A study of the difficulties of care and support in new university teachers’ work

This paper discusses some findings from a small‐scale qualitative study involving ‘new’ teachers in a medium sized, regional English university. Using Grounded Theory methods to inform and guide the research, the study explores participants’ views on working as both teachers and researchers whilst also managing considerable amounts of ‘caring work’ with a diverse body of students who often need academic and pastoral support in excess of that assumed within the university academic timetables or support networks. The voices of these teachers suggest that care is an overlooked aspect of university teachers’ work, yet it plays an important part in maintaining their and their students’ sense of scholarly endeavour. Further, our findings suggest that within the university at large there is a ‘discourse of difference’ in the way that many academics conceptualize and represent the student body and students’ needs to be supported. This discourse impacts on the development of new teachers’ identities and aspirations. Some implications of these findings for implementing strategies for supporting teachers to develop both academic and pastoral roles within universities are discussed.     

All in a day's work: primary teachers ‘performing’ and ‘caring’

This article discusses the current nature of primary teachers' work, which is explored in terms of ‘performing’ and ‘caring’ activities. It considers how the education policies of successive Governments in the UK, particularly for England, have given rise to a ‘performance culture’ in primary schools which emphasises targets, testing and tables and is overly concerned with the monitoring and measurement of teachers' work. The article examines teachers' experiences of working in a more competitive and performance‐driven environment particularly given that primary teaching is historically perceived as ‘women's work’ and linked with caring and mothering. The introduction of performance related pay and performance management in schools in England by the New Labour Government has made ‘performing’ activities more transparent while undermining, overshadowing and rendering invisible ‘caring’ activities in primary schools. The findings suggest that there appears to be a changing role for women teachers as the primary school culture shifts significantly from its association with the feminine qualities of nurturing towards a more masculine culture of management and performance.     

Adaptation of lesson study in a Danish context: Displacements of teachers’ work and power relations

Though lesson study adaptations in the West have flourished, there is scarcity of associated culturally sensitive research. We contribute such research by exploring the conflicts that emerge when Danish teachers engage in lesson study. Using figured worlds, we analyze how teachers realize lesson study in their local setting through their dynamic orientations towards possibly conflicting worlds. We show how this realization challenges the teachers’ work and power relations and is influenced by broader issues of culture and power. We conclude that, in order to adapt lesson study in Denmark, it is necessary to address the overriding cultural characteristics we identify.     

The construct of teachers’ pay satisfaction: a case study of primary and secondary schools in China

The construct of teachers’ pay satisfaction is important to the systemic appraisal of teachers’ compensation. The study aims to probe the components of teachers’ pay satisfaction and verify this construct in primary and secondary schools in China. In-depth interviews with 24 teachers were conducted to propose a construct model for teachers’ pay satisfaction. A survey of 1,218 teachers was conducted to verify the teachers’ pay satisfaction construct, including its reliability and validity, with subjects recruited from 45 primary and secondary schools in 6 cities and counties. Another survey of 364 teachers sampled from 6 provinces was used to compare the proposed two-order model with Heneman’s four-dimensional model. Teachers’ pay satisfaction comprises pay results satisfaction and pay management process satisfaction. The former includes pay level and increase, promotion and training. The latter includes teachers’ engagement, openness and transparency of pay distribution, as well as the reasonableness of distribution rules. Teachers assign greater importance to relative pay than do workers in other occupations. Chinese teachers attach great importance to pay management process satisfaction.     

‘Teaching excellence’ in higher education: a comparative study of English and Australian academics’ perspectives

ABSTRACT

In the current higher education (HE) environment, indicators of ‘teaching excellence’ (TE) are increasingly under the spotlight. The literature offers a wide range of models and perspectives, but also highlights the need for greater (comparative) scrutiny of the perceptions of those at the centre – staff teaching across the disciplines in different countries. This article aims to contribute to ongoing debates by investigating and comparing the views of 120 academic staff teaching in one of two countries – England and Australia – in an attempt to deepen our appreciation of their definitions and understandings. The findings from this two-stage enquiry using online questionnaires and interviews indicate broad commonalities in the ways in which academics define TE, centred on facilitative, interactive pedagogy related to individual professional aspirations; they also reveal widely shared reservations about the term’s legitimacy and institutional/marketised (ab)use. As such, the findings offer policy-makers and institutions useful insights at a time when TE definitions and metrics are growing global pre-occupations.

