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Education Sciences
Special Issues
Studies in Teacher Identity and Professional Development
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Studies in Teacher Identity and Professional Development

A special issue of Education Sciences (ISSN 2227-7102). This special issue belongs to the section "Teacher Education".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2022) | Viewed by 21831

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Katariina Stenberg

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Faculty of Educational Sciences, University of Helsinki, 00014 Helsinki, Finland
Interests: teacher education; teacher identity; reflection; teacher's professional development

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In the midst of the world’s serious problems, the importance of education cannot be overemphasized. This, in turn, sheds light on teachers in terms of their professional development and education: how we can best support the building of our world as we strive to make it a better place?

Teacher identity has gained increasing interest in educational studies in the 21st century. As Avraamidou (2014) stresses, the concept of identity has helped us to understand teachers' professional development comprehensibly by offering an ontological approach. Teacher identity offers a rich pathway because it creates the foundation for teachers to construct their ideas about their professionality and place in society, hence enriching their professional development (see Sachs 2005). In addition, teacher identity is a strong feature in teachers’ levels of motivation, satisfaction and commitment to their work (Day et al. 2006).

As we know, in educational studies, teacher identity has been considered and explored from different viewpoints ranging from cognitive to sociological perspectives (Cherrington 2017), and from narratives, metaphors and discourses to contextual standpoints (Beauchamp and Thomas 2009).

The aim of this Special Issue is to provide a deep, rich and diverse horizon for understanding the phenomena of teacher identity and teacher professional development. We are happy to invite you to share your exploration about the topic.

References

Avraamidou, L. 2014. “Studying Science Teacher Identity: Current Insights and Future Research Directions.” Studies in Science Education 50 (2): 145–179. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/03057267.2014.937171.

Beauchamp, C., and L. Thomas. 2009. “Understanding Teacher Identity: An Overview of Issues in the Literature and Implications for Teacher Education. Cambridge Journal of Education 39 (2): 175 – 189.

Cherrington, S. 2017. “Developing Teacher Identity Through Situated Cognition Approaches to Teacher Education.” In The SAGE Handbook of Research on Teacher Education, edited by D.J Clandinin and J. Husu, 160–177. London: Sage Publications.

Day, C., Kington, A., Stobart, G., and Sammons, P. 2006. “The Personal and Professional Selves of Teachers: Stable and Unstable Identities.” British Educational Research Journal 32(4): 601–616.

Sachs, J. 2005. “Teacher Education and the Development of Professional Identity: Learning to be a Teacher.” In Connecting Policy and Practice: Challenges for Teaching and Learning in Schools and Universities, edited by P. Denicolo and M. Compf, 5–21. Oxford: Routledge.

Dr. Stenberg Katariina
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Education Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • teacher identity
  • teacher professional development
  • teacher education

