Topic. Teachers play a critical role in the care, support, and adaptation of resilient communities within globalised societies and economies, yet they often experience difficulties with emotion management (Bianchi & Schonfeld, 2016; Stucher, Darling-Hammond & Carver-Thomas 2016). Teachers’ adaptability(Martin et al., 2015) and resilience (Rees et al., 2015) are linked to teachers’ capacity and agency, improved job outcomes and wellbeing (Almlund et al., 2011). Insufficient development of adaptability and resilience (A&R) may contribute to early career teachers’ (ECTs) feeling underprepared and overwhelmed by the responsibilities of teaching (Collie et al., 2020; Miles & Knipe, 2018; Wright et al., 2019). Organisational psychology defines resilience as “the developable capacity to rebound or bounce back from adversity, conflict, failure or even positive events” (Luthans, 2002, p.702). While adaptability involves ‘adaptive functions’ in individuals, so as to be able to positively adjust to stresses and progress towards teaching goals (Le Fevre et al., 2006). These conceptions tend to ignore the social-contextual factors (i.e., school environment, culture) that contribute to ECTs livedexperiences.  The salient nature of A&R attributes for teachers is well known (Collie et al., 2018:Collie et al., 2020; Loughland & Alonzo, 2019) yet the extent of these attributes in dealing with everyday work challenges remains unexamined (Collie et al., 2020), and poorly understood (Gilmore et al., 2019).

COVID-19 has increased the emotional strain for ECTs impacting their everyday performance (Moorhouse, 2021; Obran 2020). Post-disaster resilience for ECTs will require social support from the whole school community­ (Mooney et al., 2021). This has implications for professional learning and development requirements that enhance ECTs capacity and agency in teaching. As such, the study sought to understand the lived experiences of ECTs in the social environment of schools – the different conditions and emotional trials that shape ECTs professional identity and teaching practices.

Conceptual Underpinnings

This study draws upon empirical research on adaptability (i.e., Collie and Martin, 2016; Martin et al., 2013) and relational-cultural theories of resilience (Jordan, 2006). Collie and Martin’s (2016) defined adaptability as the capacity, to adapt to environmental opportunities and threats (Heckhausen et al., 2010) – adjusting actions or thoughts in response to circumstances or events is critical to a teacher’s development (Tomasik et al., 2010).

Adaptability involves cognitive, behavioural and emotional adaptions which require modification of thinking, behaviour and emotions when dealing with uncertainty (Collie & Martin, 2016, p.3).  While adaptability and resilience might seem to greatly overlap, Martin et al., (2012; 2013), stressed that “although related, adaptability is different from cognitive processes such as coping and resilience” (Collie & Martin, 2016, p.3). Resilient teachers can both respond to and cope with adversity (Martin et al., 2012; 2013). Everyday resilience is the ability to effectively navigate setbacks and challenges Martin et al. (2013). Being adaptable is considered as a protective factor against everyday stresses (Wosnitza et al., 2014).

Positive relationships in teaching are seen as protective factors, having significant influence on the ECT’s development and perceptions of well-being, self-efficacy, and resilience (Beltman et al., 2011; Luthar, 2006; Gu, 2014). The relational nature of resilience is particularly important to ECTs working in the tight knit social/cultural settings of schools – important for survival and acceptance (Collie & Martin, 2017; Lux & McCullick, 2011; Pearce & Morrison, 2011). Trusting and open professional relationships serve as a form of bonding social capital (e.g., collegial support) (Daly et al., 2014), which facilitate opportunities for individuals career development (Fullan & Hargreaves, 2021) and support with emotional experiences (Gu & Li, 2013).

Research Question: What are ECTs lived experiences of A&R and how do these school experiences shape their capacity and agency as teachers?

Method. This study was situated in a regional city in Australia. In-depth semi-structured interviews provided a nuanced understandings of the ECTs’ lived experiences and visibility of the enactment of A&R in response to everyday challenges. Participants were ECTs teachers from undergraduate secondary teaching degrees - 6 males and 5 females, i.e., Mathematics (n=7) and Science (n=4) with 1-2 years teaching experience. Data Collection: Interview data was collected using online, with questions developed from the literature (i.e., Can you describe a circumstance/time where you had to adapt or show resilience in handling a challenging work situation as a teacher?). Data Analysis & Findings: Initial content analysis through NVivo 12 was used to gain an overall sense of the participants’ responses, involving abductive reasoning, or working backwards from the data to the most parsimonious hypothesis (or line of reasoning) (Saldana, 2011). This approach was ideal for an exploratory (rather than explanatory) study that sought to understand ECTs’ lived experiences. Four ‘big ideas’ emerged from the initial content analysis which reflect the ECTs’ experiences in classrooms and staffrooms: 1.‘taking a beating’; 2. ‘toxic or just hard’; 3.‘getting ahead of the problem’; and 4. formal and informal support. Secondary coding of individual transcripts identifies key lived experiences of A&R, using prefigured codes drawn from the empirical and theoretical work (i.e., Collie and Martin, 2016; Martin, 2013; Jordan, 2006). A codebook articulated the distinctive boundaries for each code providing a descriptive label. Three themes and 3 sub-themes for adaptability and 5 themes and 7 sub-themes for resilience were established. These themes were explained based on the original set of big ideas. ECTs saw adaptability as a daily requirement. They described the importance of “…being flexible on a day-to-day/class-to-class/moment-to-moment basis.” (#6) and “…the ability to cope with change and to be able to fit into a situation as it’s thrown at you…”(#2F). In order to thrive in schools ECTs needed to be able to adapt to new tasks, requirements and uncertainty. Resilience was identified a long-term attribute that was constructed and developed overtime, involving a reflection: “…facing the challenges that come with teaching… [is being] able to look back and see what [you] …can work on, and what you can work through.” (#3M). ECTs built resilience over time and through exposure to different contexts, however, no matter where they work, their resilience is built around dynamic supportive social systems.

