Teaching in the ‘margins’: rekindling a passion for teaching

Abstract

The data for this paper are drawn from a qualitative research project involving a number of alternative education sites in Australia and the United Kingdom. In this paper, we focus only on the motives and teaching philosophies of a sample of teachers who have chosen to work in alternative education sites despite, for some, the prospect of uncertain employment conditions and lower salaries. A thematic approach is used with the data so as to structure participant perspectives on a range of teaching-related issues. We argue that the experiences and perceptions of these teachers provide a starting point for reflection about the impact of many current educational policies that have been shaped or influenced by market-driven neo-liberal paradigms emphasising disciplinary accountabilities for teachers.

Keywords:

• alternative schools
• teachers’ work
• education policy

Notes

1. The Advanced Level General Certificate of Education, commonly referred to as an A-level, is a qualification offered by education institutions in England.

2. The General Certificate of Secondary Education, England.

3. SATs (UK) are given at the end of Year Two, Year Six and Year Nine. They are used to show a child’s academic progress compared with other children born around the same time.

4. Every year, all students in Years Three, Five, Seven and Nine are assessed on the same days using national tests in reading, writing, language conventions (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy.