Professional identity tensions of beginning teachers

Pillen, MT Marieke; Beijaard, Douwe; Brok, PJ Perry den

doi:10.1080/13540602.2013.827455

Cited by 178 publications

(193 citation statements)

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“…Despite commonly studying teachers' professional learning, a number of studies look into their cultural backgrounds (e.g., Gan, 2013;Gao & Benson, 2012;Miller, 2007;Nemtchinova, 2005), while others investigate prior beliefs (e.g., Le, 2014;Mak, 2011;Ng, Nicholas, & Williams, 2010;Tang, Lee, & Chun, 2012;Yuan & Lee, 2014), emotions (e.g., Atay, 2007;Benson, 2012;Brandt, 2006;Farrell, 2008;H. T. M. Nguyen, 2010;Pillen, Beijaard, & den Brok, 2013;Trent, 2013), and professional identity (e.g., Haniford, 2010;Miller, 2007;Trent, 2011Trent, , 2013. Although various personal factors have been accumulatively accounted for in the literature, it seems to be challenging to try and aggregate or compare findings from these studies due to their different focuses and scopes and a lack of a broad framework that allows for research to account for teachers' personal influences more comprehensively and systematically.…”

Section: Contemporary Research On L2 Teacher Learning In Light Of Thementioning

confidence: 99%

Responding to the Need for Re-Conceptualizing Second Language Teacher Education: The Potential of a Sociocultural Perspective

Nguyen¹

2016

IES

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This paper aims to engage with and respond to recent calls in the literature for a unifying theoretical framework to understand second language teacher education (SLTE). It critically reviews the major conceptualizations of SLTE in relation to the key conceptualizations of second language (L2) teaching. The review identifies shortcomings in traditional perspectives on L2 teaching and SLTE and the need to re-conceptualize SLTE as a field. A recent re-conceptualization of SLTE is seen through the shift towards a social constructivist perspective, a redefinition of the knowledge base, research that responds to the epistemological shift, and a sociocultural perspective on SLTE. The existing literature shows that although there is now a growing body of research that looks into the various dimensions of SLTE, few studies have gained a comprehensive and systematic view of the complexities of SLTE. The paper argues that a sociocultural perspective, especially a combination of Vygotsky's genetic method and Engeström's proposal of the third generation of activity theory, has become a powerful way of understanding L2 teacher learning, which corresponds to the need for a re-conceptualization of SLTE. This paper calls for more research using a sociocultural framework to enrich its knowledge base.

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Section: Contemporary Research On L2 Teacher Learning In Light Of Thementioning

confidence: 99%

Responding to the Need for Re-Conceptualizing Second Language Teacher Education: The Potential of a Sociocultural Perspective

Nguyen¹

2016

IES

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“…In the SETE study (Mayer et al, 2015), the authors emphasised that teacher identity is relational, and early-career teachers' identities can be shaped through interactions with colleagues, students, and the wider teaching community. There is also general agreement in the literature that there is a complex connection between the personal and the professional in teacher identity development (Akkerman & Meijer, 2011;Beauchamp & Thomas, 2009;Beijaard et al, 2004;Day & Gu, 2014;Pillen et al, 2013a). For Beauchamp and Thomas (2009), a combined view of the personal and professional dimensions is absolutely necessary to understanding teacher identity development.…”

Section: Conceptualising Teacher Identitymentioning

confidence: 84%

“…There has been an increasing interest in the past two decades on teacher identity (Beijaard et al, 2004;Henry, 2016;Pillen et al, 2013a). The importance of understanding teacher identity is frequently acknowledged in the literature, where development and growth are conceptualised as a process of becoming a teacher as opposed to a linear process of professional development (Akkerman & Meijer, 2011;Beauchamp & Thomas, 2009;Henry, 2016;Morrison, 2013).…”

Section: Conceptualising Teacher Identitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This shift constitutes important "identity work" (Watson, 2006, p. 525). Adjusting personal expectations is acknowledged to be a complex process, involving changes that often stand in opposition to teachers' values, perceptions or beliefs about what it is to be a quality teacher (Pillen, Beijaard, & den Brok, 2013a). As such, recognising the processes involved in the adjustment of early-career teachers' personal expectations is essential in understanding how they can build a robust teacher identity (Johnson et al, 2015).…”

