| Summary: |
Nowadays, we assist in Portugal to a change in the processes of teaching education, particularly at the initial training of Physical Education (PE) teachers, which is associated with a new paradigm in higher education resulting from the implementation of the Processo de Bolonha (PB). Moreover, the impact of the implementation of the PB coincides with changes in the Portuguese policies for academic qualifications to teaching, culminating in a new type of practicum. Cumulatively, the teaching profession is in a period marked by increased bureaucratization, increased forms of managerialism, and greater accountability[for ref. see 2]. Thus, not only how the school is experienced has changed, but also emerges a professional identity (PI) with a new twist, for the reason that the PI is historical, situational and relational[3]. Changes are also visible in the international context, and advocate for a new vision for school science, comprising principles, standards, and practices that are grounded on research in the learning sciences [4]. Thus, the research about the (re)construction of the PI is of great importance, the outcome of an interface between the personal experiences of teachers and the social, cultural, and institutional
context in which they function on a daily basis [1]. A process that begins before higher education (anticipatory socialization [5, 6]) followed by socialization during initial training (higher education and professional training) [7], continuing along the career path. Many researchers have emphasized the reality shock or abruptness which confronts new teachers as they take on the full responsibility of their roles as school teachers [6, 8]. Recent studies [e.g., 1, 4, 7, 8] have been held on the construction of the PI in the context in which it happens - the school. Few previous studies [for ref see 6], however, identify explicitly the
importance of identity as a mediating force between structure and teacher agency[9]. Taking Giddens[9] as r  |
Summary
Nowadays, we assist in Portugal to a change in the processes of teaching education, particularly at the initial training of Physical Education (PE) teachers, which is associated with a new paradigm in higher education resulting from the implementation of the Processo de Bolonha (PB). Moreover, the impact of the implementation of the PB coincides with changes in the Portuguese policies for academic qualifications to teaching, culminating in a new type of practicum. Cumulatively, the teaching profession is in a period marked by increased bureaucratization, increased forms of managerialism, and greater accountability[for ref. see 2]. Thus, not only how the school is experienced has changed, but also emerges a professional identity (PI) with a new twist, for the reason that the PI is historical, situational and relational[3]. Changes are also visible in the international context, and advocate for a new vision for school science, comprising principles, standards, and practices that are grounded on research in the learning sciences [4]. Thus, the research about the (re)construction of the PI is of great importance, the outcome of an interface between the personal experiences of teachers and the social, cultural, and institutional
context in which they function on a daily basis [1]. A process that begins before higher education (anticipatory socialization [5, 6]) followed by socialization during initial training (higher education and professional training) [7], continuing along the career path. Many researchers have emphasized the reality shock or abruptness which confronts new teachers as they take on the full responsibility of their roles as school teachers [6, 8]. Recent studies [e.g., 1, 4, 7, 8] have been held on the construction of the PI in the context in which it happens - the school. Few previous studies [for ref see 6], however, identify explicitly the
importance of identity as a mediating force between structure and teacher agency[9]. Taking Giddens[9] as reference, we understand identity, then, as an ongoing and dynamic process which entails the making sense and (re)interpretation of one's own values and experiences. Becoming a teacher involves, in essence, the (trans)formation of the teacher identity, a process described by Sachs[10] as being open, negotiated and shifting. Given the above and assuming the professional training as a milestone in the construction of PI [6, 13], is of great importance to follow the operation of this new type of practicum. It
should also be noted that the internship is done in groups, establishing itself as a space where sharing is essential to the success of it, rescuing the concept of community of practice [eg, 8, 11, 12, 13]. It is therefore critical to understand how the pre-service teacher experiences the impact with the real practice of teaching in the school context and, simultaneously, (re)constructs the PI and the inherent roles. Additionally, and because we found no studies involving all the interveners in this process, i.e., the entire community of practice (pre-service teachers, cooperating teachers and supervisor teachers), we intend
to uncover how it is interpreted and experienced the formative process by giving voice to the actors in the context of action.
The questions that guide this study are: 1) How are the experiences of being pre-service teacher and cooperating teacher lived and interpreted? 2) What is the role of the practicum in the acquisition of PI by the pre-service teacher? 3) What is the role of the practicum supervising in the construction of PI's pre-service teacher? 4) |