A TYPOLOGY OF TEACHER ACTIVISM

Abstract

The categorization of different manifestations of teacher activist behaviour is the central focus of this paper. Evidence for the analysis is obtained from interviews with teacher activists and from an extensive period of participant‐observation within an Australian teachers' organization. A matrix of nine categories of activism is described in which teacher unionists are classified according to the strength of their identification with the union (“Us”) or the union leadership's internal and external opponents (“Them”) during a period of intense political and industrial conflict. Some of the personal and attitudinal characteristics of the groups of activist teachers so described are discussed in general terms. The study presents a more complex picture of teacher activism than is implied by the more usual classifications of “left”, “right” and “moderate”. The conclusions drawn might also provide material for more extensive research, perhaps of an empirical nature, into teacher involvement in various forms of political and industrial activism.

Citation

McMORROW, J.F. (1982), "A TYPOLOGY OF TEACHER ACTIVISM", Journal of Educational Administration, Vol. 20 No. 2, pp. 138-147. https://doi.org/10.1108/eb009858