Dynamics of Teacher Career Stages

Phases, Models, and Requisite Supports
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groups: Cognitive and afEective outcoma. Journal of Educatiod Computing
Research, 7, 233-243.
Mevarech, 2. R , & Susak, 2. (1993). Effects of learning with cooperativ~mastery
method on elementary students. Journal of l 2 u c a t i o d Research, 86,197-205.
rerret-clermont, A.. N. (1980). Social interaction and cognitive dcyehpment in ~ h i l drm. New York: Academic Press.
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Posner, G., Strike, K,,Hmson, P., & Gemag, W. (1982). ~ccommodationof a
scientific conception: Toward a theory of conceptual change. Sn'enccEducation,
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Rich, Y. (1993). Stability and change in teacher expertise. Teachers and ~eachcrEducation, 9,137-146.
Riding, J. R (1984). Computers in the primary schooI: A practicafguicicfir teachers.
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Rosenholtz, D. (1989). Teachers'workplace. London: Longman.
Sandholtz,J. H., Ringstaff.C., & Dwyer, D. C. (1991, April). The relatiomh+ berwcn technologcal innovation and coIlrgial interaction. Paper presented at the
annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association, Chicago.
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Smylie, M. A. (1988). The enhancement function of staff development: Q r ~ i z a tional and psychological antecedents to individual teacher change. American
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and learning: Implications for teacher education. Educational P~ychohgizt,28,
Educational Leadcrsh;P,37,374-378.
.
Dynamics of Teacher Career Stages
RALPH FESSLER
.
The following is a series of quotes recorded in conversations with teachers:
I am overwhelmed with all of the decisions I have to make every day. I
can't keep track of everything I have to do-and nobody ever told me
the kids wouldn't behave!!
I just attended a workshop on cooperative learning. I can't wait to try
it with my kids. I know they will love it.
My greatest satisfaction is seeing the "light" go on when I have helped
a youngster learn, understand, and appreciate something that was difficult for him.
Teaching used to be fun-but not any longer. With all of the
tions and rules in our school, I no longer have the freedom to teach.
And-I am getting tired of reading in the paper every day what a rotten job we teachers are doing.
Ten more years until retirement. I've paid my dues-and 1'11 continue
to do my job. But-don't expect me to be a cheerleader for d w g e .
I'll leave that up todik~oungstersteaching in our school.
These statements cvry messages regarding how the teachers quoted view
their jobs. The variations in confidence, enthusiasm, and commitment reflect
&rent ~hasesor stages they are experiencingin their careers. For some, teaching is filled with excitement and enthusiasm, with each day bringing new
opportunities to positively influence the lives of children. For others, the com-
171
Phases, Models, and Requisite Supports
tors in their personal and organizational lives. Understanding the dynamics
of what these teachers are experiencing can serve as a foundation for planning
appropriateactions to support their changing personal and profersional growth
needs.
This chapter presents the Teacher Career Cycle Model as a framework
for analyzing and understanding the stages teachers experience in their careers.
In the following sections, previous work that influenced model development
is reviewed, the process used for model building is presented, model components are described, and implications for teacher growth and development and
research are considered.
PREVIOUS VIEWS OF THE TEACHER CAREER CYCLE
A number of individual studies and previous attempts at model building
have influenced the development of the model presented in this chapter. Much
of the research available on the stages of teachers' career development has its
roots in the work of Frances Fuller (1969), who was interested in planning
meaningful preservice programs for education students at the University of
Texas-Austin. Her Teacher Concerns Questionnaire, which was a product
of extensive interviews, literature reviews, and refined checklists, has yielded
the following categories or dusters of concerns of individuals at various stages
in the process of becoming a teacher (Fuller & Bown, 1975):
Preteaching concerns cluster around education students' deep involvement
in the pupil role and their criticism or even hostility toward classroom teachers they observe.
Ear4 c o n c m about nrrviual arise when preservice teachers first come into
contact with actual teaching. Now their concerns are with their own survival in teaching as well as control, mastery of content, and supervisor evaluations. Stress in this period is great.
