teachers' professional identity essay

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Research Article

The development and validation of the teacher professional identity scale in a Chinese university context

Roles Conceptualization, Data curation, Formal analysis, Funding acquisition, Methodology, Project administration, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing

* E-mail: [email protected]

Affiliations School of Foreign Languages, Chengdu Normal University, Chengdu, China, Centre for Southeast Asian Economic and Cultural Studies, Chengdu Normal University, Chengdu, China

Roles Data curation, Investigation, Resources, Software, Validation, Visualization, Writing – original draft

Affiliation Faculty of Languages and Linguistics, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

• Jie Zeng, 

• Published: March 6, 2024
• https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0293156
• Reader Comments

Professional identity has become a central topic in teacher education research and a crucial factor in shaping teachers’ self-perception and perspectives on various aspects of their profession, including teacher roles, scholarly research, curriculum design, classroom instruction, instructional methods, and strategies, as well as their interactions within the educational context. Despite the considerable scholarly interest in teacher identity development, relatively few studies have considered how to measure teacher professional identity. This study developed and validated a new measurement of professional identity among Chinese pre-service teachers from an English language education program. A total of 560 pre-service teachers majoring in English language education were invited to participate in a survey and 542 questionnaires were deemed valid and subjected to analysis. Through this analysis, a scale with 17 items was developed, focusing on three different dimensions: professional self-efficacy, career commitment, and professional knowledge. After excluding items with a relatively poor correlation with factor loading, the final scale consisted of 13 items. The results showed that the developed scale has relatively good reliability (α = 0.939) and structural validity (χ 2 /df = 2.46, p < .001, CFI = 0.978, TLI = 0.971, SRMR = 0.033, RMSEA (90% CI) = 0.071 0.054, 0.089). This study may provide a quantitative instrument for future research to measure professional identity among pre-service teachers, both in Chinese and other contexts.

Citation: Zeng J, Liu W (2024) The development and validation of the teacher professional identity scale in a Chinese university context. PLoS ONE 19(3): e0293156. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0293156

Editor: Zahra Masood Bhutta, National University of Modern Languages, PAKISTAN

Received: July 24, 2023; Accepted: October 6, 2023; Published: March 6, 2024

Copyright: © 2024 Zeng, Liu. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Data Availability: All relevant data are within the paper and its Supporting Information files.

Funding: This article was supported by the Doctoral Research Project Fund of Chengdu Normal University under the research project “A study on the international intelligibility and comprehensibility of oral English of college students of various ethnic groups in Southwest China” [ZZBS2021-08] and the Chengdu Normal University under the horizontal research project “A Study on English Pronunciation Training Techniques Based on Acoustic Phonetics Analysis” [2023HX34] in the form of grants to JZ. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript

Competing interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

1. Introduction

Over the past two decades, research on teacher professional identity (TPI) has mushroomed in the broad field of teacher education [ 1 ]. Previous studies have revealed the crucial role of teacher identity in professional development and training: the sense of TPI could considerably influence the beliefs and practices related to teaching [ 2 , 3 ]. Thus, facilitating PI can promote teacher development [ 4 ]. In this sense, a better understanding of TPI formation has theoretical and practical implications for teacher education research and professional development [ 5 – 7 ]. The literature on TPI has conceptualized it as a multifaceted process [ 5 , 6 ]. The formation of TPI is subject to social interactions across time and space, shaped by various factors, for instance, experience, self-image, agency, and context [ 4 ]. Due to this complexity, previous studies have mainly adopted qualitative methods such as ethnographies to investigate TPI formation [e.g., 5 , 7 – 9 ]. For example, Lopes and Pereira [ 3 ] relied on data collected from three sources [i.e., biographical narratives, documents, and interviews] at four points in time. This study has methodological merits in that multiple data sources were triangulated to explore identity formation among pre-service teachers. Similarly, Dimitrieska [ 10 ] used ethnographic methods of inquiry, such as interviews and observations, as a part of a case study research design. This study explored the interplay between teacher cognition and learning in forming teacher identity through the case analysis of a novice language instructor. However, most prior studies have employed qualitative research methods to examine specific elements that influence teacher identity. However, given the diverse range of factors that impact teacher identity, quantitative research can provide a means to measure and determine the most significant influencing factor. Furthermore, while there exists a substantial body of research pertaining to professional identity, limited attention has been given to the development of measurement tools for assessing teachers’ professional identity [ 11 ]. Moreover, the scarcity of studies examining the professional identity of novice instructors is particularly noteworthy. Considering China’s substantial teacher population, the establishment of specialized scales within the Chinese context holds significant research implications for the professional identity of teachers, the implementation of teacher education, and the creation of policies. Consequently, the primary objective of this study is to delve deeper into the professional identity of teachers. Furthermore, it aims to create and authenticate a novel measurement approach for assessing the professional identity of pre-service teachers in China.

