The qualities of being an expert teacher as indicated by Coe et al. (2014) are not synonymous with the characteristics required of an expert school-based teacher educator (Oberholzer and Boyle, 2024). Given the critical importance of being able to not only recruit but also retain teachers within the profession, this qualitative research enquiry reports on how research-informed literature can be used to consciously transform the expert practice and professional identity of school-based teacher educators working in the primary sector.
This enquiry serves to generate the professional aptitude of school-based teacher educators through confident engagement with research-informed pedagogical practice when working with trainee teachers and early career teachers. By taking a progressive approach to integrating evidence-informed practice, the professional identity of school-based teacher educators with a range of experience will be shown to develop, and therein trainees and ECTs will receive an enriched training programme.
This research stands to be original because while there is research into the professional identity of school-based teacher educators, this tends to mainly within a secondary context (Rushton et al., 2023). This does not therefore address the professional learning needs of primary school-based teacher educators nor those who they are tutoring. Moreover, research into initial teacher education and the formation of professional identity also tends to focus on the less experienced practitioner rather than those supporting them (Hobson et al., 2014; Nicholls et al., 2017; Sida-Nicholls, 2021).
This research enquiry was conducted over a period of six months in academic year 2023-24 and was underpinned by recognition of the need to further deconstruct the divide between theory and school-based practice (Grossman et al., 2018) to support school-based teacher educators in working with trainees and early career teachers beyond what is outlined in current frameworks that shape their training (Oberholzer and Boyle, 2024). The project served to support and secure the professional identity and practice of primary-phase teacher educators by developing research skills at different career stages.
As access to high quality support has been identified as a key indicator for recruitment and retention in education (DfE, 2019), the development of school-based teacher educators would appear to be a priority for those involved in teacher training. This project invited school-based teacher educators in various stages of their career to consider how research-informed pedagogies and perspectives could be applied to their contexts to support individual mentees most effectively (Oberholzer and Boyle, 2024).
Six school-based teacher educators were recruited from a university ITE provider and included those who were within two years of their role; 3-5 years of their role and 5+ years. Participants were purposefully invited to take part in the enquiry based upon their experience of currently working with the ITE provider and there was equal representation from Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2. All of the participants were employed in schools in the Greater South West London region and ranged in size from one to three form entry. The demographic profile of the schools included those with higher than regional average levels of free school meals and where English is an additional language for pupils.
The intervention took the form of workshops in which published research was used to promote autonomy and professional judgement in the role of school-based teacher educator. The format involved three four-hour sessions, of which two hours were structured around a workshop followed by two hours given over to mediated professional learning conversations. During the conversations, participants were invited to critically reflect on how the published research informed their experience and existing knowledge of being a school-based teacher educator. The sessions were designed to allow opportunities for collaboration, interrogation of the research literature and to provide space for professional dialogue amongst the participants.
Data was captured in the form of a pre- and post-intervention survey allowing for examination of the impact of the workshops and learning conversations on participants’ perceptions of their professional identity such as: self-efficacy, confidence, ability to establish and manage an effective mentoring dynamic. Further, the research highlighted how the sessions positively shaped the school-based teacher educators’ perceptions of their professional identity and an improved confidence to engage with research literature in their practice.
The results of this enquiry will be used by the ITE provider to inform the content and delivery of professional development programmes for school-based teacher educators, which include strategies to promote engagement with research-informed practice. In doing so, the intention is to develop a stronger research culture, enhanced professional identity and academic confidence of those serving as school-based teacher educators.
