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THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN SCHOOL REFORMS
AND TEACHER PROFESSIONALISM IN GOVERNMENT PRIMARY SCHOOLS IN KARACHI, PAKISTAN
A dissertation submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the degree
of Doctor of Philosophy in Education
Meher Rizvi IGCE, B.Ed., M.Ed. – Primary and Secondary (Notre Dame Institute of Education licensed by Australian Catholic University and affiliated with Karachi University)
B.Com (Karachi University, Pakistan)
Centre for Innovation in Education Faculty of Education
Queensland University of Technology Kelvin Grove, Australia
November 21, 2003
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ABSTRACT
The government primary education system in Karachi, Pakistan, is faced with
many problems and dilemmas and each dilemma justifies a reason, but perhaps no
problem is as grave as the dejected professional status of the government primary school
teachers in Karachi. Schools are only as good as their teachers, regardless of how high
their standards, how up-to-date their technology, or how innovative their programs.
With a large numbers of under-educated, under-trained, under-paid and, most
importantly of all, undervalued government primary school teachers in Karachi,
Pakistan (Hoodbhoy, 1998; Shaikh, 1997), only a low percentage of teachers can be
effective. Whether the children in Pakistan will be the enlightened and the informed
citizens of tomorrow or ignorant members of society will depend on teacher knowledge,
teacher education and above all teacher professionalism.
If teachers do matter the most, then a series of questions result. What is being
done for this section of the society that matters so much? Are efforts being taken to find
out what teachers in the government primary schools need to achieve their professional
goals? Are these teachers given adequate opportunities to learn, to improve and to
become effective teachers? How can these teachers meet the ever increasing demands
placed upon them? How will these teachers successfully lead the students into the
twenty-first century? Do the primary government school teachers believe that they can
successfully lead children into the twenty-first century? Are school reforms geared
towards enhancing teachers’ professionalism?
This research that focuses on the relationships between school reforms and
teacher professionalism in government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan, addresses
such questions. In this thesis, I outline some of the measures that have been taken at the
government, at the non-government and at the school sector level to restructure and
reform primary government schools in Pakistan. A mixed methods research approach
was undertaken to investigate the relationships between these reforms and teacher
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professionalism. Quantitative data were collected by means of questionnaire surveys and
qualitative data were collected in the selected four case sites by means of interviews and
field notes.
In this research it was important to investigate teacher efficacy, teacher practice,
teacher leadership and collaborative efforts as the different dimensions of
professionalism and the relationships between these and the school reforms for
enhanced teacher professionalism. Research was required which addressed the question
of “What it actually means to be a professional teacher in government primary schools
in Karachi, Pakistan, and how school reforms can actually develop teacher learning for
improved teacher professionalism?”
Contrary to the detached and noncommittal attitude with which the government
primary school teachers are characterized in many contexts, the teachers in this study
have indicated that they are confident and capable; they can articulate and communicate
ideas; they can make decisions and undertake responsibilities; they understand that it is
important to collaborate and learn from one another; and they are willing to undertake
leadership roles if they have the opportunities. This has strong implications for policy
makers to provide teachers with the opportunities to become active and reflective
professionals. It is important to regard teachers as change agents capable of generating
knowledge and of making change happen, rather than as passive recipients and users of
knowledge.
The data provided by the teachers have indicated that it is possible to enhance
teacher professionalism within the existing government primary school structures.
While the different teachers were at different levels or stages of professionalism, it was
quite clear that they had all advanced in terms of their professionalism as a consequence
of reform initiatives. These changes in the teachers’ levels of professionalism defined
the relationships between the school reforms and teacher professionalism. In other
words, the school reforms have been able to develop teacher professionalism and take it
to a higher level than where it was when the reforms were initiated in the schools.
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Based on the analysis of the findings, this research theorizes that teacher
professionalism is developed when teachers are provided with both the professional
knowledge and skills to improve their capabilities, and opportunities to translate
professional knowledge and skills into classroom and school activities to make the most
of their capabilities.
The research proposes that the strength of these relationships between school
reforms and teacher professionalism depends on the dynamism with which the reform
managers take teachers through the stage of involving them in developmental process,
the stage of initiating professional development programmes and the stage of developing
schools into collaborative cultures and establishing networks with the help of
enlightened principals and hybrid support structures. Based on this proposition a number
of principles have been identified for sustaining and further developing teacher
professionalism.
The study acknowledges that the process of developing teacher professionalism
is complex and that it will be the blend of different elements in the schools, the
particular school context and political will that will decide how professionalism can best
be fostered in the government primary schools. However, since the principles derived
from this research are based on grounded research findings and are also supported by
literature and other relevant research in the area of teacher development, they may be
applicable to other primary schools where similar reforms are being implemented in
Pakistan and other developing countries seeking to address similar problems. Policy
makers and large private organizations may benefit from the principles of developing
and fostering teacher professionalism.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ii Table of Contents v List of Tables x List of Figures xi List of Abbreviations xii Acknowledgments xiii
Chapter 1. Introduction to the Nature and the Scope of the Study 1
1.1 Introduction 1 1.2 Overview of Education in Pakistan 2 1.3 Contextual Background and the Focus of the Study 6
1.3.1 Karachi 6 1.3.2 The Government Primary School System in Karachi, Pakistan 7 1.3.3 The Primary School Teachers 8
1.3.4 School Reform Initiatives in Government Primary Schools in Karachi, Pakistan 9
1.4 Contextual Analysis and Rationale for the Study 10 1.5 Aim and Objectives of the Study 13 1.6 Teacher Professionalism 14 1.7 Research Questions 17 1.8 Research Approach 17 1.9 Outline of the Study 18 Chapter 2. Literature Review 19 2.1 Introduction 19 2.2 School Reforms and Educational Change 20 2.3 School Reforms and Policy Implementation Measures in Pakistan 23
2.3.1 Analysis of School Reforms and Policy Implementation Measures in Pakistan 30
2.4 Initial Framework of the Research 34 2.5 Professional Development 36 2.6 Professionalism and Professional Learning 40 2.6.1 Teacher Efficacy 43 2.6.2 Teacher Practice 45 2.6.3 Teacher Collaboration 47 2.6.4 Teacher Leadership 49 2.7 School Reforms 50 2.8 Key Mediating Variables of School Reforms 52
2.9 Government Primary School Reform Initiatives in Karachi, Pakistan 55
2.9.1 Primary Education Programme (PEP) 55 2.9.2 The Government School Project 58 2.9.3 The Adopt a School Programme 61 2.9.4 Sindh Primary Education Development Program (SPEDP) 62
2.10 Overall Analysis 65
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2.11 Levels of Change 66 2.12 Synthesis 70 Chapter 3 Research Methodology 71
3.1 The Supporting Philosophy 71 3.2 Positioning and Repositioning as a Researcher 73 3.3 Overall Research Design – A Mixed Methods Research Design 76 3.3.1 The Rationale for the Mixed Methods Research Design 76 3.3.2 Principles of Mixed Methods Research 78 3.4 The Research Questions 79 3.5 Mixed Methods Research Strategy 81 3.5.1 Quantitative Survey Research 82 3.5.2 Qualitative Case Study Research 82 3.6 The Research Plan 84 3.7 Phase One – The Exploratory Stage 84 3.7.1 Sampling Procedures for the Survey Research 85 Identification and Description of the Population 85 Sampling Technique 86 Description of the Sample 86 3.7.2 Sample Selection for the Case Study Research 87 Selection of Case Sites 87 Sampling within the Case 88 3.8 Phase Two – Exploratory and Explanatory Stages 88
3.8.1 The Description of Data Gathering Instruments 90 Questionnaire 90 In-depth Interviews 93 Field Notes 94
3.8.2 Data Gathering Procedures 94 The Process of Administering the Questionnaires 95 The Process of Conducting the Interviews 96 The Process of Recording Field Notes 99
3.8.3 Data Analysis in the Mixed Methods Procedures 99 Quantitative Data Analysis 100 Data Analysis in Case Studies 101
3.9 Phase Three – The Concluding Stage 104 3.10 Dealing with Validity, Reliability and Ethics 105 3.10.1 Validity 105 3.10.2 Reliability 107 3.10.3 Ethical Concerns 107
3.11 Overall Summary 108 Chapter 4 Results of the Survey Research 109 4.1 Introduction 109
4.2 Demographic Characteristics of the Teachers 109 4.3 Analysis of Section One - Teachers’ Perceptions about the
Four Dimensions of Professionalism 112 4.3.1 Procedures Employed for the Descriptive Analysis of the Four Dimensions 112
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4.3.2 Procedures used for the Factor Analysis of the Four Dimensions 112
4.4 Sub-Section One – Analysis of Teacher Efficacy Scale 113 4.4.1 Hypothetical Foundations of Teacher Efficacy Scale 114 4.4.2 Factor Analysis of Teacher Efficacy Scale 114 4.4.3 Reliability Analysis of Teacher Efficacy Scale 116 4.4.4 Discussion of the Teacher Efficacy Scale 116 4.5 Sub-Section Two - Analysis of Teacher Practice Scale 117 4.5.1 Hypothetical Foundations of Teacher Practice Scale 117 4.5.2 Factor Analysis of the Teacher Practice Scale 118 4.5.3 Reliability Analysis of Teacher Practice Scale 119 4.5.4 Discussion of the Teacher Practice Scale 120 4.6 Sub-section Three – Analysis of Teacher Collaboration Scale 121 4.6.1 Hypothetical Foundations of Teacher Collaboration Scale 121 4.6.2 Factor Analysis of Teacher Collaboration Scale 121 4.6.3 Reliability Analysis of Teacher Collaboration Scale 123 4.6.4 Discussion of the Teacher Collaboration Scale 124 4.7 Sub-Section Four – The Analysis of Teacher Leadership Scale 125 4.7.1 Hypothetical Foundations of Teacher Leadership Scale 125 4.7.2 Factor Analysis of Teacher Leadership Scale 126 4.7.3 Reliability Analysis of Teacher Leadership Scale 127 4.7.4 Discussion of the Teacher Leadership Scale 127 4.8 Overall Discussion about the Four Dimensions 128
4.9 Analysis of Section Two – Teachers’ Perceptions about the Other Dimensions of Professionalism 129
4.10 Analysis of Section Three – Ongoing Teacher Development Programmes 133
4.11 Overall Summary 135 Chapter 5 Lessons from the Four Case Stories 139 5.1 Introduction 139 The Story of the Alif Government Girls’ Primary School 140 5.2. The Alif School’s Background and Structure 140 5.3 Characteristics of the Alif School Children and the Parents 141 5.4 Characteristics of the Alif School Educators 142 5.5 Primary Education Programme (PEP) and its Purposes 143
5.6 The Relationships between PEP and Teacher Professionalism 144 5.6.1 The Relationships between PEP and Teacher Efficacy 145 5.6.2 The Relationships between PEP and Teacher Practice 148 5.6.3 The Relationships between PEP and Teacher Collaboration 154 5.6.4 The Relationships between PEP and Teacher Leadership 156
5.6.5 Synthesis of the Key Themes and Implications from the PEP Case 159
The Story of the Bay Government Girls’ Primary School 165 5.7 The Bay School’s Background and Structure 165 5.8 Characteristics of the Bay School’s Children and the Parents 166 5.9 Characteristics of the Bay School’s Educators 166 5.10 The In-service Teacher Training Programme and its Purposes 167
5.11 The Relationships between Demo Centre Training and Teacher Professionalism 169
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5.11.1 The Relationships between Demo Centre Training and Teacher Efficacy 170
5.11.2 The Relationships between Demo Centre Training and Teacher Practice 172
5.11.3 The Relationships between Demo Centre Training and Teacher Collaboration 176
5.11.4 The Relationships between Demo Centre Training and Teacher Leadership 179
5.11.5 Synthesis of the Key Themes and Implications from the Demo Centre Training Case 181
The Story of the Pay Government Girls’ Primary School 186 5.12 The Pay School’s Background and Structure 186 5.13 Characteristics of the Pay School Children and the Parents 187 5.14 Characteristics of the Pay School Educators 187 5.15 The Book Group’s Reform and its Purposes 188
5.16 The Relationships between Book Group and Teacher Professionalism 190
5.16.1 The Relationships between Book Group and Teacher Efficacy 190
5.16.2 The Relationships between Book Group and Teacher Practice 194
5.16.3 The Relationships between Book Group and Teacher Collaboration 199
5.16.4 The Relationships between Book Group and Teacher Leadership 201
5.16.5 Synthesis of the Key Themes and Implications from the Book Group Case 203
The Story of the Tay Government Girls’ and Boys’ Primary school 209 5.17 The Tay School’s Background and Structure 209 5.18 Characteristics of the Tay School Children and the Parents 210 5.19 Characteristics of the Tay School Educators 210 5.20 Adopt a School Programme and its Purposes 211
5.21 The Relationships between Adoption and Teacher Professionalism 214 5.21.1 The Relationships between Adoption and Teacher Efficacy 214 5.21.2 The Relationships between Adoption and Teacher Practice 217
5.21.3 The Relationships between Adoption and Teacher Collaboration 221
5.21.4 The Relationships between Adoption and Teacher Leadership 222
5.21.5 Synthesis of the Key Themes and Implications from the Adoption Case 225
5.22 Overall Summary 229 Chapter 6 Synthesis of the Findings 231 6.1 Introduction 231
6.2 The Dimensions of Teacher Professionalism in the Schools where Reforms have been Initiated 232
6.3 Factors Important for Building Relationships between School Reforms and Teacher Professionalism 237
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6.3.1 The Synergy between Developing Teacher Capabilities and Providing Teachers with Opportunities 238 6.3.2 The Centrality of the School Principals 242
6.3.3 The Influence of the Educators’ Attitude on Teacher Professionalism 244
6.3.4 Professional, Emotional, and Administrative and Structural Support of Teachers’ Work 245
6.3.5 Addressing the Uniqueness Within Each Reform Initiative 247 6.4 Overall Summary 249
Chapter 7 Implications of the Relationships 251 7.1 Introduction 251 7.2 Brief Reflection on the First Two Research Questions 251
7.3 School Reforms that can Further Enhance and Sustain Teacher Professionalism 254
7.4 Stage One – Laying the Foundations of Teacher Professionalism 255 7.5 Stage Two – The Process of Developing Teacher Professionalism 258 7.5.1 Where Teacher Learning is Placed 258 7.5.2 What the Teachers Need to Know 262
7.5.3 What Opportunities Help Teachers Make the Most of Their Capabilities 265
7.6 Stage Three – The Process of Sustaining Teacher Professionalism 268 7.7 Overall Summary 272 7.8 Limitations of the Study 276
Chapter 8 Conclusions and Reflections 278 8.1 Introduction 278 8.2 A Discussion of the Research Findings and their Significance 278 8.3 The Principles for Fostering Teacher Professionalism 281 8.4 Final Reflection 298 Appendices 301 Appendix A: Survey Instrument 301 Appendix B: Sample Themes for Teachers’ Interviews 311 Appendix C: Teachers’ Consent 312 Appendix D: Reform Managers’ Interview – Sample Questions 314 Appendix E: Member Check of the Tentative Interpretations – Sample Statements 315 Appendix F: An Example of Creating Tree Nodes to Organize Data
Using Nvivo 316 Appendix G: Letter of Permission 317 Reference List 319
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LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1 The Total Teaching Staff in Sindh (Primary Level) 31 Table 2.2 Book Group’s Administrative Reform Initiatives 59 Table 2.3 Book group’s Academic Reform Initiatives 60 Table 3.1 Purposes for Mixed-Methods Evaluation Designs 78 Table 3.2 Research Procedures in Phase One 85 Table 3.3 Research Procedures in Phase Two 89 Table 3.4 Research Procedures in Each Case 90 Table 3.5 Research Procedures in Phase Three 105 Table 4.1 Age Distribution of the Teachers 109 Table 4.2 Academic Qualification of the Teachers 110 Table 4.3 Educational Qualifications of the Teachers 110 Table 4.4 Teachers’ Years of Professional Experience 110 Table 4.5 The Hypothetical Factors of Teacher Efficacy Scale 114 Table 4.6 Item Loadings in the Factor Analysis for Teacher Efficacy Scale 115 Table 4.7 Hypothetical Foundations of the Teacher Practice Scale 118 Table 4.8 Item Loadings in the Factor Analysis for Teacher Practice Scale 119 Table 4.9 Hypothetical Foundations of Teacher Collaboration Scale 121 Table 4.10 Item Loadings in the Factor Analysis for Teacher Collaboration
Scale 123 Table 4.11 The Hypothetical Foundations of Teacher Leadership Scale 125 Table 4.12 Item Loadings in the Factor Analysis for Teacher Leadership
Scale 126 Table 4.13 The Other Dimensions of Teacher Professionalism 131 Table 4.14 The Frequency of Attending Teacher Training / Professional Development Programmes in the Last Two Years 134 Table 4.15 The Usefulness of Teacher Training / Professional Development
Programmes 135 Table 5.1 Characteristics of the Alif School Educators Who Participated
in the Interview 142 Table 5.2 Characteristics of the Bay School Educators Who Participated in the Interview 167 Table 5.3 Characteristics of the Pay School Educators Who Participated in the Interview 188 Table 5.4 Characteristics of the Tay School Educators Who Participated in the Interview 211 Table 6.1 The Dimensions and Sub-dimensions of Teacher
Professionalism Across Cases 233 Table 6.2 The Themes and the Issues Involved in the Process of Developing Teacher Professionalism Across Cases 239
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LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.1 The Map of Pakistan 3 Figure 2.1 Initial Framework of the Research 35 Figure 2.2 Relationships between Forces, Mediating Variables and Change 53 Figure 2.3 Primary Education Programme 57 Figure 2.4 Levels of Change 66 Figure 3.1 Steps in Data Analysis in Case Studies 102 Figure 5.1 Development of Teacher Professionalism in the Alif School 160 Figure 5.2 Development of Teacher Professionalism in the Bay School 182 Figure 5.3 Development of Teacher Professionalism in the Pay School 204 Figure 5.4 Development of Teacher Professionalism in the Tay School 226 Figure 7.1 Informed Framework for Developing and Sustaining Teacher Professionalism 273
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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS DIFID Department for International Development GDP Gross Domestic Product GNP Gross National Product IDCA Agency for International Development ILO International Labour Organization INSET In-Service Teacher Training NGO Non-Government Organisations NORAID Norwegian Aid Agency NWFP North West Frontier Province OD Organization Development PEP Primary Education Programme PTC Primary Teaching Certificate SD Standard Deviation SDC School Development Centre SEF Sindh Education Foundation SPEDP Sindh Primary Education Development Project TRC Teachers’ Resource Centre UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation UPE Universal Primary Education
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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I would not have been able to undertake a study of this scope if it had not been
for the support of many people who offered insight, clarification and assistance all along
the process of conducting and writing up of the research. While thanking all of the
people for their support, I would like to single out a few whose contributions were
invaluable.
My deepest gratitude to my supervisor, Associate Professor Robert Elliott, for
offering me helpful insights, which helped to clarify my vision and turned it into a
focused research problem. His thorough review of my work helped me to present my
study in a more succinct and a concise manner. He gave generously of his time and
supported me all through my efforts till the end.
I feel a deep sense of gratitude toward my associate supervisors, Dr. Ian
Macpherson and Dr. Tania Aspland, for their interest in my work and for their valuable
feedback.
I offer a special note of appreciation to the Faculty of Education, Queensland
University of Technology for their assistance all along the process of doing this
research.
I would also like to thank the reform managers who took time out of their busy
schedule to give interviews for my research. Their valuable views gave meaning and
depth to my study.
My thanks to the teachers and the principals who participated in the research
amidst difficult times following September 11, 2001 and made it possible for me to
conduct this investigation.
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I am also very thankful to the teachers who took part in the pilot study and
helped me refine my questionnaire and research methodology.
I offer my deepest gratitude to Professor Anita Ghulam Ali, Ms. Mahenaz
Mehmood, Mr. Sami Mustafa, Dr. Muhammad Memon, Mr. Mashhood Rizvi, Ms.
Najma Malick, Ms. Yasmeen Memon, Mr. Bashir Khan, Ms. Tehseena Rafi, Ms.
Aaliya, Mr. Imran Azeem, Mr. Keith Prenton, Mr. Anwar Ahmed Zai and Ms. Ghazala
Qazi for their cooperation and valuable assistance.
My special thanks to Directorate of Elementary Education Karachi, Government
of Sindh, Pakistan for giving me permission to conduct research in the different
government primary schools in Karachi.
I offer a special note of appreciation to the staff members of the Teachers’
Resource Centre, the Sindh Education Foundation, and the Book Group for their help
and cooperation.
I am also indebted to all my friends and my colleagues who talked to me and
gave me some very helpful insights to turn my investigation into a success.
I would not have been able to write one word of this thesis if it had not been for
the tremendous amount of love and affection that I received from my family. I am so
grateful to them for their faith and trust in me.
My true strength and inspiration has been and will always be God Almighty. I
turned to Him in times of need and He never let me down. He gave me the courage to go
on. He gave me the ideas and the wisdom to use those ideas in a concrete manner.
Thank you God for everything!
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CHAPTER ONE
Introduction to the Nature and the Scope of the Study 1.1 Introduction
This research study explored the relationships between school reforms and
teacher professionalism in government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan to discover
how the teachers in the government primary schools in Karachi, where reforms have
been initiated, are being helped to learn new ways of teaching to enhance their
professionalism. The investigation aimed to develop a set of principles for fostering and
sustaining teacher professionalism in government primary schools in Karachi where
similar reforms are being initiated. It was significant to undertake research, which
addressed the questions of what it actually means to be a professional teacher in
government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan and how the government primary
schools in Karachi could be reformed to further facilitate professionalism among the
teachers. The reasons for this are highlighted in the contextual analysis and the rationale
for this study. Information about Pakistan, Karachi and government primary education
system in Karachi, Pakistan is given to signify the context of the study.
A mixed methods research approach was employed to achieve the research
objectives. The data were analysed using a number of techniques to explore the different
dimensions of teacher professionalism in government primary schools in Karachi and
the measures that had been taken within different reform initiatives to further enhance
teacher professionalism. On the basis of data analysis, a set of principles about the
relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism was formulated for
fostering and sustaining teacher professionalism in government primary school teachers
in Karachi. It is anticipated that, based on these principles, policy makers and
educational leaders will be able to provide such continuous learning and professional
development opportunities, which are appropriate to the individual teacher and school
needs, and which will lead to significant improvement in the quality of education in
government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan.
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What I have summarized in two paragraphs was in reality a very huge and a very
challenging research task. This task began with the analysis of the contextual
information about the education system in Pakistan in general and Karachi in particular.
This chapter presents an overview of the contextual analysis, which is described in
detail in chapter 2. The chapter also presents background information about the
government primary school system in Karachi, where the study was undertaken. A brief
outline of the four reform initiatives, which are considered for this research, is also
given in this chapter. These reform initiatives are described in detail in chapter 2. This
background information was important for a comprehensive understanding of the
rationale of this study, its purpose and its aim and objectives. The final section of this
chapter gives a brief outline of the research questions, the research approach and the
outline of the study.
1.2 Overview of Education in Pakistan
The Islamic Republic of Pakistan, with 310,527 square miles of area, is located
in South Central Asia. It is bounded by the Arabian Sea, Iran, Afghanistan, China and
India. The nation is a federal system, composed of four provinces with considerable
local authority: Punjab, Sindh, Baluchistan and North West Frontier Province
(N.W.F.P). The city of Karachi, where the research was conducted, is in the province of
Sindh. Muslims constitute 96.7% of the population with the remaining divided among
Christians, Hindus, Parsees and Sikhs. Urdu is the national language and English is the
official language (IDCA, Ministry of Education, Pakistan, 1986, p 3). A map of Pakistan
with its provinces and neighbouring countries is given below in the Figure 1.1
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Figure 1.1 The Map of Pakistan
On the 14th of August 1947, Muhammad Ali Jinnah led India’s Muslims out of
colonialism to independence from Britain and India. Quaid-e-Azam Muhammed Ali
Jinnah had a vision of a Pakistan built on character, courage, integrity and perseverance.
Jinnah had, on more than one occasion, emphasized the significance of education as an
instrument of any nation’s socio-economic change. However, his untimely death in
September 1948 also marked the death of the visionary leadership that was required to
guide the newly founded state on to the road to progress and development.
Now in the year 2003, Pakistan is still struggling to realize Jinnah’s dream. This
is not to say that Pakistan’s education system has not changed at all. Quantitatively, it
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has shown immense progress. In 1947-8, Pakistan’s entire educational infrastructure
was estimated to comprise around 10,000 primary and middle schools (1,700 for girls),
about 408 secondary schools (64 for girls), 46 secondary vocational institutions (18 for
girls), 40 Arts and Science colleges including five for women, and two universities.
There was not a single professional college in the country (Jalil, 1998, pp. 34-35).
According to the Internet Wing Ministry of Information, Government of Pakistan
(2000), Pakistan now has 150,963 primary schools, 14,595 middle schools, 9,808 high
schools 708 Arts and Science colleges, 161 professional colleges and 35 universities (10
in the private sector).
Pakistan's citizens are proud of what they have achieved in terms of quantitative
development in education over the past 55 years, but many are apprehensive too
because, according to the latest data, Pakistan’s literacy rate is 38.9% (Internet Wing
Ministry of Information, Government of Pakistan, 2000) and its literacy rate for women
is 21 percent (Warwick & Fernando, 1995). The literacy rate has also increased from
21.7% in 1972 (Mahmood, Zahid, & Muhammed, 1999, p. 8) to 39% in 1998 (The
Ministry of Education, 1998, p. 141). However, this rate does not look good enough in
terms of the population of 135.28 million and the population growth rate of 3% per
annum (Internet Wing Ministry of Information, Government of Pakistan, 2000).
The data in relation to education in Pakistan are quite staggering. The Ministry
of Education (1998, p. 141), states that about 25% of the children in Pakistan are not
enrolled in primary schools, and 50% of those who are enrolled drop out before
completing primary school. These figures contrast sharply with China and Indonesia,
also low-income countries, where literacy rates in 1990 were over 75 percent and
enrolment of primary-school students reached 100 percent (Warwick & Fernando,
1995). In literacy rate, Pakistan is placed among 31 out of 35 countries in the Muslim
World and globally 134 out of 180 countries.
The growth of the private school sector is increasingly filling the gap in the
public school system. In the private school sector, principals, teachers, students, and
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community are excited about the educational process and take their school very
seriously (Bergman & Mohammad, 1998). Dynamic principals and/or community
leaders seem to be the prime movers in the successful functioning of these schools
(Bergman & Mohammad, 1998).
Since independence, Pakistan has seen the rise and fall of different governments.
Each government tried to improve the staggering status of education in government
schools. As a result seven different education policies have been planned and
implemented in Pakistan since 1947. It becomes clear from the close analysis of
different education policies that they all say the same thing in different words. The main
focus of all the policies has been the target for Universal Primary Education (UPE),
which has not been achieved as yet. Nearly all the plans have emphasized the
importance of quality education and have reiterated the improvement in teaching
standards as one way of improving quality. Yet, the improvement in terms of teacher
training programs has only been minimal. On the other hand, the work in terms of
technical education has been quite satisfactory, as there are several technical colleges
and institutions in the country. However, this improvement in technical education has
been at the cost of primary education, which was given prominence in all the policy
documents but was always neglected due to insufficient funds. Hence, the decision to
focus my research in the areas of primary teacher education and primary education.
Despite UNESCO’s recommendation that the governments of low-income
countries spend 4% of their Gross National Product (GNP) on education, Pakistan falls
short of that figure. Pakistan’s financial allocation on education falls between 2%-3%.
(Hoodhbhoy, 1998; Mahmood et al., 1999; The Ministry of Education, 1998; Warwick
& Fernando, 1995). The government needs to consider whether it should change its
priorities and redirect resources from other budgets to education, particularly to primary
education (The Ministry of Education, 1998; Warwick & Fernando, 1995).
Active leadership by the government can change not only the chances for
children to enrol in school, but public attitudes towards education. The government can
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play an immensely important role in terms of providing learning opportunities to
teachers and students, good working conditions for teachers, better wages and
promotion to better positions as rewards for improving the status of teachers in Pakistan
(Hoodbhoy, 1998; The Ministry of Education, 1998). However, not all teachers want
promotion out of the classroom as a reward. Rather, they desire a supportive and
stimulating environment that allows them to gain a sense of professionalism out of their
work, and opportunities to renew and enhance their skills in effective and meaningful
ways (International Labour Organization, 1991). It is important to regard teachers as
change agents capable of generating knowledge and of making change happen, rather
than as passive recipients and users of knowledge. This is why it becomes important not
only to study the educational reforms in government primary schools, but also to study
their relationships with teacher professionalism. Below is a brief discussion of the
organizations and the people who were involved in the research.
1.3 Contextual Background and the Focus of the Study
As part of the background to this research project, the educational context of
Karachi is considered. This is done by giving a brief account of the government primary
school system in Karachi, the initiatives that have been taken to reform some of these
schools, a proposed framework for considering teacher professionalism and the general
information about Karachi where this research is sited. This is then followed by an
analysis section in which the major issues are highlighted.
1.3.1 Karachi
There are several reasons behind my decision to do my research in Karachi. The
most important among them is my personal interest in the city. Karachi is my hometown
and I have personally experienced the different phases of development this city has gone
through. Besides that I feel that research is required in the city which is the economic
backbone of Pakistan and which is rich in cultural diversity. In Karachi, one can meet
with people from different socio-economic and cultural backgrounds – those who are
very educated and those who are completely illiterate; those who live in beautiful homes
and those who live in slum areas. Karachi is the largest metropolis of Pakistan. It has a
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per capita income over two and a half times the national average (Haq & Haq (1998).
According to Hasan (2000), Karachi contributes 25% to federal revenue and
40% to provincial revenue. Fifteen percent of Pakistan’s GDP (Gross Domestic Product)
comes from Karachi. Half of all the bank deposits in the country and three-fourths of all
issued capital are raised form Karachi. With a population of 12 million people, Karachi
has a literacy rate of 66% and growth rate of 5.8%. There are 2,327 government primary
schools (Bureau of Statistics, 2002) and 2,700 registered private schools (“Karachi,”
2003) in Karachi. There are 16,465 government primary school teachers in Karachi
(Bureau of Statistics, 2002).
1.3.2 The Government Primary School System in Karachi, Pakistan
In Pakistan, education is organized into five levels: primary (grades one through
five); middle (grades six through eight); high (grades nine and ten, culminating in
matriculation); intermediate or higher secondary (grades eleven and twelve, leading to
an F.A. diploma in arts or F.S. science); and university programs leading to
undergraduate, postgraduate and advanced degrees. Preparatory classes (kachi, or
nursery) were formally incorporated into the system in 1988 with the Seventh Five-Year
Plan (UNESCO, 1994). The main thrust of the elementary cycle is to provide the basic
foundations of language learning, writing and numeracy skills.
IDCA (Agency for International Development), Ministry of Education, Pakistan
(1986) states that the management of elementary education in Pakistan is
constitutionally the responsibility of the provincial departments of education and the
levels of administration below them. However, the general policy guidance and planning
for curricula, standards, coordination, and the development of the country’s educational
system as a whole rest with the federal ministry of education.
School children at the primary stage (Classes I-V) are examined annually. The
examination at the end of Class V determines whether or not the child goes to the
starting class (Class VI) of the middle school. The methodology of teaching in the lower
8
primary grades is critical for developing the needed basic knowledge and skills for
further study. Teaching in the primary school is generally characterized as rote learning
and memorization of facts to be regurgitated on internal school exams. Some of the
more modern methods of teaching such as the Inquiry Method in Social Studies, the
Process Method and Discovery in Science might be the intent of curriculum designers
but lightly captured by textbook writers. The lack of diverse and modern instructional
practices is one of the critical problems facing primary education and claimed to be
among the main causes for the low performance of the system (IDCA, Ministry of
Education, Pakistan, 1986).
There is a general lack of teaching materials and visual aids in the primary
school classroom. Teachers are generally reluctant to produce their own material and are
content to use texts and to continue to be active talkers while students remain passive.
The instructional process in the primary school system is teacher oriented. Textbooks
are relied upon by the teacher to reinforce the knowledge base of the students (IDCA,
Ministry of Education, Pakistan, 1986).
1.3.3 The Primary School Teachers
The role of teachers in the education management process focuses on possessing
the knowledge and skills required to teach effectively. Unfortunately for the teaching
profession in Pakistan, the social status of teachers is generally low. A common remark
is that when all other options for employment fail, then a boy may become a teacher
(The Ministry of Education, 1998).
The reasons for a student not wanting to become a primary teacher stem from a
combination of factors, mainly low salary, generally the poor and deplorable condition
of schools, and the lack of career opportunities for advancement in the profession. This
lack of attraction to teaching could perhaps account for the large number of untrained
teachers who have to be hired as a matter of necessity. The mean percentage relative to
the number of untrained primary teachers in all provinces varies but it is roughly from
30-40 percent of the provincial teaching force. This gives an urgent dimension to the
9
need for pre-service and in-service programs for training and staff development
programs (IDCA, Ministry of Education, Pakistan, 1986, pp. 145-146).
The Primary Teaching Certificate (P.T.C) teachers are, under the law, qualified
to teach primary classes (I–V). The basic requirement for admission to the P.T.C.
program run by the Elementary Colleges of Education is a matriculation certificate or 10
years of schooling(UNESCO, 1994). However, in the year 2001, the local education
department recruited teachers who had completed their graduation (four years of
college, in addition to 10 years of schooling), on contract basis for teaching posts in the
government primary schools in Karachi (Office of Education, personal communication,
November 24, 2001)
In-service training is not a regular feature in practical terms, although it receives
considerable emphasis in policy statements. The reasons for this situation are:
i. lack of financial resources,
ii. lack of capacity of training institutions, compared to the number required to be
trained, and
iii. lack of support from the managerial cadres for the training programs (UNESCO,
1994, p. 10).
1.3.4 School Reform Initiatives in Government Primary Schools in Karachi, Pakistan
In the past ten years, some initiatives have been taken to reform government
primary schools. Below is a very brief summary of four of these reform initiatives,
which have recently been implemented at government primary schools in Karachi and
which are included in this research. These are explained in detail in chapter two.
Whole school development was the focus of the Primary Education Programme
(PEP). It aimed to involve decision-makers, principals, teachers, parents and the
community in improving and sustaining quality primary education. The PEP focused on
four government schools in selected urban settings. PEP was initiated and organized by
TRC in July 1997 and it was completed in 2002 (Teachers’ Resource Centre, 1999).
10
The Adopt A School Program was initiated in 1997 by the SEF for improving the
quality of education being imparted in government schools; for systematic and
replicable collaboration between the private and public sector; and for mobilizing
parents and communities in order to sustain the program (Sindh Education Foundation,
1998). Since then, 68 schools have been adopted in Karachi (Mohammad, 2001).
The Government School Project was initiated by the Book Group, which is a
private book publishing organisation. In April 1995, the Government of Sindh issued a
notification to transfer the management of a government girls’ primary school to the
Book Group. Since September 1995, the Book Group has been working to improve the
quality of education in this school by implementing administrative changes and
introducing more relevant curriculum (The Book Group, 1996).
The Department of Education, Government of Sindh had been engaged since
1991, in a large-scale program called the Sindh Primary Education Development
Program (SPEDP). The main goals of SPEDP were to improve access to primary
education, especially for girls, with equity and quality (Bureau of Curriculum and
Extension Wing, 1997).
1.4 Contextual Analysis and Rationale for the Study
At the time of independence the primary concern of the new leaders of Pakistan
was to ensure the economic survival of the country. It was no easy task; unlike India,
Pakistan had not inherited an organized government. In all areas, the country had to start
from the beginning (Library of Congress: Country Studies, 2000). The first decade of
independence was marked by a high degree of political instability. It was during this
first decade that the state began to autonomously shape public policy for national
development, including education (Jalil, 1998).
The leaders of the Pakistan Movement were aware that the Muslims living in
British India had lagged behind in modern education and they felt something needed to
change. Under British Rule the native educational institutions fell out of favour, and
11
others, which would serve colonial interests better, were encouraged (Hoodbhoy, 1998).
One other great reproach against the British rule was the neglect of elementary
education in the country (Jalil, 1998).
The above information appears to suggest that the seeds of difficulty were sown
before Pakistan came into existence. The data seem to imply that Pakistan inherited
more illiterate people than literate people and that mass education was non-existent. To
worsen the situation, Pakistan had very meagre educational facilities at the time of
independence. The curriculum was limited and the teaching was by rote (Jalil, 1998).
At that time, the nation's political leaders had clearly recognized Pakistan’s
educational problems and had suggested a thorough overhaul of the system. One of the
important steps in this direction was a suggestion for the elimination of the impact that
the British colonial legacy had had on the education system. Jinnah showed keen
interest in shifting the emphasis of education from colonial-administrative objectives to
a professional technical bias suited to the needs of a non-dependent, progressive
economy (Jalil, 1998).
Unfortunately, teachers in many government primary schools in Karachi,
Pakistan, are still struggling alone in their classrooms to cover content with large groups
of often reluctant learners, with few textbooks or resources to help them, and with little
reward or recognition. Teaching and learning are pursued with reference to the
necessities of classroom control, and teachers’ success and survival depends on their
ability to balance the two (Hargreaves, 1997a). A large number of teachers are, in what
Hargreaves (1997a) calls the pre-professional stage of teacher development, when the
education systems in most parts of the world are moving towards what Hargreaves
(1997a) describes as post-professionalism.
These traditional, recitation-like patterns of teaching have their advantages in
some contexts. They enable teachers working with large groups, small resources and
students whose motivation is always in question, to meet four fundamental demands of
12
the classroom: maintaining student attention, securing coverage of content, bringing
about some degree of motivation, and achieving some degree of mastery (Hargreaves,
1997a). However, the cost of this is that the teachers cannot orient themselves to the
needs of individual students. As a result, teachers cannot ensure that all of their students
can and do learn and so they cannot get their students to high standards of performance.
Teachers are probably teaching in the manner that they were themselves taught.
Thus, this situation necessitates an investigation in this area to discover how the teachers
in the government primary schools in Karachi, where reforms have been initiated, are
being helped to learn new ways of teaching and what perceptions of professionalism
they hold.
The above mentioned literature about the government primary education system
in Karachi presents a very pessimistic picture. However, I have reasons to believe that
primary education system in Karachi has progressed.
There are two reasons for believing that Karachi’s primary education system has
progressed. The first reason is that before leaving for Australia to undertake this
research I had an opportunity to meet with representatives from several NGOs and one
government organization. The representatives informed me of different school
improvement programs that they had begun at the primary school level. Since, the
programs were fairly recent, most of their findings had not been documented for public
reading. Secondly, most of the published literature (IDCA, 1986; UNESCO, 1994;
Warwick & Fernando, 1995) about the quality of education in Pakistan dates back to
more than nine years.
According to Fullan (1982), the implementation of educational change involves
change in practice. Although change in practice can occur at many levels (the teacher,
the school, the school district, etc.), teacher level is the closest to instruction and
learning. It, therefore, became important to study any changes in schools with changes
in teachers in terms of what they did and thought. It was valuable to discover whether
13
the teachers in government primary schools in Karachi considered themselves capable
of making any difference in students' lives or they were only following the reform
agenda; whether they understood the changes that were taking place in schools or they
were merely implementers of ideas; whether the school reforms had brought about any
change in their sense of professionalism or they had left them exhausted and stressed. In
short, it was important to discover if there were relationships between school reforms
and teacher professionalism in primary government schools in Karachi. It was with this
rationale that the following aims and objectives were formulated.
1.5 Aim and Objectives of the Study
The aim of this project was to arrive at a set of principles for sustaining and
further developing teacher professionalism in schools where educational reforms are
being initiated. In order to achieve this aim, the study explored the different dimensions
of teacher professionalism, the relationships between school reforms and teacher
professionalism and ways in which schools could be reformed to further enhance
teacher professionalism. It is anticipated that the principles will assist in the
development for improving the quality of education in government primary schools in
Karachi.
In order to fulfil this broad aim some specific objectives needed to be addressed.
Therefore, specifically the research sought to:
1. Identify the government primary schools in Karachi where reforms have taken place
and the professional organizations, which are executing these reforms.
2. Identify the changes that have taken place in the teachers’ perceptions of
professionalism as a result of reform initiatives and characterize them in terms of the
dimensions identified from the literature.
3. Analyse the different dimensions of professionalism using the quantitative and
qualitative descriptive data.
4. Investigate the links between the school reforms and teacher professionalism in each
of the four case study schools using qualitative data.
5. Analyse the links between school reforms and teacher professionalism by
14
identifying the specific reform characteristic in each case study school which had
led to the change in teachers’ professionalism in terms of the identified dimensions.
6. Synthesize the findings of four case study schools and from these derive a more
abstract set of propositions about the relationships between school reforms and
teacher professionalism.
7. Synthesise the findings from the quantitative and qualitative analysis to arrive at a
consolidated view about the different dimensions of professionalism and the
relationships between these and school reforms.
8. Analyse and explain how government primary schools in Karachi can be reformed
to further enhance professionalism among the teachers and from this analysis draw
a more informed framework of developing and sustaining teacher professionalism.
9. Relate the consolidated findings and the informed framework to theoretical concepts
noted in the literature to arrive at a set of principles for fostering teacher
professionalism in government primary schools where similar reforms have been
initiated.
The aim and objectives of the research gave rise to the three research questions.
Before turning discussion to these research questions, it is important to give a brief
explanation of the term teacher professionalism. The term school reforms, has been
briefly introduced under Professional Organizations (see section 1.3.4). These terms will
be explained in fuller detail in chapter 2.
1.6 Teacher Professionalism
There exists a large body of literature on the sociology of the profession and the
evolving nature of professional work (Beck & Murphy, 1996; Darling-Hammond, 1995;
Day, 1999; Elliott, 2000; Gusky & Huberman, 1995; Hargreaves & Fullan, 1992;
Lieberman, 1992; McLaughlin & Oberman, 1996; Rosenholtz, 1989; Sergiovanni, 1994;
Shacklock, 1994). What teachers do in classrooms and schools has been undergoing
significant change and therefore, any debate about the meaning of teacher
professionalism must take place within the context of changing work practices and
educational policies. Researchers (Broudy, 1988; Eraut, 1994; Farr & Middlebrooks,
15
1990; Willis & Tosti-Vasay, 1990) have also theorized that professional learning is
influenced by: 1) the context in which the learning occurs; 2) factors that motivate
individual engagement in learning activities; and 3) the use of knowledge in practice
(Scribner, 1998, p. 5). It is for these reasons that I considered it best to identify the
different measures that had been taken at the government and at the non-government
level to reform primary government schools in Pakistan. The real meaning of teacher
professionalism in a Pakistani context could only occur in the light of these reforms and
new work practices.
The term teacher professionalism has been conceived in this study in terms of
the following four dimensions:
1) Teacher Efficacy
2) Teacher Practice
3) Teacher Collaboration
4) Teacher Leadership
These dimensions have been identified after analysis of the documents
containing details of reform initiatives in different government primary schools in
Karachi, and a review of the relevant literature. I will briefly introduce these dimensions
now. They are explained in greater detail in chapter 2.
There is research that suggests that teachers are more likely to adopt and
implement new classroom strategies if they have confidence in their own ability to
control their classrooms and affect student learning (Scribner, 1998). Furthermore,
Smylie, (1988) suggests that teacher efficacy, specifically Personal Teaching Efficacy
(PTE), may act as a professional filter through which new ideas and innovations must
pass before teachers internalize them and change their behaviour.
Schools where teachers continue to believe teaching is basically easy, where the
pre-professional view persists, are schools that Rosenholtz (1989) has described as
16
learning-impoverished. They achieve poorer results in basic skill achievement than their
more professionally oriented counterparts. Educational reforms would require changes
in the way education is generally practised in government primary schools in Karachi. It
would require teachers to not only teach according to the new standards, but also to
learn how to teach in ways most of them have never taught before. Successful school
reforms would depend on improved teacher practice. As Fullan (1982) argues,
educational change depends on what teachers think and do – its as simple and as
complex as that.
In schools where teachers continue to believe teaching is basically easy,
professional learning for new teachers is largely seen as apprenticing themselves as
novices to others who are skilled and experienced in the craft (Hargreaves, 1997a). Once
the unquestioned grammar of teaching is passed on from experienced teachers to
novices, teachers go in their own separate classes. On the other hand, collegial
professionalism or teacher collaboration helps teachers to cope with uncertainty and
complexity, respond effectively to rapid change, create a climate which values risk
taking and continuous improvement, develop stronger sense of teacher efficacy, and
create ongoing professional learning cultures for improved teacher practice (Hargreaves,
1997a).
Advocates of professional learning communities (Bhindi & Duignan, 1997;
Duignan, 1996; Sergiovanni, 1998; Whitbey, 1995) suggest that teacher leadership
surfaces as an important element in addressing school improvement. In such
communities teachers assume both formal and informal roles while maintaining direct
contact with the classroom. They are problem solvers, staff developers, and powerful
influences in their work with colleagues (Moller et al, 2000). Teachers who are leaders
lead within and beyond the classroom, influence others toward improved educational
practice, and identify with and contribute to a community of leaders (Katzenmeyer &
Moller, 1996).
17
Whether school reforms in government primary schools in Karachi have been
able to build professional learning communities, which could build the professional
capacity of teachers to take on leadership roles, to work confidently, to teach in new
improved ways and work with each other was a significant research question.
1.7 Research Questions
The problem or the issue highlighted in this research gives rise to the following
research questions.
1 What does it currently mean to be a professional in government primary schools
in Karachi, Pakistan, where reforms are being initiated?
2 What are the relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism in
government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan?
3 How can the government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan, be reformed to
further enhance and sustain professionalism among the teachers?
In order to further develop the research questions, it was important to investigate
and analyse the relationships between the ways in which the schools were being
reformed and the current levels of teacher professionalism. Thus, there were a number
of sub-questions, which needed to be initially answered in order to answer the research
questions and achieve the research objectives. These sub-questions are discussed in
chapter 3.
1.8 Research Approach
A mixed methods research approach was employed to address the research
problem. A number of principles underpinned the application of mixed methods as the
most suitable research strategy for studying the relationships between teacher
professionalism and school reforms in government primary schools in Karachi,
Pakistan. These principles are outlined in chapter 3. This research employed Creswell’s
(1995, p. 177) “equivalent status mixed method research designs.” The research was
conducted using both quantitative (survey research) and qualitative methods (case
studies) to understand the phenomenon under study. The use of a mixed method
18
approach enabled me to simultaneously get a broad perspective of a large number of the
teachers about the different dimensions of professionalism that prevailed in the schools
where reforms had been initiated, and also undertake an in-depth exploration and
analysis of the themes and issues arising from the investigation of the relationships
between school reforms and teacher professionalism in the four case sites.
1.9 Outline of the Study
The practical and theoretical framework for the study is presented in chapter 2,
with detailed literature review and document analysis of the educational policies and
reforms in Pakistan. In chapter 3, the research methodology is described and justified.
This chapter also describes the supporting philosophical orientation and my own
positioning and repositioning as a researcher. Chapters 4, 5, 6, and 7 address the three
research questions and contain a comprehensive description of the research findings.
Specifically, in chapter 4 the quantitative data from the survey research are analysed and
presented and chapter 5 contains thick and rich descriptions and analysis of the
qualitative data of the four case studies. Chapter 6 synthesizes the findings from the
quantitative and qualitative analysis to highlight the factors that have enabled the
development of teacher professionalism in the government primary schools where
reforms have been initiated. Chapter 7 considers a theory for further enhancing teacher
professionalism, which signify future implications of the research findings. In the light
of these implications, a more informed framework for sustaining and further developing
teacher professionalism is presented. This chapter also discusses the limitations and
delimitations of the study. In chapter 8, the study comes to its conclusion with
discussion and reflection on the research findings. A number of principles for fostering
and sustaining teacher professionalism in government primary schools in Karachi are
proposed in this chapter, along with the areas for further research.
With this broad outline of the study, the discussion turns to chapter 2 to learn what
the existing literature has to say about school reforms and teacher professionalism.
19
CHAPTER TWO
Literature Review 2.1 Introduction
This chapter provides a detailed literature review of teacher professionalism and
teacher professional development; educational change; policy initiatives and
government primary school reform initiatives in Karachi that have informed the initial
conceptual framework of this research. This chapter begins with a quotation from Fullan
(1982), who has highlighted issues that are significant for educational change and school
reform.
One person claims that schools are being bombarded by change; another observes that there is nothing new under the sun. A policy-maker charges that teachers are resistant to change; a teacher complains that administrators introduce change for their own self-aggrandizement. One university professor is convinced that schools are only a reflection of society and cannot be expected to bring about change; another professor is equally convinced that schools would be all right if only superintendent and principals had more “vision” as educational leaders and teachers were more motivated to learn new approaches to improving the curriculum. The “innovation establishment” wonder how to get more and more programs institutionalized, while teachers think that it is these same promoters of change who should be institutionalized, nor their programs (Fullan, 1982, p. 3).
Fullan wrote this paragraph twenty years ago. However, the issues highlighted in
it are still very much alive. “Visionary leadership” is still a matter of concern with many
educationists; “institutionalizing” of an educational reform is still a burning topic; and
teachers’ “resistance to change” is still evident in many research findings. These issues
are common to all countries. However, they are felt more intensely in countries which
have recently embarked onto the road of educational change and school reform. This
situation calls for a broader, deeper and a more serious approach to educational change
and school improvement.
The chapter outlines the need for school reforms and educational change. This is
followed by a literature review about the school reforms and policy implementation
measures in Pakistan. The chapter then outlines the initial framework of the research,
20
the concepts of teacher professional development and teacher professionalism. The
sections that follow the initial framework discuss the key components of the conceptual
framework and specific literature that supports this framework. This means that the
literature review includes discussion about teacher professional development, teacher
professionalism and its conceptualisation, and school reforms in detail. The chapter
concludes with an overall analysis and synthesis of the findings. Literature about
specific aspects of how teacher professionalism is developed is not considered in this
chapter because of the nature of the research design to be used. The research is designed
to enable such ideas to emerge from the data and consequently, these matters are
discussed at later stages in the thesis.
2.2 School Reforms and Educational Change
Hargreaves (1997b, pp. 4-5) gives six reasons why schools need to change to make
conscious and constructive connections with the wider world beyond them. The
discussion here considers four these reasons:
1. Schools cannot shut their gates and leave the outside world on the doorstep
2. Schools are losing their monopoly on learning
3. Schools are one of our last hopes for rescuing and reinventing community
4. Teachers need a lot more help.
More than ever today “schools cannot shut their gates and leave troubles of the
outside world on the doorstep” (Hargreaves, 1997b, p. 5). Schools have become porous
and permeable institutions (Elkind, 1993). Increased poverty creates hungry children
who cannot learn and tired ones who cannot concentrate. This is very much the case in a
country like Pakistan where 40 percent of the population lives below the poverty line
(Islam, 1998) and where 20 million children live in poverty (Khan, 1994). In addition to
that there are 8 million working children in Pakistan (Khan, 1994). Children work long
hours on the farms and in the workshops. Their chances of development (education,
leisure, play and proper vocational training) are snatched from them as early as 6 or 7
years of age and very often their own parents collaborate in their misfortune (Khan,
1994). The reality of what’s out there, whether on the streets of Karachi or anywhere
21
else in the world, is therefore inescapable. It is something that teachers deal with
everyday of their working lives. Teachers’ interaction and responsibilities are more
extended. What matters, is not whether teachers connect with what’s out there beyond
their school, but how effectively they do so.
“Schools are losing their monopoly on learning” (Hargreaves, 1997b, p. 5). More
young people have access to a computer at home (Hargreaves & Fullan, 1992). For the
youth of today, the geography of learning stretches far beyond the physical space of the
school. Internet enables many students to reach out and connect with other students,
other teachers, and other worlds without the teacher’s immediate monitoring, support
and intervention (Hargreaves, 1997b). In a city like Karachi, many young people, even
from low-income brackets, make extensive use of television, video and satellite cable,
which gives them access to broadcast from other parts of the world (Rizvi, 1999). Use of
computers at home is a common practice with children from both rich and low-income
families because the computers can be easily locally assembled or can be bought on
easy instalments (Rizvi, 1999).
Across much of the developed world, “people are experiencing a crisis of
community and schools provide one of our last hope and greatest hopes for resolving it”
(Hargreaves, 1997b, p. 6). Science and technology, rational planning and modernization
have eroded tradition, beliefs and practices, and eliminated the places where community
once thrived (Giddens, 1990). The same situation exists in a city like Karachi, where
commercialization, industrialization and modernization are slowly becoming the norm
(Hasan, 2000).
In these modern cities people are struggling to recreate a sense of community
and the meaning and support that are to be found there (Hargreaves, 1997b). They are
looking for fellowship, searching for a sense of place. This can be seen in the self-help
and support groups that are springing up everywhere (Giddens, 1990), in the efforts to
mobilize communities for school development (SEF, 1998), in the struggles to develop
networks between parents and teachers (SEF, 1998), and in the thriving success of
22
community schools whose main target is the development and preservation of
community norms and values (Rizvi, 1999).
“Teachers need a lot more help” (Hargreaves, 1997b, p. 7). The point about
community is not just that schools can serve their wider communities better, but that
these communities can also be an active source of support for teachers in school. And
teachers can certainly do with the help. More and more social work and paperwork are
getting in the way of classroom work with children (Hargreaves, 1997b). The pressure
for teachers to change their classroom practice towards more intensive work with
individuals and small groups so as to accommodate the multiple intelligences and varied
learning styles of different students means that teachers need help, inside the classroom
as well university support outside it (Hargraeves, 1997b).
To sum up this argument, I agree with Hargreaves (1997b, p. 11) that:
Schools can no longer be castles in their communities. Nor can teachers equate
professional status with absolute autonomy. The forces of change are already
making themselves felt within countless classrooms, in the characteristics of the
children, in the problems they bring to school and in the ways they approach
their schoolwork.
Therefore, teachers must find more and better ways to work with others in the
interest of the children they know best. They must reinvent their sense of
professionalism so that it does not place them above or set them apart from the others,
but gives them the courage and the confidence to engage openly and authoritatively with
the wider community (Hargreaves, 1997b).
This means that school reformers need to go wider and deeper in their efforts to
change schools (Hargreaves, 1997b). As Hargreaves (1997b, p. 12) twists the words of
the popular song to add that in a world where the walls of schooling are breaking down,
successful change needs to be “a river deep, a mountain wide”. It is time to understand
23
what it means to change schools and how teachers’ capacities can be developed to
sustain this change.
I now want to explore what it means to go wider and deeper in this way in the
context of Pakistan. For this, I will begin by giving a brief analysis of the present policy
initiatives and those that have been taken in the past to reform education system with
particular reference to the primary education system. There will also be references to the
school reform movements in the other parts of the world.
2.3 School Reforms and Policy Implementation Measures in Pakistan
As is evident from the contextual, background information in chapter one, the
efforts to reform Pakistan’s education system began soon after Pakistan gained its
independence in 1947. At the time of independence, Jinnah recognized Pakistan’s
educational problems and suggested a thorough overhaul of the system. He showed keen
interest in shifting the emphasis of education from colonial-administrative objectives to
a professional and technical bias suited to the needs of a non-dependent, progressive
economy (Hoodbhoy, 1998).
The major issues emphasized by the 1947 Education Conference outlined an
educational philosophy, which incorporated both the fundamentals of Islamic tradition
and modern science and technology, and introduction of free and compulsory primary
education. However, little of this ambitious plan was actually accomplished due to the
unsettled socio-political situation prevailing at the time (Hayes, 1987). The newly
founded nation was struggling to make ends meet with the meagre material and financial
resources when the untimely death of Jinnah dealt a severe blow. With Jinnah, died his
developmental plan of building a proud and prosperous nation.
Despite the shortfall in public expenditure, at the end of the decade 1947–57,
Pakistan’s educational system had shown some quantitative improvement. However, the
major thrust of government policy during this period remained on industrial
24
development, and the government’s goals for human resource development were
deferred to the future (Jalil, 1998).
In the late sixties, The Ministry of Education (1959) in Pakistan presented to the
people a report of the Commission on National Education which, according to some
experts, was one of the most comprehensive policy documents. The Ministry of
Education (1959) concluded, in the report, that the fundamental need in Pakistan was for
a revolution in attitudes of many people and officials to give way to a spirit of individual
initiative, personal integrity, pride in accomplishment, trust in one’s fellow men and
private sense of public duty.
The Ministry of Education (1959) also recommended a complete reorganization
of the country’s educational system – its structure, curriculum, teacher- training methods
and examination. The objectives of education were elaborated and emphasis was laid on
the overall development of the individual through an education process so that he or she
could become an effective member of the society (Memon, 1990). The Commission also
suggested that the teaching in the primary schools should reflect local interests and the
teachers should exercise sufficient initiative in finding material for their lessons in the
resources of their village and in the community (The Ministry of Education, 1959).
Community involvement in the management of schools was also considered
necessary. Improvement in the working and service conditions of teachers was stressed.
It was also recommended that teachers’ services should be recognized through annual
awards made at the highest level, with publicity through radio, film and the press
(Ministry of Education, 1959).
At about the same time, the educational reform movements in the western world
were also taking momentum. The 1960s involved large-scale aspirations for reform in
most western countries (Fullan, 1998). Hopkins (1998) observes that from the mid
1960’s onwards the major focus of innovation was on the adoption of curriculum
materials. On both sides of the Atlantic the curriculum reform movement was intended
25
to have a major impact on student achievement through the production and
dissemination of exemplary curriculum materials. Although the materials were often of
high quality, they failed to have an impact on teaching. The main reason in hindsight
was that the teachers were not included in the production process and the staff
development that accompanied the new curriculum was not thoughtfully developed
(Hopkins, 1998).
The National Commission on Education introduced a process intended to
transform the educational structure in a systematic and planned fashion. However,
efforts to introduce systematic planning into education were largely unsuccessful. Its
main weakness was the authoritarian approach and the lack of commitment on the part
of public opinion (Hayes, 1987).
It was during the period between 1969 and 1971, that teachers’ pivotal role in the
education system was highlighted. It was acknowledged that if the academic standards
were to be improved, teachers must be paid better, they must be allowed greater
participation in governing their institutions and bureaucratic control over them must be
reduced to the minimum (The Ministry of Education and Scientific Research, 1970).
The Proposals for a New Education Policy (The Ministry of Education and
Scientific Research, 1970) gave the highly centralized and bureaucratic administration,
which did not allow full play to the talents and capabilities of the teachers, the students
and the educational research workers, as the main reason for the falling standard of
academic performance. It was, therefore, recommended that the teachers and the
students should be involved in the running of educational institutions. This was in
keeping with the Organization Development (OD) techniques to schools advocated in
the sixties. The OD advocates suggested the use of survey feedback, problem solving
and collective decision making design (Hopkins, 1998).
These and other recommendations were contained in the New Education Policy
announced March 15, 1972 by the first civilian government after almost two decades. It
26
was at this policy station that education was restructured from top to bottom. In the area
of privately managed schools, the word was nationalization of schools and colleges to
change education from an elite privilege to an equal expectation. This action promised
to provide opportunity for education to every citizen regardless of race, religion or birth.
The teachers serving in these institutions were absorbed in the National Pay Scale
(Research Wing, 1984).
At the primary level, in keeping with the socialist ideology of the government,
education was to be free and universal up to class X. It was hoped that universal primary
education up to class V for boys would be achieved by 1979 and for girls by 1984
(Hayes, 1987).
The Ministry of Education (1972, p.27), promised that all teacher-training
courses would be revised and a large-scale in-service teacher assistance program would
be undertaken to enable practicing teachers to teach the new curricula correctly and
effectively. Textbooks and writing materials were to be provided free to primary school
children and teaching materials and classroom aids were also to be provided free by the
government under the plan.
The implementation of the Ministry of Education (1972) was haphazard and
uncoordinated in the sense that carefully planned positive steps could not be taken to
implement the recommendations of the various committees set up by the Government
(Research Wing, 1984). Nationalization put a great deal of administrative stress and
financial strain on the Government (Research Wing, 1984).
In 1978, the new martial law government in Pakistan introduced The National
Education Policy, 1978. The underlying objectives of the 1978 Education Policy
remained the same as the previous policy. However, it denationalized the educational
institutions and encouraged private institutions. The Policy predicted that privatization
would help to reduce the financial burden of the state and to overcome the shortages of
27
educational institutions created over the past five to seven years (The Ministry of
Education, 1978).
The 1978 Policy emphasized improving the existing primary schools. It called
for universal enrolment of boys in the five to nine age group by 1986-87. The Policy
also planned to review curricula and textbooks at all levels to bring them in conformity
with the principles of Islam and Ideology of Pakistan (Hayes, 1987).
It was recommended that all primary teacher-training institutes be upgraded to
the status of colleges of elementary teachers and that all teachers undergo at least one in-
service training course once in every five years. Teacher motivation was also stressed in
the policy. It said that the teachers would be encouraged to participate in national and
international seminars, workshops and courses. They would also be given scholarships
to pursue their studies within the countries and abroad (Ministry of Education, 1978).
Educational administration was to be decentralized. District School Authorities with
sufficient powers and funds would be constituted in every district to oversee and
administer school education up to secondary level (The Ministry of Education, 1978).
While Pakistan’s education system was struggling with nationalization and
denationalization; socialization and Islamization; centralization and decentralization to
reform government schools, the western world was also trying to revive public schools.
According to Fullan (1998, p. 672), “the 1970s was a period of downturn and recession
with limited attention to fundamental reform. At the same time there was growing
dissatisfaction with the role and performance of public schools. This led in the 1980s to
stronger central intervention and more demands and mechanism for accountability”.
Coupled with community intervention, this mechanism of accountability was also the
basis of education policies in Pakistan in the 1990s.
The National Education Policy (1992-2002) had its root in the earlier policies
with special focus on universalisation of primary education and mass literacy. It stated
that primary education would be recognized as a fundamental right of every Pakistani
28
child and would be made compulsory and free to achieve universal enrolment by the end
of the decade (Mahmood et al., 1999, p. 30).
The 1992 Education Policy’s initiatives to address the implementation gaps and
to enhance the implementation capacity of the education sector were undertaken through
the direct involvement of the donors, the federal and the provincial governments, and
the Non-government organizations in the opening, management and maintenance of
educational instructions at all levels (Mahmood et al., 1999).
The Federal Education Minister stressed improvement in the quality of education
by revising curricula, improving physical facilities and making the teaching learning
process more effective. The Minister stated that the importance of teachers would be
recognized by giving them due status in society through awards and incentives but at the
same time promoting in them sense of responsibility and professionalism through
accountability to the community (Khan & Awan,1993).
