Using Bernstein to analyse primary maths teachers’ positions and identities in the context of national standardised assessment: the case of the ANAs

This paper is informed by Bernstein’s notion of pedagogic identity and Morgan’s (Morgan,1998, Morgan, Tsatsaroni and Lerman , 2002) study of mathematics teachers’ orientationsin assessment practice. These are used to identify primary maths teachers’ positions andidentities in the current South African education context characterised by an emphasis onmonitoring through standardised national learner tests. The paper draws on data obtainedfrom interactive interviews with nine sampled primary maths teachers who wereparticipants in a numeracy in-service education community of practice. Using Bernstein’sfour pedagogic identity classes and relating these to Morgan’s maths teachers’ orientationswe identify primary maths positions being taken up by the sampled teachers in relation tothe Annual National Assessment (ANA) tests. The research indicates that most of theprimary maths teachers’ say that their practices are being influenced by the ANAs, althoughin different ways. We finally propose that primary maths teachers need to develop ways to‘critically align’ their practices to national policies so as to maintain some agency whilealigning with policy