Advancing a culture of quality in initial teacher education in Kosovo in the context of European initiatives

Kaçaniku, Fjolla (author), Zgaga, Pavel (mentor), Saqipi, Blerim (comentor)

Kosovo’s overall political intentions in joining the European family drove the country to reform teacher education according to European benchmarks and reference points. Special attention was dedicated to improving quality in initial teacher education. However, initial teacher education “universification” occurred only in 2002, and institutions are still at a relatively early stage in their development in providing quality teacher education, as centres for high-quality scholarship, and promoting excellence. This dissertation’s main purpose is to examine how quality initial teacher education is manifested in Kosovo in the context of European initiatives for improving quality in initial teacher education. The study uses a qualitative research paradigm to investigate various facets and tensions that characterise teacher educators, management staff, and student-teachers’ understandings, conceptualisations, perceptions, cultures and assumptions, their knowledge base, values, and attitudes, experiences, and actions regarding quality initial teacher education and improvement process. The study combined various instruments and data sources to conduct the study, including, analysis of programme documents (n = 6), interviews with management staff (n = 6, 15 interviews), and teacher educators (n = 15, 28 interviews), and open questionnaire and group interviews with student-teachers (n = 303), over three phases. The study included two public initial teacher education institutions in Kosovo, including Big urban – Capital and Small urban. From the comprehensive theoretical framework, we developed an analytical framework considering the three main dimensions relevant for examining the manifestation of quality initial teacher education at the institutional policy and practice dimension (organisational culture, management practices, institutional policy for quality assurance, cooperation with schools, etc.); the teacher educator practice dimension (classroom practice, roles of teacher educators, disciplinary cultures, etc.); and the programmes design and delivery dimension (development of student-teacher skills, knowledge, and values, transversal and research skills, programme content, learning outcomes and their assessment, etc.). The findings demonstrate that Kosovo has undergone continuous education reform through European-led initiatives in efforts to improve quality in initial teacher education. Unavoidably, local stakeholder contradictions and one-sided efforts in translating and implementing European initiatives for improving quality in teacher education have led to problems; Kosovo’s initial teacher education remains isolated as a national/contextual concern. Our study shows tensions and contradictions in how quality initial teacher education is manifested under European initiatives. At the institutional policy and practice dimension, we found tensions and contradictions between (i) external and internal quality assurance policy and practice, (ii) European, national and institutional quality teacher education policies, (iii) the Bologna-inspired and institutional structures, and (iv) classic administration culture and new management culture. At the teacher educator practice dimension, we found tensions and contradictions between (i) Pedagogy and Subject discipline, (ii) teacher educator classroom approaches, strategies, and methodologies, (iii) Subject and Subject Didactics teacher educator practice and teacher educator professional development prospects, and (iv) functional and other roles of teacher educators. At the programme design and delivery dimension, the following tensions and contradictions were identified between (i) compartmentalisation of knowledge, skills and values development in programmes, (ii) surface convergence (surface Europeanisation) and programme implementation, and (iii) fragmented and integrated programming. We show that several contextual variables influence such tensions and contradictions, following (1) the changing role of initial teacher education, (2) missing organisational culture, (3) teacher educator tacit knowledge, (4) prospective teachers’ narrow goals and values, and (5) lack of reform ownership and donor dependency. In order to better understand, tackle, and scaffold stakeholder tensions and contradictions, we recommend that initial teacher education context needs to be reconceptualised and treated as a broader/extended and context-free ecosystem. We introduce shared education context taciticity as a novice notion to theorise an extended context of initial teacher education that can recognise all possible tensions and contradictions of stakeholder perceptions regarding quality initial teacher education for developing collective tacit knowledge towards a culture of quality in initial teacher education.

• Language: English
• Keywords: quality initial teacher education
• Work type: Doctoral dissertation
• Typology: 2.08 - Doctoral Dissertation
• Organization: PEF - Faculty of Education
• Year: 2021
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-134214
• COBISS.SI-ID: 91342339
• Publication date in RUL: 30.12.2021

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Title: Pospeševanje kulture kakovosti v začetnem izobraževanju učiteljev na Kosovu v kontekstu evropskih iniciativ

