NEW DISCOURSES OF TEACHER PROFESSIONALISM: A NORWEGIAN CASE

Abstract

Teacher-training programmes at the universities should be at the level of and ideally ahead of developments in the schools. When both teaching organisations and the authorities place an emphasis on efforts towards increased professionalism in the work of the teacher, it is reasonable to ask how the teacher-training programmes at the universities can and should respond. This is taking place at a time when new management systems are being put in place within the education sector. The purposes of this article are to place the questions relating to efforts towards increased professionalism within a theoretical framework and to use this framework to discuss challenges faced by the teacher-training programmes at the universities in particular. The theoretical framework consists of four competing visions for influence in terms of the school’s activities: professionalism, administrative management of the school sector, school democracy and marketisation. I will use this theoretical framework to discuss the possibilities and limitations for efforts towards increased professionalism and their consequences for teacher-training institutions. The solutions to the conflicts between these visions suggest that it is rational to look for a balance between several positive but partially contradictory intentions. The efforts towards increased professionalism have consequences both for student teachers and for established teachers, whilst tools for assessing teachers and making them accountable also have deep implications for teacher training. The manner in which these tools will be used will have consequences for the competitive situation between schools. Product development will be important in this perspective, which means a need to develop innovation skills within the teacher’s field of work. The conclusion must be that efforts towards increased professionalism based on tools for increasing responsibility and work assessment provides the teacher-training programmes at the universities with both significant challenges and with new opportunities. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.12731/2218-7405-2013-4-18