Identity construction and reconstruction among male teachers in early childhood settings

Abstract

Identity construction and reconstruction among male teachers in early childhood education (ECE) settings has brought attention to the teaching of young children, where male teachers expect to redefine themselves among young learners. Research shows that few male teachers have constructed and reconstructed their identities through training in early childhood development. The research was framed using two theoretical constructs: identity theory and social identity theory. The study employed phenomenology, focusing on the commonality of the lived experiences within a particular group to understand the problem in its context in this case, construction, and reconstruction of identity among male teachers in ECE, and provided a comprehensive description of individuals’ subjective experience of an event or phenomenon. Phenomenology emphasises that only those who have personally encountered things can convey them to the external realm. The qualitative approach tests the theories and intervention techniques, using the snowball sampling technique to find five participants from 5 rural schools in the Thabo-Mofutsanyane District of the Free State province, with generation of data using semi-structured and focus group interviews. The study recommends recruitment strategies in ECE settings so that young children may be exposed to both genders in these settings. Workshops need to be held for male teachers, to advise them on how to deal with challenges that they will face from society and encourage them to stand firm with their career choice.

Identiteitskonstruksie en -rekonstruksie onder manlike onderwysers in die konteks van vroeëkinderonderwys (VKO) het die aandag gevestig op die onderrig van jong kinders, waar manlike onderwysers poog om hulself tussen jong leerders te herdefinieer. Navorsing toon dat min manlike onderwysers hul identiteit deur opleiding in vroeëkinderontwikkeling gekonstrueer en gerekonstrueer het. Hierdie studie is saamgestel binne twee teoretiese raamwerke: identiteitsteorie en sosiale identiteitsteorie. Die studie het ’n fenomenologiese benadering gevolg, met die fokus op die gemeenskaplikheid van lewenservarings binne ’n bepaalde groep ten einde die probleem binne sy konteks te verstaan – in hierdie geval die konstruksie en rekonstruksie van identiteit onder manlike onderwysers in VKO, om ’n omvattende beskrywing te bied van hoe individue ’n gebeurtenis of verskynsel subjektief ervaar. Fenomenologie beklemtoon dat slegs dié wat self ervarings beleef het, dit na die buitewêreld kan oordra. Die kwalitatiewe navorsingsbenadering is gebruik om die teorieë en moontlike intervensietegnieke te ondersoek. Deur middel van die sneeubalsteekproeftegniek is vyf deelnemers uit vyf landelike skole in die Thabo-Mofutsanyane-distrik van die Vrystaat Provinsie geïdentifiseer. Data is ingesamel deur semigestruktureerde onderhoude en fokusgroeponderhoude. Die studie beveel aan dat werwingsstrategieë binne VKO-omgewings versterk word sodat jong kinders in hierdie leerinstellings aan beide geslagte blootgestel word. Verder behoort werkswinkels aangebied te word vir manlike onderwysers om hulle toe te rus met strategieë om die uitdagings van die samelewing te hanteer en hulle aan te moedig om standvastig in hul loopbaankeuse te bly.

Kaho le kahobotjha ya matitjhere a banna maemong a thuto ya bana ba banyenyane (ECE), e tlisitse tlhokomelo ho ruta bana ba banyenyane, moo matitjhere a banna a lebeletseng ho fetola bobona hara barutwana ba banyenyane. Diphuputso di bontsha hore matitjhere a seng makae a bopile a ba a fetola bobona ka kwetliso le ntshetsopele ya thuto ya bana ba banyenyane. Diphuputso tsena di bopilwe ka tshebediso tse pedi tsa moaho wa teori: teori ya boitsebiso le teori ya boitsebiso setjhabeng. Ho sebedisitswe mokgwa wa Fenomenoloji, o tadimane le ho tshwana ha bophelo sehlopheng se itseng ho utlwisisa bothata le sebopeho sa sona, le ho nehelana ka tlhaloso e hlakileng ya motho ka mong le seo a fetileng ho sona seo e ka bang ketsahalo . Fenomenoloji e matlafatsa hore e be feela ba kileng ba ba boemong boo ba ka di fetisetsang pele. Mokgwa wa ho sheba boleng bo hlahloba diteori le mekgwa e ka sebediswang ho thibela, ho sebediswa mokgwa wa ho sampola o bitswang “snowball” ho fumana bakgathatema ba nang le seabo ho hlaha dikolong tse hlano tsa setereke sa Thabo-Mofutsanyana, provenseng ya Freistata, ka ho fumana datha ho sebediswa sehlopha se sa botjwang ka botlalo le puisano ka dihlopha tsa tekolo. Diphuputso di kgothaletsa tsela tse nepahetseng tsa ho fumana basebetsi bakeng sa ECE hore bana ba tlwaele batho bao e leng banna le bao e leng basadi. Ho tshwanela ho be le diwekeshopo bakeng sa matitjhere a banna, ho ba thusa ka hore na ba itshware jwang ha ba teana le diphephetso tseo ba tla teana le tsona ho hlaha setjhabeng, le ho ba kgothaletsa ho ema ba tsitsitse ka mosebetsi oo ba ikgethetseng oona.

Ukwakha ubuqobo kanye nokuzakha kabusha phakathi kothisha besilisa emfundweni yabasebancane, ezizindeni ze-early childhood education (ECE) sekulethe ukunakwa ekufundiseni kwabantwana abancane, lapho othisha besilisa belindele ukuthi bazichaze kabusha phakathi kwabafundi abasebancane. Ucwaningo luveza ukuthi othisha besilisa abambalwa sebakhe futhi bazakha babusha ubuqobo babo ngokuqeqeshwa entuthukweni yabantwana abasebancane. Ucwaningo lwalwesekelwe ngokusebenzisa izakhi ezimbili zenjulalwazi: injulalwazi yobuqobo kanye nenjulalwazi yobuqobo bomphakathi. Ucwaningo lusebenzise isimo sotho, ngokugxila ekujwayelekeni kwezimpilo eziphilwayo phakathi eqenjini elithile ukuqonda inkinga esimweni sayo kulesi simo, ukwakha, kanye nokuzakha kabusha kobuqobo kothisha besilisa ku-ECE, futhi lwanikeza incazelo esabalele yempilo yomuntu ngamunye ngokubona kwakhe isigameko noma isimo sotho. Isimo sotho sigcizelela ukuthi ilabo kuphela aseke babhekana nezimo abangakwazi ukuzidlulisela emhlabeni wangaphandle. Indlela yekhwalithethivu ivivinya izinjulalwazi kanye namasu okungenelela, ngokusebenzisa isu lokusampula okunikezelanayo ukuthola ababambiqhaza abahlanu ezikoleni ezi-5 zasemaphandleni esiFundeni saseThabo-Mofutsanyane esiFundazweni zaseFree State, nokuqoqwa kwemininingo ngokusebenzisa izingxoxo ezisakuhleleka kanye nezamaqoqo aqokelwe ucwaningo. Ucwaningo luphakamisa ukusebenzisa amasu ezizindeni ze-ECE ukuze abantwama abasebancane bakwazi ukuvuleleka ebulilini bobubili kulezi zizinda. Imihlangano yokufundisana iyadinga ukuthi yenzelwe othisha besilisa, ukubeluleka ukuthi babhekana kanjani nezingqinamba abazobhekana nazo emphakathini kanye nokubagqugquzela ukuthi bazimele ekukhetheni kwabo umsebenzi abawuqokile.