The Five Faces of an Assessor: Conceptualizing the Enactment of Teacher Assessment Identity in Vocational Education and Training

Abstract

Teacher assessment practice is affected by a complex set of cognitive and affective traits, as well as institutional contexts. There is a dearth of research on sociocultural influences on teachers’ assessment identity. This study presents a model illustrating how vocational education and training (VET) teachers enact their assessment identity across contexts. We draw on interview data from 18 VET teachers. Using metaphors found in the data set allowed us to capture key aspects of the data material and to situate this study in the existing literature on teachers’ assessment identity. Based on the findings, we conceptualize five “faces” of VET teachers’ assessment identity: 1) the quality controller, 2) the educator, 3) the fosterer, 4) the motivator, and 5) the negotiator. We then show how VET teachers enact these faces within and across contexts as a way of negotiating tensions and avoiding conflicts. Finally, we discuss the implications of this model.