However, before this plan could be implemented the government changed. The
new government took initiatives from the previous policies. A large number of
proposals on educational parameters were received from the public including
intellectuals, educationists, lawyers, scientists, newspaper editors, teachers, and other
cross sections of society. These proposals were incorporated in the National Education
Policy, 1998 – 2010.
The Policy attached the highest priority to the elimination of illiteracy and
universalization of primary education by the year 2010. Elementary education was
stressed as the bedrock and foundation of the education pyramid. It was stressed that
both private and social rates of return at primary level were comparatively higher than
secondary and tertiary level. The policy gave examples of Malaysia, South Korea,
Singapore, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Maldives which achieved remarkable progress in
elementary education and in turn secured and sustained very high per capita GNP and
vice versa (The Ministry of Education, 1998).
29
In agreement with the high priority accorded to primary education, National
Education Policy emphasized compulsory primary education; maximization of the role
of the family, schools, community, non-governmental organizations and the media in
the provision of elementary education and improving the quality of education.
National Education Policy 1998–2010 stated that the quality of education is
directly related to the quality of instruction in the classroom. In accordance with this
article the policy planned to launch a three months’ intensive training for all the
educational administrators and supervisors in the country. The policy also proposed to
improve the curriculum of teaching courses. The curriculum would comprise interactive
studies through which the teachers would receive training in leadership and develop
self-study attitudes. It was also recommended that future teacher training would
emphasize creativity and productivity, and development of professional competencies
through updating knowledge and skills (The Ministry of Education, 1998).
In keeping with the objectives of the National Education Policy 1998-2010, the
present government has accorded high priority to quality primary education for all. In
order to achieve this objective the government has started upgrading existing primary
schools to elementary facilities, initiating non-formal primary education programme for
5-9 years age group in disadvantaged areas and initiating early childhood education in
government schools (The Ministry of Education, 2001).
Another important target of the present government focuses on curriculum
reforms and improvement in teacher education and training. In order to achieve this
target, the present government has taken initiatives such as upgrading teacher
qualification linked to higher pay scales, in-service training of teachers at all levels of
the education system, continuous curriculum reviewing and updating in collaboration
with provincial counterparts and through public-private partnerships, and encouraging
multiple textbooks options (The Ministry of Education, 2001).
30
In order to meet these standards, the present government took a crucial step of
introducing decentralization in education. On 14 August 2001, district governments
were created across urban and rural areas under the devolution plan for addressing
governance and service delivery by introducing decentralized approaches to decision
making. Recognizing that the newly formulated district governments would require
technical support for good planning, management and an implementation system for
education, the Ministry of Education initiated a series of six workshops at the provincial
and federal level to identify and address the capacity building needs in the different
districts (The Ministry of Education, 2001).
This was the brief review of each of the seven education policies, which have
been introduced by different governments in Pakistan since 1947. Needless to say this
explanation is incomplete without its analysis. It is to this analysis that I now turn.
2.3.1 Analysis of School Reforms and Policy Implementation Measures in Pakistan
One can easily infer from a close perusal of the different education policies that
the main targets that were emphasized were the same in each case. Each policy tried to
achieve the target of universal primary education, quality education, technical
competence, better quality teacher training, community participation etc. However, none
of these targets has been achieved completely to date.
However, it would be wrong to assume that the education policies have been
completely unsuccessful. The literacy rate may be low, but it has improved and is still
improving. The literacy rate has improved from 21% in the seventies to about 45% in
the late nineties. However, it is still quite low. The total number of educational
institutions has also increased from 77, 207 in 1985-86 to 143, 130 in 1995-96. School
enrolment has also increased, from 19 percent of those aged six to twenty-three in 1980
to 24 percent in 1990 (Library of Congress: Country Studies, 1995). There has also been
improvement in the number of trained teaching staff in the province of Sindh.
31
Table 2.1 The Total Teaching Staff in Sindh (Primary Level)
Year Trained Untrained Total
1992 46 854 45 400 92 254
1998 93 295 7 092 100 387 Source: Sindh Education Management Information System (SEMIS), 1999, p. 40 Sindh Education Management Information System (SEMIS), 1996, p. 39
Table 2.1 shows that the number of trained teachers at the primary level in the
province of Sindh has also increased from 46, 854 in 1992 to 93, 295 in 1998, and the
number of untrained teachers has decreased from 45, 400 to 7, 092.
In addition, the primary school curriculum has recently been revised; the
community is more involved in school management than it was before; the teachers in
some schools have started using different teaching methods; the physical condition of
many schools has improved.
Although the education system has expanded greatly since independence and has
taken steps to improve its quality, debate continues about the curriculum and the quality
of teaching, particularly in the government primary schools in Pakistan. Authors have
given different explanations for Pakistan’s poor performance in education. Burki (in
Warwick & Fernando, 1995) claims that this situation results from the low value
Pakistanis put on education, particularly in rural areas; economic conditions that
provided little incentive for educating children; and cultural bias against the education
of women. Warwick & Fernando (1995) go on to add that UNESCO has recommended
that the governments of low-income countries spend 4 percent of their GNP on
education. Pakistan fell far short of that figure. The numbers ranged from 0.88 percent
of GNP during the years 1955-60 to 2.04 percent in the years 1983-88. By 1990 the
budgeted figure rose to 3.4 percent of GNP, but that increase did little to solve the
problems of enrolment, teacher competence, student learning, and completion due to
annual population growth rate of 3.1 percent between 1980 and 1991.
32
Lack of financial resources is a valid reason for the slow pace in the educational
development, but this is not the only reason. A close perusal of the above mentioned
policies shows that there have been huge gaps between what was planned and what was
implemented. The governments of the different periods set out clearly defined goals and
directions, but strategies to implement these plans were not clearly outlined.
A review of Western literature suggests that Pakistan is not the only country
where policies were not implemented as they were planned. According to McLaughlin
(1998), the implementation problem first became apparent in the early 1970s as policy
analysis examined the school level consequences of the education reform. McLaughlin
(1998) adds that implementation issues in federal public policy were first brought up in
the early seventies. Implementers did not always do as they were told. Nor did they
always act to maximize policy objectives. Instead those responsible for implementation
at various levels of the policy system responded in what seemed quite idiosyncratic,
frustratingly unpredictable, if not downright resistant ways (McLaughlin, 1998).
A review of Pakistan’s seven education policies reveals that the main reasons for
the poor implementation of the policies were the political instability, disorganized
implementation strategies and financial strain. When the government in 1972 decided
that the policy of socialism, where by all children get equal opportunity to education,
was the only solution to school reform, it nationalized schools. This policy failed.
Perhaps, the government ought to have thought of a strategy to build the capacity of the
teachers, before absorbing them in the public education system (Research Wing, 1984).
Recognizing that community involvement in educational administration is
important for effective implementation, the present government has taken the crucial
step of introducing decentralization in education. Decentralization has shifted the quality
education responsibility to the districts and it is envisaged that it would also encourage
public-private partnership in education. As it is still in progress, it is too early to analyse
the full impact of this authority devolution plan. It is hoped that since the devolution
plan aims at providing opportunities to the local people and the local communities to
33
manage their schools, it will bear good results. The success of this programme will
probably depend on how effectively the local capacity needs are identified and
addressed (The Ministry of Education, 2001).
When one analyses the education development situation, one cannot help
conclude that the implementation problem is not the only issue. In fact, problems
plaguing the education system in Pakistan are multi-dimensional like, population
explosion, lack of resources, non-participation of the private sector, scarcity of the
qualified human resources, inconsistency in the policies of various regimes, political
instability, inefficient educational management, and wastage of resources. However, not
a single problem is as grave as the detached and noncommittal attitude of the
government primary school teachers (The Ministry of Education, 1998).
This situation gives rise to a number of questions. Can the policy targets be
achieved without teachers’ help? Can ambitious plans such as the decentralization in
education be achieved successfully without building teachers’ capacity?
McLaughlin (1998, p. 72) answers these questions by saying that “policy can’t
mandate what matters. What matters most to policy outcomes are local capacity and
will. The local expertise, organizational routines, and resources available to support
planned change efforts generate fundamental differences in the ability of practitioners to
plan, execute or sustain an innovative effort. The presence of the will or motivation to
embrace policy objectives or strategies is essential to generate the effort and energy
necessary to a successful project.” This stresses the need for building the capacity of the
people, particularly the teachers, at the local ground level so that they can understand
the full implication of those reforms and can implement them effectively.
As is evident from the above reviews not much has been done or even planned in
terms of teacher professionalism in Pakistan. This is not to say that nothing has been
done in the area of teacher development. Almost every education policy speaks about
the importance of teacher training and the improvement in the courses of teacher
34
training colleges. However, what it fails to do is to recognize teachers as professionals
who can play an enormously important role in transforming life within the schools.
Since the above reviews indicate that the teacher involvement in the policy plans has
been minimal, it can be inferred that teachers have been treated as technicians to carry
out the plan and achieve objectives rather than as change agents capable of generating
knowledge and of making change happen.
The initial framework of this study on school reforms and their relationships
with teacher professionalism stems from this background analysis and my brief analysis
of it. It is to this research framework that I turn my attention now.
2.4 Initial Framework of the Research
The initial framework of this research has been informed by Western literature,
analysis of the Pakistan’s policy documents and the recent school reform initiatives in
Karachi. The discussion about the specific aspects of the framework and the literature,
which has informed it, will continue in the subsequent sections in this chapter. However,
it is important at this stage to discuss the initial framework of this study.
There is literature suggesting that success of school reforms depends on
successful teacher development (Beck & Murphy, 1996; Day, 1999, 2000a; Dilworth &
Imig, 1995; Fullan, 1982, 1993, 1997, 2000; Fullan & Hargeraves, 1992b, 1996; Fullan
& Miles, 1992; Hargreaves, 1997a, 1997b; Hargreaves & Evans, 1997; Hargreaves &
Fullan, 1992; Hopkins, 1996, 1998; Huberman & Miles, 1984; Ingvarson, 1997;
Liberman, 1992, 1996; McLaughlin 1997; McLaughlin & Oberman, 1996; Murphy,
1991; Poser, 1999). Analysis of Pakistan’s policy documents has revealed the limited
success of top-down reform measures in the past. The educational reforms were
implemented without first building the local capacity, particularly that of the teachers
whose capabilities and willingness to sustain reforms are very important for the success
of reform initiatives. Hence, this study is framed by a belief, informed by policy analysis
and literature, that the sustainability of school reform depends on teacher
professionalism.
35
Literature also speaks at length about the importance of professional
development programmes which help teachers renew their knowledge, skills and visions
for good teaching, and provide them with opportunities to translate new knowledge,
skills and visions in practice (Darling-Hammond, 1995; Day, 1999, 2000a; Elmore &
Burney, 1995; Eraut, 1994; Fullan,1997, 1999; Fullan & Hargeraves, 1992b; Guskey &
Huberman, 1995; Hargreaves, 1997a; Hopkins, 1996; Ingvarson, 1997; Liberman, 1996,
2000; McLaughlin 1997; McLaughlin & Oberman, 1996; Rosenholtz, 1989; Shacklock,
1994). This research brings these two views together and says that enhancement in
teacher professionalism will occur when teachers’ capabilities are developed and they
are provided with opportunities to make the most of these capabilities.
The initial framework of this research is based on the above argument. It stresses
that sustainability of school reform depends on teacher professionalism - building the
professional capabilities of teachers and providing them with opportunities to exploit
their capabilities. This can be more succinctly explained with the help of this diagram.
Figure 2.1 Initial Framework of the Research
The framework stresses that successful school reform will ultimately depend on
enhanced teacher professionalism. Improvement in teacher professionalism rests on the
EDUCATIONAL REFORMS
Developing
Teacher Capabilities
Opportunities
to Exploit Teacher
Capabilities
TEACHER PROFESSIONALISM
Continuous Professional Development
36
development of teacher capabilities and providing teachers with opportunities to exploit
their capabilities. The framework stresses that teacher preparation and development is
important, but it is also important to realize that even if the best and the brightest
teachers are not provided with the work environment where they could be successful,
their preparation and development would not be of much value either to them or to their
school. Hence, to develop teacher professionalism to transform life within schools, one
would need to have a continuous professional development program in place whereby
the teachers do not only become confident professionals who believe in their own
capabilities, but they can also work confidently with the other teachers. The specific
literature that supports this framework will be presented in subsequent sections, which
discuss each of the three main components of the framework. It is with teacher
professional development, which occupies centre position in my figure, that I begin my
explanation of my framework.
2.5 Professional Development
Teachers, who spend their days and years doing what is perhaps the hardest job
for a person of ambition and intelligence, are extremely precious to their schools. The
OECD 1989 report (as cited in Day, 1999, p.1) elaborates upon the importance of
teachers in these words:
Teachers are at the heart of the educational process. The greater the importance attached to education as a whole – whether for cultural transmission, for social cohesion and justice, or for human resource development so critical in modern, technology-based economies – the higher the priority that must be accorded to the teachers responsible for that education.
Ingvarson (1997, p.31) argues, "To have the best schools, we must have the best
teachers. What teachers know and can do is the most important influence on what
students learn.” This argument gives rise to an important question of how teachers
develop into best teachers.
"Professional Development, of course. How else?" One might say. However,
making provisions for teacher professional development is not a simple task. This is
37
especially the case in this age and time when teaching is in the midst of a great
transformation.
Hargreaves (1997a) argues that the pressures and the demands for students to
learn new skills such as teamwork, higher order thinking and effective use of new
information technology call for new styles of teaching to produce these skills. Teachers
now have to teach in ways they were not themselves taught. According to ERIC Digest
(1995) the range and type of information that students need to know far exceeds that of
previous decades, and the academic expectations for all students are increasing in
virtually every state and community. It is clear that caring and competent teachers are
vital to the success of each of these initiatives and equally clear that pre-service and in-
service teacher professional development must change to equip teachers to meet these
challenges. Day (1999) goes on to add that the nature of teaching demands that teachers
engage in continuing career-long professional development, but particular needs and the
ways in which they may be met will vary according to circumstance, personal and
professional histories and current dispositions. Growth involves learning, which is
sometimes natural and evolutionary, sometimes opportunistic and sometimes the result
of planning. Day (1999, p. 2) gives ten precepts of teacher development which are
grounded in the researched realities of teachers and teaching, professional learning and
development and the contexts in which they take place. I have drawn on some of these
precepts because they form the basis of teacher professional development as it is
described in this research.
1. Teachers are the schools’ greatest assets. They stand at the interface of the
transmission of knowledge, skills and values. Support for their well-being and
professional development is, therefore, an integral and essential part of efforts to
raise standards of teaching, learning and achievement.
2. Continuing, career-long professional development is necessary for all teachers in
order to keep pace with change and to review and renew their own knowledge, skills
and visions for good teaching.
38
3. Teachers cannot be developed (passively). They develop (actively). It is vital,
therefore, that they are centrally involved in decisions concerning the direction and
processes of their own learning.
4. Successful school development is dependent upon successful teacher development.
5. Planning and supporting career-long development is the joint responsibility of
teachers, schools and government.
These precepts provide guidelines to teachers who are confident; who believe in
their capabilities; who are life-long learners; who learn naturally as well as plans
professional development activities with other teachers; who take responsibility for their
development along with school administration; and who undertake this complex
profession of teaching with commitment and enthusiasm so that students can also learn
to be life-long learners. The development of this image of a teacher will require
professional development, which is continuous and life-long.
Understood in this way, professional development becomes a serious business.
Lieberman (1996) provides a classified list of practices which encourage development,
which moves teachers beyond simply hearing about new ideas or frameworks for
understanding teacher practice, to being involved in the decisions about the substance,
process, and organizational supports for learning in school, to finding broader support
mechanisms – such as networks or partnerships – that provide opportunities and
innovative norms from groups outside the school. She identifies three settings in which
learning occurs: i) direct teaching (through, for example, conferences, courses,
workshops, consultations); ii) learning in school (through, for example, peer coaching,
critical friends, quality review, appraisal, action research, portfolio assessment, working
on tasks together); iii) learning out of school (through, for example, reform networks,
school-university partnerships, professional development centres, subject networks and
informal groups). A further setting in which much learning might be expected also to
occur is: iv) learning in the classroom (through, for example, student response).
39
The definitions of professional development given here include broader
conception of professional development than acquisition of knowledge and skills. These
definitions reflect the complexity of the teaching process.
Glathorn (1997, p. 3) defines professional development as "the professional
growth that takes place in the educator as a result of continued experience, systematic
study, and other related processes." According to Hargreaves and Fullan (1992, p. 16)
teacher development involves "understanding not only the knowledge and skills that
teachers should acquire but it also involves changing the person the teacher is."
According to Dilworth and Imig (1995) one test of teachers' professional development is
its capacity to equip teachers individually and collectively to act as shapers, promoters,
and well-informed critics of reform. Perhaps one of the most comprehensive definition
of professional development is given by Day (1999, p. 4).
Professional development consists of all natural learning experiences and those conscious and planned activities which are intended to be of direct or indirect benefit to the individual, group or school and which contribute, through these, to the quality of education in the classroom. It is the process by which, alone and with others, teachers review, renew and extend their commitment as change agents to the moral purposes of teaching; and by which they acquire and develop critically the knowledge, skills and emotional intelligence essential to good professional thinking, planning and practice with children, young people and colleagues through each phase of their teaching lives.
From the above definitions it becomes evidently clear that professional
development is a learning process that continues throughout life. If pre-service teacher
training programs equip teachers with skills, knowledge and attitudes necessary to take
up teaching as a profession, in-service teacher training ensures that the acquired skills,
knowledge and attitudes continue to grow and improve with the changing times. In fact,
continued professional development for teachers is increasingly considered a critical
component of improving schools (Fullan, 1993, 2000; Glathorn, 1997).
The discussion in the chapter now turns to one of the two other components of
research framework – teacher professionalism and school reform.
40
2.6 Professionalism and Professional Learning
The target of many professional development programmes is to enhance
teachers’ professional learning and to develop teacher professionalism. But what is
teacher professionalism? The answer to this question is not so obvious.
Beck and Murphy (1996, p 7) define professionalism as, “a complex construct,
one that includes numerous components, such as commitment, satisfaction, and
efficacy.” The notion of professionalism in public service occupations such as teaching
and social work have all stressed the central importance of specialised knowledge and
expertise, and ethical codes and conduct (Eraut, 1994).
Hargreaves and Fullan (1998) propose, that in a complex, post-modern age,
teacher professionalism should mean increased discretionary judgements over the issues
of teaching, curriculum and student care; engagement with major curriculum and
assessment matters along with their moral and social purposes; commitment to solving
the ongoing problems of professional practice through collaboration with colleagues;
sharing power with students and other stakeholders in their education; a commitment to
active care for students; continuous learning related to one’s own expertise; and the
creation and recognition of high task complexity with appropriate levels of reward and
status.
The nature of what teachers do in classrooms and schools has been undergoing
significant change and therefore, any debate about the meaning of teacher
professionalism must take place within the context of changing work practices and
educational policies. Researchers (Broudy, 1988; Eraut, 1994; Farr & Middlebrooks,
1990; Willis & Tosti-Vasay, 1990) have also theorized that professional learning is
influenced by: 1) the context in which the learning occurs; 2) factors that motivate
individual engagement in learning activities; and 3) the use of knowledge in practice
(Scribner, 1998, p. 5). Guskey (1995) emphasizes the same issue by writing that what is
neglected in nearly all of the professional development efforts is the powerful impact of
context. Fullan (1982) and Huberman and Miles (1984) suggest, the uniqueness of the
41
individual setting will always be a crucial factor in education. What works in one
situation may not work in another. Businesses and industries operating in different parts
of the country or in different regions around the world may successfully utilize identical
processes to produce the same quality product. But reforms based upon assumptions of
uniformity in the educational system repeatedly fail (Elmore, 1990). The teaching and
learning process is a complex endeavour that is embedded in contexts that are highly
diverse. This combination of complexity and diversity makes it difficult, if not
impossible, for researchers to come up with universal truths (Guskey, 1995).
It is because teaching and learning is embedded in context (Guskey, 1995) that it
became important to identify the different measures that had been taken at the
government and at the non-government level to reform primary government schools in
Pakistan. The real meaning of teacher professionalism in a Pakistani context could only
emerge in the light of these reforms and new work practices. Other examples cited here
provide evidence to support the view that meaning must be understood in context.
In New Zealand, a research project among primary school teachers revealed that
they regularly worked a 60 hour week (including 6 hours over the weekend) (Day,
1999); and, in England, infant school teachers worked over 50 hours a week on average,
with 1 in 10 working in excess of 60 hours (Day, 1999). In both countries, significant
proportions of time are spent on non-teaching tasks. From this perspective, teachers are
on the way to becoming technicians whose job is to meet pre-specified achievement
targets and whose room to manoeuvre to exercise discretion is increasingly restricted.
Day (1999, p. 11) argues, “macro-oriented analyses such as those above cannot
tell the whole story,” for, by their nature, they do not investigate individual realities of
teachers at school levels. It is unlikely that teachers misrecognise what is happening to
their work. He adds that many teachers, far from being the passive victims of reforms,
are re-asserting their autonomy alongside the new accountabilities which are required of
them. They are actively interpreting the restructuring of their work in accordance with
their own professional judgment in order to maintain their professional or substantive
42
selves. Woods (1994) appears to say the same things when he writes that teaching is
very much part of the teachers’ substantive self. He argues that “teachers have a strong
sense of professionalism. They know how they want to teach and are not going to be
dictated to. They consequently strongly resist the notion that they are being
deprofessionalised” (Woods, 1994, p. 402).
The literature presented in this section highlights different concepts of teacher
professionalism such as, commitment, satisfaction, efficacy (Beck & Murphy, 1996)
specialised knowledge and expertise, and ethical codes and conduct (Eraut, 1994),
discretionary judgement, engagement with curriculum and assessment matters,
collaboration with colleagues, sharing power with students and other stakeholders in
their education, care for students, continuous learning, autonomy and professional
judgement (Hargreaves & Fullan, 1998).
This research recognises that various concepts of teacher professionalism are
important and that teacher professionalism has taken on different meanings over a past
century (Hargreaves, 2000). Real meanings of teacher professionalism for teachers in
government primary schools in Karachi must be understood within the context of
changing work practices and educational policies in Pakistan. The contextual
background literature about the government primary education system in Pakistan, the
consistent themes which occurred regarding the performance of government primary
school teachers in Karachi, and the document analysis of the four reform initiatives
pointed towards the following dimensions of professionalism important for investigation
in this research:
• Teacher Efficacy
• Teacher Practice
• Teacher Collaboration
• Teacher Leadership
While other dimensions could have been singled out for investigation, these four
appear not only to be significant for this research, but they are also sufficiently broad to
43
take in a variety of ideas. The explanation and analysis of the four reform initiatives at
later stage will indicate these reforms’ potential to enhance teacher professionalism. The
discussion now turns to the four dimensions of professionalism.
2.6.1 Teacher Efficacy
As mentioned earlier, professional learning is influenced by the factors that
motivate individual engagement in learning activities (Scribner, 1998). However, the
question is what are the factors that motivate professionals to learn in their field?
According to Bandura (1994), self-beliefs of efficacy play a key role in the self-
regulation of motivation. Research (Smylie, 1988) suggests that teachers are more likely
to adopt and implement new classroom strategies if they have confidence in their own
ability to control their classrooms and affect student learning.
A strong sense of efficacy enhances human accomplishment and personal well-
being in many ways. People with high assurance in their capabilities approach difficult
tasks as challenges to be mastered rather than as threats to be avoided. Such an
efficacious outlook fosters intrinsic interest and deep engrossment in activities. They set
themselves challenging goals and maintain strong commitment to them. They approach
threatening situations with assurance that they can exercise control over them. Such an
efficacious outlook produces personal accomplishments, reduces stress and lowers
vulnerability to depression (Bandura, 1994)
Bandura (1989, p.1175) argues, “Among the mechanisms of personal agency,
none is more central or pervasive than people’s beliefs about their capabilities to
exercise control over events that control their lives.” Beliefs in personal efficacy affect
life choices, level of motivation, quality of functioning, resilience to adversity and
vulnerability to stress and depression (Bandura, 1994). Bandura (1994) adds that
people's beliefs in their efficacy are developed by four main sources of influence. They
include mastery experiences, seeing people similar to oneself manage task demands
successfully, social persuasion that one has the capabilities to succeed in given
44
activities, and inferences from somatic and emotional states indicative of personal
strengths and vulnerabilities.
According to Shacklock (1994), it is the work of people such as Darling-
Hammond (1989), Apple (1988), Ozga and Lawn (1988) and Smyth (1991), who have
focussed positively on what teachers do, and the position of teachers as agents in control
of their own working lives.
Bandura (1995) also stresses that because of the centrality of control in human
lives, many theories about it have been proposed over the years. People’s level of
motivation, affective states, and actions are based on what they believe rather than on
what is objectively the case. Bandura (1995, p. 2) refers to these beliefs in one’s
capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to manage
prospective situations as “perceived self-efficacy.” He explains that perceived self-
efficacy is concerned with people's beliefs in their capabilities to exercise control over
their own functioning and over events that affect their lives. Efficacy beliefs influence
how people think, feel, motivate themselves, and act.
In the broadest sense, “teacher efficacy,” which is sometimes called “teaching
efficacy”, refers to teachers’ beliefs about their ability to positively influence student
performance (Hoy & Woolfolk, 1993; Wheatley, 2002, p. 6). According to Beck and
Murphy (1996) teachers’ sense of efficacy seems to have at least two core components.
The first is the belief that one is capable of doing her or his work effectively. The
second is the notion that one can make a difference in some larger sense; that an
individual’s work and decisions can help to bring about positive change in a system.
Wheatley (2002, p. 5) argues that teacher efficacy – teachers’ beliefs in their
ability to affect student outcomes - is a crucial factor for improving teacher education.
Tschannen-Moran, Woolfolk and Hoy (1998) cite several examples where teacher
efficacy has been linked to the level of professional commitment for both in-service
elementary and middle school teachers and pre-service teachers. Furthermore, Smylie,
45
(1988) suggests that teacher efficacy, specifically Personal Teaching Efficacy (PTE)
may act as a professional filter through which new ideas and innovations must pass
before teachers internalize them and change their behaviour. In addition, Tschannen-
Moran et al. (1998) found that PTE was linked to instructional experimentation,
including willingness to try a variety of materials and approaches, the desire to find
better ways of teaching, and implementation of progressive and innovative methods.
The levels of organization, planning, and fairness a teacher displayed, as well as clarity
and enthusiasm in teaching were also related to PTE.
2.6.2 Teacher Practice
The work of the bureaucratized professional controlled by management is
becoming increasingly organized into discrete, fragmented tasks in much the same way
that is the case for less skilled workers (Shacklock, 1994). In these bureaucratic
organizations, teaching is considered to be relatively simple. Once the teachers have
learned to master it, they need no more help after that point. Schools where teachers
continue to believe teaching is basically easy, where the pre-professional view persists,
are schools that Rosenholtz (1989) has described as ‘learning-impoverished’. They
achieve poorer results in basic skill achievement than their more professionally oriented
counterparts.
Reflecting upon the changing conceptions of teaching and teacher development,
Darling-Hammond (1995, p. 9) writes:
As a society, we are reshaping the mission of education and of teaching, expecting that schools will not only offer education, but ensure learning; that teachers will not only “cover the curriculum,” but create a bridge between the needs and interest of each learner and the attainment of challenging learning goals. We expect all children, rather than only a few, to be prepared to think critically, solve problems, produce and create. This demands that teachers have as deep a knowledge of learners and their learning as they do of subjects and teaching strategies.
According to Darling-Hammond (1995), the invention of 21st century schools
that can educate all children well rests, first and foremost, upon the development of a
46
highly qualified, effective and committed teaching force. The preparation, induction,
and professional development of teachers are the core issues for educational reform. The
centrality of the teacher in the educational process was recently emphasised in a report
that concluded that teachers’ knowledge and skills are the most influential factors in
pupils’ learning (Darling-Hammond, 1998).
This research sought to discover whether the teachers had been developed to
lead children in the 21st century. Teachers must know how to adapt their instruction to
the students' level of knowledge. They must motivate students to learn, group students
for instruction, and assess the students' learning (Slavin, 1991). Cole and Chan (1994)
give examples to stress that effective teachers establish routines and rules for a wide
range of class activities. They add that students are normally resentful of authoritarian
rule-oriented classrooms and were more likely to respond positively to co-operative
systems based on well-organized routines. Therefore, rules and routines should be based
on co-operative endeavours, adapted to student needs and carefully chosen to aid the
process of instruction.
The teacher practice dimension also considers aspects of professional morality
and teachers’ sense of responsibility. The teaching act can be described as a
continuously dynamic, reflective and complex decision-making process, which involves
ethical and moral aspects (Hansen, 1993; Noddings, 1998). Eraut (1995) argues that
being a professional practitioner implies a moral commitment to serve the interest of
students by reflecting on their well-being and progress and deciding how best it can be
fostered or promoted.
In the United States, the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards
(NBTS) has developed National Board Certification (NBC) – a voluntary system of high
and rigorous standards for what accomplished teachers should know and be able to do
(Kelly, 2000). NBC is based on five general propositions about accomplished teaching
(Kelly, 2000, p. 14).
47
The first is that the teachers are committed to students and to their learning. They
recognize differences in their students and adjust their teaching strategies accordingly.
They understand how students develop and learn. The second is that the teachers know
the subject(s) they teach and how to teach those subjects to students. They understand
how knowledge in their subjects is created, organized, and linked to other disciplines.
The third proposition is that the teachers are responsible for managing and monitoring
student learning. Their primary orientation is to facilitate student learning. They call on
multiple methods to meet their goals. According to the fourth proposition teachers think
systematically about their practice and learn from experience. Teachers analyse the
results of their decisions, reflect on their findings, and use these insights to inform future
instruction. According to the Fifth proposition the teachers contribute to school
effectiveness by collaborating with other professionals. They involve parents in
educating students and they utilize resources that exist within their school communities.
2.6.3 Teacher Collaboration
In schools where teachers continue to believe teaching is basically easy,
professional learning for new teachers is largely seen as apprenticing oneself as a novice
to someone who was skilled and experienced in the craft (Hargreaves, 1997a). The
unquestioned grammar of teaching is passed on from experienced teachers to novice
ones. And once they have served their brief apprenticeship, experienced teachers see no
more of their colleagues in the classroom, receive no feedback on their practice, and
change and improve mainly by trial and error, in their own isolated classes (Hargreaves,
1997a).
Hargreaves (1997a) says that under such a situation even improvement in teacher
education programs and courses will not make much of a difference because the grip of
traditional teaching will be so tenacious that even the teachers, who appear to espouse
new philosophies of teaching and learning during their teaching education programs,
will revert to transmission and recitation patterns when they take up their first position.
For educational reforms to succeed there is a need to build strong professional cultures
of collaboration.
48
In an age of increasing uncertainty, teaching methods are proliferating far
beyond simple distinctions between traditional and child-centred methods.
Administrative mandates to teach in particular ways are being imposed and overturned
at an ever increasing rate. In a world of accelerating educational reform, joint work with
colleagues helps teachers to pool resources and to develop collective responses towards
intensified demands on their practice. Collegial professionalism helps teachers to cope
with uncertainty and complexity, respond effectively to rapid change, create a climate
which values risk taking and continuous improvement, develop a stronger sense of
teacher efficacy, and create ongoing professional learning cultures for teachers
(Hargreaves, 1997a).
The task of education is to teach, at one and the same time, the diversity of the
human race and an awareness of the similarities between, and the interdependence of, all
humans. When people work together on rewarding projects that take them out of their
usual routine, differences and even conflicts between individuals tend to fade into the
background and sometimes disappear. People derive a new identity from such projects,
so that it is possible to go beyond individual routines and highlight what people have in
common rather than the differences between them (International Commission on
Education for the Twenty-First Century, 1996).
Much research suggests that collaboration is an essential ingredient of teacher
development and thus school improvement (Hopkins, 1996; Mortimore, Sammons,
Stoll, Lewis, & Ecob, 1994; Purky & Smith, 1982; Reynolds, 1988; Rosenholtz, 1989).
In England, a seminal study of primary schools demonstrated the virtues of
‘collaborative cultures’ in terms of staff relationships, curriculum planning, and teaching
and learning climate. In such cultures, collaboration may not extend to classrooms and
so may not pose a threat to teachers’ independence. In collaborative cultures, working
relationships are likely to be: spontaneous, voluntary, development oriented, in which
teachers exercise discretion often initiating tasks or responding selectively to external
demands (Day, 1999).
49
However, Fullan (1997) says, that in moving towards greater collaboration we
should not lose sight of the good side of individualism. Pushed to extremes
collaboration becomes group think – uncritical conformity to the group, unthinking
acceptance of the latest solution, and suppression of individual dissent. The capacity to
think and work independently is essential to educational reform. He adds that the
freshest ideas often come from diversity and those marginal to the group. Keeping in
touch with our inner voice, personal reflection and the capacity to be alone are essential
under conditions of constant change forces. This brings me to another very important
dimension of professionalism – teacher autonomy and teacher leadership.
2.6.4 Teacher Leadership
Leadership within a school is crucial to its success in improving student
achievement (Moller et al., 2000). The question is where does this leadership lie?
Advocates of professional learning communities suggest that teacher leadership
surfaces as an important element in addressing school improvement. In such
communities teachers assume both formal and informal roles while maintaining direct
contact with the classroom. They are problem solvers, staff developers, and powerful
influences in their work with colleagues (Moller et al., 2000). Teachers who are leaders
lead within and beyond the classroom, influence others toward improved educational
practice, and identify with and contribute to a community of leaders (Katzenmeyer &
Moller, 1996). These teachers influence their colleagues toward improved practice by
being perceived as competent, credible, and approachable (Leithwood, 1994; Moller et
al., 2000).
Discussing the roles for teacher leaders, Katzenmeyer & Moller (1996), write
that in the classroom, leadership roles teachers assume with students include those of
facilitator, coach, provider of feedback, and counsellor. Beyond the classroom, teacher
leaders may serve as mentors, peer coaches, staff development trainers, curriculum
specialists, coordinators and willing listeners.
50
Cooper and Conley (1991, p. 7) assert that teacher professionalism greatly
depends on such factors as level of discretion, control over work, ability to mobilize
resources, and inclusion in school decisions. The effectiveness with which teacher
leaders perform their leadership roles also depends on these factors. If teachers are
controlled as “factory workers” in schools, then it matters little what kind of preparation
they have, what kind of preparation is available to them, or what credentials they hold.
Analogously, if physicians were placed in large public bureaucracies and stripped of the
authority to make decisions, the argument that “doctors are professionals” would mean
little.
According to Apple (1992) when individuals cease to plan and control a large
portion of their own work, the skills essential to these tasks self reflectively and well,
are forgotten. Some argue that increased bureaucratic control and intensification over
the last 20 years have reduced individual teachers’ areas of discretion in decision-
making, have led to ‘chronic and persisting’ overload and have effectively resulted in
deskilling.
Whether the school reforms in Pakistani primary government schools had been
able to build professional learning communities to build the professional capacity of the
teachers was what I was aiming to discover with help of this research. It was interesting
to discover whether the government primary schools where reforms had taken place had
contributed towards developing teacher efficacy, teacher practice, teacher collegiality,
teacher leadership, or not. In order to fully understand the impact of the different reform
initiatives on teacher professionalism, it was important to describe the different
government primary school reform initiatives in Karachi. I now turn my attention to the
review of the literature about school reform in general and school reform in Karachi in
particular.
2.7 School Reforms
The “rising tide of mediocrity” which made United States “a nation at risk” in
1983 (Cooper & Conley, 1991, p. 4) tarred and feathered teachers for their poor
51
knowledge and preparation, low motivation, and lacklustre performance. The “tide of
mediocrity” was thus met by the new tide of centralization, accountability, and
externally imposed standards. Bureaucratic accountability made teachers appear less
like professionals and more like victims. If teachers had ever dreamed of taking control
of their lives, work, and profession, it seemed to dim with the early reform movement.
Taking a dramatic 180-degree turn in the middle eighties, educational policy
makers, legislators, and administrators called for teachers as full partners in the
education enterprise. The nation suddenly wanted, earnestly, for teachers to be partners
in educational improvement. Teacher participation, professional autonomy, and
empowerment became watchwords of the new phase of school reform. A consistent
theme running through these second-wave reforms was that reform should be
decentralized. Rather than being prescribed by higher-level state and federal policy
makers or administrators, reforms initiated at the local school level would be tailored to
the specific needs and problems districts and schools (Cooper & Conley, 1991).
Some advocates of school-site reform went a step further and argued that reform
should not only originate at the school level but that the school itself should operate as a
decentralized system (Cooper & Conley, 1991). In a decentralized school, decision-
making control would be placed as close to the client and the core activity as possible
(i.e., the teachers, students, and parents). A centralized school, by contrast, would place
primary decision-making control at higher administrative levels (i.e., with the principal).
However, there are two important points to be noted in this regard. First, it is not yet
clear whether school-based control will mean school wide participation. It is not
difficult to envision a centralized school in a decentralized district being run by one
person – the principal. Second, it is important to note that while “second-wave” reform
reports are calling for participation and decentralization, in many states the centralized
prescriptions of the first wave are still being implemented (Cooper & Conley, 1991).
The review about the different wave of school reform appears to imply that how
one approaches to change a school or an educational system depends, fundamentally, on
52
one’s view about what kinds of places schools really are or should be. Sergiovanni
(1998) describes three dominant perspectives on schooling and the change strategies that
spring from them – schools as bureaucratic organizations, schools as market systems,
and schools as communities.
According to Sergiovanni (1998), bureaucratic and personal change forces are
commonly chosen by those who view schools as bureaucratic or organic formal
organizations. Bureaucratic forces rely on rules, mandates and requirements that provide
direct supervision, standardized work processes, and standardized outcomes to prescribe
changes. Personal forces rely on the personality, leadership styles and interpersonal
skills of change agents to motivate people to change. Market forces, by contrast, are not
organizationally oriented. Instead they rely on competition, incentives and individual
choice to motivate change.
Reformers who view schools as communities advocate the use of professional,
cultural and democratic forces to leverage change. Professional forces rely on standards
of expertise, codes of conduct, collegiality, felt obligations and other professional norms
to build professional community. Cultural forces rely on cultivating shared values, goals
and ideas about pedagogy, relationships, and politics that provide norms of obligations
and commitments to build covenantal community. Democratic forces rely on the
development of social contracts and shared commitments to the common good to build
democratic community. While bureaucratic personal and market forces strive to
motivate or otherwise induce change directly, professional, cultural and democratic
forces seek to provide the conditions that result in the emergence of standards and
norms that compel change. This discussion brings us to yet another important question
of discovering the key factors, which could bring about deep changes in schools.
2.8 Key Mediating Variables of School Reforms
Sergiovanni (1998) argues that the deciding factor in determining whether
change strategies based on a particular force are likely to be successful in bringing about
deep changes in schools is its ability to influence key mediating variables in the change
53
equation. These variables include the extent to which teachers are connected to shared
norms that support changes; the extent to which teachers understand differently the
subjects they teach; the extent to which teachers have an expanded understanding of
how students learn; and the extent to which teachers have the necessary skills to teach
differently. If these key mediating variables are influenced positively by the change
forces used, then enduring changes in relationships, teaching practice and student
learning are likely to occur. Patterns of influence among forces, mediating variables and
change results are summarized in Figure 2.2 by Sergiovanni (1998).
Figure 2.2 Relationships between Forces, Mediating Variables and Change
Sergiovanni (1998) explains his figure by writing that bureaucratic, personal and
market forces generally result in changes in school structure. But because these three
forces are only loosely connected to the mediating variables, they are less likely to result
in deep changes in schools. Professional, cultural and democratic change forces on the
other hand may or may not result in changes in structure. But because these forces are
tightly connected to the mediating variables, they are more likely to be powerful enough
to result in deep changes in relationships, teaching practices and student learning.
Sergiovanni (1998) goes on to add that prime among the key mediating variables
is the capacity of shared norms to influence change. Deep changes require that new
pedagogical, relational and political norms be cultivated. Cultivating new beliefs points
to the importance of strategies for change that invest heavily in teacher development.
New norms, for example, must not only be learned and believed in, but be embodied in
54
teaching practice as well. Embodiment in practice, in turn, presumes that teachers learn
the new understandings and skills to practice differently. It is this amalgamation of
understanding, believing, and practicing change that also formed the basis of the initial
framework of this research (see section 2.4), which stressed upon cultivating new
teaching beliefs by developing teachers’ capabilities and providing teachers with
opportunities to embody new beliefs in teaching practice.
Day (1999) emphasizes the same point from a different angle. He writes that
much of the literature on effective schools and school improvement, asserts that
institutional and individual personal professional development needs should be
synchronized or reconciled. Difficulties of imposed systemic structural reforms, which
fail to account for the individual and collective cultures into which they are planted,
have been widely documented (Fullan, 1982; Fullan & Hargreaves, 1992a; Fullan,
1993). The same applies to attempts to generate change internally. Unwillingness or
inability to change may have its source in the personal or professional life and values of
the teachers, lack of self-confidence, or the cultural contexts of their work.
Most individuals and organizations are dynamically conservative (Schon, 1971)
and unless they perceive that change is relevant (to the needs of the students), unless
they themselves are ready to engage in change, and unless they are assured of support
not only for the change implementation but also for the time and energy which will be
needed for its refinement and redefinition in local classrooms and school contexts, they
will be unlikely to give it more than the minimum attention required by those who insist
upon it (Day, 1999). Teachers are willing to engage in change according to whether they
perceive a need, diagnose a problem, and conceive of a response to the problem that is
both within their intellectual and emotional capacity, and appropriate to their personal,
educative and ideological perspectives and the contexts in which they work, and have
access to support (Day, 1999). This brings us to Sergiovanni’s (1998) point that a key-
mediating variable in the school reform process is the teachers’ capacity of shared norm
to influence change.
55
With this background information, the discussion in this chapter turns to the
government primary school reform initiatives in Karachi, Pakistan.
2.9 Government Primary School Reform Initiatives in Karachi, Pakistan
In the past ten years there have been a number of measures to reform
government primary schools in Pakistan. For the purposes of this research four reform
initiatives, which have taken place in Karachi, Pakistan, have been selected. The reasons
for the selection of these reforms have been noted in the section which gives rationale
for doing this research (see section 1.4). The following discusses the four reform
initiatives and the organizations, which are responsible for bringing them about.
2.9.1 Primary Education Program (PEP)
PEP is initiated and organized by the Teachers’ Resource Centre (TRC), which
is a non-profit, non-government organization. PEP was initiated in July 1997 in four
government primary schools in Karachi and was completed in 2002. TRC was
established in 1986 as a response to the declining quality of education in schools. TRC’s
primary aim is to improve the quality of children’s learning through teacher education
and development programs. Among its primary objectives is to provide a forum for the
professional development of teachers and to enhance their professional and social status
(Teachers’ Resource Centre, 1999).
Whole school development is the focus of PEP. It aims to involve decision
makers, heads, teachers, parents and the community in improving and sustaining quality
primary education. The PEP focuses on government schools in selected urban settings.
While teacher training and classroom support are important components of PEP, the
program also works with school principals and parents.
According to the 13th Annual Report (Teachers’ Resource Centre, 1999), 19
teachers out of the 24 teachers supported through PEP have moved forward along the
continuum of change. They plan and implement activity-based lessons, have grown in
confidence, question and offer alternatives to TRC staff during workshops. Above all,
56
they have a changed, more positive attitude towards children in their care. Furthermore,
teachers now see themselves as beneficiaries where earlier they had perceived their
training as a burden.
During a workshop, teachers together planned a scheme of studies for each class
for the entire year. Class timetables incorporate library periods and time for informal
chats with the students. A support mechanism has been established in the schools. Class
coordinator now take responsibility for their own grade levels, ensuring that lessons are
planned weekly and diaries maintained.
Records are maintained of formal parent teacher meetings and of informal
interactions when parents drop in to discuss their child’s progress. The decisions are
noted and signed by both parent and teacher. Parents of children who needed support
were called in to meet with teachers after the mid-term exams in December.
According to the 15th Annual Report (Teachers’ Resource Centre, 2001), the
two schools, where PEP has reached its completion, have brought about improvements
as measured by the previously agreed upon performance indicators. The schools
continue to follow a system of regular review and of making plans for further school
improvement. Figure 2.3 describes the main activities under PEP.
57
Figure 2.3 Primary Education Program
Brief Analysis
The whole school development program is clearly targeted towards the
development of the teachers and the principals. It appears to have addressed some
aspects of the four dimensions of professionalism noted in the theoretical framework.
Workshops and Classroom Support TRC arranged for the teachers some workshops addressing the elements of school improvement. For example, a language development workshop, a Maths workshop which looked at Math in everyday lives. An English language workshop was planned at the insistence of the teachers who wanted to improve their language competency. TRC staff visits the school daily for regular follow-up and classroom support. Teachers are given feedback on their classroom activities; short demonstrations of child-centred activities are conducted for individual teachers during class. A system of feedback has been developed and implemented where the teachers first evaluate their own performance and assess the strengths and weaknesses of their lesson. Its aim is to develop the habit of reflection on the part of the teachers. School development meetings are held twice a month to discuss administrative issues, to resolve problems, and to discuss new management features.
Monitoring and Evaluation (M & E) In order to share the findings with government policy makers, NGOs and development agencies, TRC does a thorough documentation of project related activities each month. An analysis of the documentation, examining what worked and what did not, gives TRC a better understanding of whole school development, thereby enabling it to influence educational policies and practices more effectively. The monitoring of school performance against baseline survey indicators is done thrice a year: in April when the academic session begins, then in October and again in February before the final exam.
Low-Cost Math and Science Games Thirty games, 15 for Math and 15 for Science for Classes 1–3 were developed based on government school textbooks. Designed to clarify basic Math and Science concepts, the games also develop analytical and language skills.
Manual for School Principals A manual for the school principals is under preparation. The manual will offer suggestions for the principals’ roles and responsibilities, and provide tips for dealing with management issues that come up in the course of running a government school.
WHOLE SCHOOL
DEVELOP -MENT
58
The above review reveals that there is clear improvement in the teachers’ classroom
practice and that they have also grown in confidence. The teachers appear to be planning
lessons together and taking on leadership roles like the class coordinator. However, it is
hard to fathom from the document review to what extent teacher leadership is promoted
and in which other areas the teachers work in collaboration.
2.9.2 The Government School Project
Government School Project is initiated by the Book Group, which is a non-
government curriculum development agency. In April 1995, the Government of Sindh
issued a notification to transfer the management of a government girls’ school in
Karachi to the Book Group. Since September 1995, the Book Group has been working
to improve the quality of education in the school by introducing interesting and relevant
curriculum and trying to demonstrate through close monitoring and accountability that
good quality education can be imparted in the government schools with the existing
teaching staff and without any major financial input (The Book Group, 1996).
The administrative and academic reforms carried out by the Book Group are
being published in the Quarterly Progress Reports 1996 - 2000. According to the 45th
Quarterly Progress Report (The Book Group, 2001), a teacher has been appointed to
teach Art at the school. Display boards were put up in all the classes and in the corridor
where children’s work has been put on display. The teachers have been asked to
maintain a separate file for each student so that her progress can be monitored and
evaluated by both the teachers and the parents. The Book Group provided the files-
covers. The concepts of teaching through audio-visual aids, lesson planning, meeting
project deadlines were also introduced among the teachers.
The information contained in the Quarterly Progress Report 1996-2000 is
summarised in Tables 2.4 and 2.5 under headings of administrative and academic
reforms.
59
Table 2.2 Book Group’s Administrative Reform Initiatives
A D
Meetings: Regular meetings are being held with the teachers and administration of the school to discuss both teaching and administrative issues. Teachers of both morning and afternoon shifts meet on every Saturday to discuss teaching methodology, lesson planning and integrated curriculum. Meetings were held with the officials of the education department to resolve issues of corporal punishments to students, termite infested unused furniture, half-day leave of teachers and appointment of Head Coordinator. Parent Teachers Association (PTA) meeting was also organized. Parents were presented with academic progress report and briefed about financial matters.
M I N I
Subjects to be taught: A new school timetable has been prepared and is being implemented in the school. It reduces the number of subjects from 8 to 3 and introduces Art and Music as separate subjects.
S T R A
Admissions: In 1996, the Book Group has limited the admissions to 40 students in class I. Before that the average strength of the class was 80 students. This means that by now in 2001, classes from I – V should not have more than 40 students.
T I V E
Expansion and Coordination: On the request of the headmistress of the afternoon shift of the same school, the program was expanded to the afternoon shift from September 15, 1996. With this expansion, the Book Group appointed one administrative coordinator and one academic coordinator. As a result the work at the school picked up pace. In 1999, Book Group appointed a new head of school.
A C T I V I T
Evaluation: An assessment program for the students of classes I, II and III was designed to evaluate the impact of changes brought about by the Book Group in the Government School. The results of the assessment were satisfactory. The students showed signs of improvement. Their confidence and interest in learning could be seen from the work they had produced. Essay and Art competitions were held for classes I – V and the successful students were awarded prizes.
I E S
Rewards: In 1999, certificates and cash prizes of Rs. 1,000 each were awarded to teachers for best effort under these categories: quality performance in teaching award and best effort in teaching award. In the same year, some students of the morning and the afternoon shifts were rewarded with gifts for their good performance, punctuality, cleanliness etc
Grants: Book Group books worth Rs. 63, 970 were supplied to the school (both morning and afternoon shifts) free of cost.
Maintenance: Repair and rectification of electrical wiring and general cleaning was carried out.
60
Table 2.3 Book Group’s Academic Reform Initiatives Textbooks and Teachers’ Guides: The Book Group’s Urdu books along with the
teacher’s guides are being used from classes I to V. (These books have been given to the students free of cost). Teacher’s guides for Sindh Textbook Board’s Urdu books for classes I-IV have also been provided to the teachers who are using them.
A
School Libraries: The Directorate Education and the Headmistress of the Secondary Section have given the Book Group full access to the school library. It is in the process of being converted into a well-equipped and regularly used library. By June 1998, the total number of books in the library was 500. A small library, with 250 books, was initiated in the Staff Room. The library started lending books to children of both shifts from December 1998. By March 1999, the total number of books in the library was 600.
C A D E M I C A
Teacher Training: It was discovered that the children studying in class I could neither write nor recognize the Urdu Alphabets. A crash course of three weeks on the teaching of Urdu alphabet and sound recognition was held at the end of the quarter in 1996. In 1997, it was decided that four teachers of the government schools would attend full day training sessions in different training centres, where they will be exposed to child-centred, hands-on teaching methods and the implementation of the integrated curriculum. Well-known education consultants visited the school and conducted workshops on effective teaching methods in 2000.
C T I V I T I E
Curriculum: In order to implement the integrated curriculum in the government girls’ primary school (both in morning and afternoon shift), it was decided in 1997 that the curriculum be translated into Urdu, with modifications in the content, to meet the requirements of the school. In 1998, a survey of existing Maths books was carried out to develop a curriculum for Mathematics for class I. In 1999, a rough draft of the objectives for Math curriculum was prepared. Learning and teaching aids for Math and Art were acquired for use in the following academic session.
S
Co-Curricular Activities: In 1998, a Students’ Council was formed to encourage students of the primary section to take part in the extra curricular activities. Students were encouraged to discuss and give ideas on school development. Neem Trees were planted at the school premises to create environmental awareness and love for trees amongst the children. In April 1999, students of classes IV and V were taken on field trip to the PIA Planetarium where they experienced the solar system simulation. A team from Telebiz, a private television production company, visited the Government School in Sept. 1999. They interviewed the Headmistress of the morning shift and made a video of the development work carried out by the Book Group. In the same year, a total of 400 students (classes I – V, both shifts) and the entire teaching staff of the school were taken to the Maritime Museum, Karachi.
Brief Analysis
This reform initiative is clearly targeted towards restructuring the school by
initiating administrative and curriculum reforms in the school. The academic reform
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initiatives include provision for teacher training, curriculum development and co-
curricular activities, teachers’ guidebooks, and the administrative reforms include
strategies such as teacher rewards, meetings with teachers, close monitoring and
accountability and appointment of academic coordinator. These initiatives appear to
have the potential of developing teacher professionalism. The document reveals that
initiatives have been taken to enhance teachers’ capabilities with the help of training and
guidebooks, implement accountability system, introducing curriculum innovations and
reward teachers for quality performance in teaching. Teachers were also being provided
with opportunities to collaborate and discuss teaching methodology, lesson planning and
integrated curriculum.
2.9.3 The Adopt A School Program
In Pakistan, Managing Director of Sindh Education Foundation (SEF)
introduced the concept of adopting a school, when in 1990 she was doing a situation
analysis of basic education in Sindh for UNICEF (Mohammad, 2001). Adopt a School
Program proposed the formation of a group comprising the Department of Education,
SEF and the adopter to facilitate adoption of government schools by the private sector in
a phased manner. The programme was officially launched in 1997 for improving the
quality of education being imparted in government schools; for systematic and
replicable collaboration between the private and public sector; and for mobilizing
parents / communities in order to sustain the program even after the withdrawal of SEF
and the adopter (Sindh Education Foundation, 1998).
To achieve the above objectives the SEF took on the task of mobilizing the
school staff, parents and community and the adopters began implementing changes
within the school with the assistance of newly mobilized communities, parents, parent
teacher associations and school staff. School development plans were chalked out and
the stakeholders began implementation. However, at the outset, it was decided that as
part of the school development plan, the school principal and teacher training must be
incorporated. Furthermore, this training would be needs based as per the requirement of
individual school (Sindh Education Foundation, 1998). Drawn from these needs would
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emerge a module for the training of the teacher and head teachers’ classroom,
pedagogical, and management skills. SEF gave a three-day training to the teachers and
the head teachers of one of the government primary schools as a pilot project with a
view to improving the quality of education in the school.
At present, there are 120 schools (68 in Karachi and 52 in the interior Sindh) that
have been adopted by NGOs, the Pakistan Navy, national and international agencies,
retired educationalists and concerned individuals. These schools cater to more than
12,000 students studying in primary, middle and secondary classes, with nearly 900
teachers imparting education to them (Mohammad, 2001). The adopters are required to
play an important role in areas including physical infrastructure, furniture and
equipment, teachers’ training, material for children and teachers, various co-curricular
activities, and the recruitment of teachers and support staff. Due to the success of the
programme it is being replicated countrywide.
Brief Analysis
Improvement in the quality of education imparted in the primary government
schools is one of the main objectives of this program. In aiming to achieve this
objective, SEF worked towards building collaboration between public and private
sectors and provide training to the teachers and the head teachers. One can gather from
the above review that there have been efforts to promote teacher collaboration by
recruiting teachers and support staff to work with the government teachers, and to
enhance teacher practice by arranging teacher training in the adopted schools.
2.9.4 Sindh Primary Education Development Programme (SPEDP)
SPEDP was initiated by the Department of Education, Government of Sindh in
1991. It took eight years to be completed. The World Bank, the Department for
International Development (DFID), UK and Norwegian Aid Agency (NORAID),
supported this program. The main goals of SPEDP was to improve access to primary
education, especially for girls, with equity and quality through construction and
rehabilitation of schools; strengthening management capacity; teacher, head teacher and
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supervisors training; setting up of School Development Centers (SDCs); Incentives to
parents and pupils; and community participation (Bureau of Curriculum and Extension
Wing, 1997).
School Development Component
According to the Bureau of Curriculum and Extension Wing (1997, p. 1), the
purpose of the School Development Component was to improve the quality of teaching
in Sindh’s primary schools. The strategy of the component, which had evolved from a
pilot program conducted from 1992 to 1996, was an integrated mix of teacher, head
teacher, and supervisory training involving a considerable degree of follow up work
with trainees. The strategy involved the establishment of a sustainable system of school
development in the project districts. The Bureau of Curriculum and Extension wing
(1997, p. 2) reports that there were five sub-components or “outputs” the school
development component. These were:
Output 1: Establishment and Effective Functioning of School Development
Centres
It was proposed in the Bureau’s (1997) report that the School Development
Centres would be established in every sub-division. They would be in working primary
schools which would be Target Schools for developmental priority and would act as
exemplars for other schools. A School Development Coordinator, who would be the
supervisor responsible for coordinating development in a subdivision, would manage
each School Development Centre.
Output 2: Effective Establishment and Functioning of a System of Developing
Teachers’ Support Materials
This output aimed to establish a desk top publishing unit in the Bureau which
could generate teacher support material with the involvement of field-based teams of
authors drawn from teachers and supervisors. When materials were available they
would be piloted through the training program and after appropriate revision would be
distributed to all teachers who were trained on the program.
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Output 3: Improvement in Knowledge and Skills of Teachers
It was proposed that all teachers in the project districts would receive the four
weeks training course which was evaluated and reviewed during the pilot program. The
teachers would be trained by Master Trainers who would be selected from supervisors,
learning coordinators, head teachers and other experienced teachers. Needs based
training courses and workshops would be developed and run in the School Development
Centres by supervisors and learning coordinators. In Karachi, teacher training was
imparted to all the teachers in the then District South. According to Sindh Education
Management Information System (1996), the total number of government primary
school teachers in District South was 3,354.
Output 4: Improvement in School Management
It was proposed that all school principals would receive a five days long school
management course. Its content would include community participation and staff
development and it would focus on the concept of “school development plan” generated
collaboratively.
Output 5: Effective Application of Instructional Supervision Techniques
One of the more successful features of the pilot program was the change in
professional attitudes of supervisory staff. The program evaluation showed an
improvement in their relationships with teachers and a growing understanding of their
role as support and advisor in staff and school development.
Brief Analysis
It is evident from the above review that SPEDP was a huge project. Its main
target appears to be the development of teachers’ skills and knowledge for improved
classroom teaching. Whether it does so by inviting teachers to work together or by
involving teachers in decision making is yet to be discovered. The five “outputs”
indicate that steps have been taken to improve teacher professionalism. The document
analysis reveals that initiatives have been taken to improve teachers’ knowledge and
skills, develop teacher support material, develop schools as development centres,
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improve school management structure, develop of Master Trainers, improve
relationships between the supervisory staff and the teachers, and encourage school satff
to together generated school development plans.
2.10 Overall Analysis
The documents of the four reform initiatives give a good description of the
different strategies that have been taken in order to reform government primary schools
in Karachi. The different ways in which the reformers planned to improve the schools
and the different steps that have been taken to bring about these improvements are
clearly documented. However, not all documents reveal the results of their programmes.
Since most of the reforms are still in progress, it is quite possible that the results have
not been documented or that they are not ready for public reading. Therefore, a
complete analysis of the above mentioned reforms would only be possible after the
interviews with the teachers of the target schools and the managers of the organizations,
which have brought about these reforms. At this stage, this document only seeks to
discuss the nature of school reform and draws some abstractions about the reforms
based on the above review of the documents.
The review of documents indicates that the reform initiatives stem from the
mandated policy directives. Analysis of the education policies (see section 2.3.1)
indicates that all the policies attached the high priority to the elimination of illiteracy
and universalization of primary education. In crease in access of elementary education,
community participation, and improving the quality of education have been stressed in
all the policy documents.
The above mentioned reform initiatives clearly show that they have targeted
increasing access to primary education by restructuring schools and also by improving
the quality of education in the government schools in Karachi, Pakistan. All of these
reforms have been initiated by government, semi-government, non-government
organizations and private organizations and they do aim at maximizing the role of the
community, particularly that of the parents.
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The present Education Policy does place emphasis on improving the quality of
primary education in Pakistan. It does not define the term “quality education.” However,
article 7.1.1 of the National Education Policy 1998–2010 (The Ministry of Education, p.
61) goes on to add that the quality of education is directly related to the quality of
instruction in the classroom. In accordance with this article, the policy proposes the
development of professional competencies through updating teacher knowledge and
skills. It was interesting to discover the different ways in which the school reforms had
contributed towards the development of professional competencies and how the term
professional competencies include dimensions such as teacher efficacy, teacher
leadership, teacher collegiality and the attitudes and the skills which, as the Commission
on National Education pointed out in 1959, are consistent with the needs of a people
who controlled their own destiny.
Understanding the relationships between policy directives and reform initiatives
helped in the analysis of each of the above mentioned school reforms. I would like to
begin my analysis with the different stages, dimensions and forms of school reform.
Larson (1992) gives three levels of school change. These are portrayed in Figure 2.4
2.11 Levels of Change
According to Larson (1992), three levels of change are common in
organizations: system, subsystem, and individual.
Figure 2.4 Levels of Change
SYSTEM-WIDE (DISTRICT OR
ORGANIZATION)
SUB-SYSTEM
(PROGRAMS OR DEPARTMENTS
INDIVIDUALS
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In education, the system might consist of the district or the school; the subsystem
might be the school, the department, or program; and the individual, the teacher.
Analysis of the school reform documents reveals that four reform initiatives included in
this research stand at the system, sub-system level and also at individual level of school
change. PEP is a good example of sub-system and individual levels because it is based
on the whole school development plan. SPEDP, and Adopt a School Program, on the
other hand, can be easily termed as system-wide reform because their focus has been to
bring about change across districts and schools (Larson, 1992). Book Group project,
with its main objective of bringing about change in one school, stands at the sub-system
level or individual level.
Even though, the organizations might have initiated their reforms at different
levels, it would be wrong to assume that each of these levels is completely detached. At
all levels, a number of variables exist and they interact in numerous and often
confounding ways (Larson, 1992). Therefore, it can be inferred that the successful
completion of the reform initiatives in Karachi will depend on how well the individual
level is integrated with the system and sub-system level. Huberman and Miles (1984) in
their detailed field research about the adoption or development of National Diffusion
Network in twelve schools found that administrators lived in different institutional
worlds from teachers, tending at first to see the innovation as relatively simple and
straightforward to use and having the potential to result in considerable organizational
improvement.
Teachers, on the other hand, saw the innovation as complex, inherently
ambiguous, and difficult to use. They were sceptical about the potential for real change.
In general, eventual successful implementation hinged heavily on administrator
recognition of teacher views of the innovation, understanding of the processes
associated with their use, and administrative assistance to overcome or minimize
impediments. Hence, it can be argued that whatever level the school reform initiative, it
will require the integration of the system level with the individual (teacher) level.
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Poster (1999) differentiates three types of efforts to improve schools: pseudo-
reform, incremental reform and restructuring. The reform documents seem to imply that
the school reform initiatives in Karachi fall under the category of incremental reform
because their main aim is to improve educational practice (Poster, 1999). However,
these reforms are not easy to implement. Apart from any difficulties entailed in gaining
approval for such a reform, funding it, planning it in detail, training staff to implement
it, there remains one overriding issue that schools are notoriously difficult to change
because everything in school is connected to everything else (Poster, 1999).
In recent years there has been a move to restructure schools in order to facilitate
incremental reform or to improve educational practice within schools. Poster (1999, p.