2. Related literature

Both the personal and the contextual have been taken into consideration in recent studies on TPI [ 12 , 13 ]. Without contextual factors or professional backgrounds, there is neither a self nor a PI; rather, the self is created via the process of meaningful and complicated social interaction [ 14 ]. The fact that the concept is multifaceted further complicates the process of developing a teacher’s PI [ 7 , 14 ]. Despite this, given its significance, educational scholars have identified a range of characteristics that affect the development of a teacher’s PI, such as formal teacher preparation or field teaching experience [ 9 , 12 , 14 , 15 ].

Previously mentioned studies provided deep insights into teacher identity, however, most of such studies prefer qualitative approaches [e.g., 12 , 13 ]. Qualitative studies are not without limitations as they often require considerable time in data collection and analysis. This time-consuming nature constrains qualitative studies to a particular context and a relatively small sample of participants. In addition, the findings from qualitative research are not generalizable to a broader context, which makes the findings hardly comparable across studies. For the results of studies to be consistent, there is a need for quantitative studies that involve a large sample of participants across contexts. Studies of this type call for reliable instruments that allow data collection at a low cost. Questionnaires suit this particular need for convenience and low cost [ 16 ].

However, questionnaires have been lacking to measure teachers’ professional identity. The existing scales to measure professional identity are often related to other areas. For example, Bennett [ 17 ] utilized six different measures to measure the PI of newly graduated marketing students. The data collected in the study mainly comes from the students’ self-reported perceived membership to the profession (e.g., “I feel strongly that I am a member of the marketing profession.”) Tomlinson and Jackson [ 18 ] measured higher education majors’ emerging PI based on their responses to eight questions. These questionnaires were not assessed for their reliability and validity. In contrast, Tan et al. [ 19 ] developed and validated a professional identity scale with five factors. While they established the multi-dimensionality of the scale, the factorial structure and the interaction between the dimensions were not fully considered. Moreover, the scale is a general scale that measures the professional identity of college graduates. A scale that specifically measures the professional identity of preservice teachers is desired.

2.1 The contextual nature of professional identity

Researchers have argued that personal and contextual aspects should be considered when developing TPI scales [ 4 , 20 ]. Reynolds [ 21 ] highlights that a person’s identity as a teacher is significantly influenced by their surroundings, the expectations of others, and the degree to which they allow these factors to shape them. Moreover, research findings indicate that becoming a teacher involves more than identifying oneself as a teacher but also being recognized by others and identifying with the communities of practice [ 22 ]. Most studies on TPI focus mainly on the inward or private facet of identity building [ 4 , 23 ]. Since an individual’s personality traits are shaped by their social environment [ 24 ], the contextual factor merits attention in understanding identity development [ 4 ].

2.2 The Chinese context

The Chinese context is in striking contrast with the Western countries. In the first place, the social status of teachers has long been valued in Chinese society. For example, according to a recent survey by Dolton and Marcenaro [ 25 ], the social status of teachers is generally at the middle of the social rank among all the countries surveyed except China, Israel, and Brazil. Teachers in China were shown to be at the top of the social rank, whereas teachers in Israel and Brazil were at the bottom. It has also been indicated that teachers are more respected in China than in European countries and that about 50% of Chinese families support their family members to pursue a teaching career, compared to less than 8% of parents in Israel and Russia. It seems clear that an individual’s decision to pursue a teaching profession is subject to social culture and their parents’ opinions [ 26 ].

There are also practical considerations in pursuit of a teaching position. First, the teaching profession has been considered a stable and permanent job, especially for those in the public school system. Career stability and generous welfare benefits (often in those developed areas) attract thousands of university students to the job-seeking competition. The recent bleak job market makes teaching positions in public schools even more popular. Second, all children must receive an education. The teaching profession has become crucial in society [ 27 ]. Third, the public generally perceives the working environment for teachers as positive. Public school teachers are respected by students and their parents and have long summer and winter vacations. These discussions point to the presence of strong external influence on the decision to enter the teaching profession [ 28 ], which partly explains the growing number of students enrolled in the teacher education program [ 29 ].