Abbreviations: teaching excellence (TE); higher education (HE)     

Historicising teachers’ learning: a case study of productive professional practice

This paper reveals the significant historical traces which informed the learning practices of teachers at one particular school site in a rural and regional educational district in Australia. Drawing upon recent theorising into professional practice, the paper argues that teacher learning practices are intrinsically ‘ecologically’ related to teachers’ practices at specific sites. However, extending beyond this theorising, the research also reveals how teacher learning – in the case presented, in relation to classroom dialogue – is also significantly influenced by earlier learning experiences of the teachers involved. In this way, teachers’ practices are revealed as not only influenced by present-day, site-specific, whole-school teacher learning, but also by particular events encountered by teachers at an earlier phase of their careers. The research argues for a conception of teachers’ learning which is not only site-informed and ecologically arranged, but also deeply temporally embedded.     

Two secondary teachers’ understanding and classroom practice of dialogic teaching: a case study

Dialogic Teaching (DT) is effective in fostering student learning; yet, it is hard to implement. Little research focused on secondary teachers’ learning of DT and on the link between teachers’ understanding and practices, although these two are usually strongly intertwined. Using a wide range of evidence, this case study systematically investigated and compared two secondary teachers’ understanding and practice of DT during their participation in a continuing professional development programme (CPDP). The CPDP appeared effective to some extent. The History teacher’s understanding of DT, i.e. being a co-learner, appeared highly effective in implementing DT, whereas the Mathematics teacher’s understanding of DT, i.e. creating a democratic learning environment, seemed only effective to some extent. Focusing on both teachers’ understanding and practice when developing DT seemed fruitful in explaining differences in practice. Future research could further explore to what extent understanding DT as being a co-learner facilitates professional development.     

The role of teachers’ shared values and objectives in promoting intercultural and inclusive school cultures: a case study

This article presents an analysis of teachers’ impressions of their shared objectives and values, together with their conceptions of interculturality and inclusion. The educational reality of a school in Valencia (Spain) is described, based on the exploration through semi-structured interviews. From the systematically categorized information, we obtained two dimensions that, when analyzed, enabled us to draw up lines of action or initiatives for change. We suggest actions that may be taken to transform their school culture and to guide their work towards an inclusive and intercultural model.     

The development of teachers’ knowledge and behaviour in promoting self-discipline: a study of early years teachers in Thailand

The study reported in this paper examines the challenges of developing an in-service training programme for early years teachers in a school in Thailand relating to the topic of enhancing young children’s self-discipline. It is argued that in-service training in Thailand has tended to focus on knowledge acquisition through direct instruction during short courses. By contrast, the training programme developed during the project employed the Socialisation, Externalisation, Combination and Internalisation (SECI) Model, first developed in Japan, that integrates knowledge acquisition with social learning activities. A blended methodology was employed to examine the efficacy of the SECI approach that included interviews with teachers and school leaders, classroom observation, questionnaires and behaviour checklists. Findings suggest that an adapted SECI model is effective in the education of teachers in Thailand and may have relevance more widely in the field of teacher education in other nations.     

Student‐teachers’ conceptions of science,teaching and learning: a case study in preservice science education

The resort to experiment is considered to be essential for teaching physics. But it often consists of an inductivist method where students are supposed to be able to find physical laws by observing phenomena. In fact it is not as easy for the students as it is for the physicist. We propose and test another way. When studying a new phenomenon, an initial discussion is performed between students in the class. They can propose various (eventually contradictory) explanatory models. Experiments are then used to make a choice between these models. Sequences in class situation are described, with learning behaviour and results reported for pupils in French schools (grades 6 and 8, 11‐14‐year olds).     

The discrepancy between teachers’ beliefs and practices: a study of kindergarten teachers in Hong Kong

This study examines the discrepancy between teachers’ beliefs and practices in Hong Kong kindergartens and the factors that influence this discrepancy. Three kindergartens, considered by the Hong Kong Education Bureau to be of varying quality, were chosen from different areas of Hong Kong. Questionnaires about teaching beliefs were administered to 35 teachers from these kindergartens. These quantitative data were supplemented with qualitative data gathered during individual interviews with five of the teachers and the three principals. In addition, a focus group of five early childhood education specialists commented on the videotaped observations of the classroom practices of the five interviewed teachers. The findings showed that all of the teachers endorsed the advocated teaching beliefs, but there was a discrepancy between their beliefs and practices. The most significant factors contributing to the discrepancy were teachers’ professional education and their attitudes towards personal teaching introspection. Teachers were also under pressure from parents’ curriculum requests, demands on the children’s academic abilities and expectations for a strong link to Primary One. Enhanced early childhood education training that helps teachers to be introspective about their own teaching practices and beliefs is recommended. Government support is also required to teach parents what constitutes a high-quality learning environment for young children.     

Exploring elementary english teachers’ practical knowledge: A case study of EFL teachers in Taiwan

Teaching English in elementary schools has been an important educational policy in Asian countries over the past several decades. This study investigates how in-service teachers in elementary schools conceptualize their practical knowledge about English teaching in Taiwan. It provides examples of experiences and practical knowledge that English teachers have developed in their own contexts. The practical knowledge of teachers was investigated using a qualitative case study. Three in-service teachers participated in this study. Data include interviews, classroom observations, teachers’ reflective journals, and teaching materials. The study provides practical principles and rules of practice for elementary EFL teachers. It offers insights that policy makers need to consider in setting up a sound English teaching and learning program for elementary schools in EFL contexts.     

