10. Teacher Education Research
Paper
Curricular Autonomy, Work Engagement and Teacher Well-being: A Systematic Review
Elsa Estrela1, Felisberto Kiluange1, Paula Paulino2, Sónia Vladimira3, Rosa Serradas Duarte1, Louise Lima1
1Lusofona University, CeiED, Portugal; 2Lusofona University, Hei-Lab, Portugal; 3Lusofona University, CIDEFES, Portugal
Presenting Author: Estrela, Elsa;
Kiluange, Felisberto
Scientific research has pointed to the importance of understanding the relation between curricular autonomy, work engagement and teachers’ well-being. To our knowledge few efforts have been made from a theoretical framework, and no systematic evidence has been provided regarding the interrelation between these three concepts. This study concerns an initial phase of a larger project entitled “Times of change and changing times: a study of the relationships between curricular autonomy and teacher engagement and well-being of teachers” which aims to: understand the relationship between the development of autonomy policies and curricular flexibility in educational contexts and the professional involvement and well-being of teachers to analyse the ways in which autonomy and curricular flexibility policies have been received, interpreted, appropriated and put into practice by teachers. The aim of this study is to collect and analyse scientific articles, identify gaps in the literature, and provide research trends and suggestions for future studies.The starting question for this study was: What is the relationship among curricular autonomy, professional involvement and teacher well-being between 2015 and 2023? This time period was chosen given the start of legislation on curricular autonomy in Portugal, begun in 2016, following the Pilot Projects for Pedagogical Innovation (PPIP), which preceded a modification of the curriculum in Decree-Law 55/2018.
Curriculum management is recognised as a complex and dynamic process that takes place at various levels, as stated by Roldão and Almeida (2018), from the macro level (decisions made by the supervisory body regarding common learning at national level), the meso level, which includes the institutional context (school and its educational and curricular projects) and the group level (through the projects that each educational team draws up for a class) to the micro level (concerning each teacher, on a daily basis in the classroom). On the other hand, during the period in which this study is being conducted, the world has also come up against a change in times: the times of digitalisation, distance learning and the pandemic.
In these changing times, schools and teachers have also introduced new terms, concepts, working times and spaces to their professional work, taking into account the priority of addressing the increasing inequalities between pupils. As a result of new problems and ongoing needs, the performance of the teaching role is likely to promote both burnout and professional engagement. In line with more recent approaches to positive psychology, teacher well-being is a growing field of study, with a steady increase in literature in recent years (Dreer, 2023; McCallum, 2021; Salmela-Aro, Hietajärvi, & Lonka, 2019). Subjective well-being, as described by Keyes (2002), can be seen as a measure of mental health, made up of three dimensions: emotional, social and psychological.
The benefits of well-being seem to go beyond psychological advantages for individuals and employee retention for institutions, as evidenced by studies in different organisations. well-being fosters the development and maintenance of positive relationships between teachers and students, as well as the establishment of a supportive learning climate and learning (Barroso et.al. 2019). On the other hand, work engagement is a relatively new concept when applied to teachers, in regard to work expectations and commitment to their performance. Some authors define work engagement as an enthusiastic state of involvement of the individual in crucial and personal activities, which is diametrically opposed to burnout (Dreer, 2023).
Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources UsedIn order to accomplish the stated goals and respond to the initial question, a systematic review of the literature is being conducted and qualitatively analysed using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) method, which is divided into three phases: identification, screening, and inclusion of studies (Page et al., 2021; Vilelas, 2020; Shamseer et al., 2015).The search and analysis are ongoing. For the evidence-gathering process we will use the data extraction tool Covidence.
The inclusion criteria defined are scientific articles, published between January 2015 and December 2023, in English, Portuguese, Spanish and French retrieved from the Portuguese Open Access Databases (RCAAP), Scientific Electronic Library Online (SciELO), ScienceDirect and Scopus, considering the subjects Social Sciences, Psychology, Decision Sciences, Arts and Humanities. The exclusion criteria selected are theses, dissertations, book chapters and communications at conferences, protocols, duplicate documents, studies with unavailable full texts or in languages other than those selected for inclusion, or with a different focus.
As Costa and Rouco (2023) point out, the review process will follow a strict protocol per database, in order to avoid bias in the data collection process and, consequently, in the process of analysing and discussing the data. Thus, the review process will be conducted by two reviewers, under the supervision of other project members, who will resolve any conflicts that might emerge.
Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or FindingsConsidering that systematic review uses rigorous and explicit procedures to identify, select, and critically evaluate relevant research, it is expected to present a description of the studies screened using a flowchart using the PRISMA method, as well as a table of the studies selected for the review.
