'It feels like I'm back to being a teacher': A longitudinal trajectory analysis of teachers' experiences during the first 8 months of COVID-19 in England.

BACKGROUND: Understanding teachers' experiences throughout the school closures and reopenings that have characterized large periods of the COVID-19 pandemic provides us with unique insights into what it means to be a teacher during a global public health crisis. AIM AND METHOD: To investigate teachers' narratives of their experiences, we conducted 95 semi-structured interviews with 24 teachers in England across four time points between April and November 2020. We used a longitudinal qualitative trajectory analysis of participants' stories of their high-, low- and turning-points. RESULTS: We derived four themes that were evident at each time point and developed over time. The themes were: (1) growing frustration at uncertainties caused by poor government leadership, (2) expanding concern for pupil learning and well-being, (3) an increasingly labour-intensive and exhausting job and (4) declining pleasure and pride in being a teacher. CONCLUSIONS: The findings shed light on the impact of COVID-19 on the professional identity of these teachers and we propose ways in which teachers can be supported now and in the future.

Revisiting English as a foreign language teachers' professional identity and commitment in social media-focused professional development.

These days, technology advancement has inspired a large number of educators to employ social media in the English as a foreign language (EFL) context. But, some EFL educators are yet unwilling to use such chances, because they are left untrained. Therefore, applying professional development (PD) in this field appears necessary as it is regarded as the main cause of improving educators' education activity, and proposing new education approaches. To strengthen the academic investment in educators' professional learning, comprehending elements affecting educators' performance of learning from PD is vital. Lower commitment degrees were specified as an element that impedes EFL educators from employing social media in EFL education. Moreover, developing the professional identity (PI) of educators is an important issue that straightly pertains to educators' performance, which assists educators both in comprehending their professional lives and presenting them with a framework to elucidate, expand and contemplate their professional activities. Stimulated by the interest in research on social media-focused courses, this review inspects how teachers' commitment and identity affect EFL teachers' implementation of social media in PD. In a nutshell, implications for stakeholders of the study are presented. Indeed, the social media as an impotent device should be incorporated in PD programs to develop both teachers' commitment and identity. Faculty members should establish workshops, and seminars to arrange for a platform for teachers to use social media to support learning.

Teachers' Professional Identity and Burnout among Chinese Female School Teachers: Mediating Roles of Work Engagement and Psychological Capital.

Burnout is a serious phenomenon among female kindergarten, primary, and secondary school teachers in China. Previous research has shown that professional identity negatively predicts burnout. However, little is known about the mediating mechanisms underlying this relationship. This study examined the relationship between professional identity and burnout and the mediating roles of work engagement and psychology using a sample of Chinese teachers. A total of 2220 female teachers participated (kindergarten: 16.9%; primary school: 56.7%; secondary school: 26.4%). They answered four questionnaires measuring their professional identity, work engagement, psychological capital, and burnout. PROCESS macro (SPSS 21.0) was used to conduct mediation analyses of work engagement and psychological capital in the relationship between professional identity and burnout. Working simultaneously, work engagement, and psychological capital partially mediated the aforementioned relationship, which could reduce burnout. Working sequentially completely mediated the relationship between professional identity and burnout, and hence, the latter was the lowest. Specific implications are discussed, such as the improvement of professional identity and psychological capital.

The Predictive Role of Perceived Support from Principals and Professional Identity on Teachers' Motivation and Well-Being: A Longitudinal Study.

The aim of this study was to estimate the influence of perceived support from principals and teacher professional identity (TPI) on teacher's motivation, vigour and burnout using a longitudinal design during a school year. A sample of 544 secondary teachers reported their perceived support from principals and TPI at the beginning of the year (T1) and their self-determined motivation, vigour, and burnout both at the beginning (T1) and at the end of the year (T2). Structural equation modelling (SEM) revealed that the support from principals was associated with T1 TPI. T1 TPI only partially predicted T2 self-determined motivation (controlling T1 scores), and T2 self-determined motivation was associated with T2 burnout and vigour (controlling T1 scores). The SEM revealed a positive process involving perceived support from principals, pedagogical expertise, autonomous motivation, and well-being indicators. In summary, the present study extends the knowledge about the teacher well-being process and the role of contextual and individual antecedents. In an applied perspective, to prevent burnout, teachers need efficient initial and continuing pedagogical education to be armed in front of the students and need the support of their principals during the school year.