Becoming a teacher in a gambling city: a case study of two pre-service teachers’ motivation for teaching in Macau

The present case study investigates the teaching motivation of two pre-service teachers studying in teacher education programs in a Macau university. The findings indicated that while Macau is a gambling center and abundant job opportunities are provided by casinos, both participants were highly motivated to improve the teaching and learning situation in Macau and bring positive changes to the Macau educational context. The findings also demonstrated the facilitative role of teachers and teacher educators in the formation of the motivation of student teachers. The study concludes with implications for enhancing the motivation of pre-service teachers, and the role of teacher education programs in Macau and other similar contexts.     

‘We are the professionals’: a study of teachers’ views on parental involvement in school

The study examines teachers’ attitudes and experiences regarding home–school cooperation. Teachers constitute a powerful group in school compared with parents, and this relationship is interpreted through Bourdieu’s concept of social field, as a power relation. The empirical analyses are based on a mixed‐methods approach with survey and qualitative interviews among teachers in Norway. The results show that while teachers experience the interaction in a positive way, they try to limit parents’ influence through emphasising their own professionalism, thus leaving parents with the role as supporters. Teachers who relate to well‐educated parents are especially conscious of maintaining a distance towards the parents in order to keep them in their place.     

Understanding ‘Together and Apart’: a case study of Edward’s explorations at nursery

Edward was one of 58 children studied by workers and parents as part of a study on Well‐being and Resilience at the Pen Green Nursery. Within the larger study, eight children were studied in greater depth in order to explore connections between cognitive and emotional development. Schematic theory and attachment theory were used as frameworks for analysing the observations. Video observations were made over a period of 18 months. These were viewed and analysed by a researcher, Edward’s mother and Edward’s Key Person in the nursery. Edward found separating from his mother extremely painful and repeatedly used his play with objects to explore ‘separation’ and ‘connection’. It is argued that children’s repeated actions may be prompted by current emotional needs and that links can be made between children’s schemata (repeated patterns of action) and emotional development by drawing on psychoanalytic theory. The author also acknowledges the novelty of this approach for her, as a teacher, although these kinds of interpretation are common within the fields of play therapy and psychotherapy and are used increasingly in education.     

Examining teachers’ use of computer-based technologies: A case study

This paper presents a case study that illustrates the extent to which technology is used in and out of the classroom in the elementary schools of Turkey. The data were collected through interviews, observations and document analyses. The results show that teachers use technology for administrative purposes, technology education, non-educational purposes, instructional preparation, teacher-directed instructional delivery, student homework and instructional assessment. This study further reveals that teachers’ use of technology is very limited. If teachers use technology for instruction, it is almost always to support their traditional teaching methods.     

Addressing the discontinuity of students’ and teachers’ diversity: a preliminary study of preservice teachers’ beliefs and perceived skills

The authors of the present investigation provide baseline data regarding preservice teachers’ beliefs about addressing the needs of students whose backgrounds and abilities differ from their own. These data provide the guidance for subsequent in-depth longitudinal investigations about the ways in which preservice teachers’ beliefs inform their classroom behaviors toward the aforementioned students, as well as suggestions for teacher educators about program improvements.     

Teaching mathematically talented students: a cross-cultural study about their teachers’ views

The instruction of mathematically talented students (MTS) in heterogeneous classes is an issue of debate. Questions of equity, differential instruction, teacher awareness of their talented students’ needs, and their willingness and competence to face the challenges of nurturing these students are all raised within this context. Our international study compared South Korean, American, and Israeli teachers of mathematics perspectives concerning their (a) perceived competence to teach MTS (b) perceived competence in addressing MTS’ needs through differential instruction, (c) support for separation of MTS into special math classes, and (d) equity views concerning MTS’ needs. Data was collected by means of a questionnaire presented to 80 South Korean, 145 Israeli, and 58 American teachers of mathematics. Findings suggested that most teachers in these countries perceived themselves as competent to teach MTS, while very few of the participants supported the separation of MTS into special classes. South Korean teachers perceived themselves to be less competent in teaching MTS as well as in applying differential instruction and agreed more than their foreign counterparts that the fostering of mathematically weak students is more important than the fostering of MTS. Teachers who had some mathematical background appeared to perceive themselves as more competent to teach MTS than teachers who had no mathematical background. Teachers who predominantly taught large classes felt less competent to teach MTS than teachers who predominantly taught medium-sized classes. Findings were partially interpreted within the perspective of cultural differences. Recommendations for teachers’ professional development are drawn.