We expect that this research can help identify different approaches to curricular autonomy, work engagement and teacher well-being, in order to find some correlations and summarise a theoretical frame of reference that will be discussed. Thus, this systematic review aims to contribute to a more in-depth understanding of the relation between concepts that have been identified as emerging issues in educational processes. It also attempts to provide a broader view of the authors' different perspectives on the phenomena under study, bearing in mind that the relation between curricular autonomy, teachers' work engagement and well-being may be enhanced by the diversity of school contexts.
In regards to reviewing the authors' methodological strategies, including study design, sample characteristics, measures, and data analysis, we aim to synthesise a methodological framework. Furthermore, this will allow us to identify gaps in the literature that might guide the directions for future studies, which can be particularly important given the current challenges that new technologies pose to the teaching profession, along with the recent introduction of legislation on curricular autonomy in Portugal.
ReferencesBarroso, I. M. Monteiro, M. J., Rodrigues, V., Antunes, M. C., Almeida, C. M., Lameirão, J.R., & da Conceição Rainho, M. (2019). Estilos de vida e bem-estar em Professores. Motricidade, 15(4), 21-25.
Costa, F.K.F. da and Rouco, J.C.D. (2023) ‘Mapping Military Leadership Competencies: A Systematic Literature Review’, European Conference on Management Leadership and Governance, 19(1), pp. 583–592. https://doi.org/10.34190/ecmlg.19.1.1966
Decreto Lei nº 54/2018. Diário da República (2018). https://data.dre.pt/eli/dec-lei/54/2018/07/06/p/dre/pt/html
Decreto Lei nº 55/2018. Diário da República (2018). https://data.dre.pt/eli/dec-lei/55/2018/07/06/p/dre/pt/html
Dreer, B. (2023) On the outcomes of teacher wellbeing: a systematic review of research. Front. Psychol. 14:1205179. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1205179
Keyes, C. L. M. (2002). The mental health continuum: From languishing to flourishing in life. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 43(2), 207–222. https://doi.org/10.2307/3090197
McCallum, F. (2021). Teacher and Staff Wellbeing: Understanding the Experiences of School Staff. In: Kern, M.L., Wehmeyer, M.L. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Positive Education. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64537-3_28
Page, M.J. et al. (2021) ‘The PRISMA 2020 statement: an updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews’, BMJ, p. n71. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n71
Roldão, M. D. C., & Almeida, S. (2018). Gestão curricular: Para a autonomia das escolas e professores. Direção-Geral da Educação - Ministério da Educação.
Salmela-Aro, K., Hietajärvi, L., & Lonka, K. (2019). Work burnout and engagement profiles among teachers. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, Article 2254. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02254
Shamseer, L. et al. (2015) ‘Preferred reporting items for systematic review and meta-analysis protocols (PRISMA-P) 2015: elaboration and explanation’, BMJ, 349, p. g7647. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.g7647
Vilelas, J. (2020) Investigação: o processo de construção do conhecimento. 3a Ed. Edições Sílabo.
10. Teacher Education Research
Paper
The Relationship between Curriculum Autonomy, Work Engagement and Teacher Well-Being – in Changing Times
Elsa Estrela1, Rosa Serradas Duarte1, Louise Lima1, Sónia Vladimira2, Paula Paulino3, Felisberto Costa1
1Lusofona University, CeiED, Portugal; 2Lusofona University, CIDEFES, Portugal; 3Lusofona University, Hei-Lab, Portugal
Presenting Author: Estrela, Elsa;
Serradas Duarte, Rosa
The changes in education systems brought about, among other reasons, by digitalization and the societal transformations, have been imposed in all countries.
In 2016, in the form of "pilot projects", Portugal began to make curricular and organizational changes aimed at encouraging school autonomy to better respond to different audiences in different contexts. The recent legislative changes have highlighted, especially through the evaluative study of this policy (Cosme, Ferreira, Lima & Barros, 2021), the need to "monitor, as systematically as possible, some of the critical points of a process as demanding as this one" (p.106).
This communication addresses the relationship between the development of autonomy and curricular flexibility policies and the professional engagement and well-being of teachers in educational contexts. The research underpinning this paper is part of a cross-cutting, interdisciplinary, collaborative project that brings together researchers from different areas - education, sociology, and psychology - and different generations, as well as teachers from schools with different pedagogical-didactic situations, with an emphasis on reflection and direct action. The concepts involved in this project have been studied by themselves, but never all together by the same instrument. Therefore this approach allows an analysis of the different levels of involvement applied in a specific professional situation.