Teaching situations concerns incorporate both the survival concerns and
concerns about the demands and limitations of teaching and trying to transfer their learning to a teaching situation.
C o n c m aboutpupilrare expressed by preservice teachers, but they are ofien
unable to respond to pupils' needs until they learn to cope with their own
- survival needs.
Fuller noted that, through these stages, the focus of those who are becoming
teachers seemed to progress from concerns for r e g to concerns for teaching
tasks, to, finally, concerns for the impact they were having on students.
During the 1970s several authors presented views of teacher development
Dynamics of Teacher Career Stages
.
that were based primarily on their own observations and anecdotal reflections.
Although these contributions did not have much hard substantiating data,
they did provide the beginning of a framework for further analysis.
Unruh and Turner (1970) were among the first to propose the notion of
career stages. Their periods included:
1. Initial teachingperiod (approximately 1 to 5 years). This period is characterized by problems with management, organization, new curriculum
developments, and being accepted by the rest of the staff.
2. Periodof buildingsecurity(approximatelyG to 15 years). Teachers here find
satisfaction in a career and "know what they are doing." They seek ways
to improve their background and knowledge and take additional courses
and advanced degrees both to qualify for salary increases and to improve
their teaching.
3. Maturingperiod (approximately 15 years and more). This period is characterized by security in professional life and involvement in outside interests (politics, art, literature, music, etc.). The secure attitude of teachers at
this stage allows,them to see change as a process, not a threat. They look
for verification of new ideas and thrive on new concepts.
Gregorc (1973) reported on observations of teachers at University High
School in Urbana, Illinois, and described the following four stages of teacher
development:
1 . Becoming stage. The individual demonstrates an ambivalent commitment
to teaching and is beginning to develop initial concepts about the purposes of education, the nature of teaching, the role expectations in the educational process, and the role of the school as a social organization.
2. Growing stage. The individual's level of commitment is based on his or
her minimal expectations of the school and those that the school has of
the individual. The basic concepts and stereotypes of the educational process and of per~orird-disciplineand responsibilities are forming.
3. Maturingstage. The individual has made a strong commitment to education, hnctions~beyondthe minimum expectations, and draws upon and
contributes to the varied resources of the school. In this stage, the individual tests concepts about education, self,others, subject matter, and the
environment.
4 . Fullyfinctioning stage. The individual has made a definite commitment
to rhi education
Immersed in the process of education, the
person is trying to realize full potential as an individual teacher and as a
contributing member of the proferrion. Concepts and beliefs are constantly
undergoing testing and restructuring.
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Phases, Models, and Requisite Supports
178
Dynamics of Teacher Career Stages
.
FIGURE 8.1 Model Buildinq
I
I
Develop Explanation
of Real World
Research
Given the dynamic nature of model building described above, the working model should serve the dual purpose of providing guidelines for action
and a structure for future research. This "guide to action" function provides
a framework whereby practitioners can use the model constructs as a guide in
decision making, planning, and policy formation. A number of such practiimplications and applications exist for the Teacher Career C y h Mod49
and these will be presented later in this chapter.
For the researcher, the working model offers a framework for research
and further analysis. Modd constructs suggest interrelationships among cornpier phenomena and hypotheses about additional relationships. This provides
THE TEACHER CAREER CYCLE: A WORKING MODEL
Dynamics of Teacher Career Stages
Personal Environment
The personal environment of the teacher includes a number of interactive
facets. Among the variables from the individual personal environment that
Family. The family life of a teacher is a key environmental component.
The internal support systems can be supportive or negative. Parents who encourage and support the decision of a young adult to become a teacher will
likely have a positive impact during preservice and early career experiences.
Displeasure with this career choice will likely make it more difficult to meet
the challenges of becoming a teacher. These internal support systems also carry
over into the teacher's own primary family unit, as choice of mate, having
children, and related family events may have a great impact on career activi-
The various family roles that a teacher is expected to assume may also
impact on the career cycle. If the spouse of a female teacher expects her to
perform all traditional homemaking and parenting roles in addition to the
demanding activities of teaching, there may be great strain on the career. Alternatively, a spouse who shares in homemaking and parenting responsibilities
will facilitate career enrichment.
