Det produktive praksissjokket: Nyutdannede læreres fortellinger om lærer-elev-forholdet i overgangen fra lærerutdanning til lærerarbeid

Overgangen fra lærerutdanning til lærerarbeid omtales i forskningen både som utfordrende og som en mulighet for profesjonell utvikling. Denne studien undersøker hvordan nyutdannede læreres overgang fra utdanning til arbeid kan forstås som en danningsprosess. Studien baserer seg på ti semistrukturerte intervjuer med fem deltakere (ett i siste semester på grunnskolelærerutdanningen og ett etter de første tre månedene i arbeid). Studien benytter narrativ og tematisk analyse, og bygger på et hermeneutisk danningsteoretisk perspektiv. Sett fra et slikt perspektiv er overgangen en prosess preget av utvikling og horisontutvidelse der forandringen finner sted etter at de nyutdannede har kommet ut i jobb. Vi finner at de nyutdannedes forståelseshorisont etter tre måneder i arbeid er preget av deres tidligere forståelser. Det å begynne å jobbe utløser en opplevelse av at de forventningene man hadde, ikke innfris. Videre finner vi at det at den nyutdannede går fra å være den som lærer, til å bli den som har ansvar for andres læring og danning, har stor betydning for oppfattelsen av lærer-elev-forholdet. Sett fra denne artikkelens perspektiv kan overgangen fra utdanning til arbeidsliv forstås som en potensielt smertefull danningsprosess som initierer de nyutdannedes profesjonelle utvikling. Nøkkelord: nye læreres utvikling, lærer-elev-forhold, danning, narrativ analyse, lærerutdanning The productive transition into teaching: Novice teachers’ narratives of the teacher-pupil relationship Abstract The transition from teacher education to the teaching profession is challenging, but also an opportunity for professional development. The present study investigates novice teachers’ transition into teaching from the perspective of Bildung. Ten semi-structured interviews were conducted with five participants twice: the last semester in the teacher education programme, and after three months in practice. The interviews were analysed by using thematic and narrative analysis, as well as a hermeneutic and Bildung-centred perspective. Seen from this perspective, the transition is a process characterised by development and broadening of horizon of understanding, where the change occurs after starting work. We find that the novice teachers’ horizons after three months of work are influenced by their previous horizons. Also, we find that the shift from being a learner to becoming responsible for other people’s learning, has a considerable impact on the novice teachers’ understanding of the teacher-pupil relationship. This article argues that the transition from teacher education to working in schools, is a potentially painful process of Bildung that initiates professional development for novice teachers. Keywords: novice teachers’ development, teacher-pupil relationship, Bildung, narrative analysis, teacher education

Preparing teachers for transition to an international Christian school

The study reported here sought to gain insight into the experience of transition into teaching in an international Christian school that could inform the development of a pre-field orientation (PFO) programme for Australian Christian teachers. The experiences of five American teachers who had participated in a pre-field orientation programme was compared with the experiences of six Australian teachers who did not have access to such a programme. Based on the insights from participants gained through semi-structured interviews, recommendations are made regarding the content and structure of a PFO programme that could be developed for Australian teachers.

Liquidity Affects Job Choice: Evidence from Teach for America*

Can access to a few hundred dollars of liquidity affect the career choice of a recent college graduate? In a three-year field experiment with Teach For America (TFA), a prestigious teacher placement program, we randomly increase the financial packages offered to nearly 7,300 potential teachers who requested support for the transition into teaching. The first two years of the experiment reveal that although most applicants do not respond to a marginal $600 of grants or loans, those in the worst financial position respond by joining TFA at higher rates. We continue the experiment into the third year and self-replicate our results. For the highest-need applicants, an extra $600 in loans, $600 in grants, and $1,200 in grants increase the likelihood of joining TFA by 12.2, 11.4, and 17.1 percentage points (or 20.0%, 18.7%, and 28.1%), respectively. Additional grant and loan dollars are equally effective, suggesting a liquidity mechanism. A follow-up survey bolsters the liquidity story and also shows that those drawn into teaching would have otherwise worked in private-sector firms.

Preparing and Supporting Classroom Teachers Through Induction

While teacher mentoring programs are highly recommended to support new teacher graduates, not all states require teacher mentoring. Other professions such as medicine and law require supervision under the tutelage of a mentor. With the need to ensure teacher quality to effect higher student achievement, most teacher preparation programs place teachers in residencies and practicums before students graduate; few follow up with graduates to ensure teachers have required competencies as they transition into teaching.

Clinging to the Edge of Chaos: The Emergence of Practice in the First Year of Teaching

Background/Context New teachers must cope with various instructional, personal and organizational challenges, an experience that often leads to difficulties enacting innovative, student-centered instructional practices learned in their preservice programs and contributes to high rates of teacher attrition. Purpose Drawing on complexity theory, this review of empirical research takes an organizational or “systems” perspective on the experiences of first-year teachers as they transition from preservice education to the teaching profession. In so doing, we aim to shift away from constructions of the teacher as an autonomous actor and instead build a more complex, nuanced, and layered understanding of the multidimensional influences that work together to shape the practices of novice teachers. Research Design We conducted a metasynthesis of 46 studies that met the following criteria: (a) were focused on first-year teachers, (b) offered sufficient description of participants’ professional practices, (c) featured participants who attended a university-based preparation program, and (d) were conducted since 1990. We first recorded each study's methods, findings, and descriptions of first-year teacher practices. As a second level of analysis, we used a complexity lens to identify the systems comprising first-year teacher practices, noting how those systems and their component or elements interacted to shape first-year teaching. Findings/Results We found that common patterns of interactions between and among systems of first-year teaching—including the teacher herself, the classroom, the school, and the larger district, state, and federal environments—tend to reinforce traditional, teacher-centered practices. Yet, in some studies, conditions surfaced that enabled participants’ to enact student-centered and equity-minded teaching practices learned in their preservice programs. Conclusions/Recommendations Authors suggest that taking a complex systems view of beginning teaching, rather than singularly focusing on the teacher's actions out of context, can reveal opportunities for fostering more supportive, enabling conditions for new teachers to enact innovative practices that many preservice programs promote and experience a smoother transition into teaching.