Chapter 4: Teacher Perspectives and Experiences

Professional Development and Standards

Morrison et al. (2010) have outlined characteristics of adult learners that influence one’s success in various environments. These characteristics—which include prior academic achievement and knowledge, age and maturity, attitudes and motivation, professional expectations and goals, time management, and previous workplace experiences—create differences in one’s professional understandings as well as physiological, social, and emotional responses. In addition, educators follow the code of ethics and professional standards in early learning while also navigating the distinct requirements of their specific workplace.

Educators are taught that professional codes of ethics are useful tools for considering one’s actions and impact. The National Education Association (NAE) developed a governance document titled Code of Ethics for Educators (2020). This document acknowledges the importance of the role of the educator, which also includes support staff. It further outlines that educators accept responsibility to adhere to the highest ethical standards. In addition, specific guidance is given related to how we effectively demonstrate commitment to the student and commitment to the profession (NAE, 2020). The National Association for Education of Young Children (NAEYC) also has a Code of Ethical Conduct, which is based on NAEYC core values and is designed to help educators inform their practices. The NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct (2011) includes principles and ideas covering ethical responsibilities to four groups: (1) children, (2) families, (3) colleagues, and (4) community and society.

Table 4.3 presents additional professional standards that may influence teachers’ practices in early childhood education. These position statements help to guide educators. Although the notion of standards can be debatable depending on purpose or context, Bourke, Ryan, and Ould (2018) make the distinction that standards that are developed from within the profession and focused on developmental growth typically are welcomed by teachers. These structures help enhance professional practices and development of teacher identity.

Teacher Roles, Motivations, and Dispositions

Kaplan, Garner, and Semo (2015) conceptualize teacher role identity as interdependent components that underlie teacher action. The four ideas in their model acknowledge the importance of a teachers’ beliefs about teaching, their purposes and goals, self-perceptions and self-definitions, and perceived action possibilities. These ideas inform how teachers facilitate learning opportunities for children. These factors are nested in one’s culture and social context, one’s personality or disposition, and one’s content domain, such as curricular area. These overlapping possibilities can change over time and can shift from task to task. For example, a teacher might define themselves as skilled at teaching math but uneasy about teaching reading; or they may be good at teaching geometric shapes but less comfortable teaching subtraction. Figure 4.3 is adapted from Kaplan’s model of Teacher Role-Identity and Motivation as a Dynamic System (2015). Educators’ pedagogical beliefs, instructional goals, agency, and self-efficacy all influence how they facilitate and respond to learners.

Long Description for Figure 4.3

Action is indicated in the center. The top left quadrant presents beliefs about teaching and learning by asking what causes success or failure, what influences intelligence, how knowledge is acquired, and how skills are mastered. The top right quadrant defines purpose and goals by exploring what the teacher’s goals are, such as life, career, content, or social, and how goal orientation is defined. The bottom left quadrant explores perceived action possibilities by questioning what the teacher and the child can do. The bottom right quadrant discusses self-definition and perception, focusing on whether a person believes they can complete tasks or reach goals and identifying who they are and who they want to be.

A teacher might be more focused on different areas at different times or in different ways. For example, an educator might be more focused on action possibilities as they grapple with a new curricular unit, while also concentrating on purposes and goals for teaching as well as preparing for parent–teacher conferences. A teacher who has recently completed antibias training might be contemplating self-perceptions and definitions. A teacher moving to a different age-group might be adjusting beliefs about teaching and how children learn best. A teacher might feel differently about their teaching on a day when they receive praise or criticism from a peer or supervisor.

Finally, an educator may change their focus as they become more experienced, contemplating their beliefs about how best to guide behavior or instruction. Darling-Hammond and Bransford (2005) characterize teachers’ usage of knowledge and capacity for innovation as falling along a continuum of adaptive expertise. Expertise grows over time as teachers gain experience and engage in professional development. Therefore, an educators’ development is not linear but rather is reciprocal and fluid, with each area of growth interacting with the other. Aside from professional development and self-reflection, relationships are critical in developing role identity as teachers. As we grow and interact in our relationships and experiences, our perceptions of our teaching strategies and the strategies others use also change.