- --.-,--.:
Other family factors that may impact on the teacher's career include birth
of children, financial conditions, and the health and welfare of other family
members. These may take the form of positive critical incidents and crises.
Positive Critical Incidents. Positive critical incidents may take many
forms, including marriage, birth of children, and religious experiences. Such
positive events in one's life may provide the foundation for security and support that will carry over into career activities. Significant others may also include mentors or others who have had positive impacts on choices and life
Dynamics of Teacher Career Stages
Phases, Models, and Requisite Supports
Organizational Environment
Crises. Personal or family crises may have a dramatic impact on job-
related activities. The illness of a loved one, death of a close relative, ~ersonal
illness, financial loss, marital difficulties, and legal ~roblemsare all examples
of crises that may turn a teacher's priorities away from teaching. Chemicalabuse problems of a family member, a particularly difficult ~roblemto cope
with, have been increasing greatly in recent years.
Teachers presented with crises of these kinds frequently find it difficult
with career expectationsand pressures. Many teachers experience jobto
related difficultiesduring periods of crises. Some, however, are able to rechanriel their energies into their jobs as a way of escaping from their ~roblems.
The organiza~onalenvironment of schools and school systems comprises
a second major category of influences on the career cycle. Among the variables impacting here are school regulations, the management style of adminisuators and supervisors, the presence or absence of public trust in a community~the expectations a community places on its educational system, the
activities of professiond organizations and associations, and the union atmosphere in the system. A supportive posture from these organizational componenu will reinforce, reward, and encourage teachers as they progress through
their career cydes. Alternatively, an atmosphere of mistrust and suspicion will
likdy have a negative impact. The following outline illustrates some of the
concerns in these organizational facets.
Individual Dispositions. Each penon is unique, with behavioral trdts,
experiences, aspirations and goals, and ~ersonalvalues that combine to define the individual's personality. These facrors influence career dedsions and directions. Personal aspirations and goals may have influenced a
decision made in young adulthood about selecting teaching as a career.
Through experience and changing needs, priorities are sometimes ~
~
in later years, perhaps resulting in career changes or career frustration. In other
cases, maturity may help one be a more reflective, profcsriod tracher,
for continued growth and development.
~
'
Avocational Interests. Opportunities for continued growrh may be
provided by avocational interests that may be channeled back into t a c h i q
activities. In addition, they may provide outlets for fulfillment, achievement,
and recognition that may supplement rewards received from teaching. For
some teachers, these are outlets for needs not met in their teaching. b m p l e s
of avocationd interests frequently available to teachers include hobbies,
volunteerism, religious activities, travel, and spom and exercise.
Life Stages. The literature on life stages, popularized by Sheehy (1976)
and k i n s o n , Darrow, Klein, Levinson, and McKee (1978), kienufies persand factors that may have an important impact on the career d e - During
various adult life stages, there is often questioning and reflection about career,
family, life goals, and personal priorities. This is par~culvlytrue during the
period of rnidlife crises, when individuals are sometimes preoccupied with
questions about what they want to do with the rest of their lives. Periods of
intense questioning and reassessment may have considerable impact on job
performance and career options.
IT SHOULD BE NOTED that the list of facets of the personal environment is not
all-indusive. What is presented here is a description of some key components
in the personal environment that impact upon the career
Scho~lRegulations. Teachers are subject to numerous regulations
from school, district, state, and national sources. These regulations
and
of
provide
order
and structure to the school and reflect the
e
d
the system, community, and nation. At other times, however, regulations
may result in bureaucratic layering that could have negative impacts on teachers. Examples of school regulations include curriculum requirements, development of individual education plans for special education students, and
mandates about student testing or evaluation. Each of these may be perceived
by teachers as positive or negative, depending on how they affect their classrooms and careers.