Despite the strong influence of the social environment, it appears that Chinese students from teacher education programs do not necessarily take the teaching profession as their priority in career choice [ 9 ]. Student teachers may have a relatively weak commitment to teaching after they enter the teacher education program. The marked contrast between the external influence and the inward demotivation of Chinese student teachers raises the need to understand their professional identity development. However, few studies have considered the professional identity of pre-service teachers in the Chinese context.

The present study addresses this research gap by developing a scale of the professional identity of pre-service teachers in the Chinese context. The scale to be developed is expected to reflect the sociocultural difference [ 30 , 31 ]. The results of the study can further the line of inquiry into teacher professional identity [ 8 , 9 , 32 ].

3.1 Context and participants

The research was conducted in accordance with the Helsinki Declaration and the American Psychological Association (APA) code of ethics. The Academic Ethics Committee of the School of Foreign Languages at Chengdu Normal University approved the study (SFLRA-2022008). This study recruited adult college students from English education major at a public university in South-Western China beginning on October 15, 2022, and ending on December 15, 2022. This period corresponds to the commencement of classes in Chinese educational institutions, during which participants engage in third-year teaching theory and practice coursework and fourth-year practical training at their respective schools. This facilitates the centralization and convenience of data collection. Furthermore, the authenticity of the participants’ comments is enhanced by their presence in the genuine classroom setting. Participants were invited to participate in the questionnaire according to their own wishes and were informed of their right to withdraw from the study at any time. No personal information was disclosed before, during, or after this study. Students from an undergraduate program in English education at a public university in South-Western China were approached for the present study through purposeful sampling. All participants provided written informed consent before they decided to take part in this study. The program was intended to train English school teachers. The data participants in this study are comprised of all senior university students (n = 355) and juniors (n = 205) in the School of Foreign Languages at a Chinese university. On average, the participants were 21.1 years old. In accordance with research objective two, the investigation pertaining to data analysis employs the utilization of the structural equation model, which necessitates a somewhat substantial sample size of data, typically exceeding 500. To enhance the persuasiveness of the research findings, the researchers endeavor to maximize the data sample size by collecting a substantial number of samples. Ultimately, via the support of participants and their enthusiastic engagement, a cumulative count of 560 sample subjects was attained, which is excluding invalid responses (e.g., straight-lining). Furthermore, within the sample of 560 individuals, there were 502 females (almost ninety percent) and 58 males. The show of this gender ratio proves to be highly significant in the exploration of the professional identity of new teachers inside the Chinese educational framework. In the context of China, the teaching profession is widely seen as a secure and well-compensated vocation. Furthermore, it is noteworthy that teachers are granted numerous holidays, aligning with the societal norms in Chinese households that place an emphasis on women assuming the responsibility of familial caretaking. Furthermore, it is noteworthy that educators hold a significantly positive position within Chinese culture, with a considerable number of parents expressing a strong desire for their offspring to actively participate in the realm of education. The aforementioned factors have resulted in a discernible disparity in the male-to-female ratio within the teaching faculty in China. Representatively, the significant feedback from female pre-service teachers can be used to check the validation of the scales under investigation, especially in the Chinese context.

3.2 Instrument

This study draws on existing definitions and measures of professional identity. Various attempts have been made to define professional identity. For example, Ibarra [ 33 ] defined professional identity as “the relatively stable and enduring constellation of attributes, beliefs, values, motives, and experiences in terms of which people define themselves in a professional role” [p. 764]. Tan et al. [ 19 ] defined professional identity as “the self that has been developed with the commitment to perform competently and legitimately in the context of the profession” [p. 1505]. Tan conceptualized professional identity as having five dimensions: (1) Knowledge about professional practices, (2) Experience with the profession, (3) Having the professional as a role model, (4) Professional self-efficacy, and (5) Preference for a particular profession.

