The impact of literacy-focused CPD on the self-perceptions of expertise in primary school teachers

摘要

This study examines the impact of extended professional development in earlyudliteracy acquisition on the self-perceptions and emotions of experiencedudteachers of 5 to 6 year old pupils. The story of the participants' learningudjourneys is told through a series of short thematic sections, reflections groundedudin critical incident theory and an extended vignette. Teacher-participants expandudtheir knowledge base and modify teaching practice consistent with the specificudprofessional development, though this study is not principally concerned withudmeasures of either of these. Of particular interest is the impact of CPD on theuddevelopment of participants' self-perceptions in relation to expertise, on theirudemotional life, and the relationship between these in the drive to attain theirudlearning goals. I hypothesise that positive affect is sufficient to sustainudparticipants through the lowest emotional phases and that these low points canudact as catalysts for further theoretical change.udEach participating teacher was enrolled in year-long continuing professionaluddevelopment, either Local Authority led training in systematic, synthetic phonicsudor Reading Recovery Initial Professional Development (as part of the EveryudChild a Reader initiative) led by a teacher leader specialist.udAdopting a social constructivist approach I used a range of qualitative researchudmethods to garner data demonstrating the influence of the respective CPDudthroughout the focus period in 2008-9: a series of semi-structured interviews,udlesson observations followed by jointly stimulated reflection and participants'udreflective e-journals. I have taken a grounded theory type approach to dataudanalysis.