What are Teachers’ Careers like?A longitudinal study of teachers’ professional development

Martin BayerHead of Department of Culture and Identity at Roskilde University,

Denmark

and

Ulf BrinkkjærAssociate Professor

Department of EducationDanish School of Education, Aarhus University, Denmark

ATEE August, 2010

Methods

• Graduation in 1998

• Surveys in 1998,1999,2000,2006 (2011)

• 300 teachers 1998 - 2000

• 180 teachers 2006

• Case study in 1998,1999,2000,2006 (2011)

• 4 teachers

Indicate on a scale from 1-7, your prioritizations:

Value 1 represents: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Value 7 represents:

100 % personel development □ □ □ □ □ □ □ 100% development of subject knowledge

100% cross-curricular teaching □ □ □ □ □ □ □ 100% mono subject teaching

Data 1: 305 unique answers from 1998 until 2000 . Data 2: 180 answers from 2006

Development of subject knowledge or personality

Cross curricular or mono curricular teaching

Personality, experience, theory

The Relation between didactical choices and external parameters

Workplace Curriculum – Seven Years Teachers

1. Teaching is unpredictable and can be organized according to different codes.During the years the unpredictability of teaching can be used constructively and does not significantly disrupt lessons (Gippon 2005).

2. Once one during the first years of teaching has attained control during one’s lessons, and by that replaced a more personal relationship (Bernstein 2001) to pupils with a more positional relationship, one can slowly begin to loosen one’s grip again.

3. Teachers can and are welcome to organize teaching in their own ways, as long as they do not cause problems within the school. There are no expectations that teachers, over the years, alter their teaching after a particular model. Professional development has no specific direction. “The Robinson Crusoe syndrome” is still alive (Lortie 1966)

4. Newly educated teachers and experienced teachers might be talented or not this is not due to seniority or age (Day and Gu 2010)

Teachers’ careers within two years

• 0 – 2 years

33% 44% wants to leave

Personal relations

Personal develoment of the pupils

Cross curricular teaching

Teachers’ careers within eight years

• 15% wants to leave

• Positional relations to the pupils

• Good teacher and colleague

• Subjects matters

• Mono curricular teaching

During eight years – stable factors

• Commitment and person most important factors

• Theory and experience are of minor importance

Conclusions

• Yes, part of their understanding of teaching• No, the organization of teaching• No, part of their understaning of their

profession

• Teachers’ careers are not merely epiphenomena