Profiles of Teacher Professional Identity Among Student Teachers and Its Association With Mental Health.

In recent years, studies exploring the link between teacher professional identity and mental health are increasing. However, such research using latent profile analysis is still scarce. The aim of this study was to examine the heterogeneity of a sample of 923 student teachers' professional identity and its association with mental health (i.e., psychological wellbeing and anxiety). By using latent profile analysis, four different profiles were identified: (1) low professional identity (LPI, 5.1%), (2) moderate professional identity (MPI, 42.7%), (3) high occupational values (HOV, 12%), and (4) high professional identity (HPI, 40.2%). The results demonstrated that psychological wellbeing and anxiety were significantly different across the four profiles. In addition, the anxiety of HOV group was not significantly with LPI and MPI groups. This study indicated that student teachers in different groups may have different mental health status.

School Choice, Teachers' Work, and Professional Identity.

Teacher professional identity, or what it means to be a teacher, informs the types of schools teachers seek for work. With the marketization of schools in the US and abroad, teachers' professional identities are changing. However, we know little about how teachers negotiate-and renegotiate-their professional identities during the job search in contexts with school choice, such as charter schools. This study uses qualitative interview data from 46 teachers in San Antonio, Texas, where over 25% of students attend charter schools. Our findings illuminate the job search as a critical juncture where teachers evaluate their professional identity as they make choices about the sector-charter or traditional public school-and/or school organization they prefer. In particular, the choice context legitimated flexibility and fluidity in teachers' professional identity as teachers moved between sectors to find jobs, even if the school did not align with their personal or professional values. We also found that employability and teachers' perception of the job market played an important role in how teachers strategically presented their professional identity on the job search. Findings offer implications for teacher education and teacher workforce policies.

La identidad profesional docente, o lo que significa ser docente, informa los tipos de escuelas que los docentes buscan para trabajar. Con la mercantilización de las escuelas en los EEUU y en el extranjero, las identidades profesionales de los docentes están cambiando. Sin embargo, sabemos poco acerca de cómo los docentes negocian y renegocian sus identidades profesionales durante la búsqueda de empleo en contextos de elección de escuela, como las escuelas chárter. Este estudio utiliza datos de entrevistas cualitativas de 46 maestros en San Antonio, Texas, donde más del 25 % de los estudiantes asisten a escuelas chárter. Nuestros hallazgos iluminan la búsqueda de empleo como un momento crítico en el que los docentes evalúan su identidad profesional al tomar decisiones sobre el sector (escuela pública autónoma o tradicional) y/o la organización escolar que prefieren. En particular, el contexto de elección legitimó la flexibilidad y la fluidez en la identidad profesional de los docentes a medida que los docentes se movían entre sectores para encontrar trabajo, incluso si la escuela no se alineaba con sus valores personales o profesionales. También encontramos que la empleabilidad y la percepción de los docentes sobre el mercado laboral jugaron un papel importante en la forma en que los docentes presentaron estratégicamente su identidad profesional en la búsqueda de empleo. Los hallazgos ofrecen implicaciones para la formación docente y las políticas de fuerza laboral docente.

A identidade profissional do professor, ou o que significa ser professor, informa os tipos de escolas que os professores procuram para trabalhar. Com o marketing das escolas nos EUA e no exterior, as identidades profissionais dos professores estão mudando. No entanto, sabemos pouco sobre como os professores negociam ­ e renegociam ­ suas identidades profissionais durante a busca de emprego em contextos de escolha escolar, como as escolas charter. Este estudo usa dados de entrevistas qualitativas de 46 professores em San Antonio, Texas, onde mais de 25% dos alunos frequentam escolas charter. Nossas descobertas iluminam a busca de emprego como um momento crítico em que os professores avaliam sua identidade profissional ao fazerem escolhas sobre o setor ­ escola charter ou escola pública tradicional ­ e/ou organização escolar de sua preferência. Em particular, o contexto de escolha legitimou flexibilidade e fluidez na identidade profissional dos professores à medida que os professores se desloc avam entre os setores para encontrar emprego, mesmo que a escola não se alinhasse com seus valores pessoais ou profissionais. Constatamos também que a empregabilidade e a percepção dos professores sobre o mercado de trabalho desempenharam um papel importante na forma como os professores apresentaram estrategicamente sua identidade profissional na busca de emprego. Os resultados oferecem implicações para as políticas de formação de professores e força de trabalho de professores.

