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Geography teacher educators’ identity, roles and professional learning in a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous world

Geography teacher educators’ identity, roles and professional learning in a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous world
Geography teacher educators’ identity, roles and professional learning in a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous world

Globally, teacher educators work in contexts which are shaped and informed by persistent policy reform and global environmental crises which we argue, combine to create a professional life that is volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA). Through a case study of geography teacher educators (GTEs) based in England, we explore the experiences, knowledge and professional growth of teacher educators. Our findings draw on data from responses to an online questionnaire (n = 51), a practitioner workshop and 11 semi-structured interviews. We find that GTEs have multi-faceted identities which are shaped by professional, social and personal realms through engagement with a diverse community of practice. The VUCA context of teacher education is visible in the professional identities of GTEs in both affirming and deleterious ways which we argue, are linked to perceptions of professional autonomy. We argue that the professional role of teacher educators is to bravely engage with policy making as part of their contribution to a socially and environmentally just future for all.

Communities of practice, geography teacher educators, identity, initial teacher educator (ITE), professional learning, teacher education
1038-2046
252-267
Rawlings Smith, Emma
587730f7-d234-4421-8dc9-48e1705b5a92
Rushton, Elizabeth A.C.
825729f4-3f29-4dd6-97ea-d30ecf8a3a41
Rawlings Smith, Emma
587730f7-d234-4421-8dc9-48e1705b5a92
Rushton, Elizabeth A.C.
825729f4-3f29-4dd6-97ea-d30ecf8a3a41

Rawlings Smith, Emma and Rushton, Elizabeth A.C. (2022) Geography teacher educators’ identity, roles and professional learning in a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous world. International Research in Geographical and Environmental Education, 32 (3), 252-267. (doi:10.1080/10382046.2022.2153988).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Globally, teacher educators work in contexts which are shaped and informed by persistent policy reform and global environmental crises which we argue, combine to create a professional life that is volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA). Through a case study of geography teacher educators (GTEs) based in England, we explore the experiences, knowledge and professional growth of teacher educators. Our findings draw on data from responses to an online questionnaire (n = 51), a practitioner workshop and 11 semi-structured interviews. We find that GTEs have multi-faceted identities which are shaped by professional, social and personal realms through engagement with a diverse community of practice. The VUCA context of teacher education is visible in the professional identities of GTEs in both affirming and deleterious ways which we argue, are linked to perceptions of professional autonomy. We argue that the professional role of teacher educators is to bravely engage with policy making as part of their contribution to a socially and environmentally just future for all.

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e-pub ahead of print date: 10 December 2022
Keywords: Communities of practice, geography teacher educators, identity, initial teacher educator (ITE), professional learning, teacher education

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 482126
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/482126
ISSN: 1038-2046
PURE UUID: daf6ee2d-7494-426b-bfcf-6687f9d47768
ORCID for Emma Rawlings Smith: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-1350-0691

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Date deposited: 19 Sep 2023 17:10
Last modified: 18 Mar 2024 04:15

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Contributors

Author: Emma Rawlings Smith ORCID iD
Author: Elizabeth A.C. Rushton

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