Becoming a Geologist - Identity negotiations among first year geology students
Becoming a Geologist - Identity negotiations among first year geology studentst [4,88 MB]
IND's studenterserie nr. 35. Kandidatspeciale. Geologi.
Rie Hjørnegaard Malm, December 2013
Vejleder: Lene Møller Madsen
Abstract
This thesis explores how first year students in geology negotiate and make sense of the subject matter and develop a geological identity. The stories of 6 students who have entered the study program in Geology at the University of Copenhagen create the dataset for this research. The students’ development has been documented in successive narrative interviews throughout their first study year. The series of interviews create individual stories of making sense of the subject matter, searching for belonging, and negotiating identity. This research use identity as an analytical lens that provides a framework to understand why the students struggle while making sense of the subject matter. The analysis shows that the process of making sense of the subject matter is closely linked to negotiations of identity. The students experience a subject matter that point in two directions and the students identify different types of geologist. The students create a divide where one part of the science is perceived to be more scientific, as it builds on calculations. The other part use imagination and interpretation and then perceived to be less scientific. The students negotiate their own position in this divide; hence they negotiate themselves in relation to the subject matter. The students’ negotiations result in different ways of making sense of the subject matter and create personal stories of becoming a geologist.