School choice, teachers’ work, and professional identity

Teacher professional identity, or what it means to be a teacher, informs the types of schools teachers seek for work. With marketization in US and abroad, teachers’ identities are changing. However, we know little about how negotiate—and renegotiate—their during job search contexts with school choice, such as charter schools. This study uses qualitative interview data from 46 San Antonio, Texas, where over 25% students attend Our findings illuminate critical juncture evaluate their identity they make choices sector—charter traditional public school—and/or organization prefer. In particular, choice context legitimated flexibility fluidity moved between sectors find jobs, even if did not align personal values. We also found that employability perception market played an important role strategically presented on search. Findings offer implications teacher education workforce policies.