A model for study of teacher agency for social justice

Abstract

Internationally teachers are called upon to act as agents of change. However, there is little clarity about the kind of change teachers are expected to contribute to and even less empirical evidence about the ways teacher agency operates in schools and beyond. Empirical analyses of teacher agency require a clear articulation of the purpose and content of such agency in relation to a particular aspect of change, which could then help us specify appropriate units of analysis and generate hypotheses based on the insights provided by previous research. This paper articulates a model for study of teacher agency as a process whereby teachers act strategically to transform the risks of exclusion and underachievement into inclusion and improved outcomes for all students in contexts of cultural and social diversity. The model is guided by social theories of human agency within social structures and cultures, applied to the empirical insights into teachers' inclusive practices. Potentially appropriate units of analysis and related variables are proposed, and face-validated in consultation with 12 experts from Scotland including teachers, (deputy) head teachers, researchers, teacher educators and policy-makers. The units include teachers' inclusive practices at individual, school and broader policy and social levels, teachers' moral purposes and competence as agents of change for inclusive education, scope of teachers' autonomy including individual, collective and contextual variables, and teachers' reflexivity. Implications for future research and teacher education are discussed.

Developing teachers as agents of inclusion and social justice

“…By combining elements of the framework for evidencing inclusive pedagogy in action (Florian and Spratt 2013) with the proposed model of teacher agency (Pantić 2015), new possibilities to generate further knowledge that help systematically prepare teachers for the relational requirements of inclusive practice can be developed. While working collaboratively with others is an integral part of the inclusive pedagogical approach, the model of teacher agency situates teacher competence for inclusive practice within the broader domains of teacher agency (see Table 2).…”

“…We situate the inclusive pedagogical approach within the broader theory of teacher agency for social justice (Pantić 2015) in order to challenge the established views of teaching as an isolated teacher-classroom activity and explore the possibilities of expanding the remit of teacher competence and preparation to include teachers' relational agency Á a capacity to work purposefully with other professionals and become aware of the resources they could bring to bear to support a child (Edwards 2007;.…”

Mainstream Early Childhood Education teacher preparation for inclusion in Zimbabwe

“…Such exposition was envisaged to foster in these teachers adequate professional grounding to meet child diversity in inclusive classrooms. Similarly, the 'core expertise' of inclusive pedagogy demands professional competence of teachers in ensuring learning for all children in the community of the mainstream pedagogical setting (Black-Hawkins & Florian, 2012;Florian & Linklater, 2010;Pantic, 2015). Participants perceived that comprehensive teacher training including all disability categories, curriculum differentiation and management of inclusive pedagogical settings and diverse children could optimize inclusion.…”

Development and Validation of an Instrument to Measure Teachers’ Professional Agency during Curriculum Reform and Its Underlying Structure

“…Calls to understand the nature of teachers' professional agency and to develop it in the stream of change are common in policies and research worldwide (Pantić, 2015;Vähäsantanen, 2015). The focus of such research is on clarifying the meaning of teachers' professional agency, the ways in which professional agency is manifested during reform, and conditions supportive of such agentic behaviour (Pantić, 2015). Literature also suggests that teachers' professional agency is influenced by experiences from the past, orientations towards the future and engagement with the present.…”