35) defines restructuring as the changes in roles, rules, and relationships between and
among students and teachers, teachers and administrators, and administrators at various
levels from the school building to the district office to the state level, all with the aim of
improving student outcomes.
Murphy (1991) defines restructuring as the process which encompasses systemic
change in one or more of the following: work rules and organizational milieu;
organizational and governance structures, including connections [between] the school
and its larger environment; and core technology. Restructuring also involves
fundamental alterations in the relationships among the players involved in the education
process. Murphy (1991) adds that school-based management, choice, teacher
empowerment, and teaching for understanding represent the four most prevalent
strategies employed in restructuring schools. Teachers as leaders, parents as partners,
are the new metaphors of restructuring.
Conley’s (1993, p. 106) view on restructuring is more holistic than Murphy’s
(1991). He identifies three component variables which, according to him, are central to
the success in school change. These are central variables (learner outcomes, curriculum,
instruction and assessment/ evaluation); enabling variables (learning environment,
technology, school/community relationships and time); and supporting variables
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(Governance, teacher leadership, personnel and working relationships). Conley (1993)
argues that if it is possible to bring about change in central variables, then it will be
possible to say that education is really experiencing fundamental change. However, in
order to bring about change in central variables educators will need enabling and
supporting variables.
When I closely examine these definitions and underlying assumptions about
school restructuring, I feel as if I am analysing the documents about the primary
government school reform in Karachi. It is too early to say if the primary government
school improvement strategies ideally fit the underlying assumptions of school reform
and restructuring, but they certainly depict characteristics underpinning school reform.
In Adopt a School Program, for instance, the adopters try to improve schools by
bringing about changes in roles, rules and relationships between and among teachers and
administrators at different levels. They also bring about changes in school structure and
conditions of work. The Book Group’s government school project is an excellent
example of completely overhauling school organization and governance structure.
It will be correct to assume that these government primary school reforms in
Karachi do include systemic changes in either one or more of the levels given by
Murphy (1991). Teachers’ Resource Centre’s Primary Education Program, on the other
hand, is more focused towards bringing about changes in learner outcomes, curriculum,
instruction and assessment/evaluation. Therefore, it would be correct to say that TRC is
trying to improve schools by bringing about changes in what Conley (1993) describes as
a central variable. In order to change schools in this manner it makes use of enabling
variables such as teacher workshops and learning environment.
The document analysis presents a hopeful picture of the government primary
school reform in Karachi and it could easily be gathered that some concrete work had
begun in the direction of school improvement. However, at this stage I would like to
turn back to my research question and address the question of whether these reform
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initiatives had any impact on teacher professionalism. Without a professional teaching
force, the successful completion of the reforms became increasingly difficult. I would
like to argue this point further in my conclusion, but I must turn my attention to the
research design which helped me answer my research question and achieve the aim of
this research.
2.12 Synthesis
All schools need to change, but particularly so in Pakistan. This literature review
provides argument in support of this view. However, the literature review quotes work
of different educators to show that many of the initiatives in the past to reform schools
have not been very successful. Reasons for limited success in reform initiatives have
also been indicated. It was important to highlight these issues to build the argument that
successful school reform depends on building teacher capacity to sustain these reforms.
The initial framework of this research as shown in Figure 2.1 (see section 2.4)
rests on the above argument. This initial framework is particularly important for
developing a research design to do research in Karachi, Pakistan where primary school
reform movement is fairly new and in progress. For organizations in Karachi to be
successful in their initiatives to reform primary schools, they will have to build teacher
capacity and provide teachers with opportunities to exploit their capabilities. These
organizations need such professional development programmes, which have the
capacity to enhance teacher professionalism.
It is important to understand that the initial framework presented in this chapter
was an emerging one and one that drew from a number of areas. This framework was
further elaborated as the study proceeded. Reflexive interaction occurred between the
framework as it stood at the beginning of the research and the data, which were
collected and analysed in ongoing phases of the study. Consequently, literature about
the specific aspects of enhancing and sustaining teacher professionalism will be
discussed at later stages in the thesis. A detailed outline of the data collection and
analysis procedures adopted during these phases of the study now follow in chapter 3.
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CHAPTER THREE
Research Methodology 3.1 The Supporting Philosophy
“In modern times there are opposing views about the practice of education. There is no general agreement about what the young should learn either in relation to virtue or in relation to the best life; nor is it clear whether their education ought to be directed more towards the intellect than towards the character of the soul.... And it is not certain whether training should be directed at things useful in life, or at those conducive to virtue, or at non-essentials.... And there is no agreement as to what in fact does tend towards virtue. Men(sic) do not all prize most highly the same virtue, so naturally they differ also about the proper training for it” (Shaw, 2000, p.1).
Aristotle wrote that passage more than 2,300 years ago, and today educators are
still debating the issues he raised. Search for knowledge, the meanings people attach to
knowledge, epistemology and methodology for knowledge generation continues.
Different approaches to resolving these and other fundamental issues have given rise to
different schools of thought.
It was the need to generate new knowledge in the field of teacher professional
development that led me to undertake this search. There has been a heavy reliance on
postpositivist and deductive-inductive scientific approaches at the theory building and
planning stage of this research. While the deductive approach has been helpful in
maintaining control and remaining focused on the issues highlighted in the research
questions, the inductive approach will enable me to arrive at new explanations through
direct observation of the research phenomena (Best & Kahn, 1998). Even though, I have
been able to keep a check on my own values and perspectives and maintain an objective
view of the situation, it would be wrong to assume that I have been a “disinterested
scientist” (Guba & Lincoln, 1994). It was my personal interest in teachers’ issues which
gave birth to this research and it will be interaction with the teachers in this study which
will pave the way for addressing the research question. The rigid and detached nature of
positivism has been balanced with postpositivism, which gives credibility and status to
various theories and methods of enquiry (Borg & Gall, 1989).
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One of the most common forms of postpositivism is a philosophy called critical
realism (Borg & Gall, 1989; Cook & Campbell, 1979; Gephart, 1999; Guba & Lincoln,
1994; Trochim, 1999). A critical realist believes that there is a reality independent of our
thinking about it that science can study. A postpositivist critical realist recognizes that
all observation is fallible and has error and that all theory is revisable. In other words,
the critical realist is critical of our ability to know reality with certainty. Because all
measurement is fallible, the post-positivist emphasizes the importance of multiple
measures and observations, each of which may possess different types of error, and the
need to use triangulation across these multiple sources to try to get a better lead on
what's happening in reality.
Most postpositivists are constructivists (Borg & Gall, 1989; Cook & Campbell,
1979; Guba & Lincoln, 1994; Trochim, 1999) who believe that human beings construct
their view of the world based on their perceptions of it. Because perception and
observation is fallible, their constructions must be imperfect. Postpositivists reject the
idea that any individual can see the world perfectly as it really is. All people are biased
in some ways and their observations are affected (value-laden). People’s best hope for
achieving objectivity is to triangulate across multiple fallible perspectives.
According to Tashakkori and Teddlie (1998, p. 8), “value-ladenness of inquiry”
(research is influenced by the values of investigators), “theory-ladenness of facts”
(research is influenced by the theory or hypothesis or framework that an investigator
uses) and “nature of reality” (our understanding of reality is constructed) are the three
tenets of postpositivism that are currently shared by both qualitatively and quantitatively
oriented researchers because they better reflect common understandings regarding both
the nature of reality and the conduct of social and behavioural research in the second
half of the twentieth century.
Keeping with the pervasiveness of postpositivist philosophical tradition, I
managed to design a research framework, which employed both quantitative and
qualitative methods for data collection. Postpositivism enabled me to undertake this
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inquiry in a more natural setting, to collect more situational information and to
reintroduce discovery as an element in inquiry, to solicit viewpoints to assist in
determining the meanings and purposes that people ascribe to their actions, as well as to
contribute to grounded theory (Denzin & Lincoln, 1994; Glaser & Strauss, 1967; Strauss
& Corbin, 1990). In this way the research theory for the study, which was borrowed
from Western literature and deducted from the document analysis of school reform in
government primary schools in Karachi, was contextualized and critically analysed to
construct new knowledge.
Just as I have positioned my philosophical assumptions, I also positioned and
repositioned myself as a researcher within the study.
3.2 Positioning and Repositioning as a Researcher
Through this research I intended to identify the relationships between
educational reforms and teacher professionalism; generate new knowledge about how
schools can be restructured to facilitate teacher professionalism; uncover the meaning of
teacher professionalism in the context of Pakistani schools; discover the ways which
facilitate teachers’ professional development; highlight those new dimensions of teacher
learning that can facilitate student learning; and in doing that I was aiming to contribute
towards educational change in Pakistan.
However, this study was not only about researching change; the process also
involved changing the researcher. When I began my journey of researching change in
Pakistani government primary schools, some change, both intentional and unintentional,
occurred in my own beliefs and ideals. I learned new ways of working, but I also
unlearned some previously learned things and this process of unlearning was very
challenging. I have experienced new ways of learning and relating with the other
teachers. These new ways have helped me in gaining a better understanding of how
people relate with and learn from each other.
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In order to meet the challenges of learning and unlearning successfully, I made a
point to be aware of my own beliefs and my relationships with the researched.
According to Delgado-Gaiten (2000), Elliott (1988) and Peshkin (1982), how we
perceive our roles in the communities we study matters greatly because it impacts the
nature of the research we conduct.
How a researcher relates to his or her own self and to the people in the research
depends largely on the researcher’s personal background and the background of the
local people with whom the researcher will be working. For this reason I give a brief
background of these factors below so that others and I are consciously aware of them.
I am a Pakistani woman and I came to Australia for my doctoral studies. I belong
to an educated family, who has always supported me in my educational endeavours. My
family values and education have provided me with a strong foundation for learning and
succeeding in school and other educational institutions. I gathered data in Pakistan after
constructing my theoretical and contextual base for the study in Australia. This research
was what Smith (1999, p. 107) called an “Indigenous People’s Project” because it was
conceptualized and carried out by a local woman working as a researcher in local
communities. I believe that the research has privileged local concerns, local practices
and local participation as researcher and researched. Despite the local people’s
colonized past, the long history of being ruled by the British and the present day
dominating influence of the West, I did not find the process of positioning myself as a
researcher as problematic as I first thought it would be.
Perhaps the main reason for this was that I worked sensitively around issues
such as, me being an outside researcher coming to do a research in the teachers’ schools.
I related with the teachers in research in the manner that helped to remove the feeling of
being intimidated by me in any way. Fanon (in Smith, 1999) recognises three levels
through which native intellectuals, who are trained and enculturated in the West, can
progress in their journey back home. First there is a phase of proving that intellectuals
have been assimilated into the culture of the occupying power. Second comes a period
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of disturbance and the need for the intellectuals to remember who they actually are, a
time for remembering the past. In the third phase the intellectuals seek to awaken the
people, to realign themselves with the people and to produce a revolutionary and
national literature. I progressed through the first and the second phases during the
planning stages of this research. Doing research in my native homeland was the
beginning of the third and the most challenging of Fanon's phases. I repositioned myself
to progress through this stage successfully and to produce research, which is grounded
in the local context and which becomes the voice of the teachers in the research
While I was aware of the fact that some teachers could be cynical about research,
I never forgot the fact that I had completed most part of my education in my own native
land. Though, I belonged to an educated class, which the researched might have thought
of as elite, my concern for the teachers was genuine and real. Being a teacher myself, I
could understand the teachers’ problems. My previous three research investigations for
the Master of Education study focused on the teachers and their invaluable position in
children’s lives in particular and in the society in general. My unique disposition helped
me gain teachers’ support. The teachers were actually interested in sharing their
thoughts with me - another teacher from their own country.
I believe that the main reason why I met with a supportive and a welcoming
atmosphere in the schools was my readiness to be prepared to reposition myself to meet
the requirement of the local situation. To do research without being aware of the local
situation, would be to do it with one’s “Eyes Wide Shut” (Elliott, 2000, p. 1). Such a
research would have been devoid of values and feelings of the participants and would
not have been authentic. I opened my eyes to the local context, which engulfed me as a
researcher. I repositioned myself to produce text, which was a good reflection of the
school reforms from the participants' perspectives and teacher professionalism in the
government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan.
Repositioning myself as a researcher was important. Equally important was to
design a research project that could help me collect authentic and complete data.
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3.3 Overall Research Design – A Mixed Methods Research Design
A mixed methods research design is adopted for this study. Quantitative method
is used to gather empirical data and qualitative methods are used to collect rich, in depth
data. It is further explained in sections 3.5 and 3.8 how these methods are used. The data
analysis procedures adopted for this mixed methods research are detailed in section
3.8.3.
Green, Caracelli, and Graham (1989) define mixed method designs as those that
include at least one quantitative method (designed to collect numbers) and one
qualitative method (designed to collect words), where neither type of method is
inherently linked to any particular inquiry paradigm.
Tashakkori and Teddlie (1998, pp. 17-18) define mixed method studies as ‘those
that combine the qualitative and quantitative approaches into the research methodology
of a single study or multi-phased study.’ Tashakkori and Teddlie (2003) add that the
major advantage of mixed method research is that it enables the researcher to
simultaneously answer confirmatory and exploratory questions, and therefore verify and
generate theory in the same study.
3.3.1 The Rationale for the Mixed Methods Research Design
It was not my intention to take a Western methodology and apply it
unquestioningly in a Pakistani context to achieve results. The use of mixed methods
research enabled me to address my research questions, provided stronger inferences and
presented a greater diversity of divergent views (Tashakkori & Teddlie, 2003). More
importantly, it enabled me, simultaneously, to answer confirmatory (what dimensions of
teacher professionalism exist in the government primary schools where reforms have
been initiated) and exploratory (how these dimensions of teacher professionalism were
developed and how can the government primary schools in Karachi be reformed to
further enhance teacher professionalism) questions, and therefore verify and generate
theory in the same study (Tashakkori & Teddlie, 2003).
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Creswell (2003) gives three criteria for designing mixed methods study – match
between problem and approach, the personal experience of the researcher and the
audience(s) for whom the report will be written. Each of these criteria is relevant for this
research and the rationality of using mixed methods based on these criteria is discussed
within each of the categories.
Match Between Problem and Approach
The reason for the selection of the mixed methods design is related to the issues
noted in the contextual analysis education system in Pakistan. In that analysis, it is noted
that the top-down approach to policy and change adopted by the different governments
in Pakistan to reform government primary schools in the past have not been very
successful. This implies that for any educational change to be successful it must involve
the teachers and enhance their professionalism. This issue necessitated a thorough
investigation of the schools where reforms have taken place to determine their
relationships with the teacher professionalism. The use of mixed methods approach
enabled me to simultaneously get a broad perspective of a large number of teachers
about the different dimensions of professionalism, and to undertake in-depth exploration
and analysis of the themes and issues arising from the investigation of the relationships
between school reforms and teacher professionalism in the four case sites.
Personal Experience
According to Greene et al. (1989), the practice of combining both the qualitative
and quantitative methods needs to be grounded in a theory that can meaningfully guide
the design and implementation of mixed-method evaluations. The decision to employ
mixed-method design to study the case of school reforms and teacher professionalism in
Pakistan is grounded in theoretical literature (Burns, 2000; Greene et al., 1989; Simons,
1996; Yin, 1989) and my personal experience. While conducting quantitative research
study in 1998 for my Master of Education in Pakistan, I conducted six semi-structured
interviews, which complemented and further developed the quantitative data. The
inclusion of qualitative techniques to provide richer data was highly appreciated by the
Dean of Education (Karachi University, Pakistan) and school stakeholders.
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Audience
Use of mixed methodologies was particularly good in the context of Pakistan,
where along with the quantitative research methods; the education authorities have also
begun to realize the importance of qualitative research. They have begun to take keen
interest in research procedures such as case studies, action research and qualitative
interviews.
In addition to these three criteria, some principles also guided the selection of
mixed methods research.
3.3.2 Principles of Mixed Methods Research
One of the most important principles of mixing methods is to clearly
differentiate the purposes for mixing qualitative and quantitative methods (Greene et al.,
1989). There are three purposes which underpin the use of mixed-method design for this
research. Two of these purposes by Green et al. (1989, p. 259) are given in Table 3.1.
Table 3.1
Purposes for Mixed-Methods Evaluation Designs
Purposes Rationale
COMPLEMENTARITY seeks elaboration, enhancement, illustration, clarification of the results from one method with the results from the other method.
To increase the interpretability, meaningfulness, and validity of constructs and inquiry results by both capitalizing on inherent method strengths and counteracting inherent biases in methods and other resources.
DEVELOPMENT seeks to use the results from one method to help develop or inform the other method, where development is broadly construed to include sampling and implementation, as well as measurement decisions.
To increase the validity of constructs and inquiry results by capitalizing on inherent method strengths.
The third important principle for this research was to determine relationships
between quantitative and qualitative data types. In this research both quantitative and
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qualitative approaches were used approximately equally (Creswell, 1995; Onwuegbuzie
& Teddlie, 2003; Tashakkori & Teddlie, 1998). The reasons for this are rooted in the
purposes of this research. Both descriptive quantitative question (what dimensions of
teacher professionalism exist in schools where reforms have been initiated) and
exploratory qualitative questions (how these dimensions of teacher professionalism were
developed and to what extent the reform initiatives were able to develop these
dimensions) were given equal status.
The critical issue in using mixed methods research is to be aware of the
appropriateness of particular methods (or combination of methods) for particular issues.
What this is saying is that the researcher must employ the methodology as wholly and
fully as possible to answer the research question. This highlights another important
issue, “the research question and the nature of the research question” and the next
section now considers these.
3.4 The Research Questions
The first step in designing a study is to formulate a research question, which
makes it possible for the researcher to achieve her research objectives.
In keeping with the mixed method strategy, both types of quantifiable (how
many) and qualitative (how, who, why or what) questions were asked. According to Yin
(1989) case studies are the preferred strategy when “how” or “why” questions are being
posed, when the investigator has little control over events, and when the focus is on a
contemporary phenomenon within some real-life context.
The problem or the issue highlighted in this research study gives rise to the
following research questions.
1 What does it currently mean to be a professional in government primary schools
in Karachi, Pakistan, where reforms are being initiated?
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2 What are the relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism in
government primary schools in Karachi?
3 How can the government primary schools in Karachi be reformed to further
enhance and sustain professionalism among the teachers?
Both quantitative and qualitative methods were employed to address the first
research question - what does it currently mean to be a professional in government
primary schools in Karachi where reforms are being initiated? Qualitative methods were
employed to address the second and the third research questions - what are the
relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism in government
primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan? How can the government primary schools in
Karachi be reformed or restructured to further facilitate professionalism among the
teachers? The specific techniques used to gather and analyse quantitative and qualitative
data and answer research questions are discussed in sections 3.8.2 and 3.8.3.
These questions imply that there is a need to build contextual knowledge about
teacher professionalism in Pakistan; that there are relationships between school reforms
and teacher professionalism; and that the schools can be restructured in ways that
facilitate teacher professionalism. In order to further develop the research questions, it
was important to investigate and analyse the relationships between the ways in which
the schools were being reformed and the current levels of teacher professionalism, and
to identify and analyse the different dimensions of professionalism that exist in schools
where these reforms had been initiated. Thus, there were a number of sub-questions,
which needed to be initially answered in order to answer the research questions and
achieve the research objectives.
1. What initiatives have been taken by the government, non-government and private
organizations to reform government primary schools in Karachi?
2. What is the nature of these reforms?
3. What have been the changes in the teachers’ perceptions of professionalism in
government primary schools in Karachi where reforms have been initiated?
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The combination of the previously outlined objectives in chapter 1 (see section
1.5), the research question and the sub-questions “drove the train of enquiry” (Bassey,
1999, p. 7) and kept me focussed and concentrated on the research issues. According to
Yin (1989) the identification of research questions is important because it provides
significant clues regarding the most relevant research strategy to be used. The questions
identified above guided me in planning the most relevant research strategy and a
research plan to achieve research objectives. It is to this research strategy and the
research plan that I will turn my attention now.
3.5 Mixed Methods Research Strategy
The task of designing the research is simplified considerably when one begins to
understand that the best research design is one that will add to knowledge, no matter
what the results (Slavin, 1992). It was the purpose of the research that ultimately guided
the selection of procedures within the mixed method research design.
This research employed Creswell’s (1995, p. 177) “equivalent status mixed
method research designs.” The research was conducted using both the quantitative and
the qualitative methods about equally to understand the phenomenon under study.
The research also employed what Tashakkori and Teddlie (1998 p. 18) call
“designs with multilevel use of approaches.” In this approach different methods were
used at different levels of data aggregation. For example, quantitative data were
collected from the teachers in the 35 government primary schools, where reforms are
being initiated and qualitative data were collected from 16 teachers in the four case sites
(four teachers from each case site), four school principals (one form each case site) and
the four reform managers who initiated the four reforms. In the same way the data were
analysed quantitatively at the teacher level and qualitatively both at the teacher and at
the school level, and also at the school administration and management level.
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3.5.1 Quantitative Survey Research
Questionnaire was used to secure teachers responses about the different
dimensions of professionalism. The use of the questionnaire made it possible to include
a large number of teachers from more diverse locations (Burns, 2000) in the study. The
purpose of the survey research could also be explained clearly in print (Burns, 2000).
Furthermore, each teacher received the identical set of questions, phrased in exactly the
same manner (Burns, 2000). This contributed to the reliability of the dimensions of
professionalism suggested by teachers as important.
The nature of the questionnaire used in this research was primarily descriptive
because it aimed to estimate as precisely as possible the nature of the existence
conditions, or the attributes of a population (Burns, 2000); for example, its demographic
composition, its attitude to the different dimensions of professionalism and the
professional development practices. The questionnaire also encompassed a degree of
exploratory survey because in one question it also sought to establish cause and effect
relationships without experimental manipulation (Burns, 2000); for example, the
exploration of the importance of other dimensions of professionalism. The questionnaire
is described in detail in section 3.8.1.
3.5.2 Qualitative Case Study Research
Multiple case study design was employed to study the relationships between
school reforms and teacher professionalism in the four government primary schools
selected from the four reform initiatives outlined in chapter 2 (see section 2.8).
Cronbach (1975) describes case study as interpretation in context. Merriam (1998) adds
that by concentrating on a single phenomenon or entity (the case), the researcher aims to
uncover the interaction of significant factors characteristic of the phenomenon. Yin
(1989) observes that case study is a design particularly suited to situations in which it is
impossible to separate the phenomenon’s variables from their context.
Simons (1996) gives three reasons for the popular use of the case study. One is
to give more space to participants’ perceptions and judgements in the description and
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construction of understanding. A second is to engage readers of the reports with the
veracity of the experience of the program. The third reason is that case study data are
more open, complex and present multiple perspectives. Hence, they provide
opportunities for policy makers to increase their understanding of the program and to
inform judgements that they need to make. The data of the cases of reforms in the
government primary schools in Karachi would enable the researcher to inform the
policy makers about a set of principles which have been formulated to facilitate teacher
development in primary government schools, where similar reforms are being initiated.
The case study approach was particularly suited to this research because the
phenomenon (the relationships between school reform and teacher professionalism) was
very much embedded in the context (government primary schools in Karachi). By
concentrating on a single phenomenon in four case study sites, I was able to unearth the
interaction of significant factors characteristic of the phenomenon to arrive at a holistic
framework of professional development of teachers in the schools being studied in
Karachi, Pakistan.
At the very heart of case study, there is a deep and holistic focus on the case. In
attending to specific and holistic issues, multiple cases can generate both unique and
universal understandings (Simons, 1996). The case study approach, noted in this
proposal, enabled me to work with the primary school teachers and the school principals
in Pakistan for a period of ten months to understand their views, attitudes and feelings
about the educational reforms and the effect of these reforms on their work. On the one
hand, it was important to ground concepts such as teacher efficacy, teacher practice,
teacher leadership and teacher collegiality among the teachers in their context. On the
other hand, it was also equally important to explore the different ways in which the
school reforms have impacted teacher professionalism to arrive at a framework of
teacher professional development in government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan.
Predominantly in-depth interviews and to some extent field notes were used to collect
data about the different dimensions of teacher professionalism, to investigate the
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relationship between school reform and teacher professionalism, and to explore the
ways schools could be reformed to further develop and sustain teacher professionalism.
Details of case sites’ and teachers’ selection strategies will be given later under
the heading of sampling procedures in the appropriate research plan.
3.6 The Research Plan
The research process involved three phases. The first phase was what Yin (1989)
called the exploratory stage in which I identified the case sites, that is, the schools in
which the reforms had taken place and sought official permission from the government
authorities to conduct research in the identified schools. The second phase was the
combination of exploratory and explanatory stages (Yin, 1989). The focus of research
in this phase was to explore the relationships between the educational reforms and
teacher professionalism, to explore the ways in which the schools can be reformed to
facilitate professionalism among the teachers and to contextualise the different
dimensions of professionalism by using qualitative and quantitative research
methodologies. This phase also focused on explaining and analysing the data, which
emerged in the identified case sites. In the third and the final phase conclusions were
drawn leading to the conceptualization of a number of principles, which provided
guidelines for the development of a framework of teacher professional development and
hence their professionalism in government primary schools in Pakistan. What follows
now is a detailed explanation of the research activities and procedures within each
phase.
3.7 Phase One – The Exploratory Stage
Table 3.2 outlines the tasks that were completed in phase one.
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Table 3.2
Research Procedures in Phase One
Purpose Focus Question Procedures
1) Explore the possibilities of doing research in government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan. 2) Identify the case sites. 3) Secure official permission of conducting the research. 4) Collect documents. 5) Collect written evidence of the reforms.
1) What initiatives have been taken at the government and the NGO levels to reform government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan? 2) What is the nature of these reforms?
1) Meeting with the managers in the government, the NGO and the private organizations. 2) Field visits to some government primary schools. 3) Document Analysis
The tasks outlined for phase one were completed successfully. Permission was
secured to conduct research in the government primary schools where reforms had been
initiated. Case sites were identified, sampling procedures were identified, and the reform
and policy documents were analysed. Targeted areas for reforms in the identified case
sites have been outlined in the literature review. The following sampling procedures
were employed.
3.7.1 Sampling Procedures for the Survey Research
Sample selection for the survey research involved different steps. The following section
deals with each step separately.
Identification and Description of the Population
The first step in sample selection for the survey research was to identify the
population. According to Burns (2000, p. 83), "a population is an entire group of people
or objects or events which all have at least one characteristic in common". For this
research the common characteristic was the government primary school teachers from
the government primary schools in Karachi where the identified educational reforms had
been initiated in the last ten years. It was decided to administer questionnaire to the wide
spread of population in the different towns of Karachi. It is hoped that the results of the
findings will be of benefit to the entire group.
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Sampling Technique
Stratified sampling techniques (Burns, 2000; Gay, 1996) were used for the
selection of schools. The schools were stratified on the basis of the four reform
initiatives, which are Primary Education Programme (PEP), Government School
Project, The Adopt a School Programme, and Sindh Primary Education Development
Programme (SPEDP). The final selection of schools was dependent on the number of
schools within each reform initiative. Selection of schools under PEP required no
sampling as all the four schools where this reform initiative was initiated were selected.
Similarly, the Book Group’s two schools were selected. At the time of conducting this
research, 68 schools had been adopted in Karachi. The number of teachers who had
received SPEDP’s organized demonstration training ran in thousands as the training was
given to all the teachers in the schools of the then District South. The selection of
schools within Adopt a School Programme and SPEDP was based on convenience
because no other option was open to the researcher due to constraints of time and
permission (Burns, 2000). The selection of teachers required no sampling technique, as
all the teachers within the schools were selected for the survey purposes.
All the teachers in the schools were selected to make the sample a good
representative of the population (Borg & Gall, 1989; Burns, 2000; Gay, 1996; Slavin,
1992). In this way, the results of the survey data were definitely generalizable to all the
teachers in the schools, which participated in the study and may also be generalizable to
the teachers in other government primary schools where similar reforms have taken
place. A large sample also facilitated effective employment of different statistical
techniques to analyse data.
Description of the Sample
Approximately 550 teachers were invited to participate in the study. A total of
450 teachers participated in the study, representing a high participation rate of about
80%. A total of about 35 schools took part in the study. To ensure anonymity, each
respondent was given a group identification code and a number. The codes are identified
below. The numbers in brackets indicate the number of respondents in each group.
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PT A pilot study teacher (100)
QT A primary school teacher who participated in the survey research (450)
The characteristics of the teachers in the sample are given in Chapter 4.
3.7.2 Sample Selection for the Case Study Research
According to Merriam (1998, p. 60), “sampling in field research involves the
selection of research site, time, people and events.” The sampling in a case study usually
occurs at two levels. First the case to be studied is selected and then the participants
within the case need to be identified.
Selection of Case Sites
Non-probability sampling is more often applied in a case study (Burns, 2000;
Merriam, 1998). The usual form of non-probability sampling is purposive, purposeful or
criterion-based (Best & Kahn, 1998; Bouma, 1996; Burns, 2000; Gay, 1996; Merriam,
1998; Patton, 1990; Stake, 1995) meaning that the sample is selected purposefully, i.e.,
precisely because it is believed to be a rich source of the data of interest (Gay, 1996).
Patton (1990) argues that the logic and power of purposeful sampling lies in selecting
information-rich cases for study in depth.
One school from each of the four reform initiatives (PEP, Government School
Project, Adopt a School Programme, and SPEDP) was selected for investigation. In this
way, four case sites were selected for this study. Five criteria guided the selection of
these cases. Firstly, the cases ideally served the purpose and objective of discovering,
gaining insight, understanding and analysing the relationships between school reforms
and teacher professionalism. Secondly, review of all available instances revealed that
these schools would provide the most comprehensive information. Thirdly, based on
experts’ recommendations, those schools were chosen which had build good reputation.
Fourthly, these schools were available at the time the research was conducted. Fifthly,
these schools were selected from among the schools where the questionnaires were to be
administered. Based on the research purpose and criteria, the cases were selected to
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make sure that data were a good representation of the schools under study, i.e., the data
accurately reflect the situation under study (Gay, 1996).
Sampling within the Case
Approximately four teachers from each case site were selected using the
opportunity sampling technique (Borg & Gall, 1989). This means that only those
teachers who consented to participate in the study were selected for interviews within
each case site. The principals of the four case study schools and the reform managers
were also interviewed. In addition, the reform managers who initiated reforms in each of
the case study schools were also interviewed. To ensure anonymity, each respondent
was given a pseudonym or addressed by his or her title. The characteristics of the
respondents are given in Chapter 5 under the heading “Characteristics of the Educators”
in each of the case study schools.
3.8 Phase Two – Exploratory and Explanatory Stages
The tasks that were completed in this stage are outlined in tables 3.3 and 3.4.
Table 3.3 presents the overall plan for all the schools which participated in the survey
research and the four case study schools and Table 3.4 presents a specific research
procedure in each case.
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Table 3.3 Research Procedures in Phase Two
Purpose Focus Question Data Gathering Strategies
Appropriateness of Data Gathering Strategies
1) Contextualise the literature about teacher professionalism and school reforms. 2) Explore the changes in teachers’ perceptions of professionalism as a result of reforms. 3) Exploring the ways in which the different reform initiatives impacted teacher professionalism. 4) Systematic collection and analysis of the data.
1) What dimensions of professionalism exist in schools where reforms have been initiated? 2) What are the relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism? 3) Are the changes in schools as a result of reforms actually facilitating teacher professionalism? 4) If yes, then what dimensions of teacher professionalism are developed and in what ways?
1) Administration of questionnaire among the teachers. 2) Interviews with the teachers, principals & the managers of the organizations which have initiated the school reforms. 3) Field notes from the case sites.
1) Use of in-depth qualitative interviews provided data, which was rich in contextual information about each case. This information was particularly helpful in developing a theoretical framework of teacher development for government primary school teachers in Karachi. 2) Survey research will provide a good breadth of information about the different dimensions of teacher professionalism from a wide range of teachers in the government primary schools in Karachi.
Table 3.3 presents a broad research plan of the different tasks, which were
undertaken in the government primary schools where questionnaires were administered,
and in the four case sites. Table 3.4 presents a narrower picture of the research, which
was carried out in each case site.
In each case, I:
i. Identified and analysed the purposes of reform initiatives;
ii. Identified and analysed the different dimensions of professionalism;
iii. Identified and analysed the relationships between the reform initiatives and teacher
professionalism; and
iv. Interpreted and described the relationships between the school reform and teacher
professionalism.
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Table 3.4 Research Procedures in Each Case
Objective
Research Procedure
Mapping the reforms in terms of the identified dimensions of teacher professionalism. (Data Gathering)
• Document analysis • Interviewed the managers in professional organizations
(e.g. TRC & SEF), who are directing the reforms, about rationale for the reform and intended impacts and analysed data.
• Interviewed the teachers and the principal in the school and analysed data.
Identifying the perceived impact of these reforms on teacher professionalism. (Data Gathering)
• Interviewed a sample of teachers about the relationships between school reforms and teachers professionalism.
• Interviewed school principals for the same purpose.
Drawing explanations about the relationships between reforms and teacher professionalism.
• Analysed the data and drew explanations for the case in terms of a set of propositions about the relationships as it pertained to each case.
• Confirmed these (member check) with a sample of teachers in the case (Stake, 1995).
The research plan outlined in each of the tables presented above required me to
carefully consider the data gathering procedures. It is to these procedures and the
description of the data gathering instruments that I turn my attention now.
3.8.1 The Description of Data Gathering Instruments
In this research, data were collected through questionnaire surveys and
interviews. The following paragraphs describe each instrument in detail and also give
justification for the selection of the measuring instruments.
Questionnaire
A questionnaire was used as a data gathering technique because it could be
administered to a larger sample (Gay, 1996). It also allowed the respondents to answer
the questions at their own time and pace (Gay, 1996). The use of a questionnaire also
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guaranteed confidentiality and anonymity. Therefore, it was quite successful in
obtaining honest and precise responses (Burns, 2000).
Using the information from different literature as previously discussed in
Chapter 2 (Bell,1993; Bouma, 1996; Burns, 2000; Campbell, 2000; Denzin & Lincoln,
1994; Ellet, Hill, Liu, Loup & Lakshmanan, 1997; Gay, 1996; Guskey & Passaro, 1994;
Hargreaves & Fullan, 1992; Huberman & Miles, 1984; Ingvarson,1997; Phillips, 1992;
Reaves & Griffith, 1992; Tschannen-Moran et al., 1998; Yin, 1989), the researcher's
own experience, and the concepts noted in the theoretical framework, the questionnaire
was designed to explore the dimensions of professionalism (see Appendix A).
The questionnaire was divided into three parts. The introduction was taken care
of in a covering letter. Part A of the questionnaire comprised 8 demographic or factual
questions concerning respondents' sex, age, place of work, and personal and
professional biographical data. Part B of the questionnaire contained a set of scales to
investigate the four dimensions of professionalism – teacher efficacy, teacher practice,
teacher leadership and teacher collaboration. Questions I, II, III, & IV of the
questionnaire part B measured each of these dimensions on a Likert-scale. In addition to
the four dimensions of the professionalism that were derived from the theory, questions
V, VI & VII of Part B explored teachers’ opinions about the other dimensions of
professionalism with the help of closed and open-ended questions. Part C comprised of
questions about the ongoing teacher development in their schools. The data were
analysed and interpreted in different ways detailed in the data analysis section.
Scale I, to investigate teacher efficacy, was developed on the basis of there being
three subscales in this area. These subscales were belief in achieving success with
classroom tasks, belief in executing responsibilities for achievement, and belief that
change is achievable. Each subscale contained five items. These items were either
drawn from or informed by several studies (Bandura, 1982, 1995; Chester & Beaudin,
1996; Gibson & Dembo, 1984; Gusky & Passaro, 1994; Hoy & Woolfolk, 1993; Riggs
& Enochs, 1990; Scribener, 1998; Tschannen-Moran et al., 1998; Web & Ashton, 1987)
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and review of the document of school reform in Karachi, Pakistan informed the
development of items in Scale I.
Scale II was developed to measure teacher practice in anticipation of being three
subscales. Scale one, containing 8 items, was designed to measure professional
knowledge and application of professional knowledge; scale two containing three items
was designed to measure teachers’ initiatives to learn; and scale three containing four
items was designed to measure executing commitment and sense of responsibilities.
These scales were conceptualized considering several studies (Campbell, 2000; Cole &
Chan, 1994; Darling-Hammond, 1995; Hargreaves, 1997a; Hargreaves & Fullan, 1992,
Ingvarson, 1997; Reaves & Griffith, 1992; Shacklock, 1994; Slavin, 1991; Wilson &
Cameron, 1996) document analysis of educational reform in Karachi, Pakistan and my
own 1998 study (Rizvi, 1998) on the factors that contribute toward effective teaching in
Karachi, Pakistan.
Scale III, to measure teacher collaboration containing 15 items, was
conceptualised on the basis of there being three subscales with five items each. These
scales were collaboration to improve teaching, collaboration to plan teaching activities
and administrative collective work. These scales were formulated considering different
studies (Chester & Beaudin, 1996; Day, 1999; Fullan, 1997; Hargreaves, 1997a; Hoy,
Tarter & Kottkamp, 1991; Katzenmeyer & Moller, 1996; Klecker & Loadman, 1998;
Reaves & Griffith, 1992; Rosenholtz, 1989; Scribener, 1998) and the analysis of the
educational reforms in Pakistan.
The scale IV was developed to measure teacher leadership on two subscales. The
first subscale contained 11 items. It intended to measure teacher classroom authority, the
extent to which teachers were involved in decision making, and the ways in which
teachers undertook leadership roles in their schools. Scale two, containing four items,
was designed to measure centralized leadership in the school. These scales were
conceptualized considering several studies (Chester & Beaudin, 1996; Cooper &
Conley, 1991; Hart, 1995; Hoy et al., 1991; Katzenmeyer & Moller, 1996; Klecker &
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Loadman, 1996; Reaves & Griffith, 1992; Smylie, 1995; Wallace & Hellen, 1995) and
the analysis of the educational reforms in Pakistan.
In-depth Interviews
Interviews were designed to seek information about the nature of the school
reforms, the different dimensions of teacher professionalism, the links between school
reforms and teacher professionalism and the ways in which teacher professionalism can
be further enhanced and sustained.
Preparation for interviews followed similar procedures to the questionnaire. For
the initial draft of the interview both open-ended and closed-ended questions were
devised, questions were discussed with the supervisor and finally the schedule was
prepared and piloted. Using the data from the pilot study, the insights from literature and
findings of different research studies, and learning from research seminars, the final
draft of the interview was prepared (see Appendix B). The final draft of the interview
was designed on the pattern of what Bell (1993) and Burns (2000) describe as the
conversation between the interviewer and the respondent. Bell (1993) describes the
interview as a conversation between interviewer and respondent with the purpose of
eliciting certain information from the respondent.
Since the nature of the questions in the final draft of the interview was open-
ended, it was not possible to devise all the questions before hand. According to Burns
(2000) there is no standardized list of questions in open-ended interviewing. He adds
that the social interaction between the investigator and the informant can be subtly
redirected by the interviewer if it should stray too far off the track of the research study.
Face to face interaction with the teachers assisted me in establishing a good
rapport and a high level of motivation among the informants (Burns, 2000). As such, the
respondents felt at ease to give authentic and quality information, and did not mind
being probed for complete responses. The task of asking probing questions for
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identifying the links between school reform and the dimensions of teacher
professionalism was made relatively easier with the help of face-to-face interviews.
Interviews also helped me to discover and portray the multiple views of the case
(Stake, 1995). A major advantage of the interview was its adaptability. It allowed the
researcher to follow up ideas, investigate feelings and motives and to develop and
clarify a response.
According to Burns (2000), open-ended interviewing is particularly helpful in a
case study approach because it enables the individual’s subjective life experiences to be
in individual’s own language. Open-ended interviewing also facilitated access to events
and activities that could not be directly observed because they occurred in the past
(Burns, 2000). For example, the levels of teacher professionalism and the school’s
condition before the reforms were initiated in the school. This type of interviewing was
particularly helpful in studying the subject in detail.
Field Notes
According to Clandinin and Conelly (1999), field notes become an important
field text in personal experience methods when the researchers acknowledge the
relationships they have as researchers with their participants. They continue that field
notes may be written in more or less detail with more or less interpretive content. For
this research, field note data mostly included records of some informal conversations,
details of setting and my impressions / observations of teachers’ work.
3.8.2 Data Gathering Procedures
The research was based on the assumption that collecting diverse types of data
would best provide an understanding of a research problem (Creswell, 2003). The data
were gathered concurrently (Creswell, 2003) with equivalent status (Tashakkori &
Teddlie, 1998) to quantitative and qualitative data gathering procedures. In addition,
different types of methods were used at different levels of data collection. For instance,
quantitative data were collected from the teachers to explore the different dimensions of
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professionalism and the professional development programmes in the school.
Qualitative data were collected from the teachers, the principals and the reform
managers. The purposes of gathering qualitative data were to explore the nature of
government primary school reforms in Karachi, to seek information about teacher
professionalism, to explore the links between school reforms and teacher
professionalism and to explore the ways in which the government primary schools in
Karachi could be reformed to further enhance teacher professionalism. The intentional
mixing of data gathering procedures appears to suggest that study also had a touch of
Green et al.’s (2003) dialectical stance of mixing methods.
The Process of Administering the Questionnaires
Feedback from the first draft of the questionnaire helped to further refine it. This
draft of the questionnaire was translated in Urdu (National language of Pakistan) and
was pre-tested in a pilot study in January 2001. Pre-testing the questionnaire yields data
concerning instrument deficiencies as well as suggestions for improvement (Gay, 1996).
Proposed data tabulation and analysis procedures were applied to analyse the pretest
data. On the basis of this analysis and certain important issues noted during the pilot
study, the questionnaire was changed to enhance its reliability and validity. The results
of the analysis are given in chapter 4. The results of the pilot study were used to reduce
the number of items and to ask questions which were simpler and more direct. The
results were also used to modify and make changes in the language of the questionnaire
so that it could appropriately be used in the context of government primary schools,
Kracahi, Pakistan. This draft of the questionnaire was also given to the educators in
Karachi, Pakistan who were aware of the contextual background of the study. Their
comments and suggestions were built into the questionnaire. The end product of the
pretest was a revised instrument, which was given to the already selected participants.
The final draft of the questionnaire is contained in Appendix A.
The final draft of the questionnaire was again translated in Urdu. Cross-cultural
research often involves translating questionnaires into the language of the target culture.
Examples of cross-cultural research projects which have involved translating
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questionnaires include Freeman’s (1997) study on social values in Sri Lanka, Pratto,
Liu, Levin and Sidanius (2000) study concerning Social dominance orientation and the
legitimization of inequality across cultures and Silveira and Ebrahim (1998) study
comparing mental health among minority ethnic elders and whites in East and North
London.
Translation of questionnaire in this research became important to reduce the
communication barrier between the researcher and the respondents and to collect
authentic data. The reliability and the validity of the data collected using the translated
questionnaire were enhanced using techniques such as member checking and mixed
methodology.
A total of about 550 teachers were invited to participate in the study. A total of
450 teachers participated, representing a high participation rate of about 80%. A total of
about 35 schools took part in the study. The questionnaires were self-administered. It
was because of the personal supervision of the process of distributing and collecting the
questionnaire that enabled me to obtain the high return rate. I personally went to each of
the 35 schools and held a small meeting with the teachers to explain the purposes of my
research. Then the questionnaires were distributed among the teachers and together we,
teachers and myself, decided upon the time when I could come back and collect the
questionnaires from each teacher. Sometimes I had to go back to the schools more than
once or even twice to collect the questionnaires. The whole process of administering the
questionnaires took ten months, beginning in August 2001 and ending in May 2002.
The Process of Conducting the Interviews
The first draft of the interview was translated and piloted in January 2001. The
purpose of the pilot study was to refine my technique of asking questions, my way of
relating with the teachers and also my responses to the teachers’ responses.
The initial schedule of the interview was structured, containing a mixture of
closed and open-ended questions (Cole & Chan, 1994). Pilot study indicated that asking
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closed questions did not serve the purposes of the qualitative study. There was so much
that the teachers wanted to share with me, and they could express themselves more
openly and explicitly when they were encouraged to relate their stories than when I
imposed my questions upon them. On the basis of these findings from the pilot study,
the final draft of the interview schedule was drafted to include broad based open-ended
questions and themes that could help teachers tell their stories about the educational
reforms in their school and the impact of these reforms on their professionalism (see
Appendix B).
Four teachers and one principal were interviewed from the each of the four case
sites. Prior to the conduct of the interview, the consent of each participant was sought
(see Appendix C). The nature and purpose of the research was explained in the consent
form, which was signed by each participant. Only those teachers and principals who
volunteered to participate in the study were interviewed. The interviewees were
informed before hand how long the interview was going to last so that they could make
themselves free. I personally conducted the interviews. Three individual and one focus
group interviews were conducted. Since, the purposes of the individual and the focus
group interviews were different they were conducted on two different occasions.
Each individual interview lasted approximately 30 minutes. The purpose of the
individual interviews was to explore and elicit participants’ responses about the
relationships between the school reforms and teacher professionalism in government
primary schools in Karachi and the ways in which the government primary schools
could be reformed to further enhance teacher professionalism. Each of the interviews
was tape-recorded with the respondent's permission. This was done to secure an
accurate written record of the interview and to check the precision of hand-written
notes.
The individual interviews were initiated and conducted in the period of nine
months beginning in August 2001 and completing in March 2002. I spent four weeks in
each of the case study schools. I also used this nine-month period to listen to each of the
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tape-recorded interviews on daily basis and note down the main issues and some
tentative interpretations of the data. These interpretations were checked with the
participants on my next interview sitting with the teachers (see Appendix B). Each of
the five interviews in a school was listened to and the main themes and findings were
noted down. This was done for each of the four schools.
During this period, interviews with the reform managers were also conducted
(see Appendix D). Each interviewee was contacted over the phone so that an
appointment could be made and a venue and time could be fixed. Prior to the conduct of
the interview, the consent of each participant was sought. The nature and purpose of the
research was explained verbally to each participant. The interviewees were informed
before hand how long the interview was going to last so that they could make
themselves free. The interviews were personally conducted in private on sites
recommended by the interviewees. Each of the six interviews took 30-45 minutes. The
interviews were tape-recorded with the respondent's permission. The information
collected from the reform managers is presented in stories of the four cases to highlight
the purposes of the different reform initiatives.
In April and May 2002, I returned to each of the four case sites schools to
conduct focus group interviews. The purpose of the focus group interviews was to
member-check the data and the overall tentative interpretations of the data with the
teachers. Appendix E contains an example of sample interpretations to show how they
were recorded and member checked. This member checking of the interview findings
was particularly important to confirm that the meanings that I had attached to the
teachers’ responses were actually the meanings that they were trying to convey to me.
Hence, enhancing the validity of the findings. During this period I also began
transcribing the interviews into English so that they could also be analysed using
computer software at a later stage. Personal transcription of all the interviews enhanced
the reliability and the trustworthiness of the interview data.
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The Process of Recording Field Notes
I maintained a diary for recording my reflections and observations about the
school setting and the informal conversations with the teachers. Only those reflections
and observations were built in the story of case study schools that added meaning to the
stories of the schools.
Once the data were collected using the different data gathering procedures, they
were analysed. The following analysis procedures were employed to give meaning to
numbers and narratives.
3.8.3 Data Analysis in the Mixed Methods Procedures
In conformity with the mixed methods research design principles, both
quantitative descriptive statistics and qualitative inferences were used. However, the
quantitative analysis was clearly different from the qualitative analysis. Gay (1996)
gives three main differences between quantitative and qualitative analysis. First, the raw
data for quantitative studies are numbers, the raw data for qualitative studies are words.
Other major differences are that while quantitative analysis is typically performed at the
end of a study and usually involves application of descriptive and/or inferential
statistics, qualitative analysis is essentially ongoing and infrequently involves
application of statistics.
The qualitative analysis was ongoing during the process of data collection to
form tentative interpretations of teachers’ conversations for member checking. It has
previously been detailed in the procedure of conducting the interviews how I listened to
each recorded session with the teachers on daily basis to member check the tentative
interpretation with the teachers in the next meeting.
However, the final and the conclusive analysis of the data took the form of
multiple level examinations (Creswell, 2003). At the schoolteachers’ level, sequential
QUAN-QUAL analysis (Tashakkori & Teddlie, 1998) was adopted with equivalent
status design (Onwuegbuzie & Teddlie, 2003). The purpose of the quantitative study
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was to identify and contextualise the different dimensions and sub-dimensions of
teacher professionalism through factor analysis to address the first research question –
what does it currently mean to be a professional in government primary schools in
Karachi where reforms are being initiated? This was followed by the qualitative case
study analysis. The qualitative case study analysis served three purposes. The first
purpose was to complement and confirm the dimensions of teacher professionalism to
address the first research question. Using Caracelli and Greene’s (1993) data
consolidation/merging analytical technique, the quantitative and qualitative data were
reviewed jointly to create new and consolidated data, which was expressed in qualitative
form in chapter 6.
The second purpose of the qualitative case study analysis was to expand upon
the information by exploring the relationships between school reforms and teacher
professionalism to address the second research question – what are the relationships
between school reforms and teacher professionalism in government primary schools in
Karachi where reforms are being initiated? The third purpose was to explore ways in
which schools could be reformed to further enhance teacher professionalism in order to
address the third research question – How can government primary schools in Karachi
be reformed to further enhance teacher professionalism among the teachers?
At the school principals’ level the data were analysed to elicit the principals’
views about the links between the school reforms and teacher professionalism, and the
ways of enhancing teacher professionalism. This analysis provided more information for
addressing the second and the third research questions. At the reform managers’ levels,
the qualitative data were analysed to elicit the purposes of reform initiatives. It is to the
quantitative and the qualitative analysis procedures that the discussion in the chapter
now turns.
Quantitative Data Analysis
The preparation stage of quantitative analysis involved devising a form in which
to reproduce the data so that the data (a) provide a fair summary of what had been
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studied and (b) could be analysed readily to answer the research question. Key phrases
which arose from these objectives were: error reduction/minimization, data
representation, data transformation and data reduction (Sapsford & Jupp, 1966).
Factor analysis was used initially to reduce data to a few factors in order to find
the chief underlying dimensions of a set of attributes and responses (Burns, 2000;
Oppenheim, 1966). In this study factor analysis was used to find chief underlying
dimensions of teacher professionalism. Factor analysis also resulted in error reduction
and minimization. The information secured was therefore more reliable than before.
Reliability was also measured using the internal consistency method, usually associated
with Cronbach’s Alpha coefficients and its variants. This test revealed whether the items
correlate highly with each other to measure a single underlying dimension or not. Factor
analysis was to be used to identify those.
The reduced data were analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistical
techniques, carried out using SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences). Data
were represented, transformed, and summarized, using frequency distribution tables and
charts, measures of central tendency (Mean) and measures of dispersal (Standard
Deviation). These statistical techniques gave a summary description of the attributes of
teacher professionalism and reform initiatives to indicate what most teachers think of
these (Best & Kahn, 1998; Bryman & Cramer, 1990; Burns, 2000). The results of the
quantitative data analysis are detailed in chapter 4.
Data Analysis in Case Studies
Conveying a holistic understanding of the case was the paramount consideration
in analysing the data. However, initially the data were analysed in multiple stages. The
data so analysed were brought together in the form of a set of principles about teacher
professionalism and the teacher professional development in the government primary
schools in Karachi, Pakistan.
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Multiple case study analysis involved two stages of analysis – the within-case
analysis and the cross-case analysis (Merriam, 1998). These analysis stages can be more
easily explained in Figure 3.1 given below. The figure is followed by an explanation of
each of the analysis stage.
Figure 3.1 Steps in Data Analysis in Case Studies
Within-Case Analysis
For within-case analysis qualitative inferences were used. The data analysis and
writing stages were intensive. During the 10 months period of data collection, each of
the recorded interview sessions with the respondents was listened to, transcribed and
tentative interpretations were drawn. These were member checked with all the
respondents in the study (see Appendix E). I would call this stage the first and the initial
data analysis stage.
The second stage of within-case analysis involved translating the transcriptions
from Urdu to English for computer-assisted analysis. The framework of Miles and
WITHIN-CASE ANALYSIS
Derive a set of propositions about the relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism in each case site
CROSS-CASE ANALYSIS
Derive a general explanation to develop a set of principles for developing and further enhancing
teacher professionalism.
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Huberman (1994, p.10) who define analysis as consisting of “three concurrent flows of
activity: data reduction, data display and conclusion/verification,” was adopted for this
study. This framework was carried out with the help of QSR NUDIST Vivo (NVivo).
Factor analysis generated dimensions of teacher professionalism, which were
used as an initial framework for analysing qualitative data within each case. These broad
dimensions of teacher professionalism were used as starting points for both latent
content analysis and constant comparative analysis (Tashakkori & Teddlie, 1998). The
purpose of the constant comparative analysis was to explore the ways in which the
dimensions of teacher professionalism were developed. The latent content analysis was
important to explore the extent of relationships between school reforms and teacher
professionalism, to highlight the emerging themes and issues, and to bring this data
together to explore ways in which the government primary schools could be reformed to
further enhance teacher professionalism. In short, constant comparative analysis was
used for unitising and categorizing data, and latent content analysis was used to discover
the underlying meaning of the data (Taskakkori & Teddlie, 1998).
Using NVivo, tree nodes were created to organize (Kahn & Best, 1998) data.
The links between school reforms and teacher professionalism were recorded and
clustered in groups using NVivo. Appendix F contains an example of the tree nodes
created to organize data about reform initiatives and teacher efficacy dimension in one
of the case study schools. Then these links were described highlighting the main
concepts, categories, patterns and themes. Once the data had been organized and
described, I began interpretation of the data. Interpretation involved explaining the
findings, answering “why” questions, attaching significance to particular results, and
putting patterns into an analytic framework (Best & Kahn, 1998; Miles and Huberman,
1994). The rich explanations and interpretations from the qualitative analysis are
detailed in chapter 5.
During my visit to Karachi, Pakistan in January 2003, the findings from the
second stage analysis were once again member checked with a couple of respondents
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from each of the case study schools, with whom it was possible to make contact. On the
basis of data so analysed, a set of initial propositions about the relationships between the
school reforms and teacher professionalism for each case were formulated.
Cross-Case Analysis
A multiple case study seeks to build abstractions across cases (Merriam, 1998).
A general explanation that fit each of the individual cases was developed, even though
the cases varied in their details (Yin, 1989). This general explanation was developed
after careful analysis of processes and outcomes that occurred across many cases, to
understand how they were qualified by local conditions. This procedure helped to
develop more sophisticated descriptions and more powerful explanations (Miles &
Huberman, 1994).
I analysed the propositions that pertained to the four cases and from these
derived a more abstract set of explanations about the relationships between school
reforms and teacher professionalism. A joint review of all the cases produced new and
consolidated data, which were expressed in qualitative form in chapters 6, 7 and 8.
Chapter 6 brings the findings from the four cases together to highlight the main factors
of developing teacher professionalism. The theorising from the consolidated data in
chapter 7 resulted in the development of a more informed framework for developing and
sustaining teacher professionalism. From this theorising, emerged a set of principles for
fostering and sustaining teacher professionalism. These principles provide guidelines for
developing a broad framework of professional development for government primary
school teachers in Karachi, where similar reforms are being initiated.
3.9 Phase Three – The Concluding Stage
Table 3.5 outlines the tasks that were completed in this phase. In this phase, I
related these more general explanations to the conceptual base model in the literature
review to derive an informed framework and principles for developing and further
enhancing teacher professionalism in government primary school teachers in Karachi.
105
Table 3.5
Research Procedures in Phase Three
Purpose Focus Question
1) Developing informed dimensions of teacher professionalism for teachers in the schools where reforms had been initiated. 2) Developing and highlighting informed themes that build the relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism on the basis of data analysed and compared with the western literature. 3) Developing an informed framework of developing and sustaining teacher professionalism. 4) Formulate a set of principles for professional development of teachers to further enhance teacher professionalism in Pakistani government primary schools where reforms had been initiated.
1) What does it mean to be a professional in Pakistani education context? 2) How can the schools be restructured or reformed to facilitate this professionalism in schools? 3) What are the relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism?
The different tables outlined the action plan of the research, which was
completed in three and a half years. The plan helped me to get from the beginning to the
end of the research. This plan helped me in clarifying ideas and gaining a good
understanding of the different stages that were involved in the research.
3.10 Dealing with Validity, Reliability, and Ethics
Regardless of the type of research, validity and reliability were concerns that
were approached through careful attention to a study’s conceptualization and the way in
which the data were collected, analysed and interpreted, and the way in which the
findings were presented. Several strategies were used to enhance the internal validity,
external validity and reliability of the mixed methods research. The following section
deals with each of these issues.
3.10.1 Validity
Internal validity deals with the question of how research findings match reality
(Burns, 2000; Litwin, 1995; Merriam, 1998; Oppenheim, 1966). Lincoln and Guba
(1985) have proposed the use of four constructs. They use the term credibility,
transferability, dependability and conformability to denote the concept of
trustworthiness in qualitative research. Creswell (2003) suggests eight strategies for
checking the accuracy of the findings. Furthermore, Merriam (1998) suggests six basic
106
strategies for enhancing the internal validity of my research. I used some of these, which
are as follows.
Member Checks – I took data and tentative interpretations back to people from whom
they were derived and asked them if the results were plausible.
Long-term observation at the research site or repeated observations of the same
phenomenon – I remained in each case site for a period of approximately four weeks in
order to increase the validity of the findings.
Use of rich, thick description – I used rich, thick descriptions to convey the findings to
help the readers get a good understanding of the setting.
Presentation of negative information – I discussed contrary information to add
credibility to the account of the cases.
Since I used mixed methods research design, it is appropriate to deal specifically
with the validity issues of the survey findings. Following on Burns’ (2000) suggestion
that content validity is most often determined on the basis of expert judgment, I gave out
my questionnaire to some educators in Pakistan. Their suggestions were incorporated
into the final draft of my instrument. Factor analysis was conducted to measure the
construct validity of the four dimensions of teacher professionalism in the questionnaire
survey. The results of these are given in the chapter four. Furthermore, validity was
inherent in the use of mixed methods strategies for data collection and data analysis. The
rigor of using of using mixed methods broadened, thickened, and deepened the
interactive base of my study (Denzin & Lincoln, 1994).
External Validity is concerned with the extent to which the findings of one study
can be applied to other situations. That is, how generalizable are the results of the
research study. (Merriam, 1998). Since the emphasis of the case study was on the
characteristics of the particular case, external validity was not of great importance
(Burns, 2000). In so far as the survey research is concerned, it is hoped that the results
of the survey analysis would be generalized to the entire population of the teachers who
participated in the study and it might well be generalized to other schools where
identical reforms had been initiated.
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3.10.2 Reliability
Ways of establishing reliability involved multiple data gathering strategies,
reporting any possible personal bias, and decisions made about data and categories
(Burns, 2000). Measures were taken to enhance the reliability of the questionnaire when
it was translated to Urdu (National Language of Pakistan) from English. Three strategies
were used to improve reliability and enable others to replicate my work. These are:
1) I translated the questionnaire from English to Urdu myself in an attempt to retain
the literal meaning that each item of questionnaire was carrying. I was able to do
that because I am bilingual person, well versed in English as well as Urdu.
2) The translated questionnaire and the original questionnaire in English were given
to another bilingual educator, who was well versed in the two languages, to read
the questionnaire specifically for the purposes of checking if the Urdu
questionnaire carried the same meaning as the English questionnaire.
3) A couple of bilingual people were asked to fill the Urdu as well as the English
questionnaire. Their responses on both the questionnaires were matched to
identify if there were any discrepancies. The reliability of the questionnaire was
greatly enhanced when no discrepancy was indicated in the two questionnaires.
This confirmed that the two questionnaires were asking the same questions.
Reliability was also measured using the internal consistency method, usually
associated with Cronbach’s Alpha coefficients and its variants. The results of these are
given in chapter 4.
3.10.3 Ethical Concerns
Ensuring validity and reliability in qualitative research involved conducting the
investigation in an ethical manner (Merriam, 1998). In order to do research in an
appropriately ethical manner certain issues were addressed. A brief written description
of the intended casework was offered to the ethical research committee and ethical
clearance was obtained in writing to do research in the selected schools (Stake, 1995).
Permission was obtained from the Directorate of Elementary Education, Government of
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Sindh, Pakistan for conducting the research in the selected case study schools (see
Appendix G) and to administer questionnaires to different schools.
Teachers’ participation in the study was voluntary. The teachers were able to
withdraw from the study if they wished. Teachers were asked to sign an informed
consent form which described the purpose of the research, its procedures, risks and
discomforts, its benefits and the right to withdraw (see Appendix C). This clarified the
situation for the teachers and also provided a degree of proof that the teachers had
agreed to take part in the study on their own free will.
Responses to questions were kept confidentially and anonymously so that the
reader of the research was unable to deduce the identity of the teachers. Identification
code numbers were given to the participating teachers of the survey research and
pseudonyms were given to the teachers in the case study research. The participants were
informed that their confidentiality and anonymity would be maintained.
3.11 Overall Summary
Eisner and Peshkin (1993) suggest that new forms of research will bring new
questions and new rules some of which will be welcome and some may not. He suggests
that there is likely to be a shift in the educational research community to broaden its
concept of what counts as educational research. It is important to recognize that there
are many paths to understanding; it is necessary to explore the plurality of these if we
wish to understand the processes and outcomes of education more comprehensively than
at present. This is one of the main reasons I explored the government primary schools in
Pakistan by using more than one methodology. Bryman (1988) supports this view by
arguing that the two research traditions (quantitative and qualitative) can be viewed as
contributing to the understanding of different aspects of the phenomenon in question.
I now begin to describe how the quantitative and qualitative research traditions
helped me understand the different aspects of the phenomenon in this research – the
relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism.
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CHAPTER FOUR
Results of the Survey Research 4.1 Introduction
In this chapter, the results of the survey research are outlined, providing a
comprehensive description of the quantitative data analysis that were undertaken to
highlight the different dimensions and sub-dimensions of teacher professionalism in
the schools where reforms had been initiated. The material in this chapter partly
addresses the first research question, “What does it currently mean to be a
professional in government primary schools where reforms had been initiated?” It
addresses this question from the perspectives of the teachers who participated in the
survey research.
4.2 Demographic Characteristics of the Teachers
The chapter begins with demographic information for the teachers who
participated in the survey research. Twenty-five male and 425 female government
primary school teachers in Karachi participated in the study. The other demographic
characteristics of the teachers are given in the tables below.
