Contested discourses of teacher professionalism: current tensions between education policy and teachers’ union

Abstract

This article addresses constructions and redefinitions of teacher professionalism by focusing on the discursive negotiations between the government and the teachers' union in Norway. Based on an examination of three white papers on teacher education from the past 15 years and policy documents put forth by the Union of Education Norway during the past decade, the authors argue that new constructions of teacher professionalism are produced both by the government and from within the teachers' union. However, there are differences between the government and the teachers' union concerning what the main aspects of teacher professionalism are. The government emphasises teacher accountability, research-based practice and specialisation. By contrast, the teachers' union highlights research-informed practice, responsibility for educational quality and professional ethics. There are three main areas of discursive struggle focused by the teachers' union: the resistance to accountability policies, the redefining of research-based practice and the lengthening of teacher education. The authors argue that the teachers' union is adopting an increasingly more active approach, thereby also challenging the idea that the teachers' union is less interested in developing and taking responsibility for the quality of school education.

Educational Methods as Commodities within European Education: A Norwegian-Danish Case

“…In many ways, this understanding of teachers' roles aligns with the requirements of the LP-model that teams of teachers frame and analyse challenges, while facilitators and group leaders regulate the process. Collective knowledge-building is understood as a precondition for the integration of evidence into practice in new settings (Hargreaves & Fullan, 2012;Mausethagen & Granlund, 2012). Since the LP-model strongly advocates collective knowledge-building, it is well-aligned with this view of professionalism.…”

A quest for legitimacy: on the professionalization policies of Sweden’s Teachers’ Unions

“…Having compared the autonomy of teachers in Sweden and Norway, Helgøy and Homme (2007) claim that the relatively extensive autonomy given to individual teachers in Sweden has rendered the profession as a whole weaker at the policy making level, whereas in Norway the relatively restricted autonomy of individual teachers has resulted in a strong position at the policy level, underlining the importance of taking account of the impact of national contexts in discussions of teacher professionalism. As is argued by Mausethagen and Granlund (2012) and Søreide (2007Søreide ( , 2008) the Union of Education Norway presents a clear counter-narrative of teacher professionalism in relation to the accountability focus of the Norwegian government. In this respect, the fact that the Swedish teachers' unions are divided and disagreeing on the foundations of teacher professionalism may explain their weakened position at the policy level, as they are forced to negotiate with political authorities in order to find political support for their own ideas on how to improve the professionalism of Swedish teachers.…”

“…Furthermore, the development of policies for the professionalization of teachers must also be understood to vary between national contexts since the 'global' discourse of education is translated differently as it is incorporated into already existing national narratives of education (Seddon et al 2013) and used by different actors -e.g. state authorities and teachers' unions (Mausethagen & Granlund 2012) -within these different national contexts. Consequently, before analyzing the policies of the Swedish teachers' unions, their role in the Swedish political system and the context of contemporary Swedish education debate must be briefly reviewed.…”

Nova gestão pública na Noruega: o papel do contexto nacional na mediação da reforma educacional

“…Embora o sindicato aborde aspectos do profissionalismo docente, ele não é específico em relação a alternativas de mecanismos de controle externos. (MAUSETHAGEN;GRANLUND, 2012) Perspectivas teóricas e métodos de pesquisa A relação entre o Estado, as autoridades educacionais locais e as escolas é central para compreender a forma como as reformas da NGP têm sido interpretadas no setor educacional norueguês. O controle do Estado reside na capacidade do governo em formular, ganhar a adesão e implantar políticas por meio de regulamentações e ferramentas de governança, ao passo que a influência das autoridades locais depende de como a política é interpretada e levada a cabo localmente.…”

“…Fundamentamo-nos na leitura cuidadosa dos documentos, seguindo três etapas (SØREIDE, 2007;MAUSETHAGEN;GRANLUND, 2012): a primeira leitura objetivou obter uma visão geral, identificar como a reforma da gestão da educação é contextualizada em relação a problemas específicos e como os documentos propagam uma versão específica de um problema público reconhecido e o atrelam à solução defendida; a segunda leitura centrou-se em palavras e grupos de palavras usados para descrever os aspectos-chave do sistema de governança; a terceira leitura incluiu uma comparação entre as construções sobre a gestão do setor educacional, com o intuito de identificar possíveis mudanças discursivas nos textos das políticas.…”