Section: Early-career Teacher Expectations a Significant Body Of Litmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The concept of teacher identity, then, is not only complex, but defining it is difficult, as research draws attention to teacher identity from a variety of perspectives (Beauchamp & Thomas, 2009;Beijaard et al, 2004;Morrison, 2013). These include intersecting discourses in which teachers participate (Alsup, 2006), narrative (Connelly & Clandinin, 2006;Sfard & Prusak, 2005), the role of a robust teacher identity in building resilience (Day & Gu, 2014;Johnson et al, 2015), the role of emotions (Flores & Day;Pillen et al, 2013a), conditions and contexts that influence teacher development (Delamarter, 2015;Morrison, 2013), and the responsibility of teacher education to provide opportunities for the development of teacher identity (Beauchamp & Thomas, 2009;Tait, 2008;Cattley, 2007;Ruohotie-Lyhty, 2013;Sutherland & Markauskaite, 2012). Beauchamp and Thomas (2009), in their review of research on teacher identity, also note the variations in the language used in the literature, with the terms building, creating, constructing or forming an identity used interchangeably.…”

Section: Conceptualising Teacher Identitymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Adjusting Personal Expectations: An Analysis of Early-Career Teacher Narratives

Constantine¹

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iii AbstractThe early years of a teacher's career are often a site of tension, where long-standing beliefs about what it is to be a teacher are challenged. The images and ideals that teachers have of themselves -their "personal expectations" (Cole & Knowles, 1993) -have recognised implications for the development of a teacher's professional identity. Early-career teachers often confront a disparity between their personal expectations, and what they find to be realistic to achieve in practice. Understanding how early-career teachers adjust their personal expectations, whilst at the same time maintaining their commitment to the profession, is at the core of this narrative study.This study of four early-career teachers in Queensland seeks to address the following research questions: (1) how do teachers adjust their personal expectations during the early-career years? and (2) This study drew upon semi-structured interviews (Schuman, 1982;Seidman, 2013) in the data collection phase. Not only did the research method allow for depth in the responses, but also allowed for participants to engage in a process of ongoing reflection and engagement in the construction of the narrative. The analysis was guided by the narrative approach detailed by Clandinin and Connelly (2000), andConnelly and Clandinin (2006). The findings of the study are presented as narratives:individual, idiosyncratic stories of teachers' lives, experiences and expectations. Abstract ivThe findings of this study suggest that early-career teachers adjust their personal expectations gradually and with difficulty, and only through reflecting and acting upon their own professional experimentation. Importantly, the findings demonstrate that whilst feedback, collegial relationships and trial-and-error practices are critical for early-career teachers to develop more realistic expectations of themselves, retaining some aspects of their initial expectations allows them to maintain their ideological vision of themselves in a teaching role. This study provides considerable insight into the ways that teachers can be better prepared for their first years in the profession, and, as such, has implications for early-career teachers, school administrators, policymakers, and for universities. The findings suggest that encouraging early-career teachers to confront unrealistic personal expectations is critical in empowering them to shape strong professional identities.Abstract v

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‘Elite’ career‐changers in the teaching profession

Wilkins

Comber

2015

British Educational Res J

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Evidence linking teacher quality and the ‘performance’ of education systems has led to a widespread emphasis on improving the quality of entrants to teaching. In the USA and UK particularly, policymakers have encouraged entrants who have been highly successful in other careers to switch to teaching, on the assumption that they bring distinctive attributes/competences that will not only enable them to become successful teachers, but to improve leadership and management cultures in schools. This study analyses the numbers of ‘elite’ career‐changers entering initial teacher education (ITE) in England, and compares their completion rates with those of first‐career entrants. In addition, through semi‐structured interviews, it examines the experiences of career transition of 24 ‘elite career‐changers’. Theoretically underpinned by notions of motivation, self‐efficacy, and professional identity development, the findings suggest that career‐changers are primarily influenced by altruistic and intrinsic motivations, and consider previously acquired attributes to be significant positive influences on their self‐efficacy. While they report high levels of resilience in adapting to contrasting professional cultures and to the demands of teaching, they also report significant levels of frustration with a perceived lack of acknowledgement from colleagues and school leaders of the potential ‘added value’ contribution they could make at a wider institutional level. These findings are discussed in the context of the presumed system‐wide benefits of attracting elite career‐changers into teaching, arguing that while previously acquired attributes are enabling them to become successful classroom practitioners, the schools may not be capitalising on potential contributions at a leadership and management level.

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Professional identity tensions of beginning teachers

Cited by 178 publications

References 69 publications

Responding to the Need for Re-Conceptualizing Second Language Teacher Education: The Potential of a Sociocultural Perspective

Responding to the Need for Re-Conceptualizing Second Language Teacher Education: The Potential of a Sociocultural Perspective

Adjusting Personal Expectations: An Analysis of Early-Career Teacher Narratives

‘Elite’ career‐changers in the teaching profession

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