Table 4.1
Age Distribution of the Teachers
Age Number of Teachers Percentage of Teachers
Less than 20 years 6 1.3
20 - 24 years 19 4.2
25 - 29 years 62 13.8
30 - 34 years 122 27.1
35 - 39 years 78 17.3
40 - 44 years 79 17.6
45 + years 81 18.0
Missing 3 0.7
Total 450 100
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Table 4.2
Academic Qualification of the Teachers
Academic Qualification Number of Teachers Percentage of Teachers
Matriculation 93 20.7
Intermediate 133 29.6
BA/B.Sc./B.Com. 186 41.3
MA/M.Sc./M.Com. 37 8.2
Missing 1 0.2
Total 450 100
Table 4.3
Educational Qualification of the Teachers
Educational Qualification Number of Teachers Percentage of Teachers
M.Ed. 6 1.3 B.Ed. 59 13.1
CT 103 22.9 PTC 271 60.2 Other 1 0.2
Missing 10 2.2 Total 450 100
Table 4.4
Teachers' Years of Professional Experience
Professional Experience Number of Teachers Percentage of Teachers
Less than 5 years 40 8.9 5 - 10 years 116 25.8 10 - 15 years 105 23.3 15 - 20 years 51 11.3
More than 20 years 135 30.0 Missing 3 0.7
Total 126 100
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The majority of the teachers who participated in the survey research were
females. There was a good mix of teachers in terms of age and academic
qualification. Approximately 46% of the teachers were less than 35 years of age and
53% were more than 35 years of age (see Table 4.1). Nearly 50% of the teachers
had either a graduate or a post-graduate degree and about the same percentage of
teachers had undergraduate degree or school completion certificate (see Table 4.2).
All the teachers in the sample were trained. However, the teacher-training or
educational qualification was different for different teachers (see Table 4.3). Most of
the teachers were experienced with 64% of the teachers having a professional
experience of 10 years and above (see Table 4.4).
These characteristics of the teachers provide background understanding for
the future sections. The first section explores teachers’ perceptions about the four
dimensions of professionalism identified in the literature review - teacher efficacy,
teacher practice, teacher collaboration, and teacher leadership. Questions I, II, III, &
IV of the questionnaire Part B were designed to examine these dimensions on a
Likert-scale. Section two of the questionnaire attempts to explores teachers’ opinions
about the other dimensions of professionalism, which the teachers claimed to be
important. Questions V, VI & VII of Part B were designed to examine those other
dimensions with the help of closed and open-ended questions. Section three or Part
C, which consisted of four questions about the ongoing teacher development
programmes, was analysed to investigate teachers’ opinions about professional
development programmes in their schools.
The Likert scale and the single response close-ended questions of the
questionnaire were analysed using the SPSS. The first step to analysing the data was
the creation of an SPSS data file sheet. Each column in the spreadsheet was named
and each variable was labelled and given a value. Then began the task of entering the
raw data of each respondent in the data file sheet. The missing values were left
blank.
The preparation of the data file and the calculation of the frequencies paved
the way for the analysis of the three sections of the questionnaire. These are now
discussed.
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4.3 Analysis of Section One – Teachers’ Perceptions about the Four Dimensions
of Professionalism
The basis of this section is to contextualize the four dimensions of
professionalism and to investigate their practical implications in the government
primary schools in Karachi, where the different educational reforms have been
initiated. Before moving on to the details of the analysis, it is important to underline
the procedures employed for the descriptive and the factor analysis of the four
dimensions of teacher professionalism.
4.3.1 Procedures Employed for the Descriptive Analysis of the Four Dimensions
Teachers' responses to items written to investigate the four dimensions of
professionalism were collected on four Likert scales consisting of 15 items each. The
responses were converted into a numerical scale. The numerical value assigned to
each response is given below:
Strongly Agree Agree Uncertain Disagree Strongly Disagree
5 4 3 2 1
The frequency distribution of each variable was calculated, as well as the
mean score and the standard deviation using the SPSS.
4.3.2 Procedures used for the Factor Analysis of the Four Dimensions
The 15 items on the four scales were factor analysed to determine the
underlying patterns among a large number of variables (Cohen, Manion & Morrison,
2000) and to group the variables that are moderately or highly correlated with each
other (Burns, 2000). Principal Components Analysis (PCA) method was used to
extract factors. These were rotated using the Varimax Rotation to produce a more
meaningful interpretation of the underlying structure.
Prior to performing PCA the suitability of data for factor analysis was
assessed. Inspection of correlation matrix for the four dimensions revealed the
presence of many coefficients of 0.3 and above. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin value for
the teacher efficacy scale was 0.88. For the teacher practice scale, the Kaiser-Meyer-
Olkin value was 0.90. For the teacher collaboration and the teacher leadership scales,
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the values were 0.88 and 0.85 respectively. All the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin values
exceeded the recommended value of 0.6 (Pallant, 2001). The Bartlett’s Test of
Sphericity (Pallant, 2001) for the dimensions also reached statistical significance,
supporting the factorability of the correlation matrix.
Four criteria were used to extract factors. First, the criterion of simple
structure was employed in all factor analysis. This means that the items that loaded
for more than one factor were omitted to achieve a purer measure of the different
dimensions and sub dimensions of teacher professionalism. It was decided that such
items could be assigned to the factor for which they had the highest loading value,
provided that the item also contributed to the meaning of the factor. In other words
conceptual meaning was prioritised over technical results. Second, items were
evaluated for conceptual clarity. This means that those items which loaded on a
factor with a value greater than or equal to 0.40 and those which contributed
logically to the meaning on the factor were considered significant for the factor.
Thirdly, items were eliminated if they reduced substantially the internal consistency
of the items in the factor as measured by Cronbach’s Alpha. Fourth, Kaiser’s
(Bryman & Cramer, 1997) criteria and Cattell’s (Bryman & Cramer, 1997) Scree
Test method was used to decide the number of factors to be retained. Only those
factors were retained which had eigenvalues greater than 1 or which lay before the
point at which the eigenvalues seem to level off.
In order to facilitate the analysis of the compiled data, this section has been
divided into four sub-sections. Each sub-section deals with one of the dimensions of
professionalism in detail. The first sub-section analyses the teachers’ perceptions
about teacher efficacy, the second sub-section deals with teacher practice, the third
with teacher collaboration and fourth takes into account teacher leadership. The
details and the discussions about these subsections follow now.
4.4 Sub-Section One – Analysis of Teacher Efficacy Scale
This section presents results of the descriptive, factor analysis and reliability
analysis of teacher efficacy scale.
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4.4.1 Hypothetical Foundations of Teacher Efficacy Scale
Based on the results of the pilot study, the teacher efficacy scale was further
modified to include some new items, which were considered closely related to the
original items with the assumption that the modified scale will generate three factors
of five items each. Table 4.5 presents the hypothetical factors of the teacher efficacy
scale.
Table 4.5
The Hypothetical Factors of Teacher Efficacy Scale
Factor 1 Factor 2 Factor 3
Belief in achieving success with classroom tasks: Eff1: Getting through to the most difficult students. Eff2: Applying effective classroom management strategies. Eff3: Limited achievement with the students because of the home influence. Eff4: Implementing good teaching methods to help students get better grades. Eff5: Getting good results with the difficult students.
Belief in executing responsibilities for achievement: Eff6: Learning by working with the students. Eff7: Helping each child to learn. Eff8: Helping every child to make academic progress. Eff9: Making a significant difference in the lives of their students. Eff10: Successfully carrying out the responsibilities given by the principal.
Belief that change is achievable: Eff11: Bringing about change in the school. Eff12: Dealing with almost any learning problem. Eff13: Teaching other teachers about innovative teaching methods. Eff14: Influencing other teachers in the school to improve their teaching. Eff15: Sometimes feeling that it is a waste of time to do their best as a teacher.
It was presumed that the factor analysis of the teacher efficacy scale would
evidence these three factors as the main dimensions of teacher efficacy. It was with
these assumptions that the questionnaire was administered and factor analysed.
4.4.2 The Factor Analysis of the Teacher Efficacy Scale
The PCA revealed the presence of three components or factors with
eigenvalues exceeding 1, explaining 33.2%, 9.8%, and 8.1% of the variance
respectively. An inspection of the screeplot revealed a clear break after the second
factor. Using Cattel’s, 1966 (Bryman & Cramer, 2001) scree test, it was decided to
retain two factors for further investigation. The rotated solution revealed the
presence of one cross loading, which was removed and the result was two factors
with simple structure. The two factors solution explained 42.79% of the variance,
with Factor 1 contributing 32.36% and Factor 2 contributing 10.43%.
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The first factor was titled “Belief that all Aspects of Work and Change can be
Achieved” and the second factor was titled “Belief in Executing Responsibilities for
Achievement.” Table 4.6 shows these factors with their factor loading or correlation.
What seemed to occur was that the items of hypothesised Factor 1 have loaded with
hypothesised Factors 2 and 3 to form two factors (see Table 4.6). The factor loading
or correlation illustrates the relationships between the different items and the factor.
Table 4.6
Item Loadings in the Factor Analysis for Teacher Efficacy Scale
Factors Loading Mean SD
Factor 1: Belief that all aspects of work and change can be achieved. Eff 4: Implementing good teaching methods to help students get better grades.
Eff 5: Getting good results with the difficult students.
Eff11: Bringing about change in the school.
Eff12: Dealing with almost any learning problem.
Eff13: Teaching other teachers about innovative teaching methods.
Eff14: Influencing other teachers in the school to improve their teaching.
0.52
0.65
0.69
0.70
0.84
0.78
4.26
3.90
4.18
4.01
3.97
3.94
0.83 0.95
0.84
0.93
0.89
0.86
Factor 2: Belief in executing responsibilities for achievement. Eff 1: Getting through to the most difficult students.
Eff 2: Applying effective classroom management strategies.
Eff 6: Learning by working with the students.
Eff 7: Helping each child to learn.
Eff 8: Helping every child to make academic progress.
Eff10: Successfully carrying out the responsibilities given by the principal.
0.45
0.44
0.62
0.67
0.66
0.70
4.36
4.40
4.42
4.61
4.68
4.61
0.63
0.62
0.59
0.62
0.52 0.53
This analysis implies that the teachers recognised two factors, “Belief that all
Aspects of Work and Change can be Achieved” and “Belief in Executing
Responsibilities for Achievement,” as underlying dimensions of teacher efficacy.
The loading column in Table 4.6 shows that the items correlate strongly (greater than
0.4) with the factors with high correlation. The high mean scores and the low
116
standard deviation scores, in Table 4.6, show that most of the teachers have scored
high and have agreed with these items.
4.4.3 Reliability Analysis of Teacher Efficacy Scale
The internal consistency of the six-items in factor one scale was assessed
using the Cronbach Alpha technique. The scale produced an alpha of 0.8186, which
was acceptable for an attitude test (Burns, 2000). The reliability test of the five-item
second scale produced an alpha of 0.7299, which was just acceptable. However, the
analysis of the item-total statistics table revealed that the deletion of any item from
the scale would further lower the alpha score. The second scale fits the three criteria
of simple structure, meaningfulness and compliance with the scree test.
4.4.4 Discussion of the Teacher Efficacy Scale
The first factor was named “Belief that all Aspects of Work and Change can
be Achieved” because the items indicate teachers’ beliefs in their abilities to teach
effectively and to achieve good results even with the most difficult students. In
addition to demonstrating high classroom teaching efficacy, these teachers believe
that they can bring about positive change in their school. They feel confident that
they have the skills and abilities to train other teachers in their school. These teachers
think in terms of their ability to teach effectively and should also be able to influence
other teachers in their school to bring about improvement in their teaching practice.
It is important to note that the Items Eff4 and Eff5 are the only two items
from the hypothetical Factor 1 (see Table 4.5) that have loaded on the actual Factor
1. The assumption in constructing the scales was that teachers considered classroom
teaching distinct from performing other tasks in the school. Interestingly, this has not
been the case. The factor analysis combined the two hypothetical factors (Factors 1
and 3 of Table 4.5) into one Factor 1 (see Table 4.6). This demonstrates that in the
teachers’ minds the classroom related tasks and school related tasks are part of the
same construct. Another interpretation for this could be that the teachers considered
themselves as efficacious about performing school related tasks as they felt about
classroom related tasks. In other words, these teachers believed that they could teach
well, but they were also capable of doing more than classroom teaching. Perhaps
117
these findings are also the reflection of the different initiatives that have been
undertaken to enhance teacher professionalism.
It is interesting to note that mean scores for all the three items in this factor
are very high. The high mean scores of 4.61, 4.68 and 4.61 and the small SD of 0.62,
0.52, and 0.53 for the items Eff7, Eff8, Eff9 respectively show that most of the
teachers have scored high and have agreed with these items. Another important point
to note is that the hypothesized and the final factor 2 were remarkably similar. This
brings to light a strong construct in teachers’ minds about believing in their own
selves to remain committed in executing teaching and other responsibilities given by
their school principal. The findings suggest that the teachers believe that successful
execution of administrative and teaching responsibilities, such as helping children
learn, is important for enhancing their own professionalism.
Having discussed the results of the teacher efficacy in detail, it is now time to
explore the second dimension of teacher professionalism.
4.5 Sub-Section Two – Analysis of Teacher Practice Scale
This section presents the results of the descriptive and the factor analysis of
the teacher practice scale.
4.5.1 Hypothetical Foundations of Teacher Practice Scale
The teacher practice scale was piloted and the results of the pilot study
indicated three factors. Based on the results of the factor analysis, teacher practice
scale was modified to include some new items, which were considered closely
related to the actual items. The modified scale was included in the final draft of the
questionnaire with the hypothesis that it would generate three factors. These
hypothesised factors are given in the Table 4.7
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Table 4.7
The Hypothetical Foundations of the Teacher Practice Scale
Factor 1 Factor 2 Factor 3
Application of professional knowledge: Tp1: Listen to the students & offer advice. Tp2: Maintain friendly relationship with the students. Tp3: Have a strong knowledge base. Tp4: Use one teaching method in their classes. Tp5: Use a variety of teaching methods. Tp6: Use appropriate student evaluation methods. Tp7: Inform students about the actual and the indented improvements in their work. Tp8: Involve students in the making of class rules.
Striving to learn and improve: Tp9 : Continually learning and seeking new ideas to improve teaching. Tp10: Self-evaluate their performance. Tp11: Implement new teaching approaches in their classes.
Executing commitment and responsibilities: Tp12: Regard teaching as a moral responsibility. Tp13: Consider it their duty to be accountable for their actions. Tp14: Take time out of their schedule to be there for the students. Tp15: Consider it their moral responsibility to teach in ways which facilitates students’ learning.
With the teacher practice scale, the prediction was that its factor analysis
would generate these three factors. It was these predictions that the questionnaire
was administered and factor analysed.
4.5.2 Factor Analysis of the Teacher Practice Scale
The PCA revealed the presence of two components or factors with
eigenvalues exceeding 1, explaining 38.6% and 9.2% of the variance respectively.
An inspection of the screeplot also revealed a clear break after the second factor.
Using Cattel’s (Bryman & Cramer, 2001) scree test, it was decided to retain two
factors for further investigation. The rotated solution revealed the presence of two
cross loadings, which were removed to obtain simple structure. The two factors
solution explained 49.73% of the variance, with Factor 1 contributing 37.47% and
Factor 2 contributing 12.26%.
Looking at the items of the two factors, it was considered appropriate to
name the first as, “Executing Responsibilities with Commitment” and the second as
“Applying Professional Knowledge for Student Learning.” Table 4.8 presents the
factor item loadings, the item mean and the item standard deviation of all the items
in the two factors.
119
Table 4.8
Item Loadings in the Factor Analysis of Teacher Practice Scale
Factors Loadings Mean SD
Factor 1: Executing responsibilities with commitment. Tp1 : Listen to the students and offer advice.
Tp2 : Maintain friendly relationship with the students.
Tp12: Regard teaching as a moral responsibility.
Tp13: Consider it their duty to be accountable for their actions.
Tp15: Consider it their moral responsibility to teach in ways which facilitates students’ learning.
0.75
0.69
0.67
0.74
0.74
4.62
4.58
4.72
4.67
4.61
0.56
0.57
0.62
0.54
0.56
Factor 2: Applying professional knowledge for student learning. Tp3 : Have a strong knowledge base.
Tp5 : Use a variety of teaching methods.
Tp6 : Use appropriate student evaluation methods.
Tp11: Implement new teaching approaches in their classes.
Tp14: Take time out of their schedule to be there for the students.
0.59
0.80
0.60
0.62
0.50
4.42
4.31
4.39
4.30
4.24
0.66
0.79
0.65 0.80
0.76
Table 4.8 shows that the teachers recognised two dimensions, “Executing
Responsibilities with Commitment” and “Applying Professional Knowledge for
Student Learning,” of teacher practice important for enhancing their professionalism.
What seemed to have happened is that the two items from hypothesised Factor 1
have combined with hypothesised Factor 3 to form Factor 1 (see Table 4.8) and one
item from hypothesised Factor 2 have combined with Factor 1 to form Factor 2 (see
Table 4.8). It can be seen from the item loadings that the items have loaded with
high correlation (greater than 0.4). Looking at the high mean scores and the low
standard deviation, it can also be concluded that most of the teachers have agreed
with the items in the two factor scales.
4.5.3 Reliability Analysis of Teacher Practice Scale
The internal consistency of the six-item factor one scale was assessed using
the Cronbach Alpha technique. The scale produced an alpha of 0.7874, which was
acceptable for an attitude test (Burns, 2000). The reliability test of the second scale
produced an alpha of 0.7482, which was also just acceptable. The two factors also fit
the other three criteria of simple structure, meaningfulness and compliance with the
scree test.
120
4.5.4 Discussion of the Teacher Practice Scale
The high factor loadings of the items in Factor 1 show teachers’ attitude
towards “Executing Responsibilities with Commitment” as being an important
dimension of teacher professional practice. The inclusion of items Tp1 and Tp2 in
Factor 1 is interesting because it reflects teachers’ commitment to not only work
responsibly, but to also relate with the children in a friendly manner and consider
their wishes. The other interpretation for this could be that the teachers consider it
part of their moral responsibility to guide children and to maintain good relationships
with them.
Factor 2, “Applying Professional Knowledge for Student Learning,” consists
of items, which suggest that teachers consider application of the knowledge and
experimentation with different teaching approaches as important dimensions of their
professional practice. Of particular interest here is that item Tp11 of hypothetical
Factor 2 (see Table 4.7) have merged with the items of hypothetical Factor 1 (Table
4.7) to form a new Factor 2 (see Table 4.8). This can be interpreted in a number of
ways. Perhaps the teachers consider Item Tp11 as a way of implementing learning
and applying professional learning than as a way of learning. The reason for this
could also be rooted with the frequency with which the teachers are provided with
the opportunities to learn. Another important point to notice in Factor 2 is that the
loading for Item Tp5 is much higher than the loading for the other items. This
appears to suggest that the use of innovative teaching methods is a very significant
reflection on teachers’ professional practice and a major contributor in developing
their professionalism.
The high mean scores show that most of the teachers agree strongly with all
the items. The standard deviation is quite low for most of the items. This scatter of
scores around the mean shows that most of the teachers agreed or strongly agreed
with the items in the scales. In other words, most of the teachers agree that the
application of professional knowledge for learning in the different ways suggested
by the items and the execution of responsibilities in a moral fashion, were important
sub-dimensions of teacher practice.
121
With this interpretation of the teacher practice scale, I now move on the third
dimension of professionalism to explore the different ways in which the teachers
work together.
4.6 Sub-Section Three – Analysis of the Teacher Collaboration Scale
This section presents the results of the descriptive and the factor analysis of
the teacher collaboration scale.
4.6.1 Hypothetical Foundations of Teacher Collaboration Scale
The factor analysis of the piloted questionnaire produced three factors, which
were incorporated in the final draft of the questionnaire with some modifications.
These hypothesised factors along with their items are presented in Table 4.9
Table 4.9
Hypothetical Foundations of Teacher Collaboration Scale
Factor 1 Factor 2 Factor 3
Collaborating to improve teaching: TC1: Having discussions on teaching/learning issues with the other teachers. TC2: Teaching other teachers about innovative teaching techniques. TC3: Inviting other teachers to help teach in their classes. TC4: Receiving feedback on their performances from the other teachers. TC5: Learning by observing other teachers classes.
Collaborating to plan teaching activities: TC 6: Struggling alone in their classes. TC 7: Reflecting on their teaching with the other teachers. TC 8: Coordinating with the other teachers to plan effective lessons. TC 9: Planning instructional programmes with the other teachers. TC10: Working with the other teachers to plan school activities.
Administrative collective work: TC11: Using staff meetings to involve teachers in solving problems. TC12: Teachers discussing different problems and solutions during the staff meetings. TC13: Learning from the colleagues’ comments. TC14: Experienced teachers helping the new teachers. TC15: Learning new teaching / learning approaches during the staff meetings.
The teacher collaboration scale consisted of these three factors. It was with
these presumptions that the final draft of the questionnaire was factor analysed.
4.6.2 Factor Analysis of the Teacher Collaboration Scale
The PCA revealed the presence of three factors with eigenvalues exceeding
1, explaining 40.7%, 10.5%, and 8% of the variance respectively. An inspection of
the screeplot revealed a clear break after the second factor. Using Cattel’s, (Bryman
122
& Cramer, 2001) scree test, it was decided to retain two factors for further
investigation. The rotated solution revealed the presence of two cross loadings,
which were removed to obtain two factors with simple structure. The two factors
solution explained 51.80% of the variance, with Factor 1 contributing 40.68% and
Factor 2 contributing 11.11%.
Looking at the items of the factors, Factor 1 was named “Collaborating for
Planning and Teaching” and Factor 2 was named “Administrative Collective Work.”
These factors illustrated different aspects of teacher collaboration which, according
to the teachers, exist in their schools and which contributed towards further
developing their professionalism. The two factors along with their factor loadings,
mean values and standard deviation are given in Table 4.10.
123
Table 4.10
Item Loadings in the Factor Analysis of Teacher Collaboration Scale
Factors Loadings MEAN SD Factor 1: Collaborating for Planning and Teaching. TC 1: Having discussions on teaching/learning issues with the other teachers.
TC 2: Teaching other teachers about innovative teaching techniques.
TC 3: Inviting other teachers to help teach in their classes.
TC 4: Receiving feedback on their performances from the other teachers.
TC 5: Learning by observing other teachers classes.
TC 7: Reflecting on their teaching with the other teachers.
TC 8: Coordinating with the other teachers to plan effective lessons.
TC 9: Planning instructional programmes with the other teachers.
TC10: Working with the other teachers to plan school activities.
0.68
0.59
0.71
0.65
0.50
0.67
0.76 0.76
0.62
4.10
3.16
3.60
4.09
4.23
3.75
3.86 3.73
3.74
1.01
1.24 1.22 0.99
0.78 1.14
1.03 1.12
1.11
Factor 2: Administrative Collective Work. TC11: Using staff meetings to involve teachers in solving problems.
TC12: Teachers discussing different problems and solutions during the staff meetings.
TC14: Experienced teachers helping the new teachers.
TC15: Learning new teaching / learning approaches during the staff meetings.
0.84
0.86
0.62
0.82
3.92
3.90
4.27
4.06
1.09
1.07
0.81
1.01
It is clear from Table 4.10 that the teachers considered “Collaborating for
Planning and Teaching” and “Administrative Collective Work” as the two
underlying dimensions of teacher collaboration. What appears to have happened is
that the hypothetical Factors 1 and 2 have combined to form Factor 1 of Table 4.10.
Though there is variation in the mean scores of the items in the two factors, the mean
scores are still high. This appears to suggest that most of the teachers have agreed
with the items. Greater than 1 standard deviation for most of the items illustrates that
the scores are not as clustered around the mean as they were in the teacher practice
or efficacy scale.
4.6.3 Reliability Analysis of Teacher Collaboration Scale
The internal consistency of the seven-item factor 1 scale was assessed using
the Cronbach Alpha technique. The scale produced an alpha of 0.8628, which was
124
acceptable for an attitude test (Burns, 2000). The reliability test of the second scale
produced an alpha of 0.8351, which was also acceptable. The high Alpha scores
show that the items consistently measure the same aspect of teacher collaboration.
4.6.4 Discussion of the Teacher Collaboration Scale
Factor analysis has highlighted two significant dimensions of teacher
collaboration. Factor 1 comprises items, which reveals teachers’ perceptions about
the different ways in which they collaborate for teaching and for planning to enhance
their professionalism. The mean scores for all the items are quite high. However,
except for items TC4 and TC5, the SD values for the other items is greater than 1.
This confirms that the teachers’ responses are not tightly clustered around the mean.
This means that while there are teachers who appeared to have agreed with the items
in the scale, there are also those teachers who have disagreed with the items in the
scale. This is important information because it divides the teachers in two groups – a
group of those teachers who collaborate for teaching and planning in the ways
demonstrated by the items in the factor, and another group of teachers who do
collaborate in some of these ways.
Another important point to notice is that the factors have not fully loaded
according to the predictions. Hypothetical Factors 1 and 2 (see Table 4.9) have
merged to give rise to a new Factor 1 (see Table 4.10) which consists of items
related to collaborative teaching and collaborating planning. This appears to suggest
that in the teachers’ minds “Collaborating to Improve Teaching” and “Collaborating
to Plan Teaching Activities” are aspects of the same construct. This interpretation
implies that both, collaboration for improving teaching and collaboration for
planning teaching, are equally important for enhancing their professionalism.
Factor 2 loaded according to the predictions, but the number of items had
reduced from five to four. However, the four items have high inter-item correlation
and have produced a high Alpha score, which verifies that the items are measuring
different aspects of administrative collective. Interestingly in this case too, the item
means are high and the SD values demonstrate a spread of responses. Therefore, for
a group of teachers, administrative collective work provided them with opportunities
125
to be involved in school matters and to learn new teaching approaches, but for the
other group of teachers that was not the case.
This discussion on teacher collaboration leads to the exploration of the fourth
dimension of teacher professionalism – teacher leadership.
4.7 Sub-Section Four – The Analysis of Teacher Leadership Scale
This section presents the results of the descriptive and the factor analysis of
the teacher leadership scale.
4.7.1 Hypothetical Foundations of Teacher Leadership Scale
Based on the results of the pilot study, the teacher leadership scale was factor
analysed. The factor analysis produced two factors, which were included in the final
draft of the questionnaire with some modifications. These hypothetical factors, along
with the items they consist of, are given below in Table 4.11
Table 4.11
The Hypothetical Foundations of Teacher Leadership Scale
Factor 1 Factor 2
Democratic Leadership (Classroom leadership, teacher involvement in decision making, delegation of authority): TL 1: Teachers in control of their classroom affairs. TL 2: Authority to choose their teaching methods. TL 3: Involved in decision making about the school curriculum. TL 4: Involved in planning school improvement activities. TL 5: Sharing the responsibility of making many important decisions. TL 6: Given the opportunities to undertake leadership roles (head- teacher, subject co-ordinator, project in-charge etc.). TL 7: Given the opportunities to monitor teacher training programmes. TL 8: Given the responsibility of planning school activities. TL 9: Given the responsibility of mentoring new teachers in the school. TL10: Being able to express their personal views at the staff meetings. TL11: Distribution of power throughout the school organization.
Centralised leadership: TL12: Location of power at the top. TL13: Decision making taking the form of a centralised approach. TL14: Administration inviting advice from the teachers & then making decisions. TL15: Administration making most of the decisions without involving the teachers.
Unlike the other dimensions, the hypothesis with teacher leadership was that
it would identify these two factors. It was with these assumptions that the
questionnaire was administered and factor analysed.
126
4.7.2 Factor Analysis of the Teacher Leadership Scale
The PCA revealed the presence of four components or factors with eigenvalues
exceeding 1, explaining 33.4%, 11.1%, 8.5% and 7.5% of the variance respectively.
An inspection of the screeplot revealed a clear break after the third factor. However,
Using Cattel’s (Bryman & Cramer, 2001) scree test, it was decided to retain three
factors for further investigation. The rotated solution revealed the presence of four
cross loadings, which were removed to obtain three factors with simple structure.
The three factors solution explained 54.48% of the variance, with Factor 1
contributing 31.24%, Factor 2 contributing 13.55% and the third factor contributing
9.69% of the variance.
Considering the items of Factor 1, it was titled, “School Leadership.” Factor 2 and
Factor 3 are titled, “Classroom Leadership” and “Centralised Leadership”
respectively. The three factors along with the inter-item correlation values, the item
mean values and the standard deviation are presented in Table 4.12
Table 4.12
Item Loadings in the Factor Analysis for Teacher Leadership Scale
Factors Loading Mean SD
Factor 1: School Leadership (delegated authority and teacher involvement in decision making) TL 6: Given the opportunities to undertake leadership roles (head-teacher, subject co-ordinator, project in-charge).
TL 7: Given the opportunities to monitor teacher training programmes.
TL 8: Given the responsibility of planning school activities.
TL 9: Given the responsibility of mentoring new teachers.
TL11: Distribution of power throughout the school organization.
0.66
0.66
0.76
0.78
0.54
3.13
2.96
3.56
3.10
3.50
1.37
1.36
1.24 1.30
1.33
Factor 2: Classroom Leadership TL 1: Teachers in control of their classroom affairs.
TL 2: Authority to choose their teaching methods.
0.77
0.71
4.38
4.43
0.74
0.71
Factor 3: Centralised Leadership TL12: Location of power at the top.
TL13: Decision making taking the form of a centralised approach.
0.62
0.65
4.17
3.97
1.06
1.11
127
From the Table 4.12, it is clear that the teachers consider “School Leadership
(delegated authority),” “Classroom Leadership” and “Centralised Leadership” as the
important dimensions of teacher leadership. The items have shown high correlation
of the items with the factor. The mean scores ranging from 3.10 to 4.43 and the
standard deviation greater than 1 for most of the items.
4.7.3 Reliability Analysis of Teacher Leadership Scale
The internal consistency of all the factors was measured using the Cronbach
Alpha. The first factor produced an Alpha of 0.7950, which was acceptable. The
Alpha scores for the Factor 2 and Factor 3 were 0.5913 and 0.5467 respectively.
Despite the fact that these factors produced low Alpha score, they was retained
because of their meaningfulness to the study and also because of high inter-item
correlation.
4.7.4 Discussion of Teacher Leadership Scale
The results of the factor analysis of the teacher leadership can be explained in
a number of ways. Even though the formation of hypothesized Factor 1 (see Table
4.11) was based on the results of the pilot study, yet it proved to be too broad for the
teachers who participated in the study. In the teachers’ minds there were two distinct
factors – one to do with the teacher leadership at the school level (see Factor 1, Table
4.12) and the other to do with the teacher classroom leadership (see Factor 2, Table
4.12) – within the broad scale of democratic leadership. The inter-item correlation
shows that both, Factor 1 and Factor 2, are important sub-dimensions of teacher
leadership. However, they measure teacher leadership at different levels. What this
could mean is that the teachers consider assuming leadership roles both at the class
and the school level important for enhancing their professionalism, they are not
included within one construct. They measure teacher professionalism at different
levels.
Another interesting finding is the variation in the teachers’ responses. The
SD values in Factor 1 divide the teachers in two groups. One group of teachers
undertook leadership roles at the school level in the ways illustrated by the items in
the factor, and the other group of teachers who did not undertake leadership roles in
some of these ways.
128
On the other hand, the mean values for the items in Factor 2 and Factor 3 are
high, with relatively small SD values. This means that while most of the teachers
agree with the items, there are also those teachers who do not. Looking the mean
and SD values of Factors 1 and 2, it can be inferred that the teachers may not enjoy
as many opportunities to undertake school leadership tasks as they do to assume
classroom leadership roles.
Even though Factor 3 had produced a very low Alpha Score, it was retained
to indicate the fact that the government schools in Karachi, including the schools
where the reforms had been initiated, work under the centralised management.
However, the mean scores of the items in Factors 1 and 2 indicate that the teachers in
the schools where reforms had been initiated are given the opportunities to undertake
leadership roles at the school level and also enjoy good classroom authority.
Interestingly the teachers have illustrated in Item 11, that within the overall
centralised set up, the power is also distributed throughout the school organization at
the school level. In essence, what the data are saying is that within the centralised
school system teachers in the schools where reforms have been initiated are now
being provided with the opportunities to take their classroom decisions and
undertake leadership roles, and in this way this way the power is distributed
throughout the school organization.
4.8 Overall Discussion about the Four Dimensions
With this discussion, I have reached the end of my analysis and interpretation
of Section 1. The findings about the four dimensions and their interpretation have
shown that the teachers in government primary schools where reforms had been
initiated are professionals to the extent the different dimensions of teacher efficacy,
teacher practice, teacher collaboration and teacher leadership have demonstrated.
Before I move on to the Section 2, it is important to point out the probable reasons
for the slight differences in the hypothesised and the actual factors of the four
dimensions of professionalism. One reason for these could be the sample size. The
hypothesised factors are the result of the pilot study for which a sample of only 100
teachers was selected. On the other hand, the refined draft of the questionnaire was
administered to a large sample of about 550 teachers. The other reason could be the
difference in the nature of the reform initiatives. Some of the reform initiatives in the
129
pilot study were not similar to the reform initiatives in the actual study. However, it
is also important to note that the hypothesised and the actual factors are not
significantly different. In fact, the similarities between the actual factors (see Tables
4.6, 4.8, 4.10 & 4.12) and the hypothesised factors (see Tables 4.5, 4.7, 4.9 & 4.11)
also speak for the reliability of the different dimensions.
The reliability of these dimensions was also confirmed when the total sample
of 450 teachers was split into half on the basis of median scores of the teachers’ age,
educational qualification, experience and school size and the same procedures of the
factors analysis were applied to both the halves (consisting of approximately more
than 200 teachers in each half). The factors obtained from a smaller sample were
exactly the same as the factors of the total sample. In other words the young and the
old (age) teachers, the less experienced and the more experienced teachers, the
teachers with less training and more training, and the teachers working in the small
and the big size schools conceived teacher professionalism in terms of the same
dimensions as were highlighted by the teachers in the total sample. These findings
add to the validity and the reliability of the factors obtained for the four dimensions
of professionalism.
Having argued these points, it is now time to draw attention to those other
dimensions that the teachers have demonstrated as important highlighters of their
professionalism. These other dimensions of professional are given in Section B,
which is now discussed.
4.9 Analysis of Section Two – Teachers’ Perceptions about the Other
Dimensions of Professionalism
In response to Question V (Part B) of the questionnaire (see Appendix A), a
total number of 161 out of 450 teachers or 36% of the teachers illustrated that there
were other dimensions of professionalism. Two hundred and fifty-five or 57% of the
teachers did not indicate any new dimension of professionalism. Seven percent of the
teachers chose not to respond to the question.
In Question VI of the questionnaire, teachers were asked to list those other
dimensions that they felt were important and they were also asked to explain why
130
those dimensions were important. Reading through the teachers’ explanation it
became clearer, that the dimensions highlighted by the teachers as important
conveyed the same ideas that were conveyed by the different items in the four
dimensions of professionalism. These data should be interpreted cautiously because
an analysis of teachers’ responses indicate that many teachers referred to subscales
of one of the four dimensions and simply pointed out why they were significant for
them. There were also some teachers who only agreed to there being other important
dimensions, but they chose not to list or explain those dimensions. It was because of
the open nature of the question and the varied responses from the teachers, it was
thought more appropriate to analyse this question manually.
In Question VII of the questionnaire, teachers were asked to pick out the two
dimensions that they considered more important and rank them as the most
important dimensions. Based on the teachers’ explanation and their ranking of the
dimensions, responses were classified into five broad categories. These categories
along with the dimensions they represent and some sample explanations are given in
the Table 4.13.
131
Table 4.13
The Other Dimensions of Teacher Professionalism
Other Dimension Frequency Total %
I Teacher Knowledge and Capability • Teaching capability in their subject areas. • Knowledge about environment • Qualification. • Understanding of child psychology. • Knowledge about children’s mental capability. • Knowledge about children’s home environment. • Knowledge of individual differences among the children. • Subject specialization. • Knowledge about new subjects. • General knowledge. • Use of teaching aids. Total
06 02 03 17 02 05 04 02 02 02 05 50
31%
II Teachers’ sense of Responsibility • Punctuality • Implementation in the class of the new teaching techniques learnt at the different courses. • Honesty and commitment
Total
18
07 09 34
21%
III Teachers’ relationships with the others • Teacher / principal collaboration. • Friendly relationship with the children. • Teacher / children collaboration. • Teacher’s kind and pleasant way of speaking. • Teacher’s mannerism. • Teacher / parent collaboration. Total
02 09 02 05 11 02 31
19%
IV Teacher Empowerment • Teachers’ involvement in extra curricular activities. • Allocation of teaching subjects to the teachers according to their teaching capabilities. • Not to overburden teachers with work. • Giving teachers authority to decide what they want to teach. • Teacher authority in planning the syllabus. • No external or internal pressure on the teachers. • Giving teachers’ authority according to their own thinking and capabilities. Total
06
04 02 03 02 02
03 22
14% V Teacher Willingness to Work • Love for ones own profession. • Endeavour to improve ones own work. • Learn and help others learn.
07 05 04 16
10%
No Response
08
5%
Overall Total 161 100%
132
A close perusal of Table 4.13 reveals the links between the four dimensions
of teacher professionalism which were derived from the theory and the other
dimensions which the teachers have indicated as important. For example, the first
classification, “Teacher Knowledge and Capability” is quite similar to the
dimension, “Teacher Practice.” Seventeen out of 50 teachers in the first classification
believe that a professional teacher should be able to understand child psychology.
Teacher practice scale contains items, such as teachers teach in ways that facilitate
students’ learning, involving students in the classroom management etc. that indicate
teachers’ understanding of the child psychology. In fact, some of the items of the
teacher efficacy scale also reflect teachers’ understanding of the child psychology.
Situated in the items such as, “I can get good results with students other teachers
have found difficult and I believe that each and every child can learn” are teachers’
understanding of child psychology.
Similarly, classification two, “teachers’ sense of responsibility” and
classification five, “teacher willingness to work” contain items which convey the
meaning as being conveyed by the items in the teacher practice scale. Following the
same trend, Classifications III and IV are quite similar to the two dimensions -
teacher collaboration and teacher leadership.
In short, the analysis of the other dimensions did not reveal any dimension
which was completely different from the four dimensions or which could add new
knowledge or new ideas to what the analysis of the four dimensions had already
revealed.
At this stage the explanation and the interpretation of the quantitative data
about the different dimensions of teacher professionalism comes to completion. At
the time of designing the questionnaire it was thought meaningful to add a section
about the professional development programmes that the teachers had participated in
the last two years to enhance their professionalism. These professional development
initiatives will be discussed now in section three.
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4.10 Analysis of Section Three – Ongoing Teacher Development Programmes
Section 3 explored the different ongoing professional development
programmes that teachers had participated in the last two years to enhance their
professionalism. In response to Question I of Part C of the questionnaire (see
Appendix A), 46% (206 out of 450) of the teachers indicated that they had attended
teacher-training courses in the last two years, 49% (222 out of 450) of the teachers
had not attended any courses and 5% of the teachers chose not to respond to the
question.
There are different reasons for the relatively high proportion of the teachers
not having attended any professional development activity in the last two years. The
reform initiatives included in this study cover a span of ten years. The document
analysis has illustrated that some reforms had completed their duration in the schools
in the late nineties. Therefore, one reason for the relatively low teacher participation
in professional development programmes is that the educational reforms were
initiated in some schools two years ago. Analysis of the case studies has also
indicated some reasons. One reason is that some reforms were mostly related to the
bringing about administrative changes in schools. They did not provide for teachers’
individual professional development activities. Another interpretation is that all the
teachers in school were not provided with the opportunities to attend some types of
professional development courses. Some reforms were geared towards training a
group of selected teachers. Some of the teachers decided not to participate in the
teacher training courses because of certain commitments. Some of the teachers who
had been teaching for more than twenty years did not feel the need to participate in
the professional development activities. It is hard to pinpoint one reason because of
the differences in each school’s context and situation.
The total number of 206 teachers (46%), who had participated in the
professional development activities in the last two years, were also asked to indicate
how frequently they had attended different types of courses. Table 4.14 presents
results of these teachers’ responses.
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Table 4.14
The Frequency of Attending Teacher Training / Professional Development
Programmes in the Last Two Years
Teacher Training or
Professional Development Once a month
Once in 3 mths
Once in 6 mths
Once a year
Once in 2 years
Total
Frequency (Percentage)
1 School based workshops
34 (17%)
78 (37%)
13 (6%)
14 (7%)
35 (17%)
174 (84%)
2 School based meetings with colleagues
10 (5%)
26 (13%)
27 (13%)
24 (12%)
29 (14%)
116 (57%)
3 Workshops & teacher training activities arranged by TRC
10 (5%)
17 (8%)
07 (3%)
05 (2%)
04 (2%)
43 (20%)
4 Teacher Training courses by IED
11 (5%)
38 (18%)
13 (6%)
3 (1%)
6 (3%)
71 (33%)
5 Educational Conferences and Seminars
12 (6%)
07 (3%)
01 (-)
01 (-)
21 (10%)
42 (19%)
Table 4.14 illustrates that 174 out of 206 or 84% of teachers attended the
school-based workshops. The ratio for the school workshops is the highest as
compared to other professional development programmes. This comes as no surprise
as the school-based workshops are of shorter duration and easier for the teachers to
attend, particularly when the workshop is being arranged in their own school. What
is interesting to notice is the low percentage for the school-based meetings with the
colleagues. The schools clearly do not have the culture of teachers learning together
through planned meetings and learning sessions. Twenty-nine out of 116 or 14% of
the teachers only get to have meetings with their colleagues once in two years. The
reasons for this are further explored in the qualitative analysis (Chapter 5).
The teachers were also asked to point out the extent to which the teacher
training courses were linked to their and their schools’ needs in Questions III and IV
of Part C of the questionnaire. Teachers’ responses to these questions are
summarised in the Table 4.15.
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Table 4.15
The Usefulness of Teacher Training / Professional Development Programmes
Teacher Training Courses Always Most of
the times Sometimes Never Missing
values Frequency (Percentage)
Linked to the teachers’ needs
22
(5%)
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(30%)
171
(48%)
27
(6%)
95
(21%)
Linked to the schools’ needs
28
(6%)
136
(30%)
143
(32%)
49
(11%)
94
(21%)
Interestingly, Table 4.15 shows that equal numbers (21%) of teachers chose
not to respond to this question. From among those who responded, only about 5% to
6% of teachers were of the opinion that the teacher training courses were always
linked to their or their schools’ needs. Equal numbers of teachers (30%) believe that
the teacher training courses are linked to their and their schools’ needs most of the
times. Even though the teachers’ responses to the two items are similar, there is a
slight disparity in the last two columns that appears to indicate that the teacher
training courses are more useful for the individual teachers than they are for the
schools as a whole.
4.11 Overall Summary
Based on the quantitative aspects of study it can be argued that tentative
responses can be given to the research question, “What does it currently mean to be a
professional in government primary schools in Karachi where reforms had been
initiated?” Teachers have indicated meanings in terms of the different dimensions
and sub dimensions of teacher professionalism prevalent in their schools.
The government primary school teachers have pointed out the two important
dimensions of teacher efficacy, which they believe are important for enhancing
teacher professionalism. These are:
a. Belief that all aspects of work and change can be achieved.
b. Belief in executing responsibilities for achievement.
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The teachers appear to think about professionalism in terms of the capability
to achieve success in different types of work, such as dealing with learning problems
or getting good results with the difficult students etc. Being a professional teacher
means that by working in this way she or he can influence the other teachers in the
school and can bring about change in the school. This sub-dimension is very similar
to Beck and Murphy’s (1996) two core components of teacher efficacy highlighted
in the literature review (see chapter 2, section 2.6.1).
The teachers also believe that a professional teacher should be able to
execute different responsibilities successfully, whether it is helping children make
academic progress or it is carrying out the other school responsibilities successfully.
Tschannen-Moran et al. (1998) also give several examples that teacher efficacy has
been linked to level of professional commitment for both in-service elementary,
middle school teachers and pre-service teachers.
Moving further to the second dimension of teacher professionalism, the
teachers have demonstrated two dimensions of teacher practice that are important for
enhancing their professionalism. These dimensions are:
a. Executing responsibilities with commitment.
b. Applying professional knowledge for student learning.
The government primary school teachers have illustrated their
professionalism in terms of being responsible and committed to their profession. The
teachers showed their commitment by indicating that they work responsibly and they
teach in ways which facilitate students’ learning. These teachers use a variety of
teaching methods, evaluate students’ performances and implement new teaching
approaches in their classes because they want to apply their professional knowledge
for student learning. Teachers endeavour to apply professional knowledge in their
classes and work responsibly. These findings concur Slavin's (1991) description of
effective teachers and Eraut’s (1995) description of a professional practitioner in
literature review (see chapter 2, section 2.6.2). Slavin (1991) emphasises that
effective teachers motivate students to learn, group students for instruction, and
assess the students' learning. Eraut (1995) argues that being a professional practitioner
implies a moral commitment to serve the interest of students. The standards of
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professional teaching practice set by the National Board for Professional Teaching
Standards (Kelly, 2000), given in the literature review (see chapter 2, section 2.6.2)
also recognise teacher commitment, strong knowledge base, the use of different
teaching methods and self-evaluation as important indicators of professional teacher
practice. The teachers in the survey have also demonstrated these aspects of
professional teaching practice as important indicators of their professionalism.
The analysis suggests that teacher collaboration has also emerged as an
important dimension of teacher professionalism. The two dimensions of teacher
collaboration, which the government primary school teachers have demonstrated as
important for sustaining professional practice in their schools are as follows:
a. Collaborating for Planning and Teaching.
b. Administrative Collective Work.
Holding discussions with the other teachers on teaching issues, reflecting on
their teaching with the other teachers and coordinating with teachers to plan effective
lessons have been revealed by the teachers as some of the important aspects of their
collaboration. In short, teachers collaborate for planning and teaching in different
ways. In addition, the data suggest that the school administration provides teachers
with the opportunities to be involved in administrative collective work in order to
discuss different teaching problems or to learn about new teaching/learning
approaches during the staff meetings. The literature (see chapter 2, section 2.6.3)
refers to the work of several educators who regard collaboration is an essential
ingredient of teacher development and thus school improvement.
The teachers have also revealed that their professionalism involves leading
both within and outside their classrooms. They have highlighted the following three
dimensions as important for promoting teacher professionalism.
a. School Leadership (delegated authority)
b. Centralised Leadership
c. Classroom Leadership
The teachers have demonstrated that they undertake leadership roles which
are related to school tasks such as being the subject coordinator or mentor for new
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teachers or the project in-charge. They also have the authority to choose any
teaching method and to be in control of their classroom affairs. Teachers believe that
the delegation of authority and classroom authority are indicators of their
professionalism.
These dimensions of professionalism reported by the teachers in the survey
are in agreement with the characteristics of teacher leaders identified as important in
the review of the literature (see chapter 2, section 2.6.4). For instance, Cooper and
Conley (1991) assert that teacher professionalism greatly depends on such factors as
level of discretion, control over work, ability to mobilize resources, and inclusion in
school decisions.
These findings are important for a number of reasons and have strong
implications for future teacher development programmes. The high mean scores for
the teacher efficacy and teacher practice scales illustrate that the teachers consider
themselves confident and capable professionals. These findings are in contrast with
the way teachers in the government primary schools are generally described as
having detached and non-committal attitude and relying on teacher talk methods to
fill students minds with different facts (see chapter 2). The empirical data suggest
that this generalization about the teachers, does not apply to the teachers in the
government primary schools where reforms have been initiated.
The mean scores for the teacher collaboration and teacher leadership scales
may not be as high as the scores for the other scales, but they are high enough to
indicate that most of the teachers are collaborating in a number of ways and are
engaging in leadership activities. This has strong implications for the policy makers
to design professional development programmes, which engage teachers as capable
professionals in their own learning because the teachers believe that they are
confident and capable of undertaking different tasks in their schools to improve their
practice.
With these findings I move to chapter 5 to explore and describe the different
ways in which the reform initiatives have been able to further enhance teacher
professionalism.
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CHAPTER FIVE
Lessons from the Four Case Stories 5.1 Introduction
This chapter presents the stories of the four case study schools, providing
comprehensive descriptions of the relationships between the school reforms and the
teacher professionalism. Each case study is discussed in detail and consequently the
chapter is long and contains extensive rich data. However, I have decided to keep the
case studies within one chapter rather than reduced their significance by placing the bulk
of the data into an appendix.
The details of conducting the within and across case study analysis have been
given in chapter 3. However, it is important to note here that case study reporting adopts
a combination of what Guba and Lincoln (1985) describe as the scientific journal case
study format and Yin’s (1989) narrative report. This means that each case’s narrative
structure was a “critical realist” tale, describing the context in which the enquiry took
place, analysing and describing the details of the data obtained, summarizing the details
with the help of summaries and figures, incorporating edited quotes from the
participants to add meaning and value to the descriptions, and stating my interpretation
and discussion of the outcomes of the enquiry.
Multiple case studies were handled by having a section for each individual case.
The main task of the single case study analysis was to confirm the dimensions of teacher
professionalism, and to identify, describe and interpret the relationships between the
school reforms and teacher professionalism in each of the case study schools. Across
case consideration will be presented separately in the synthesis chapter. The material in
this chapter will complement the first research questions and addresses the second and
the third research questions within each case, “What are the relationships between
school reforms and teacher professionalism and how can government primary schools in
Karachi be reformed to further enhance and sustain teacher professionalism?” With this
introduction I begin the stories of each of the case study schools.
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The Story of the Alif Government Girls’ Primary School
My journey of investigating the relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism began with a government girls’ primary school in the South of Karachi. After my very first visit to this school in early August 2001, I remember saying to myself, “This school is going to be one of my case study schools.” I couldn’t tell what it was, but there was definitely something unique about the school that could only be discovered after exploration and hence began the detailed exploration of Alif School (Personal reflection).
5.2 The Alif School’s Background and Structure
Alif Government Girls’ Primary School (GGPS) is housed in a big, two storied
brick and cement building. However, this building is quite invisible to the general public
because it is situated in a narrow, congested street, which is some distance from the
main road. This could be because the school is located in one of the most thickly
populated and underprivileged towns of Karachi.
Alif GGPS began in 1937. Sixty-five years ago, the school building was made of
mud bricks and wood and it consisted of only five rooms. The school started with one
headmistress, one teacher and 51 children. There were no desks or chairs. Children used
to sit on the mats.
In 1973, the new school building began to be constructed and proper cement and
brick houses began to be built in the adjoining areas. The school building was completed
in three years and since then this building has been Alif School’s home. At present there
are about 700 children, 23 teachers, one headmistress, one school in-charge1, two
maasis2 and one peon3 in the school. Classes run from kindergarten (KG) to class five.
Except for KG, all the classes have more than one section, making a total of 18 sections
in the school. At an average, there are 40 children in each class. The school begins at
7:45 in the morning and ends at 12:20 in the afternoon.
1 The school in-charge is the vice principal of the school. 2 Maasis are the cleaning ladies. 3 Peon is the handy man.
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There are now enough desks and chairs in the school for all the children. The
children’s work is exhibited in the classrooms in different ways. Sometimes it adorns the
shelves and the tables and sometimes it is pasted on soft boards. The Kindergarten or
the KG is the school’s most colourful class. It has different coloured desks and chairs
and a beautiful mat in the centre of the room. Sometimes the children are seen playing
on the mat along with their teacher, while the other times they are sitting on the chairs
listening to their teacher’s story. The room has different types of teaching aids and
playing material for the children, and the soft boards are decorated with the children’s
work.
5.3 Characteristics of the Alif School Children and the Parents
Most of the students come from the families of low socio-economic status. A
small number of fathers are traders or own small businesses and the women are
housewives. Most men are labourers on daily wages and the women work as cleaning
ladies in different places. Some parents in this community cannot afford to buy books
for their children. For such cases, the teachers and the Head4 collect funds from different
sources to buy books and resources for the children.
Most of the parents are illiterate and so it becomes difficult for them to help their
children with the homework. However, according to the Head, they are concerned about
their children receiving good quality education and can share opinions about the
classroom teaching. If the class teacher has not come to the school on any day, the
parents come enquiring about that teacher the very next day.
According to the teachers, the Alif School children are more confident now since
the implementation of reform initiatives in their school. They have also begun to take
more interest in their studies. The school also encourages co-curricular activities for the
children. The school has a musical band of students, consisting of 30 members. The
band has performed in many government schools. The students have also performed in
the PT (Physical Training) display in the schools' sports event organized by the then
4 The Head is the school principal.
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District South. It was performed by 300-400 children. Time is also set aside for the
children to be involved in co-curricular activities such as sewing, sports and art and craft
work.
5.4 Characteristics of the Alif School Educators
Table 5.1 presents the characteristics of the educators who participated in the
interview process.
Table 5.1
Characteristics of the Alif School Educators Who Participated in the Interview
Name Characteristics
Jeem Jeem is a young teacher. She is between 25-30 years of age. She has done Bachelor in Arts and also has a Primary Teaching Certificate (PTC). She has a teaching experience of about 10 years and has been in Alif School for the past five years. Jeem comes from an educated background. She is also a Master Trainer.
Chay Chay is a young teacher. She is between 25-30 years of age. She has done Bachelor in Art and also has a Teaching Certificate (CT). She comes from an educated background. She has a teaching experience of 5-9 years. Before joining the Alif School six years ago, Chay used to teach in a private school. She is also a Master Trainer.
Hay Hay is an experienced teacher. She is between 40-45 years of age. She has done Intermediate in Art and also has a PTC. She has more than 20 years teaching experience. She has been teaching in the Alif School for more than 10 years. Hay is the school in-charge and a Master Trainer too.
Khay Khay is an experienced teacher. She is between 40-45 years of age. She has done Master in Art and also has a PTC. She has about 20 years of teaching experience and has been associated with the Alif School for more than 10 years. Khay comes from an educated background.
Head The present Head or Headmistress has been leading this school for the past four years. The Head has an extensive teaching and administrative experience of more than 20 years. Before becoming the principal, she was the Alif School’s in-charge for more about 15 years. She is between 45-50 years of age. She has done Matriculation and also has PTC. She has attended many teacher-training courses.
Manager The Reform Manager is the Senior Programme Manager in Teacher’s Resource Centre. She has an extensive administrative experience. She has been involved with several school improvement projects at the primary school level. She has also made a significant contribution in the field of Early Childhood Education. She has been working with the government textbook board to revive textbooks from classes 1- 5.
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5.5 Primary Education Programme (PEP) and its Purposes
Educational reforms came to the Alif School in 1997 as a result of the
partnerships between the government and the Teachers Resource Centre (TRC), which
is a Non-Government Organization (NGO). TRC initiated its Primary Education
Programme (PEP) in this school. While the teachers acknowledge the usefulness of the
other training that they have received, it is the PEP that they give full credit for
improving educational practice in their school and for changing their school into a
‘light-house’ or a ‘model’ school.
According to the reform manager, TRC’s vision of “Whole School
Development” is very much grounded in the previous experiences of initiating teacher-
training programmes in the government primary schools, and is also derived from the
Western literature about the school-based management and the whole school
development models.
TRC began its project by developing partnerships between different members of
the school community – the teachers, the school principal, the school supervisors, the
education officers, the parents, the peon and the maasis. This partnership was developed
with the help of different meetings and strengthened by the different workshops, which
were attended by the different partners or stakeholders (as TRC called them). Separate
workshops were also arranged for all the supervisors and the headmistresses about
developing and leading a school into a model school. The reform manager considered
the development of partnership crucial to help each partner or stakeholder understand
the school vision, its development plan, and the way it would be taken forward.
TRC worked with the “Results-Based Management (RBM) Tool” for the
development of institutional capacity. This model looked at the whole results chain - the
expected outcome and the actual achievements. The development of the institutional
capacity required the development of the different actors or partners in the target
schools. TRC developed the capacity of the schoolteachers using an action research
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approach of planning, conducting workshops, doing follow-up work and reflection,
which resulted in the preparation of more workshops.
TRC also conducted meetings with the different partners to review progress and
to discuss future plans. The lessons from the workshops and the interactions with the
partners were documented. These were disseminated to share the findings with the
government, NGOs and development agencies.
The reform manager proudly stated that PEP has been able to achieve its
objective in the sense that it has produced practical working models of schools where
whole school development approach has been successful. It has also been successful in
further enhancing teacher professionalism.
The reform manager gave several reasons for the successful implementation of
PEP. However, the most important is the development of the common school reform
vision by getting the school community involved, which led to the success of PEP.
I think one of the main factors that have resulted in the success of PEP in Alif School has been the common vision and the ownership for it. There was a feeling of being involved and of being given importance. (Manager)
It is beyond the scope of this case study to describe TRC’s whole-school
development approach in detail. This research has focused on the measures taken by the
TRC to develop teacher capacity. It is with this background about the purposes of
initiating PEP in the Alif School that I go on to the next section of reporting the
relationships between PEP and the teacher professionalism.
5.6 The Relationships between PEP and Teacher Professionalism
The Alif School teachers considered themselves professionals and experienced a
sense of professionalism in their work. The main definitions of teacher professionalism
that emerged during the interviews with the teachers were: professional knowledge and
expertise, interest in work, capability to teach in a confident manner, commitment to
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improve student performance, willingness to learn and to experiment, teacher honesty
and willingness to work with the other teachers. Probing questions with the teachers
revealed that their views of teacher professionalism were not very different from the
different dimensions of professionalism that have been derived from the theory and the
quantitative analysis.
One teacher also highlighted ‘Professional Attitude’ as the main dimension of
professionalism:
I think ‘attitude’ is the most important dimension of professionalism because I have noticed many people using their good attitude to get people to do the most difficult task. Your attitude should be such that a person listens to you and agrees to what you are saying. (Jeem)
During my conversations with the teachers it became apparent that these
dimensions of professionalism were developed when TRC implemented PEP in their
school. The following section of the report will first describe the different initiatives
taken by the TRC to develop teacher professionalism, and then it will discuss the
findings and explore the future implications.
5.6.1 The Relationships between PEP and Teacher Efficacy
The teachers reported that after attending TRC workshops, they began to believe
that they could perform different types of classroom and school related tasks. The TRC
workshops improved teachers’ knowledge about teaching and learning, and also created
a non-threatening environment for the teachers to implement new teaching methods and
to achieve success with the children.
According to all the teachers, it was when they achieved success in
implementing the new methods and in improving students’ performances that their
beliefs in their own abilities to achieve success in the class and the children related work
increased.
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When I have the lessons planned and I have prepared myself mentally and also with the different resources, then I'm not scared or worried about anything. However, before the TRC training if anyone came into my classroom I would panic or I would worry because I wasn't prepared. (Hay)
Teachers recounted that it was PEP team’s friendly and encouraging attitude that
helped them overwhelmingly in discovering their hidden potentials and realizing what
they were capable of doing. The TRC encouraged teachers to come forward with their
ideas. They respected the teachers’ points of view and praised them for trying.
Sometimes, when the children keep on asking us the same things again and again, we become irritated. However, TRC never became irritated. They kept on explaining the same thing again and again, till it was clear to us. It is because of their good attitude that we have developed so much confidence. (Jeem)
Jeem believed that if it was not for TRC, she would still be hiding in some
corner, too scared to come forward and speak.
TRC is solely responsible for enhancing our confidence. (Jeem)
Chay also elaborates these views. When TRC respected her sense of privacy, she
began to believe that her work was good and she gained more confidence to improve her
performance.
They never pointed out our mistake in front of the others. They sat down with us later and explained our mistake to us very nicely. (Chay)
According to Hay, what she required was somebody to acknowledge her efforts
and tell her that her work was good.
If you can find somebody who can appreciate what you are doing, then in your heart you become certain that you can produce good work. We then get a ‘We can do’ feeling. TRC did this a lot with us. (Hay)
Khay claimed that if it was not for TRC, she would not have found the courage
to even talk to me. She used to be so shy. The training gave her the confidence to get
even the difficult tasks done.
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The teachers reported that now they knew so many teaching techniques, they
could handle any subjects without prior preparation in case of surprise visits. Teachers
gave a recent example of a team of educators from Karachi and North of Pakistan that
visited Alif School. They were very impressed with teachers’ poise and self-belief.
Sharing light on the same dimension of teacher efficacy, the school Head
commented that before the PEP training teachers would not experiment with new
methods because they were not sure if they would be successful. Now they teach
successfully by using different teaching methods. In this way, PEP has managed to
develop teachers’ belief that all aspects of work and change can be done, which the
results of the survey research has already identified as an important indicator of teacher
efficacy
All aspects of work or change also included school related tasks, which the
teachers now felt more confident performing. One teacher gave an example of being
able to make her own decision.
I am so confident now that I can decide whether to say Yes or No. (Jeem)
All the teachers believed that they had the abilities and the attitude to influence
new teachers in the school to change their teaching practice.
If there is a new teacher who insists on using the old methods, I will be able to convince her that the new methods are better than what she is doing. I have this much confidence in my capabilities. (Khay)
The school head was very proud of the fact that the teachers had begun to believe
in themselves and they had begun to perform different types of school related tasks. In
other words, teachers now believed that they could execute responsibilities for achievement.
Some teachers have gained so much confidence that they have managed to
perform different tasks beyond their school and have represented their school on a few
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occasions. Jeem told me about a meeting that she conducted in the other TRC partner
school.
I conducted the meeting in which our education officers and our supervisors were also present. We needed to assign tasks and set time limits. I think to be able to stand in front of so many people and to be able to speak was my first experience, and I was able to do it. (Jeem)
The teachers believed that now they had the courage and the ability to go beyond
the four boundary walls of their school and perform the different tasks in the
community. However, they added that the large-scale change, such as the change at the
other schools or at the community level could only be achieved if all the teachers
collectively decided to bring about that change.
Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between PEP and teacher
efficacy.
TRC has been able to develop teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs. To begin with,
TRC developed teachers’ beliefs in their own capabilities by enhancing their
professional knowledge about the content, the learners and the pedagogy. This
confidence was further enhanced when the TRC provided teachers with the
opportunities to implement new teaching methods and achieve good results with the
students. Furthermore, TRC’s professional and emotional support, feedback and
acknowledgement gave teachers confidence in their own capabilities. One important
issue highlighted by the teachers was that despite feeling confident, they alone could not
influence all the teachers in the community to change their practice. Large-scale change,
the teachers believed, would occur when all the people involved made a collective
effort.
5.6.2 The Relationships between PEP and Teacher Practice
TRC structured twenty workshops in separate five-day sessions of 15 hours each.
The time period between each session provided teachers with the opportunities to go
back to their schools and implement their learning from each session in their classes.
The teachers were of the view that the learning from the workshop produced a shift from
the use of mostly traditional teacher-centred teaching approaches to child-centred
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teaching approaches. Teachers stated how after PEP they began to use methods such as
group work, experiments, dramas, demonstration with real life examples, questioning,
and teaching with models, material aids and flash cards.
