An Ethnographic Study of Undergraduates in Singapore: Power & Identity in an Academic Community of Practices

Abstract

Based on Lave and Wengerb s (1991) notion of legitimate peripheral participation and Wengerb s communities of practice framework (1998), this study examines how participation in a community of academic literacy practices (CALP) impacts the identity construction of three undergraduates. The discussion focuses on how institutional forces influence identity negotiation in relation to the construction of emotions, identity work and the issue of different economies of literacies in a multilingual context, and the impact of transnationalism and literacy in opening up new options for the construction of new, hybrid identities for transnationals. The findings of this study raise awareness of the impacts of different economies of literacies and power relations on identity construction within a CALP, thus supporting a sociological approach to literacy, and call for further consideration of and support for the notion and practice of critical pedagogy aimed at empowering students to challenge inequities both within and outside the classroom.