Reimagining instructional practices: exploring the identity work of teachers of writing

This article provides a cross-case analysis of three teachers who participated in a two-week professional development (PD) on the teaching of writing that addressed their own identities as writers. This is an area that is commonly overlooked and how teachers view themselves as writers may play an important role in how they help their students to think of themselves as writers, may shape the conversations they have about writing, and may influence the kinds of writing opportunities they provide. Drawing on an identity perspective, the findings illustrate how the opportunity to construct and enact writing identities shaped how the teachers understood the teaching of writing. As they engaged in the writing process, collaborated in writing groups, and conversed in writing conferences with student writers in a weeklong writing camp, teachers reimagined their practice to include more nuanced writing instruction that focused on the capabilities of students as writers.