Identity formation for students in primary education could be involved from nation-level to individual-level. The political situation and societal atmosphere in Taiwan are more democratic and more emphasis of human rights in students. Consequently, the issue of identity construction for Taiwanese primary students has become important than ever.

In Taiwan, primary students inevitably encounter the issue of identity formation. Simply speaking, the concept of identity deals with understanding some questions, such as ‘who are you’ or ‘where are you from’. The study intends to explore the three levels of identity for Taiwanese primary students, i.e. national identity, school identity and student identity.

The study collected research data through interviewing the teachers and students in northern Taiwanese primary schools. The reason why the study chose teachers was that teachers could explain more accounts related to primary students’ identities than primary students. The research findings revealed the transition of national identity gradually from ‘Chinese-oriented’ to ‘Taiwanese-oriented’ construction. In terms of school identity, most respondent teachers and students expressed the school as ‘a big family’ with pleasure to create the sense of happy community. In regard to student identity, the perceptions from most interviewed teachers and students illustrated the construction of student identity was more inclined to individualistic-oriented instead of traditionally collectivist-oriented needs and the concern of human rights for students, such as no corporal punishment or peers’ bully and so on. There is no academic paper exploring Taiwanese primary student identities and the study could make a significant contribution to this issue.

Authors:
Hsin-Jen Chen, National Chung Cheng University, Taiwan

About the Presenter(s)
Professor Hsin-Jen Chen is a University Professor/Principal Lecturer at National Chung Cheng University in Taiwan

See this presentation on the full schedule – Saturday Schedule

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