Previously, all the children would just keep sitting in my class. I would read a lesson aloud and all the children would listen to it. I would write the work on the blackboard, which the children would copy. Now children work in groups so that they can work by helping each other. Now, we let children dramatize a play or a poem in the class. I think this is a better method. (Jeem) Now when I teach, I teach with the help of the things in the classroom and in the environment. For example, how many fans are there in the class? (Khay) Now we have a library in each class. We give children time for reading. (Head)
Teachers were given formal training in the teaching of different subjects, lesson
planning, preparation of monthly/yearly schemes, reflection and self-evaluation, lesson
evaluation, classroom management skills, the different types of assessment, the skills of
keeping records and other classroom related tasks. TRC shared with the teachers
interesting, but simple teaching skills, which required the use of low or no cost,
discarded material. The teachers were also provided with handouts about the different
topics to take back with them to the school.
The TRC further enhanced teaching practice for the teachers by teaching them
the use of problem solving skills during the workshops. It provided teachers with
teaching problems to be solved collaboratively in a non-threatening environment and
also gave them opportunities to experiment with these methods in their classes. As a
result, there were marked improvements in teachers’ teaching practice, which produced
good results with the children. The different ways in which TRC helped to improve
teacher practice in the school has helped to develop teachers who possess professional
knowledge and who apply professional knowledge for student learning.
For these teachers the teaching was no longer easy. It had intensified; requiring
teachers to pay individual attention to each student to accommodate varied learning
styles. The teachers, who had never planned their lessons because the easy methods
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required no planning, began to plan lessons and prepare resources prior to teaching.
Teachers disclosed how they maintained lesson diaries and wrote the lesson plans in
detail. Teachers also wrote a reflection of their lesson in terms of what the students had
learned and how successful they had been in teaching that lesson in order to make an
informed decision about their class situation. The Head checked these diaries. Teachers
reported that the regular planning and preparation for teaching helped them enjoy their
own teaching more and also made learning enjoyable for the children.
At the end of the week, we also write down our own evaluation. We write down whether our lesson was effective or not. If the children did not take interest in the lesson, we try to find out the cause of that. (Khay)
In addition to preparing each day’s lesson separately, the teachers reported that
they divided the whole year’s curriculum into monthly and then weekly plans. The TRC
developed this culture of lesson planning and curriculum organization with the help of
workshops. The teachers first planned the lesson in groups and presented them in
groups. Teachers were also required to complete a checklist to evaluate their own
performance and complete an evaluation sheet at the end of each workshop session.
The TRC began its regular follow-up of the teachers’ work to ensure that the
professional teaching practice is implemented in real school situations. The follow-up
consisted of regular visits to observe school development and provide classroom support
by the TRC team members.
The teachers reported that the TRC team would visit the school three or four
times a week. They would observe and evaluate their teaching and would also provide
them with feedback to demonstrate the areas which needed further improvement.
TRC used to sit at the back of my class, taking notes. After the class, they sat with me for 15 minutes and pointed out my errors and advised me to work upon them. Then they checked my lesson diary and pointed out what more I should be adding in my diary and what I should be deleting. They also told me what they had observed missing in my children and in my class. They would check my way of speaking, my voice tone. They checked everything in my class. (Jeem)
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TRC discussed with the teachers the findings of the school observation and
classroom support during the meetings. The results of the discussions were fed into the
next follow-up work. This regular follow-up provided the teachers with professional
support and encouraged them to further improve their teaching practice.
In addition to generating ideas about making the process of teaching and learning
interesting, TRC also highlighted the importance of building friendly relationships with
the children by modelling friendly behaviour themselves and also by providing teachers
with friendly environment to work in during the workshops.
TRC insisted that we involve children more and more in the classroom routines. They said the teachers must sit with the children as if they are themselves children. The classroom environment must be very friendly, so that the child is able to answer freely and without any fear. (Hay)
The teachers who previously maintained distant relationship with the children
and normally managed their classes by punishing or scolding children, discovered ways
of building close relationships with the children and gaining the children’s attention and
maintaining their interest.
Perhaps the most significant way in which TRC influenced teacher practice was
by stimulating their consciousness and bringing about change in their attitude. This they
did by helping teachers question their prevalent practices and by emphasizing the moral
purposes of teaching. It is interesting that the quantitative analysis has also highlighted
the dimension of commitment and responsibility as one of the main dimensions of
professional practice. According to the teachers and the Head, the most effective
strategy that TRC used was to model exemplary attitude for the teachers. As one teacher
points out:
In one of our workshops, I noticed that the participants sharpened their pencils and left the rubbish on the floor even when the wastepaper basket was there. When TRC Director came to give us certificates, she picked up the rubbish and put it in the basket. At that time we felt very ashamed. Being teachers, we should not have done it. Now, when I notice that children have thrown rubbish in the class, I don’t scold them. I pick it up and put it in the dustbin myself. (Jeem)
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Similarly, the teachers, who previously had a non-serious and non-committed
attitude, developed a sense of responsibility and seriousness towards their work in
school.
Before, I used to be five or ten minutes late. Now I have got into the habit of reaching school ten minutes earlier than the school's starting time. (Hay)
The teachers began to think and to generate new ideas, instead of relying on old
ideas all the time.
We thought that if TRC could produce an idea so could we, because we also have “Minds”. So we tried to think of unique and good ideas and tried to do things in different ways. Sometimes, children bring ideas and ask us to teach in this or that way. TV, media & newspaper give us many ideas. (Chay)
In order to support and maintain teachers’ professional practice, the Head has
given a locker to each teacher to store her teaching aids for future use. This helped
teachers manage their intense workload. The Head had also saved the old school
records, lesson diaries and teachers’ guides, which the teachers could borrow and keep
the learning process going on.
Teachers reported that they were professionally committed to maintain the
improved teaching practice in their school. However, it was easy for the teachers to use
new teaching methods at the lower primary levels. In classes four and five, there was
more emphasis on syllabus completion and on preparing students for the exam.
In order to meet the demands of timely completion of the syllabus on the one
hand and the professional teaching expectations on the other hand, the teachers have
brought about some changes in their teaching strategies. Now, they plan two lessons
every week in their diaries according to the new teaching methods taught by the TRC.
For the other periods, they still use activities along with the written work but they do not
record those. In essence, the teachers are now using a combination of both the traditional
and modern methods. However, no matter what teaching methods they use, the teachers
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now involve children more in classroom teaching and have indicated commitment and
willingness to sustain improvement. As one teacher pointed out:
We have built a good reputation for our school. Our school is praised everywhere. We must look forward and progress. If somebody's paying us so much attention, then we must also do something good. (Hay)
Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between PEP and teacher
practice.
In addition to developing teachers’ professional knowledge, commitment and
sense of responsibilities, TRC also developed in teachers’ a willingness to learn and
improve by giving them skills in self-evaluation and lesson evaluation. TRC developed
teachers’ capabilities by enhancing their professional knowledge in subject matter,
pedagogy, learners, lesson planning, yearly schemes, and self-evaluation through the
workshops. TRC used workshops as the platform to help teachers learn by seeing and
experimenting with other teachers, the different teaching methods and also by
experimenting with problem solving skills. At the school level teachers were provided
with the opportunities to be engaged in different school and classroom activities such as,
implementing new teaching methods, plan daily lessons and monthly schemes, discuss,
think and reflect both individually and collectively to learn from each other, evaluate
lessons and self-evaluate performance. TRC’s regular follow-up provided teachers with
the professional support and guidance that was crucial for the successful implementation
of PEP in the Alif School when the teachers were struggling with the new ideas and
skills. In addition, TRC developed commitment and a sense of responsibility in the
teachers by modelling professional attitude. This they did by spending long hours
teaching the teachers, treating them as equal partners in their school improvement
project. TRC’s initiatives to involve the school principal in the teacher training and to
arrange for a separate training for the Head about teacher supervision have helped to
sustain improvements in the school.
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5.6.3 The Relationships between PEP and Teacher Collaboration
Teachers shared with me how they were encouraged to work in groups during
the workshops and also to present their work in groups. TRC taught teachers the skills of
working together and provided them with the opportunities to collaborate. TRC also
held discussions with the teachers and encouraged them to share their problems and
difficulties so that together they could work towards solving them.
TRC taught us the ways of conducting a meeting, the ways of planning a lesson together, the ways of doing yearly planning together. (Khay) During our trainings, we used to be divided in groups and we used to do different activities in groups so that we could learn to work together. (Head)
According to the teachers, when they came back to their schools from the
training sessions, they continued to work in groups. Each class level constituted a group.
For example all the teachers, teaching four sections of class two would form a group and
exchange lessons and teaching resources among themselves. This exchange of ideas
helped teachers learn from each other and further enhance their professionalism. The
exchange of lessons also lessened teachers’ burden, as one teacher did not have to make
all the lessons herself anymore. In this way, TRC developed what the survey results had
identified as an important dimension of professionalism, which is collaborating for
planning and teaching.
Hay recounted that the teachers were now more interested in talking about the
teaching and learning issues than they were in the past. This demonstrates teachers’
willingness to learn from one another and further improved their capabilities.
We help each other. We discuss different things. We used to discuss matters even before. How ever, there has been a change in what we discuss now. Now the teachers are more interested in discussing an idea about teaching. (Hay)
The teachers reported how TRC gave them skills of conducting meetings by
conducting meetings themselves with the teachers in the school. Then the teachers began
to hold a weekly meeting with the school head and TRC representative/s to discuss any
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school related issue or problem and also to discuss teaching and learning issues.
TRC also held fortnightly School Development Planning Review (SDPR)
Meetings, which were attended by some selected teachers. The teachers who attended
these meetings would later share with the other teachers the important points that were
discussed at the Meeting. In this way, TRC provided teachers with the opportunities to
be involved in the school development matters and solving problems together. In other
words, it developed a school culture of administrative collective work.
The teachers recounted that working together during the training sessions
provided them with the support and made learning easy for them. Furthermore, it
provided teachers with the opportunities to meet with new people and to learn from
them. This further enhanced their confidence and improved their teaching practice.
Perhaps one reason for the lack of confidence before was that ever since we had started teaching we had limited ourselves to the school only. However, in TRC we got to meet with new people and we got to learn some new things. (Jeem)
Teachers reported that for five years, while the PEP was still going on, the
teachers continued to hold meetings and discussions in a planned manner. However,
once the TRC had completed its PEP project formal meetings and the planned
discussion sessions were discontinued. Still, the teachers reported that they realized the
importance of collaboration and were not averse to the idea of planned meetings.
By working together, there has been a tremendous increase in our knowledge. When four or five minds combine, we get to learn different ways of accomplishing a task. (Hay)
The teachers asserted that while they may no longer meet in a planned manner,
they had not stopped collaborating. For these teachers, their school was like a
community. As one teacher pointed out:
Problems are being discussed and they are being solved also. However, not through the meetings. We are still sharing things and different ideas among each other. We show our plans to the other teacher and ask her if it was good. (Chay)
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Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between PEP and teacher
collaboration.
TRC has been able to develop a collegial school community. The teachers now
engage more in professional dialogue. The teachers like to adopt collaborative
techniques, which facilitate and further improve classroom teaching, such as exchanging
lesson plans and teaching aids, and continuing to prepare yearly schemes together. TRC
developed in the teachers the skills of collaboration first by introducing group work as a
way of accomplishing different tasks, whether it was planning of the lessons or making a
presentation or planning school activities. TRC introduced planned meetings, which
taught teachers how they could prepare agendas, be involved in the school matters and
voice their opinions. In addition, TRC also provided the teachers with the opportunities
to be collaboratively engaged in different school and class related tasks, such as
observing each other’s classes, preparing meeting agendas, preparing and exchanging
teaching resources etc. The main issue facing the Alif School teachers is that they do not
have time for planned collaboration. Planned teacher collaboration sessions require a
separate block of time, set aside for them by the education department.
5.6.4 The Relationships between PEP and Teacher Leadership
Classroom leadership, which has also been identified as an important dimension
of teacher leadership from the survey analysis, could emerge in the Alif School because
the teachers enjoyed full authority to experiment and use different teaching methods in
their classes as long as they completed the syllabus on time. The teachers could not
modify the content or the textbooks prescribed by the education department, but they
could organize the syllabus in ways they thought fit and could take the decisions
regarding the teaching of the children in their care, so as to help them learn. Neither the
TRC nor the Head interfered with the teachers’ classroom teaching decisions. The
teachers could also introduce changes in the lessons, which were prepared by some other
teacher.
TRC also used other techniques to develop teachers’ leadership skills. They
would encourage the teachers to come forward and present their work during the
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workshops. They also gave the teachers opportunities to become group leaders and
encouraged shy teachers in particular to speak.
Perhaps the most effective technique that TRC used to develop teacher
leadership and authority was to involve the teachers in the initial planning of the
reforms. So, the teachers knew from the outset what the reforms were about, what
targets were set and how these targets were to be achieved, how long each task was
going to take and what their roles and responsibilities were. One teacher commented:
I was included in the initial planning. We prepared the action plan. Time limits were set. Then that school development plan was brought to the school. It was shown to the other teachers and the responsibilities were distributed. (Jeem)
TRC continued to involve teachers even after the plan was put into action and
the teacher training began.
They asked us what we wanted to learn and the areas in which we needed the training. When we told them that we needed training in those subjects, then they planned for the learning sessions for us. (Hay)
Teacher leadership was not confined within the four walls of the classrooms, but
it extended beyond them. The survey findings have also illustrated that the teachers lead
both within and beyond their classrooms. The teachers used school meetings as a
platform to speak. The school principal helped to further enhance teacher leadership by
involving teachers in school decisions. The teachers could object to any school decision
of which they did not approve. Teachers reported that, for some decisions, the Head took
their suggestions and some decisions she took herself.
The Head also delegated some of her authority to the teachers. The distribution
of responsibilities provided teachers with the opportunities to lead certain school
activities and enhance their leadership. Different teachers were given different
responsibilities, which included leading the morning assembly, keeping the school clean
and decorated, managing the school in the principal’s absence, looking after the children
during break, preparing students for the special events, guiding the new teachers and
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checking their work. Delegation of authority and teacher involvement in decision
making have also been identified as the main dimensions of teacher professionalism in
the survey research.
In the last years of PEP, TRC chose some of the teachers to be trained as Master
Trainers. The purpose of developing Master Trainers, according to the reform manager,
was to create change agents and develop such teacher leaders who would be able to lead
workshops for teachers in other schools. The teachers were trained in the process of
planning for a workshop and conducting a workshop for the others. This process of
learning more and gaining further skills and knowledge enhanced teachers’ capabilities,
confidence and leadership. Subsequently, these teachers gave a one-day workshop at
another government primary school in Karachi and also made a small presentation in the
other two project schools, where TRC was working.
Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between PEP and teacher
leadership.
TRC helped teacher leadership to emerge both at the class and at the school
level. Teacher leadership was able to emerge because in the Alif School there was a
group of very capable teachers who were knowledgeable, skilful, confident, social and
committed. This leadership was enhanced when the teachers were provided with the
opportunities to be involved in the PEP planning and in the planning of the workshops,
to express their viewpoints during the meetings, lead group presentations, undertake
school responsibilities, train teachers from the other school, and become involved in
some school development decisions, conduct and lead meetings. The Master Trainers
were provided training to further their knowledge in the skills of planning and
conducting a workshop, and the opportunities to train other teachers. After the TRC
project concluded, the principal maintained the culture of delegating authority among
her staff. Teachers did not feel inhibited in her presence. She presented to the teachers
an exemplary leadership model by undertaking both the teaching as well as
administrative responsibilities.
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5.6.5 Synthesis of the Key Themes and Implications from the PEP Case
The description of the relationships between school reform and teacher
professionalism has shown that PEP has been able to help the teacher, who believes that
she is capable and also practices her beliefs, to emerge. This means that the Alif school
teachers not only believe that they can perform difficult school tasks, but they have also
set examples by bringing about revolutionary changes in their teaching practices.
Working collaboratively, these teachers have managed to sustain these changes. The
teachers lead within their school and take ownership of the work in their school.
Figure 5.1 condenses the different dimensions into one diagram and summarizes
the way TRC developed links between PEP and teacher professionalism with the help of
some important factors.
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Figure 5.1 Development of Teacher Professionalism in the Alif School
The top box presents the levels of teacher professionalism before the initiation of
PEP. The box at the bottom presents the developments in the teachers’ levels of
professionalism after PEP had been initiated in the Alif School. The before PEP (top)
and after PEP (bottom) boxes illustrate strong relationships between PEP and teacher
professionalism. The Alif School teachers have learned to be more confident. They have
AFTER PEP • Enhanced sense of teacher efficacy (teachers believe that they can accomplish
different, even difficult class and school related tasks). • Child-centred teaching methods (good interaction with the children). • Regular lesson planning, Yearly / Monthly Scheme. • More committed attitude (enhanced sense of responsibility). • Collective planning (exchange of lessons and teaching resources). • Change in thinking (more teachers realize the importance of collaboration). • No planned meetings (teachers meet informally as and when required. If
required, the head calls meetings). • No planned discussions (teachers hold discussions informally during free time,
help each other and share ideas). • Classroom authority (to the extent of choosing the teaching methods. No change
in the syllabus / content). • Undertake responsibilities and be involved in some school related decisions.
BEFORE PEP - Lack of self-confidence in teachers - Traditional teacher-centred teaching approaches with no or very little interaction with the children – Less concerned, non-committed attitude - Family-like environment, but no or very little understanding of teacher collaboration – No delegation of authority – less teacher involvement in decision making.
TRC
FACTORS
REGULAR FOLLOW-UP WORK
DEVELOPMENT OF
CAPABILITIES
THE SCHOOL
PRINCIPAL
PROVISION OF
OPPORTUNITIES
TRC’S ATTITUDE
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demonstrated good knowledge base, and their professional practice has also improved.
They collaborate more than they did before and have diverse views of teacher
collaboration. They assume leadership roles both at the class and the school level. The
boxes in the middle illustrate the five factors that have contributed in the development of
teacher professionalism. These factors have been distilled from themes and issues that
emerged as important in building the relationships between PEP and the four dimensions
of professionalism. This section synthesizes the key themes and issues, which are related
to these factors and considers their future implications.
One common theme, in this case, is that when the teacher has the knowledge and
the expertise, she feels confident and capable about achieving different tasks. A number
of examples illustrate this point. When TRC developed teachers’ professional
knowledge about the subjects, teaching methods and the children, the teachers began to
show improvements in their teaching practice and achieved good results with the
children. Seeing the effectiveness of their capabilities in terms of improvements in the
children’s work, the teachers began to gain confidence in their capabilities to achieve
difficult tasks. Similarly, when the TRC provided teachers with the skills of lesson and
unit planning, self-evaluation and programme evaluation, and problem solving, the
teachers began to critically examine their practice and began to work collaboratively to
achieve different tasks. They began to exchange lesson plans and teaching resources,
and began to think of different ways of improving their performance. Development of
teachers’ capabilities gave them confidence to undertake leadership roles both at the
class and at the school level. Using their professional knowledge and expertise teachers
were able to find a balance between the centralized curriculum and new teaching
practices, and deal with the issue of completing the syllabus on time for the exams.
The other common theme in this case is that the teachers have to be provided
with the opportunities to be engaged in the professional practices such as collaborating
for planning and teaching, undertaking responsibilities, implementing child-centred
teaching methods in their classes, making presentations, taking decisions, discussing,
thinking and reflecting both individually and collectively with the other teachers to learn
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from each other, expressing their viewpoints during the meetings and other learning
opportunities in order to develop and further enhance their professionalism.
Related to these themes is the theme of developing teachers’ skills in
collaboration and also the authority to decide the collective working patterns that best
suit their school’s culture in order to enhance their professionalism. While it might be of
concern that the teachers were no longer holding planned meetings and planned learning
sessions on a regular basis, they insisted that they had not stopped learning
collaboratively and they realized the importance of planned learning sessions. My
observations of teachers’ working patterns in the Alif School tell me that the teachers
enjoy good relationships among each other and work as a community.
Working together as a community has become a distinctive characteristic of the
Alif School. Some teachers have reported that a unified or collective change effort can
influence other teachers to change their practices. Herein lies strong implications for the
policy makers to recognize emerging learning communities’ efforts and provide them
with support so that the teachers discover ways of learning together, and also to develop
a collaborative learning culture at a broader level.
Even though the teachers know that they can still contact the TRC team if they
require any assistance, they also have some expectations from the education department
in terms of providing them with the support necessary to sustain and further enhance
their professionalism. In the words of one teacher:
I feel that the teacher who demonstrates professionalism and produces good quality work should be noted, appreciated and encouraged. She should be given promotion and certificates for doing good work. Her work should be valued and given recognition by letting others know what she is doing. (Hay)
Jeem pointed out the lack of learning seminars and other learning programmes
for the government primary school teachers. She emphasized that teachers should be
provided with the opportunities to learn from such programmes.
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The education department should prepare learning programmes for the teachers so that their interest is maintained and we get opportunities to meet with the other people and learn from them. (Jeem)
Chay had some practical suggestions. She believed that first the basic problems
such as the provision of teaching material and time should be solved.
A teacher finds it very difficult to prepare teaching aids because she has no free period. The teacher takes this heap of material home to prepare teaching resources. The teachers should be given a period free for lesson planning and for making things. (Chay)
While the teachers suggested different supportive measures, one theme that kept
coming up again and again during my conversations with the teachers was the school
principal’s role. Teachers believe that their Head is the direct link between them and the
education department and it is, therefore, important for the school principal to be a good
inspiring leader and a model professional.
The Alif School principal helped to strengthen the links between PEP and
teacher professionalism. I observed that the Alif School principal challenged the
community by working hard herself. When any teacher was absent, she took the class
herself and set an example for emerging teacher leaders. She has built good rapport with
the children and the parents. While responding efficiently to the demands of her
supervisors, she has managed to run the school effectively. Talking to her, I realized that
as she managed a variety of pressures, she did not loose sight of her values and
enthusiasm for work.
These findings in this case have strong implications for the policy makers to
arrange for developing the school principals. This factor leads into yet another important
theme, which is the educator’s attitude. Teachers want their school principal to be
compassionate and understanding and they have the same expectations from their
supervisors and the district education officers. The Alif School case has shown that the
teachers responded well to the TRC’s humane attitude. In the TRC team, teachers
discovered somebody who would listen to them and understand their problems. TRC
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was able to develop a readiness in the teachers to learn. I observed that the teachers were
happy with what they had learned.
The encouraging attitude has to be coupled with professional behaviour and
proficiency about the work. Talking about the importance of supervisor’s professional
behaviour as a way of supporting teacher learning, the school principal added:
The supervisors must spend time in each class to observe how the teacher is teaching, instead of taking quick rounds of the classes. The supervisors need to remove distances between themselves and the teachers. (Head)
The teachers also disclosed during the interviews that their trainings prior to this
could not be implemented successfully because there was not always follow-up work
and professional guidance. The reform manager confided in me that the encouraging
attitude was important for laying the foundations of relationships, but once that was
done teachers were very eager to find out if they (the TRC team) were capable of
teaching them anything worthwhile or not. TRC demonstrated their capability through
regular workshop and the regular follow-up work, which helped to consolidate teachers’
learning. This point is also important from a policy implementation point of view. It has
been highlighted in the review of the education policies in Pakistan (see chapter 2,
section 2.3.1) that one of the important factors for the limited success of previous reform
measures has been the poor implementation strategy of the reform agencies.
While there is more to be discussed about the relationships between the reform
initiatives and teacher professionalism in the Alif School case, it is best that this occurs
in the light of the findings from the stories of the remaining three cases. Therefore, I
leave this at this stage but return to it in the chapters 6 and 7.
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The Story of the Bay Government Girls’ Primary School
My next case site is the Bay Government Girls’ Primary School in Karachi. This school became my case study school after a lot of thought and deliberation because there were several schools to choose from, in this category. Again there was something intriguing or rather special about this school that made me select Bay School. I set foot in this school for the first time in October 2001 and began my journey of discovering the relationships between the reform initiatives and teacher professionalism. (Personal Reflection)
5.7 The Bay School’s Background and Structure
Bay Government Girls’ Primary School (GGPS) is ideally located on the main
road in one of the busiest towns of Karachi. The school’s closeness to the bus stop
makes travelling easy for the school staff.
The school is housed in a double story big white building, comprising two
separate wings. The main gate of the school opens into a big, cemented playground that
leads to the main office and the classrooms. The new building for the primary school for
girls was constructed in 1985. Before that it used to be a primary school for boys. There
were only 8 teachers and 382 children in the school at that time. By 2002, the number of
teachers had increased to 30 and the number of children had risen to about 800. The
school has one head-mistress (Head), two in-charges, two maasis, one guard and one
peon. The classes range from KG to class five. Each class level has more than one
section, making a total of 22 sections in the school.
What adds colour and glamour to the school is the variety in the classroom
settings. Kindergarten (KG) has big, round different coloured tables and the matching
chairs for the children. The room is decorated with different types of educational charts
and posters. Children’s work is displayed on the soft boards, on the tables and on the
shelves in the corners of the room. The room has numerous educational resources for
teaching, some of which are kept on the tables and some are locked in the cupboards.
There is also a small library corner for the children.
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All the other classes ranging from level one to level five have desks and chairs.
Inspired by the modern child-centred approach, some of the teachers like to organize
their classes in small groups of children. As a result, the children do not sit in straight
lines facing the black-board, as is the case in most government primary schools. Rather,
they sit in small groups facing each other. The groups comprise the children of mixed
ability and each group’s girls wear different coloured ribbons.
5.8 Characteristics of the Bay School Children and the Parents
A very small number of children come from educated families. All children have
to wear a uniform. Most of the children do not do their homework in the beginning of a
year. However, when the children begin to like their teacher, they show improvement in
their behaviour. Time is set aside to involve children in co-curricular activities such as
library, sewing, physical training, Art and craft.
Most of the parents cannot read or write. Approximately, 20% of the parents are
literate. While they cannot help their children with their homework, they take interest in
their children’s studies. They come and inquire about their children’s studies. They are
very happy that their children are studying in a good school. The parents praise the
efforts of the teacher who is regular and teaches their children well, and they are grateful
to her for doing a good job.
Most of the fathers are daily wage earners. They are mostly washer men, iron
men, book binders or carpenters. Some have private jobs. A very small number of
fathers are employed in government jobs. Most mothers are housewives. There are about
25% mothers who work as cleaning ladies in different places. Though the parents are
socio-economically less advantaged than parents of many other government schools,
they still live from hand to mouth.
5.9 Characteristics of the Bay School Educators
Table 5.2 presents the characteristics of the educators who participated in the
study.
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Table 5.2
Characteristics of the Bay School Educators Who Participated in the Interview
Name Characteristics
Daal Daal is a highly qualified young teacher. She is between 30-35 years of age. Daal has done Masters in Science and is also a Graduate in Education. She has a total teaching experience of ten years. Out of which, she has spent five years in Bay GGPS. Daal is also a Master Trainer.
Zaal Zaal comes from an educated background. Four of her sisters are teachers in different schools. She is between 35-40 years. She is a Bachelor in Art and Education. Zaal has a ten years teaching experience in all and five years teaching experience in this school.
Ray Ray is a young teacher. She is between 25-30 years of age. She has been teaching in Bay GGPS for the past one year. She has done her Master in Art and Bachelor in Education. Her performance in her old school was greatly appreciated. Ray has attended different teacher training workshops at TRC.
Zay Zay is a highly qualified teacher. She is between 35-40 years of age. She has a teaching experience of about 14 years in all & one year in this school. She is a Master in Art and Education. Zay’s commendable performance in the different schools has helped her to secure this job. She has attended several workshops.
Head The Head or Headmistress of Bay GGPS has been leading the school for the past six years. She is between 40-45 years of age. She has an extensive teaching and administrative experience of 20 years. She is a Bachelor in Education and also has Primary Teaching Certificate. The headmistress has attended several training courses. She is also a Master Trainer.
Monitoring In-charge
The then Monitoring In-charge of the SPEDP Project is presently working in Sindh Government’s Planning and Education Department. She has an extensive experience in the government education department.
5.10 The In-service Teacher Training Programme and its Purposes
In-Service Teacher Training (INSET) Programme was one of the main
components of Sindh Primary Education Development Project (SPEDP). In-service
teacher training was provided to the supervisors and the master trainers, who were
selected from primary school supervisors, learning coordinators, head teachers and other
experienced teachers, both in Pakistan and in England. These master trainers were
assigned to different Target Schools or the Demo Centres (as they were commonly
called) where they gave training to the teachers. The Demo Centre Training was based
on the concept of active learning where the child learns by doing and by being actively
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involved in the learning and the teaching process. Teachers were trained in the different
teaching techniques such as group work, classroom activities, play way methods,
educational games, use of washing lines in the classroom, preparation of models,
posters, charts and the different teaching aids with low or no cost material.
During the second phase of the INSET Project, a number of Demo Centres were
redesigned as the “School Development Centres” or “Target schools.” One target school
in each sub-division was nominated for particular attention by the supervisory team as a
result of work emanating from the supervisory training programme. In these schools, the
supervisors worked with the school principals and the staff to formulate and implement
a school development plan. Wherever possible, a School Development Centre was also
used for the training of primary school teachers. These target schools were to act as
‘exemplars’ or ‘models’ for the other schools.
It was with this objective that the Bay GGPS was redesigned as the school
development centre and it was, and is still, managed by a “School Development
Coordinator” who is the supervisor responsible for coordinating development in the then
sub-division, and now town.
Talking to the then Monitoring In-charge of the SPED Programme, I learnt that
the INSET Programme had been able to produce a good result in the two pilot projects,
but it had not been successful in the three other districts to where it was spread later on.
The project’s teacher training model was a good training model. Eventually, this project did spread to three other districts from the two pilot districts. However, this project became so huge that it became difficult to manage it. Its impact cannot be seen in the other three districts. Nonetheless, teachers’ capacity was further developed and improved. When I visited a few schools, I observed that the teachers were teaching children with the help of low or no cost material. I was impressed because I had never observed teachers teaching in this way before. The communication between the teachers and the children was very interactive. This was something new. (Monitoring In-charge)
Despite being a huge systemic change effort, INSET’s impact could not be
sustained in all the schools. Some of the main reasons were poor dissemination of
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information to the teachers and weak follow-up or monitoring of the project by the
education department.
Despite these difficulties and weaknesses, some schools have emerged as very
successful model schools as a result of INSET Programme. The Bay School is one such
exemplary school. The more I read about the SPEDP project, the more I became
interested in learning about efforts that had been taken to improve this school and the
relationships, if there were any, between these reform initiatives and teacher
professionalism. The following case analysis is based on this investigation.
5.11 The Relationships between Demo Centre Training and Teacher Professionalism
All the teachers in Bay GGPS have received the INSET or the Demo Centre
Training, as it is commonly known. It was a month long training.
All the teachers in the Bay School reported experiencing a sense of
professionalism in their work. Their definitions of teacher professionalism included
themes such as teacher knowledge and capability, teacher friendliness and cooperation
so that they are able to work amicably with the other teachers, teacher authority,
teachers’ sense of responsibility, and teacher willingness and commitment to work.
Probing questions were asked to discover the underlying meanings of each of these
themes. Teachers’ responses to the questions revealed that they carried the same
meaning as were conveyed by the four dimensions of professionalism, which had been
conceptualized from theory and identified by the results of the survey analysis. For
example, a teacher reported that a capable teacher would be able to influence the other
teachers. She will be cooperative, she will work hard, she will be able to develop
children’s skills and knowledge and take out desired output from them.
It was interesting to discover how teachers in Bay School had benefited in terms
of enhancing their professionalism from the INSET or the Demo Centre Training. I now
consider the relationships between the Demo Centre Training and the different
dimensions of teacher professionalism.
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5.11.1 The Relationships between Demo Centre Training and Teacher Efficacy
The four teachers I interviewed were of the view that Demo Centre Training did
play a role in consolidating teacher efficacy. The Demo Centre training provided
teachers with the opportunities to gain knowledge about different subject and teaching
approaches, and to improve their teaching skills and capabilities. These opportunities
helped teachers develop their teaching efficacy. This efficacy was further strengthened
when teachers improved their performance by experimenting with these new methods
and gaining appreciation from their school Head and supervisor for their improved
teaching performances. According to the two teachers, the Demo Centre training created
a free and independent learning environment for the teachers. When the teachers were
given opportunities to work in such an environment, they gained more confidence and
when these teachers returned to their respective schools, they helped their students
develop into autonomous learners.
Besides giving us the training, I think the most important thing that Demo Centre Training did was that it taught us the method of teaching freely and autonomously. (Zaal)
The Demo Centre Training also brought the teachers and the education officers
closer together. It may not have removed the distances between them completely, but it
certainly helped teachers overcome their shyness and bridge barriers. As a result
teachers gained confidence to speak openly and freely with their Head, supervisors and
other education officers.
Teachers from the other schools also used to come. We used to hold discussions about how the work should be done. In this way the distances between the supervisors and the teachers were removed. This form of collaboration helped teachers to get over their hesitation and shyness, which they normally feel while communicating with their supervisors. We can now talk confidently even with our higher education officers about different issues. (Daal) The four teachers demonstrated confidence in their capabilities to make
significant impact in the children’s lives and perform beyond classroom tasks. The
teachers have managed to teach and achieve success with the children whom the other
teachers found impossible to manage and teach. The teachers believed that they have the
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capabilities to plan and undertake teacher training, and influence other teachers to bring
about change in their teaching practice. In demonstrating the capability to achieve these
tasks, the teachers have shown that they believe that all aspects of work and change can
be achieved, which the survey analysis has already illustrated as an important indicator
of teacher professionalism.
Even though the teachers felt capable about performing tasks such as bringing
about change at the school level, they shared the Alif School teachers’ perspective that
change at the school level can only occur when all the teachers work together.
Being the “Target INSET School,” the Bay GGPS has been able to take several
initiatives to maintain and further develop teachers’ sense of efficacy in performing
different tasks. One initiative is the frequent visits by the different local and foreign
educators and educational agencies. Teachers have received high praises from these
educators and agencies on producing high quality work, and for sharing with them good
teaching ideas. This positive feedback from the visitors has greatly helped to enhance
teachers’ belief in their own capabilities to continue to produce high quality work.
These visits have been the result of personal attention and hard work of the
school supervisor. All the teachers reiterated that the supervisor takes personal interest
in each teacher’s work. She guides them and treats them very professionally. The
supervisor’s personal involvement and good attitude has provided teachers with
professional support and her frequent visits and appreciation of teachers’ work has given
them assurance that their work is of good standard. This further enhances their belief in
their own capabilities.
Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between Demo Centre
Training and teacher efficacy.
The four teachers described themselves as very confident. Even though, they
maintained that certain personal factors had played a role in developing confidence in
them, the teachers acknowledged the Demo Training’s contribution in enhancing and
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consolidating their efficacy beliefs. The teachers described how they gained more
confidence when professional knowledge and expertise about the different teaching
methods from the Demo Centre Training helped them become more capable teachers.
Similarly, the teachers recognized that the Demo Centre Training provided them with
the opportunities to practise their efficacy beliefs. The visits provided the teachers with
the opportunities to implement the new teaching methods in their classes successfully
and receive praise form visitors’ as well as the school administrators. The workshops
helped the teachers to overcome their shyness and gain confidence. The school
supervisor’s personal attention, guidance and acknowledgement of teachers’ work
provided teachers with the moral and professional support, which was important for
giving the teachers more confidence in their work. Despite feeling very confident, the
teachers in this case recognized the issue of their limited success if they were to work on
individual basis to influence other teachers. They believed that the teachers would have
to make a unified effort to bring about change at the school level.
5.11.2 The Relationships between Demo Centre Training and Teacher Practice
The teachers reported that the Demo Centre Training was targeted towards
helping them gain more knowledge about classroom teaching methods and about ways
of interacting with the children in a positive manner. Before, the teachers taught by
using the traditional lecture method.
Before we taught in the same old way. Teacher used to come and give a lecture. Children used to sit in their places. They were not active at all. They used to be sleepy. They would whisper. (Daal)
Noticeable changes occurred in teachers’ methods of teaching once they had
received Demo Centre Training. The teachers began to use teaching aids such as models,
posters, and other low or no cost material for demonstration and explanation. Teachers
began to teach with the help of classroom activities and educational games. Experiments
in science became important. Children discovered different ways of sitting together in
groups rather than sitting on a desk facing the blackboard all the times. As a result,
teachers’ interaction with the children and children’s interaction with their classmates
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improved. In the words of two teachers:
The children look for their answer themselves now and then share their answers with us. (Zay)
After the training we learnt that if we teach the students the concept of addition or subtraction using different things like sticks or even the children in the class, the children will be able to get the concept fairly easily and they will also be able to learn better. (Zaal)
In this way the Demo Centre Training helped to develop what the survey results
revealed as one of the main dimensions of teacher professionalism – applying
professional knowledge for student learning. According to the teachers, the Demo
Centre trainers used different strategies to develop teachers’ professional capabilities.
They created the same environment at the training site that they wanted us to adopt in our school. They made us work in groups ourselves. They had a very friendly attitude. The resource persons would come and sit with us in our groups and would teach us in this manner. (Zay)
At the Demo Centre Training, I learned to gain the attention of those children who were sitting at the back. Questions should be posed to children sitting in different places. I learned how the children could be motivated to learn. (Daal)
According to the teachers, the Demo Centre Training highlighted the important
position a child occupies in the teaching and learning process.
The first thing that they taught us during the Demo Training was that the child has the central position. (Daal)
This experience of Demo Training was not the same for all the teachers. This is
because different teachers were trained by the different Master Trainers. According to
one teacher all the Master trainers could not inspire them to learn in the same way.
Some Master Trainers could not convey or communicate the ideas clearly to us. Then we added our own innovations and ideas to the basic things that they taught us and tried to improvise and improve. (Ray) Teachers admitted that it was not possible for them to use these methods all the
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times, particularly in the higher classes when completion of the syllabus becomes the
priority and these methods require more time. In the lower grades one and two, teachers
try and do one activity every day to maintain the children’s interest. However, from
grade three onwards teachers become selective in the use of teaching methods. The
teachers feel more comfortable using a combination of old and new methods. Some
teachers still prefer to use chalk and talk method, while the others like to use activity
methods.
Even though the Demo Centre Training emphasized upon the idea of a planned
way of teaching, it did not give teachers any specific guidelines about planning lessons.
Teachers reported that they did not receive any handouts after each workshop to refer
back to once they returned to their schools. Therefore, the Bay School teachers do not
plan their lessons in detail. Generally, they record in their lesson diaries what they do in
each period.
The main factor responsible for maintaining good teacher practice is the
supervisor of this school. The supervisor keeps herself updated about the new
developments in the field of education by attending several courses and trainings. She is
also well connected with the people in the education department, in the teacher training
institutions and also in the other educational organizations. In addition, she is also the
supervisor of many other schools in the same town. Whatever new ideas the supervisor
learns about teaching students through the different sources, she shares with the teachers
in the Bay School. She has managed to collect many resources about teaching and
learning for the teachers in the school’s library.
The supervisor visits the Bay School on a regular basis and guides the teachers.
Since, the Bay School has been her target school since SPEDP times, she gives it more
attention than she does to the other schools. While the reform managers did not plan for
appropriate follow-up work after the Demo Training, for the teachers in the Bay School
the follow-up work continued in the form of their supervisor’s involvement.
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Our school gets a lot of attention because of the supervisor. She is concerned about how this school can be improved, how the teachers should teach, which training course they must attend, and how teachers can approach her in case of problems. (Ray)
The supervisor’s greatest contribution to this school has been her continuous
quest to find and appoint committed teachers in the Bay School. Therefore, most of the
newly appointed teachers in the school are not only highly qualified, they also
understand their professional and moral responsibilities and are sincere to their
profession. One of the new teachers was of the view that by not using the methods that
are good for the children, they will be doing an injustice, particularly to those children
who are not very intelligent. The supervisor’s quest for dedicated teachers signifies the
importance of commitment and a sense of responsibility as important indicators of
teacher professionalism.
The good teaching practice in the Bay School has been able to attract teachers,
principals and supervisors from different towns and villages in the country to visit this
school and to learn by observing teachers’ classroom activities. These visits also help to
maintain the required teaching practice.
Since ours is a big school, someone or the other is visiting the school all the time. That is why the teachers remain alert all the time and implement what they have learned fairly regularly. (Zaal)
Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between Demo Centre
Training and teacher practice.
Even though each teacher’s experience of the Demo Training was individual, the
training was still able to improve teacher practice in the Bay School. The Demo Centre
Training developed teachers’ capabilities by providing them with the professional
knowledge about effective teaching methods at the primary level and about the
importance of the child in the teaching and learning process. Using these methods,
teachers have been able to gain children’s attention and improve their teaching skills.
Actual teaching practice, in the Bay School, consisted of the combination of both the
teacher centred and child centred teaching methods. At the Demo Centre Training,
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teachers were provided with the opportunities to give demonstration lesson with the help
of low or no cost teaching aids. Since, Bay School was the target school, the teachers
were provided with different opportunities to be engaged in the different activities such
as attending school-based workshops, implementing new ideas in their classes, and
working with some of the most qualified and capable teachers. It is the school
supervisor’s personal initiatives and professional support that have helped to sustain
professional teacher practice in the Bay School. The supervisor keeps the teachers
updated about new teaching methods. Using her association in the education department,
she has managed to arrange for many organizations and teachers to visit this school. She
has appointed capable and intrinsically motivated teachers in the school.
Despite the improvements in teacher practice, the teachers in the Bay School
recognized the issue of no appropriate follow-up work for the teachers after the Demo
Centre Training. If it were not for the supervisor’s support, it would have been very
difficult for the teachers to implement Demo Centre Training’s ideas in their classes,
particularly in the absence of handouts or reading material.
5.11.3 The Relationships between Demo Centre Training and Teacher Collaboration
The Demo Centre training provided the teachers with the opportunities to
accomplish different tasks working in groups. Thus, teaching them group work
methodology was important. The Demo Training also brought the teachers from
different schools and contexts together to share different points of view. However, the
training did not provide the teachers with any specific guidelines about the ways in
which teachers could collaborate.
In Demo Training there was emphasis in friendly way of working; in collaborative working; going to the other participants; group work; sharing ideas; group leader presenting in the class. (Daal) They asked us to observe other teacher’s classes, but they did not teach us how we could observe each other’s classrooms, what points we needed to keep in mind. They verbally asked us to plan and exchange lessons, but they did not give us opportunity to practise planning lessons in this way. (Zay)
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In the absence of clear directions and feedback, the teachers could not identify
patterns or a formal system of working together. In addition, when the teachers returned
to their schools, they could not find opportunities to meet in a systematic manner. The
Bay School administration could not allocate a separate block of time for the teachers to
meet and work together in a planned manner. As a result, teachers began to collaborate
in small groups with teachers with whom they could identify and in this way informal
patterns of collaboration emerged in the school. Though, some teachers still preferred to
work individually on their own.
At the training sessions we used to prepare lessons in groups. However, when we returned to our respective schools, we were not provided with opportunities to implement those methods of working together. (Ray)
Teachers generally came together when they needed each other’s assistance.
Some teachers also had the opportunity to help and guide the new teachers in the school.
One teacher said that she liked to learn by observing other teachers’ classes and invited
other teachers to observe her classes. Some teachers liked to hold informal discussions
on teaching and learning issues as and when they had time.
Among the three of us (class two teachers), we do observe each other's classes and we learn from each other. (Zaal) We do plan the lessons individually first. What really happens is who ever has planned first can discuss with the others. (Daal) These informal ways of collaboration have been helpful in providing most of the
teachers with the opportunities to learn from each other and solve teaching difficulties. It
may be informally, but these teachers are collaborating for planning and teaching, which
the quantitative analysis has already illustrated as one of the main dimension of teacher
collaboration.
The teachers I interviewed thought that it would be good to have a separate block
of time when they could meet on a regular basis and further enhance their professional
capabilities.
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The school Head held meetings with the staff to inform them about the new
developments in the school administration and school curriculum.
There is no fixed time for the meetings. Mostly meetings are held to communicate information and to deliver directions received from the education office. If any teacher has a problem, then the discussion is invited on searching for a solution to that problem. Whenever our Head goes for any workshop or training, she comes back and holds a meeting to teach us the same thing that she has learned at the workshop. However, the culture of proper planning and systematically involving teachers has not come to our school as yet. (Daal)
In the same manner, the supervisor of the school also called meetings with all the
teachers whenever she had some information that needed to be delivered to the teachers.
Thus, administrative collective work was not a regular strategy, but it was taking place
in the school.
Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between Demo Centre
Training and teacher collaboration.
Many teachers in this case saw collaboration as a way of solving teaching
problems and so they aligned themselves with the teachers they could identify with more
easily and continued to seek each other’s assistance as and when they had problems.
However, some teachers exchanged lessons, discussed different teaching and learning
issues and tried to learn something from their colleagues even when they had no
problem to discuss. The only factor that suggests that the demo training is linked with
teacher collaboration is that during the training, the teachers were given opportunities to
work with one another in a collegial environment. Teachers learned group work
methodology by having opportunities to work on several projects in groups.
The main issue, in this case site, is that in the absence of proper guidelines and
fewer opportunities to meet in a planned manner after the training, all the teachers could
not see collaboration as a means of learning and enhancing their professionalism. Some
teachers have begun to see teacher collaboration as a way of improving their
professional capabilities, while some saw group work, group presentations and
discussions as teaching strategies only.
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5.11.4 The Relationships between the Demo Centre Training and Teacher Leadership
Out of the four teachers I interviewed, only one had received the Demo Centre
Master Training. However, the other three teachers also demonstrated leadership
qualities. The reason for this could be that confident and capable teachers were being
appointed in the school.
The teachers reported that they enjoyed classroom leadership. They said that
they were free to choose any teaching method, as long as they completed the syllabus.
The teachers organized their classes in different ways. The children enjoyed sitting in
groups, on the mats and in straight lines. The school Head further enhanced teachers’
classroom leadership by giving them liberty to teach in any way they felt appropriate.
According to my few months experience in this school whenever I have asked the principal, "This is the way I would like to work. I feel I can be more effective by working in this way,” she has asked me to go for it and do it my way. So I applied my methods in my class and I am so grateful to God that my children are doing very well. (Ray)
The school principal delegated authority, which provided teachers with the
opportunities to demonstrate some of their leadership skills at the school level.
According to the Head, the responsibilities are distributed on the basis of teachers’
aptitude and interest.
The teachers enjoyed the authority of refusing to undertake any responsibility
that they were not confident about. Generally teachers were asked to prepare students
for different plays, speeches, or poetry recitation in case of functions or special
programmes; guide new teachers; send the children back into their classes after break
and other administrative tasks. The new teachers were referred to the old teachers, who
were good in their specialized subject areas, for guidance. Teachers were involved in
some decisions. Teachers were of the view that their Head involved them in some
decisions and some decisions the Head took on her own.
The Demo Training took no specific steps to develop teacher leadership. The
four teachers unanimously stated that the Demo Training planners neither involved the
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teachers in the initial planning of the training nor sought teachers’ suggestions during
the training.
They only informed us what we had to do. They did not involve us in planning what needs to be done. (Ray) They taught us what they had already decided they would teach us. They did not plan after seeking teachers' opinion. It was pre-planned. (Zaal)
Despite the fact that the reform planners did not take any specific initiative to
promote teacher leadership, the Bay School teachers did emerge as confident teacher
leaders. This is because the school gained prominence as the Model School after the
Demo Centre Training and the teachers were provided with the opportunities to expose
their work to the wider audience. The teachers’ leadership qualities came to the surface
when they gained confidence, enhanced their professional knowledge and when they
had the opportunities to become group leaders and guide other teachers. As this teacher
pointed out:
If after the training any teacher demonstrated excellent leadership skills and became prominent then it is mainly because of the teacher’s own personal qualities and ability. That teacher absorbed more than the other teachers from the training and improved upon it. (Zay)
Teachers, who demonstrated more leadership qualities and were also more
qualified, were given opportunities to become Master Trainers.
They prepared Master Trainers who could then train other teachers. Demo Training helped me become a Science Master Trainer. (Daal)
Since becoming the Science Master Trainer, Daal has been given an opportunity to
participate in the revision of government primary school science syllabus. She has also
provided training to the other teachers in science.
Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between Demo Centre
Training and teacher leadership.
Since Bay School was a model school, the teachers had to maintain a certain
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standard of education in their school. In order to do that, the teachers had to improve
their professional knowledge and capabilities and teach with authority. Therefore, in the
Bay School each teacher was a leader of her class fully aware of her responsibilities.
The visits provided the teachers with the opportunities to expose their work to the wider
audience and further improve their classroom leadership. Under the supervisor’s
support, guidance and leadership, the teachers felt secure and important. This feeling
further strengthened their leadership qualities. The Head also enhanced teachers’
leadership by not interfering in their classroom affairs. The teachers were not scared of
their Head and could talk to her about the different issues.
The most important issue in this case site was that the teachers were not involved
in the decisions regarding their own professional growth and development. As a result
the teachers could not share a common vision and could not relate the development of
their leadership qualities to any specific reform initiative.
5.11.5 Synthesis of the Key Themes and Implications from the Demo Centre Training
Case
The description of the relationships between the Demo Centre Training and
teacher professionalism has revealed that the Demo Centre Training has significantly
impacted on the teaching practice in the Bay School in the sense that the teachers
involve children in the learning process and teach by using a combination of old and
new methods. In addition to developing teachers’ capabilities, the Demo Centre Training
converted Bay School into a Model School. This provided teachers with a platform to
exhibit their capabilities, consolidate their sense of efficacy, collaborate and undertake
leadership roles.
Figure 5.2 presents the specific role played by the Demo Centre Training in
developing teacher professionalism.
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Figure 5.2 Development of Teacher Professionalism in the Bay School
The top box of Figure 5.2 presents the teachers as they were before the Demo
Centre Training. The arrows in the middle of the diagram illustrate the four factors that
played a significant role in further developing the relationships between the Demo
Centre Training and the teacher professionalism. The result was the teachers who were
more capable and the school, which was converted into a Model or Target School. The
teachers’ work practices in the school are presented in the box at the bottom. The four
factors have been distilled from the important themes and issues, which emerged
AFTER DEMO CENTRE TRAINING • More confident teachers (believe that they know more than the other teachers
and confident that they can accomplish different, even difficult tasks). • Child-centred teaching methods (good interaction with the children). • Some teachers realizing the importance of teacher collaboration. SCHOOL BECAME A MODEL SCHOOL RESULTING IN: • Learning through School-based workshops and educational visits. • Employment of devoted and responsible teachers in the school. • Occasional planning (exchange of lessons). • Acknowledgment of teachers’ efforts by the visitors. • Continuous school supervisor support. • No planned meetings (teachers meet informally to discuss teaching issues as
and when required. If required, the head calls meetings). • Classroom authority (to the extent of choosing the teaching methods and
organizing classrooms. No change in the syllabus / content). • Undertake responsibilities and be involved in some school related decisions.
BEFORE DEMO TRAINING - Teachers who are confident to some extent - Other factors helped to develop their self-efficacy – Use of chalk and talk
method - No or very little interaction with the children - Collaboration in an informal & unplanned manner – No school-based workshops – No visits.
DEMO TRAINING FACTORS
THE MODEL SCHOOL
STANADARDS
THE SCHOOL
SUPERVISOR
PROVISION OF
OPPORTUNITIES
DEVELOPMENT OF
CAPABILITIES
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following the discussion about the relationships between the Demo Centre Training and
the four dimensions of professionalism. This section synthesises the themes and issues
related to the four factors and considers their future implications.
One of the main themes emerging from the case description is that when the
Demo Centre Training developed teachers’ capabilities (by providing them with the
professional knowledge about the subject matter, pedagogy and children), the teachers
began to feel confident and their teaching practice improved too. The teachers also used
their confidence and capabilities to make decisions about the teaching methods that
could help them complete the syllabus and make learning interesting for the children.
The Demo Centre Training provided the teachers with opportunities to
collaborate with the teachers from different contexts and learn from one another. The
teachers were also provided with opportunities to communicate in a non-threatening
environment with their supervisors. This interaction bridged the gap between the
teachers and the supervisors and helped teachers gain confidence. The teachers worked
in groups on several projects, lead group presentations, learned to prepare low or no cost
teaching aids, and gave demonstration lessons. Even though, the teachers were provided
with opportunities to go through the activity learning process with the other teachers in
groups, the teachers’ actual collaborative patterns that emerged in the Bay School were a
reflection of the teachers’ understanding of collaboration. Some teachers understood
collaboration as a way of learning with other teachers, while some understood it as a
way of helping children learn. Furthermore, once the teachers returned to their schools,
they were not provided with the opportunities to collaborate in a planned manner. At the
moment, the teachers collaborate in small groups. I observed teachers working with
other teachers with whom they could easily identify.
The Demo Centre Training converted the Bay School into a Model School,
which presented teachers with more opportunities to enhance their professionalism. The
person responsible for maintaining the model school standards in the Bay School is the
school supervisor. It was a combination of a one-month long Demo Centre Training and
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the follow-up work provided by the supervisor that helped in developing teacher
professionalism in the Bay School. The school supervisor also brought about changes in
them according to the requirements of the new educational practices.
The Bay school served as a platform for arranging school-based workshops,
which were attended by the teachers from the Bay and the other schools. Several
trainings had been arranged in different subjects by the supervisor. While the teachers
acknowledged the Demo Training’s contribution in enhancing their professionalism,
they also maintained that without their supervisor’s support the teachers would not have
been able to identify with the professional work practices.
In keeping with the standards of the Model School, the school has a small library
with a good collection of books. The school has two in-charges, whose responsibilities
are to assist the principal in the academic and administrative work. This lessens the
Head’s workload and the teachers are free of doing any type of office or paper work.
The Bay School administration also rewards teachers for their efforts by giving a the
best teacher of the year award.
Another important factor that helped to maintain and further develop teacher
professionalism in the Bay School was the different types of educational visits. The
exposure from the visits gave a tremendous boost to the teachers’ confidence and helped
teachers emerge as good classroom leaders. It also promoted teacher collaboration
because whenever there was any official visit, the teachers made sure that they discussed
their teaching ideas with the different teachers in the school. During my three-week stay
in the Bay School, I witnessed two visits. One visit was from the supervisors and
educators from the other cities in Pakistan. There was also a visit by the two educators
from an educational institution.
In addition to encouraging teachers to take their own decisions, the teachers
believed that the school principal should encourage the teachers to meet in groups in a
planned manner for further school improvement. As one teacher pointed out:
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One teacher alone cannot bring about change in the whole school. If we work together we can bring about change in the school. (Zay)
Elaborating upon the principal’s role, Ray suggested that the school Head should
be a model for the school staff.
Supposing a teacher is absent today, the head should be able to go in that class and teach that class herself. Seeing that the Head is teaching the other teachers will want to teach that class. Then all the people will get involved in this manner and more and more models will be developed. (Ray)
The main issues in this case were that the teachers were not involved in the
initial planning of the Demo Training, and the dissemination of information to the
teachers was next to nothing. Therefore, different teachers benefited from this training in
different ways. Talking about this issue, Zay argued that teachers should be involved in
the school development programmes in a planned manner.
There should be proper planning of anything or everything that is required to be done in this school. Work should be distributed among the school community based on proper planning and then they must do proper follow-up work. (Zay)
The teachers also had a number of other suggestions for the education
department and the policy makers for sustaining and further enhancing their level of
professionalism. Daal suggested that the education department should provide the
resources and facilities that are required by the school and the children.
You must have noticed that we pick up things before the school ends every day and bring them downstairs to be locked into the cupboard because the afternoon shift will use the same room. This is due to less number of rooms. Each teacher should have a separate room. There should be a cupboard in every room. (Daal)
At this stage, I bring my discussion about the Demo Training and teacher
professionalism to a temporary closure. I understand that there is more to be discussed,
but that can be best be discussed in the light of the findings of the remaining two
schools’ stories. It is for this reason that I move to the third case study school and I will
return to the findings of this case in chapters 6 and 7.
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The Story of the Pay Government Girls’ Primary School
Getting access to the Pay School in Karachi teachers was perhaps more difficult than getting teachers to talk about their professionalism. I remember arriving in the school at my appointed time in September 2001 to interview teachers, only to discover that I could not interview teachers at that time because of some administrative reasons. I was asked to come back in November 2001, which I did but to no avail as the three teachers had gone on leave. I was asked to come back in January 2002. This time I was lucky. In the end, when I analysed the rich data I felt happy that I kept trying and not gave up on this school. (Personal Reflection)
5.12 The Pay School’s Background and Structure
The Pay Government Girls’ Primary School (GGPS) is located in one of the
exclusive and very busy areas of Karachi. The school is only a small distance away from
the office buildings, hotels, parks and shopping malls. In more than fifty years of its
existence, the school has been through different situations.
The school principal still remembers the happy childhood days she has spent in
this school as a secondary school student. Being a “Model School,” the school has
always enjoyed a good reputation. In the beginning, it was an English medium co-
educational school. In the late seventies, the school’s medium of instruction was
changed to Urdu and, about the same time, it was also changed to all girls’ school. The
girls’ uniforms were also changed.
The Pay School is a small school consisting of five classrooms, one office for the
principal, and one big staff room for the teachers. The teachers sit around a big
rectangular table in the staff room to do their work. There is a cupboard in every
classroom, where the teachers can store their teaching resources. There are more
cupboards in the staff room where additional teaching resources can be stored. At
present, there are about 170 children, 12 teachers, one headmistress, one in-charge, one
maasi and one peon in the school. The classes range from level one to level five and
there is only one section for each class level. There is no Kindergarten or KG class in
the school.
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Both the primary and the secondary schools are in the same compound. The
school has a big cement ground where the girls play during the break time. The new
primary school building was constructed in 1990.
5.13 Characteristics of the Pay School Children and the Parents
Most of the children come from low socio-economic background families.
However, the parents of the Pay School are financially more secured than the parents of
many other government schools. Only about 10% of the parents are extremely poor.
Some parents can afford to send their children to school in private vans. The van owners
charge parents a small amount of money, but most of the parents cannot afford this
luxury.
Most of the parents are illiterate. The fathers work on daily wages. Some also
earn their living as watchmen or drivers. The mothers are either housewives or they
work as cleaning ladies. Some children come from educated, middle class families.
Their fathers are either doctors or engineers, or they work in government offices. Some
own their own small businesses. The mothers are mostly housewives.
According to the school Head, the children have shown some improvement in
their behaviour in the last few years. They have become more regular and have started
showing more interest in their studies. The children are also quite confident now. They
have taken part in many quizzes and other competitions and have brought back to the
school many trophies, which now adorn the glass shelf in the principal’s office. The
children have prepared different tableaux which they are asked to perform at the school
functions or annual events arranged by the different schools.
5.14 Characteristics of the Pay School Educators
Table 5.3 presents the characteristics of the educators who participated in the
interview
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Table 5.3
Characteristics of the Pay School Educators Who Participated in the Interview
Name Characteristics
Seen Seen is between 40-45 years of age. She has done Master in Art and also has a Primary Teaching Certificate (PTC). She has a teaching experience of about 25 years. She has been associated with the Pay School for about 10 years. Seen comes from an educated background. She teaches English, Science and Art to class five, and is also the school in-charge.
Sheen Sheen is a young teacher between 25-30 years of age. She has done Bachelor in Art and also has a PTC. She has a teaching experience of about 10 years in the Pay School. She has taken the Urdu teaching training arranged by the Book Group. Sheen teaches Urdu to class one.
Meem Meem is an experienced teacher between 35-40 years of age. She has done Bachelor in Art and also has a PTC. She has more than 10 years teaching experience in the Pay School. She also has some administrative experience. Meem teaches Math and Urdu to classes four and five.
Noon Noon is a young teacher between 25-30 years of age. She has done Bachelor in Art. She does not have any teacher training. She has a teaching experience of about 15 years and has been associated with the Pay School for about three years. Noon teaches Sindhi to classes three, four and five.
Head The present Head-Mistress has been leading this school for more than ten years. The head has an extensive teaching and administrative experience of about 20 years. She joined this school in 1991. It was the excitement and challenge of leading the school she had herself studied from that lured her into accepting the position of headmistress. She is a Bachelor in Art and Education.
Reform Manager
The reform manager is a very well known educationalist. He has been actively involved with the different projects trying to bring about change in education. He has written extensively on different educational issues. He is the principal of a private school in Karachi and the Chairperson of the Book Group. He also worked with the government to produce a curriculum document for primary schools.
5.15 The Book Group’s Reform and its Purposes
In April 1995, the Government of Sindh issued a notification to transfer the
management of the Pay Government Girls’ Primary School morning and the afternoon
shift to the Book Group, which is a private book-publishing organization. The purpose
of this transfer was to improve the quality of education in the government school with
the existing teaching staff, without any major financial input. As part of the transfer, the
Book Group implemented administrative reforms and major pedagogical innovations
such as, introducing interesting and relevant curriculum in the school.
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Initially the Book Group only communicated with the school principal and the
education department. However, once the procedure of securing the official permission
was completed the Book Group called a meeting, which was attended by all the
teachers, the parents, the then District Education officers, the school Head, the Book
Group coordinator and the Book Group chairperson. During the meeting, the Book
Group informed the teachers that the purpose of taking over the administration of their
school was to improve its standard of education.
The Book Group publishes its own Urdu textbooks, which are being used in
many of Karachi’s schools. In the Pay School, these textbooks are being provided to the
children free of cost. In the Pay GGPS, the Book Group’s textbooks have replaced the
Sindh Textbook Board (STB) prescribed textbooks, which are being used in all the other
government schools. The Book Group has also produced teachers’ guides, which are
intellectually more stimulating for the teachers than the old guidebooks.
The major administrative reform initiative has been the reduction in the number
of children from 80 to 40 in each class. It is not easy for the children to get admission in
the Pay School. The children have to sit for the admission test in class one. The Book
Group also brought about structural improvement. Before, there used to be only one fan
and one tube light in each classroom. Now, there are two fans and two tube lights in
each classroom. They have also painted and repaired the school.
In order to monitor teachers’ work, the Book Group appointed a full-time school
coordinator. The coordinator maintains an accountability check of the teachers’ work
and the school progress. However, the coordinators have changed quite frequently.
According to the reform manager, they have brought about a major shift in Urdu.
The teachers’ guidebooks have played an important role in enhancing teachers’
professionalism. The teachers now have the opportunity to teach with textbooks which
have modern content and which also give teachers new ideas about teaching.
Underscoring the importance of the teachers’ guidebooks, the reform manager said that
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the guidebooks encouraged the teachers to ask interesting and thought provoking
questions, rather than asking content loaded questions all the time. The reform manager
called the Book Group textbooks “instruments of change,” because they changed
teachers’ vision and motivation in a way that enabled them to begin to realize that they
were capable of asking bold questions.
The reform manager emphasized that they had been able to bring about
qualitative improvement in the Pay School. They achieved this improvement by making
the school principal autonomous, the teachers more responsible and the school system
completely transparent. According to the reform manager, the Pay School is now one of
the top five government schools in Karachi.