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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14 pages, 274 KiB  
Article
Management Skills and Styles of School Principals during the COVID-19 Pandemic
by Khazni Taun, Mª Luisa Zagalaz-Sánchez and Ramón Chacón-Cuberos
Educ. Sci. 2022, 12(11), 794; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci12110794 - 8 Nov 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3230
Abstract
The present study investigated a significant issue among a population with unique characteristics. This research and discussion centered on the challenges of running a school during the COVID-19 pandemic. The central question in this study was, how do school principals perceive their abilities [...] Read more.
The present study investigated a significant issue among a population with unique characteristics. This research and discussion centered on the challenges of running a school during the COVID-19 pandemic. The central question in this study was, how do school principals perceive their abilities and the skills required to run schools during the pandemic? In addition, this study aimed to assess the awareness of the teachers that were subordinate to these same school principals and the impact of their leadership style. The current study involved 151 teachers and 18 school principals from 18 governmental Bedouin schools in Israel. Structured questionnaires were used to collect data and measure the research variables. To analyze the data, indices and statistical tests were applied using SPSS software. The main research findings indicated that the teachers perceived the leadership styles of their school principals as a formative and rewarding part of their personality and not as an evasive style. The principals reported a high level of availability and accessibility and appropriate communication levels with all of the relevant parties. Moreover, the principals reported their level of decision-making ability as high, their judgment calls as sound, and their organizational planning skills and knowledge-development abilities as excellent. Additionally, cultivating the organizational structure was a priority for the principals; they believed that they could develop a comfortable and supportive organizational atmosphere and that this was the core of their work. The school principals perceived themselves as having the requisite skills, including a high level of ability and efficient team management. Self-confidence and a high level of competence helped the school principals cope with the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and traverse them safely. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Studies in Teacher Identity and Professional Development)
18 pages, 276 KiB  
Article
Building Primary Preservice Teachers’ Identity as Engineering Educators
by Nicholas Lux, Rebekah Hammack, Blake Wiehe and Paul Gannon
Educ. Sci. 2022, 12(10), 637; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci12100637 - 21 Sep 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1741
Abstract
The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate how two primary preservice teachers built their engineering education identities during a clinical field experience that emphasized engineering education. More specifically, we explored the development of their engineering education identities while facing unforeseen [...] Read more.
The purpose of this qualitative case study was to investigate how two primary preservice teachers built their engineering education identities during a clinical field experience that emphasized engineering education. More specifically, we explored the development of their engineering education identities while facing unforeseen circumstances and unfamiliar engineering content. We used a nested qualitative case study approach that was bounded by a university practicum field experience that took place at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Data sources included preservice teacher interviews and reflective field notes. We found that the preservice teachers faced a series of contextual factors in the clinical experience that both afforded and constrained professional learning opportunities that influenced their identity development. The affordances made professional learning opportunities possible, while the constraints limited professional growth. We also found that it was the negotiation of the factors, where the preservice teachers worked to mitigate the effect of the constraints while maximizing the advantages of the affordances, that had the greatest influence on their engineering pedagogical knowledge and engineering teaching self-efficacy. Findings from this study could provide teacher educators with insight into preparing primary teachers for unexpected challenges when teaching engineering, as well as how to best prepare engineering-efficacious teachers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Studies in Teacher Identity and Professional Development)
21 pages, 1845 KiB  
Article
The Refined Consensus Model of Pedagogical Content Knowledge (PCK): Detecting Filters between the Realms of PCK
by Franziska Behling, Christian Förtsch and Birgit J. Neuhaus
Educ. Sci. 2022, 12(9), 592; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci12090592 - 30 Aug 2022
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3779
Abstract
In this article, we analyse potential filters that moderate the transformation process between the realms of PCK defined in the refined consensus model of pedagogical content knowledge. We tested 58 preservice biology teachers in a 15-week one-group pretest/post-test design. To identify filters between [...] Read more.
In this article, we analyse potential filters that moderate the transformation process between the realms of PCK defined in the refined consensus model of pedagogical content knowledge. We tested 58 preservice biology teachers in a 15-week one-group pretest/post-test design. To identify filters between collective PCK (cPCK) and personal PCK (pPCK), we set up moderation models with pretest pPCK as an independent variable, post-test pPCK as a dependent variable, and motivational orientations or professional values as moderator variables. To identify filters between pPCK and enacted PCK (ePCK), we set up moderation models with post-test pPCK as an independent variable, ePCK as a dependent variable, and noticing or knowledge-based reasoning as moderator variables. We did this specifically with a focus on language in biology education. We found that only the variable knowledge-based reasoning had a role as a filter. It moderates the transformation process between pPCK and ePCK (moderation analysis: F(3,19) = 10.40, p < 0.001, predicting 25.72% of the variance). In future studies, other filters should be identified. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Studies in Teacher Identity and Professional Development)