,
-
Management Style. The management style of the school principal may
have a dramaticimpact on individual teachers' career cycles. If a principal has
established an atmosphere of trust and support, with oppomnities for teacher
empowerment and leadership, the response of teachers is likely to be positive.
A less trusting, more inspection-oriented approach to management and supervision will likely yield less enthusiasm from teachers.
New leadership m a y ~ a - din
t changes in management styles and in revher
responses. It is not uncommon for frustrated teachers to be recharged by new
leadership that gives them a fresh start and opportunities for renewed growth.
Conversely, a new principal with a more controlling orientation may result
in problems for teachers accustomed to greater autonomy.
Public Trust. The atmosphere of public trust may have a profound irnpact on teachers' careen and job performance. A positive atmosphere, where
confidenceis expressed in teachers and schools, will result in high teacher selfesteem and a positive outlook on teaching as a career. Conversely, a steady
bombardment or criticism of schools and teachers is bound to have a nega-
- -
-
Phases, Models, and Requisite Supports
job satisfaction. These teachers are ofien supponive and helpful in identifying appropriate inservice education activities for their schools. The ideal climate reinforces teachers in thii stage with opportunities to learn and apply
new ideas.
Career Frustration. This period is characterized by frustration and disillusionmentwith teaching. Job satisfaction is waning, and teachers begin to
question why they are doing this work. Much of what is described in the literature as teacher burnout occurs in this stage. While this sense of frustration
tends to occur most often during a midpoint in one's career, there is an increasing incidence of such feelings among teachers in relatively early years of
their careers. This is particularly true for those new staff who face the continual threat of "last hiredlfirst fired," for those who find their school climate
stifling, and for those who never developed the skills to succeed.
Career Stability. Stable teachers have plateaued in their careen. Some
have become stagnant and have resigned themselves to putting in "a fair day's
work for a EJr day's pay." These teachers are doing what is expected of them,
but little more. They may be doing an acceptable job, but they are not committed to the pursuit of excellence and growth. Teachers at this stable stage
are in the process of disengaging from their commitment to teaching.
Career Wind-Down. This is the stagewhen a teacher is preparing to leave
For some, it may be a pleasant period during which they rethe
flect on the many positive experiences they have had and look forward to a
career change or retirement. For others, it may be a bitter period, one in which
they resent a forced job termination or cannot wait to get out of an unrewarding
job. A person may spend several years in this stage, or it may occur only during a matter of weeks or months.
Career Exit. The exiting stage of a teacher's career represents the period
of time after the teacher leaves the job, but it includes c i r c u m s ~ c e sother
than simply retirement afier many years of service. It could be a period of
unemployment afier involuntary or elective job termination or a temporary
career exit for child rearing. It could also be a time of alternative.career exploration or of moving to a nonteaching position in education, such as administration.
As described earlier, the process of model building in the social sciences
should be reviewed as tentative and dynamic New data and fresh insights into
existing data may change model components and interpretations. The Teacher
Career Cycle Model as described above is the developers' b a t current inter-
Dynamics of Teacher Career Stages
pretation of available data (Fessler & Christensen, 1592).Readers are encouraged not to view model components as fured, but rather as useful constructs
that enhance our understanding of the dynamics of the changing nature of
teachers' careers.
THE DYNAMIC NATURE OF THE CAREER CYCLE
At first glance there is a tendency to view the career cycle as a linear process, with an individual entering at the praervice level and progressing through
the various stages. While there is a certain logic to this view, it is hypothesized
here that this is not necessarily an accurate picture of the process. Rather, a
dynamic ebb and flow is postulated, with teachers moving in and out of stages
in response to environmental influences from both the personal and organizational dimensions. The following scenarios are presented to demonstrate
this view.
First, consider the teacher who exhibits classic characteristics of "enthusiastic and growing." She loves her job and is constantly seeking new ways to
make her classroom an excitingand lively learning environment. At the height
of this climate of enthusiasm, however, she is informed that her job is about
to be terminated (organizational influen-budgetary
cutbacks). AFrcr perhaps moving through a period of "career frustration," this once-enthusiastic
teacher will be entering career wind-down and career exit. It is possible she
will find herself in a new preservice stage as she prepares for a career change.
