小田郁予・松村一太朗
The Ambiguous Impact of Conflict Management Strategies on Teachers’ Professional Development
Ikuyo Oda and Ichitaro Matsumura
April, 2019
Abstract
The aim of this study is to reveal the features of teachers’ daily practices which are usually overlooked but have possibilities for improvement. This study takes conflict management strategies as one of the important elements of teachers’ professional development. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews at a public elementary school and was analyzed by using Sato’s “qualitative research method” (Sato, 2008). The analysis was used to generate five categories.
Two categories influence teachers’ decision making and their daily practices. These are “features of teaching” and “daily conflicts.” Features of teaching, such as the unpredictability of the classroom make teachers’ practices difficult and are perceived as conflict experiences which hinder teachers’ learning. To overcome these difficulties, teachers have constructed coping strategies. The elements that make up their coping strategies are “sustaining motivations,” “creating a supportive environment,” and “risk avoidance.” These correlate with each other, and function as a “corruption avoidance device,” preventing school culture from deteriorating.
bring the self-sacrifice or reservation of teachers as they attempt to maintain a cooperative school environment.
