Short interims, long impact? A follow-up study on early career teachers’ induction

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Short interims, long impact? A follow-up study on early career teachers’ induction

S. Marent, A. Deketelaere, K. Jokikokko, R. Vanderlinde & G. Kelchtermans

Summary

Early career teachers’ (ECTs) socialization into the profession involves complex processes of negotiation in the dynamic web of relationships in and around the school. To focus on the actual meaning and role of the professional relationships in ECTs’ induction process as it develops over time, we used a follow-up design, collecting data from ECTs at four different moments during their first year in the job. Our findings show the micro-political interplay of different interests. Furthermore, they demonstrate how the contract conditions (formal job characteristics) get loaded with meaning and have a pervasive impact on teachers’ relationships and their developing self-understanding.

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