Publications and Research
Document Type
Book Chapter or Section
Publication Date
1994
Abstract
With few exceptions (e.g., Blase, 1986), most of the research on the effects of teachers' working conditions has been quantitative in design. The power of qualitative research inheres in its struggle to get under the teacher's skin and see the world as the teacher sees it. The study described in this paper examines the writings of newly appointed teachers who, as part of a quantitative study, were asked to write anything they wanted about their jobs. Four themes that characterized the working lives of teachers emerged: (a) being happy with one's job, (b) interpersonal tensions and lack of support among colleagues/supervisors, (c) classroom management problems, and (d) violence and other security problems.
Comments
This work was originally published in "What works? Synthesizing effective biomedical and psychosocial strategies for healthy families in the 21st century," edited by L.C. Blackman.