The First Six Years. A Professional Life-historical Investigation of the Professional Development of Four Primary School Teachers

Author(s):

Marianne Strömberg(presenting / submitting)

Conference:

ECER 2011

Network:

1. Continuing Professional Development: Learning for Individuals, Leaders, and Organisations

Format:

Paper

Session Information

01 SES 10 B, CPD Strategies for Individuals, Groups, and Schools

Paper Session

Time:

2011-09-15

15:00-16:30

Room:

JK 31/239,1 FL., 25

Chair:

Marianne Strömberg

Contribution

The present study is the result of research collaboration where participating teachers and a researcher have jointly analyzed and reflected over experiences from professional training and professional work in order to develop an understanding of skills and knowledge that are relevant to the professional development and professional lives of teachers. The focus is on four female primary school teachers’ stories. Certain things run through these stories. They are (i) a quest for professional development, (ii) a strong commitment to teaching and (iii) an ongoing identity-building process.

The overall purpose of the thesis is to identify and describe these processes and the contribute meaningful knowledge to the debate on teacher professional development. Two questions have been particularly important. These are:

- What individual and structural conditions and processes appear to be important for professional development and career choice?

- Which key events and turning points can be identified in teachers’ lives and work, focusing on the early years of the occupation and how can these be understood?

Through the above questions the thesis tries to contribute meaningful knowledge to the debate on teacher professional development and identity formation during a period that preceded and is shaped by transformations at several levels within the Swedish educational landscape (Lundahl 2003, Lindblad, 2006) and even the Nordic (Beach, 2009) and European context (Beach 2008, 2010, Goodson 2008).

The theoretical framework of the present study is eclectic and my aim has been in part to contribute to developing an integrated model of professional socialization and professional development. This is an ambitious and complex task for such a complex profession as that of teaching and in accordance with this theoretical input has come from several directions.

An important theoretical basis is Berger and Luckman’s social constructionist perspective (1966/1979/1998), particularly in the sense developed by Sjöstrand (1968/81) in relation to his social psychological theory and model that highlights professional histories as integrated careers with breakpoints linked to key concepts and activities. This theory shows, in line with Berger and Luckman, the interaction that exists between the individual and the environment in which the individual is seen.

Method

The study is based on a life-history data that extends over a ten year period, from 1997 (the point at which the teachers entered initial teacher education 2007 (when they had completed their first five years of professional work). Of particular interest has been issues connected to events, experiences and happenings that have influenced their work, professional identity and commitment to teach and continue to learn to teach. Data were produced through 16 life story interviews that were carried out during the first six years of the teachers’ professional lives (Goodson & Sikes, 2001). These interviews formed the basis for joint working seminars with feedback from each interview. They resulted in four thematic professional life histories (Goodson & Numan 2003). Teacher background, previous life experience, career / education, current position and professional experience from working life showed a linked relationship. Critical incidents were identified. The critical events and turning points in life / professional life involved changes in view and had a before and after identification and an effect on the individual’s identity formation and employment orientation. This made them useful methodological tools. I have used Webster and Mertova’s (2007) argument here that critical incidents often remain in our memories

Expected Outcomes

The thesis has resulted in professional life stories in which four female primary school teachers’ experiences of professional life are portrayed in ways that show how teacher professionalism has grown and developed in relation to personal life experiences. The professional life stories have a chronological structure. One of these is The Road to the profession, including teachers’ stories about their background, school experiences, past professional life and what has influenced them to take the step to become a teacher, and experience from their education. The second is the first years in the profession. This is the period covering the first three years of working life after teacher education. It depicted a diversity of experience and the experience of strenuous and stressful work situations. As well as these tensions of development there also appears to be a period of intense and stimulating knowledge development. They developed professionally in a way that strengthened their professional identity. The continuing work history period is the third period. Here the teachers describe a process of establishment at each workplace, where the teachers’ continuing quest for educational development and change.

References

Beach, D. (2010). Socialisation and Commercialization in the Restructuring of Education and Health Professions in Europe: Questions of Global Class and Gender. Current Sociology. 58, in press. Berger, P.L. & Luckman, T. (1979). The social construction of reality. Svensk översättning: Kunskapssociologi. Hur individen uppfattar och formar sin sociala verksamhet. 1979/1998. Stockholm : Wahlström & Widstrand. Cole, A. and Knowles, J. G (2001) Lives in kontext – The art of life history research. AltaMiraPress. England Goodson, I. F. & Numan, U. (2003). Livshistoria och professonsutveckling. Berättelserom lärares liv och arbete. Lund : Studentlitteratur. Goodson, I. and Sikes, P. (2001) Lifehistory research in educational settings: Learning from lives Buckinham: Open University Press Hodkinson, P. and Sparkes, A. (1997) ‘Careership: a sociologal theory of career decision making’, British Journal of Sociology of Eucation 18(1): 29-44. Kelchtermans, G. & Ballet, K. (2002). The micropolitics of teacher indiction. A narrative biografical study on teacher socialisation. Teaching and Teacher Education.Vol. 18, Issue 1, January 2002. pp. 105–120. Lindblad, S. & Pérez Prieto, H. (1992). School experiences and teacher socialization.A longitudinal study of pupils who grow up to be teachers. In Teachingand Teacher Education, (8), pp 465–470. Measor, L. (1985) ‘Critical incidents in the classroom: identities, choises and careers’, in S. Ball and I. Goodson (eds) Teachers’ Lives and Careers, London: Falmer Press. Troman, G. & Woods, P. (2003). Careers under stress, Teacher Adaptions at a Time of Intense Reform. Journal of Educational Change, Vol. 1, No. 3, pp. 253–275. Webster, L. & Mertova, P. (2007). Using narrative as a research method. An introduction to using critical event narrative analysis in research on learning and teaching. London and New York : Routledge Woods, P. (1993b) ‘Critical events in education’, British Journal of Sociology of Education, 14: 355-371

Author Information

Marianne Strömberg (presenting / submitting)

Institution for Pedagogy and Behavioral sience

University college of Borås

Borås

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