Identity Markers of Biology teachers from East Timor: a study derived from an experience in international cooperation

Abstract

Living and working with the Mission for Cooperation between Brazil and East Timor from 2007 to 2009 were the reasons for this study focused on the constitution of the teaching identity of Biology teachers in that country and its close relationship with the political, historical, social and cultural contexts of East Timor. This study aimed to investigate the identity markers of East Timorese teachers reportedly present in that period, which have possibly conditioned the construction of the professional identity of these Biology teachers. The research sought to answer questions such as: How, in the face of the Timorese scenario, has the (re)construction of the professional identity of the teachers who teach biology been happening? Or which identity markers affect the configuration of these identities? The research was theoretically grounded in the concepts of Claude Dubar on the formation of social identities. The methodology is anchored in bibliographical and documentary research, through the interpretation and analysis of documentary records and memorials collected during the training undergone during an international cooperation project. In the data analysis it was observed that the identity markers of these teachers show influences stemmed from their recent history of domination and freedom, survival and resistance.