The ethics of care and the professional identity of teachers: implications for professionalization processes

ABSTRACT

This work reviews the approach of the ethics of care in education and analyzes how the foundations of this ethicality contribute to the dialogical construction of teachers’ professional identity (attribution, projection, development and transformation). Professional identity is questioned when care is considered an epistemological and ethical approach to educational relationships, thereby encouraging reflection on the interactive components of identity (projection, disposition, worldview and action plans) and on the meaning of professional competence. This reflection produces transversal implications for teacher professionalization processes, which in turn results in the identification of training devices such as narratives, conversations and reflective and operational practices that help to turn the identity and the moral work of teaching into the central topic.

KEYWORDS:

• Care
• ethics
• professional identity
• professionalization
• teachers

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Vice-Rectorate for Science Policy of University of Zaragoza under Grant Project 262131.

Notes on contributors

Alfredo Berbegal Vázquez

Alfredo Berbegal Vázquez holds a PhD in Education Sciences, a degree in Psychopedagogy, is a qualified teacher specializing in Music Education and holds a master’s degree in Philosophy. He is an Associate Professor at the University of Zaragoza in the area of Research Methods and Diagnosis in Education of the Department of Education Sciences and a member of the ETNOEDU research group. His main lines of research include epistemology of complexity, education, well-being and quality of life, and educational counselling. His most recent contributions focus on higher education counselling, through the prism of lifelong learning. Educational innovation, as regards its implications for teaching-learning processes at the university level, is an ongoing line of his work, which he complements with other outreach activities. The quality of training of education professionals forms the backbone of his research.

Abel Merino Orozco

Abel Merino Orozco holds a PhD in Education from the University of Zaragoza, a degree in Psychopedagogy, is a qualified teacher specializing in Physical Education and is a graduate in Psychology. He is an Assistant Professor of Evolutionary Psychology and Education in the Department of Education Sciences at the University of Burgos and a member of the ETNOEDU research group. His main lines of research include pedagogical and psychological processes in school sport, educational counselling and academic tutoring. His teaching interests include subjects that delve into the educational relationship, educational counselling, developmental psychology and education, assessment and task analysis. In parallel, he has taken regular part in educational innovation projects on academic tutoring and university teaching in particular, as well as producing a number of articles and conference papers and participating in international visits as a teaching and research scholar. He has worked as a university lecturer since 2013 and as an educational counsellor at a school for six years.

Ana Arraiz Pérez

Ana Arraiz Pérez holds a PhD in Education Sciences. She is an associate professor at the University of Zaragoza in the area of Research Methods and Diagnosis in Education of the Department of Education Sciences and a member of the ETNOEDU research group. Her main lines of research include educational counselling in connection with assessment and tutoring, especially from a socio-constructivist perspective, and educational research into utility as a basic scientific criterion. Her most recent methodological contributions include the development of narrative methods, and higher education counselling is a field of particular interest for her. Educational innovation, as regards authentic assessment and its implications for teaching-learning processes at the university level, is an ongoing line of her work, which she complements with other institutional assessment processes and outreach activities. The current challenges facing higher education in promoting quality training actions among teachers are the driving force behind her work.

Fernando Sabirón Sierra

Fernando Sabirón Sierra holds a PhD in Education Sciences. He is an Associate Professor at the University of Zaragoza in the area of Research Methods and Diagnosis in Education of the Department of Education Sciences. He is the lead researcher of the ETNOEDU research group. His main lines of research include educational counselling in connection with assessment and tutoring, especially based on socio-educational assessment in its various spheres and forms, and educational research into utility as a basic scientific criterion. His most recent methodological contributions include the development of narrative methods, as well as the application of references from the epistemology of complexity in educational research and innovation projects. He complements this work with other institutional assessment processes and outreach activities. His work emphasizes improving the quality of lifelong training in all educational settings.