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17 pages, 327 KiB  
Article
Teacher Uneasiness and Workplace Learning in Social Sciences: Towards a Critical Inquiry from Teachers’ Voices
by Diego Luna, José Antonio Pineda-Alfonso, Francisco F. García-Pérez and Conceição Leal da Costa
Educ. Sci. 2022, 12(7), 486; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci12070486 - 14 Jul 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1987
Abstract
The educational parameters of neoliberal schools have transformed traditional social expectations about teachers. As some authors have suggested, “teacher uneasiness” is an appropriate category of analysis to understand and interpret the effects that such expectations can have on teachers’ professional identity. In this [...] Read more.
The educational parameters of neoliberal schools have transformed traditional social expectations about teachers. As some authors have suggested, “teacher uneasiness” is an appropriate category of analysis to understand and interpret the effects that such expectations can have on teachers’ professional identity. In this research, autoethnography was specifically chosen as an investigative and, at the same time, formative modality, ideal for determining the way in which a Social Sciences teacher in Spanish secondary education experiences his own uneasiness. According to the information in the teacher/researcher’s diary, collected during fieldwork carried out over two years, and processed by content analysis, this phenomenon can be generated by causes that are still unnoticed in the existing literature. Specifically, we could identify up to four subcategories from the data itself: the weight of tradition; daily overexertion; no time; and resignation after wear and tear. We conclude with vindications both of the theoretical category used, and of the usefulness of autoethnography in this type of empirical project. In any case, we also recommend new research that allows us to compare and expand the results and conclusions obtained herein. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Studies in Teacher Identity and Professional Development)
16 pages, 273 KiB  
Article
Teacher Agency and Futures Thinking
by Jan Varpanen, Antti Laherto, Jaakko Hilppö and Tuulikki Ukkonen-Mikkola
Educ. Sci. 2022, 12(3), 177; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci12030177 - 3 Mar 2022
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 5932
Abstract
Problems encountered in top-down school reforms have repeatedly highlighted the significance of teachers’ agency in educational change. At the same time, temporality has been identified as a key element in teachers’ agency, with teachers’ beliefs about the future and experiences of the past [...] Read more.
Problems encountered in top-down school reforms have repeatedly highlighted the significance of teachers’ agency in educational change. At the same time, temporality has been identified as a key element in teachers’ agency, with teachers’ beliefs about the future and experiences of the past shaping their agentic orientations. However, research on teachers’ future orientations is typically limited to short-term trajectories, as opposed to long-term visions of education. To address this, we draw on a futures studies perspective to give more explicit attention to teachers’ long-term visions of their work. We argue that the method of future narratives, already well-established in the field of futures studies, is a fruitful methodological framework for studying these long-term visions. In this paper, we first show that the futures studies approach is theoretically compatible with the ecological model of teacher agency. We then outline the method of future narratives to point out the possibilities it offers. Finally, we illustrate our approach with an exploratory analysis of a small set of future narratives where teachers imagine a future workday. Our analysis reveals that the narratives offer a rich view of teachers’ longer-term visions of education, including instances of reflecting on the role of education in relation to broader societal developments. Our study suggests that this novel approach can provide tools for research on teacher agency as well as practical development of teacher education, addressing long-term educational issues and policies. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Studies in Teacher Identity and Professional Development)
16 pages, 2036 KiB  
Article
Teaching Performance of Slovak Primary School Teachers: Top Motivation Factors
by Jana Javorčíková, Katarína Vanderková, Lenka Ližbetinová, Silvia Lorincová and Miloš Hitka
Educ. Sci. 2021, 11(7), 313; https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11070313 - 23 Jun 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3723
Abstract
Teaching is a specific type of profession with a specific mission. In this study, the motivation level of primary school teachers in Slovakia in the period from 2015 to 2020 was analyzed. A total of 1189 Slovak teachers with a stratified selection were [...] Read more.
Teaching is a specific type of profession with a specific mission. In this study, the motivation level of primary school teachers in Slovakia in the period from 2015 to 2020 was analyzed. A total of 1189 Slovak teachers with a stratified selection were addressed. Cronbach’s Alpha, Tukey’s HSD (honest significant difference), and ANOVA were used to analyze the data obtained. The research results confirm that Slovak teachers are motivated most by relationship and financial factors. Other important motivation factors are atmosphere in the workplace, a good work team, a supervisor’s approach, a fair appraisal system, and a basic salary. The research also confirms that, over the duration of the study, there was a significant change in the average level of motivation factors; however, there was no change in their relative proportion and structure. In relation to gender, significant diachronic differences were confirmed. Research results prove that Slovak teachers have stable requirements in terms of motivation. This study’s findings will further help school management create effective motivation programs for primary school teachers. Regarding the fact that no similar research has been conducted in Slovakia in a long time, the research results presented here are original and unique. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Studies in Teacher Identity and Professional Development)
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