Johnson, Ph.D.

Committee Member 2

Monica Reid Kerrigan, Ed.D.

Keywords

Elementary science;Experienced teachers;narrative inquiry;NGSS;Reform-based science;Teacher identity

Disciplines

Education

Abstract

Abstract Andrea L. Woodring EXPLORING THE EVOLUTION OF ELEMENTARY SCIENCE TEACHERS’ IDENTITIES IN THE CONTEXT OF REFORM-BASED SCIENCE 2025-2026 Joanne Connor, Ed.D. Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership This qualitative narrative inquiry examined how experienced elementary teachers narrated the development and evolution of their science teacher identities within the context of reform-based science education, particularly the adoption of the Next Generation Science Standards. Guided by Identity Theory (Burke & Stets, 2022), narrative analysis (Polkinghorne, 1995), and narrative inquiry scholarship (Kim, 2016; McCormack, 2000), the study positioned teachers’ stories as the primary findings rather than as examples of theory. Five experienced elementary teachers participated in two narrative interviews that explored their life histories, professional trajectories, and experiences teaching science across periods of continuity and disruption. Findings revealed that science teacher identity developed through long-term, storied processes shaped by early experiences, professional roles, and institutional contexts. Reform-based science was narrated not as a single event but as an ongoing condition that required teachers to renegotiate their self-understandings as science educators over time. Student engagement and curiosity functioned as central sources of identity verification, stabilizing teachers’ commitment to science teaching amid systemic constraints. Teachers also drew upon established disciplinary identities to navigate uncertainty and sustain inquiry-based practice, positioning reform-based science education as an identity-centered process grounded in teachers’ narrative meaning-making across time.

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