Towards a psychological anthropology in teacher education

ABSTRACT

This article aims to draw the outlines of a psychological anthropology programme in teacher education based on Wittgenstein’s philosophical approach to relationships between experience, consciousness and language. Conceptually, the challenge is to support the idea that a professional experience may be documented not only through the deliberate reasons pre-service teachers spontaneously link to actions, but also through sensations that are less verbally accessible, also named ‘perceptions’ in social psychology. An empirical illustration is used to show a potential reconciliation between a research program in cultural anthropology and the social psychology bases of teaching competency acquisition. From a methodological standpoint, we examine whether an analysis linking self-confrontation interviews and questionnaires provides an original insight into pre-service teachers’ training experiences. This path inserted into a transdisciplinary program provides alternatives to reconsider a cooperative training program implemented to foster the self-efficacy of pre-service teachers in physical education.

KEYWORDS:

• Anthropology
• social psychology
• training experience
• consciousness
• language

Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Guillaume Escalié

Guillaume Escalié As a full professor at the University of Bordeaux (France), Guillaume Escalié focuses his research on tutoring interactions in education and sports training contexts. He is a member of the association for Teacher education in Europe (ATEE).

Jérémy Lesellier

Jérémy Lesellier As a doctoral candidate in the doctoral school SP2 (Society, Politics, Santé Public health) of the University of Bordeaux, Jérémy Lesellier conducts its research on coaching education in football. He works under the supervision of Pascal Legrain and Guillaume Escalié (Directors of research).

Julie K/Bidy

Julie K/Bidy As a doctor, Julie K/Bidy defended her PhD in 2021 under the supervision of Guillaume Escalié. She worked on the professional development of expert coaches in badminton.

Pascal Legrain

Pascal Legrain As a full professor at the University of Bordeaux (France), Pascal Legrain conducts his research on the motor, social and motivational benefits of peer-tutoring and cooperative learning configurations in the physical education and sports settings. He is a member of the International Association for Physical Education in Higher Education (AIESEP).