Conclusions/Scholarly Significance. The relationship between ECTs’ A&R and the socio-contextual environment of school is complex, with attention needed to develop and support ECTs as they navigate classrooms and staffrooms. It is imperative that school leaders provide links between the aspirations of ECTs and the reality of teaching. Professional training on the job is crucial, to develop ECTs capacity to adapt to ‘change’ in schools and to be able to remain resilient in the face of these changes. ECTs’ capacity for A&R needs to be recognised and nurtured through individualised support within the workplace context (Day & Gu, 2014). Informal and formal social support, and professional networks/learning, plus career development advice, plays an important role in supporting ECTs. There is also a need for school leaders to pay attention to issues that create and add to the pressure on ECTs, such as workloads, class allocation, behaviour management and peer relationships. Schools need to put in place robust systems that support ECTs to feel welcomed and valued, whereby performance evaluation is a form of support. The notion of ‘sink or swim’ needs to be removed from the ECT’s lexicon as does the concept that feeling ‘battered’ is normal in school workplaces. Instead, schools need to ensure that ECTs are well supported and that they have developed realistic expectations for themselves and their students. Opportunity for relationship building and reflection within the busyness of school is important. In terms of the ECER Network Objectives, the findings build on knowledge that shapes ECTs’ professional identity and practices, with the implications for developing strategies that can lead to the betterment of ECTs’ professional lives. The study encourages professional learning for ECTs that is built around strategic interdependent and individualised networks of support and professional growth within schools.

Beltman, S., Mansfield, C., & Price, A. (2011). Thriving not just surviving: A review of research on teacher resilience. Educational research review, 6(3),185-207. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2011.09.001 Bianchi, R., & Schonfeld, I. S. (2016). Burnout is associated with a depressive cognitive style. Personality and Individual Differences,100, 1-5. DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2016.01.008 Collie, R.J., & Martin, A.J. (2016). Adaptability: An important capacity for effective teachers. Educational Practice and Theory, 38, 27-39. DOI: 10.7459/ept/38.1.03. Collie R., Guay F., Martin A.J., Caldecott-Davis, K., & Granziera H. (2020) Examining the unique roles of adaptability and buoyancy in teachers’ work-related outcomes, Teachers and Teaching, 26 (3-4), 350-364. DOI: 10.1080/13540602.2020.1832063 Gilmore, G., Welsh, S., & Loton, D. (2019). An Australian case for relational resilience. Building academic pathways in first year, preservice teacher education. Pedagogy, Culture and Society, 27(3), 441–461. https://doi.org/10.1080/14681366.2018.1522365 Gu, Q. (2014). The role of relational resilience in teachers’ career-long commitment and effectiveness. Teachers and Teaching: theory and practice, 20(5), 502–529. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2014.937961 Jordan, J. (2006). Relational resilience in girls. In S. Goldstein & R. B. Brooks (Eds.), Handbook of resilience in children (pp.79–90). NY: Springer. Le Maistre, C., & Pare, A. (2010). Whatever it takes: How beginning teachers learn to survive. Teaching and Teacher Education, 26(3), 559-564. http://dx.doi.org/10. 1016/j.tate.2013.05.003. Loughland, T., & Alonzo, D. (2019). Teacher adaptive practices: A key factor in teachers' implementation of assessment for learning. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 44(7), 18-30. http://dx.doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2019v44n7.2 Martin, A. J., Nejad, H., Colmar, S., Liem, G. A. D., & Collie, R. J. (2015). The role of adaptability in promoting control and reducing failure dynamics: A mediation model. Learning and Individual Differences, 38(2), 36-43. DOI: 10.1016/j.lindif.2015.02.004 Miles, R., & Knipe, S. (2018). “I Sorta Felt Like I was out in the Middle of the Ocean”: Novice Teachers’ Transition to the Classroom. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 43(6), 105-121. http://dx.doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2018v43n6.7 Moorhouse, B. L. (2021). Beginning teaching during COVID-19: Newly qualified Hong Kong teachers’ preparedness for online teaching, Educational Studies, 1-17. doi:10.1080/03055698.2021.1964939 Obrad, C. (2020). Constraints and consequences of online teaching. Sustainability, 12(17), 6982. https://doi.org/10.3390/su12176982 Wosnitza, M., Delzepich, R., Scwarze, J., O’Donnell, M., Faust, V., & Camilleri, V. (2014). Enhancing Teacher Resilience: From Self-Reflection to Professional Development. In M. Wosnitza, F. Peixoto, S. Beltman, & C.F. Mansfield (Eds.) Resilience in Education (pp. 275-288). Springer. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-76690-4_16 Wright, D. S., Balgopal, M. M., Sample McMeeking, L. B., & Weinberg, A. E. (2019). Developing resilient K-12 STEM teachers. Advances in Developing Human Resources, 21(1), 16-34. doi:https://doi.org/10.1177/1523422318814483