title: Stories of happiness, emotional goals and identity in 21ˢᵗ century teachers

authors: Hooker, Tom

subjects: Happiness

abstract: Happiness may be the key to keeping teachers in the profession. Rarely, however, does teaching tend to be associated with moments of happiness in educational research or in the popular imagination.
In fact, quite the opposite view is presented in the significant body of literature that describes the emotional travails, stress and burnout of teachers. Consequently, there are recruitment and retention crises in schools throughout the Western World. Teacher identity is also in crisis, undermined since the late-1980s by economistic reforms which view teachers as producers and achievement as currency in an educational marketplace. Running counter to the more holistic, altruistic educational philosophies held by many in the profession, the reforms have attached a vulnerability to the identities of many teachers. Teaching culture has been described as one of unhappiness.
This study aims to shine a light on the happy moments which exist in teaching life. In doing so, it wonders if others were to do the same, whether an embattled but noble profession could find new life and allow the people within it greater agency in their identities. With little in the way of preceding research, the thesis is exploratory. Sitting in the interpretive paradigm, it utilises a narrative methodology to capture stories of happiness from teaching life. Interviews were employed to elicit the stories from eight participants, with the aim of providing thick, socially-situated description of happy episodes in the classroom. Supporting, scene-setting data comes from two focus groups while participants also completed a diary to document their daily emotion.
The study shows that teachers mainly experience eudemonic happiness, a type of positive emotion associated with self-actualisation after meeting long-held, personally important goals. It finds that a necessary precursor to these experiences is for participants to emphasise these long-held, altruistic goals in the narrative construction of their personal-professional identities, their teacherly selves. Furthermore, positive aspects of the teacherly self emerge from happy experiences in teaching because of self-actualisation occurring in the experience of eudemonia. Additionally, many of the teacher participants found particular happiness in the positive narrative arc of an underdog. Positive professional identity is important in teaching because it is associated with quality teaching practice.
Therefore, there are implications for teachers who want to improve their happiness and also their practice. There are also implications for educational leaders and teacher educators to make space for happiness and the positive identity formation of teachers. This is because students are likely to benefit from teachers’ happy episodes if such episodes improve practice, although, further research into the connection between teacher happiness and student outcomes is suggested. That teachers may be particularly enlivened by an underdog story is good for students who require the greatest support. It is recommended that researchers address the connection between eudemonia and positive identity formation. In particular, it is important to determine if similar phenomena can be located across a range of settings and cultures.

text: Stories of happiness, emotional goals and identity in 21ˢᵗ century teachers Happiness may be the key to keeping teachers in the profession. Rarely, however, does teaching tend to be associated with moments of happiness in educational research or in the popular imagination.
In fact, quite the opposite view is presented in the significant body of literature that describes the emotional travails, stress and burnout of teachers. Consequently, there are recruitment and retention crises in schools throughout the Western World. Teacher identity is also in crisis, undermined since the late-1980s by economistic reforms which view teachers as producers and achievement as currency in an educational marketplace. Running counter to the more holistic, altruistic educational philosophies held by many in the profession, the reforms have attached a vulnerability to the identities of many teachers. Teaching culture has been described as one of unhappiness.
This study aims to shine a light on the happy moments which exist in teaching life. In doing so, it wonders if others were to do the same, whether an embattled but noble profession could find new life and allow the people within it greater agency in their identities. With little in the way of preceding research, the thesis is exploratory. Sitting in the interpretive paradigm, it utilises a narrative methodology to capture stories of happiness from teaching life. Interviews were employed to elicit the stories from eight participants, with the aim of providing thick, socially-situated description of happy episodes in the classroom. Supporting, scene-setting data comes from two focus groups while participants also completed a diary to document their daily emotion.
The study shows that teachers mainly experience eudemonic happiness, a type of positive emotion associated with self-actualisation after meeting long-held, personally important goals. It finds that a necessary precursor to these experiences is for participants to emphasise these long-held, altruistic goals in the narrative construction of their personal-professional identities, their teacherly selves. Furthermore, positive aspects of the teacherly self emerge from happy experiences in teaching because of self-actualisation occurring in the experience of eudemonia. Additionally, many of the teacher participants found particular happiness in the positive narrative arc of an underdog. Positive professional identity is important in teaching because it is associated with quality teaching practice.
Therefore, there are implications for teachers who want to improve their happiness and also their practice. There are also implications for educational leaders and teacher educators to make space for happiness and the positive identity formation of teachers. This is because students are likely to benefit from teachers’ happy episodes if such episodes improve practice, although, further research into the connection between teacher happiness and student outcomes is suggested. That teachers may be particularly enlivened by an underdog story is good for students who require the greatest support. It is recommended that researchers address the connection between eudemonia and positive identity formation. In particular, it is important to determine if similar phenomena can be located across a range of settings and cultures.