This study regards the period from 2016 to 2023, considering that the world has also faced a change in times: the time of digital, the remote teaching, and the pandemic. In these new times, it is also schools and teachers who have introduced new terms, concepts, times, and workspaces to their professionalism, taking into account the priority of combating the growing inequalities between students. The complex nature of teachers' work is a challenge to teacher well-being and teacher burnout has been recognized as a problem worldwide (Salmela-Aro, Hietajärvi, & Lonka, 2019).
The benefits of well-being seem to go beyond psychological advantages for individuals and employee retention for institutions, as evidenced by studies in different organizations. These are diverse not only because well-being favors the development and maintenance of relationships between teachers and students, but also because it stimulates the establishment of a positive learning climate and teacher well-being, which, in the words of Jennings and Greenberg (2009), plays a central role in both the school environment and learning.
According to the literature, well-being influences the quality of the teacher-student relationship, classroom management and the effective application of social-emotional education (Carvalho et al., 2021). In addition, teacher well-being is linked to a variety of desirable elements and outcomes, including teacher retention, positive teacher-student interactions, and student performance (Dreer, 2023).
Professional engagement is a relatively new concept when applied to teachers, in terms of work expectations and commitment to tasks. Some authors define professional engagement as an enthusiastic state of involvement of the individual in crucial and personal activities, which is diametrically opposed to burnout.
Understanding the complex dynamics between curricular autonomy, teacher well-being and teaching engagement will help to characterize educational policies within the scope of Curricular Autonomy and Flexibility in Portugal, in the period 2016 - 2023; to identify professional engagement and well-being of teachers in the context of curricular autonomy and flexibility policies; and to prepare a comparative analysis to be applied in the future in the various intervention contexts.
Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources UsedBased on the question "What links exist between the development of autonomy and curricular flexibility policies and the work engagement and well-being of teachers in educational contexts?", this study is part of a mixed-method investigation (quantitative and qualitative) and has several dimensions (curricular autonomy, professional engagement and teachers’ well-being). The combination of quantitative and qualitative approaches makes it possible to broaden and deepen the results, which, through the triangulation of techniques, provides diversified readings and a multiplication of analysis perspectives (Dal-Farra & Lopes, 2013).
Since the aim is to study the relationship between the proposals for curricular autonomy, the engagement of teachers in this process, which began in 2016, and teachers’ well-being, the most appropriate methodological approach will be developed in two phases in order to allow triangulation between theory and practice.
Although the study to be developed includes other phases, namely intensive studies in the form of multiple case studies, in this communication we will only focus on the preliminary phase of document analysis and the development of the necessary instruments for the extensive study that the research entails, presenting its first results, which are part of phase 0 and phase 1.
Phase 0 - Document analysis - focuses on:
i) legislation framing the educational/curriculum policies of the years 2016-2023
ii) “gray literature” and other reports produced in this period on the object of analysis
Phase 1 - carrying out an extensive study - using a questionnaire that makes use of previously defined and validated scales - The Mental Health Continuum-Short Form (MHC-SF; Keyes, 2006; Portuguese version by Matos et al, 2010); The Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, UWES-S (Schaufeli et al., 2002; Portuguese version by Sinval et al., 2018); adapted from Estudo Avaliativo da Autonomia e Flexibilidade Curriular (Cosme, Ferreira, Lima & Barros, 2021). This questionnaire is focused on three dimensions, namely:
i) Teachers' perceptions of autonomy and curricular flexibility
ii) Subjective well-being
iii) Teachers' professional engagement
The Ecological Approach to Teacher Agency developed by Priestley et al. (2015) will be considered, as the authors propose the analysis of teacher agency through the interactions that occur between three domains that promote the realization of agency:
i) iterational (related to the teacher's beliefs and convictions and their personal and professional life experience);
ii) practical-evaluative (related to cultural, structural and material factors);
iii) projective (what teachers imagine as the future in the short and long term).
Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or FindingsThe expected outcomes are:
a) to understand whether there is a direct relationship between curricular autonomy, which the system aims for, and teachers’ well-being.
b) to further analyze the extent to which curricular autonomy develops feelings and actions of greater engagement and accountability in decision-making about the curriculum and, therefore, the school.
c) to reflect on whether teachers' decision-making autonomy in many aspects of curriculum management is experienced as an extra-responsibility stress factor or used for their professional development.
d) to identify the presence of teacher agency in its various domains.
