Teachers’ educational concepts and professional development from a practical theoretical perspective
The focus of the study reported on in this dissertation is research among teachers with respect to their educational concepts and the extent to which their theories change or develop in the course of teachers’ careers. The research is done from a practical knowledge perspective in which what teachers themselves regard as important in education and in teaching, plays a central role.
The main research study focussed on a number of aspects that constitute the core of
thinking about education; i.e., the aim of education, the content of education, and the
role of the teacher and that of the pupil in the educational process. By means of
interviews and observation in the classroom these aspects were studied. The results
show that the teachers’ educational concepts are strongly related to personal and
context factors like experiences during childhood; the their education, working
experience, the pupils they teach, the school organization, the subjects the teachers
teach and social developments.
In the second, complementary study, the focus was on the teachers’ practical theories about how pupils learn, and on the extent to which these theories change or develop in the course of teachers’ careers. The data indicate that all the teachers changed or developed their practical theory with respect to learning by pupils to a greater or lesser degree. As in the main study, personal and contextual factors played a role in the changes in, and development of, these theories. The teacher’s own ‘drive’ to learn, the extent of internal or external steering, and the motivation to learn are important personal factors. Experiences gained in educational practice and the school organization are important context factors.