4.8.1 Self-efficacy
Teachers expressed a depth of emotion that appeared to sustain transformative practice. The desire to make a difference in the lives of students was powerfully demonstrated by Diana‟s body language and her being overwhelmed with emotion:
Well, it‟s really, it‟s just something, I‟m just, [pounds clenched fist to chest twice.] Yeah, my heart goes every time I start talking about it and I sort of get all excited and there‟s just something. These boys deserve the best and they‟re not silly you know, they‟re so capable. But you can just
see behaviour problems creeping in because they‟re struggling. You can put a lid on that, and make them feel confident about themselves. A lot of it‟s to do with pride, and we can show that we value them and their whanau. Then their sense of pride will go up and then all sorts of things open up.
Diana‟s belief in student success under the right conditions was echoed by Chelsea:
It‟s about not having excuses. It‟s about a sense of belief that anything‟s achievable within the right parameters and with the right amount of knowing what you want up here [tapping her head] and planning for it right down at those little incremental steps.
Chelsea is quite explicit in her belief that student success is the responsibility of the teacher who needs to be knowledgeable and skilful. “Sometimes, when it obviously hasn‟t cut the mustard, I‟m really quite deliberate about making those changes [to my teaching]. It‟s not about massaging an ego. My job here is to raise the standards.”
Felicity said:
So, to me it‟s about the children‟s learning needs, and how I best cater for that. And if I had to teach in a different way, then that‟s what I‟d do . . . . If you don‟t change your practice, you‟re doing a disservice to the children that you‟re teaching.
For each of these teachers, a belief that they could make a difference in the lives of students was a powerful transformative influence on their teaching practice.
4.8.2 Student Success
Teachers appear to sustain change to their teaching practice as a consequence of the results they obtain from student learning. Graham found his students were more enthusiastic and motivated about their learning, while Ben found the open- plan approach “was motivating when the children weren‟t restricted to a
classroom, weren‟t restricted to a desk and chair” and that the “informality of the situation took the pressure off the children” so that they could manage their own
learning according to their individual needs. When Felicity was asked what sustained her commitment to the new writing practice, she replied:
The parents and the children did, because the kids were so chuffed about what they were doing that they were going home and bringing their parents in before school and after school and [saying], “This is what I‟ve been doing.” And so to see that happening made it worth it. And as the years went by, to meet up with children who were past pupils and parents who were saying, “My kid‟s at university and they‟re still writing.” That‟s sort of the pay off you get. Teachers don‟t get very much, there are no bonuses. Those are our perks really.
4.8.3 Job Satisfaction
Chelsea was motivated by her sense of being an effective teacher which she gauged by the extent to which students are “discussing their learning and that gives me a great deal of satisfaction.” Alice found that teaching in an open-plan setting had benefits not only for her students but also for herself. The combined syndicate planning and subject specialization reduced her workload and was satisfying. It “took quite a bit of pressure off me because it‟s great to be able to teach in the areas you love teaching in. It feels good.” Alice also gained
satisfaction from her sense of being able to help troubled students. She found the flexibility of open-plan beneficial for
children who had real problems, emotional problems, because my passion at that time was counseling . . . . and it gave me a chance to take them away, or to have a walk with them and talk with them and see if you could help more . . . . If you‟ve got someone else there, when the moment happens, you can actually just say, “I‟m off. I‟m just going for a walk round the field.” I mean the chance to be able to do things like that, in that moment, is sometimes lost when you‟re on your own in a room with 30 children.
Teachers‟ transformed teaching practices were sustained when they were rewarded by their own sense of efficacy, by student success, and through job satisfaction.