Science education globally demands us as teachers and researchers to move beyond traditional science teacher identities where disciplinary and pedagogical domains of knowledge seem fragmented. Both globally (Benzce et al., 2020) and in the context of this study, Chile (Marzabal & Vanegas, 2021) evidence indicates that a traditional view of science still predominates the teaching profession. Furthermore, current injustices such as environmental and social inequalities, together with the oppressions and instabilities created by wars, have shown the necessity for science and science education to move towards critical and interdisciplinary perspectives that favour the development of transformative practices for social justice in other words, practices that develop critical thinking and agency (Guerrero et al., 2024). For science education, this would be required to overcome fragmented identities that also tend to hierarchize science over pedagogical dimensions of identity (Torres-Olave & Dillon, 2022) as well as science in relation to other knowledge domains.

In response to those challenges, a science education with a focus on socioscientific issues (SSI) could develop transformative practices by helping to promote students' critical thinking and socially responsible action (Guerrero et al., 2024). In this context, critical pedagogues (e.g. hooks, 2022) and scholars in science education (e.g. globally Rushton & Reiss, 2021) and the context of this study have proposed teacher collaboration as a relevant aspect that favours the transformation of teaching practices and traditional science identities, in the context of Chile, Torres-Olave & Dillon's (2022) research on two Chilean physics teachers who work in schools and universities as teacher educators and at the same time participate in a community of practice reports that teachers value the collective space for reflection to cultivate hope and develop hybrid identities capable of reading disciplinary and institutional cultures to cross boundaries and cultivate both individual and collective agency necessary to address social transformations. Therefore, the research question is how does teacher collaboration, focusing on territorial socio-scientific issues for critical science teaching, contribute to the science teacher's identity?

Science Teacher Identity

Studies of science teacher identity have become highly relevant because they provide a complex and rich analytical lens for understanding science teachers' learning and professional development (Avraamidou, 2014; Rush & Reiss, 2021) as well as their sense of recognition. However, there is insufficient research on science teacher identity in non-anglophones contexts, let alone understanding how teacher collaboration contributes to science teacher identity (Rushton & Reiss, 2021).

Building from that scholarship, this study understands science teacher identity from a sociocultural perspective and defines it as a latent, dynamic, fluid, and multifaceted set of attributes that define the personal and professional dimensions of the teacher. These attributes undergo constant processes of reconfiguration through reflexive and dialogical negotiations of the internal self with other individuals, materialities, territories, and sociocultural dynamics. For such reconfiguration, the personal, social, and collective dimensions are essential to consider.

Teaching Collaboration

Grounding on bell Hooks' critical pedagogy (hooks, 1994; 2003), this study defines "collaboration" as a relationship of solidarity the construction of professional knowledge across multiple perspectives. This implies that each person openly acknowledges their point of view and does not diminish the knower or their knowledge to create new knowledge that is situated, more complete, and valid. Therefore, collaboration here values difference and diversity, engaging sincerely through dialogue to build mutual understanding and transcend one-dimensional ways of thinking, being, and living. This promotes nuanced awareness of intersecting matrices of oppression within the collaborative space. Dialogue thus becomes a tool for critical reflection beyond immediate social interaction.

This research draws upon one case from a larger qualitative study of nine science teachers developing collaborative identities through communities of practice. We selected Eloísa's case (pseudonym) for in-depth analysis due to its richness in demonstrating identity transformation through collaboration.Context: Eloísa is a novice biology and natural sciences teacher with 2.5 years of experience in a public school in Barrancas, one of the most disadvantaged areas in Santiago de Chile. She belongs to a community of practice where science teachers from local public schools meet monthly (three-hour sessions) to co-design teaching using territorial socio-scientific issues (SSI).Design: The study employed a three-phase longitudinal design: (1) pre-collaboration, (2) during collaboration, and (3) post-collaboration. During Phase 2, we implemented five collaborative workshops specifically designed to support teaching SSI for justice. Workshops 1-3 comprised a training phase focusing on pedagogical strategies and co-design, exploring the 'what' and 'how' of teaching for transformation**,** whilst Workshops 4-5 addressed implementation and collaborative process evaluation.Data and Analysis: We collected semi-structured interviews incorporating storytelling exercises and photo-elicitation across all phases. In Phase 2, we video-recorded the five workshops and subsequent reflections. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis (Braun and Clarke, 2019), attending to personal, social, and collective dimensions of teacher identity construction. The university ethics committee approved all procedures.

Eloísa participates in a community of practice of science teachers focusing on territorial SSI. Two themes emerged addressing the research question: 1. Teaching collaboration strengthens a creative and leading 'science teacher self' for situated, complex teaching. At the personal level, Eloísa recognises herself as organised and creative, driven fundamentally by her students' needs. At the social level within the community, she perceives herself as a creative leader who generates reflective questions whilst organising collaborative spaces. These experiences enable her to transcend unidisciplinary visions impeding complex understanding of phenomena. At the collective level, Eloísa acknowledges that science teachers traditionally work individualistically. However, school teaching demands collaborative, student-centred practices. She values the community as a safe space for creativity, sharing experiences and materials, fostering hope, happiness and security amongst members. 2. Teacher collaboration involves 'doing with others' for transformative teaching.Eloísa and colleagues engage in dialogue and collective reflection to develop interdisciplinary teaching addressing students' needs. Through working sessions, they determined that science teaching should 'humanise' content whilst considering 'school research, territory and community'.For instance, Eloísa developed an interdisciplinary project on sexuality and social networks, demonstrating both challenges and achievements of collaborative work. ‘We developed an interdisciplinary work on sexuality and combined it with citizenship education. Then, we addressed the dangers of social media and sexuality; we talked about grooming, sexting and child pornography. This was a controversial topic, but the students managed to propose changes to the school coexistence manual and inform the management and parents’. In conclusion, this study demonstrates how teachers collaborate to teach science using contextual socioscientific issues, developing transformative practices. Through these professional development experiences, they develop collaborative identities enabling them to transform themselves and their environments. This has implications for designing teacher professional learning conditions and experiences that promote collaborative identities and transformative practices in science teaching.

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