5.16 The Relationships between Book Group and Teacher Professionalism
The interviews revealed that the teachers experienced a sense of professionalism
in their work. Teachers’ perceptions of teacher professionalism included themes such as
teacher planning and preparation, teacher knowledge about the subject matter and about
child psychology, teacher attitude and personality, teacher relationship with the children,
teacher collaboration, teacher capability, teacher confidence and teacher qualification.
These perceptions of professionalism are not very different from the conceptualized
dimensions of professionalism, which the survey result has also indicated as important.
The interviews with the teachers revealed the Book Group’s contribution in
developing teacher professionalism. The section which follows will describe the
relationships between the Book Group’s educational reforms and the different
dimensions of teacher professionalism. The other important factors and the issues that
have emerged as a result of this investigation are also reported.
5.16.1 The Relationships between Book Group and Teacher Efficacy
The four teachers, I interviewed, believed that they were capable of performing
different classroom and school related tasks. Exploration of the different aspects of the
work that the teachers believed that they were capable of doing revealed that they could
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teach confidently even in the presence of visitors; they were no longer scared of the
surprise inspections of their classroom teaching; they could help their students improve
in their studies and achieve good results, successfully carrying out responsibilities; and
they could speak very confidently. The survey analysis presented similar results. Factor
one of the efficacy scale contains items, which also describe an efficacious teacher as
the teacher who is able to achieve good results with the children.
Most of the teachers reported that, as they became more careful and responsible
about accomplishing classroom tasks, they also began to believe that they were capable
of accomplishing those tasks successfully. The teachers cited examples such as checking
their students’ work on time and gaining more confidence.
Previously, when we had surprise inspections we used to be scared because our copies were not checked. But now children’s copies are checked on time. We know that they would not find irregularities in our work because now we perform all our chores on time. (Sheen)
Another teacher said that since she properly planned her teaching lessons before
hand, she was no longer frightened of being observed. She believed that she could now
teach confidently even in the presence of the visitors.
Now I can teach with confidence because now I am well prepared for my lessons in advance. Previously we used to come to school and teach without prior preparation. (Meem)
The Book Group’s contribution to developing this teacher confidence is that they
regularized teachers’ work by introducing rules and regulations, which had to be strictly
followed by everyone in the school. For instance, everyone had to be in school at a
certain time in the morning, all the work had to be done according to the schedule, the
teachers could not be absent without any genuine reason, the lesson diaries had to be
prepared on time, and the teachers had to be well prepared for their classes. Any
deviation from the rules would result in the Book Group coordinator demanding
explanations from the teachers for negligence.
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For the teachers the school environment had become quite intense, yet most of
them reported that they performed well under pressure and as their work improved they
also gained more confidence. Most of the teachers I interviewed felt that the coordinator
was very strict about the rules and the regulations.
The present coordinator is very strict. She requires everything to be done urgently and she gets angry if the work is not done on time. (Meem)
Perhaps realizing that it could be difficult for the teachers to follow the strict
rules and regulations, the Book Group adopted certain strategies to give teachers
incentives to keep on working diligently. The teachers described how every year one
teacher would get the best teacher certificate for producing good work and another
teacher would get the best effort teacher certificate for trying to produce good work. The
teachers also received some cash. According to the school Head, the rewards had greatly
enhanced teachers’ confidence.
The teachers get cash award and a certificate. The money is not important, but this process has helped to enhance our courage and our confidence, and we feel that there is someone who appreciates our work. (Head)
Sheen who had been given the best teacher certificate reported that the certificate
further enhanced her confidence. Once Sheen had established herself as a good teacher,
the Book Group coordinator began to listen to her and ask her for suggestions. She also
advised the other teachers to seek Sheen’s guidance for different teaching matters. For
Sheen, the present coordinator’s attitude had been very encouraging which gave her
immense confidence in her own capabilities.
The present coordinator gave importance to what I had to say and she would also ask the other teachers to come and ask me for ideas. Therefore, I understood that she thought me a capable person. (Sheen)
In this way, the Book Group enhanced what the survey analysis described as an
important dimension of teacher efficacy - belief that all aspects of work, such as
teaching other teachers in the school, are possible. However, Book Group could not
develop this level of confidence in all the teachers. It was only the teachers who had the
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opportunities to undertake different tasks at the school level who demonstrated this level
of confidence.
Some teachers reported that they had the confidence to undertake different
school related tasks and perform them successfully, but they were mostly involved with
classroom activities. Not all the teachers were provided with equal number of
opportunities to perform school related tasks. Seen indicated willingness to train other
teachers if she was provided with such opportunities. She was of the view that the
school principal was the key person who could make that happen.
I feel it is difficult to bring about change in the school because unless and until the Head does something, the teachers cannot move forward. (Seen)
While the teachers acknowledged the Book Group’s contribution in helping them
gain more confidence, they also reported that the Book Group did not develop this
confidence in them from the beginning. The teachers reported that they were confident
to some extent about performing different tasks even before the Book Group took over.
Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between Book Group and
teacher efficacy.
The above description shows that the Book Group was able to develop teacher
efficacy to a higher level to the extent that teachers were no longer scared of the visitors
or their supervisors; they could accomplish difficult classroom tasks and could voice
their opinions about the school matters confidently. The Book Group developed this
level of confidence in the teachers by enhancing their capabilities through curriculum
strategies such as planning and preparation of lessons before hand. Accountability
checks, and rules and regulations helped teachers accomplish different tasks on time and
feel confident about it. The awards and the oral praise gave a good boost to teachers’
beliefs in their capabilities to achieve success at the class teaching level. Some teachers,
who had further opportunities to undertake responsibilities at the school level, began to
believe that they could attain difficult school related tasks. The main issue, in this case,
is that while the firm administration helped to develop teacher efficacy, it also
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developed stress among most of the teachers, who sometimes found the coordinator’s
attitude too demanding.
5.16.2 The Relationships between Book Group and Teacher Practice
Talking about the prior Book Group period, the school Head recalled how the
teachers would open the textbook, explain the chapter and do the questions given at the
back of the chapter on the blackboard. After the Book Group took charge of the school,
the teachers’ emphasis changed from covering the content in the subject of Urdu to
teaching less content, but teaching it well so that each child understands and remembers.
The Book Group brought about this change in the teaching approach by
introducing new and modern Urdu textbooks, which had simple and interesting content
for the children. The Book Group’s Urdu textbooks were bright and colourful. Children
who were not used to seeing beautiful textbooks with very simple content and
interesting pictures thought they were reading story books and took a lot of interest in
them. Since the books were designed on the concept of integrated curriculum, the
children were not only learning Urdu language, they were learning about science, social
studies, geography and religion from one book.
Most of the teachers reported that they did not receive training about the use of
new textbooks, but they were provided with teachers’ guides, which were quite self-
explanatory. The guidebooks provided teachers with the ideas and the instructions about
how a certain topic could be taught using different teaching methods. The guidebooks
encouraged teachers to ask thought provoking questions.
They have storybooks for the children and the guidebooks for the teachers. If there are 25 alphabets in the children's book, then there will be a two-week's or ten day’s guide for that. This means that a teacher takes one alphabet and teach it in different ways for a while. (Sheen)
According to the Head, three teachers had received training in the methods of
teaching Urdu to class one students. The teachers were also taken on a tour to the private
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school of the Book Group’s president where they spent a week and observed the
classroom teaching there.
Reading the instructions in the guidebooks, the teachers began to prepare
worksheets for the children. The teachers liked the concept of making worksheets
because it provided them with the opportunities to discover what they should be
teaching to the children. It also became compulsory for the teachers to teach with the
help of charts or models.
The Book Group informed us that if we were teaching about rain, we could make a chart to explain the concept. This will help the child to understand better. (Meem)
The Book Group bought the material that the teachers required to make teaching
aids. The teachers acknowledged that without the Book Group’s financial assistance,
they would not have been able to make charts or models for the children. The education
department did not provide them with the teaching resources. The Book Group also
photocopied the worksheets for all the children.
On the 14th of May we had a farewell party for class five. They paid for the tent to be installed and other arrangements so that we could have the party outside. (Sheen)
The Book Group also appointed a specialized Art teacher at its own expense.
Each class had a library period in which the children read the storybooks provided by
the Book Group. In addition, there were separate periods for Art, music, activities and
games for the children. Occasionally, the Book Group took the students out on
excursions and educational trips.
The Book Group had initiated the concept of revision in a planned manner. The
teachers checked the class work on a daily basis and gave the same written work for
homework so that the children could revise it at home. The Book Group abolished
corporal punishment in the Pay School and asked the teachers to be friendly with the
children.
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Under the Book Group management the teachers were expected to write a full
week’s lesson diary. The diaries were lesson organizers. The Book Group Coordinator
checked them, highlighting errors and giving good remarks on a well-prepared diary.
These curriculum innovations significantly improved the teaching practice in the
Pay GGPS. Most of the teachers made at least two charts every week. The teachers
taught with the help of questions and also related the story to a real life situation. They
asked the children what lesson they had learned from the story and what ideas they
could share with the others. In this way, the emphasis of teaching had shifted from the
teachers to the children and the teachers’ interaction with the children had also
improved. Since the number of children had changed from 80 to 40 in a class, the
teachers could give individual attention to the children. By bringing about these
changes, the Book Group provided teachers with the opportunities to apply professional
knowledge for student learning. This has already been illustrated as an important
dimension of teacher professionalism.
However, in the higher primary grades, there was greater reliance on blackboard
explanation. In class five, the teachers also taught from the STB Urdu textbook to
prepare the children for the Education Board’s exam.
It is hard to ascertain if the changed teaching practice for the subject of Urdu had
any impact on the teaching of the other subjects. According to the Head, it did have an
impact in the sense that, following the same instructions given in their Urdu guidebooks,
the teachers started making work sheets for the other subjects as well.
We have also started making the worksheets in Mathematics. So, the children solve some of their mathematics sums on the work sheets. (Head)
The Book Group also implemented certain administrative strategies that helped
teachers become more responsible and accountable for their work. The teachers
admitted that they began to teach responsibly and check children’s work regularly. They
began to come to school on time. They started to prepare their diaries on time and began
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to pay attention to even the tiniest details. When they had decided what they were going
to teach in the following week, the teachers reported that they also spent time collecting
more information about the topic, so that they could make the lesson more interesting
for the children by giving them additional information. Teachers also realized that if
they did anything irresponsibly they would be asked for an explanation.
I have become a more responsible teacher. I have developed an interest in my work. It has now become my routine to do work on time. Also we know that if we don’t do it on time, we will be called for explanation. So we also work out of concern. (Seen)
Under Book Group administration, the class teacher was not expected to teach all
the subjects. They were all subject teachers, and they were expected to take class periods
subject-wise. While this strategy ensured equal time distribution and emphasis to all the
subjects, it did not encourage flow of ideas from one subject to another and the teachers
felt that they got to spend less time with the children.
In order to maintain the improved work practice the Book Group began to
reward improvement. One teacher who had received the reward reported how her
teaching improved after she had received the best teacher certificate.
After I got the certificate, I began to use more teaching aids and I tried to make the lesson more interesting. (Sheen)
While these curriculum and administrative changes did succeed in developing a
professional working environment in the school, they had a varied impact on the
teachers’ sense of professionalism. Some teachers began to understand that the purpose
of education was to help the child learn and not just fill his or her mind with
information.
Teachers must encourage the children to speak out and tell them what they know. The child will be able to tell you the knowledge that he has in his mind. (Sheen)
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Another group of teachers believed that their professional capabilities should be
the reflection of how much knowledge the children have of the grammar of the Urdu
language and how well they can form words and structure sentences. These teachers
were of the opinion that the Book Group’s books did not serve this purpose. They found
the books too easy for the children.
Students find BG books interesting because they are in the form of stories and they can easily understand them better, but their recognition and understanding of the Urdu language has not improved. When we try to do other work on the blackboard they are not able to understand that. (Meem)
Some teachers realized that in order to achieve new standards, they should try to
do their work with interest in order to get some joy out of it. The teachers reported that
they were more professionally responsible and the work had also become interesting,
both for teachers and the children, but the workload had increased too.
We also try to do our best thinking that those children who cannot learn by class work, they will be able to learn with the help of worksheets, but the syllabus has increased and we are overburdened with work. (Meem)
Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between Book Group and
teacher practice.
By introducing standardized work procedures and rules and regulations, the
Book Group attained success in enhancing teacher professionalism in the sense that the
teachers became more responsible and their interaction with the children also improved.
The teachers began to execute responsibilities with care because they knew that they
would be held accountable. With respect to teaching capability, the teachers who were
given the opportunities to teach Urdu were also provided with more opportunities to
learn and to improve their professional capabilities. They had received additional
training and had also learned new ideas from the teachers’ guides. These teachers had
acquired new teaching skills and the modern teaching concepts. Therefore, while all the
teachers applied professional knowledge for student learning in a planned manner, the
teachers who taught Urdu came with a stronger knowledge base and implemented more
modern teaching approaches. The Book Group also provided financial and
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administrative assistance by providing textbooks to the children and the guidebooks to
the teachers free of cost and bearing the photocopying and other expenses. Since the
teachers taught subject wise, they had more free time at their disposal for lesson
planning and preparation. The main issues in this case are the lack of training for the
teachers and less time in the class with the children. Some teachers thought that the new
books were not very effective in developing children’s knowledge of Urdu language and
grammar.
5.16.3 The Relationships between Book Group and Teacher Collaboration
According to the teachers there had not been any significant changes in their
ways of collaborating ever since the Book Group had taken over the management of
their school. However, the administrative and the curriculum innovations provided the
teachers with opportunities to collaborate more than they used to before.
The Book Group converted one classroom into a teachers’ staff room with the
education department’s permission. The Book Group expected all teachers to sit
together in the staff room during the midday break and also during their free periods.
Having a separate room for work and discussions enhanced teacher collaboration.
Since, all the teachers sit in the staff room now, they tend to have more discussions among each other. They collaborate more. It was not like this before. (Noon)
The other way in which the Book Group improved teacher collaboration was that
it made it compulsory for the teachers to prepare at least two charts every week. Some
teachers made more teaching aids. Sometimes, the teachers were required to make
costumes and models for the special events or functions in the schools. They tried to
make these teaching aids together so that the workload could be distributed.
Now the teachers get together and make charts. They make models. They make different teaching aids. (Seen) In this way, the Book Group provided the teachers with some opportunities to
collaborate, but it did not provide the teachers with a separate block of time when all the
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teachers could meet and hold discussions about their work. It did not introduce the
concept of group work, collective planning, or team observation in a planned manner.
Therefore, the teachers continued to engage in professional dialogues in small groups
during the free periods.
In this school the Head calls meetings sometimes, but there is no system of teachers sitting together, conducting a meeting, discussing their problems or methods of teaching. I feel it should be happening in the school. (Noon)
Occasionally, the Head called the meetings to discuss some administrative issue
or to inform them about any new decision taken by the school management. When the
coordinator had to talk to the teachers or to communicate any message to the teachers,
she joined the staff for the midday break and held a short meeting. One teacher
commented that the tone of the meetings was mostly telling and there was generally no
agenda for these meetings.
The ideas of collaborative lesson planning and exchange of lessons had not
reached the Pay School. The teachers were generally cooperative and were willing to
help each other. The exploration of the teachers’ opinions about teacher collaboration
revealed two groups of teachers. One group of teachers believed that it was important
for the teachers to meet in a planned manner. It would help them get difficult tasks done
and the combined professional expertise would help bring about change in their school.
When all teachers work together they can bring about change. One teacher cannot do anything alone. (Seen)
The other group of teachers believed that collaboration would not necessarily enhance
teachers’ professionalism. It may just be an activity for getting the work done.
Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between Book Group and
teacher collaboration.
The Book Group had impacted teacher collaboration, but not in a planned
manner. Provision of opportunities was the main factor responsible for developing
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teacher collaboration. The Book Group provided the teachers with a staff room and
encouraged them to sit in the staff room during their free periods. As a result, the
teachers began to meet more often, exchange teaching ideas, help each other with the
lessons, prepare teaching resources together and hold discussions on different topics.
Teachers also began to consult each other’s lesson diaries and children’s work.
Depending on the total number of teachers in the school, the period or subject-wise
teaching allowed two to four teachers to be free together on most days. The main issue
in this case is that all the teachers did not realize the importance of collaboration for
their professional growth and development. Therefore, two forms of collaboration were
noted. One group of teachers liked to work together and welcomed the idea of planned
learning sessions. The other group was happy with the informal working patterns and
accomplishing the work on time. They preferred to work independently.
5.16.4 The Relationships between Book Group and Teacher Leadership
The teachers reported that they had the authority to organize their week’s planner
and to decide what teaching methods to use in their classes. However, they had to
complete and submit the whole week’s diary to the Head’s office before hand. If the
teachers decided to make any changes in their lessons after they were planned they had
to inform the administration.
The administrative control did not stop teachers from exerting their authority
about matters, which were important for them. For instance, the teachers had used their
authority to convince the Book Group to let them use the Sindh Text Board’s prescribed
books along with the Book Group’s new books.
We have insisted upon the Book Group to let us use the prescribed books as well. Otherwise our children face a lot of difficulty and problem in class six and also when they appear for the board exams. So, from this year we have started teaching from the prescribed textbooks and Book Group’s books. (Meem) Two teachers recounted that their Head involved them in only a few school
related decisions. She took most of the decisions herself and informed them how the
work was to be done. However, the Head did not enjoy the complete authority herself.
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She shared her authority with the Book Group coordinator. She did not mind doing that
because she felt that the Book Group’s management strategies were very effective and
they got the work done very effectively and efficiently.
Sometimes if the school's water tank is not functioning or the tube light is not working, then we have to wait for months before the education department sends a plumber or an electrician for the repair work. In the meantime the children get restless. However, ever since the Book Group has taken over, the coordinator gets the work done immediately. (Head)
One teacher claimed that once the Head and the coordinator had informed them
of a certain decision, they also encouraged the teachers to share ideas of improvement.
Similar patterns of sharing decisions with the teachers were adopted when the
management of the school was taken over by the Book Group. The teachers were not
involved initially. However, the school Head kept the teachers informed and the Book
Group came into their school with their consent.
Teacher leadership in the Pay School was predominantly limited to the teachers’
classrooms. For a small number of teachers, the leadership extended beyond classrooms.
The main reason for this was that the school administration did not delegate authority to
all the teachers. According to the Head, she gave the additional responsibility only to
those teachers who she thought were capable and interested in doing that work. The
teachers shared similar views.
The school presented opportunities to some teachers to emerge as teacher
leaders. These teachers had earned the administration’s respect by producing good
quality work. They eagerly participated in all types of activities. Seeing their enthusiasm
and their abilities to do the work effectively, the administration entrusted these teachers
with most of the responsibilities.
Another teacher and myself, we used to be involved with most of the activities. We would give suggestions to the Head. When any new teacher joined the school, we were asked to help and guide her. (Sheen)
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Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between Book Group and
teacher leadership.
The educational reforms introduced by the Book Group have had a varied impact
on teacher leadership. Two factors have been responsible for developing this level of
leadership in the Pay School. The administrative and the curriculum changes, which had
developed teachers’ confidence and capabilities, also helped teacher leadership to
emerge at the class level. Those teachers who managed the accountability and work
pressures, and who demonstrated enthusiasm and good leadership at the class level were
provided with more opportunities to undertake leadership roles at the school level. The
main issue in this case is that all the teachers were not provided with the opportunities to
undertake leadership roles at the school level.
5.16.5 Synthesis of the Key Themes and Implications from the Book Group Case
It appears that the educational reforms in the Pay School are based on the
assumption that the trained teachers are unable to implement the modern teaching
techniques because of insufficient financial resources, weak school administration and
traditional curriculum. The Book Group addressed these issues to help teachers work
more professionally and to improve the quality of education in the school.
The analysis shows that the administrative changes and the curriculum
innovations developed a professional working environment in the school. However,
their effect on teachers’ professionalism has been quite varied. The teachers were more
capable than they were before, but the teachers who taught Urdu came from a stronger
knowledge base. Similarly, the teachers who were provided with more opportunities to
be involved in school activities were more confident about performing different tasks.
All the teachers worked more responsibly than they did before, but it would not be
completely correct to say that all the teachers had learned to be more responsible. Some
teachers were working carefully because they did not want to be held accountable. Some
had begun to realize that they should work more conscientiously.
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Figure 5.3 shows how the Book Group helped to develop teacher
professionalism in the Pay School.
Figure 5.3 Development of Teacher Professionalism in the Pay School
The top box of the figure 5.3 presents the teachers as they were before the Book
Group implemented its administrative and curriculum innovations in the school. The
boxes in the middle present the different factors that have impacted the development of
teacher professionalism. These factors have been distilled from the themes and issues,
AFTER THE BOOK GROUP • More interaction between the teachers and the children. • Children assume central position in the teaching. • Teachers working more responsibly, carefully and regularly. • Teachers working together in the staff room. • Teachers teaching with the help of different teaching aids. • Regular lesson planning and revision of children’s work. • Some teachers undertaking additional school responsibilities such as,
guiding other teachers. • Most teachers mainly concerned with the classroom teaching. • Confident teachers who can give suggestions and voice concerns. • Teachers can teach confidently in front of the visitors. • Teachers could accomplish difficult classroom tasks.
BEFORE BOOK GROUP - Teachers inhibited in front of the visitors - Teacher-centred teaching methods – No weekly planning – No or very little
interaction with the children – Less sense of responsibility – No staff room for the teachers – Simple tasks not requiring teachers to work together –
Occasional administrative meetings.
BOOK GROUP
FACTORSSTANDARD WORK
PRACTICES
THE BOOK GROUP
COORDINATOR
PROVISION OF
OPPORTUNITIES
DEVELOPMENT OF
CAPABILITIES
THE SCHOOL PRINCIPAL
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which are pervasive in all the dimensions of professionalism. The box at the bottom
summarizes the new developments in the teachers and hence in the school.
The standardized work practices helped to develop teachers into professionals
who: planned and prepared their lessons based on professional knowledge, which they
had acquired by reading the guidebooks; fulfilled all their responsibilities such as
coming to school on time or undertaking school related tasks; prepared teaching
activities that involved students more in the learning process; evaluated students’ work
on regular basis and maintained records of students’ work; set aside a library, a sport
and an Art period in a week for the children to be involved in different co-curricular
activities. In this way the Book Group developed teachers’ capabilities.
These standardized work procedures have created a professional working
environment in the school and have made learning enjoyable for the students. These
procedures also suggest certain themes and issues. One common theme is that to
enhance teacher professionalism it is important to develop teachers’ professional
knowledge and expertise. It is when the teachers have knowledge of subject matter and
pedagogy, and they are also provided with the opportunities to apply their professional
knowledge that the teachers gain confidence and their teaching practice improves.
Along with these opportunities for teachers, the issue of some teachers following
standardized work practices without any real enthusiasm was also quite observable. For
these teachers, it was more a case of complying with the directions rather than becoming
active participants in their own professional growth and development. These teachers
have highlighted a number of reasons for their lack of interest.
To begin with, there has been a remarkable increase in the teachers’ workload.
The workload has increased for all the teachers, but some teachers felt its pressure more
than others. The teachers, who managed issues such as the increased workload, wisely
became active participants in school procedures. These teachers were presented with
more opportunities to develop their leadership qualities. Perhaps these teachers put the
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school’s good and the children’s welfare above their personal problems. However, all
the teachers could not do that and the school administration’s strict attitude did not help
the situation either. This highlights two important people that are responsible for the
successful implementation of the school improvement initiatives – the school principal
and the Book Group coordinator.
The principal feels a personal attachment to this school and this attachment is
understandable because she has studied from the same school. She wants to see her
school develop into one of the best government schools in Karachi. Hence, her full
cooperation and sharing of leadership with the Book Group coordinator is evident.
The Book Group coordinator arrived in the school at 9 in the morning and left at
12 in the afternoon every day. During this time, she provided professional and
administrative support to the teachers by checking that the work was going on as it was
planned, checking teachers’ lesson plans, solving the school’s maintenance problems,
assisting the school principal in administrative tasks. In addition, she maintained a check
on the children’s progress by paying visits to the classes and asking questions from the
children.
Meeting with the school principal and the coordinator, I could see that they had
the school’s good and the children’s welfare at heart, yet they could not inspire all the
teachers. For the school administration, the teachers had a number of suggestions, which
have implications for professional development programmes.
They should also have a friendly attitude. The quality of work that they can take out from the teachers through love and affection, they cannot take out through strict behaviour. (Seen) Teachers realized that good administration and strict implementation of rules and
regulations were important for sustaining improvement.
Without the Book Group’s administration and financial assistance, the good work will come to a stop. The teachers will go back to what they used to do before the Book Group came. (Sheen)
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Because there is control here that the teachers work properly. A good administration is extremely important. (Noon)
However, the same teacher also believed that this strict management should be
coupled with friendly behaviour.
I feel the administration’s attitude should be strict as well as friendly. (Noon)
In addition, one teacher had two very clear suggestions.
First of all good training should be given to the teachers. Secondly, more time should be given to the teachers in the class. (Seen)
Another teacher believed that the content of the books should not be very easy.
This issue appears to be resolving as the teachers have now decided to use both the
Book Group’s and the Education Department’s textbooks. The Book Group is also
bringing about some appropriate changes in the content of its textbooks.
Acknowledgement of the teachers’ efforts has also emerged as an important
theme for enhancing teacher professionalism. In this case, the acknowledgement was in
the form of certificates, material rewards and written praise.
Regular follow-up work coupled with teacher accountability has also emerged as
an important theme. The accountability check helped to make teachers more responsible
and punctual, but all the teachers did not like the system of reporting any changes they
make in their classroom teaching procedures. Some teachers thought that it was good to
keep the administration informed about the changes to avoid confusions.
The teachers enjoyed good classroom leadership. However, the teacher
leadership at the school level is limited to the extent the school administration involved
the teachers in the decision and delegated authority on some issues. The Book Group
tried to preserve the school staff’s authority when it informed them about the changes
that it intended to introduce in their school.
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One of the major issues for the Pay School was that the administration took no
concrete steps to promote teacher collaboration. The culture of planned teacher meetings
and planned learning sessions had not been formally introduced in the Pay School. This
resulted in the teachers seeking each other’s assistance as and when they required it and
some teachers preferring to work independently. However, the demands of the increased
workload found teachers working together on several school projects to distribute their
workload. Most of the teachers were happy with these informal ways of collaboration,
but some teachers believed that teachers should collaborate in a planned manner to
improve their performance.
With this brief discussion, I turn my attention to the fourth case. I will return to
the Pay School story in the chapters 5 and 6 where I will synthesize the findings from all
the cases and address the research questions.
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The Story of the Tay Government Girls’ and Boys’ Primary School
In Tay School, I found a good ending to my journey of investigating the relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism. Unlike the other schools, The Tay School in Karachi is fairly new. Yet, it has made good progress. The other interesting thing about this school is the concept of boys and girls studying together in a class. I began interviewing teachers in the Tay School in March 2002. (Personal Reflection)
5.17 The Tay School’s Background and Structure
The Tay Government Girls’ and Boys’ Primary School is located on a busy road
in one of the exclusive and interesting suburbs of Karachi. The suburb is interesting
because it comprises beautiful buildings and grand houses, which are quite in contrast
with the modest brick houses at the back of the school. There is also a religious shrine
very close to the school. The business centres and the shopping malls are located only a
small distance away.
In 1998, the school started with only three teachers and a school principal. It
took the school staff about one year to establish the school and admit children. In 1999,
they began formal classes with 70 children. The teachers recounted that the initial years
were very difficult and the three staff members had to work very hard to organize the
school. Now the staff comprises 10 teachers, one principal, one maasi, one peon, one
sweeper and one watchman. There are about 250 children in the school.
The school is a small double storied white building comprising seven classrooms
and a principal’s office. Initially, there were only five classrooms, but now two new
rooms have been built. Classes range from kindergarten to class five. The school
compound is quite big. A long cemented walkway starts from the main gate and leads to
the principal’s office. There are two playgrounds on either side of the walkway for the
children. The ground on the right hand side has swings for the children to play.
On an average there are about 50 children in each class. Only a small number of
charts hang on the walls the classrooms. However, the school result has been
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consistently good due to the teachers’ hard work with the children and school principal’s
dedication to the school.
5.18 Characteristics of the Tay School Children and the Parents
The children come from the underprivileged colonies at the back of the school.
Most of the parents are not natives of the Karachi city. They have come to the big city
from the villages and the smaller cities in the country to earn money. They are mostly
labourers on daily wages. The fathers’ common occupations are musical instruments
players at the shrine or gardening or driving. Some fathers work as sweepers. The
mothers work as cleaning ladies.
The parents are illiterate, so they cannot help their children with studies.
However, they have begun to pay more attention to their children now than they did
before. This has resulted in the children coming to the school neat and tidy and showing
more interest towards their work. Only a small number of parents talk about the
problems their children are encountering in the school.
Since both parents work, the children spend their time playing on the streets after
they return home from the school. In some homes, the elder sisters, who are literate, help
their younger siblings with the homework. However, most of the children do not do their
homework. They complete their homework in the school during the midday break.
Unlike their parents, the children in the Tay School are quite bold and confident.
They can speak confidently and feel no hesitation in asking questions from their
teachers.
5.19 Characteristics of the Tay School Educators
Table 5.4 presents the characteristics of the educators who participated in the
interview
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Table 5.4
Characteristics of the Tay School Educators Who Participated in the Interview
Name Characteristics
Fay Fay is an experienced teacher. She is between 40-44 years of age. She is Bachelor in Arts and she also has a Teaching Certificate (CT). She has teaching experience of about 18 years and has been in Tay School since its inception.
Kaaf Kaaf is between35-40 years of age. She has done Intermediate in Art and also has a CT. She has a teaching experience of about 9 years. Kaaf is one of the three teachers who laid the foundations of this school. She teaches class three.
Gaaf Gaaf is a young teacher. She is between25-30 years of age. She has done Intermediate in Art and also has a PTC. She has a teaching experience of about 7 years. She has been teaching in the Alif School since its inception. Gaaf teaches Sindhi to classes three, four and five.
Laam Laam is between 40 – 44 years of age. She has done Master in Art. She has less than five years of teaching experience. She has been appointed by the school adopter to teach religious studies to the all the classes. Laam has not taken any formal teacher training, but she has taken courses in religious education and also in Arabic language and grammar.
Head The headmistress has been leading this school since its inception in 1998. The head has an extensive teaching and administrative experience of more than 20 years. She is between 45-50 years of age. She has done Bachelors in Art and Education. She has attended many teacher-training courses. She has played a crucial role in building this school from the scratch and in keeping the teachers motivated and united.
Coordinator The then coordinator of the Adopt a School Programme is a Master in English literature. She was employed by the Department for International Development (DIFID) and stationed at Sindh Education Foundation (SEF) as the Adopt a School programme’s vocal person. Later she became the programme coordinator. At present she is working in SEF putting together the ten-year SEF profile from 1992 to 2002.
5.20 Adopt a School Programme and its Purposes
The broad purpose of the Adopt a School Programme was to improve the
standard of the government schools in a phased manner by uplifting the physical
condition of the school and bringing about an improvement in the quality of education in
the school. In order to achieve this goal, a body consisting of the Department of
Education, Sindh Education Foundation (SEF), and the Adopter (Adopter is the
organization or the person who adopts school or the schools) was formed to revitalize
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schools. The adoption requires looking into the state of the student discipline and the
confidence of the students; motivation, dedication, training and experience of the
teachers; physical facilities of the schools; availability of the school supplies; and the
quality of the school administration and management.
The coordinator of Adopt a School Programme recounted the difficulties that her
team had to encounter during the initial years of the programme. The main problem was
the non-cooperative behaviour of the teachers towards the people adopting the state-
owned schools. These incidents of non-cooperation were against the spirit of public-
private partnership. According to the coordinator, the situation is improving now. The
adopters have been counselled to remain positive and patient, and build their
relationships with the staff and the teachers as friends.
In so far as the adoption of the Tay School is concerned, the teachers reported
that before the adoption there was no boundary wall, only heaps of rubbish all around
the Tay School. The rubbish had polluted the environment. The people had illegally
encroached upon the portions of the school ground and had built their lodgings there.
These people would wash their dirty clothes, cook and dry their clothes on the ground.
They would throw rubbish on the ground and also used some portions of the ground as
toilets. This made the environment unbearably dirty and unhygienic.
The teachers described how they used to cross this ground full of rubbish every
morning to reach the school. In those days, a broken and rusted metal railing covered the
school. Heroin addicts had invaded the school and they used it for their addiction needs.
The disposal of the used syringes posed a vile threat to the students.
The school was also in a battered condition. Potable water was not available in
the school. The lights and the fans were not in working condition. There was virtually no
furniture in the school. The children had to sit on the floor because there were no mats to
cover the school floor. There was no sweeper to clean the school and all the classes and
the corridors were full of cobwebs.
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Teachers said that they could see the encroachers fighting with each other from
the school premises. They would use very bad language. The beggars would come
begging at the school grills. The female teachers and the girls felt very uncomfortable
and insecure being observed by all the people.
It was with this situation and condition that the Tay School was adopted by the
President of the Women’s Islamic Mission on the 14th November 2000. The adoption
completely changed the school’s physical condition and the surrounding areas.
The Adopter arranged for the encroachers and their houses to be removed from
the school ground. They got the school ground cleaned and built eight feet high and six
inches thick wall constructed all around it. They also arranged for a portion of the right
hand side ground to be cemented for physical training exercises and the morning
assembly. The broken walkway in the centre of the school ground was also repaired.
The Adopter contracted labourers to clean the school. The corridors were painted
and the blackboards were repaired and polished. Metal nettings were installed on all the
windows for the children’s safety. The adopter also got installed an officially sanctioned
water supply pipeline and a new machine to transfer water to the overhead tank. The
toilets were cleaned and the broken pipes, taps, and the sewage line were repaired. They
also repaired the fans, lights and electric wiring in the school. They appointed a sweeper
for cleaning the school on daily basis and a watchman whose duty was to guard the main
gate and not let strangers walk in the school. They installed three metal gates with locks
in the school and provided desks and chairs for the students.
Seeing that the school was short of the required number of government teachers,
the Adopter appointed five private teachers for the school and paid their salaries. The
school staff’s persistent efforts and the Adopter’s assistance, has managed to divert the
Education Department’s attention to this school. The department has sent more trained
teachers to the school.
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The Adopter has also provided uniforms for the newly admitted children; one
hundred books in sets of Math, English and Urdu to all the kindergarten students; and a
first aid box that contained necessary medicines and the bandages. The Adopter’s
representative visited the school on a daily basis. The representative (who will be
referred to as the Adopter) took personal interest in the school. She found out from the
Head, the number of children who were from extremely destitute families and bought
for them books and uniforms. She went to the people’s homes and motivated the parents
to send their children to school. Some teachers reported that she literally caught the
street children and brought them to the school.
With the new school developments, improvements were also noted in the
children and parents. The parents were very happy that their children were getting
education in a clean and secure environment. The school was attracting more
admissions.
5.21 The Relationships between Adoption and Teacher Professionalism
The interviews with the teachers revealed that the teachers enjoyed a sense of
professionalism in their work. Teachers’ perceptions of professionalism included themes
such as having friendly relationships with the children, respecting children, knowledge
of child psychology, knowledge of classroom management strategies, training and
learning. These perceptions of teacher professionalism are not very different from the
ones disclosed by the survey analysis as important. Factor 1 and 2 of the teacher practice
scale describe the professional teacher as the teacher who has strong knowledge base
and who listens to the children. These concepts are similar to the teachers’ concept of a
professional teacher who has knowledge of the child psychology and who respects
children’s point of views.
5.21.1 The Relationships between Adoption and Teacher Efficacy
The four teachers I interviewed reported that they were very confident about
performing different class and school related tasks. The teachers gave examples of
handling very difficult students and achieving good results with them. They were
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confident that, with persistent efforts, they could bring about significant improvements
in their classes.
Beyond their classrooms, teachers could perform any responsibility assigned to
them by their Head. The school in-charge demonstrated confidence about incorporating
new teaching and learning ideas that she had seen in the other schools and further
improving the school climate. The teachers believed that they had the skills and the
abilities to train the other teachers and influence their teaching practice.
I can work with them to bring about change in the school. I can make this school a model school. (Fay)
The teachers reported that adoption provided the teachers with more
opportunities to exhibit their confidence. Teachers described how frightened they used
to be in the threatening school environment before. Sometimes they would be too scared
to come to school. The teachers acknowledged that the adoption put an end to their fears
by developing a safe school environment. The teachers worked more confidently in a
secure and peaceful school climate and began to believe that they could achieve
different tasks more effectively. By providing the teachers with these opportunities to
make use of their capabilities, the adoption contributed in helping teachers believe that
all aspects of work can be achieved. This has already been identified by the survey
analysis as an important dimension of teacher professionalism.
There has been some change in my confidence. Before, I did not feel like teaching here. We used to be scared all the time. Now the environment is very safe and peaceful. The school has a gate. We also have a watchman. (Kaaf) Now I get the "I can do" feeling. I feel like I can do different tasks. Before, I often used to get the feeling that I would not be able to teach in this environment. (Gaaf)
The investigation revealed that, in addition to the facilities provided by the
adopter, there were other important factors, which had played an important role in
developing teachers’ beliefs in their own capabilities. The school Head was of the
opinion that the education and teacher qualification were the most important factors in
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developing teachers’ confidence. The Head’s constant support was one factor that all the
teachers acknowledged as being the most important in developing their confidence and
helping them achieve the most difficult tasks.
When we had joined this school, the school’s environment was extremely bad and we did not feel like coming to the school. Our Head encouraged us a lot at that time. She used to say to us, “Don’t be scared. You have to stay here. God willing, there will be a day when this school will be a very good school.” Listening to our Head, we gained courage and confidence. We used to say that if our Head could come from so far and courageously work, so could we. (Kaaf)
The teachers added that their Head’s good attitude and trust in their abilities have helped
in strengthening their beliefs in their capabilities.
If it is our mistake, our Head talks to us separately and never in front of the children. She also speaks lovingly. Most of the times she praises our work. (Fay)
The school’s environment was clean and safe and the school principal was very
supportive, still a lot of teachers felt quite tense. The teachers pointed out that this
anxiety in the environment was because of the Adopter’s strict attitude. The teachers had
to be on their toes all the time because the Adopter could come at any time to check
their work. Any deviation from the proper work procedures would result in the Adopter
becoming extremely angry.
The teachers reported that working under pressure did not make them any less
confident. One reason for this was the crucial roles these teachers had played in
sustaining improvements in the school by continuing to work in the most unbearable
situations. Their school’s success had given them immense confidence. The second
reason was the school principal’s astuteness. If ever the teachers became frustrated, she
calmed them down and used different strategies to diffuse the tension. She gave the
teachers courage to continue to work confidently.
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Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between adoption and
teacher efficacy
The following factors facilitated the relationships between adoption and teacher
efficacy. The section about the purposes of the school reform speaks in detail about the
different ways in which the adoption changed the school from a dangerous, dirty place
into a beautiful, safe place to study. The improved school environment provided
teachers with opportunities to put their efficacy beliefs to the test and to exhibit their
confidence. The school principal helped in developing teachers’ beliefs in their own
capabilities by acknowledging teachers’ efforts and maintaining their trust. The
principal’s perseverance and courage motivated teachers and gave them confidence to
continue working even in the most difficult situations. Some personal factors such as
education and qualification, and external factors such as the education department’s
attention and achieving good results amidst difficulties also helped to further enhance
teachers’ beliefs in their own capabilities. The most important efficacy related issue in
this case is that the Adopter’s attitude has proved to be too strict for some teachers. This
attitude has created stress in the school environment for these teachers.
5.21.2 The Relationships between Adoption and Teacher Practice
The adoption provided the teachers with the safe and secure environment in
which they could implement different teaching ideas and could make their teaching
more interesting. The teachers reported that before the adoption they had to perform
many other school related chores before they could even think about teaching.
Before the adoption, we used to be so busy in the other chores, such as getting rid of the rubbish that had accumulated during the night, that we couldn't concentrate on the students' studies properly. Now we come with a peaceful mind and start teaching. (Kaaf)
The teachers had also started sports in their school. Before they could not. In this
way, the adoption helped teachers in implementing different teaching ideas and
projecting their capabilities. Teachers were also able to prepare girls for the annual sport
event.
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Now when we have the boundary wall, we can bring the girls and boys outside on the ground and they can easily play. Girls also feel like participating in the games now. So, we had the qualities and the abilities even then, but we couldn't project them. Now we can easily project our skills and the students can do the same. (Fay)
Most of the teachers still used the traditional methods to teach the children.
These methods included reading and explanation from the textbooks. Blackboard was
the main teaching aid used to explain the concepts and to provide written explanations to
the children. The teachers added that they had knowledge of new teaching methods, but
since they were a new school, they did not have enough resources or teaching materials
to implement those methods in their school. One teacher conceded that some teachers
required more time to learn new teaching techniques.
However, there had been improvements in the way teachers related to the
children and in the classroom environment. The Adopter had abolished corporal
punishment and required all the teachers to be compassionate towards the children.
The Adopter says to us to teach the children with love and care. She also says to us that unless and until the child is willing and ready to learn himself or herself, we will not be able to teach him or her anything. (Gaaf)
The adopter had also corroborated with the SEF to arrange for a short course on
different teaching methods for the untrained private teachers. One of the private teachers
reported that the course was very beneficial for the young and inexperienced teachers.
The appointment of the private teachers helped the old teachers to perform better. One
teacher reported that since they had more teachers, they could pay more attention to the
students.
The Head reported that before adoption, some teachers used to be quite careless
in the sense that they would not complete their work on time and they would not come
to school on time. However, the Adopter’s regular visits have compelled teachers to be
more punctual with regard to all types of work. The Head found it interesting that the
teachers began to work harder under pressure. The Adopter went to the children’s
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classes fairly regularly and checked their work. So, the teachers were also under
pressure to be more vigilant in checking children’s work.
Our own supervisors do not come frequently to the school. Sometimes they only come once a month. On the other hand, the Adopter comes every day. The teachers are under constant pressure that the Adopter can come and check their work at any time. This has made the teachers do their work on time. The teachers have now begun to listen and pay more attention. (Head)
In this way, the adoption has been able to develop a sense of responsibility in the
teachers. Commitment and responsibility have already been identified as the important
dimensions of teacher professionalism in the survey analysis.
The Head added that the adopter was also very particular about the school
cleanliness. Therefore, the teachers made sure that the classes remained clean at all
times. On one occasion, she helped the teachers in cleaning the school. Touched by this
gesture, some teacher became more responsible.
Recently, when the school reopened after three or four days holidays, the school was very dirty. So, the Adopter came herself and helped us in cleaning the school. Then we thought that if she, who is such an elderly person, is cleaning the school herself, so why couldn’t we also keep the school clean. (Gaaf)
The school principal’s commitment toward her work also motivated teachers to
work hard and improve their professional practice. It was the teachers and the school
principal’s persistent effort that alerted the Education Department’s attention to this
school.
It was only for the children’s welfare that we decided to work here. I wanted the children in this school to get the same facilities as children in a good school. When we began to sit in this dirty building, it got everyone’s attention. (Head)
The Adopter had also been doing different things for the children at a more
personal level to facilitate teachers’ work in the school. The teachers gave examples of
initiatives such as promising reward to the children if they worked hard and behaved
well. This strategy helped teachers in managing their classes. The children began to
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come to school neat and clean and on time because they wanted to receive the reward.
The teachers added that the adopter took time out to talk to the children. If she noticed
any child without proper shoes, she took him or her aside and bought him or her a pair
of new shoes. In this way, the adopter developed children’s interest in the schoolwork.
The teachers reported that when they noticed the children taking interest in their studies,
they also became interested in teaching the children. The teachers also conceded that
when they noticed the adopter paying so much attention to the school, they also felt like
giving more attention to the children. This change in the teaching practice improved
children’s performance.
The Adopter had also taken initiatives to regularize classroom teaching by
introducing the concept of preparing weekly lesson diaries in advance. The teachers
reported that they had received similar instructions from the Education Department.
These diaries served as the lesson organizers and each teacher was required to note
down what she had planned to teach in each period of the week. The school in-charge
was entrusted with the responsibility of collecting and checking the teachers’ diaries.
Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between adoption and
teacher practice.
The adoption has clearly been able to improve teacher practice in the school. A
number of factors have resulted in the development of teacher practice in the Tay
School. The Adopter implemented rules and regulations in the school. The teachers were
expected to be punctual and regular, complete their work on time, keep the school clean,
and relate with the children in a friendly manner. The Adopter visited the school on a
daily basis at any time during the day. The visits maintained an accountability check on
the teachers and they worked hard to maintain the improvements. The clean and safe
school environment provided the teachers with the opportunities to concentrate on
improving their classroom teaching and on implementing some new teaching
approaches. The Adopter rewarded children’s improved performance and provided them
with financial assistance. These initiatives developed children’s interest towards their
work. As the children began to take more interest in their studies, the teachers began to
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pay more attention to the children. The school principal’s persistence in difficult times,
and professional guidance and encouragement motivated teachers to work hard and
improve their performance. The main teacher practice related issue in this case is that
there has not been much enhancement in the teachers’ professional knowledge and
skills. As a result, the teachers continued to use traditional teaching approaches in their
classes most of the times.
5.21.3 The Relationships between Adoption and Teacher Collaboration
All the teachers reported that the adoption had brought the government and the
private teachers together on one platform and had provided them with the opportunities
to get to know one another. The government teachers reported that they enjoyed good
relationships with the private teachers and often met informally.
The concepts of collaborative planning and lesson sharing had not reached the
Tay School as yet. Lessons were planned at an individual level. The teachers did not
mind showing each other their lesson planners and asking for each other’s suggestions.
In the absence of formal collaborative sessions, teachers continued to meet as and when
they had time. In addition to the social issues, these discussions also included teaching
and learning issues.
If any teacher is having problem understanding something in the school or in the subjects she is teaching, the Head helps her out. Sometimes, if the Head is busy, she sends the teacher to some other teacher. However, there is no formal way of working together or learning from each other. (Gaaf)
Most of the teachers indicated keenness to have a separate block of time for holding
discussions. They felt that formal discussion sessions would give them more
opportunities to learn from one another.
There should be a proper system of teacher collaboration. Everyone thinks differently. Perhaps what the other person is thinking is better than what I am thinking and so by discussions I may find a better way of working. (Kaaf)
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It can be inferred that the adoption did not really develop teacher collaboration
for planning and teaching, which had been identified by the survey analysis as an
important dimension of teacher collaboration. However, the adoption did try to
introduce the concept of administrative collective work by calling administrative
meetings with the teachers and providing opportunities to the government and the
private teachers to work from one platform.
The Head and the Adopter called the meetings when they had something
important to discuss or some important information to communicate to the teachers. A
couple of teachers reported that the Adopter would always inform them before hand
about the meeting time.
Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between adoption and
teacher collaboration.
The adoption appears to have influenced teacher collaboration to some extent
with the help of an important factor. The adoption brought teachers from different
background and varied experience together on one platform and provided them with the
opportunities to learn from one another. By providing a clean and safe environment, the
adoption diverted teachers’ attention from issues such as cleanliness and safety to
teaching related issues such as taking note of each other’s ways of teaching. The main
issue, in this case, is that the opportunities provided by the adoption, did not cater for
systemizing the informal collaborative culture that existed in the Tay School prior to the
adoption. The government teachers opined that the adopter could not achieve success in
developing partnerships among the teachers. Hence, the government and the private
teachers, though working from the same platform, continued to work separately most of
the times.
5.21.4 The Relationships between Adoption and Teacher Leadership
The Tay School teachers were leaders of their own classrooms. Teachers
appreciated the fact that they had been given complete authority to use any teaching
method they thought was appropriate as long as they followed the timetable. The
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teachers did not feel that following the timetable lessened their classroom authority in
any way. In fact, it organized their teaching tasks and helped them pay equal attention to
all the subjects. The Head did not interfere with the teachers’ work. However, she
sometimes guided them regarding the different teaching techniques as long as they did
their work on time and remained friendly towards the children. By not unnecessarily
interfering with the teachers’ classroom procedures, the Adopter helped the teachers to
assume classroom leadership roles. Leadership has already been identified as an
important dimension of teacher leadership in the survey results.
I can teach in anyway I want to teach my subjects. I have this much authority. I feel this authority is important for the teacher. It is only when the teacher teaches independently and freely that she can teach well with an open heart and an open mind. (Gaaf).
The Head delegated some of her authority to the teachers. In this way, she helped
teacher leadership emerge at the school level. Some of the routine responsibilities were
fixed. Some responsibilities teachers were asked to undertake on different occasions. For
instance, two teachers were responsible for preparing students for the sports and another
was the school cleanliness in-charge. Some teachers undertook additional
responsibilities such as preparing children for the annual events or arranging the
farewell party for the children.
Mostly the responsibilities were related to performing various administrative
tasks. As far as the educational activities such as training the new teachers were
concerned, it was understood that the Head or the school in-charge or some other senior
teacher would guide the new teacher. In this way the more experienced teachers had
more opportunities to undertake leadership roles and further develop their leadership
skills. The survey result also highlighted school level responsibilities as important for
developing school level leadership.
The teachers were included in the decisions, which were relevant to their
teaching or their students. Decisions regarding school improvements were taken without
the teachers’ consultation. The Head, on the other hand, tried to involve the teachers in
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the important school decisions by asking for their suggestions regarding different
matters. However, there was greater tendency to involve the senior teachers. Therefore,
it can be assumed that the teacher leadership regarding the school related tasks was
limited to the extent that the administration was willing to involve the teachers.
Though the teachers admitted to working under pressure most of the times, they
also cited instances of using their autonomy and authority to express disapproval of any
decision they did not like.
Sometimes if we do like what the Adopter is doing we say to her, “No, that is not the way it should be.” Sometimes, we talk to our Head about something that we do not like. (Kaaf)
The teachers had also used their leadership to take some of the school related
decisions and to get their Head and their Adopter to implement those. For instance,
seeing the increased number of children enrolment, they persuaded their Adopter to get
two more rooms constructed in the school. One teacher remarked that they also wanted
the school uniform of the KG class different from the rest of students.
We want KG classes to be different. This old uniform is too mature for the little kids. We want a little change. We want our school to be very good because we have seen that in other government schools. KG uniform is different. (Fay)
Important themes and emerging issues: Relationships between adoption and
teacher leadership.
The adoption helped teacher leadership to emerge. Some factors played an
important role in helping it to emerge. The teachers enjoyed good classroom authority to
use teaching methods that they thought were effective for their students. They were also
involved in all the decisions that directly concerned their children or their classroom.
The school principal distributed responsibilities among the teachers. The teachers were
provided with the opportunities to voice their concerns about the Adopter’s decision if it
did not meet with their approval and to give suggestions to the school administration. A
major theme, in this case, is that the teachers who had helped set up the Tay School,
were provided with more opportunities to undertake leadership roles. This was
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understandable given the important roles these teachers had played in school
improvement initiatives. These teachers felt more confident and capable about
undertaking responsibilities.
5.21.5 Synthesis of the Key Themes and Implications from the Adoption Case
The adoption has had varied impact on the four dimensions of teacher
professionalism. The analysis of teacher efficacy shows that many other factors
developed teachers’ beliefs in their capabilities to perform different tasks. The adoption
facilitated the consolidation of these beliefs by providing the teachers with opportunities
to work more confidently. Similarly, the adoption did not arrange for any continuous
teacher-training programme in the school to improve teachers’ professional capabilities,
but it did provide the teachers with opportunities to work in more peaceful environment
and to work more responsibly. The improved working environment encouraged teachers
to teach with interest and pay more attention to the children.
Figure 5.4 presents the different ways in which adoption developed teacher
professionalism in the Tay School.
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Figure 5.4 Development of Teacher Professionalism in the Tay School
The box at the top describes the teachers as they were before the school was
adopted and the box at the bottom describes the teachers as they had developed after the
adoption. The boxes in the middle illustrate the four factors, which helped teacher
professionalism to develop after adoption. In this section, the key themes and issues
related to these factors are synthesized.
In the case of Tay School there has been more emphasis in providing teachers’
with opportunities such as developing safe and clean environment for them to work,
introducing rules and regulations for the teachers, appointing private teachers to share
the workload of the government teachers, encouraging teachers to undertake school
AFTER THE ADOPTION • Teachers believe that they can train the other teachers. • More interaction between the teachers and the children. • No corporal punishment. • Teachers working more responsibly, carefully and regularly. • Teachers helping one another and informally sharing ideas. • Teacher talk methods - Teachers teaching with the help of blackboard. • Regular lesson planning. • Some teachers undertaking addition school responsibilities. • Confident teachers who can give suggestions and voice concerns. • Teachers believe that they can accomplish difficult classroom and school related
tasks. • Government teachers not working with the private teachers in a planned manner.
BEFORE ADOPTION – Threatening school environment - Teachers too scared to come to school - Teacher talk methods – blackboard the main teaching aid – No weekly planning – No or very little interaction with the children – Corporal
punishment - Less sense of responsibility – Teacher irregularity – Teachers helping one another – Occasional administrative meetings.
ADOPTION FACTORS
THE SCHOOL
PRINCIPAL
THE ADOPTER
PROVISION OF
OPPORTUNITIES
RULES AND REGULATIONS
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related tasks and giving teachers classroom authority. These opportunities helped to
develop teachers’ professionalism in a number of ways, which have previously been
explained. In addition, the opportunities provided to the children, such as financial and
resource assistance, developed children’s interest in their school and subsequently their
studies. The only capability developing strategy used by the adopter was to initiate
regular lesson planning in the school. Even though, one of the purposes of adoption was
to improve the quality of education, this purpose was to be achieved by improving the
school’s condition and by providing teachers with the opportunities to work in a non-
threatening environment.
The main person responsible for bringing about these developments in the Tay
School was the Adopter’s representative, who had been referred to as the Adopter
throughout the description of the case. The description explains how the Adopter
developed the school site from debris (which the drug addicts had made their abode) to a
beautiful, safe place of study both for the children and the teachers. While the teachers
acknowledged the great deal of work done by the adopter for their school and for the
children, the teachers have not been able to develop very friendly relationships with the
adopter. The teachers have a number of suggestions for the adopter.
We would like to receive an award for doing good work. Even if the adopter just praises us orally, we will feel very good. The education department must have a system by which the teachers are properly observed and rewarded. (Kaaf)
The teachers have problems. The adopter should listen to their problems. (Fay) She must arrange for the program where the teacher can learn. Teachers should feel that the school adoption has provided them with facilities and has enabled them to attend workshops. (Gaaf)
Together with the issue of limited opportunities for teachers to learn, is the issue
of teachers not being able to meet in a planned manner and learn from one another. In a
situation, where there are teachers from different backgrounds and skills, trained and
untrained, it is interesting to note that they are not being provided with the planned
opportunities to learn from one another. The Head is of the opinion that the Adopter
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could formalize the informal encounters between the teachers so that the untrained
private teachers could learn from the trained government teachers. This would improve
teacher practice and help the government teachers gain more confidence. A couple of
teachers shared similar views.
We are trained teachers. We would like the private teachers to learn from us. We want to train the private teachers. (Fay)
Returning to the second key factors in the star banners in Figure 5.4, it is not
hard to infer from case description that the school principal played a very important role
in developing the relationships between adoption and teacher professionalism. By
modelling hard work and commitment towards her responsibilities, she inspired the
teachers to face the difficulties confidently. In conducting the research, I also found the
school principal to be a very intelligent woman. The teachers and the adopter respected
her for her hard work for the school achievements.
It is interesting to note that even though adoption did not do much work in the
area of teacher development and teacher encouragement, the teachers described
themselves as confident and capable. I could also observe that the teachers who had laid
the foundations of the Tay School with the Head, assumed leadership roles such as
guiding the new teachers, seeing that the school was running properly in their Head’s
absence, teachers are planning their lessons etc. Inferring from the case description, I
would say that in addition to factors such as motivated school principal, it was also the
pressure of strict rules and regulations built by the adopter that motivated the teachers to
take ownership of their school and exert their authority.
The teachers believed that they could influence other teachers in the school to
improve their professional practice, but they had to be encouraged and also provided
with the teaching resources and learning opportunities.
I don’t feel myself trained enough to teach the other teachers. As far as my own school is concerned, I feel confident that I can. I feel I need to learn more before teaching the others. (Fay)
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With the story of the Tay School, I have come to the end of my journey of
investigating the relationships between the school reforms and teacher professionalism
in the four case study schools. I shall return to this story in chapters 6 and 7.
5.22 Overall Summary
It is quite clear from the description of the four cases that the teachers
experienced a sense of professionalism in their work. Contrary to the general perception
of sub-standard teaching in the government primary schools in terms of what students
learn (see chapter 1, section 1.3.2), the description of the four case study schools has
demonstrated that the teachers are preparing children to make useful contributions to
their society. There is a general lack of teaching materials and visual aids in the primary
school classroom (IDCA, Ministry of Education, Pakistan, 1986). However, the teachers
in most of the case study schools have found ways of storing and re-using teaching aids
to involve students in the learning process. The teachers may be under-trained and
under-paid (Hoodbhoy, 1998: Shaikh, 1997), but their morale is high and they feel
confident about performing different tasks.
The description of the four cases has revealed that teacher professionalism is
linked with the school reforms that have been initiated in their schools. Teachers have
given examples to illustrate that before the reforms were initiated in their school, they
did not feel as capable and confident about teaching as they did after the reforms. The
teachers reported that the reforms enhanced their knowledge about the different teaching
methods and relating with children; and provided them with opportunities to collaborate
and undertake leadership roles. The reforms have provided teachers with opportunities
to become consciously aware of the different teaching and learning and school
administration related issues, which they did not think about before.
There are different ways in which the reform initiatives have influenced teachers
to enhance their professionalism. These are detailed in the description of the four cases.
The initiatives taken to reform the Alif School suggest that the TRC treated the school as
a community by making use of professional, culture and democratic forces to leverage
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change (see chapter 2, section 2.7). By investing heavily in teacher development and
involving the whole school community in school development, TRC has been able to
cultivate new pedagogical and relational norms in the school for deep change.
Sergiovanni (1998) describes capacity of shared norms as the prime among the key
mediating variables to influence change (see chapter 2, section 2.8).
The dynamic principals and/or community leaders seem to be the prime movers
(Bergman & Mohammad, 1998) in the case study schools. This is very evident in the
case of the Bay School, where the school supervisor is the prime mover in developing
the school into an exemplary government primary school in Karachi. The school
supervisor has been able to do that by investing heavily in teacher development and
community involvement.
The steps taken by reformers in the Pay and the Tay Schools, suggest that they
viewed schools as formal, bureaucratic organizations and relied upon bureaucratic and
personal change forces to bring about academic, administrative and structural change in
the schools (see chapter 2, sections 2.7 & 2.8). The reformers appeared to have made use
of Conley’s (1993) enabling variables (learning environment, technology,
school/community relationships and time); and supporting variables (governance,
teacher leadership, personnel and working relationships) to bring about change in central
variables (learner outcomes, curriculum, instruction and assessment/ evaluation) (see
chapter 2, section 2.11).
The synthesis of the key themes and the implications from each of the four case
study schools (see sections 5.6.5, 5.11.5, 5.16.5, & 5.21.5) illustrate ways that
government primary schools in Karachi could be reformed to further enhance teacher
professionalism. These will be brought together and discussed in fuller detail in chapter
7. With this brief summary I move on to chapter 6, which synthesizes the findings of the
two research traditions (quantitative and qualitative) and gives details of the key
mediating variables of developing the relationships between school reforms and teacher
professionalism in government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan.
CHAPTER SIX
Synthesis of the Findings 6.1 Introduction
For the past three years I have been on a journey that has taken me through the
various levels of abstractions – from completely abstract to realistically concrete, yet
complex. I started my research wondering whether the educational reforms initiated in
the government primary schools in Karachi have resulted in the development of teacher
professionalism and wondering if the new levels of teacher professionalism were
accomplished by developing teachers’ capabilities and by providing teachers with
opportunities to exploit their capabilities. The conceptual framework in chapter 2 (see
section 2.4) reflects this abstraction.
In this chapter I synthesize the findings of the quantitative survey research and
the qualitative case study research. In this way, responses to the first research question,
“What does it mean to be a professional in government primary schools in Karachi
where reforms are being initiated?” and the second research question, “What are the
relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism?” are brought
together for a joint review to create new and consolidated data.
The chapter begins with a combined review (quantitative and qualitative) of
what dimensions of teacher professionalism exist in the government primary schools
where reforms have been initiated. This is followed by a combined review of the four
case stories to discuss how these dimensions of teacher professionalism were developed.
More specifically, what factors build the relationships between school reforms and
teacher professionalism across the four case study schools?
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6.2 The Dimensions of Teacher Professionalism in the Schools Where Reforms Have
Been Initiated
The research has drawn attention to the four dimensions of teacher
professionalism that are predominant in the schools where educational reforms have
been initiated.
The survey analysis revealed that teacher efficacy for these teachers had two
core components – a belief that all aspects of work and change could be achieved and a
belief in executing responsibilities for achievement. The two components are in
accordance with the Beck and Murphy’s (1996) theorizing of teachers’ sense of efficacy
into two core components. The first is the belief that one is capable of doing his or her
own work and the second is the notion that an individual’s work and decisions can help
to bring about change in the system. When the teachers in the cases cited examples of
achieving different tasks at the class level and bringing about improvement in their
schools, it became apparent that they believed they were capable of doing their work
and bringing about change in their school. Teachers cited examples of teaching
confidently even in the presence of the visitors, achieving good results even with the
most difficult students, being able to influence other teachers in their school to adopt
new teaching methods and successfully carrying out the responsibilities assigned by
their principal. The school principals confirmed that teachers were actually capable of
performing these tasks. Table 6.1 (see p. 233) presents summaries from the examples
cited by the teachers in the cases to illustrate their efficacy beliefs.
It has been elaborated in literature review in chapter 2 that teacher efficacy may
act as a filter through which new ideas and innovations may pass before teachers
internalize them and change their behaviour (Smylie, 1988). The findings from the four
cases show that the teachers in the case study schools did internalise the new ideas and
change their behaviour. In so doing, they brought about improvements in their teaching
practice.
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Table 6.1 The Dimensions and the Sub-dimensions of Teacher Professionalism across Cases DIMENSION CASE ONE CASE TWO CASE THREE CASE FOUR COMMON IN ALL TEACHER EFFICACY
Teachers believe that they can teach all types of children; teach and influence other teachers to improve performance; carry out the responsibilities; make decisions; teach in front of visitors; collectively work to bring about change.
Teacher believe that they can teach all types of children; teach and influence other teachers; successfully carry out the responsibilities; make decisions; working collectively can bring change in the school.
