The Experiences of Sm3t Teachers: Constructing Teacher Identity in the Borderland Discourses

Abstract

This study focuses on the experiences of SM3T teachers in constructing teacher identity in the borderland discourses. Teacher identity construction is a dynamic process. One of the aspects constructing teacher identity is borderland discourse. In short, borderland discourse is the intersection between oneself as a personal and as a professional. The participants of this research were five teachers who have experienced SM3T program. SM3T is a program held by the government in Indonesia. It stands for Sarjana Mengajar Terdepan, Terluar, Tertinggal. In order to find out SM3T teachers’ experiences and beliefs about constructing teacher identity in the borderland discourses, the researcher used mixed methods which were combination between quantitative and qualitative. The researcher used close-ended questionnaire and also in-depth interview in order to gather further information.This study aimed to find out the borderland discources faced by the SM3T teachers and the solution to cope them. This study revealed that most of the teachers faced borderland discources during SM3T program.

Pre-Service Teachers’ Changes in Perspective: A Transformative Learning Experience During Teaching Practice in Remote Areas

“…Teaching practice in remote areas is also more challenging than the urban and rural counterparts because remote schools tend to have a low quality of education (Mitra et al, 2008). Lack of teaching resources (Çiftçi & Cin, 2018), pupils' absenteeism (Nurhayati & Septia, 2016) and dropping out (Sabates et al, 2013), low parental support (Nugraheni, 2019), and geographical isolation (Febriana et al, 2018) are examples that contribute to this low quality of education. These examples are also the reason that teaching in remote schools is more complex than in urban and rural counterparts (Diwan, 2015).…”

Pre-service teachers’ teaching challenges and the transformative learning opportunities during teaching practice in Indonesian remote areas

“…PSTs encounter challenges during teaching practice as they enter a new learning environment (Foncha et al, 2015), including those who have teaching practice in remote areas . PSTs often experience difficulties during teaching practice in remote areas (Nugraheni, 2019).…”

“…The first type of challenge is related to a lack of teaching resources (Çiftçi, & Cin, 2018;Nugraheni, 2019;Roberts et al, 2015;Tanang et al, 2014). Teachers often experience this due to an unequal distribution of school resources across geographic locations which disadvantages remote schools (Sullivan et al, 2013).…”

“…Regarding pupils in remote areas, PSTs are challenged by their absence, of which one reason is due to working for their parents (Nurhayati & Septia, 2016); pupils help their parents instead of going to school (Nugraheni, 2019). Another reason for pupils' absenteeism is having difficult physical access to the school (Hargreaves et al, 2001).…”

“…Pupils often lack parental support related to school activities (Nugraheni, 2019;Sabates et al, 2013). Parents hardly motivate their children to study and do not facilitate 4 them with learning materials such as a book (Nugraheni, 2019).…”