ERIC Number: EJ1146734
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017-Jun
Pages: 27
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-2014-3591
EISSN: N/A
Using Metaphors to Know the Conceptions about the Teaching Profession in Initial Teacher Education
Martínez-de-la-Hidalga, Zoe; Villardón-Gallego, Lourdes
International Journal of Educational Psychology, v6 n2 p183-208 Jun 2017
The Conceptions about the teaching profession affect professional performance, and metaphors are a tool to identify them. In this qualitative study metaphors are used to gain insight into conceptions held by pre-service teachers, and their development during Initial Teacher Training in the Bachelor's Degree in Primary Education. A total of 247 students participated in this cross-sectional study; 145 were first-year students, and 102 were fourth-year students. Participants were requested to submit a metaphor following the open-ended formula: "the teacher is like…. because…" In order to categorize their answers, we used an inductive method and calculated frequencies and percentages. Metaphors were grouped according to the following categories: (a) Main Character; (b) Support; (c) Family; (d) Social Agent; (e) Teaching; and (f) Importance. The most frequent category was Support, followed by Teaching and Family. First-year pre-service teachers referred to Family, Teaching and the Main Character role of teachers more often than students in their fourth year, whereas the latter allude more often than the former to the teachers' role as providers of Support and as Social Agents. There is evidence of moving from a transmissive to a constructivist and transformative educational perspective, but there is no indication of any evolution towards a socioconstructivist outlook.
Descriptors: Figurative Language, Student Teacher Attitudes, Teaching (Occupation), Preservice Teacher Education, College Freshmen, College Seniors, Teacher Characteristics, Classification, Preservice Teachers, Comparative Analysis, Teacher Role, Constructivism (Learning), Transformative Learning, Professional Identity, Qualitative Research, Foreign Countries, Interviews, Grounded Theory, Elementary Education
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education; Elementary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Spain
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A