This study defines professional identity as the beliefs and values to perform in the context of a profession. The study has adapted the Professional Identity Five-Factor Scale developed by Tan et al. [ 19 ], which has been widely used in previous studies, especially in Chinese TPI research. This study includes two constructs from Tan et al. [ 19 ]: knowledge about a profession and professional self-efficacy. The construct of experience with the profession is more about factual information than perception, and having a role model is more of a predictor of PI than of itself [ 33 ], thus it is not suitable for measuring TPI of pre-service teachers because they lack experience in genuine teaching contexts. The construct of preference for a profession was not operationalized in a Likert scale format. Taking into account the particularity of China’s teacher education (e.g., the existence of both public and self-funded, primary and secondary school internships, matching education assistance to poor and remote areas, more than 2,000 years of teacher education culture, etc.) This study developed a new measure named professional commitment, which is claimed to be one of the most important elements in the professional identity of Chinese teachers in the academic circle of teacher identity research. Six items respectively were formulated to measure professional self-efficacy and professional commitment, and five were formulated for knowledge about the profession. These items were formulated based on existing items or definitions from the literature on professional identity. The scale initially consisted of 17 items.

The scale was included in a questionnaire along with a set of questions about the participants’ demographic information. The participants responded to the questions on a 5-point Likert scale.

3.3 Data collection and analysis

The questionnaire was administered to undergraduate students majoring in English education. The questionnaire was administered through an online platform. The link to the questionnaire was sent to students from the undergraduate program. The data were first screened to remove invalid responses (e.g., straight-lining). The dataset used for this study included 542 valid responses from pre-service teachers.

The scale development and validation were completed in four steps: (1) Split the data set into two samples; (2) Perform Principal Component Analysis (PCA) to establish the factor structure; (3) Select items for the scale; (4) Confirm the structure of the developed scale using Confirmatory Factor Analysis [CFA].

4.1 Step 1: Split the data

The data set was randomly split into two samples ( n = 271 and n = 289) using SPSS 17 (see Table 1 ). Sample 1 was used for item selection and factor structure examination, whereas Sample 2 was used to assess the validity and reliability of the resultant scale.

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4.2 Step 2: Establishing the factor structure

The items formulated for the scale were first examined for their correlations with their hypothesized dimensions. The items were examined based on a range of indices (i.e., Corrected Item-Total Correlation, Cronbach’s Alpha if Item Deleted, Communalities, and Factor loadings). Three items (i.e., KPP 5, PS6, and PC1) were removed from the item pool due to their relatively low correlation or factor loadings.

The dataset on the remaining 13 items was analyzed via Principal Component Analysis (PCA) with an oblique promax rotation. Promax was chosen because correlation was assumed among the three factors in the scale. Bartlett’s test of sphericity was significant, χ 2 (91) = 3381.60, p < .001, and therefore indicated that the items of the proposed scale are related and factor analysis would be a valuable method to pursue. The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy result (KMO = .941) further confirmed the suitability of the data for structure detection (KMO > .80; Field, 2005). In line with the theoretical model, which included three different dimensions: professional self-efficacy, career commitment, and professional knowledge, we decided to fix the number of factors to 3 in the extraction. The PCA analysis suggested that the scale’s factor structure was in line with the theoretical model, with most of the formulated items loaded into their hypothesized dimensions (see Table 2 ).

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0293156.t002

4.3 Step 3: Select items for the scale

Items that loaded into a dimension but were not initially formulated for that dimension were removed for inconsistency with theory. The factors of PS and KPP both included four items (i.e., PS1, PS2, PS3, PS4, and PS5 for PS, and KPP1, KPP2, KPP3, and KPP4 for KPP). While the results indicated that four items clustered for the factor of PC, the loadings of two factors (.735 for PC5 and .678 for PC2) were qualitatively lower than the other two (.959 for PC6 and .907 for PC3). The factor loadings of the final scale show that the 13 items selected for the TPI measurement are valid and reliable.

4.4 Step 4: Confirm the factor structure

Two CFA models were tested to confirm the construct validity. The first was a three-factor first-order CFA model. The results of this first-order CFA model showed acceptable model fit χ 2 (41) = 100.68; χ 2 /df = 2.46; p < .001; CFI = 0.978; TLI = 0.971; SRMR = 0.033; RMSEA (90% CI) = 0.071 [0.054, 0.089] (see Fig 1 ).

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0293156.g001

The second was a three-factor second-order model. The results showed that the second-order model had a relatively poorer model fix χ 2 (34) = 92.83; χ 2 /df = 2.730; p < .001; CFI = 0.976; TLI = 0.968; SRMR = 0.107; RMSEA (90% CI) = 0.077 [0.059, 0.096].