Teachers believe that they can teach confidently in front of the visitors; achieve good results with students; undertake responsibilities; speak confidently; accomplish different tasks.
Teachers believe that they can bring about improvements in their students; successfully carry out the responsibilities; teach other teachers; speak confidently.
Teachers believe that they can achieve good results with the students; teach other teachers; successfully carry out the responsibilities; teach confidently.
TEACHER PRACTICE
Teachers use different teaching methods, group work, drama etc. plan lessons; prepare yearly scheme; build friendly relationships with children; manage classes using different techniques; work responsibly, with commitment; involve children in activities.
Teachers use different teaching methods relate with the children in a friendly manner; intrinsically motivated to teach; manage classes using different methods; work responsibly, with commitment; involve children in activities.
Teachers teaching less content in the manner that the children understand; use of co-curricular activities; building friendly relationships with the children; working responsibly and carefully; and kept lesson organizers.
Most of the teachers use traditional teaching methods; use co-curricular activities; related to children in a friendly manner; teach attentively with more interest than before; work responsibly and carefully; and kept lesson organizers.
Teachers using a combination of old and new methods; relating with children in a friendly manner; maintain lesson diaries; work responsibly and carefully; and involve students in co-curricular activities.
TEACHER COLLAB- ORATION
Teachers work in groups; exchange lesson plans and teaching resources; hold planned discussions on teaching and learning issues; hold collective administrative meetings; and seek each other’s advice and opinions.
Teachers collaborate informally in small groups with the teachers they can identify with; seek each other’s assistance; hold informal discussions on teaching issues; principal invites suggestions from teachers in some meetings.
Teachers do their work in the staff-room; having a staff-room prompted teachers to work together on projects and hold informal discussions when they had the time; informally seek each other’s opinions and help.
Government and private teachers meeting informally; informally seeking each other’s opinion & assistance; and sometimes administration calls meetings with teachers.
Teachers collaborate informally in small groups; hold discussions on teaching and learning issues when time; seek each other’s assistance and opinions; and infrequent administrative collective meetings.
TEACHER LEADER- SHIP
Teachers enjoy classroom authority; organize centrally prescribed curriculum; being involved in some school decisions; undertake leadership roles at the school level; Master Trainers conducted workshop; and teachers express opinions.
Teachers enjoy classroom authority; can organize classrooms in different ways; involve in some decisions; some teachers undertake leadership roles in the school; Master trainers gave trainings; and express opinions.
Teachers enjoy classroom authority; can exert their authority for matters that interest them; involved in a few decisions; sometimes teachers asked to give suggestions; some teachers undertake leadership roles.
Teachers enjoy class-room authority; undertake responsibility in the school; experienced teachers involved in more decisions; express opinion; exert authority for some important matters.
Teachers enjoy classroom authority; express opinion & exert authority for matters that are important for them; some teachers undertake leaderships roles in the school & are involved in decision-making.
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Webb and Vulliamy (1996, p. 163) conclude that, despite overwork and stress:
Many teachers have come through the last five years clearer about their educational beliefs, recognizing what is worth fighting for in primary education and what needs to change, more politically aware of how to go about this at the micro and macro level and possessing more self-confidence and communication skills.
The teachers in the interviews certainly possessed self-confidence and
communications skills, and they were able to articulate what was worth changing or
fighting for in their schools. This level of professionalism is evident in the practice of the
Alif School teachers by the way they continue to challenge the existing principles and
make learning more meaningful for the children. This level of professionalism is also
reflected in the Bay School when the teachers use their professional judgment to decide
how best they can teach the children. In the Pay School most of the teachers have
discovered ways of gaining joy and fulfilment out of the standardized teacher practice
and in the Tay School, teachers’ resilience compelled the education department to
provide them with facilities to improve their practice.
Table 6.1 (see p. 233) elaborates the dimensions of teacher practice that have
emerged as a result of teacher interviews. The survey analysis has revealed that for
teachers who participated in the survey research, teacher practice included two main
components - executing responsibilities with commitment and applying professional
knowledge for student learning. Words such as, “If I can do anything to bring about
improvement in the children, then I would consider myself successful,” lead me to
believe that there are teachers in the four case study schools who understand the moral
purposes of education. These teachers work for the betterment of the students and are
committed to the pupils who may not be highly motivated, whose confidence needs to be
encouraged and who need to be challenged and cared for (Day, 2000a).
The teachers in case study schools have also cited examples of using different
teaching methods in their classes, having a good knowledge base, planning their lessons,
interacting with the children in a caring manner and engaging in co-curricular activities
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to demonstrate strong knowledge base and application of professional knowledge for
student learning. The literature review in chapter 2 also describes those teachers as
accomplished and effective who know the subject(s) they teach and how to teach those
subjects to the students, who think systematically about their practice, learn from
experience, and motivate students to learn (Cole & Chan, 1994; Kelly, 2000; Slavin,
1991).
Talking about the characteristics of the accomplished teachers in chapter 2, Kelly
(2000) notes that these teachers contribute to school effectiveness by collaborating with
the other professionals. According to the survey analysis, the teachers have indicated that
they collaborate to accomplish teaching tasks and to plan school activities, and they
collaborate for collective administrative work. With regards to the different tasks that the
teachers in the case study schools accomplish together, teachers cited examples of
planning lessons together, teaching other teachers about innovative teaching techniques,
having discussions on teaching and learning issues, experienced teachers helping the new
teachers, and discussing teaching issues during the staff meetings. Talking to the teachers
it became apparent that they understood that collaboration could help them cope with
uncertainty and complexity, develop a stronger sense of teacher efficacy, create ongoing
professional learning cultures for teachers (Hargreaves, 1997a, 1997b), remove
differences between them and drive a new sense of identity from the collaborative
projects (International Commission on Education for the Twenty-first Century, 1996).
However, all the teachers have not been provided with the skills and the opportunities to
collaborate in a planned manner. As a result, the teachers in each of the case study
schools have discovered their own distinctive patterns of collaboration based on the
availability of time and the teaching requirements. Table 6.1 (see p. 233) gives examples
of the work that the teachers accomplish collaboratively.
Moving towards collaboration, the teachers have not lost sight of their
individualism (Fullan, 1997). This becomes clear when the teachers in the case study
schools cite examples of exerting their authority to take some important decisions that
affect their schools. The survey analysis has illustrated that for these teachers, school
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leadership (school administration delegated some of its authority to the teachers and also
involved them in decision-making) is an important dimension of teacher leadership.
Teachers in the interviews also cited examples of undertaking tasks such as guiding the
new teachers, assisting in school administration, and giving suggestions to the school
principal. In addition to the school leadership, the teachers in the survey research also
indicated classroom leadership as an important dimension of teacher professionalism.
This is consistent with the ideas shared by the teachers during the interviews, when the
teachers underscored the significance of complete classroom authority for enhancing their
professionalism. It has been noted in chapter 2 that there exists a body of literature
(Katzenmeyer & Moller, 1996; Leithwood, 1994; Moller et al., 2000) about teacher
leaders who influence other teachers toward improved educational practice by leading
both within and beyond the classroom. In order to fully appreciate the different leadership
roles undertaken by the teachers, it is important to note that the teachers in government
primary schools in Karachi work within the framework of centralized administration.
Some teachers may get opportunities to lead beyond their classrooms. That is why, along
with executing classroom and school leadership tasks, the teachers have indicated that
their school administration takes the form of a centralized approach. The teachers in the
four case schools shared similar views when they confirmed that they were involved in
some decisions that influenced their schools, and some decisions the administration took
itself. Table 6.1 (p. 233) gives examples of the way in which the teachers lead both
within and beyond their classrooms.
In response to the question of additional dimensions, 57% of the teachers could
not think of any other dimension and 7% of the teachers decided not to respond to the
question. The main dimensions that the remaining 161 or 36% of the teachers indicated
carried the same meaning as the four dimensions. For instance, 31% of the 161 teachers
indicated “teacher knowledge and capability” as the other important dimension.
However, this dimension is a further explanation of one of the items in the teacher
practice scale. It appears that the teachers chose a couple of items from the four scales
representing the four dimensions of professionalism and converted them into another
dimension. Therefore, I argue that the other dimensions are not remarkably or hugely
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different from the four dimensions of professionalism identified as the focus of the study.
In response to the question of, “What does it mean to be a professional in
government primary schools in Karachi where reforms have been initiated?” it can be
summarised that the teachers in the survey research perceived themselves as
professionals because they were confident about performing different tasks, they applied
professional knowledge and skills for student learning, undertook different tasks and
executed them responsibly, collaborated for planning and teaching, and lead both within
and beyond their classrooms. The teachers in the case study schools have also indicated
these dimensions important predictors of their professionalism.
In the case study schools, the teachers can be characterized as capable, confident
and active professionals because they played an active role in contesting, resisting or
adapting new policies (Helsby, 2000). Initially, the reforms intensified teachers’ work,
but the evidence has shown that later, the teachers used their professional experience and
professional knowledge to transform reform initiatives into practice in a manner that best
suited their schools’ context.
This level of teacher professionalism contrasts with the description of the
government primary school teachers given in the literature review (see chapter 2). This
development in teacher professionalism demonstrates that there are relationships between
the school reforms and teacher professionalism. This brings me to the other important
research question, ‘How were these dimensions of teacher professionalism developed?’
6.3 Factors Important for Building Relationships between School Reforms and
Teacher Professionalism
The relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism have been
described in detail in the stories of four case study schools. The process of developing
these relationships also highlighted a number of important themes and issues. These
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themes and issues have been discussed in each of the case studies. Table 6.2 (pp. 239-
240) brings all of these together in point form. It is clear that there are commonalities and
differences across the cases. While the differences are important to note, the task of the
thesis is to derive some themes and issues that are common across the cases. Such
common themes and issues are also noted in Table 6.2. From these common themes and
issues five factors important for building relationships between school reforms and
teacher professionalism have been distilled. These five factors are discussed below. It is
important to note that the fifth factor seeks to address the uniqueness within each case.
6.3.1 The Synergy between Developing Teacher Capabilities and Providing Teachers
with Opportunities
The classroom practices that reformers envisioned often described as teaching
and learning for understanding, assume fundamental changes in teachers’ beliefs about
content, pedagogy, and students (Hargreaves & Evans, 1997; McLaughlin & Oberman,
1996). In the case study schools, the changes in teachers’ practices and beliefs about
content, pedagogy and the students are also the reflections of the ways in which the
reform initiatives have developed teachers’ capabilities and provided them with
opportunities to exploit these capabilities.
Alif School presents a good example of what McLaughlin (1997) describes as learning by
doing, reading and reflecting, collaborating with other teachers, looking closely at
students and their work, and sharing what they see. The environment of the TRC
workshops enabled teachers to learn in this way and develop these capabilities. The
intervals provided teachers with the opportunities to take new knowledge and learning
from the workshop and apply it in real classroom situations. By working in this way,
TRC was able to develop a group of teachers in the Alif School who shared a common
vision and a deep sense of commitment to sustain improvements in their school. Figure
5.1 in chapter 5 (see section 5.6.5) illustrates the specific ways in which the TRC
developed teachers’ capabilities and provided them with opportunities to exploit their
capabilities.
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Table 6.2 The Themes and the Issues Involved in the Process of Developing Teacher Professionalism Across Cases DIM ENSIONS CASE ONE CASE TWO CASE THREE CASE FOUR COMMON IN ALL T E A C H E R
E F F I C A C Y
THEMES ISSUES
- Development of teachers’ capabilities. - Acknowledgement of teachers’ professional capabilities and respect for teachers’ ideas by the reformers. - Opportunities to apply knowledge and skills, expose work, conduct workshops & achieve good results. - TRC’s professional support ~ Change at community level depends on collective effort.
- Development of capabilities. - Opportunities, such as workshops that brought people together and visits that helped teachers apply new knowledge and skills. - Acknowledgement by the supervisor & visitors. - Professional support, guidance & feedback by the supervisor. ~ Change at school level depends on the united effort.
- The standards regularized teachers’ work and enhanced their efficacy. - Development of teachers’ capabilities. - Acknowledgement of teachers’ capabilities. - Opportunities to apply new knowledge in classes. ~ Strict accountability system created tension for teachers. ~ Coordinator’s attitude too demanding for some teachers.
- Opportunities, such as provision of safe and clean environment enhanced teacher efficacy. - Principal’s courage in difficult times, respect for teachers, and acknowledgement of their efforts. ~ Adopter’s attitude too strict for some teachers. ~ Strict rules create stress among teachers.
- Development of teachers’ capabilities. - Acknowledgement of teachers’ efforts by the reformers and / or principal. - Different opportunities. ~ Differences in reformers’ attitudes. ~ Different administrative structures.
T E A C H E R
P R A C T I C E
THEMES ISSUES
- Regular workshops enhanced teachers’ knowledge, skills and helped teachers learn by seeing and applying. - Regular follow-up provided feedback & helped successful implementation of ideas. - Opportunities to be engaged in class and school activities. - Reformers’ modeled professional attitude for developing sense of responsibility and commitment among teachers. - Lesson plan, yearly scheme. - Principal training. ~ Challenge of completing the syllabus with new methods.
- The workshops helped teachers gain knowledge and skills about effective teaching at the primary school level. - The supervisor provided follow up by updating teachers about new knowledge, providing professional support, arranging for visits and acknowledging efforts. - Opportunities to be engaged in class and school activities. - Appointment of committed and responsible teaching staff by the supervisor. - Principal support. ~ Gap between theory and implementation. ~ No handout or reading material for the teachers.
- Rules and regulations helped teachers become responsible and punctual. - Teachers worked more responsibly because of the accountability system. - Opportunities to learn from the guidebooks, availability of teaching resources, application of knowledge in class. - The coordinator checking teachers’ work and providing feedback. - Rewarding teachers’ efforts. - Principal working with the coordinator to support staff. ~ Workload for teachers. ~ All the teachers could not understand the purpose of using new textbooks.
- Rules and regulations made teachers more punctual and responsible. - Accountability check by the adopter. - Opportunities such as improved school environment and assistance to children improved teacher practice. - Principal’s professional support. ~ No training or professional development programme for the teachers.
- Development of capabilities through workshops, reading material, feedback. Different ways of professional support. - Opportunities to apply professional knowledge in classes. - Regular follow-up of teachers’ work. - Accountability system. - Rules and regulations. - The principal support. - Acknowledging teachers’ efforts. ~ Differences in procedures of developing capabilities and providing opportunities.
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Table 6.2 Continued DIM ENSIONS CASE ONE CASE TWO CASE THREE CASE FOUR COMMON
T R
C O L L A B 0 R A T I O N
THEMES ISSUES
- TRC teaching skills of collaboration to the teachers - accomplishing tasks in groups, planning & conducting meetings. - Collective work opportunities. - Engagement in professional dialogue. - Setting aside time for collab. - Realization of the importance of collective work. - Exchange of plans, resources. - Yearly planning. ~ No time has been set-aside for planned teacher collaboration after the reform activities ceased.
- Opportunities to collaborate and accomplish tasks in groups with the other teachers during the workshops. - Teachers have a tendency of working together. - Teachers require clear guidelines for collaboration. ~ No time has been set aside for planned teacher collab. ~ No guidelines. ~ All the teachers cannot see collab. as a way of learning.
- Provision of staff-room encouraged teachers to hold discussions, exchange ideas, & prepare teaching resources together. - Period-wise teaching gave every teacher at least two periods free everyday. - Teachers distributed increased workload. - No specific guidelines. ~ Some teachers showed interest in collaborating in a planned manner, while the others preferred to work independently.
- Improved school condition provided teachers with opportunities to hold discussions and exchange teaching ideas. - Brought private and government teachers together. - No specific guidelines from the reformers for collaboration. ~ No opportunities for the government teachers to teach the private teachers. ~ Nor govt / private teacher collaboration.
- Teachers require guidelines or skills in collaboration. - Provision of different opportunities enhances teacher collaboration. ~ No time for teacher to collaborate in a planned manner, hold meetings and learning sessions.
T R
L E A D E R S H I P
THEMES ISSUES
- Development of capabilities helped teacher leadership to emerge. - Principal delegated authority, involved teachers in some decisions & listened to them. - Opportunities to undertake leadership roles at the school and beyond school level, express opinions & be their classroom leaders. - Teacher involvement in the reform & workshop planning.
- Model school status helped teacher leadership emerge. - Teachers can express opinions; some get the opportunities to undertake leadership roles at the school level. - Appointment of capable teachers by the supervisor - The principal delegated some of her authority, involved teachers in some decisions, listened to them ~ Noninvolvement of teachers in the reform planning.
- Opportunities to be classroom leaders, with administrative control. - Teachers who demonstrated enthusiasm were provided with opportunities to undertake leadership roles. - Teachers were asked to give suggestions sometimes. ~ Teachers were informed about the reform, but not involved in it. ~ All teachers are not given opportunities.
- The principal delegated some of her authority to some teachers. - Teachers can express opinions, exert authority for matters that were important for them, & be their classroom leaders. - Some teachers undertake additional responsibilities. ~ Experienced teachers get more opportunities to undertake leadership roles.
- Opportunities to all the teachers to be their classroom leaders; to some teachers to undertake leadership roles at the school level; and some teachers involved in the decisions involving the schools. - Freedom to express opinions. - Principal delegating authority. ~ No or less teacher involvement in reform planning. ~Unequal opportunities to undertake leadership roles
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The Bay School teachers were also committed and intrinsically motivated to
sustain improvements in their school, though they did not share a common vision about
the usefulness of the Demo Centre Training. The reasons for this have been noted in the
Bay School story. However, it is important to note here that teacher learning from the
training was consolidated when the school administration and the supervisor provided
teachers with the professional support and the opportunities in the form of classroom
authority, educational visits and learning sessions to exploit their learning. Figure 5.2 in
chapter 5 (see section 5.11.5) illustrates how the Demo Centre Training developed
teachers’ capabilities and the supervisor provided teachers with opportunities to make the
most of those capabilities.
Even in the most controlled situations teachers were provided with opportunities
to speak about their practice. The Pay School is a good example where the reformers
developed teachers’ capabilities by outlining the professional standards and by sharing
new teaching ideas with the help of guidebooks. The coordinator provided teachers with
opportunities to practice professional standards and implement new teaching ideas in
their classes, and also to give suggestions for changes in the Urdu curriculum according
to what they considered was important for the children to learn. This process is outlined
in detail in the Figure 5.3 (see chapter 5, section 5.16.5).
Interestingly, in the case of the Tay School where there was more emphasis in
providing teachers with opportunities to work in an improved environment and less
emphasis in developing teachers’ capabilities, the teaching remained very teacher
oriented. This situation may change if reform managers take initiatives in future to
develop teacher capabilities. However, at the time the research was conducted, the
teaching practice was teacher oriented and the teachers were not provided with skills to
collaborate. However, the teachers had begun to teach with more interest. They had
begun to work responsibly and confidently (see chapter 5, section 5.21.5).
The development of teachers’ capabilities and provisions of opportunities helped
teachers in the case study schools conceptualize new knowledge and beliefs about
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content, pedagogy and learners. These new understandings and beliefs are reflected in
words such as, “now we plan two lessons in the diary” emphasizing that in their school
(Alif School) pedagogy is a combination of both modern and traditional approaches; and
“now we (Pay School) teach two books of the Book Group and two lessons from the
education department’s books” emphasizing that content of the children’s textbooks
should be simple and interesting, as well as difficult and knowledgeable; and “we (Bay
School) bring about change in our teaching methods according to the situation”
emphasizing that modern concepts of teaching cannot be pre-packaged, but they are
learnt in practice.
The combination of the teacher-centred and the child-centred teaching methods
has accelerated the development of teacher professionalism. Even the Office for
Standards in Education (Ofsted) in England (Woods, 2002), has stressed the need for
balance for young children between self-directed learning and teacher directed activities.
Woods (2002) also gives the example of Sugrue (1997), who in his detailed studies of
primary teaching in the Republic of Ireland argued that child-centred practice needs
reconstructing and revitalizing.
6.3.2 The Centrality of the School Principals
It is well known that schools principals are crucial for successful and sustainable
educational reforms. There is literature (Boyle, 2000; Caldwell, 1998; Datnow &
Castellano, 2001; Day et al., 2000; Fullan, 2002; Moller, et el., 2000) that speaks in detail
about effective school leaders and the crucial role of principals within an environment of
school reform and teacher development.
The enormous contribution of each school principal to the development of teacher
professionalism in each of the case study schools has already been detailed within each
school’s story. What was interesting to note was that each principal’s viewpoints and
personality were different, yet they all desired their schools to improve.
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The Alif School had a dynamic and a visionary principal who took initiatives in
providing teachers with support and opportunities to improve their practice and gain
confidence. She was a good example of one who practiced Gronn’s (2000) distributed
leadership (Harris, Day & Hadfield, 2003), who involved teachers in the decision-making
and delegated authority to the teachers. In contrast, the Bay School principal tried to
demonstrate distributed leadership, with a traditional touch. She let teachers experiment
and give suggestions, and was willing to help all those who sought her advice, but she did
not work with all the teachers as a group. The Pay School principal appeared to be a
combination of a traditional leader and a value-centred leader (Day, Harris, Hadfield,
Tolley, & Breseford, 2000) who believed that sharing her leadership with the Book
Group coordinator helped the teachers learn in the long run. The Tay School was an
example of Hargreaves’ (2002) emotional leadership (Harris et al., 2003), where the
principal worked selflessly and understood that teachers required encouragement to work
in difficult situations. It is hard to envisage if the teachers could have been provided with
opportunities to develop and exploit their capabilities without their principals’
willingness to cooperate with the reform managers and work with them for a long period
to take their schools to greater heights.
I agree with Harris et al. (2003) that the centrality of leadership in the
achievement of school effectiveness and school improvement remains undisputed. They
cite research findings from different countries that have revealed the powerful impact of
leadership on processes related to school effectiveness and improvement. (e.g. Hopkins,
Ainscow, & West, 1994; Stoll & Dean, 1996; Harris, 1999). They argue schools that are
effective and have the capacity to improve are led by head teachers, who make a
significant contribution to the effectiveness of their staff. The educational change
literature consistently points to school administrators as vital agents for creating the
conditions in which school reform can succeed (Fullan, 1982, 1993; Hargreaves, Earl,
Moore, & Manning, 2001).
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6.3.3 The Influence of the Educator’s Attitude on Teacher Professionalism
You can’t teach anything to others that you haven’t become yourself – Mother Teresa (as cited in Louis, Tool & Hargreaves, 1999, p. 265).
The TRC team practiced Mother Teresa’s words in Alif School and achieved
remarkable results in terms of developing teachers’ professionalism. The reformers
helped teachers believe that they were capable of achieving by believing that the teachers
could achieve; they improved pedagogy by demonstrating creative teaching skills; they
promoted teacher collaboration by holding collaborative meetings and working in groups
with the teachers; and they developed teacher leadership by leading them through the
development process. The TRC team modelled professional behaviour all the time. Most
of all, however, they made a point of acknowledging each teacher’s efforts.
When the Alif School reformers began PEP, they developed interrelationships
among the different members of the Alif School community. They also involved the
teachers and other school members in the different stages of reform development. By
involving teachers in the initial planning of the reforms and by distributing
responsibilities among the teachers to fulfil their professional standards, the TRC
managed to install structures that enhanced teachers’ professionalism and developed a
common school development vision. Teachers’ involvement in the reform planning and
development of a common vision enhanced teacher efficacy and helped teacher
leadership to emerge in the Alif School.
The Bay School reform managers brought the teachers and the supervisors closer
on one training platform and removed distances between them. The Bay School
supervisor maintained good relationships with the teachers and introduced professional
standards in the school that had room for the teachers to adapt their professional practice
according to the changing situation. The teachers in the Bay School have, therefore,
emerged as capable and sure of themselves.
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This is one side of the story. I would like to begin the other side of the story with
Noddings’ (2001) words. Noddings (2001) points out that much of the coercion used in
schools today is exercised in the name of care. Because we “care about” the students, we
keep pushing them for higher scores on standardized tests. Because we “care about”
them, we become increasingly more prescriptive in supervising their teachers (Noddings,
2001).
It was because they cared about the students getting quality education that the Pay
School’s coordinator and the Tay School’s adopter became quite prescriptive in
supervising the teachers. They implemented professional standards and accountability
systems in the school. I do not believe that the coordinator’s or the adopter’s attitude can
be classified as “coercion” because they obtained the teachers’ consent before
implementing reforms in their schools and the teachers were free to decide if they wanted
to teach in that school or some other school. However, when they prompted teachers to
strictly follow the professional standards, higher stress levels developed among the
teachers.
It is certain that teacher professional practice in the government primary schools
needs to improve and some form of accountability system and professional standards are
required to bring coherence in ad hoc work practices, but this research has demonstrated
that, for the standards to be more effective in sustaining improvements, the reform
managers will have to model friendly attitudes, involve teachers and build
interrelationships among the school members.
6.3.4 Professional, Emotional, and Administrative and Structural Support of Teachers’
Work
This research has illustrated that the teachers want to be acknowledged for trying
to improve their professional practice (emotional support). The teachers also want to
learn different ways in which their professional practice can be improved (professional
support). The teachers also require time, resources and administrative systems that can
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help them learn and translate their learning in real classroom situation (administrative and
structural support).
TRC aimed at developing professional support structures by initiating a regular
follow-up work in the school. These structures provided teachers with professional
support, guidance and regular feedback about their work. According to Guskey (2002)
the use of new practices will be sustained when the individuals involved receive regular
feedback on the effects of their efforts. In the case of schools, the teachers need to be
reassured that their new teacher practices are good for the children.
The other ways in which TRC provided professional support was by teaching
teachers the skills of working collaboratively as a team and distributing responsibilities
among each other for effective school management. Changing schools into collaborative
cultures helped teachers engage in professional dialogue, learn from one another and
exchange ideas and resources. Lieberman (2000) and Lieberman and Wood (2002) have
written extensively about the importance of involving teachers in professional
communities as a way of supporting teacher learning and development. Managing
schools by undertaking different responsibilities helped teacher leadership to emerge in
the Alif School.
TRC also arranged for the training of the school principal so that the professional
support could continue and the school improvement could be sustained. The story of the
Alif School has illustrated that the principal has maintained the culture of providing
teachers with the professional support by checking their work and giving them feedback.
TRC also provided the teachers with the emotional support by listening to them and
encouraging their efforts.
In the Bay School, it is the professional support and feedback provided to the
teachers by the school supervisor that has helped to maintain professional practice. In
addition, the school principal, who was trained as a Master Trainer during the training,
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checked teachers’ work and provided them with feedback. She participated in different
learning programmes and shared the learning with the teachers through the meetings.
The Book Group institutionalized the curriculum changes by introducing
administrative structures, so that teachers had time to plan lessons and resources to
implement child-centred teaching methods as per the new curriculum requirements. The
Tay School’s structures aimed at improving the school’s condition, increasing school
enrolment, and motivating teachers to work responsibly and with care for the children.
According to Fullan (1999, p. 5) developing structures can be a complex
procedure.
Too much structure creates gridlock, while too little structure creates chaos. A good example would be the traffic lights in a city. If there are no lights, traffic is chaotic. If there are too many lights, traffic stops. A moderate number of lights create structure, but still allows drivers to adapt their routes in surprising ways in response to changing traffic conditions. Consequently, the key to effective change is to stay poised on this edge of chaos. Complexity theory focuses managerial thinking on the interrelationships among different parts of an organization and on the trade-off of less control for greater adaptation.
Since some of the teachers in the Pay and the Tay Schools have begun to develop
stress, there are reasons to suggest that too many structures have been implemented and
have begun to create gridlock. Before the traffic (teachers) stops, it is important to trade-
off less control for greater adaptation.
6.3.5 Addressing the Uniqueness within Each Reform Initiative
The extent to which the teachers have been able to develop their professionalism
in each of the case study schools is related to the reform initiative that was implemented
and the unique context of each school. The Alif School was chosen for the unique
purposes of achieving whole school development. Hence, initiatives were taken to
involve teachers and build teacher capacity so that they could play an active role in the
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school development. Perhaps it was the family-like environment of the school that made
it a good choice for whole school development.
The Bay School was selected for its potential to be a school development centre
so that it could serve as a platform for the other teachers to come and learn. Hence, this
school received particular local education officers’ attention so that it could continue to
function in the capacity of light-house school for the teachers in the other schools. The
school was housed in a big, new building with a separate room for teacher training, which
perhaps made the school a good choice for developing it into a development centre.
The Pay School reforms were based on the assumptions that good administration
and improved curriculum lead to improved teacher practice. In keeping with this
assumption, steps were taken to standardize teacher practice and make child-centred
curriculum and teaching resources available to the teachers. The reform managers chose
the Pay School because the school principal and the teachers welcomed the idea of
working under the new administration.
The Tay School’s intentions of improving the quality of education for the children
in the school began by improving the school’s conditions and making it a peaceful and a
safe place both for the teachers and children. It was the school’s poor condition that
attracted the adopters, who had the financial resources, to invest in improving the
school’s condition.
While it is important to appreciate each school’s unique placement in the reform
agenda, it is also important to recognize that all the Government primary schools function
under the centralized control of the same Government Education Department and they are
bound by the same rules and regulations. However, each school has its own way of
organizing activities and the teachers have their own way of judging what it is they can
and cannot do. Even with the different reform purposes and different school settings, all
the reform initiatives are ultimately targeted towards fulfilling the long-term
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policy directive and national concerns of improving the quality of education in the
government primary schools, increasing school enrolment, raising school attainment,
preparing human resources and developing social and moral values.
6.4 Overall Summary
In my synthesis and discussion of the relationships between school reforms and
teacher professionalism, I have tried to focus on two research questions – what does it
mean to be a professional in government primary schools in Karachi where reforms are
being initiated and what are the relationships between school reforms and teacher
professionalism?
In dealing with the first research question, I have synthesized results from both
the quantitative survey data and the qualitative interviews to reveal the breadth and the
depth of the dimensions that exist in the schools where reforms have been initiated. The
survey results clearly indicate that teacher efficacy, teacher practice, teacher collaboration
and teacher leadership are the main dimensions of teacher professionalism in the schools
where reforms have been initiated. Interestingly, when the teachers were asked to indicate
some other dimensions of teacher professionalism, they could not think of any new
dimension that was remarkably different from the four dimensions. These findings have
been detailed in chapter 4.
The survey findings were confirmed when the teachers in the case study schools
gave examples to demonstrate that they were professionals because they believed that
they could achieve, and they did achieve different, even difficult tasks; they brought
about changes in their classroom teaching; they collaborated despite lack of time and
resources; they were their classroom leaders and they assumed leadership roles at the
school and in some cases beyond their school level.
These findings were further explored to elaborate how these dimensions of
professionalism were developed. The analysis of the four case study schools gave rise to
a number of important themes and factors that have built the relationships between
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school reforms and teacher professionalism. The five common factors that have been
discussed as the main binding threads between the school reforms and teacher
professionalism are the synergy between the process of developing teacher capabilities
and providing them with the opportunities to exploit their capabilities; the centrality of
the school principal; the influence of the reformers attitude on the teachers; the
professional, emotional, administrative and the structural support; and addressing the
uniqueness of each case.
The synthesis of the findings and the identification of the key enabling factors for
the development of teacher professionalism have been important to address the research
questions and to indicate the future implication of this research. Measures to enhance the
validity, reliability and trustworthiness of these findings have been reported in chapter 3.
Furthermore, extensive quotations from the teachers’ interviews have been included in
the detailed analysis to recognize the teachers’ voices and the teachers have confirmed
the accuracy of the interpretations of the four case stories. The process by which member
checking the key ideas occurred with the teachers has also been detailed in chapter 3.
Given that certain factors have been identified as important for developing teacher
professionalism, an investigation into the ways the government primary school could be
reformed to further enhance teacher professionalism will indicate future implications of
the research and provide a valuable source of information for teacher educators and
policy makers. Therefore, it is to the investigation into the third research question that the
discussion now turns in chapter 7.
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CHAPTER SEVEN
Implications of the Relationships 7.1 Introduction
In chapter 6, the findings from the quantitative data analysis (chapter 4) and
qualitative data analysis (chapter 5) were synthesized. As a result of this synthesis some
factors emerged as important for building the relationships between the school reforms
and teacher professionalism in the government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan.
This chapter considers a joint review of the findings from the four case stories to create
new and consolidated data about the ways schools could be reformed to further enhance
and sustain teacher professionalism. The material presented in this chapter addresses the
third research question - How can the government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistani
be reformed to further enhance professionalism among the teachers? In addressing the
third research question, this chapter considers the future implications of the research
findings.
The chapter begins with a reflection on the first two research questions - What
does it currently mean to be a professional in government primary schools in Karachi,
Pakistan? What are the relationships between school reforms and teacher
professionalism in government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan? This is followed
by a detailed discussion on the third research question. The key findings from the third
research question lead to the development of an informed framework for developing and
sustaining teacher professionalism in government primary schools in Karachi where
reforms are being initiated. This chapter also discusses the limitations of the study.
7.2 Brief Reflection on the First Two Research Questions
The dimensions of teacher professionalism and the developments in teacher
professionalism have been discussed in detail in chapters 4, 5 and 6. This section briefly
reflects upon the key findings for a more comprehensive discussion on the third research
question.
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The four reform initiatives with their unique purposes have one thing in
common. They all fall under the category of Fullan’s (2000) the outside-in reform
initiatives. The outsider (TRC, SPEDP, Book Group, Adopter) went inside the schools
with a view to improve the government school systems and to improve student learning.
It is hard to envisage if this moral purpose (Fullan, 1999) within each school can be
achieved without the teachers’ help. As Hargreaves (2002, p. 3) points out “If you want
to improve learning, improve teaching.” He adds that the injunction contained within
this deceptively simple statement has driven numerous research and reform efforts over
the years to define and improve the quality of teaching. It was this same deceptively
simple injunction that led me to investigate the relationships between the school reforms
and teacher professionalism, and I found that there was nothing simple about it.
One of the important findings of this research (see chapters 4, 5, & 6) has been
that the teachers in the schools where reforms have been initiated not only believed that
they could achieve, but they could also apply professional knowledge to achieve
different tasks at the class and at the school level. Equally important has been the
discovery that the manner in which these teachers related to the children was more
interactive and personal than has been generally observed in many other government
primary schools in Karachi. The teachers were also inclined to collaborate and learn
from one another. These teachers commanded a great degree of autonomy in their
classroom teaching methodology decisions. They also undertook responsibilities at the
school level and lead them through successfully to the end. They were self-confident
and capable professionals.
These characteristics of teacher professionalism suggest that the teachers in the
case study schools have moved away from Hargreaves’ (2000) pre-professional age of
professionalism. During the pre-professional age, the task of teaching is seen as
basically simple and so the teachers need little training or on-going professional
development. The case study analysis has illustrated that for the teachers in all the case
study schools, teaching was no longer a simple task. It required careful planning and
preparation, and evaluation of the existing practices. The teachers in all the case study
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schools have suggested that reform managers and school administration should provide
them with different learning opportunities. These are detailed in the stories of four
schools in chapter 5. However, the distances between the teachers’ present stages of
professionalism and the pre-professional age are different for the different teachers. A
small number of teachers have taken a giant leap into the age of postmodern
professionalism (Hargreaves, 2000). This is evident in teachers’ conscious realizations
that change at the wider system or school level will require networking and united
efforts. This is also evident in the ways teachers in the case study schools dealt with the
complexities and uncertainties of educational reforms (see case stories in chapter 5).
However, these teachers still need more opportunities and support to demonstrate this
level of professionalism. Some have joined the ranks of collegial professionals
(Hargreaves, 2000), though not in a planned manner. Teacher capability and efficacy
have demonstrated that many teachers have reached the age of autonomous
professionals (Hargreaves, 2000). It appears that in shifting through the different ages of
professionalism, the teachers have recognized their own stage of professionalism, which
appears to be at the crossroads of order and change. As Alfred North Whitehead (cited
in Louis et al., 1999, p.256) claims;
The art of progress is to preserve order amid change and to preserve change amid order.
The teachers in the cases have adopted new work practices, yet at the same time
have preserved some of their traditional ideas. The teachers no longer taught using the
traditional teaching approaches; they used a combination of teacher-centred and child-
centred teaching methods. The teachers no longer struggled alone in classes with large
number of students; the number of students in the classes has been reduced and the
teachers have been introduced to different ways of collaboration. While most teachers
realized that it was important to share knowledge and skills and learn from one another,
some wanted to learn in planned collaborative patterns, some wanted to work
independently and collaborate only when they had the time. The teachers, who used to
be shy and scared, now believed that they could achieve success. Most teachers believed
that they could make change happen at the class and at the school level, but they also
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believed that they needed support and like-minded people for that. Some teachers liked
to undertake leadership roles at the school level; some were happy with the classroom
leadership.
While the different teachers in the cases were at different levels or stages of
professionalism, it was quite clear that they had all advanced in terms of their
professionalism. These changes in the teachers’ levels of professionalism defined the
relationships between the school reforms and teacher professionalism. In other words,
the school reforms have been able to develop teacher professionalism and take it to
higher level than where it was when the reforms were initiated in the schools. However,
the process of developing teachers’ capabilities and providing them with opportunities,
and the interplay of the different factors that have contributed in the development of
teacher professionalism have not been quite the same in all the cases. As a result, the
relationships between the four school reforms and teacher professionalism have not been
identical either. With this background the discussion in this chapter now focuses on the
third research question – How can the government primary schools in Karachi be
reformed to further enhance teacher professionalism among the teachers?
7.3 School Reforms that can Further Enhance and Sustain Teacher Professionalism
My response to the research question of the ways in which the schools can be
reformed to further enhance teacher professionalism will be discussed under three stages
- laying the foundations of teacher professionalism, developing teacher professionalism,
and sustaining teacher professionalism. These three stages are chosen to discuss ways
that schools could be reformed because they provide a mechanism for addressing third
research question. The stages also enable a focus of the findings on the beginning of any
reform, the activities of the reform and trying to sustain the learning when the activities
of the reform have ceased. The explanation within these three stages will bring out the
variations in the relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism more
explicitly, and will facilitate the development of a more informed theoretical base for
future professional development of the teachers. As pointed out in chapter 2 (see section
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2.1) the specific literature related to each of these stages will also be discussed along
with the research findings.
7.4 Stage One – Laying the Foundations of Teacher professionalism
One of the main reasons for the ineffectiveness of many professional
development programmes (Cohen & Hill, 2000; Guskey, 2002; Kennedy, 1998) is that
they do not take into account the important factor of what motivates teachers to engage
in professional development (Guskey, 1986; Guskey, 2002). Laying the foundation of
teacher professionalism explores the process of developing readiness in the teachers to
be engaged in the professional development programmes and the school development
activities.
The analysis of data in chapter 5 illustrates that there has been variation in the
way each reform initiative laid the foundation of developing teacher professionalism.
The TRC used their friendly attitude to lay the school development foundations. The
Alif School teachers also recounted that “TRC’s most effective tool was their good
attitude.” TRC built relationships and partnerships with the school community with the
help of their friendly and encouraging attitude. This attitude worked as a catalyst in
developing the staff capacity and hence their professionalism. TRC also involved
teachers in the initial planning and in the subsequent planning of the school
development plans through the school development review meetings and listened to
their problems and their concerns. Studies suggest that teacher involvement in
professional development increases motivation and commitment to learn and therefore
is an essential component of effective professional development (Ashdown, 2002;
Guskey, 1995; Hawley & Valli, 1999). This study has also revealed that the teachers’
involvement in their professional development and the reformers’ encouragement
enhanced teacher motivation to learn, teacher leadership to undertake different tasks and
teacher efficacy to achieve different tasks.
The INSET or the Demo Centre Training laid the foundations of developing
teacher capabilities by bringing the teachers and their supervisors together on one
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platform. When the Bay School teachers returned to their school, they found that they
were working under the local education officers who understood their problems and
who had time for them. So the school environment was not tense for these teachers.
Rather, it was conducive to learning. However, they did not share a common vision of
school development. This is because the teachers were not involved in the initial
planning of the Demo Centre Training. Perhaps it was not possible to involve all the
teachers for such a big systemic change effort at a macro government school level, but
even at each school level, such as the Bay School, the teachers were not provided with
the opportunities to collaboratively plan or give suggestions about school improvement
activities.
The Book Group laid the foundations of introducing its curriculum and
administrative innovations in the school by modifying the school structures and by
standardizing practices in the school. This strategy streamlined teachers’ routine and
they began to come to school on time, checked children’s work on time and became
more conscientiously responsible. However, some teachers became stressed when their
work was checked and they were held accountable for their work. Other studies have
reported on tensions between individual teachers’ perceived needs for self-improvement
and system demands of teachers for changes in curriculum and teaching approaches
(Ashdown, 2002; Bell, 1991; Richardson, 1992). The authors categorize such tensions
as dissonance, a lack of congruence, resistance or discontinuities. The coordinator’s
strict attitude in the Pay School did not help the situation. Some teachers, though feeling
the pressure of increased workload, adapted to the new work practices easily, and to a
great extent, enthusiastically. Perhaps this group of teachers realized that the standards
were for the good of the children and school. Fullan (1999) argues that emotionally
intelligent people handle anxiety better. They are better able to find solitude when
necessary, seek support from and give help to others, persist in the face of challenges,
identify with and are sustained by a higher goal. However, there are degrees of
emotional intelligence amongst people. The same is true for teachers. Hence, the
teachers in this school wished for a more considerate attitude and some form of
emotional support from the coordinator.
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The foundations that the Sindh Education Foundation (SEF) laid in the Tay
School were weakened, according to the teachers, by the adopter’s strict attitude and,
according to the reform manager, by the resistance from the teachers. The adopter
introduced strict rules and regulations about the teachers coming to school punctually
and regularly, and also held teachers accountable. Some teachers learned to be
responsible and some worked responsibly out of concern of being held accountable. The
adopter could not make way into the teachers’ hearts and once again I sat listening to the
teachers’ suggestions, such as, “the teachers have problems. The adopter should listen to
their problems.”
When foundations are laid to achieve school improvement and teacher
development objectives in schools such as the Karachi’s government primary schools,
which have centralised management and which comprise teachers whose socio-
economic and professional status is generally low (see Abstract), some important
matters need to be considered.
First, there will always be a little resistance on teachers’ parts. That is why it is
important to listen to the teachers. Fullan (1999) stresses that having empathy for those
who are different from ourselves is a tall but essential order. Secondly, the teachers are
already working under a top-down centralized system. They do not want a second party
coming and telling them what to do. They are probably looking for horizontal rather
than vertical communication. According to Fullan (1999) the dynamics within a system,
in this case a school system, can be designed and stimulated in the right direction, but
can never be controlled. This stimulation in the right direction can be achieved to a great
extent by involving teachers in the developmental process. Third, the teachers are used
to working under the school administration where the accountability checks are not in
place most of the time and where the supervisors’ visits to the schools are stretched too
far apart. The teachers are not used to somebody hovering over their heads all the time.
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7.5 Stage Two – The Process of Developing Teacher Professionalism
An important reason why some professional development programmes do not do
very well (Cohen & Hill, 2000; Guskey, 2002; Kennedy, 1998) is that they fail to take
into account the process by which change in teachers typically occurs (Guskey, 1986,
2002). This stage of the analysis explores the process by which the teachers were helped
to learn and develop their professionalism in the case studies.
The very nature of the reforms and the reformers’ views about teacher learning
influenced the different ways in which the reform initiatives developed teachers’
capabilities and provided them with opportunities to exploit these capabilities. This
leads me to the question of how teachers’ capabilities can best be developed. This
question is closely tied with the questions of where teacher learning is placed, what
teachers need to know in order to develop their capabilities and what sort opportunities
teachers require to exploit their capabilities. It is to these three questions that the
discussion now turns. The questions will also demonstrate the links between the process
of developing teacher capabilities, which has emerged from the research findings, and
the relevant literature.
7.5.1 Where Teacher Learning is Placed
Teachers need to relearn and renew their professionalism with the help of
professional development programmes. Guskey (2002, p. 381) describes professional
development programs as “the systematic efforts to bring about change in the classroom
practices of teachers, in their attitudes and beliefs, and in the learning outcomes of
students.” Improvement in the quality of education and the students’ learning was the
ultimate outcome of each of the reform initiatives. However, as has already been
indicated, the manner in which each of the reform initiatives went about achieving this
purpose has been unique to each school.
The TRC went inside the Alif School for the purposes of whole school
development and they could only conceive achieving this purpose by developing the
capacity of all the school members including the teachers and the school principal.
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Perhaps TRC recognized that schools could be no better than the teachers and
administrators who work within them (Guskey, 2002). The initiatives taken by the TRC
were directly related to the purposes of developing teachers’ beliefs in their own
capabilities, changing their attitude and their thinking, developing their professional
knowledge and skills about subject matter and pedagogy, developing skills of
conducting meetings and learning sessions, developing an enhanced sense of
responsibility and undertaking leadership roles.
Furthermore, the designing of the workshops with intervals appears to suggest
that the TRC recognized the importance of helping teachers learn through professional
development programmes and then embedding teachers’ learning in everyday activities
(Lieberman & Miller, 1991; McLaughlin, 1997). TRC embedded teachers’ learning
from the workshop in everyday school activities by providing them with opportunities to
be engaged in different classroom and school activities, which could help teachers
implement those ideas that they learned at the workshops and also those that were
included in the collectively designed school development plans. So, teacher learning did
not stop at the workshops. The teachers continued to learn in the school by engaging in
professional dialogues with each other through group discussions and by accomplishing
different school tasks collectively.
The Demo Centre Training team went inside the Bay School with the purpose of
developing it into a school development centre so that it could serve as a platform for
teachers to receive training and learn by giving demonstration lessons. Since the purpose
of the training was to replace the traditional form of teaching where the children were
passive learners with active learning methods, its direct impact can be observed in
improved teacher practice. However, as the teaching practice improved and the school
consolidated its position as the school development centre, enhancement in teacher
efficacy and teacher leadership skills were also observed. Since the teachers were
neither provided with skills in collaboration nor given opportunities to collaborate in a
planned manner, the teachers continued to meet as and when they had the time and the
need.
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This view of teacher learning assumed that the teachers could simply transfer
knowledge from workshops or teacher training courses to their real classrooms
(McLaughlin, 1997). However, it was noted that when the teachers went back to their
respective schools, they practiced the new skills and knowledge for sometime and then
they reverted to their old practices, except in schools where the school supervisors
continued to provide professional support.
The Bay School story in chapter 5 gives details of how the school supervisors
provided teachers with different opportunities to embed their learning from the Demo
Centre Training and other subsequent trainings into everyday school activities, to
improve their teacher practice and gain confidence.
The Book Group went inside the Pay School with the intentions of implementing
administrative changes and child-centred curriculum in the school. Realizing that it is
the teachers who will transmit the curriculum to the children, the Book Group provided
the teachers with the guidebooks containing new teaching ideas and opportunities to
implement the new teaching ideas in their classes. The teachers gained new knowledge
and skills about teaching methods, improved their teaching capabilities and gained
confidence. The administrative structures with tough accountability systems prompted
teachers to work carefully and responsibly.
These strategies appeared to suggest that the Book Group placed teacher learning
in everyday activities rather than in once only workshop. However, the new
administrative arrangements did not make provisions for the teachers to meet regularly
and hold discussions on teaching issues. Therefore, many good teaching ideas remained
confined to the teachers who taught Urdu. Teacher leadership was also limited to
teachers’ classrooms, with the exception of those teachers who demonstrated more
enthusiasm and ended up undertaking leadership roles at the school level.
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The purpose of adopting the Tay School was to lift it from the difficulties that it
had fallen into and change it into a safe and clean place for the children to study.
Therefore, the tilt in the balance was on the provision of opportunities to the teachers as
well as to the children. There are many schools in Karachi that are in the same condition
as the Tay School used to be. Perhaps this reform initiative was based on the assumption
that a safe and a peaceful school environment and the classes comprising children who
showed some interest in their studies will improve teaching quality. Some aspects of this
assumption were realized when the teachers, knowing that they could now implement
different teaching ideas, which they only thought about previously, and achieve good
results, became more efficacious. The teachers began to teach with more interest and
attention, while using traditional teaching methods.
The Tay School presented a unique situation in which both the government and
the private teachers worked together, yet they worked in two distinctive groups. They
met as and when they had time, but the administration did not bring them together in a
planned manner to help them learn from each other’s different backgrounds and
experiences.
The above description shows that the question of how teachers’ capabilities can
best be developed is closely tied with the question of where teacher learning is placed. It
has already been established that the view that places teacher learning only in the
workshops or the training courses does not work. If that were not the case many
thousands of primary school teachers who were given the Demo Centre Training would
have easily transferred knowledge from the workshops to their classes. The view that
places teacher learning both at the professional development courses and in everyday
school activities is directly related to developing teacher capabilities.
Six percent of the teachers in the survey analysis in chapter 4 have indicated that
the teacher training courses are never related to their needs and 48% of the teachers have
indicated that the courses are only sometimes related to their needs (see Table 4.15).
Similarly, 11% of the teachers have indicated that the courses are never related to their
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school’s needs and 32% have indicted that they are sometimes related to their school’s
needs (see Table 4.15). It is the finding of this research that the main reason for this is
that the teachers are not provided with opportunities to embed their learning from the
workshop into school activities.
The literature also supports the view that places teacher learning in school
activities for enhanced teacher professionalism. According to Mclaughlin and Oberman
(1996) rebuilding professionalism requires professional development opportunities that
extend beyond mere support for teachers’ acquisition of new skills or knowledge to
comprise occasions for teachers to critically reflect on their practice and fashion new
knowledge and beliefs about content, pedagogy and learners.
Similar views were shared by Hargreaves and Evans (1997) when they
emphasized that the new views of teacher professionalism bring a corresponding shift
from policies, which seek to control or direct the work of teachers to strategies intended
to develop the capacity of schools and teachers to be responsible for student learning.
Capacity-building policies view knowledge as constructed by and with practitioners for
use in their own contexts, rather than as something conveyed by policymakers as a
single solution for top-down implementation. King and Newmann (2000) build the same
argument that teacher learning is most likely to occur when teachers can concentrate on
instruction and student outcomes in the specific contexts in which they teach.
7.5.2 What the Teachers Need to Know
The research findings have indicated that the term, development of capabilities,
is closely linked with the question of what teachers need to know in order to develop
their capabilities.
The research findings illustrate that the teachers feel more capable about
performing different tasks when they have relevant professional knowledge about
performing those tasks. In the case of the Alif, the Bay and the Pay Schools, it was when
the reform managers developed teachers’ professional knowledge about the subject
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matter, pedagogy and learners that the teachers were able to achieve good results with
their students. When the new teacher practices improved teachers’ effectiveness and
relationships with the students, they came to believe that they were capable of achieving
good results. In the Tay School where the teachers were not given any training to renew
and enhance their professional capabilities, no change in teacher classroom practice was
observed. The assumption that once the school condition improves, the quality of
classroom teaching will also improve, does not stand correct in this case.
Shulman’s (1986) theoretical model of components of teachers’ professional
knowledge (Borko & Putnam, 1995, p. 36) focuses on knowledge related to the teaching
profession. They hypothesize that the teachers draw from seven domains of knowledge
as they plan and carry out instructions: general pedagogical knowledge, knowledge of
students, knowledge of subject matter, pedagogical content knowledge, knowledge of
other content, knowledge of the curriculum, and knowledge of educational aims. King
and Newmann (2000) share similar views. They argue that improving teachers’ skills,
knowledge and dispositions through professional development is a critical step in
improving student achievement.
This research has also demonstrated that improvement in teachers’ knowledge
about subject matter, students and general pedagogical knowledge helped to enhance
teachers’ professional capabilities and hence their professionalism. In addition, the
research illustrated that the teachers required professional skills to undertake
professional tasks at the classroom and school level. The Alif School teachers evaluated
their performance and their classes’ performances, and recorded their evaluations
because they were given training in the skills of self-evaluation and programme
evaluation. This is something that was not observed in the other schools. The teachers,
in the other schools, were probably not evaluating their performances because they had
not been given the skills of self-evaluation.
In the case of Bay School some teachers were more reflective and more
motivated than others. This was expected in a school where the Demo Centre Training
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held different meaning for the different teachers. Some Master Trainers, according to
the teachers, could not inspire them, while some possessed the skills and the knowledge
to inspire them to change their practice and their attitudes.
Similarly, in order to work in groups, to conduct and lead meetings and to
evaluate each other’s performances, the Alif School teachers were given knowledge of
the skills of collaborating in this way. As a result the teachers prepared yearly planners,
held discussions, conducted meetings, observed each other’s classes and exchanged
lessons on a regular basis. The fact that teacher knowledge and skills impact
collaborative patterns becomes clearer when the teachers in the Bay School reported
their lack of knowledge as one of the reasons for less collaborative work (see chapter 5,
section 5.11.3). Perhaps one reason for the unplanned discussion sessions among the
teachers in the Pay and the Tay School is that the teachers do not know any better way
of working together.
The fact that teacher knowledge also enhances teacher leadership is evident from
the fact that the Master Trainers stand out among the other teachers in terms of being
able to lead a group or plan and conduct a workshop because they had been given proper
training in these skills.
The survey analysis in chapter 4 also shows that when the teachers were asked to
indicate other dimensions of professionalism that they felt were important, about 31% of
the teachers indicated “teacher knowledge and skills” as the most important dimension
in addition to the four dimensions of teacher professionalism (see Table 4.13).
So, in addressing the question of how best teachers’ capabilities can be
developed, my response, in view of the research findings is that the teachers’
capabilities are best developed when they are provided with professional knowledge and
professional skills in every aspect of their professional work practices in a school
context. In order to be able to teach using the new methods, the teachers need specific
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knowledge in context. In order to collaborate in a planned manner, the teachers need the
skills of planned collaboration in context.
At this stage, it is also important to recognize that the teachers consider that
knowledge and skills worth learning and acquiring that help them achieve good results
with the students in the class. In the Alif School, the teachers used a combination of
teacher-centred and child-centred methods because they felt that they could help the
children learn better in this way. Achieving good results with the students was obviously
important for the Pay School teachers, when they exerted their authority to decide that
they wished to teach from a combination of Book Group’s and the Education
Department’s textbooks. The Bay School teachers also liked to use those teaching
methods that best suit the subject content and the children in the classes.
Several studies (Fullan,1999; Fullan & Hargreaves, 1996; Guskey, 2002) have
revealed that this is typical of teachers’ behaviour for whom becoming a better teacher
means enhancing student learning outcomes. What attracts teachers to professional
development, therefore, is their belief that it will expand their knowledge and skills,
contribute to their growth, and enhance their effectiveness with students (Guskey,
2002). What they hope to gain through professional development are specific, concrete,
and practical ideas that directly relate to the day-to-day operation of their classrooms
(Fullan & Miles, 1992; Guskey, 2002). Development programs that fail to address these
needs are unlikely to succeed (Guskey, 2002). Perhaps the other reason why 54% of the
teachers have indicated in the survey (see chapter 4, Table 4.15) that the training courses
are either not or sometimes related to their needs is that the courses do not expand their
knowledge and do not provide them with practical ideas for teaching.
7.5.3 What Opportunities Help Teachers Make the Most of Their Capabilities
The term providing teachers with the opportunities needs to be refined to include
those opportunities that are directly related to developing teachers’ capabilities.
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The stories of the four schools have indicated that any opportunity for
improvement is better than no opportunity at all. The story of Tay School is a good
example to support this point. If the teachers were not provided with the opportunities to
work in a healthy environment, they would still be too scared to go to the school and
would have to think about a million other things that they would have to do before
beginning their classes. These opportunities had an indirect impact on the teachers’
sense of professionalism in the sense that when the environment became safe and clean
and the children began to take an interest in school activities, the teachers also began to
teach with a peaceful mind and much focused vision and they came to believe that they
were capable of doing other things that they could not do before. However, the teachers
were not provided with direct opportunities to enhance their professionalism by
translating ideas, such as teaching private teachers or redesigning lower primary classes
on the basis of new teaching concepts, into practice.
The research findings indicate that the types of opportunities that are directly
related to developing teacher professionalism are the opportunities that help teachers
improve their capabilities about performing different tasks by learning how they can
perform these tasks and then getting the opportunities to actually implement them in
their schools. A good example to establish this point would be the Alif School story. In
the Alif School, teachers were provided with the opportunities to bring their learning
from the workshop and apply them in the classroom to observe the effectiveness of the
new teaching skills and knowledge with the children. According to King and Newmann
(2000) teacher learning is most likely to occur when the teachers have the opportunities
to study, to experiment with, and to receive helpful feedback on specific innovations.
In the case of the Alif and the Bay School it was the workshops that provided the
teachers with the opportunities to gain professional knowledge and acquire new skills.
In the Pay School, teachers gained knowledge about pedagogy through the child-centred
textbooks and the teachers’ guidebooks. Therefore, another type of opportunity for
teachers to improve their professional capabilities is the provision of reading material
such as books, articles, guidebooks, magazines and handouts. The Alif School teachers
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still refer to the handouts given to them during the workshops and the Bay School
teachers still complain about not being provided with any information or reading
material (see chapter 5, sections 5.6.2 & 5.11.2).
It is interesting to note the Pay School teachers’ suggestion for the Book Group
to arrange good training for the teachers (see section 5.16.5). This suggests that, in
addition to the reading and learning resources, teachers are also looking for
opportunities to attend learning sessions. The Alif and the Bay School teachers share the
view that the learning sessions such as the workshops provided them with the
opportunities to learn from one another, get over their inhibitions and gain confidence.
The Alif School teachers have suggested that the education department should prepare
learning programmes for the teachers so that their interest is maintained and they get
opportunities to meet with other people.
The fact that 222 out of 450 teachers in the sample had not participated in any
professional development programme in the last two years is alarming (see chapter 4,
section 4.10). This represents about 50% of the teachers. What is even more alarming is
that the 16% of the 206 teachers, who have participated in the professional development
courses, have not participated in any school-based workshops and 17% of the same
number of teachers has participated in school based workshops only once in two years
(see Table 4.14). The suggestions given by the teachers in the passage before reveal the
lack of learning opportunities, such as professional development programmes, as one of
the most probable causes for low teacher participation rate in professional development
programmes. The percentage of teachers who have attended education programmes
arranged by private organizations and the learning seminars is even lower. The teachers
suggest that they wish to be provided with opportunities to learn. These suggestions
have implications for the education department to arrange learning seminars, school
based workshops, and short training courses to provide the teachers with the direct
opportunities to develop their capabilities.
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Whether it is a long duration teacher-training course or a brief group discussion,
teacher learning has to be translated into the teachers’ actual teaching practices. It has
already been recognized in Section 7.5.1 that embedding teachers’ learning in everyday
activities is important for enhancing their professionalism. This is achieved when the
schools are developed into learning communities and the support structures are built in
the school systems that take teacher learning from the learning sessions into school
practices. The Tay School teachers, in chapter 5, have also made a suggestion for the
adopter to provide them with opportunities of teaching the private teachers (see section
5.21.5). The teachers in the other schools would also like the opportunities to
collaborate in a planned manner. King and Newmann (2000) support this view when
they argue that teacher learning is most likely to occur when teachers collaborate with
professional peers, both within and outside their school, and when they gain further
expertise through access to external researchers and programme developers.
The survey analysis in chapter 4 has indicated that 5% of the 206 teachers, who
have participated in teacher training or a professional development programme in the
last two years, have planned meetings with their colleagues once a month, 13% have the
meetings once in three months and 14% once in two years (see Table 4.14). This is all
the more reason for changing schools into collaborative cultures and providing teachers
with the opportunities to meet and learn from one another in a planned manner. These
meetings are particularly important in the context where all the teachers, as the survey
has indicated, do not participate in professional development courses on a regular basis.
With this interpretation of stage two, the discussion now turns to stage three to
investigate process of sustaining and further developing teacher professionalism.
7.6 Stage Three – The Process of Sustaining Teacher Professionalism
Desmone, Porter, Birman, Garet, & Yoon (2002) observe that the professional
development of teachers is a key component of national efforts to improve student
learning through teaching to high standards. The efforts to improve student learning
have encouraged the local government in Karachi to establish partnerships with private
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and non-government organizations to provide professional development for teachers to
improve teaching.
The research has illustrated that each of the reform initiatives tried to redesign
school structures with a view to supporting and sustaining teacher professionalism.
Once again there are differences in the way each reform initiative went about
redesigning school structures. Based on these differences and variations, the term
provision of opportunities needs to be elaborated to include opportunities that continue
in the school to maintain and further enhance teacher professionalism in the form of a
support structure.
In examining which types of structures best support teacher professionalism,
various issues need to be considered.
The Alif School story in chapter 5 has demonstrated that while the teachers faced
the challenges of experiencing success with the new child-centred approaches and
experimenting with the newly gained knowledge and learning, TRC provided them with
the professional support and guidance in the form of regular follow-up work and
feedback, administrative collective work, and group discussions. The Alif school
principal, who had also been trained by TRC, continued to provide the teachers with
professional support. She took some management steps such as preserving teachers’
work, letting teachers use each other’s resources, and introducing extra-curricular
activities in the school to provide teachers with the structural support. Despite her
efforts to sustain the reforms, the principal could not set aside time for the teachers to
meet in a planned manner because she did not have excess teaching staff. In addition, as
the principal pointed out, the school supervisors did not come regularly and spend time
in teachers’ classes. The Alif School teachers expected more structural and
administrative support from the education department.
It has previously been noted that the impact of Demo Centre Training cannot be
seen in many hundreds of the schools where it was implemented. The only schools
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where the teachers maintained their professional practice were those where the school
supervisors provided follow-up of the training in the form of regular visits and
professional support and guidance.
The fact that the supportive supervision of the school is important is reflected in
teachers’ suggestions such as, “supervisors should observe each class (Alif School)” and
“supervisors should remove distances between them and the teachers (Tay School).”
The teachers’ suggestions also indicate the absence of the active supervisor in the other
case study schools.
Dutro, Fisk, Koch, Roop, and Wixon (2002) studied the impact of the Michigan
English Language Arts Framework (MELAF) project on teachers’ capacities to become
change agents in their own classrooms. The researchers discovered that the changes that
took place in the teachers were a result of many factors, including the size and structure
of the districts, the districts’ readiness for change, and the source of language arts
leadership within the districts.
In Karachi, it is the school supervisors who are assigned to the different schools
by the district education officers. The way they can provide professional support and
emotional counselling to the teachers to build teachers’ capacity has already been
indicated by the Bay School example.
The Alif School teachers, whose progress was noted and appreciated by TRC,
realized how important emotional support was in developing teachers’ confidence and
teacher practice. They expressed a need for this emotional support to continue in words
such as, “the teacher who demonstrates professionalism and produces good quality work
should be noted, appreciated and encouraged.” The Tay School teachers had immense
respect for their principal because of the emotional support she provided to them, and
also for giving them hope and encouragement by remaining resilient in difficult times.
