Beyond the professional boundaries: The complex of teachers’ ethical identities in contemporary China

• In Event: Working within differences: boundary and boundary practices in Chinese schools

Proposal

This paper examines the complexity of teachers’ ethical identities by using boundary work as a theoretical perspective. Teachers have long been recognized as boundary-crossing professionals because of the nature of teaching and learning. The ambiguous in-betweenness of teacher’s working life shows how the boundary divides and connects multiple sides (Kerosuo, 2001), especially those that regards to a set of ethical codes (Carr, 2000). Recent studies on teachers’ boundary work intend to perceive ‘boundaries’ as social recognition on diversity and potential resources for change rather than barriers for teacher’s work (Akkerman & Bakker, 2011). Though few will argue that teachers are ‘moral exemplars’ in today’s China, teacher ethics still function as both a symbolic boundary between teachers and other professionals, and a framework for constructing one’s identity within and outside school.

‘Symbolic boundaries’ is defined as lines that ‘include and define some people, groups and things while excluding others’ (Epstein, 1992, 232). These lines chart a territory within which teachers are moral workers (Hansen, 2001; Murrell et al., 2010). In this sense, teachers are not ‘social products’ of the ethical codes. Rather, they are moral agents who shoulder the responsibilities for cultivating the younger generation (Campbell, 2003). Existing literature often compares the ethical requirements for teachers in different countries, spilling much attention on themes such as ethical dimensions of teaching (Goodlad et al., 1991), ethical dilemmas (Strike, 1993; Levinson & Fay, 2016), and ethical reasoning (Strike,1993; Warnick & Silverman, 2011; Benninga, 2013). However, what has been under-explored is how the ethical diversity and complexity relates to the boundary-crossing, and how teachers construct their ethical identities by negotiating with cultural tradition, social structure and institutional system.

Drawing on text analysis, this study has anchored its focus in historical reviews and cross-cultural comparison by with analyzing the narratives of teachers as professional exemplars in the past four decades. The paper depicts the diversity of the ethical identities that are specifically expected for and internalized by teachers. It then moves on to unfold various ‘boundaries’ including the self and the other, the public and the private, the school and the outside-of-school, the ethical/political and the educational, which significantly influence how teachers understand, construct, and interpret their identities. Finally, in comparison to the professional ethics for educators in the Western countries, this paper highlights the uniqueness of teacher’s ethical identities beyond the professional boundaries in China today, which is shaped by the Confucian tradition of ‘shidao’ (师道), the expanded politicalized life, and the highly competitive education systems. Thus, the paper argues that ethical identities of Chinese teachers are situated construct which is both embedded in Chinese culture, and beyond the professional boundaries in respect of Western discourses.

Authors

• Liang Cheng, Department of Education，East China Normal University

• 小微 杨, Faculty of Education, Guangxi Normal University