Primary School Teachers' Perspectives on Professional Development Training Programmes: A Sociological Analysis

Abstract

This study aimed to explore primary school teachers' views on Professional Development (PD) training programmes in Greece, using a framework based on the philosophy of Louis Althusser. A quantitative method was used, and a sample of 425 teachers from both urban and rural areas was studied. A cluster analysis identified two groups of teachers: the first, referred to as "Growth-oriented Professionals", which primarily focuses on developing the competencies required for pedagogical skills, and the second, called "Advancement-seekers", which focuses on advancing teachers' careers. The results indicated significant differences between the two groups of teachers in their expectations, motivations, and evaluations of their PD outcomes. Furthermore, the study investigated how PD functions as an ideological mechanism for the formation and reproduction of educational ideologies and for creating spaces in which teachers can exercise their own agency and undergo transformation, drawing on Althusser's theory of Ideological State Apparatuses and interpellation. The results of the analysis indicate that the teachers in Group 1 were more likely to understand the socio-political factors that influence the design of PD and to relate their PD to the demands of capital and the political choices of the state, rather than to the social needs of society. This study has implications for our understanding of how teachers are interpellated into specific professional identities through their PD processes.

Keywords

• Professional development
• primary teachers
• Althusser
• ideological state apparatuses
• interpellation
• Greece

İlkokul Öğretmenlerinin Mesleki Gelişim Eğitim Programlarına Bakış Açıları: Sosyolojik Bir Analiz

Abstract

Bu çalışma, Louis Althusser’in felsefesine dayanan bir çerçeve kullanarak Yunanistan’daki hizmet içi eğitim (PD) programlarına ilişkin ilkokul öğretmenlerinin görüşlerini incelemeyi amaçlamıştır. Nicel bir yöntem kullanılmış ve hem kentsel hem de kırsal bölgelerden 425 öğretmenden oluşan bir örneklem incelenmiştir. Kümeleme analizi, iki öğretmen grubunu ortaya koymuştur: ilki, pedagojik beceriler için gerekli yeterliklerin geliştirilmesine odaklanan “Büyüme Odaklı Profesyoneller”; ikincisi ise öğretmenlerin kariyerlerini ilerletmeye odaklanan “İlerleme Arayışındakiler” olarak adlandırılmıştır. Bulgular, iki öğretmen grubu arasında beklentiler, motivasyonlar ve PD sonuçlarına ilişkin değerlendirmeler açısından önemli farklılıklar olduğunu göstermiştir. Ayrıca çalışma, PD’nin eğitim ideolojilerinin oluşumu ve yeniden üretimi için nasıl bir ideolojik mekanizma olarak işlediğini ve öğretmenlerin kendi özneliklerini kullanabilecekleri ve dönüşüm yaşayabilecekleri alanlar yarattığını, Althusser’in İdeolojik Devlet Aygıtları ve çağırma (interpellation) kuramından yararlanarak incelemiştir. Analiz sonuçları, 1. gruptaki öğretmenlerin PD’nin tasarımını etkileyen sosyo-politik faktörleri anlamaya ve PD süreçlerini toplumun sosyal ihtiyaçlarından ziyade sermayenin talepleri ve devletin politik tercihleriyle ilişkilendirmeye daha yatkın olduklarını göstermektedir. Bu çalışma, öğretmenlerin PD süreçleri aracılığıyla belirli mesleki kimliklere nasıl çağrıldıklarını (interpellation) anlamamız açısından önemli çıkarımlar sunmaktadır.

Keywords

• Profesyonel gelişim
• ilkokul öğretmenleri
• Althusser
• İdeolojik Devlet Aygıtları
• hitap etme
• Yunanistan

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