Watson, Ruby (2011-12)
Thesis (MEd)--University of Stellenbosch, 2011.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The reseach in this study focusses on how teachers express the forming of a role-identity amid historically disadvantage circumstances. The lense used to highlight and understand the underlying relationship between role-identity and school culture, is school context. The focus is on the biography and professional training of respondents in order to determine how teachers mediate their professional roles.
We must understand teachers within the boundaries of a socio-cultural context, their biography and professional training. These factors, which contribute to the forming of role-identity, can negatively affect the receiving and implementation of policy. The assumption made by this study, is that there is a gap between transformation policies and school culture, which has an influence on the role of the teacher. A better understanding of teacher circumstances can inspire a multi-dimensional approach to teaching. The result was that my thesis tried to generate empirical evidence to understand teachers in under-privilege schools more fully.
Teachers develop their self-identity within the framework of experience and expectations about themselves and their teaching. The professional identity of teachers consists of being skilled in subject area, level of training, preparedness and formal qualifications. Respondents construct their one-dimensional professional identity within an under-privilege context. The school climate hinders the simultaneous execution of the three roles that I refer to in this study. Some of the hindrance factors are the manner in which the school accepts the lack of learning area knowledge, racism and the abuse of contact time. Poor management and lack of community control, tolerates the shortcomings and one-dimensional approach of teachers.
The study makes use of a theoretical framework, supported by literature. I used qualitative indepth-investigation for the collection of data. I used semi-structured interviews as an instrument to answer the research question and to achieve the proposed outcomes.
I achieved my main finding by using empirical-interpretive techniques. The finding was that personal socialisation and professional training, together with contextual factors influence the foundation of teacher identity. The base identity is the foundation upon which teachers formulate their role-identity.
My research shows how the respondents position themselves in relation to the prescribed teacher roles. Their identity forming takes places within the context of under-privilege circumstances, moral diffusion and transformation in education. I describe the construction of their conceptual space of role-identity. I furthermore present analyses of how the respondents form their role-identity. I base the most important finding of this study on one-dimensionality. Each of the selected teachers expresses their professional mediation of their roles within the context of a specific exposed school culture. The study shows the complex variations of this one-dimensionality amongst the four teachers.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die navorsing in hierdie studie konsentreer op hoe onderwysers gestalte gee aan hulle identiteitsvorming te midde van histories benadeelde omstandighede. Skoolkonteks is die lens wat gebruik word om die onderliggende verwantskap tussen rol-identiteit en skoolkultuur te verstaan. Die fokus is op respondente se biografië en professionele opleiding ten einde vas te stel hoe hulle die voorgeskrewe onderwyserrolle medieër.
Onderwysers moet verstaan word binne die grense van 'n sosio-kulturele konteks, hulle biografiese verhale en professionele opleiding. Hierdie faktore is bydraende aspekte wat 'n invloed het tydens die vorming van rol-identiteit, sowel as tydens die ontvang en implementering van beleide. Die aanname wat deur hierdie studie gemaak word, is dat daar 'n gaping tussen hervormingsbeleide en skoolkultuur bestaan wat die rol-identiteit van die onderwyser beїnvloed. 'n Beter begrip van onderwyser-omstandighede, kan 'n multi-dimensionele benadering tot onderwys inspireer. Gevolglik het my tesis gepoog om empiriese bewyse te genereer wat kan bydrae tot 'n vollediger begrip van onderwysers in minder-bevoorregte skole.
Onderwysers ontwikkel 'n self-identiteit binne die raamwerk van ervarings en verwagtinge oor hulleself en hulle onderrig. Die professionele identiteit van die onderwyser bestaan uit vaardigheid op vakgebied, vlak van opleiding, voorbereiding en formele kwalifikasie. Binne die minder-bevoorregte konteks waarin hierdie respondente onderrig, konstrueer hulle 'n een-dimensionele professionele identiteit. Die skoolklimaat belemmer die gelyktydige uitvoering van veral die drie rolle waarna ek in hierdie studie verwys. Sommige van die belemmerende faktore waarna verwys word, is die skool se gelate aanvaarding van gebrek aan leerarea kennis, rasisme en die misbruik van onderrigtyd. Gebrekkige bestuur en gemeenskapsbeheer vergemaklik verder die onderwyser se tekortkominge en een-dimensionele benadering.
My studie word onderskraag deur 'n teoretiese raamwerk wat met behulp van literatuurwerke saamgestel is. Die proses van data-insameling is met die hulp van 'n kwalitatiewe indiepte-ondersoek gedoen. Die semi-gestruktureerde onderhoude wat gevoer was, het gedien as instrument ter beantwoording van die navorsingsvraag ten einde die beoogde doelstellings te bereik. My kern bevindinge het ek verkry vanuit empiriese-interpretatiewe tegnieke. Hiervolgens is bevind dat persoonlike sosialisering en professionele opleiding tesame met kontekstuele faktore, 'n invloed het op die samestelling van die identiteitsbasis van die onderwyser. Hierdie identiteitsbasis vorm die grondslag waarop onderwysers hulle rol-identiteit formuleer.
My navorsing wys hoe die onderwysers in my studie hulleself posisioneer in verhouding tot hulle voorgeskrewe onderwyserrolle. Hulle identiteitsvorming geskied binne die konteks van minder-bevoorregte omstandighede, morele diffusie en onderwys transformasie. Ek beskryf hierdie konstruksie as hulle konseptuele ruimte van rol-identiteitsvorming. Verder bied hierdie studie 'n analise van hoe respondente hulle rol-identiteit vorm. Die vernaamste bevinding van hierdie studie is dat die geselekteerde onderwysers elk op 'n een-dimensionele basis uiting gee aan 'n professionele medieëring van hulle rolle binne hierdie skool se kultuur. Die studie wys die komplekse variasies van een-dimensionaliteit onder die vier onderwysers.
Please refer to this item in SUNScholar by using the following persistent URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/17965
This item appears in the following collections: Masters Degrees (Education Policy Studies)123