Job Satisfaction in Focus: Photovoice with Teachers in Arts-Integrated Schools

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Thursday 7:45 am - Gold 1
  In Roundtable Session: Situated, Sustained, and Transformative: Innovations in Teacher Apprenticeship and Preparation

Abstract

This participatory qualitative study explored teacher job satisfaction within North Carolina’s A+ Schools, a network of schools that have embraced a specific arts-integrated school reform model. Using photovoice methodology, 18 teachers collaboratively analyzed visual and narrative artifacts representing their professional experiences alongside study researchers. Findings highlight four themes central to job satisfaction: agency, alchemy, legitimacy, and legacy. These themes reflect how arts integration fosters autonomy, creativity, validation, and lasting impact in teaching. Conducted amid heightened concerns over educator turnover and funding instability, the study offers a ground-up perspective on teacher job satisfaction and well-being. Implications highlight the potential for how an arts integration model may support sustainable, satisfying teaching environments.

Authors

• Sarah Byrne Bausell, North Carolina State University

• Marie Himes, North Carolina State University