Interpreting Early Career Trajectories

Authors

Joan Barnatt, Elon UniversityFollow
Dianna Gahlsdorf Terrell, Saint Anselm CollegeFollow
Lisa Andries D’Souza, Assumption CollegeFollow
Cindy Jong, University of KentuckyFollow
Marilyn Cochran-Smith, Boston CollegeFollow
Kara Mitchell Viesca, University of Nebraska - LincolnFollow
Ann Marie Gleeson, Primary SourceFollow
Patrick J. McQuillan, Boston CollegeFollow
Karen Shakman, Education Development Center, Inc.

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

2017

Citation

Published in Educational Policy 31:7 (2017), pp 992–1032.

DOI: 10.1177/0895904815625286

Comments

Copyright © 2016 Joan Barnatt, Dianna Gahlsdorf Terrell, Lisa Andries D’Souza, Cindy Jong, Marilyn Cochran-Smith, Kara Mitchell Viesca, Ann Marie Gleeson, Patrick McQuillan, and Karen Shakman. Published by SAGE Publications. Used by permission.

Abstract

Career decisions of four teachers are explored through the concept of figured worlds in this qualitative, longitudinal case study. Participants were purposefully chosen for similarity at entry, with a range of career trajectories over time. Teacher career paths included remaining in one school, repeated changes in schools, attrition after relocation, and nonrenewal of contract. Data included interviews, observations, participants’ assessments, and pupils’ work. Cross-case analysis suggests that no single teacher attribute or workplace condition determined teachers’ career decisions; rather, teachers’ ability to refigure their identity within the figured world of teaching shaped career trajectory. Key factors such as ability to address disequilibrium, teacher identity, agency, and collaborative capacity are examined. Implications call for pre-service preparation and professional development to navigate cultures of schools, amended administrative involvement in teacher retention, and policy reform acknowledging the complexity of teachers’ figured worlds.