Images of Teachers: Policy Design and the Social Construction of Teachers

• In Event: Roundtable Session 28
  In Roundtable Session: Policy, Social, and Organizational Contexts of Teachers

Abstract

In the flurry of current efforts at educational improvement, few actors are as directly implicated – as both heroes and villains – as public school teachers. In this paper, we examine how those with influence in educational policy construct the idea of “teachers” and groups associated with teachers through implicit “policy images,” and how those images are reflected in policy prescriptions and policy designs. We draw upon interviews with influential individuals in educational policy, as well as documentary data from influential individuals and organizations. Our findings suggest that, while influential actors speak highly of the importance of teachers across the board, policy images of existing teachers vary considerably, as do the accompanying policy prescriptions and problem definitions.

Authors

• Katrina E. Bulkley, Montclair State University

• Jessica Gottlieb, University of Notre Dame