Teacher educators' professional identity under construction: The transition from teaching face-to-face to a blended curriculum

2018 ◽  
Vol 71 ◽  
pp. 120-133 ◽  
Author(s):  
Herma Jonker ◽  
Virginie März ◽  
Joke Voogt
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 9-33
Author(s):  
Sotiria Pappa ◽  
Josephine Moate

Although different forms of English-medium instruction (EMI) are being recognised, the different ways in which EMI can impact the pedagogical activities and expertise of higher education educators have received less attention. Using face-to-face and written interviews with nine teacher educators at a Finnish university, this study examines the most important aspects teacher educators perceive in their work through EMI and how these aspects connect to the understanding of their professional identity. The study is theoretically premised on the interconnected concepts of pedagogical doing, pedagogical being, pedagogical relating, and pedagogical language awareness. The thematically analysed data highlighted the ways in which pedagogical being, doing, and relating revolve around the presence and role of the foreign language in EMI, as well as the concurrent disjunctures and opportunities EMI creates. Pedagogical being informed EMI teacher educators’ orientation to their work and the different ways language impinges on the sense of self as the teacher educators share how they try to understand and respond to the disjunctures of EMI. In terms of pedagogical doing, EMI impinges on how teacher educators enact their practice and the relationships developed with students. However, the focus of pedagogical relating addresses the relationship between the EMI teacher educators and their workplace. The findings from this study will hopefully contribute to the development of EMI teacher preparation and support critical discussions on the ‘Englishisation’ of higher education.


RELC Journal ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 003368822098527
Author(s):  
Benjamin Luke Moorhouse ◽  
Yanna Li ◽  
Steve Walsh

Interaction is seen by many English language teachers and scholars as an essential part of face-to-face English language classrooms. Teachers require specific competencies to effectively use interaction as a tool for mediating and assisting learning. These can be referred to as classroom interactional competence (CIC). However, the situation created by the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic which began in early 2020, and the recent advancement in technologies have led to teachers conducting synchronous online lessons through video-conferencing software. The online environment is distinctly different from the face-to-face classroom and teachers require new and additional skills to effectively utilise interaction online in real time. This exploratory study used an online mixed-method survey of 75 university level English language teachers who had engaged in synchronous online teaching due to COVID-19, to explore the competencies that teachers need to use interaction as a tool to mediate and assist language learning in synchronous online lessons. Teachers were found to require three competencies, in addition to their CIC – technological competencies, online environment management competencies, and online teacher interactional competencies – which together constitute e-CIC. The findings provide greater insights into the needs of teachers required to teach synchronously online and will be of interest to teachers and teacher educators.


Author(s):  
Fariba Haghighi Irani ◽  
Azizeh Chalak ◽  
Hossein Heidari Tabrizi

Abstract The critical role of teachers suggests that assessing teacher identity construction helps teacher educators understand the changes in teachers and design materials in harmony with their needs in teacher education programs. However, only a few studies have focused on assessing pre-service teachers’ identity in the long term in Iran. To address this gap, the contribution of a pre-service teacher education program consisting of three phases, namely engage, study, and activate to the professional identity construction of eight pre-service teachers in an institute in Tehran was assessed. Pre-course and post-course interviews, two reflective essays, ten observation notes, and two teaching performances were gathered over a year and analyzed as guided by grounded theory and discourse analysis. Findings revealed two significant changes in the participants’ identities when they transitioned from engage to study and from study to activate phases that yielded study phase as the peak of the changes. Overall, three major shifts were identified in the participants’ identities: from a commitment to evaluation towards a commitment to modality, from one-dimensional to multi-dimensional perceptions, and from problem analysis to problem-solving skills. Current findings may facilitate teacher identity construction by designing local programs matching the needs of pre-service teachers. It may also assist teacher educators by assessing the quality of teachers’ performance and developing teacher assessment tools.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. p66
Author(s):  
Scott Gibbons

It is important to understand how teachers develop their professional identity because teacher educators and supervisors can take necessary steps to ensure novice teachers are provided necessary opportunities to cultivate their identity. This article examines research on professional identity development and explains how teachers develop their professional identity and why it is important for mentors to aid in the development process. This article draws on previous research to both define professional identity and explore the many aspects that lead to identity development in novice teachers. Findings suggest that although any experience can contribute to professional identity development, key factors have a major impact on how teachers develop their identity and the role identity development plays in pedagogical thinking. Understanding how professional identity develops can help teacher educators, supervisors, and mentors make available opportunities to build agency among novice educators, helping them to grow into reflective teachers.


Author(s):  
Herma Jonker ◽  
Virginie März ◽  
Joke Voogt

This study offers insights into the processes that play a role in realising curriculum flexibility. Curriculum flexibility is conceptualised in terms of adaptability and accessibility of the curriculum to students’ needs and capabilities. To realise curriculum flexibility, the teacher education institution in this study designed a blended curriculum with face-to-face and online components. This flexible curriculum aimed at increasing student enrolment and allowing for variety in students’ graduation portfolios. Through semi-structured interviews with 10 teacher educators, conditions that could foster or hinder the realisation of flexibility were investigated. Results indicate that different contextual, teacher-, and student-related conditions were perceived to affect (further) curriculum flexibility. Furthermore, teacher educators identified several challenges related to these influential conditions, which were recognised as tensions. Based on a discussion of these findings, recommendations for research and practice are given.


Author(s):  
Divonna M. Stebick ◽  
Mary L. Paxton

In this chapter, the researchers used an ethnographic stance to demonstrate how conversation evolved within a social media platform. They investigated the online discussions and face-to-face dialogues between teacher educators and pre-service teachers. They compared the participants’ reciprocal conversations within this case study to analyze patterns in the language used in each forum in order to identify the affordances and constraints of perceived understanding. Through this discourse analysis the authors sought to identify indicators of each participant’s metacognitive development while engaging in an online book discussion through a social media platform. Data analysis indicated that there was metacognitive growth when comparing the initial reciprocal conversations with the final conversations.


2018 ◽  
pp. 567-585
Author(s):  
Laurette S. M. Bristol ◽  
Merilyn Childs

The study that formed the basis of this chapter aimed to understand the practices mediating the quality of an online learning program from the perspective of educators in transition from face-to-face to online learning and teaching. A narrative community of enquiry was established for the period of the study, and seven academics from a single institution volunteered to participate in a six-month conversation about the sites for practice, challenges and curriculum decisions made while teaching online. A “practice architectures” perspective was adopted. The study found that “designing and redesigning” was not limited as supposed to a single transformation from face-to-face teaching to an online learning space. Rather, it was an ongoing professional practice, regardless of how novice or experienced and “tech savvy” the academic. The digital space is rapidly evolving, as are the professional learning demands of teacher educators. “Ambitious teacher practices” are permanently required.


Author(s):  
Megan Reister ◽  
Mary Andren ◽  
Madelyn A. Dichard

This chapter focuses on early childhood, the social and emotional needs of children and their families, use of technology, and use of children's literature in both print form and through digital means. Readers will learn about a service project called Students Serving Moms. Through this service project, pre-service teachers, or education majors, from a teacher preparation program alongside other college students at the university, work with families in the community. This relational service project continued in spite of restrictions from the pandemic due to the members of Students Serving Moms embracing change and using virtual means to work with the children of all abilities and ages in efforts to meet the social and emotional needs of the children. This chapter will benefit teacher educators who may want to replicate this service project at their institutions whether virtually or through face-to-face means. Pre-service teachers will also benefit from reading this chapter as they consider ways they can create connections with children through developmentally appropriate practices.


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