A second "enthusiastic and growing" teacher learns that his son has a severe
chemical-abuse problem (personal environment-family crisis). The trauma
of this experiencemay drain his resources and cause him to reorder his priorities. Such a teacher may settle into a "career stability" stage in order to devote
more attention to his fmily problem.
A third case might be one in which a teacher has resigned himself to a
"fair day's work for a fair day's pay." This "stable" individual may have great
d e n t , but he views ted~hirrg-asa job, not a commitment to excellence. Enter
on this scene a very sensitive and supportivesupervisor (organizational environment-management style) who accurately assesses this situation and works
with the teacher to rekindle enthusiasm for teaching. Strategies might include
giving the teacher greater input into decisions affecting him, modifying assignments to maximize his strengths, and reinforcing positive actions through
verbal praise and positive evaluations. Many teachers will respond to such
actions with renewed enthusiasm and growth.
Finally, consider the "career wind-down" teacher who is about to leave
the profession. Very unexpectedly, her husband dies (personal environmentcrisis). This dramatic change in her personal life may result in a reassessment
--
Dynamics of Teacher Career Stages
Phases, Models, and Requisite Supports
-.
that environment. The recent movement toward school-based management
and ha red decision making may have a major impact in providing outlets
for teacher growth m x d ~Other
.
organizational environmentalfactors h a t must
be examined in the context of the concepts set forth in this chapter indude
the amount of teachen' time consumed by rules, regulations, and "adminisrrivia," m d the atmosphereof t ~and~professional
t
respect for tachers present
in the school system and community. All these factors relate to the tone and
climate set by the administration and have a major impact upon teachen'
progression through the career stages.
of this career wind-down decision. Depending on the nature of additional
personal and organizational environmental conditions, this teacher may renew a commitment to teaching and enter an "enthusiasticand growingnphase
or may fall back into a period of "stability."
IMPLICATIONS OF THE MODEL
Teacher Growth and Development
Ifthe notion of individual career stages is to go beyond the "interestingto-know'ylevel, there is a need to identify personalired suppon systems for
teachers at various stages of their careers. In recent years there have been
numerous attempts to develop supervision and staff development r ~ ~ ~ dthat
els
emphasizepersonalized approaches to teacher development. Partic& attention might be given to the works of Burke (19871, Christensen, McDonnell~
price (1988), Fessler and Burke (1988), Glatthorn (1984), G ~ i ~ k x m ~ ~
(1990), G e y and Burke (1989), and Levine (1989). Each of these authors
to individualizingprofessional development
presens models and
that are very supportive of the constructs presented in this chapter~
~and school
h
systems
~
~may want
l to ~examine their current practice
concepts set forth in the Teacher Greer Cyde Model.
uld policies in light
here to reinforce the traditional use of i-rvice or suffdevelopThere is
that emphasirc improving teacher skills, specially during the
merit
associated with the induction and competency-building
skill-building
stages and, to some extent, during the enthusiastic-and-growing stage- The
ideas presented bere also suggest a broadening of the notion of staffdevelopmerit
professional
to include concern for personal needs and problems of teachen. This might include support systems to assist teachers in dealing with family problems, chemical abuse, financial planning, and crisis
resolution. Larger school districts may want to consider internal employe
assistanceprograms for this purpose, while smaller districts c ~ u l explore
d
linkages with existing social service agencies.
In addition, organizational policies should be examined to find new and
teachers at various stages of their careers-Examples
creativeways of
could include more liberal sabbatical and leave-of-absen~policies, modifiof job assignments, job sharing, internal transfers, and other
dures that would give teachers the opportuniry to explore career alternatives
or pursue solutions to personal problems.
