New government policies aimed at redefining teacher professionalism have also sought to enhance the status of teachers both within the profession and with the wider public (Swann et al, 2010). Large scale research by Hargreaves et al (2010) however, suggests that teachers believe their profession continues to maintain a much lower status than other professions, largely as a result of a more informed and critical public. Interestingly, their study also found that external status mattered little to teachers and that perceptions of colleagues and parents were of much greater importance and significance.  The aim of this paper is to report the findings from a large scale study of Advanced Skills Teachers (ASTs) undertaken in 2010 in England. Data was collected using a mixed method research design: a large scale survey of 837 ASTs and in-depth interview with a sub-sample of 41. The paper considers how well recognition of teaching expertise, via the awarding of AST status, contributes to a teacher’s sense of professional identity. In particular, we explore the ways that the AST award does or does not promote a teacher’s sense of professional status and esteem.  Using SPSS to analyse survey data and Envivo to explore themes within the interviews, results suggest that awards such as AST do contribute in important ways to an AST teacher’s sense of their professional self. ASTs report experiencing increased recognition and respect from colleagues and parents which promotes a sense of professional esteem. Consistent with the findings of Hargreaves et al (2010), how teachers were perceived outside of the profession mattered little to ASTs. What was of much greater relevance was that ASTs felt recognised and valued by their peers; for their work as teachers but also for their expertise. Whilst not explicitly referred to, data appears to suggest that the AST award contributes in important ways to raising a teacher’s sense of professional status and esteem as well as levels of job satisfaction. Research suggests that teacher job satisfaction remain low and is considerably lower than in 1962 (Klassen and Anderson, 2009).  In light of impending government cuts, the results of this research may therefore have important policy considerations, particularly with respect to teacher job satisfaction and retention.

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