Active Construction of Profession-Related Events: The Priming Effect among Pre-service Teachers with Different Professional Identity.

Pre-service teachers with different professional identity may actively construct different subjective profession-related events based on the same objective profession-related events. To explore the priming effect among pre-service teachers with different professional identity, this study examined the effect of positive, negative, or neutral priming sentences in an individualized narration of profession-related events through a priming paradigm. Forty-two female volunteers were asked to complete positive, negative, and neutral priming sentences describing profession-related events. The results showed that, relative to those with weak professional identity, participants with strong professional identity generated a higher number of positive items when primed with different stimuli and displayed greater positive priming bias for positive and neutral stimuli. In addition, relative to those with strong professional identity, participants with weak professional identity generated a higher number of neutral and negative items when primed with positive and negative stimuli, respectively, and displayed greater negative priming bias toward negative stimuli. These results indicate that pre-service teachers with strong professional identity were likely to have established positive self-schemas involving profession-related events, which facilitated active, positive construction of such events.

Chinese Preservice Teachers' Professional Identity Links with Education Program Performance: The Roles of Task Value Belief and Learning Motivations.

Professional identity is a key issue spanning the entirety of teachers' career development. Despite the abundance of existing research examining professional identity, its link with occupation-related behavior at the primary career stage (i.e., GPA in preservice education) and the potential process that underlies this association is still not fully understood. This study explored the professional identity of Chinese preservice teachers, and its links with task value belief, intrinsic learning motivation, extrinsic learning motivation, and performance in the education program. Grade-point average (GPA) of courses (both subject and pedagogy courses) was examined as an indicator of performance, and questionnaires were used to measure the remaining variables. Data from 606 preservice teachers in the first 3 years of a teacher-training program indicated that: (1) variables in this research were all significantly correlated with each other, except the correlation between intrinsic learning motivation and program performance; (2) professional identity was positively linked to task value belief, intrinsic and extrinsic learning motivations, and program performance in a structural equation model (SEM); (3) task value belief was positively linked to intrinsic and extrinsic learning motivation; (4) higher extrinsic (but not intrinsic) learning motivation was associated with increased program performance; and (5) task value belief and extrinsic learning motivation were significant mediators in the model.

What do you mean by "teacher"?psychological research on teacher professional identity / O que você entende por "professor"?pesquisa psicológica sobre identidade profissional do docente

Teacher Professional Identity is today an autonomous theoretical construct. The paper explores the dimensions of TPI stressed in psychological and educational research, presenting different answers provided to questions such as: Which dimensions have been taken into account to define what a teacher is? The image of teachers actually emerging from literature analysis points out vectors of tension between "mainstream" Social Representations of teacher and everyday experience; between different perceptions of TPI; between established practices and innovation in teaching; between technical rationalist assumptions and lived experience of teachers' job, involving ethical and emotional nature of teaching; and, definitely, between "reality-as-it-is" and "reality-to-be" in teaching. These questions are closely connected to the wider social debate on the future of education. Asking what a teacher is also implies questions about what a "good" teacher is, what should be and, consequently, what are the role and the Social Representations of teachers in society.

O artigo explora as dimensões da Identidade Profissional do Professor na investigação psicológica e educacional e apresentar diferentes respostas para perguntas como: que dimensões foram tidas em conta na definição de professor? A imagem do professor emergente dos estudos evidencia vetores de tensão entre: a) as Representações Sociais de professores e a experiência cotidiana; b) diferentes percepções sobre a Identidade Profissional de Professores; c) as práticas estabelecidas e a inovação no ensino; d) entre os pressupostos técnicos racionalistas e as vivências dos professores, envolvendo a natureza ética e emocional do ensino; e) a "realidade-tal-como-ela-é" e "realidade-a-ser" no ensino. Estas questões estão intimamente ligadas ao debate social alargado sobre o futuro da educação e também implica questões sobre o que é um "bom" professor é, o que um professor deveria ser e, consequentemente, quais são o papel e as representações sociais dos professores na sociedade.