,
Finally, school systems must attempt to understand the linkaga between
teacher career stages and the organizationalenvironment. The leadenhip and
ofthe principal may be the single most imponant factor in
management
~
As indicated earlier, this model was developed through a process of model
building that emphasizes the need to continually feed new data back into the
Proms to confirm, refine, and, when needed, dramatically alter model cornPonents. For the researcher, the working model offers a framework for further analysis. Model constructs suggest interrelationships among complex
phenomena and hypothesy about additional relationships. For example, by
examining the model, research questions are raised concerning the relationship between specificpersonal and organizational environmental factors and
specificteacher career stages. Questions regarding appropriare incentivesand
S U P P O ~systems
~
can be tested using model components, as can specificstrataimed at moving (for example) a "stable" or "frustrated" teacher into a
more productive mode.
COMPARlSON TO VONK AND HUBERMAN MODELS
Although dmeloped independently, the models offered by \rank, Huberman, and Fessler and colleagues have similar orientations. While some of the
lvlguage and emphases vary, each addresses the unique characteristics and
needs of sly w e e r tea~h&~?&;acherswho are buildng
tachers who
are aperiencing fiusntion, and, eventually, teachers who leave or "disewgen
from their positions.
' k r e are paralleb as well regarding the dynamic, nonlinear approaches
to Carer stages presented in each model. The Huberman model (and to a lesser
extent the Vonk model) emphasizes pathways dong which teachers branch
off from previous st%= to one of several options (some more positive than
other-ee
Chapter 9 of this volume). While this
is not immediately evident in the Teacher Career Cyde Model, it is present in the form of
the emphasis p h d on its nonlinear nature and on the ebb and flow among
that results from personal and organizationalenvironmentalinfluen-,
190
Phases, Models, and Requisite Supports
The importance of environmental factors on career paths is noted in all three
models bur seems to have a higher profile in the Teacher C a r e r Cycle Model
because of its roots in social systems theory.
While some differences in structure and emphasis among the three models
are evident, h e y seem to complement one another quite well and, when viewed
in combination, provide a comprehensive picture of current thinking regarding the teacher career M e process.
SUMMARY
The TeacherCareer Cycle Model highlighted in h i s chapter reflects a
synthesis and integntion of the existing available data into an aplmation of
he" r d world'' of teacher careers. I t presents a series of structures that can be
further studied and developed. As suggested in the model-building process
described earlier (see Figure 8.1), it should not be viewed as fixed, but rather
dynvnic working explanation of the "real world" that must be subjected
to refinement and modiication as new bra are fed back into the pro=* Along
wi& the Vonk and Huberman models, the Teacher Career Cyde hiode1 0ffe1-s
a framework for viewing the complex proof teachers' carers and provides
implications for teacher growth and development.
,,
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dfCrmt
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,ting
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Professional Careers and
Professional Development
Some Intersections
MICHAEL HUBERMAN
This chapter is a modest attempt to grasp a vast topic: teachers' professional
lives and the relationship between that trajectory and the domain of professional development. The hypothesis is firly obvious: Teachers have different
aims and different dilemmas at various moments in their professional cyde,
and their desires to reach out for more information,knowledge, expertise and
technical competence will vary accordingly. Which moments are these?Which
external sources are sought out? Is there a generic mode of professional development that cuts across phases of the teaching career?
A core assumption here is that there will be commonalities among teachers in the sequencing of their professional lives and that one particular form
of profssional development may be appropriate to these shared sequences.
We shall be looping back to that issue throughout this chapter.
The text itself will be divided roughly into three parts. First, I shall review very briefly some of the recent paradigms of teachers' life-span development. Then I shall exffiict'EZim each some of the guideposts around which
professional developmentactivities could be tied. Finally, I shall devise a more
generic model of professional collaboration among teachers, however many
years of experience they have compiled.
THE PROFESSIONAL LIFE CYCLE OF TEACHERS AS A FIELD OF STUDY
Life-cycle research has been around since philosophers, historians, and
theologians have been studying lives. The more "scientific" study of lives,
however, has followed disciplinary tracks. For example, there is a clear psycho193

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