Abstract

The role, and arguably the purpose, of academics has evolved over the last twenty years. These shifts have been driven by the massification of Higher Education in line with shifting government policy, a focus on widening participation, the development and democratisation of technology allowing ultrafast remote education, and the changes to the funding and regulatory frameworks of Higher Education. Such changes have been associated with new neoliberal managerialism, with staff viewed through performance management regimes akin to other corporate sectors (Rodriguez, 2020; Teichler, 2021). With the rapidly evolving role and purpose, there are implications to how staff conceive their academic identity(ies).

This paper explores the issue of early career academics’ identity and belonging in the age of Panopto and Microsoft Teams, as both participants on an Academic Practice course and as members of teaching staff. Here, we explore the hybrid identities that have manifested, particularly the ident of student-teacher identity (Hope, 2018). Not only are early career lecturers in this hybrid state, but there are further complexities that impact upon the development of their identities. For example, lecturers are increasingly pressured to deliver more online content for students, to push for more interactivity, increasing evidence of collating students’ views and opinions through discussion forums, committees, ‘student voice’ and other modes of engagement. This has been somewhat more complex in the context of the online teaching with students more able to remove and silence themselves in an apparent disengagement: keeping their cameras switched off, turning off their mics, communicating primarily through the public chat function, and often preferring basic email communication to any of the more ‘sophisticated’ options now available (Adams et al., 2021; Smith, 2021). Some early career academics lack the digital competencies to place them as the ‘expert’ in the room in terms of their proficiency, some calling upon students and other colleagues to support them. This too alters conceptualisation around the traditional power dynamics of student and teacher in the room, here, this is of interest in how Academic Identity might form.

This paper looks at how Early Career Academic Identity(ies) are inextricably bound within complex interactions, that such identities are fragile and contingent upon a number of factors. We advance insights on Academic Identity formation from what we have observed from teaching and mentoring on the Academic Professional Apprenticeship/Postgraduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education.

Expected outcomes of this session:

contribute to the knowledge on the formation of Academic Identity.
colleagues will become more cognisant of the factors influencing academic identity, and to be able to more critically discuss this with their Academic Practice students.
support those teaching Academic Practice Courses to create inclusive environments to enhance students’ sense of belonging.