In the previous vignette, the individual differences in teaching approaches are clear. To meet these teachers in person, you might notice that they have different temperaments, personalities, and teaching approaches. Ms. Singh is always in motion. She laughs quickly and easily and her bubbly kindness emanates from her. Ms. Singh believes strongly that allowing the children to choose their seats each day provides a crucial element of choice for her students and prevents grudges from festering as the children can decide to take breaks from each other. She also believes that it fosters closeness among the classroom as children move around frequently.

Ms. Walsh presents with a very different personality from Ms. Singh. She is serene and quiet. She smiles all the time and emanates warmth and encouragement. The children are responsive to her and she demonstrates affection for them openly and consistently, but quietly. Ms. Singh and Ms. Walsh have tremendous mutual respect for one another and have worked together a long time. This vignette highlights that teachers will embrace different approaches to life and teaching.

Contexts for Teaching

Across early education contexts, teachers navigate different learning environments. Each school or program has its distinct structures and routines that affect what teachers expect from their students and what administrators, families, or children expect from teachers. These differences are juxtaposed against the teacher’s prior experiences and expectations. For example, some early learning settings leverage play-based outdoor learning environments. In these programs, children wear warm clothes on cold days and raincoats on wet days. Managing mittens and negotiating wet weather is part of the regular routine. Some early learning programs have water features in the summer, resulting in full-body water play every day in the hot weather. In this instance, teachers will be negotiating wet clothes and dry clothes. Some schools are completely green and do not allow any plastic in the setting. Some schools serve food prepared in a central kitchen or cafeteria, or offer free breakfast and lunch. Every learning community has a distinct climate and culture. Any and all of these scenarios create different opportunities and routines for how young children and educators move through the day. Additionally, even when the routines are established, the level of stress or ease that a particular teacher experiences could vary widely.

Other differences exist across various learning environments. The size of the school and district can affect practices, expectations, and resources. Additionally, the composition of a school community makes a difference. If there is a particularly active parent–teacher association, it could be associated with high levels of volunteerism and material resources. These resources can provide helpful structures but also may create additional levels of responsibility for a teacher. For example, if additional supplies come from parents, then a teacher might not have to purchase them, but they might also be expected to implement systems to track materials. If parents are eager to volunteer and the school has a culture of parental presence in the classroom, this help can provide support, but only if a teacher knows how to schedule and collaborate with the parent volunteers so that it is beneficial for all parties.

Some schools have a strong culture of collaboration among grade levels or collaboration with multiage educators, such as in professional learning communities across ages and grades. These practices can combat isolation, but can feel restrictive if a teacher prefers planning alone or if a group experiences friction. The perceived autonomy of the teacher is impactful and varies by administrative practice and overall school climate.

In this vignette, Piney Hill Elementary differed from Victoria’s previous experiences at schools where resources of time, energy, and material goods were more scarce across the community. The availability of markers or crayons may seem like a small difference, but it was emblematic of a number of ways in which Victoria adjusted her classroom practices. Aside from the availability of specific items, Victoria discovered that this affected her routines. In this community, which had plentiful backup supplies, children did not need to meticulously keep track of their own items. They did bring supplies to school, but these could be placed in a holder in the center of the table groups for communal use. There was less lag time waiting for specific items, because backup materials were usually available at another table in the classroom.

