Teacher agency in challenging contexts as a consequence of social support and resource management

Abstract

Teachers in post-colonial settings are required to function within the constraints of structural disparities. Teacher agency is explained as an outcome of collectivist coping, using instrumental social support for resource management. Following an asset-based intervention with teachers (n=37, male=4, female=33) in high-risk schools (n=4, secondary=1, primary=3, urban=3, rural=1) in three South African provinces, these teachers demonstrated agency, in spite of deprivation, to draw on the available resources to cope with contextual hardship. The data sources of the nine year school-based study include multiple researchers’ observation data (field notes, researcher diaries, photographs), as well as participatory reflection and action (PRA) data (obtained from verbatim transcriptions of video and audio recordings).