ReferencesCarvalho, J. S., Oliveira, S., Roberto, M. S., Gonçalves, C., Bárbara, J. M., de Castro, A. F., Pereira, R., Franco, M., Cadima, J., Leal, T., Lemos, M. S., & Marques-Pinto, A. (2021). Effects of a mindfulness-based intervention for teachers: A study on teacher and student outcomes. Mindfulness, 12(7), 1719–1732. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-021-01635-3
Cosme, A., Ferreira, D., Lima, L. & Barros, M. (2021). Avaliação externa da autonomia e flexibilidade curricular. Faculdade de Psicologia e de Ciências da Educação da Universidade do Porto.
Dal-Farra, R. A., & Lopes, P. T. C. (2014). Métodos mistos de pesquisa em educação: pressupostos teóricos. Nuances: Estudos Sobre Educação, 24(3), 67–80. https://doi.org/10.14572/nuances.v24i3.2698
Dreer, B. (2023) On the outcomes of teacher wellbeing: a systematic review of research. Front. Psychol. 14:1205179. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1205179
Jennings, P. A., & Greenberg, M. (2009). The prosocial classroom: Teacher social and emotional competence in relation to child and classroom outcomes. Review of Educational Research, 79(1), 491-525. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654308325693
Keyes, C. L. M. (2002). The mental health continuum: From languishing to flourishing in life. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 43(2), 207–222. https://doi.org/10.2307/3090197
Priestley, M., Biesta, G., & Robinson, S. (2015). Teacher Agency - An Ecological Approach (1o). Bloomsbury. https://archive.org/details/teacheragencyecoOOOOprie
Salmela-Aro, K., Hietajärvi, L., & Lonka, K. (2019). Work burnout and engagement profiles among teachers. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, Article 2254. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02254
Schaufeli, W.B. (2017). General Engagement: Conceptualization and Measurement with the Utrecht General Engagement Scale (UGES). J well-being assess 1, 9–24. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41543-017-0001-x
Schaufeli, W. B., Salanova, M., González-Romá, V., and Bakker, A. B. (2002). The measurement of engagement and burnout: a two sample confirmatory factor analytic approach. J. Vocat. Behav. 3, 71–92. doi: 10.1023/A:1015630930326
10. Teacher Education Research
Paper
Has the Explicit Teaching of Emotions a Place in the Secondary School Curriculum?
Eleni Dimitrellou, George Koutsouris, Alison Pearson
University of Exeter, United Kingdom
Presenting Author: Dimitrellou, Eleni;
Koutsouris, George
Introduction: The benefit of socio-emotional learning (SEL) to student behaviour and academic attainment is widely known. Teachers are nowadays expected to deliver packaged programmes on socioemotional learning (SEL) interventions that they find hard to agree, seeing them be beyond the remit of their responsibilities and completely alienated from their subject knowledge.
Research Questions:
- Is there space for SEL-oriented teaching in PE lessons?
- To what extent is LS an effective approach to integrate SEL in the national subject of PE?
Methodology, Methods, Research Instruments or Sources UsedMethod: This paper draws on the findings of a novel pilot project, the first of its kind, that employs a lesson study (LS) approach to actively involve teacher trainees in curriculum development and explicitly introduce socioemotional-oriented teaching in the context of physical education (PE). LS is a collaborative professional development approach for teachers to assess, evaluate and plan a sequence of lessons with a specific focus. The project was conducted in partnership with one mainstream secondary school in the Southwest of England for a period of two months during the summer term 2021-2022. Two teacher trainees and one qualified PE teacher agreed to design, evaluate and plan a sequence of 4 research lessons focusing on integrating SEL instruction in PE. Data collection involved 4 focus groups and 6 in dept evaluation interviews.
Conclusions, Expected Outcomes or FindingsResults: Our findings provide insights into the tensions, challenges and significance of introducing explicitly socioemotional-oriented teaching in the national secondary curriculum highlighting the effectiveness of a lesson study approach in empowering teachers’ involvement in curriculum development.
Conclusion: Evidence suggests that teacher trainees are motivated to teach SEL learning when it is integrated in their subject topic. Practical implications for teacher training and professional development are discussed.
ReferencesDurlak J, Weissberg R, Dymnicki A, Taylor R, Schellinger K. (2011).The impact of enhancing students’ social and emotional learning: a meta-analysis of school-based universal interventions. Child Dev, 82(1), 405–432.
Gómez, E. S., Núñez, M. J. S., Gómez, A. I. P., & Trapero, N. P. (2015). Lesson study and the development of teacher’s competences: From practical knowledge to practical thinking. International Journal for Lesson and Learning Studies, 4(3), 209-223.
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