You and Your Teacher Identity: Strengthening teacher identity to elevate teaching presence in online classrooms

Identity is a fluid, evolving construct of “doing” and “being.” Academic identity encompasses how faculty see themselves as academic professionals in teaching, research, and service. Alternatively, teacher identity influences teaching behaviors, strategies, and engagement in the classroom (teaching presence). A comprehensive search was performed to identify the most impactful studies that specifically address the community of inquiry (CoI) framework and teaching presence. The data yielded seven categories that faculty can use to actively strengthen their teacher identity in an online/blended learning environment.