Abstract

Splošne politične namere Kosova, da se pridruži evropski družini, so državo spodbudile k reformi izobraževanja učiteljev v skladu z evropskimi merili in referenčnimi točkami. Posebna pozornost je bila namenjena izboljšanju kakovosti začetnega izobraževanja učiteljev. Vendar se je “poenotenje” začetnega izobraževanja učiteljev zgodilo šele leta 2002, zato so institucije kot centri za visokokakovostno izobraževanje in spodbujanje odličnosti še vedno v razmeroma zgodnji fazi svojega razvoja v zagotavljanju kakovostnega izobraževanja učiteljev. Glavni namen te disertacije je preučiti, kako se na Kosovu manifestira kakovost začetnega izobraževanje učiteljev v okviru evropskih iniciativ za izboljšanje kakovosti v začetnem izobraževanju učiteljev. Za raziskovanje različnih vidikov in napetosti, ki označujejo razumevanja, konceptualizacije, dojemanja, kulture in predpostavke, bazo znanja, vrednote in stališča, izkušnje in ukrepe pedagoških delavcev, vodstvenih delavcev in bodočih učiteljev glede kakovosti začetnega izobraževanja učiteljev in procesov izboljšanja, raziskava uporablja kvalitativno raziskovalno paradigmo. Iz obsežnega teoretičnega okvira smo razvili analitični okvir, ki upošteva tri glavne dimenzije, ki so pomembne za preučevanje manifestacije kakovosti začetnega izobraževanja učiteljev v dimenziji institucionalnih politik in prakse (organizacijska kultura, prakse upravljanja, institucionalne politike za zagotavljanje kakovosti, sodelovanje s šolami itd.); dimenziji prakse pedagoških delavcev (praksa v učilnici, vloge pedagoških delavcev, kulture discipline itd.) in dimenziji zasnove in izvajanja programov (razvoj spretnosti, znanja in vrednot bodočih učiteljev, prečne in raziskovalne veščine, vsebina programov, učni izidi in njihovo ocenjevanje itd.). Ugotovitve potrjujejo, da je na Kosovu potekala kontinuirana izobraževalna reforma v okviru prizadevanj za izboljšanje kakovosti začetnega izobraževanja učiteljev preko evropskih iniciativ. Neizogibno so protislovja lokalnih udeležencev in enostranska prizadevanja pri prevajanju in izvajanju evropskih iniciativ za izboljšanje kakovosti izobraževanja učiteljev povzročila, da težave, ki vplivajo na začetno izobraževanje učiteljev na Kosovu, ostajajo izolirane kot nacionalna/kontekstualna zadeva. Naša raziskava razkriva napetosti in protislovja v tem, kako se kakovost začetnega izobraževanja učiteljev manifestira v okviru evropskih pobud. V okviru institucionalne dimenzije smo našli napetosti in protislovja med (i) zunanjimi in notranjimi politikami in prakso, (ii) evropskimi, nacionalnimi in institucionalnimi politikami kakovosti izobraževanja učiteljev in (iii) bolonjsko strukturo in institucionalnimi strukturami ter (iv) klasično administrativno kulturo in kulturo novega upravljanja. V dimenziji prakse pedagoških delavcev smo ugotovili napetosti in protislovja med (i) pedagoško in predmetno disciplino, (ii) pristopi, strategijami in metodologijami pedagoških delavcev v učilnici, (iii) predmetno in predmetno-didaktično prakso ter možnostmi profesionalnega razvoja pedagoških delavcev ter (iv) funkcionalnimi in drugimi vlogami pedagoških delavcev. Pri dimenziji zasnove in izvajanja programov so bile ugotovljene naslednje napetosti in protislovja med (i) ločevanjem razvoja znanja, spretnosti in vrednot v programih, (ii) površinsko konvergenco (površinsko evropeizacijo) in izvajanjem programov ter (iii) razdrobljenim in integriranim programiranjem. Pokazali smo, da na takšne napetosti in protislovja vpliva več kontekstualni spremenljivk, ki sledijo (1) spreminjajoči se vlogi začetnega izobraževanja učiteljev, (2) manjkajoči organizacijski kulturi, (3) tacitnemu znanja bodočih učiteljev, (4) ozkim ciljem in vrednotam bodočih učiteljev ter (5) pomanjkanju lastništva reform in odvisnosti od donatorjev. Da bi bolje razumeli, zaznali in odpravili napetosti in protislovja med udeleženci, priporočamo rekonceptualizacijo konteksta začetnega izobraževanja učiteljev in njegovo obravnavo kot širšega/razširjenega in brezkontekstnega ekosistema. Kot nov pojem v prizadevanjih za teoretiziranje razširjenega konteksta začetnega izobraževanja učiteljev uvajamo tacitnost izobraževalnega konteksta, ki lahko prepozna vse možne napetosti in nasprotja glede percepcij udeležencev o kakovosti začetnega izobraževanja učiteljev za razvoj kolektivnega tacitnega znanja v smeri kulture kakovosti začetnega izobraževanja učiteljev.

• Keywords: kakovost začetnega izobraževanja učiteljev