Moral courage and the normative professionalism of teachers

Item does not contain fulltextIn the past two decades there has been a growing concern in politics and schools to pay more attention to norms and values. Teachers and schools are confronted with normative problems, school violence and students who sometimes seem to have lost their way when it comes to norms and values. Teachers play a crucial and exemplary role in the process of developing students’ awareness of norms and values in school and in society as a whole. This is a complex process that requires a great deal of moral courage of teachers. Confronted with an increase in the number of pedagogical duties the question arises what the teachers’ view is on their normative professionalism. The concept of teaching as a moral endeavour is a fundamental element in the series of studies presented in this book. One of the aims of this book is to be of importance for educational practice, educational policy and teacher education. It can be used in courses of pedagogy, curriculum studies and teacher education to stimulate the reflection about the practical consequences of the societal and educational policy debate about moral and democratic education for the daily work of the teacher. The common focus of this book is on the role of teachers, the moral courage which is demanded of them and the joint commitment with moral and democratic education.243 p

Teachers' perceptions structured through facet theory: Smallest space analysis versus factor analysis

This article examines Guttman's facet theory (FT) and compares it to factor analysis (FA) in the context of two research studies. FT is examined in terms of its advantages and disadvantages compared to FA for theory development and confirmation. Two studies provide insights into the utility of FT. The first describes ideal student traits as perceived by prospective teachers. Using FT and smallest space analysis (SSA) confirmed the theory by displaying the accord between the facets in the mapping sentence and the distribution of the items in a multidimensional space. The second describes teacher professionalism and teaching context as perceived by teachers who completed a version of the Talbert and McLaughlin questionnaire. FT and SSA confirmed the theory and identified the subscales and dynamic relationships between them. By using the definitional mapping sentence of FT and SSA, the multidimensional theory and structural validity of the findings in the two studies were confirmed

Teachers' perceptions structured through facet theory: Smallest space analysis versus factor analysis

This article examines Guttman's facet theory (FT) and compares it to factor analysis (FA) in the context of two research studies. FT is examined in terms of its advantages and disadvantages compared to FA for theory development and confirmation. Two studies provide insights into the utility of FT. The first describes ideal student traits as perceived by prospective teachers. Using FT and smallest space analysis (SSA) confirmed the theory by displaying the accord between the facets in the mapping sentence and the distribution of the items in a multidimensional space. The second describes teacher professionalism and teaching context as perceived by teachers who completed a version of the Talbert and McLaughlin questionnaire. FT and SSA confirmed the theory and identified the subscales and dynamic relationships between them. By using the definitional mapping sentence of FT and SSA, the multidimensional theory and structural validity of the findings in the two studies were confirmed

The professional ethos of teachers

The pedagogical assignment of the school concerns the general personality development of students, their socio-emotional development, citizenship education and the moral development of students. These aims and claims form an integral part of the professional profile of teachers. In our presentation we will discuss an instrument that can help teachers to reflect upon the ethical dimensions of their daily activities. According to Oser and Althof (1993) three aspects are essential in the professional identity of teachers: ¡effectiveness, thoughtfulness and responsibility¢. In the instrument we will discuss the theme of responsibility is elaborated. This responsibility comes to the fore in the various ethical questions that the teacher is confronted with. The instrument -the so-called ethos procedure- consists of different activities which teachers can apply to think in a systematic way about the ethical dimension of their own work situation and professional experiences. The instrument that we have developed can assist teachers in their reflection and dialogue with colleagues about the ethical factor in their day-to-day activities and decisions