Abstract
Purpose This exploratory study sought to unfold the identity construction path from male pre-service teachers' perspective and experience in the most gendered and offensive profession. Design/methodology/approach We interviewed 10 male pre-service teachers recruited through a convenient purposive sampling from one of the most well-known universities in China, known for cultivating many ECE teachers. Findings The study’s finding underscores the ration for choosing this profession, their learning-to-teach experience, and the practicum platform that brought confusion and shock that ultimately demonstrates the shaping and shifting of identity development, which potentially offers robust implications for stakeholders. Originality/value This study, administered in a non-Western Chinese ECE Teacher Education context, provides a valuable but missing perspective on teacher identity in Western literature.