year: 2020

title: Flood resilience technology in Europe: identifying barriers and co-producing best practice

authors: White, Iain

subjects: Co-production

abstract: Flood resistance (FRe) and resilience technologies hold considerable potential to limit the damage caused by flooding. Resistance technologies generally aim to keep water out of buildings, while resilient measures may allow ingress but create the conditions for a quicker recovery of individuals, communities and buildings. However, despite their potential contribution to flood risk management (FRM), their use remains uncommon. This paper draws on pan‐European research of local communities at risk and their representatives, and professional stakeholders working at a more strategic scale, to explore the barriers to use and describe the co‐production of new best practice. It interrogates the issues in terms of level of awareness, degree of acceptance and the integration into decision making. We found that even where awareness was high, there was a reluctance to use these measures. This is due to issues related to comparability, costs, installation, performance and maintenance. The research also revealed that FRM policy and practice has struggled to incorporate this emergent approach and that many individuals at risk are reluctant to take responsibility and protect their properties in this way. In response, this paper details how good practice guidance – the ‘Six Steps approach’ – was co‐produced with key stakeholders to facilitate the wider contribution of FRe to FRM.

text: Flood resilience technology in Europe: identifying barriers and co-producing best practice Flood resistance (FRe) and resilience technologies hold considerable potential to limit the damage caused by flooding. Resistance technologies generally aim to keep water out of buildings, while resilient measures may allow ingress but create the conditions for a quicker recovery of individuals, communities and buildings. However, despite their potential contribution to flood risk management (FRM), their use remains uncommon. This paper draws on pan‐European research of local communities at risk and their representatives, and professional stakeholders working at a more strategic scale, to explore the barriers to use and describe the co‐production of new best practice. It interrogates the issues in terms of level of awareness, degree of acceptance and the integration into decision making. We found that even where awareness was high, there was a reluctance to use these measures. This is due to issues related to comparability, costs, installation, performance and maintenance. The research also revealed that FRM policy and practice has struggled to incorporate this emergent approach and that many individuals at risk are reluctant to take responsibility and protect their properties in this way. In response, this paper details how good practice guidance – the ‘Six Steps approach’ – was co‐produced with key stakeholders to facilitate the wider contribution of FRe to FRM.

year: 2018

title: Co-opting or valuing the indigenous voice through translation? A decision for research teams

authors: Kidd, Jacquie

subjects: Māori

abstract: Although te reo Māori is an official language of Aotearoa New Zealand, translation of research material such as information sheets, consent forms and questionnaires into te reo Māori remains highly variable. Translation tends to occur in research projects where Māori lead the work and that exclusively focus on Māori communities and topics. Translations are not offered or undertaken as a matter of course for all research. As a team of Māori and Indigenous researchers working within the health sector, we believe that there are important questions that need to be explored around the practice of using Indigenous languages, rich in similes and metaphors, to convey English/Western concepts/constructs/ideologies. In this paper, we draw on the story of one project to deconstruct and challenge the hegemonic terms through which translation of research material occurs. We explore the messages that translated material sends to potential research participants.
We contend that the choice about whether to translate research material into te reo Māori is one that should be undertaken within a robust decision-making framework that considers the reasons for a translation and its impact on the participants. Translation should not be undertaken primarily to attract Māori participants, but should reliably signal that the research is being undertaken in a way that honours a Māori worldview.

text: Co-opting or valuing the indigenous voice through translation? A decision for research teams Although te reo Māori is an official language of Aotearoa New Zealand, translation of research material such as information sheets, consent forms and questionnaires into te reo Māori remains highly variable. Translation tends to occur in research projects where Māori lead the work and that exclusively focus on Māori communities and topics. Translations are not offered or undertaken as a matter of course for all research. As a team of Māori and Indigenous researchers working within the health sector, we believe that there are important questions that need to be explored around the practice of using Indigenous languages, rich in similes and metaphors, to convey English/Western concepts/constructs/ideologies. In this paper, we draw on the story of one project to deconstruct and challenge the hegemonic terms through which translation of research material occurs. We explore the messages that translated material sends to potential research participants.
We contend that the choice about whether to translate research material into te reo Māori is one that should be undertaken within a robust decision-making framework that considers the reasons for a translation and its impact on the participants. Translation should not be undertaken primarily to attract Māori participants, but should reliably signal that the research is being undertaken in a way that honours a Māori worldview.

year: 2019