Search results

1 – 10 of over 1000
Article
Publication date: 11 October 2022

Cecilia Azorín, Antonio Portela, José Miguel Nieto and María Begoña Alfageme

This paper draws on data from a research project that examined the professional relationships that existed between teachers of different generations within an educational setting…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper draws on data from a research project that examined the professional relationships that existed between teachers of different generations within an educational setting, including both those inside and outside school.

Design/methodology/approach

A qualitative approach was adopted to better understand participants' intergenerational relationships. Data were collected via semi-structured interviews conducted online. Data analysis was carried out using Atlas.ti 22 software. This focused on participants' professional relationships, generationally-inflected professional relationships, links to the school and connections with their environment.

Findings

The paper shows that commitment to the profession and work climate were among the key aspects referred to by the interviewees. The different age groups agreed that they had experienced intergenerational feedback and that there was closer contact between peers of the same generation, which led to greater levels of affinity. The shared responsibility that comes with teaching and the sense of belonging were essential links to the school. The generational groups underlined the importance of building bridges and participating in collaborative networks to form connections with their environment.

Originality/value

Although several studies have considered various factors influencing professional relationships from an intergenerational perspective, this paper adds value to the existing literature by providing new data and analyzing the barriers and opportunities experienced by teachers of different generations (novice, veteran and retired) in their professional work within and beyond the educational setting.

Details

Journal of Professional Capital and Community, vol. 7 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2056-9548

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 August 2016

Shujie Liu, Decheng Zhao and Wei Xie

The purpose of this paper is to investigate Chinese teachers’ attitudes toward performance pay. Specifically, this study examined the extent to which Chinese teachers supported…

1232

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate Chinese teachers’ attitudes toward performance pay. Specifically, this study examined the extent to which Chinese teachers supported performance-pay programs. The study also examined the effects of these programs on teachers, particularly on their levels of collaboration, work motivation, and job stress.

Design/methodology/approach

This research was conducted in a northeastern city of China. Criteria sampling and maximum variation sampling techniques were used to select three schools, representing different characteristics of teacher performance pay (TPP) programs. In all, 150 questionnaires were administered to each of the three schools. The questionnaire contained three parts. Part 1 asked about respondents’ overall attitude toward pay-for-performance in general. Part 2 was composed of 20 closed-ended items asking respondents to rate their levels of agreement with various aspects of implementation of performance pay. Part 3 of the questionnaire comprised open-ended items.

Findings

Approximately 48.5 percent of the teachers supported the teacher-performance-pay programs. This indicated a low support of Chinese teachers in comparison to that in some countries. Regarding how teachers’ attitudes toward performance pay are related to teacher characteristics (e.g. teaching experience, professional ranking), the ANOVAs results showed no significant differences in any of the factors. This quantitative result was different from the qualitative result of this study (e.g. veteran teachers complained about the implementation of performance pay). In spite of the differences between quantitative and qualitative findings, some findings from the current study are consistent with those found in western countries.

Research limitations/implications

One limitation of this study was the small sample size for quantitative analyses. Future research should consider a larger sample size to conduct more advanced statistical analyses such as structural equation modeling to examine further the relations among, for example, how much the incentive pay should be, and what proportion of teachers should receive it, the level of teacher stress, their work enthusiasm, and peer relationships. Another limitation of this study was that the qualitative data were collected through open-ended questions of the questionnaire. Future research should interview teachers and principals to obtain richer voices from the teachers.

Originality/value

Very few articles published in Chinese journals surveyed the implementation of TPP. In addition, these few articles were not well-designed from an empirical sense. So far research of teacher opinions about performance pay was a missing area in China’s educational discourse. The present study provides information to non-Chinese readers who are interested in Chinese teachers’ attitudes toward TPP. It is hoped the present study adds knowledge to the literature of TPP from the perspective of Chinese teachers.

Details

International Journal of Educational Management, vol. 30 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-354X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 25 September 2009

Stephen L. Jacobson, Lauri Johnson, Rose Ylimaki and Corrie Giles

The purpose of this paper is to revisit a successful school to see how the principal had sustained success over time.

1436

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to revisit a successful school to see how the principal had sustained success over time.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper uses a case study research design similar to the 2005 report.