In addition to her educational training and experience, Victoria drew on her own childhood experiences. Victoria was aware that her expectations of how material goods should be treated felt personal. As a child, Victoria loved reading as a form of pleasure. Victoria’s family did not have money to purchase books, but she loved checking out books from the library. If a child was careless with the books in the classroom library, Victoria noticed that she could not shake it off as easily as her team teacher who would frequently replace the lost or damaged materials with resources from the storage closet. Victoria’s behavioral expectations are connected to her beliefs about learning, including how resources are treated. This expectation is also connected to Victoria’s notions of fairness and cooperation—ideals she wants to nurture within her learning community. These beliefs are aspects of deep culture.

4.3 Teacher Well-Being

The World Health Organization (n.d.) defines well-being as encompassing “the quality of life and the ability of people and societies to contribute to the world with a sense of meaning and purpose” (para. 1). Educator well-being is often defined by considering either negative outcomes, such as stress, burnout, and anxiety, or potential health impacts, such as lack of sleep. It is also examined by reviewing positive outcomes, such as satisfaction, positive feelings, self-efficacy, job satisfaction and engagement, and the meaning teachers ascribe to their work (Fatahi & Warner-Griffin, 2024). Finally, intention to leave the teaching field is sometimes used as an indicator of teacher well-being (Doan, Steiner, & Pandey, 2024). As a result of the need for wider, systemic attention to be given to educator well-being, the U.S. Department of Education has made this a priority issue, with additional funding, training, and other resources provided through the National Center on Safe Supportive Learning Environments in 2021 (U.S. Department of Education, n.d).

Teacher well-being has a significant impact on children. When educators report higher levels of well-being, they are able to interact with children in emotionally supportive ways (Braun et al., 2019) and enhance children’s academic achievement, social, and emotional development (Ashdown & Bernard, 2012; Madigan & Kim 2021). Teacher well-being is also impactful in indirect ways. For example, increased burnout may cause teachers to leave the field (Fatahi & Warner-Griffin, 2024), and teacher turnover is associated with poorer academic outcomes for learners (Sorensen & Ladd, 2020). In addition to academics, there are also implications for the social and emotional outcomes for children in terms of relationships, climate, and classroom management (Jennings & Greenberg, 2009; Manian, Belfield, & Berger, 2021). Teachers serve as models for children regarding their social and emotional expressions. How a teacher responds when experiencing stressful situations also influences how well they are able to engage children.

School and system climate affect the sense of community, mastery, and support a teacher feels. Following a systematic review on well-being, Acton and Glasgow (2015) suggest that schools should focus on “valuing emotional work, collegiality and collaboration, and establishing a workplace climate that respects teachers’ professional decisions and encourages a healthy work-life balance” (p. 110). Teachers are not independent agents; they work within school and community systems that influence their work with children and families. Wraparound supports available across systems are vital contributors to creating positive environments for educators, children, and families (Manian & Sorenson, 2024). When services and supports include tiers of intervention that are responsive to the teacher, child, and family, positive change occurs within the school climate (Manian, Belfield, & Berger, 2021). These holistic and collaborative approaches directly and indirectly shape teachers’ responsibilities and possibilities in the classroom. Therefore, the structures that foster a healthy climate influence not only educator well-being but also child well-being, and these are dynamic and connected factors.

Human ecological theory (introduced in Chapter 2) can be used to consider how various factors influence a teacher’s work and well-being, and how these factors become cyclical. This system exerts pressure inward, affecting communities, learning settings, classrooms, and individuals. It is sometimes challenging to simultaneously meet the needs of large groups of young children who have varying needs and degrees of independence. This places a natural toll on social and emotional capacity, and teachers react according to their psychological load (Buettner, 2016). The relationships that form between students and teachers are also associated with teacher well-being and self-efficacy (Gagnon et al., 2018; Spilt, Koomen, & Thijs, 2011). Relationships with students can mitigate or contribute to the stress teachers experience (Abidin, Greene, & Konold, 2004; Spilt, Koomen, & Thijs, 2011). This circle ultimately connects back to student well-being: Teachers who report higher levels of stress tend to provide less emotional support to students (Sandilos et al., 2018).