‘Teacher Educators in Physical Education: a Key to Understanding Norwegian Physical Education’s Cultures, Values and Ideologies - Kjersti Mordal Moen

Kjersti Mordal Moen

Fiona Jane Dowling, NIH (Hovedveileder)

2006-2010. Datainnsamling

Bakgrunn
National and international researchers highlight the shortage of knowledge about socialization on Teacher Educators in general and Physical Education Teacher Educators in special. The research on teacher socialization has tended to focus upon teacher students rather then their educators.

Mål
The main aim of this project is to gain knowledge about the socialization of physical education teacher educators, about their “practical theories”, value systems and ideologies. The cultures within Physical Education Teacher Educations (PETE) will also be described.

The project will focus upon how teacher education institutions and their cultures influence the socialization of teacher educators, what types of PE teacher education they strive to give their students and to what degree teacher educators need to conform to their institutional norms? The project aims to illuminate the taken-for-granted structures in PETE, and at the same time gain insights into explicit ideologies which characterize Norwegian PETE.

Teori
This project builds upon the notion that the socialization of teacher educators is a problematic, rather then an automatic process, and is characterized by a dialectic relationship between the individual and the PE teacher education culture. The concepts of “culture” and “ideology” are important tools for getting a better understanding of teacher educator socialization. These concepts can help reveal both explicit and implicit aspects in the process.

Metode
 I will use a life history interview approach to illicit the socialization process to teacher educators, as well as to reveal their values systems and expressed practical theories, and gain an understanding of them as actors in the PETE culture. I will also use (participant) /observation of the teacher educators in their work culture.

This is vital to illuminate the culture at work, as well as to better understand their “practical theories” in action.
 educators at each institution, selected on the basis that they represent differences in categories such as age, sex, ethnicity, or stage in their career.