Findings

The old findings revealed a principal who had used direction setting, developing people and redesigning the organization, as well as the enabling principles of accountability, caring and learning to turn around a failing, high poverty urban school. The new findings revealed that, while the same core practices and enabling principles were still in place, a significant change in governance structure had been required to sustain the school's success. Specifically, the school converted from a traditional public school to a charter school in order to protect investments made in teacher professional development. The resulting initiatives, introduced to stem teacher turnover, led to the emergence of greater teacher leadership and professional self‐renewal processes that sustained the school's success.

Originality/value

The paper adds to the literature on sustaining school success and the utility of governance change.

Details

Journal of Educational Administration, vol. 47 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0957-8234

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 15 June 2020

Michael D. Ekstrand, Katherine Landau Wright and Maria Soledad Pera

This paper investigates how school teachers look for informational texts for their classrooms. Access to current, varied and authentic informational texts improves learning…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper investigates how school teachers look for informational texts for their classrooms. Access to current, varied and authentic informational texts improves learning outcomes for K-12 students, but many teachers lack resources to expand and update readings. The Web offers freely available resources, but finding suitable ones is time-consuming. This research lays the groundwork for building tools to ease that burden.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper reports qualitative findings from a study in two stages: (1) a set of semistructured interviews, based on the critical incident technique, eliciting teachers' information-seeking practices and challenges; and (2) observations of teachers using a prototype teaching-oriented news search tool under a think-aloud protocol.

Findings

Teachers articulated different objectives and ways of using readings in their classrooms, goals and self-reported practices varied by experience level. Teachers struggled to formulate queries that are likely to return readings on specific course topics, instead searching directly for abstract topics. Experience differences did not translate into observable differences in search skill or success in the lab study.

Originality/value

There is limited work on teachers' information-seeking practices, particularly on how teachers look for texts for classroom use. This paper describes how teachers look for information in this context, setting the stage for future development and research on how to support this use case. Understanding and supporting teachers looking for information is a rich area for future research, due to the complexity of the information need and the fact that teachers are not looking for information for themselves.

Details

Aslib Journal of Information Management, vol. 72 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2050-3806

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 6 April 2018

Clare Kruft and Diane Wood

Project Teacher Leadership is a PDS initiative, which has formed university–school teams to foster collaboration, inquiry, and leadership. University professors, intern teachers

Abstract

Project Teacher Leadership is a PDS initiative, which has formed university–school teams to foster collaboration, inquiry, and leadership. University professors, intern teachers, and veteran K-12 teachers engaged in collaborative conversations about authentic experiences in their work to uncover troubling problems of practice and develop strategies for addressing them. In doing so, participants began to develop increased professional agency and leadership. The project drew strength from examining problems through varied perspectives and systematic inquiry, and the inquiry process motivated participants to advocate for changed practices better suited to ensure all students’ learning.

Details

Teacher Leadership in Professional Development Schools
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78743-404-2

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 20 June 2023

Kristien Zenkov, Marion Taousakis, Jennifer Goransson, Emily Staudt, Marriam Ewaida, Madelyn Stephens, Megan Hostutler, Jasmin Castorena and Matt Kitchen

Policy makers, professional associations and scholars continue to advocate for the integration of enhanced clinical experiences for future teachers’ preparation. These…

5841

Abstract

Purpose

Policy makers, professional associations and scholars continue to advocate for the integration of enhanced clinical experiences for future teachers’ preparation. These recommendations reflect the growing recognition that few events in preservice teachers’ education are more significant than their experiences in the classrooms of veteran peers. Aware of the fact that the field of teacher education needs examples of effective clinical experiences, the authors examined the “critical, project-based” (CPB) model, employing Photovoice activities in a dropout prevention course in a secondary education partner school at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper aims to discuss the aforementioned objective.

Design/methodology/approach

Aware that the field of teacher education needs examples of effective clinical experiences, the authors examined the CPB model, employing Photovoice activities in a dropout prevention course in a secondary education partner school at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this article they detail a practitioner research examination that explores the experiences of 12 preservice middle/high school teachers, reporting on these individuals’ considerations of general pedagogies, writing instruction strategies and teaching personas.

Findings

Results suggest that preservice teachers might best identify pedagogical practices that are consistent with their nascent teaching identities via experiences that occur in school-university partnerships in which future teachers are positioned as pedagogues.

Originality/value

This manuscript explores the use of the “CPB” clinical experience model, identifying the impacts of this approach for preparing future teachers.