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In the Pay School, where the administration tried to provide teachers with
emotional support by rewarding their improved performance, teachers wished for a
more understanding administration. This was evident in teachers’ words such as, “the
quality of work that they can take out from the teachers through love and affection, they
cannot take out through strict behaviour.” Revisiting the Tay school, I can hear that the
teachers in this school are also in need of emotional support from their adopter.
In the Tay School where there was less emphasis on developing teachers’
capabilities and more emphasis in providing teachers with structural support, the
teachers recognized the need for professional development sessions for the teachers.
This recognition was echoed in words such as, “Adopter must arrange for workshop or
training for the teachers where the teacher can learn.” Even though, the Pay School
coordinator provided the teachers with professional support by observing their classes
and checking their lesson plans, the teachers still recognized the need for professional
development, which was reflected in these words, “good training should be given to the
teachers.”
The professional support and the professional development programmes
enhanced teachers’ capabilities, but the teachers in the Alif and the Bay Schools also
required structural support from their education department to put their beliefs and
capabilities into practice. The Bay School teachers would like to organize their classes
on modern concepts of groups and adorn them with children’s work, but when they had
to reset their classes every afternoon for the afternoon shift, it was not surprising to
observe that they reverted to a traditional classroom pattern. In the Alif School, teachers
would like to meet on a regular basis for discussions if a separate block of time could be
set-aside for it. They recalled the TRC days when the reformers would set aside time for
them to engage in reflective discussions about teaching and learning in a planned
manner. The teachers in the other schools also shared similar views. It was interesting to
discover that in the Pay and Tay Schools where the reformers had provided teachers
with structural support, they had not made provisions for the teachers to meet and
engage in professional dialogues in a planned manner.
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Based on these findings an argument can be made that the teachers need a
“hybrid” support structure, which has elements of professional guidance (follow-up of
the training sessions, providing teachers with feedback about their work, group
discussions, collective administrative work, cooperative work techniques, teachers
learning from one another in a planned manner), an emotional touch (encouraging
teachers for trying, listening to them, respecting their point of views, praising their
effort, promoting their work), proper structures and school administration (provision of
teaching resources, availability of teaching staff, regular school supervision, setting
aside time for teacher learning, relatively safe and clean working conditions) and an
inspiring leader as the head of the school.
7.7 Overall Summary
In response to the research question of how can the government primary schools
in Karachi be reformed to further enhance and sustain teacher professionalism, it can
be theorized that teacher professionalism is developed when the teachers are provided
with the professional knowledge and skills to improve their capabilities in performing
both the class and school related tasks, and opportunities to translate professional
knowledge and skills into classroom and school activities to make the most of their
capabilities. The strength of these relationships between school reforms and teacher
professionalism depends on how successful the reform managers have been in building
positive relationships with the teachers, how involved the teachers are in the reform
initiatives, how hybrid the support structures are in the school, and how informed or
enlightened the school principal is. These various relationships are represented
diagrammatically in Figure 7.1.
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Figure 7.1 Informed Framework for Developing and Sustaining Teacher Professionalism
Figure 7.1 further develops the elementary model with which the research began
(see chapter 2, section 2.4). However, it is richer and more complex. This complexity
and richness is the result of the findings of this research and reveals the complexity of
developing teachers’ professionalism. As was indicated in the literature review (see
(2) Laying the foundations – involving teachers and building relationships.
(6) Embedding teacher learning in class and school activities.
(5) Opportunities
to Exploit Teacher
Capabilities
(4) Developing
Teacher Capabilities
(7) Professional, Emotional,
Structural & Administrative
Support.
(9) Further
Development in Teacher
Capabilities
(3) Professional Development Programme
(10) DEVELOPMENT IN TEACHER
PROFESSIONALISM
(1) EDUCATIONAL REFORMS
(8) Enlightened &
Committed Principal
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chapter 2, section 2.12), it was the reflexive interaction, which occurred between the
initial theoretical framework and the data, which were collected and analysed in
forthcoming phases of the study that has led to the development of Figure 7.1. The
boxes in Figure 7.1 are numbered to facilitate the discussion of the theory building
process presented diagrammatically.
This research has revealed that the success of school reforms (Box 1) depends on
development in teacher professionalism (Box 10). However, the process of developing
teachers’ professionalism is not as clear-cut as Figure 2.1 in chapter 2 (section 2.4)
implies. It is more complex, as Figure 7.1 illustrates. Box 2 in the figure illustrates that
even before the process of developing teacher professionalism begins, it is important to
lay the foundations of the reforms by involving teachers and building positive
relationships with them. The strength of the relationships between the school reform and
teacher professionalism depends on how, and to what extent, teachers’ capabilities are
developed (Box 4) and what types of opportunities (Box 5) they are provided with to
exploit their capabilities. Teachers require professional development programmes (Box
3), which enhance their professional knowledge and skills and which do not end at the
training centres. For professional development to continue at the school level, it is
important that the teachers are provided with opportunities to embed their learning from
the training sessions into the school activities (Box 6). This research has demonstrated
that it is when the teachers achieve success in embedding learning at the school level
that their professional practice improves and they begin to believe that they are capable
of achieving different tasks.
The arrows joining Boxes 5 and 6 to Box 7 illustrate that in order to help
teachers achieve success in enhancing their professionalism, the term opportunities
needs to be extended to include structures that provide the teachers with the professional
support to enhance their professional practice; emotional support to help them believe
that they are capable of achieving; structural and administrative support to work
collaboratively with other teachers and undertake leadership roles (Box 7). Once back in
schools, the school principal takes the central position, as Box 8 illustrates. Just as the
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extent to which teachers are able to benefit from the opportunities presented to them and
further enhance their capabilities (Box 9) will depend on the school principal’s training
and commitment, the extent to which teachers are willing to learn from the professional
courses and apply what they have learned in their schools, will depend on the ways in
which reform managers develop relationships with the teachers and involve them in the
school development activities.
On the basis of the above theorising, it can be summarised that the success of
school reforms depends on enhanced teacher professionalism; and the enhancement in
teacher professionalism depends on the dynamism with which the reform managers take
the teachers through the three stages of teacher development successfully:
• the stage of building relationships with the teachers and involving them in
developmental process;
• the stage of initiating professional development programmes that develop teachers’
capabilities and provide them with opportunities to embed their learning in school
activities and exploit their capabilities; and
• the third stage of developing schools into collaborative cultures with the help of
enlightened principal and hybrid support structure to further enhance teacher
professionalism.
In addition to viewing schools as bureaucratic organizations (Sergiovanni, 1998),
it is important that reformers also begin to view schools as communities and advocate
the use of professional, cultural and democratic forces to leverage change, where the key
mediating variable in the school reform process is the teachers’ capacity of shared
norms to influence change (see chapter 2, sections 2.7 & 2.8). As Conley (1993) argues
that in order to bring about change in central variables educators will need enabling and
supporting variables (see chapter 2, section 2.11).
The theory building provided here, in this chapter, offers a more informed
perspective about school reform and teacher professionalism as a result of this grounded
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research and the specific relevant literature presented in this chapter. Based on this
theorizing, such schools can be reformed and restructured to further enhance teacher
professionalism for long-term school development. It is important to remember that it is
just that - a theorizing and not a fool proof solution. Enactment requires professional
judgment. It will be the blend of different elements in the schools, the particular school
context and political will that will decide how professionalism can best be fostered in
the government primary schools in Karachi. However, this theorizing has emerged as a
result of this research, which is rich in contextual information and verifiable quantitative
data, and has been linked to other related research and literature in this chapter and in
chapters 2 and 6. Therefore, it has important implications for policy makers. Based on
the theorising a number of principles for fostering and sustaining teacher
professionalism have been developed, and these are addressed in the final chapter.
Before moving on to this concluding chapter, it is important to address the limitations of
this study. It is to these that the discussion will now focus.
7.8 Limitations of the Study
As the word “limitations” suggests, this section of the research identifies the
restrictions and restraints that came in the way of conducting this research.
The study is bounded by the nature of the research problem, the relationships
between school reforms and teacher professionalism in government primary schools in
Karachi. Teacher professionalism has many dimensions and can be influenced by many
factors. It was beyond the scope of this research to address all the dimensions of teacher
professionalism. The conceptualization of teacher professionalism within four
dimensions (teacher efficacy, teacher practice, teacher collaboration, teacher leadership)
has been justified as most appropriate given the context of this research (see chapter 2).
Despite narrowing the focus to the four dimensions of teacher professionalism and the
four selected reform initiatives in Karachi, the study turned out to be quite extensive.
While the comprehensive study helped to provide information, which held a degree of
reliability and validity, to write it up as one piece of research became a very challenging
task.
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The sample for the study came from some selected government primary schools
of Karachi and it cannot be said with a degree of conviction that the findings are
transferable beyond the specific context. However, the rich descriptions of the different
cases, direct quotes from the educators and detailed descriptions of methods of data
collection and analysis have been provided in different chapters for potential replicators
to make informed judgments about replicating the findings of this research.
Even though, the use of mixed methods research design added rigour and
authenticity to the data collected and analysed, the perceptions of the researcher and the
participants further delimit the study. The design of the study incorporated a number of
strategies to enhance the reliability, validity and trustworthiness of the data collected
and analysed. These are detailed in chapter 3.
Being aware of the limitations, the research has tried to be very explicit in terms
of outlining the research design, the ethical considerations and the underlying theory
(see chapters 2 and 3), which steered this research, and has tried to incorporate as much
evidence as possible (see chapters 4 to 7) to develop a good argument for the
conclusions drawn in the final chapter.
A discussion of these conclusions and their significance is now presented in
chapter 8.
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CHAPTER EIGHT
Conclusions and Reflections 8.1 Introduction
In chapter 6, the findings from the quantitative and qualitative studies were
synthesized to arrive at a consolidated view about the dimensions of teacher
professionalism and the relationships between school reforms and teacher
professionalism. Chapter 7 consolidated the findings from the four case studies to
derive a theoretical position for future professional development initiatives for
government primary school teachers in Karachi. This theorising is diagrammatically
represented in Figure 7.1 (see chapter 7), which portrays a more informed conceptual
framework for developing and sustaining teacher professionalism in government
primary schools in Karachi where reforms are being initiated. Based on these research
findings, this chapter discusses the significance of the main findings, proposes some
principles for future teacher development initiatives and suggests areas for further
research.
8.2 A Discussion of the Research Findings and Their Significance
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way…
I remember reading this passage when I read A Tale of Two Cities by Charles
Dickens. However, I became drawn to it when I read it again in a chapter by Day
(2000a, p. 109-110). This passage was written 150 years ago, but I agree with Day
(2000a) that it still characterizes the world of many teachers in schools, colleges and
universities in England and elsewhere, including Pakistan. The pace of change may be
slow and the teachers may not be bombarded by as much information or as many ideas
as in any developed country, but in a cosmopolitan and fast changing city like Karachi,
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the government primary schools which are undergoing reformation and innovation
present a world to the teachers that leaves some amused and some bemused by the
challenges; some excited and some quite unruffled as they face the challenges of this
new world. One way to help teachers develop in a world such as this is to listen to what
they have to say.
This research provided a forum for teachers to speak. Through this research, the
teachers spoke about their hopes, aspirations, concerns and fears. They have informed
us that they perceive themselves as professionals. They are confident and
knowledgeable professionals who not only believe that they can achieve difficult tasks,
but they have achieved the most difficult tasks of all – changing their viewpoints and
their practice. These teachers collaborate to learn; they lead because they want others to
learn and they teach responsibly and effectively because their professional knowledge
has given them an understanding of the requirements of the students. Further, they are
willing to innovate and improve the whole teaching scenario.
However, the constant change of education policies and the myriad of reform
agendas have also developed a degree of scepticism among some teachers. They
probably consider mandated reforms a burden. Some teachers demonstrate enthusiasm
in their work and assert that they teach to the best of their abilities and this brings them
joy. These teachers see their work as a moral responsibility and are more open to
change. Then there are also those teachers who, despite working under difficult
circumstances, are more willing to change and collaborate to take their schools to
greater heights. Most teachers are willing to give educational reform a try if it bears a
positive relationship to teaching and learning and in doing so, as the analysis from the
case studies in Chapter 5 have shown, they enhance their professionalism.
Having said that, it is important to realize that the teachers who are enthusiastic
about their work and who continue to experiment and improve their performance are
increasing in number, but they are still in a minority. The question is whether we want
to lose this minority, which has the professionalism to improve the quality of education
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in our country and take it to greater heights, or we want them to remain committed to
their profession. The evidence from the case study schools has shown that most of the
teachers with their enhanced sense of professionalism are intrinsically motivated and
committed to sustaining improvements in their schools. The reform initiatives have
been able to develop a heightened level of teacher professionalism in a number of ways.
The most prominent of these are the development of teachers’ professional capabilities
and providing them with opportunities to exploit these capabilities. However, there is
concern that the professional knowledge that the teachers now possess may become
obsolete when the new professional knowledge will emerge, and the teachers may not
always have as many opportunities and as much support as they have during the
innovation phase. Whether the teachers’ intrinsic drive will continue to give them
strength to face the challenges and continue to learn on their own, even in the absence
of opportunities and support with very little recognition of their work, is an extremely
difficult question to answer, yet it has implications for policy makers.
Maslow (1973) argues that the desire to become everything one is capable of
becoming depends on the fulfilment of lower level social and esteem needs. Whether
they express it or not these teachers do need some kind of recognition,
acknowledgement and, above all, support for spending their days and years doing what
is perhaps an increasingly difficult profession for a person of ambition and intelligence
these days. Failing to find the level of satisfaction in the classroom and in the school,
even the most dedicated teachers may begin to question their roles as professionals.
Literature that suggests that teachers’ commitment tends to decrease progressively over
a course of the teaching career (Fraser, Draper, & Taylor, 1998; Huberman, 1993) is
evident.
Most teachers concerns are very much linked to the issue of the status of
teaching in Pakistan. The teaching profession is staggering under the needs of a global
economy and a burgeoning student population. As in most countries, Math and Science
teaching positions go begging as other professional organizations and companies snap
up qualified graduates. And when they look toward a career where they will make only
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a fraction of what their classmates do for comparable effort and skill, even young
teachers with high ideals often decide instead on banking, computer science or
marketing. According to article 7.1.3 of Pakistan’s National Education Policy 1998 –
2010 (The Ministry of Education, 1998), the profession of teaching is usually the last
choice for the young men and women. The teachers are, therefore, said to be neither
committed nor motivated to teach. The country cannot afford to lose those teachers who
are committed and motivated to teach.
Perhaps it is time the government paid heed to the teachers' concerns and
supported them in the ways they wanted to be supported. The research framework for
the study, which was derived from Western literature and deducted from the document
analysis of school reform in government primary schools in Karachi was
contextualized. Teachers’ ideas and views were incorporated and analysed critically to
construct new knowledge. This new knowledge gave birth to a more focused and
elaborated conceptual framework (see Figure 7.1) about developing teachers’
capabilities and providing them with the opportunities to emerge. Based on this
theoretical framework, I have formulated a number of principles for sustaining and
further developing teacher professionalism. These principles have strong future
implications for the policy makers.
8.3 The Principles for Fostering Teacher Professionalism
Based on the data and in the light of theorizing in chapter 7 the following
principles have been formulated to sustain and further develop teacher professionalism.
Principle 1: Teachers are more likely to learn and develop their
professionalism when the educational reforms reflect their personal identity and their
visions.
In order to discover teachers’ visions and assumptions, it is important to involve
teachers in the planning of educational reform and question their beliefs and
assumptions to discover what they might consider is important learning and how might
they learn that. This research has revealed that, among other factors, the success of the
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educational reform will also depend on the charismatic qualities of the reformers to
involve the teachers and the other members of the school community. As Guskey
(2002) writes that close collaboration between program developers or researchers and
teachers can greatly facilitate the teacher learning process. Hammerness (2001) also
argues that teachers’ images of ideal classroom practice may be used to help educators
better understand the development of teachers’ work and their careers.
The literature in chapter 2 (see section 2.3) indicates that more than thirty years
ago, the government in Pakistan, in the proposals of new education policy (The
Ministry of Education and Scientific Research, 1970), also recognized that if academic
standards were to be improved, teachers must be involved and allowed greater
participation in governing their institutions. However, in some schools, such as the Alif
School, the process of involving teachers in school administration has achieved
remarkable results. In many other schools, that were central to this study, this process is
yet to be recognized as an important factor in developing teacher professionalism.
Ashdown (2002) suggests that professional development occurs at the intersection of
organizational and individual identities. One way to help teachers arrive at the
intersection is to begin the reform agenda by building relationships and partnerships
with the teachers and the other members of the school community.
Principle 2: Teachers will be more willing to enhance their professional
capabilities if they are given time and support to make their transition from resistance
to appropriation and development.
The initial stages of a reform initiative may have a negative or a stressful impact
on teacher professionalism, which later, passing through resistance and appropriation,
may prove to be an enriched learning experience for some teachers. (Helsby, 2000;
Woods, 1994). Ashdown (2002) quotes Fullan (1993) that conflict cannot be avoided in
successful change efforts. Some teachers in this research also experienced some
tensions and stress. This study confirms that rather than ignoring these tensions, it is
important to take a closer look at them to help teachers make the transition from
resistance to appropriation and to development.
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It has been argued in the literature review in chapter 2 (section 2.2) that, among
the other reasons, the schools also need to change because the teachers need
considerably more help, inside the classroom as well as university support outside it, to
reinvent their sense of professionalism (Hargraeves, 1997b). Day’s (1999) precepts of
teacher development (see section 2.5) also signify the importance of teacher support for
career long development and teacher involvement in decisions concerning their own
learning.
The research findings, reported in this thesis, have demonstrated that the
friendly, caring and respectful attitude of the reform managers helped teachers in
adapting the new professional practices more easily. On the other hand, the unfriendly
attitude developed tensions among the teaching staff making the task of implementing
new practices difficult. For those who are initiating reforms in the schools, the research
findings present a clear message - teachers must be listened to, their points of views
must be respected and their efforts must be appreciated as part of their professional
development. Day (2000a, p. 126) has a similar message for those who are initiating
change, “respect those who are implementing it by listening to them and demonstrating
an understanding that extra time, energy and support are needed.”
Principle 3: In order to understand deeply, teachers need professional
development programmes where they can learn about performing professional tasks,
see and experience success in performing these tasks.
The knowledge about, and skills, in different tasks that the teachers are expected
to perform at the classroom and school level is important to help teachers improve their
professional capabilities. Equally important are the different ways in which teachers
learn to be capable. While the conceptions of teachers’ learning that inform policy and
practices are underdeveloped (Bransford, Brown, & Cocking, 1999; McLaughlin, 2002)
elsewhere in the world, in Pakistan, as this study indicates, they have perhaps not
started developing at all. This research takes the first steps in laying a conceptual
framework about the processes that stimulate, support and sustain teacher learning in
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Pakistan with a view to enhancing teacher professionalism in government primary
schools in Karachi.
In order to help teachers understand deeply and motivate children to learn, a new
policy paradigm of professional development for the teachers in government primary
schools in Pakistan is required. The kind of paradigm required is what McLaughlin
(1997) describes as the one that models top-down support for bottom-up reform.
In the top-down support for bottom-up reform model, teacher learning may
initially begin at a professional development course or school based workshop or
learning seminar, but it will have to be embedded in everyday school activities. The
research has developed a conceptual framework in chapter 7 of providing teachers with
the opportunities to exploit their capabilities and sustain the process of learning. These
findings are in accordance with the work of Day (1999) who argues that some of the
most effective forms of professional development and learning appear to be ones that
are embedded in the job and ingrained in the culture of teaching so that learning how to
teach better is not separated in time and space from the work of teaching itself.
Evidence has been provided in this research that further substantiates this argument
under the context of the case study schools.
This study has found that sustained change in teachers’ learning opportunities
and practices will require overhauling of the whole reform agenda, so as to invest in the
development of teacher training institutions and school environmental support that will
promote the spread of ideas and engagement in the class and the school related tasks for
enhanced teacher professionalism.
Principle 4: In order to help teachers enhance their professionalism, the
professional development programmes need to help teachers acquire new ways of
thinking about teaching and learning.
The four reform initiatives detailed in this research expected teachers to teach in
ways which were quite different from the ways they learned to teach. Teachers were
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expected to teach differently so that the students could learn better, construct richer
understandings of the subject-matter, express themselves more clearly and become
interested in learning. In all but one case study school, the reform managers have been
able to help teachers get through the difficult task of learning new teaching practices by
enhancing teachers’ knowledge about the new practices and giving them pedagogical
skills. The research has illustrated that when the teachers achieved success in
implementing the new knowledge that they came to believe that they were capable of
performing these tasks. As the teachers became more capable and confident about
performing new professional tasks, they began to take decisions about what they now
believed was important knowledge. In other words, the teachers simultaneously became
the objects and agents of change (Borko & Putnam, 1995; Cohen, 1990; Cohen & Ball,
1990b; Putnam, Heaton, Prawat, & Remillard, 1992).
Before teachers become change agents, making decisions about their teaching
and the children in their care, this study clearly indicates that it is important to help
them understand the new concepts of teaching and learning. Teachers need to make
decisions that are well informed and based on deep professional knowledge and
professional skills, so that they believe that the decisions that they are making are the
right decisions for their students and that they have the skills to implement their
decisions successfully. The cases presented in this research are testimony to these
findings. Policy makers and reform managers can benefit from Borko and Putnam’s
(1995, p. 60) argument that:
To reform educational practice they simply cannot tell teachers how to teach
differently. Teachers themselves must make the desired changes. To do so, they
must acquire richer knowledge of subject matter, pedagogy and subject-specific
pedagogy; and they must come to hold new beliefs in these domains.
The evidence presented here confirms that the teachers in government primary
schools in Karachi definitely require a continuous professional programme to develop
their professional capabilities. The continuing professional development of teachers has
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become increasingly associated with educational change particularly in terms of school
reform efforts and improving student achievement (Ashdown, 2002; Elmore & Burney,
1999; Thompson and Zeuli, 1999). Based on these research findings, it can be argued
that teachers need professional development programmes that are more relevant to the
teachers’, the children’s and the school’s needs.
Principle 5: Building teacher professionalism requires that teachers and the
administrators in the school collectively learn to use innovations to change their
practices, solve problems, and enhance teaching, learning and caring.
The evidence from the case studies has demonstrated that one way to help
teachers embed their learning in everyday school activities is to provide them with
opportunities to collaborate and collectively learn to solve problems and enhance their
professionalism. This form of teacher learning is based on the concept of “learning
communities” which provide the teachers with opportunities to exchange ideas with
their colleagues, to observe other teachers’ teaching and receive feedback.
The findings from the four case stories and the background information about
Pakistan’s education system in literature review suggests that in Pakistan the
development of such learning communities will depend on the political will and the
commitment of the government and policy makers. The policy makers need to realize
that investing in the workshops provided elsewhere, away from the school, by the
experts will bring about change in teacher professional practice only when in the school
teachers have the time and the collegial support to collectively reflect upon ideas and
implement them in their classrooms. Developing schools into learning communities can
help achieve this purpose. Lieberman’s (1996) conceptions of teacher learning (see
Chapter 2, section 2.5) also support teacher development in different settings.
In the light of the research findings it can be argued that the development of a
learning community culture at the school level in Pakistan will require reorganization
and careful planning at the policy level to find and motivate teacher leaders, principals
and local education officers. According to Hargreaves et al. (2001), a redesigned
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conception of teaching, where learning to teach better becomes part of teaching,
requires time and human resources. Hargreaves et al. (2001) add that providing and
protecting this time and support is a responsibility that extends far beyond individual
schools – to school districts, governments and those who elect them. Without this
fundamental commitment to external support, deep and successful change will likely be
confined to temporary, localized reform projects, and not be generalizable to or
sustainable in large groups of schools or systems (Hargreaves et al., 2001).
The fact that school communities are essential (Fullan, 1999) is important. The
cases here lay the foundations to show how each school develops into a learning
community depends on each school’s specific context and situation. The government
primary schools in Karachi will have to discover their own ways of transforming
schools into collaborative schools. This research has revealed that the teachers like to
collaborate and exchange ideas. Schools like the Alif School have even built a
reputation for school communities, with teacher collaboration as a distinguishable
characteristic. If provided with a separate block of time, the teachers have indicated
that, they would welcome the idea of planned collaboration for teaching and learning.
The stories from the cases presented in this research have revealed that it is
important to transform schools into collaborative cultures for various reasons.
Collaborative cultures will provide the teachers with opportunities to undertake
leadership roles at the school level and further enhance their leadership skills; to find
like-minded people and engage with people holding diverse opinions at the same time;
to learn from the diversity of opinions and improve their teaching practice; to provide
each other with emotional support and encouragement and learn to be more efficacious
and confident; to enhance their professional knowledge and expertise and continue the
process of professional development going on; and to continue doing what most
teachers in the case study schools are already doing, share teaching resources, distribute
workload and reduce tensions.
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Principle 6: Professional support, guidance and feedback are essential for
enhancing teacher professionalism.
One of the important findings of this research has been the provision of
professional support and feedback with a view to helping embed their learning from the
training courses into school activities. Teachers need professional feedback to
experience the positive effect of their enhanced capabilities. Guskey (2002) argues
practices that are new and unfamiliar will be accepted and retained when they are
perceived as increasing one’s competence and effectiveness. New practices are likely to
be abandoned, however, in the absence of any evidence of their positive effects. Hence,
specific procedures to provide feedback on results are essential to the success of any
professional development effort.
Therefore, it is important that the educational reform initiative make provisions
for efficient methods of providing teachers with effective feedback and professional
support about the improvements in their work, if these improvements are to be sustained
in the school. King and Newmann (2000) maintain the same view. They argue that
workshops, courses or conferences must make provisions for follow-up and long-term
feedback.
Principle 7: Informed and enlightened school principals are essential for
helping teachers enhance their professionalism.
This research has shown that the school principals have experienced a shift from
more traditional approaches of leadership to more contemporary approaches (Harris et
al., 2003) that have assisted in the development of teacher professionalism in the case
study schools. With the rigid traditional approaches, the principals could not have
worked in partnership with the outside organizations for a long period and shared their
authority for the school’s good. This is in keeping with the work of Leithwood.,
Steinbach and Ryan (1997), Macmillan (2000) and Senge (1992) who emphasize that
the successful implementation of educational reform require leaders who involve
teachers integrally and meaningfully as team members in the implementation process.
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However, in many government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan a
traditional view of school leadership, which means formal authority in the school,
prevails. Writers such as Day et al. (2000), Harris et al. (2003) and Lambert (1998) have
called for an examination of non-traditional perspectives on school leadership. Their
work advocates the centrality of teachers in the leadership endeavour and highlights the
importance of teachers’ perspectives on school leadership. This study has illustrated that
teacher involvement in school leadership depends on school principals. Whether the
teachers in the case study schools collaborate on change efforts or undertake leadership
roles and motivate others to change, depends on how supportive and encouraging the
school principal is. This calls for the school principal to be an emotional leader
(Hargreaves et al., 2001).
Interestingly, the teachers, in the interviews in chapter 5, have indicated that
training should be arranged for the school principals to help them understand the
teachers’ perspectives, but more importantly to teach the principals the different ways in
which they can involve the teachers and inspire them to learn. Views such as, “school
principal should be a model for the other teachers (Bay School),” “principal is the key
person in bringing about change in the school (Pay School)” and “principal is the direct
link between the teachers and the education department (Alif School)” suggest that the
teachers look up to their principals to lead them wisely and democratically through the
process of change and improvement. The teachers are actually calling for schools
principal to play, what Hargreaves et al. (2001) describe as an intellectual and strategic
leadership role.
This underscores the need for training for the school principals that reflect these
demands. The teachers, in the cases, have clearly indicated a need for intellectual
principals who can help them enhance their professional capabilities by helping them
understand the written guidelines and directives and help them translate it in their
classes. They have also indicated a need for supportive principals who can build
collaborative cultures in their schools and involve teachers in decision-making. They
have also emphasized the need for strategic leadership who can provide opportunities
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for them to engage in professional learning. The government and the reform managers
need to ensure that the teachers are well led in this way.
Principle 8: Teacher professionalism is more likely to be sustained and further
enhanced when the local education department’s or some private organizations’
management and monitoring strategies follow planned professional development
programmes.
Whether a professional development initiative comes as a policy directive from
the top or it is initiated by some private organizations, the evidence in this study
demands that there is need for systems at the local district level to support and maintain
the professional development initiatives. In line with Cohen and Ball (1990a), Dutro et
al. (2002) and Fullan and Hargreaves (1992b), it was observed that the gap between the
policy and the practice in the schools threatens the success of the educational reform
initiatives.
Sustained instructional improvement is a process of bilateral negotiation
between the system-level administrator and principals. In Karachi, this is only possible
if the supervisors and the town education officers are willing. The Bay Story has set an
example that a willing supervisor can keep the process of learning going for the teachers
by importing ideas from the different workshops and learning sessions into her target
school and letting other teachers visit the school. Unfortunately, however, this is only
happening at the individual level, inspired by the supervisor’s personal interest and
commitment. In addition, the teachers have indicated that all the supervisors are neither
equally committed to their tasks nor professionally aware of their responsibilities. In
addition, there are frequent changes at the education department and frequent supervisor
transfers. These are all the more reasons for developing networks of schools with the
help of motivated supervisors and considering planned ways of improving schools for
enhanced teacher professionalism at the town level, so that other schools also get
opportunities to learn.
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I would cite the example of Dutro et al. (2002), who lead the Michigan English
Language Arts Framework (MELAF) project, to support this argument. Dutro et al.
(2002) created a network of four disparate district learning communities so that
individual teachers could grapple with the implication of content standards for their own
classroom practice, and districts could speculate about the potential role of standards in
local education reforms.
In small school communities such as the case study schools, where teachers still
feel a sense of connectedness and are eager to learn what is happening in the other
schools, teacher networking can be used very effectively. During the processes of
conducting this research, I observed that at some levels the teachers in the different
schools were already networking, of course without being aware of it in a formal sense.
Principle 9: Teacher professionalism is enhanced when accountability and
inspection is introduced in schools with trust and confidence in teachers’ behaviour and
sincere considerations for teachers’ problems.
The significance of standards, as has been witnessed in the Pay School and to
some extent in the Tay School, is not new. The development of standards has been part
of governments and bureaucracies in Australia, the UK, the USA and elsewhere to
improve the educational performance and outcomes of education systems and the
practices of teachers in classrooms (Groundwater-Smith & Sachs, 2002).
Whether they are the standards that are developed and monitored by the
government department itself or they are those that are developed and imposed by some
mandated regulatory bodies outside of the education department, such as the Book
Group or the Adopter, it is important that they are implemented in the schools for
developmental purposes (Mahony & Hextall, 2000) with a view to enhance teacher
professionalism. Hargreaves (2002, p. 6) gives examples of some studies that suggest
how the emotional lives of teachers are being adversely affected by high-stakes
inspection processes (Jeffrey & Woods, 1996), stress-inducing reform strategies (Nias,
1999; Woods, Jeffrey, Troman, & Boyle, 1997), the risks of collaborative teacher
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research (Dadds, 1993), authoritarian leadership styles among principals (Blasé and
Anderson, 1995) and the general speeding-up, intensification and extensification
(spreading out) of teachers’ work (Hargreaves, 1994).
Based on the research findings, it can be argued that while an accountable and
transparent teaching profession is important, what is equally important is that they are
implemented in the schools in such a manner that the teachers’ trust and confidence is
maintained and teachers’ emotions are considered. The evidence from this research calls
for a sustained critical support for teachers’ autonomy through an external inspection
system which is collaborative, rather than confrontational (Cole, 1997; Day, 2000a). In
addition to being collaborative, the accountability system needs to be rigorous (Fullan,
1999). According to Fullan (1999) such a system also holds those who are responsible
for conducting school inspection accountable. Therefore, the blame does not
automatically fall solely upon the teachers for not performing, but also upon those
whose job was to intervene and provide teachers’ professional support to help them
perform better, whether it is the school supervisors or any external authority. However,
to develop such a transparent accountability system consisting of committed educators
is not an easy task and, in the case of government primary schools in Karachi, it may
not be conceivable without government intervention.
Principle 10: Teachers need new working conditions in order to further develop
their professional capabilities.
Working conditions refer to the rigid structures imposed by the school
administration, the local education departments, the reform managers, the professional
development organizations, the government and the general public. The teachers in this
research have challenged the existing structures of time, human and material resources
and rules and regulations that do not take into account teachers’ problems. As
Hargreaves et al. (2001) argue firmly inscribed structures, such as these, can impede
efforts because educators find themselves trying to squeeze new projects and initiatives
into old, unsympathetic structures rather than transforming the structures so that they
accommodate and support new practices. The stories of the four schools in chapter 5
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have illustrated that the reformers had to modify old structures in order to support new
teacher practices. Each reform initiative was unique in how this was done, yet the
demand for new working condition was common across cases.
Teachers need proper administrative structures, but they do not want structures
that are too rigid. The research here has indicated that such structures create stress and
anxiety among the teachers. This reflects findings by Cole (1997) and Day (2000a) that
the conditions under which teachers work have generated feelings and psychological
states that militate against reflective practice and professional growth.
Avalos (2002) reflects the feelings expressed in these cases when she argues that
teachers who work in appalling conditions may view change as impossible because of
such conditions. This does not mean that they should be left aside or forced to change.
What it means is that the teachers, such as those central to this study, need greater
support than is provided in the schools in terms of structures that are not very rigid and
time and resources for exploring new ideas. The policy-makers and the reform
managers, aligned to this study, need to develop a structurally supportive school
environment along with developing teacher capabilities and changing school practices.
As has been indicated in the introduction, the government needs to consider whether it
should change its priorities and redirect resources from other budgets to education (The
Ministry of Education, 1998; Warwick & Fernando, 1995).
Principle 11: Recognizing and acknowledging teachers’ professional
capabilities will go a long way in further enhancing teacher professionalism.
When I read Sykes (1999) description of the 20-year veteran (teacher) who
occupied the same position and carries out the same duties as the first-year novice
(teacher), I feel as if I am reading about a government school situation in Karachi,
Pakistan. The teaching ranks are fairly differentiated and the teaching profession is
relatively easy to enter, leave and re-enter, particularly for women interested in
integrating their career with child raising. It came as no surprise, therefore, when the
teachers, in the case study schools, who had been working relentlessly hard for some
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years desired some sort of improvement in the teaching ranks based on their improved
teaching practice.
Teachers’ suggestions in the cases came in the wake of new reform agendas
when the incentives and rewards-based reforms appear deeply-problematic and less
promising than they did a decade ago (Sykes, 1999). Sykes (1999) gives examples of
some reward incentives that have been relatively successful. These include performance
based pay, which met with professional orientation, new teacher oriented roles such as
mentor-teacher or peer-evaluator, and the allocation of incentive pay according to
school-wide rather than individual achievement. Interestingly, in this study, reward
schemes suggested by the teachers in chapter 5, such as, rewarding them for producing
good work, praising their efforts and showing their work to the others suggested
performance-based criteria with a professional orientation.
Recently, the government in Pakistan announced a scheme of rewarding
individual teachers for improved performance. The effect of this scheme is yet to be
seen and other schemes will undoubtedly follow to motivate teachers to improve
performance. However, based on this literature and this research, they will have more
chances of achieving success if they are designed with a professional orientation in
mind.
Principle 12: A more informed research paradigm is necessary for
understanding and further improving teacher professionalism.
As a result of this research, a number of clear recommendations are embedded
within this principle.
1. The research should focus more broadly on teachers’ life and work.
I agree with Helsby (2000) that there is nothing simple or static about the
concept of teacher professionalism. It may be at a slower rate in Pakistan than in the
other countries, but the concept of professionalism is changing and can be redefined in
different ways at different times to serve different interests. Like many researchers,
when I began investigating what teachers in the cases actually did, I found their practice
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much more complicated, featuring a mixture of elements that could not be represented
in a simplistic, polarized way (Bennett, 1976; Galton, 1989; Woods, 2002).
I found that each teacher’s life and work was influenced and shaped by
countless factors operating in the culture to which he or she belonged. During the
course of my interviews, I found that the teachers in the four case study schools in
Karachi were only too eager to share their feelings with me. Therefore, I argue that
before implementing any education innovation, it is important to unfold the ruffles of
organization constraints and discover teachers’ feelings. I agree with Hargreaves (2002)
that policy strategies designed to improve or raise standards in teaching and learning
must acknowledge the emotional dimension of teaching. He goes on to argue that the
literature of teaching and teacher development would benefit from understanding and
explaining the emotional realities of teachers’ lives.
2. There is a need to reconstruct assumptions about teaching, teacher learning
and school development.
Instead of creating divisions between teacher-centred and child-centred
teaching; subject-centred and child-centred curriculum; traditional and modern
concepts, it is time to converge views and develop a balanced approach to teacher
learning and teaching.
Firstly, the teachers in this study have indicated that their professional practice is
more a reflection of a combined view of new and old concepts of teaching. Woods
(2002) also argues that much of the debate on teaching that has been conducted in terms
of polarities or dichotomies has given rise to false arguments and is proving to be
counter productive. Therefore, the assumption of discovering one best way of doing
things needs to be reconsidered.
Secondly, the evidence from the research indicates that the assumption of
viewing teachers as mere technicians (Bascia & Hargreaves, 2000) whose job is to
implement relatively uniform classroom procedures needs to be reconsidered. The ideas
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shared by the teachers during the interviews (see Chapter 5) have indicated that the
teachers are intellectually and socio-politically (Bascia & Hargreaves, 2000) more
aware than some may believe them to be. Based on her experiences of educational
reform Avalos (2002) also found that for successful implementation of educational
programmes it is important that the educational policies reflect very much the views
expressed by teachers. The teachers must see that they are professionals and that their
ideas have helped a new reform agenda to emerge. This research has revealed that one
way to achieve this is to disseminate information and share with the teachers the
knowledge from this and other research that is being conducted about teachers. Such
knowledge is crucial for teachers and educators in understanding the emerging concepts
of teacher professionalism.
Thirdly, the assumption of improving all schools using a successful formula also
requires reconsideration. Reynolds et al. (1996) argue that effective schools cannot be
created by simply transporting successful strategies from one school to another. It is
beyond the scope of this research to address many other issues that have emerged
during the course of conducting this research, but the research findings have clearly
demonstrated that the process of school improvement is as complex as teacher
development. As Guskey (2002) points out no new programme or innovation can be
implemented uniformly. Teaching and learning are influenced by a multitude of
situational and contextual variables (Fullan, 1985; Guskey, 2002; Huberman & Miles,
1984). Policy makers and future researchers need to develop an understanding of each
school’s culture and context in order to improve life within it for the teachers as well as
other members of the school community. This study has been a window of opportunity
that has opened up such an investigation.
Fourthly, most of the teachers who participated in this study were trained
teachers and they had more than five years teaching experience (see chapter 4). This
means that the teachers have already acquired knowledge through other personal
sources. Kennedy, (2002, p. 355) refers to teachers’ knowledge as “craft knowledge.” It
was beyond the scope of this research to explore these personal sources of teachers’
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knowledge in detail. However, interviews with the teachers have indicated that what
these teachers’ prior education and experience has already taught them needs to merge
with new developments in teacher learning for the teachers to develop professionally
and personally. Therefore, this research recognizes that personal factors and issues are
important and need to be taken as future research agendas. In order to help teachers
acquire new ways of thinking about teaching and learning, it is important to explore
how teachers think about their work. One way to do it, as has already been mentioned in
Principle 1, is to involve teachers in the reform planning stage. The success of reform
movements will also depend on the interaction between the craft knowledge and the
professional knowledge derived from the professional development programmes.
3. There is a need to consider both quantity and quality in order to provide for
successful teacher development.
Governments in all parts of the world, including Pakistan, recognize the value of
education to the personal, social and economic health of the society. Once the
responsibility to provide basic educational opportunities for all is fulfilled, as it has been
the case in most developed countries, emphasis is placed upon raising standards of
teaching, learning and achievement (Day, 2000b).
Like many developing countries, Pakistan with a literacy rate of about 40% and
a high drop out rate at the primary school level (see Chapter 2) is still struggling with
finding ways of providing basic education to the children. It is possible to relate
Pakistan’s education situation to Maslow’s (1973) hierarchy of needs. Using such an
analogy it becomes easy to understand that unless basic education for all (lower level
needs) is met, focused attention cannot be paid to the more complex issues of teacher
professionalism (higher level needs). Caught up in this situation are schools like the
case study schools, which have fulfilled their lower level needs to a great extent and are
now looking for opportunities to fulfil their higher order needs. These schools may be
few in number, but they have set trends, which can be good learning sources for the
other schools. Therefore, such trends have to be sustained and further developed.
Consistent with the Hargreaves’ (1997b) argument (see Chapter 2, section 2.2), school
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reformers need to go both wider (quantitative improvements) and deeper (qualitative
improvements) in their efforts to change schools.
8.4 Final Reflection
Bailey (2000) gives an example of some of the contemporary writers on the
subject of school restructuring, who suggest that in spite of repeated efforts to create
significant change, schools today look much like schools of yesterday (Bailey, 2000).
Government primary schools in Karachi have looked the same for many, many years. It
has only been during the last 10 years or so that efforts have been taken to restructure
and reform government primary schools.
These reform initiatives have come in the wake of the latest education policy,
which has set improving the quality of primary education as one of its top priorities (see
chapter 2). This research has shown a way forward in this direction. It has demonstrated
that, in order to help schools improve, it is important to develop teacher
professionalism. This research has indicated that the four case study schools have
developed as “light-house” schools by setting examples for the other schools. The main
reason for this is the development in teacher professionalism in these schools.
Principles 1 and 2 take the lead in opening the door for teacher professionalism
by indicating that much more can be done if researchers, policy makers and
administrators work with teachers rather than on them (Bailey, 2000). Principles 3 to 6
take the policy makers and the administrators inside the open doors of the schools and
show them how teacher professionalism can be developed. Principles 7 to 11 demand
that the door to teacher professionalism must be left opened for sustaining and further
developing teacher professionalism. Principle 12 considers a need for a future research
paradigm, which is informed by different research projects for a more comprehensive
understanding of teacher professionalism for further research.
Those who are too quick to label teachers as incapable and mere technicians will
benefit from the findings of this research. Contrary to the detached and noncommittal
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attitude with which the government primary school teachers are characterized in theory,
the teachers in this study have indicated that they are confident and capable; they can
articulate and communicate ideas; they can take decisions and undertake
responsibilities; they understand that it is important to collaborate and learn from one
another; and they are willing to undertake leadership roles if they have the
opportunities. This demands that policy makers provide the teachers with opportunities
to become active and reflective professionals. It is important to regard teachers as
change agents capable of generating knowledge and of making change happen, rather
than as passive recipient and users of knowledge (chapter 1).
Grundy (in Day, 2000a) presents a challenge to the school to play its part in
teacher development. She argues that responsibility for the quality of education is also a
matter for the school, not just for the individual teacher (Day, 2000a). In Pakistan, since
government primary schools are the responsibility of the State, I would argue that the
quality of education is also a matter of political will and commitment. Most of the ideals
of quality education highlighted in the seven education policies in chapter 2 (see
section, 2.3) have not yet been achieved. Initiatives such as devolution of authority
regarding education matters to the districts with a view to involving the community in
the education planning and implementation, and building public-private partnerships to
meet the development needs of the schools (see chapter 2, section 2.3), appear to
suggest that the present government in Pakistan is keen on resolving policy
implementation issues for school development. Active leadership by the government
can change not only the chances for children to enrol in school, but also public attitudes
towards education.
Policy makers and school leaders need to provide a range of continuing
professional learning and development opportunities which are appropriate to the
individual teacher as well as the school needs and which demonstrate respect for
individual teachers’ values and practices. The data presented in this research reflects
the work of Avalos (2002, p. 196) that, “the best is the enemy of the good.” This dictum
holds real in the context of educational reform and teacher professionalism in Karachi,
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Pakistan. There is a strong need to realize that each teacher has something good or
professional to offer and it is the responsibility of policy makers to bring different
professionals together and create a network of teacher professionalism.
The 12 principles provide a broad framework for bringing different
professionals together and further enhancing teacher professionalism for improving the
quality of education in government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan. These
principles have been developed in the light of the findings of this research and are also
informed by literature and other research done in the area of teacher development. If the
findings of this study can contribute in some ways to an improvement in teacher
professionalism and consequently to an improvement in the quality of teaching and
learning in government primary schools in Pakistan then the study will have been
worthwhile.
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APPENDIX A Survey Instrument
The Relationships between School Reforms and Teacher Professionalism in Government Primary Schools in Karachi, Pakistan
Centre for Professional Practice in Leadership, Education and Training
School of Professional Studies
Researcher’s Name: Meher Rizvi Contact Details: Tel: (92 21) 5852483 Email: m.rizvi@ student.qut.edu.au Principal Supervisor: Associate Professor Robert Elliott I would like to invite you to participate in my study of Pakistani Government Primary Schools. This study is part of my doctoral thesis at Queensland University of Technology in Australia. I am seeking to examine school level reforms and the relationship between these and teacher professionalism. An outcome of the research will be a framework for teacher professional development in these schools. Thus, all teachers in these schools may ultimately benefit from your participation. You will be asked to complete a survey questionnaire, which will assist the researcher to explore the impact of school reforms on teacher professionalism. Description of the survey instrument is given in Appendix B. You are not obliged to answer or respond to all questions in the survey. The survey should take 30 – 45 minutes to complete. Only aggregate data will be published and all information provided by you will be anonymous and treated as strictly confidential. All records will be maintained in a locked filing cabinet accessible only to the researcher. Participation in this study is voluntary and you are free to withdraw from the study at any time without comment or penalty. By completing this questionnaire you are deemed to have agreed to participate in this project. If you have any queries I can be contacted on 5852483. If you have any concerns about the ethical conduct of this research please contact the secretary, University Human Research Ethics Committee, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia. Tel: +61 7 3864 1056 Thank you Meher Rizvi
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DESCRIPTION OF THE SURVEY INSTRUMENT
This survey instrument consists of three sections A, B & C. Section A deals with ten demographic or factual questions concerning your sex, age, place of work, socio-economic status and personal and professional biographical data. Three kinds of items are used in the construction of section B of this questionnaire: closed items, open-ended items, and scale items. Questions I to IV are in the Likert scale form, question V is a closed item and VI and VII are open-ended questions. The four scales (I - IV) seek to investigate the four dimensions of professionalism in Government Primary Schools in Karachi, Pakistan. These four dimensions are: • Teacher Confidence • Teacher Practice • Teacher Collaboration • Teacher Leadership Questions V - VII seek to collect your views about any other important dimension of professionalism in Karachi, Pakistan. Section C consists of four questions and it seeks to investigate teacher development programmes in schools.
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PART - A BACKGROUND INFORMATION Please respond by placing a tick in the correct box. Code No. : ___________________ Date : ___________________
1. Sex Male Female 2. Age Less than 20 years 20 - 24 years 25 - 29 years 30 - 34 years 35 - 39 years 40 - 44 years 45 + 3. What your highest academic qualification? Matriculation Inter Art/Science/Commerce BA / BSc / B Com MA / MSc / M Com 4. What is your highest teacher qualification? M.Ed B.Ed C T PTC Any other If Any other, please specify _______________________________ _____________________________________________________
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5. What is your teaching experience? Less than 5 years 5 - 9 years 10 - 14 years 15 - 19 years 20 - 24 years More than 24 years 6. What is your role in the school? Head Master / Head Mistress Class teacher Subject Teacher In-charge Coordinator Master teacher 7. Size of the school No. of pupils in the school No. of teachers in the school Average class size 8. Is the school you are working in coeducational? for boys only? for girls only?
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Code No. : ________________ PART - B Teacher Professionalism I Teacher Confidence To what extent do the following statements indicate your beliefs about your own capabilities to attain certain goals or to perform particular actions? Please use the following scale to respond by placing a tick in the correct box. SA = Strongly Agree A = Agree U = Uncertain D = Disagree SD = Strongly Disagree STATEMENTS SA A U D SD1 When I try really hard, I can get through to most difficult students.
2 If a student in my class becomes noisy, I feel assured that I know some
techniques to redirect him / her quickly. 3 I am very limited in what I can achieve because a student's home
environment is a large influence on his / her achievement. 4 When a student gets a better grade than he / she typically gets, it is
usually because I found better ways of teaching. 5 I can get good results with students other teachers have found difficult.
6 I have the opportunity to learn by working daily with students. 7 I believe that each and every child can learn. 8 I try to make sure that every child in my class makes academic progress.
9 I feel that I can make a significant difference in the lives of my students.
10 I successfully carry out the responsibilities given to me by my
headmaster or headmistress. 11 I believe that my work can help to bring about change in my school.
12 I have enough training to deal with almost any learning problem.
13 I believe I have the ability to teach other teachers about innovative
teaching methods. 14 I feel I can influence other teachers in my school to work towards
improving teaching in their classes. 15 I sometimes feel it is a waste of time to try to do my best as a teacher.
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Code No. : ________________
II Teacher Practice To what extent do the following statements refer to your teaching practice? Please use the following scale to respond by placing a tick in the correct box. SA = Strongly Agree A = Agree U = Uncertain D = Disagree SD = Strongly Disagree STATEMENTS SA A U D SD1 I listen to the students and offer advice.
2 I maintain friendly relationship with my students.
3 I have a strong knowledge base in the areas in which I teach.
4 I normally use one teaching method in my class.
5 I use a variety of teaching methods in my class.
6 I use appropriate evaluation methods to determine if the students
have successfully met learning objectives. 7 I tell students specifically what is good about their work and what
needs improvement. 8 I involve students in the process of making class rules.
9 I am continually learning and seeking new ideas to improve my
teaching. 10 I evaluate my own performance to improve my teaching.
11 I implement in my class most of the new approaches to teaching I
learn at the teacher training programs. 12 I regard teaching as a moral responsibility.
13 I feel it is my duty to be accountable for my actions.
14 I take time out of my schedule to be always there for a student. 15 I consider it my responsibility to teach in ways which facilitate
students' learning.
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Code Number: _______________ III Teacher Collaboration To what extent do the following statements describe the ways in which you work with the other teachers in your school about teaching / learning issues? Please use the scale below to respond by ticking in the correct box. SA = Strongly Agree A = Agree U = Uncertain D = Disagree SD = Strongly Disagree STATEMENTS SA A U D SD 1 I have the opportunity to have discussions on teaching /
learning issues with the other teachers in my school. 2 I have the opportunity to teach other teachers about innovative
teaching techniques. 3 I invite other teachers to help teach in my class. 4 I receive meaningful feedback on my performance from the
other teachers. 5 I learn by observing other teachers' classes.
6 I struggle alone in my classroom with large number of students.
7 I have the opportunity to reflect on my teaching with the other
teachers. 8 I coordinate with the other teachers to plan effective lessons.
9 I plan instructional program with the other teachers.
10 I work in groups with the other teachers to plan school
activities. 11 Staff meetings are used for involving teachers in solving
problems. 12 Teachers discuss problems and solutions regarding individual
students and/or teaching subject matter during the staff meetings.
13 I learn a lot from the comments of my colleagues.
14 Experienced teachers help new teachers with problems that arise.
15 Staff meetings give teachers opportunities to learn new teaching / learning approaches.
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Code Number: _______________ IV Teacher Leadership To what extent do the following statements refer to the ways you are involved in decision-making and undertake leadership roles in your school? Please use the scale below to respond by ticking in the correct box. SA = Strongly Agree A = Agree U = Uncertain D = Disagree SD = Strongly Disagree STATEMENTS SA A U D SD 1 I feel in control of my classroom affairs.
2 I have the authority to choose the teaching method that I want
to use in my class. 3 I am involved in decision-making about the school curriculum.
4 I am involved in planning school improvement activities.
5 I share the responsibility of making many of the important
decisions that effect this school. 6 I am given the opportunities to undertake leadership roles
(head-teacher, subject co-ordinator, project in-charge etc.). 7 I am given the opportunity to monitor teacher training
programs. 8 I am given the responsibility of planning school activities.
9 I am given the responsibility of mentoring new teachers in my
school. 10 I can express my personal views at the staff meetings.
11 Power in this school system is distributed through out the
organisation. 12 Power in this school system is located at the top.
13 Decision making takes the form of a centralised or "top-down"
approach. 14 School administration invites advice from the teachers and
then makes decisions itself. 15 School administration makes most of the decisions
without involving the teachers.
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Code Number: _______________ V You have been answering questions about teacher confidence, teacher practice, teacher collaboration and teacher leadership as four dimensions of teacher professionalism in primary government schools. Do you think there are other dimensions of teacher professionalism in government primary schools in Karachi that are also important? Yes ……………………... No …………………. VI If yes, please list these dimensions of teacher professionalism and explain why they are important. _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________ VII From those you have listed above, list the 2 that you believe are the most important?
1. _______________________________________________________________ 2. __________________________________________________________________
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Code Number: _______________ PART - C TEACHER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMES I Have you participated in any teacher training or professional development activity in the last two years? Yes …………………… No ……………………. II If yes, please check against the ones you have attended over the last two years and also indicate the number of times you have attended each program.
Teacher Training / Professional Development Programs
Once a
month
Once in 3 mths
Once in 6 mths
Once a
year
Once in 2
years
1 School based workshops
2 School based meetings with colleagues
3 Workshops and other teacher training activities arranged by TRC.
4 Teacher Training courses by IED
5 Educational Conferences and Seminars
6 Any other, please specify III Are the teacher training courses linked to your needs? Always Most of the times Sometimes Never ______________ ______________ ______________ _____________ IV Are the teacher training courses linked to your school's needs?
Always Most of the times Sometimes Never ________ ___________ ________ ______ In the end I would like to thank you once again for filling this questionnaire and for sharing your thoughts with me. Thank you. Meher Rizvi
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APPENDIX B Sample Themes for Teachers’ Interviews NOTE: These sample themes only give examples of the way interviews were conducted. The interviews were much more elaborative and while the original structure remained the same, the flow and nature of questions differed from teacher to teacher.
FIRST INDIVIDUAL INTERVIEW – The purpose of the first interview with the teachers was to lead the discussion to the educational reforms, teachers’ involvement in the reforms, teachers’ work practices and the educators’ demographic data. Therefore, this session included themes such as: • The school’s story – current and previous procedures, experiences and condition. • Teachers’ experiences in the school – current and previous. • Examples of teachers’ work practices, which indicate levels of professionalism. • Teachers’ perceptions of their professionalism. • Teachers’ knowledge of and their involvements in the educational reforms.
SECOND INDIVIDUAL INTERVIEW – The second sitting with the teachers began by clarifying some of the previous sittings’ discussion and taking one point of the previous sitting to begin the conversation. For example: • Yesterday, you indicated that so and so person or organization helped you improve
your teaching, can you tell me how they helped you do that? The purpose of this sitting was to discover if there were any relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism. So it included themes such as: • Elaboration of the changes that the teachers’ indicated in their practices and also in
their school. • Teachers’ feelings about these changes; their helpfulness or otherwise in school
and also to the teachers as professionals. • Teachers’ stories about how they developed as professionals. • Educational reforms contribution in developing teachers’ professionalism.
THIRD INDIVIDUAL INTERVIEW – The purpose of the session was to ask teachers to elaborate upon issues that they raised during the first two interviews, to clarify some points and indicate future directions for sustaining and further enhancing their professionalism. For example: • From our discussion, I have gathered that TRC’s follow up work helped you
in………………Is that right or have I missed something. • You mentioned something about school support……………Can you please
elaborate what you meant? • You have informed me how your confidence was developed…..Am I right? • You have indicated that the reforms helped you in…………Please elaborate.
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APPENDIX C Teachers’ Consent Investigator Meher Rizvi Contact Details Tel: 5852483 e-mail: [email protected] Project Title The Relationships between School Reform and Teacher
Professionalism in Government Primary Schools in Karachi, Pakistan.
Purpose of the research As the title suggests the purpose of this research is to investigate the relationships between school reforms and teacher professionalism in Government Primary Schools in Karachi, Pakistan. In order to achieve this purpose it becomes important to analyze the relationships between reforms and teacher professionalism in the case study schools. Duration of the participant’s involvement Participation in the project will involve two interviews. There will be one focus group interview of about 1 hour and one individual interview of approximately 1-2 hours. I realize that, like all teachers, your time is limited and I will seek to disrupt you as little as possible. Participation in this project is voluntary and you may elect to withdraw at any time without comment or penalty. Possible material risks to participants Participation in this project does not involve any known risk to the participants. Benefits that may result from the research It is anticipated that the research will enable the researcher to construct a positive framework of professional development, which integrates the different dimensions of professionalism appropriate for teaching in government primary schools in Pakistan. The other benefits that may result are the identification of school reform that can actually develop teacher learning for improved teacher professionalism and to raise teachers’ consciousness about teaching as a profession.
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Confidentiality of the data Only the researcher will know the identities of the participants. All tapes and transcriptions of the interviews will be kept in a secure place, and only the researcher will have access to them. No identifying information about the participants will be used in any paper that may result from this research. Questions or concerns You are welcome to contact the researcher regarding any questions or concerns you may have about this project. Should you have any concerns relating the ethical conduct of this research please feel free to contact the Secretary, University Human Research Ethics Committee in Australia on +61 7 3864 1056. Feedback to participants Feedback will be provided to the participants through publications. Consent By signing below you indicate that you: 1. acknowledge that the nature of this research and your involvement in the project has
been explained to you; 2. understand that confidentiality will be maintained and no identifying information will be released; 3. understand that you may withdraw from this study at any time, without comment or
penalty; and 4. understand that your participation in the study is voluntary. Name ……………………………………………………… Signature …………………………………….. Date ………………….. I trust that you will be able to assist me in the study and I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you Meher Rizvi.
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APPENDIX D Reform Managers’ Interview – Sample Questions • Please share with me the main purpose or the main purposes of:
1. Primary Education Programme (PEP)? 2. Adopt A School Programme? 3. In-Service Teacher Training (INSET) Programme? 4. Book Group Administration?
• Why do you think it was felt important or necessary to initiate:
1. Adopt A School Programme? 2. Primary Education Programme (PEP)? 3. In-Service Teacher Training (INSET) Programme? 4. Book Group Administration?
• Do you think the main purpose / purposes of
1. PEP 2. INSET 3. Adopt a school programme 4. Book Group Administration
have been achieved? If YES, to what extent? If NO, why not? • Please tell me briefly how PEP or INSET or Adopt a School Progarmme or Book
Group Programme was planned? Who was involved in its planning? What was the teachers’ role at the planning stage?
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APPENDIX E Member Check of the Tentative Interpretation with the Teachers and the Principals – Sample Statements
This section presents sample statements of tentative interpretations, which were member checked with the teachers during the focus group interview. Please note that the statements contained in this section are only an example of a sample chosen randomly from many statements. They do not represent all the interpretations. The Alif School - Member Check of Tentative Interpretations
Statements Jeem Chay Hay Khay HM • The teachers and the school have changed a lot after the
TRC training. • The teachers now teach with the help of different teaching
methods. • TRC involved teachers and motivated them to implement
different teaching methods. 1. Monitored school development and teachers’ work and provided feedback. 2. The feedback continued for a long period of 3 years. 3. In addition to lecturing, TRC also demonstrated new teaching methods.
• The teachers are more confident now than they were before because of TRC. 1. Teachers were taken outside their school – received exposure and opportunities to meet with the other people. 2. Teachers were provided with the opportunities to prepare different lessons during the workshop and present them in front of the other teachers. 3. All the teachers were provided with the opportunities to speak and share views. 4. TRC praised and encouraged teachers.
• TRC team members’ attitude was very good with teachers. 1. Teachers were praised and encouraged extensively for even the smallest accomplishments.
• TRC methods are very beneficial for the children, but they require more time. So now you formally plan two lessons in a week in your diaries using these methods, & you do as many activities with the children as you can.
• TRC team taught teachers skills of working together by demonstrating skills of collaboration and teaching 1. Ways of preparing agendas and holding meetings.
2. Panning and preparing yearly and monthly schemes to organize curriculum together.
Note: Approximately 5 similar sheets for each case study school were prepared. Teachers’ responses were recorded and the columns were checked to ensure that all the teachers had responded. Teachers were asked to provide further explanation for some statements to clarify their interpretations.
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APPENDIX F An Example of Creating Tree Nodes to Organize Data Using NVivo
About Reforms (5)
What Reforms (5 2)
Examples (5 2 1) Usefulness of the training (5 2 2)
About Teacher Confidence (7)
Class Teaching Confidence (7 1)
What developed it (7 1 1)
SPEDP’s Contribution (7 2)
Examples re class teaching (7 2 1)
How confident (7 3)
Other opportunities (7 4)
Accomplishing difficult class tasks (7 5)
Bringing change in children (7 6)
Examples re class change (7 6 1)
Teaching other teachers (7 7)
Change in school (7 8)
Beyond class confidence (7 9)
Why reforms (5 1)
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APPENDIX G Letter of Permission
January, 2001 To Whom It May Concern: Subject: Permission to Conduct Research in Government Primary Schools in Karachi, Pakistan. I am a PhD student in Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia. I am writing to seek your permission to conduct research in the government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan. I have identified the following four schools for my case study research. 1. Alif Government Girls Primary School, Karachi. 2. Bay Government Girls Primary School, Karachi. 3. Pay Government Girls Primary School, Karachi. 4. Tay Government Girls Primary School, Karachi. I will be investigating the impact of school reform on teacher professionalism in the above mentioned schools. I will be commencing my research project in August 2001. This research project is estimated to be completed by April or May 2002. During this period of nine or ten months, I plan to visit all the selected schools. It is estimated that I will need to remain in each school for three to four weeks for the purposes of research. I will use this three to four weeks’ period in each school to conduct teachers’ and principals’ interviews, to take field notes and also to conduct questionnaire survey. Please be assured that the school authorities will be informed of the exact date of my visits prior to my visiting the schools. I also assure you that the participants’ anonymity and confidentiality will be maintained at all costs. All questionnaires, tapes, transparencies and field notes will be kept in a secure place and only I will have access to them. No identifying information about the participants will be used in any paper that may result from this research. I need your permission and cooperation to conduct this research in the identified four schools. I request you to sign below so that I can secure official and ethical clearance to conduct my research during the period August 2001 to May 2002.
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Consent By signing below you indicate that you: 1. understand that confidentiality will be maintained and no identifying information will
be released; and 2. give me permission to conduct research in the identified government primary schools
in Karachi. Name: ………………………………………………………… Designation: ………………………………………………………… Signature: ………………………………………………………… Date: ………………………………………………………… I trust that you will assist me in this study. Thank you, Yours sincerely, Meher Rizvi. PhD Student, Centre for Professional Practice in Education and Training, School of Professional Studies, Faculty of Education, Victoria Park Rd, Kelvin Grove, QLD 4059, Australia. Tel: 5852483 e-mail: [email protected]
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