Teacher and Teacher Union Perspectives on GenAI's Impact on Professional Identity and Practice in Nordic Education

This presentation examines the impact on teacher roles and identity as teachers navigate GenAI in educational practices. By combining data from Danish high school teachers with data on Nordic teacher unions' perceptions, we aim to explore how GenAI and responses to the technology are reshaping teacher identity and professional practices (Zhai, 2024) specifically in a Nordic context. Our research focuses on: (1) the emotional dimensions of navigating teacher identity in response to GenAI, (2) the connection between the emotional responses and how didactical possibilities are rejected or explored in teaching practices and (3) the relationship between individual teacher perspectives on GenAI and how teacher unions respond to GenAI. Through a sociocultural perspective we seek to understand how emotions function in relation to professional identities (Meijers, 2002) as not merely individual psychological responses but as socially mediated experiences shaped by institutional contexts, professional communities, and policy frameworks. This framework allows us to examine both macro-level institutional responses (through teacher unions) and micro-level individual experiences simultaneously. This study employs a mixed-methods comparative approach, combining two datasets. The first consists of data gathered through anonymous online surveys among 200 Danish high school teachers in 2025, capturing their lived experiences and reflections on GenAI. The second dataset derives from a comprehensive survey from 2025 examining teacher unions' perspectives on AI and education across European countries, where we specifically focus on the 18 responses from teacher unions from Nordic countries. By triangulating these bottom-up and top-down perspectives, we identify convergences and divergences between individual teacher experiences and institutional perspectives, providing a multi-layered analysis of GenAI's impact on teacher roles and identities. Data were coded thematically using grounded theory methods (Charmaz, 2006). Our preliminary findings indicate that emotional responses—including anxiety, curiosity, resistance, and enthusiasm—play a crucial role in how teachers and their union representatives perceive and integrate GenAI into their practice. These emotional dimensions manifest differently at the individual teacher level compared to the institutional union level, revealing tensions between personal agency and collective professional identity. We show how these emotional responses directly influence the didactical choices teachers make, and how these choices are tightly interwoven with perceptions of teacher roles and identities. This research contributes to Nordic educational research by providing empirical evidence of how GenAI influences teacher roles and identities during a critical period of introduction of a new technology. Understanding the emotional and didactical dimensions of this shift is essential for developing teacher education programs, development initiatives, and policy frameworks that support teachers' professional agency while addressing legitimate concerns about GenAI's role in education. Charmaz, K. (2006). Constructing Grounded Theory. A Practical Guide Through Qualitative Analysis. Sage. Meijers, F. (2002). Career learning in a changing world: The role of emotions. International journal for the advancement of counselling, 24(3), 149-167. Zhai, X. (2024). Transforming teachers’ roles and agencies in the era of generative AI: Perceptions, acceptance, knowledge, and practices. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 1-11.