SciELO - Scientific Electronic Library Online

 
vol.35 número3Responses of South African teachers to the challenge of school integrationEducators' disciplinary capabilities after the banning of corporal punishment in South African schools índice de autoresíndice de assuntospesquisa de artigos
Home Pagelista alfabética de periódicos  

Serviços Personalizados

Artigo

Indicadores

Links relacionados

  • Em processo de indexaçãoCitado por Google
  • Em processo de indexaçãoSimilares em Google

Compartilhar


South African Journal of Education

versão On-line ISSN 2076-3433
versão impressa ISSN 0256-0100

Resumo

FOURIE, Mandi  e  DEACON, Elmari. Meaning in work of secondary school teachers: A qualitative study. S. Afr. j. educ. [online]. 2015, vol.35, n.3, pp.1-8. ISSN 2076-3433.  http://dx.doi.org/10.15700/SAJE.V35N3A1047.

In order to identify specific, shared sources of meaning and mechanisms with which individuals attempt to make meaning, the objectives of this study were to explore the way in which secondary school teachers perceive, conceptualise and attain meaning in their work. A qualitative design with a phenomenological strategy was used with a convenience sample (n = 20) of teachers. Semi-structured, one-to-one interviews with open-ended questions were used to gather data. Participants were asked to diarise related issues for five working days following the interview, in order to strengthen and validate the interviews' results. The results showed that the participants conceptualise meaning as purpose and significance, and that the main sources of meaning related to work include the transfer of knowledge, and making a positive difference in the learners' lives. Forming relationships based on trust and receiving feedback was also important. The main mechanisms identified were putting effort into preparations, while this group of participants reported that meaning leads to the experience of happiness and personal satisfaction. Although most of these findings support those in the broader literature, there are differences in the emphasis placed on some of the findings, due to the context of education in South Africa. From the results, recommendations were made to create opportunities for teachers to experience more meaning in their work.

Palavras-chave : education sector; meaning in work; meaning-making mechanisms; sources of meaning; teachers.

        · texto em Inglês     · Inglês ( pdf )

 

Creative Commons License Todo o conteúdo deste periódico, exceto onde está identificado, está licenciado sob uma Licença Creative Commons