Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted routines and caused major changes in the educational systems which shut down abruptly and shifted to distance learning. The feedback on teachers on those days was controversial, with some praising them and others criticized them. The purpose of our study is to question teachers' perceptions about how others valued their professional status during the pandemic. Participants were 110 teachers (school and kindergarten). They all work in the public-school system and are also students in a graduate program in educational leadership. Participants were asked to reflect on their perception of their status during the pandemic and present their reflections in writing. The findings indicated that 69 (62.7%) claimed that their professional status declined, while 41 (37.2%) felt that their status increased. The reasons for the decline included work-related parameters as well as familial and personal factors. The increased status was associated with a sense of purpose that was caused by self-learning which contributed to personal development and a feeling of success, and by the support their received from parents and school principals. Our findings are relevant to teachers, educators, and policy makers involved in planning and managing educational strategies. Identifying the causes that increase the teachers' status will encourage better teachers to join the teaching profession.
Translated title of the contribution | "I wanted to shout: I don't deserve such an attitude…"Teacher status during the COVID-19 pandemic: Perceptions of school teachers and kindergarten teachers \ |
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Original language | Hebrew |
Pages (from-to) | 13-34 |
Number of pages | 22 |
Journal | דפים |
Volume | 78 |
State | Published - 2023 |
Externally published | Yes |
IHP Publications
- ihp
- COVID-19 (Disease)
- COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020-
- Computer-assisted instruction
- Kindergarten teachers
- Parent-teacher relationships
- Perception
- Teacher-principal relationships
- Teachers
- Teachers -- In-service training