Constructing a professional identity in VET: teacher perspectives

ABSTRACT

A notion of being a professional and acting with professionalism suggests particular standards associated with identity and practice. For vocational education and training (VET) educators in Australia, the notion of ‘professional’ that is encased within association and registration does not apply. Yet these educators operate in contexts where a discourse of professionalism influences their enactment of their vocation. This paper reports on the findings from an exploration of professional identity in relation to vocational teachers in the VET/further education sector in Australia. Twenty-six TAFE teachers from a large government training provider in Australia participated in semi-structured interviews that explored current practices associated with continuing professional development, key motivations to act as a professional, and the consideration of appropriate qualification levels for VET teaching. The aspects of the research reported and discussed in this paper relate to the teachers’ perceptions of themselves as professionals and the bases on which they made those judgements. The findings reveal a clear belief in themselves as professionals, and ultimately as dual professionals. The teachers were strongly grounded in their industry vocation but regarded their second vocation, teaching, as legitimising their right to be regarded as professionals, even without teacher registration or membership of a professional association.

KEYWORDS:

• Professionalism
• tafe
• further education
• vocational education and training
• professional values
• teacher identity

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Mark A Tyler

Dr. Mark Tyler is Senior Lecturer in the School of Education and Professional Studies, Mt Gravatt Campus of Griffith University (GU). Formerly Program Director, Professional, Continuing and Vocational Education at GU, Mark’s research interests include: VET sector development, continuing professional development, academic and teacher identity, critical spirit (the dispositions of critical thinkers), workplace mentoring, and collaborative capacity building.

Darryl Dymock

Dr. Darryl Dymock is a highly experienced researcher, teacher, author and editor. He is a former Editor of the international Journal of Workplace Learning, and has taught and researched extensively in the field of Adult and Vocational Education. Among his career appointments are Senior Lecturer, University of New England, and Associate Professor, Flinders University and University of South Australia.