Bismark Nyaaba Akanzire, Winston K. Abroampa
Department of Education, Gambaga College of Education, Ghana
Received: 11 January 2023; Revised: 25 January 2023; Accepted: 01 February 2023; Published: 24 February 2023
Abstract: -The study examines the Role of School Contextual factors and Professional Development of Kindergarten teachers in the Mankessim Municipality of Ghana’s Central Region. The pragmatist paradigm of knowledge acquisition guided the study, with the use of a concurrent mixed method design with identical samples for quantitative and qualitative data. The study’s target population included all Kindergarten teachers in the Central Region of Ghana. As a result, the census sampling procedure was used to select 182 kindergarten teachers for the study. The main instrument for this study was a four-point Likert-type scale questionnaire with both closed and open-ended items. The closed-ended items were scored on a scale of 1-4 with options ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree. The quantitative data was analysed using means and standard deviation whiles the qualitative data were analysed thematically. After data was analysed and interpreted, the following conclusions were made: Contextual factors typically have an impact on how kindergarten teacher develops their professional identity. Secondly, Head teachers’ leadership styles, the experiences of kindergarten teachers, and parents and society’s perceptions of early childhood were the contextual factors that had the highest means and the greatest impact on kindergarten teachers’ professional identities. Professional identity development for kindergarten teachers is impacted by opportunities for professional development like pursuing higher education, in-service training, and other opportunities.
Keywords: kindergarten, contextual factors, professional development
I. Introduction
Teacher professional identity has been explored as a concept, a connection of interlocking variables, through which the teacher can be understood and appreciated as a professional as well as a social and cultural being. Teacher identity is not a fixed or coherent set of traits but something that is complex, often contradictory and subject to change across time and space (Morgan, 2004). According to Moloney (2010), qualifications are critical in shaping professional identity, including self-esteem, self-belief, job satisfaction, and belongingness. For instance, kindergarten teachers in Ireland believe they are often viewed as babysitters rather than educators (Moloney, 2010). This metaphor threatens and challenges their professional identity resulting in feelings of vulnerability and insecurity which has huge implications for the way the curriculum is implemented. Forde, McMahon, McPhee and Patrick (2006) refer to affective components of professional identity such as self-esteem, self-belief, professional self-confidence, job satisfaction and motivation. They posit that professional identity is a highly personalised construct that rests in part on feelings and attitudes about the job people do. Yidana and Lawal (2015) after reviewing the literature on teacher professional identity point to the fact that, an ideal professional teacher, irrespective of the subject he or she handles should demonstrate and practice all aspects of professional knowledge, values, skills and reflection. These are the broad indicators of teachers’ professional identity and capacity.
Mansaray (2011) pointed out that government policies in Africa on educational reforms do not position the teacher as the locus of change and that little evidence of empirical studies is directed at teacher identity and professionalism as core determinants of how teachers perform their roles. He indicates that the approach to early grade and in-school teacher preparation seems heavily focused on equipping teachers with the so-called ‘knowledge base’ in their subjects, and the appropriate techniques and strategies for communicating this knowledge to learners. Consequently, there are indications that teachers in Africa have either lost, or have not developed, the distinctive identity that is improving their professional work as well as their social standing. The foregoing suggests that teacher education curricula do not focus on developing the identity of the teacher. Previous attempts to give some attention to developing teachers’ personal and professional identities in Ghana has been the Student Internship Programme (SIP) put in place by some teacher education universities, however this has been fraught with challenges. For instance, the teaching practice model designed for colleges of education in Ghana that required periodic conferences between link tutors from the colleges, interns and their mentors during the one year internship programme has not been effective. Some of these challenges are ineffective mentoring processes and a lack of model of progress that identifies competencies and standards against which both student teachers can measure and review their progress.