Details

School-University Partnerships, vol. 16 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1935-7125

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 January 2009

Zhikui Niu

By reviewing the related literature on the Jiaoshi Pinren Zhi (JPZ) system, this paper seeks to indicate that the implementation of JPZ not only has led to domestic brain drain…

1246

Abstract

Purpose

By reviewing the related literature on the Jiaoshi Pinren Zhi (JPZ) system, this paper seeks to indicate that the implementation of JPZ not only has led to domestic brain drain and the imbalance of teachers' qualities between different areas and schools, but also has violated children's equal rights to education guaranteed by the Constitution and educational laws in PR China.

Design/methodology/approach

By analysing national policies and laws and some cases, the paper points out that the reforms on teachers' employment causes the imbalance of teachers' qualities between different areas and schools and it is against the principle of children's equal rights to education guaranteed by the Constitution and some educational laws in China.

Findings

Since the late 1980s, many reform initiatives have been launched in the context of the transition from planned economy to market economy in China.

Originality/value

The reforms on the teachers' employment system from “Tongyi Fenpei” (TF, a system of unified placement for all graduates) and the life‐time employment system to JPZ (a free contract employment system) is one of the important reform initiatives.

Details

International Journal of Educational Management, vol. 23 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-354X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 May 2024

Kristina Bell

The purpose of this systematic literature review is to catalog, explore and disseminate knowledge developed related to the affordances, constraints and collaborative practices of…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this systematic literature review is to catalog, explore and disseminate knowledge developed related to the affordances, constraints and collaborative practices of e-mentoring in order to offer recommendations for mentoring programs.

Design/methodology/approach

After identifying studies utilizing inclusion and exclusion criteria and a variety of relevant databases, chosen studies were organized into three categories based on e-mentoring practices.

Findings

Results reflect chat-room-based e-mentoring and e-mentoring with a video component both to have various affordances and collaborative features. These forms of e-mentoring can potentially be relevant to new teachers’ needs, may promote community and are disconnected from mentees’ school systems. A third form of e-mentoring, virtual reality e-mentoring, however, has the potential for accessibility issues and lack of relevancy to the mentoring process.

Originality/value

Chat-room-based e-mentoring and e-mentoring with a video component may benefit new teachers who do not have access to in-person mentors. However, these forms of e-mentoring may necessitate a component that ensures mentors and mentees alike remain consistently engaged in the e-mentoring process.

Details

International Journal of Mentoring and Coaching in Education, vol. 13 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2046-6854

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 1 March 2012

Nancy L. Ras

Teacher discretionary behaviors are considered to be organizationally beneficial and ways to develop and support such behaviors are sought after. Discretionary behaviors have, in…

Abstract

Teacher discretionary behaviors are considered to be organizationally beneficial and ways to develop and support such behaviors are sought after. Discretionary behaviors have, in the main, been considered from an individual level of analysis. However, using the group as the level of analysis, and viewed through Social Identity/Social Categorization theory (SIT/SCT) respectively, data from this longitudinal, mixed-method, case study of teachers during a curricular reform suggest that teacher discretionary behaviors may be the means to teacher socialization and the outcome of teacher social identification. Implications and applicability of the findings to other settings are discussed.

Details

Discretionary Behavior and Performance in Educational Organizations: The Missing Link in Educational Leadership and Management
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78052-643-0

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 11 September 2012

David Brody and Avigail Friedman

Kindergarten teachers are increasingly being called on to deal with emotionally laden topics in their classrooms. Little is known about effective means of supporting early…

Abstract

Kindergarten teachers are increasingly being called on to deal with emotionally laden topics in their classrooms. Little is known about effective means of supporting early childhood educators in their professional development to cope with these issues effectively. This study examines the utility of the Community of Practice (COP) model to address this need. A two-year COP was established among veteran and novice Israeli kindergarten teachers focused on teaching the Holocaust in their classrooms, which is a culturally mandated topic in preschools and kindergartens in their country. Six teachers were interviewed, and the data was analyzed using grounded theory. Findings show the COP to support teachers in learning more about the subject matter and thinking deeply about its teaching in the early childhood classroom. In addition the COP provided a community of peers that encouraged meaningful feedback in a safe environment, which served to break professional isolation. The COP format was also found to be an effective tool for professional growth due to its support of cooperative learning, professional assurance, empowerment, mindfulness, and a disposition for focusing on the child's needs rather than the demands of the curriculum.

Details

Early Education in a Global Context
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78190-074-1

Keywords

1 – 10 of over 1000