The statistics show that in the first-order and second-order models, their CFI > 0.9, TLI > 0.9, RMSEA < 0.08, which means that both CFA models have a high degree of fit. The SRMR of the first-order model is less than 0.05, while the SRMR of the second-order model is greater than 0.05. When comparing the values of the first-order model and the second-order model, it is obvious that the model fit reflected by the values of the first-order model is better than that of the second-order model.

5. Discussion

This study seeks to develop and validate a scale for professional identity development among pre-service teachers. Factor analysis showed that the scale has relatively good reliability and validity. This newly developed scale can serve as an instrument to measure professional identity for future teacher education and professional development research.

This study contributes new insights into the teacher professional identity research topic. Theoretically, first, it is one of the few studies that seek to develop a measure of pre-service teachers’ professional identity in the context of Chinese universities. While China is one of the top three contexts that receive research attention to teachers’ identities [ 34 ], a measure of teacher professional identity has been overdue in the past few decades. Given the sociocultural differences between Western countries and China, the scale developed in the Chinese context can better reflect the professional identity of pre-service teachers in the local context. Second, this study provides a reliable measure for future research on teacher professional identity. In addition to qualitative interviews and reflective journals, future research may solicit responses using a quantitative measure, which fills the gap of the research instrument. Multiple data sources can contribute more insights into the complicated phenomenon of teacher identity formation.

Practically, first, the scale can also be used in interventions or metacognitive instructions to raise teacher trainees’ awareness of professional identity. Besides, the scale has the potential to enhance the motivation of pre-service teachers to engage in the act of teaching. By utilizing the scale, pre-service teachers can engage in a comprehensive evaluation and examination of their personal perspectives and attitudes toward the educational landscape. This measure has the potential to enhance the Chinese teacher education system by facilitating the identification of educators who possess a genuine passion for the field of education, thus contributing to the overall improvement of teaching quality. Furthermore, the scale incorporates the distinctive context in which instructors in China operate. The integration of teacher education content with the findings derived from the scale and then adjusting some teacher training strategies can enhance the efficacy of teaching methodologies and tactics, which, in turn, train pre-service teachers with the necessary skills to effectively address the career challenges prevalent in China. In addition, the elements that influence the building of teacher identity, as shown in this scale, can be sensible for Chinese education policymakers. By recognizing certain factors, policymakers can better address the requirements of pre-service teachers and develop policies that are more rational and supportive in promoting the construction of teacher identity. Furthermore, the further update of education policy has the potential to enhance the level of satisfaction among pre-service teachers. This, in turn, can serve as a catalyst for enticing highly qualified graduates to pursue careers in the field of education and subsequently contribute to the retention of talented individuals within China’s educational sector.

6. Conclusion

China has the largest number of teachers of any country in the world. The teaching profession is highly attractive to college students, whether they are graduates of teaching schools or not. It is very important to develop a reasonable test scale based on both qualitative and quantitative research of TPI. As a supplement to the previous qualitative research on teacher identity, our study shows that theoretically, teacher identity is not limited to the subjective statements of pre-service teachers, but can also be measured by a specific scale, which provides a new theoretical approach for TPI research. The TPI scale developed and validated in this study may serve as an effective measurement tool used to assess and quantify the professional identity of pre-service teachers in the Chinese context. It also provides a structured and standardized instrument for measuring and understanding the beliefs, values, attitudes, and perceptions that pre-service teachers have about their professional role and identity. Cultivating pre-service teachers’ TPI according to the result of the scale test of this study may achieve the following effects:

• (1) Enhancing teacher professional development: The TPI scale can stimulate pre-service teachers’ willingness to teach and lead them to become qualified teachers. By offering a framework to evaluate and comprehend one’s PI, the scale may aid in the professional growth of teachers. It gives pre-service teachers the chance to consider their attitudes, values, and ideas about education, which can help them continue to develop as qualified teachers.
• (2) Improving teaching quality: Teaching methods and instructional approaches are directly influenced by a teacher’s PI. It is possible to pinpoint the distinctive components that influence TPI in China by creating a scale tailored to the local culture. The effectiveness of teaching and learning in the classroom can be improved by implementing focused professional development initiatives and programs that are in line with the unique needs and cultural characteristics of Chinese teachers.
• (3) Tailoring support and resources: A TPI scale may provide policymakers, educational institutions, and teacher preparation programs with information on the particular difficulties and needs of Chinese teachers. It enables the creation of specialized policies, resources, and support systems that are tailored to the requirements and goals of Chinese educators in terms of their careers. By doing this, it is made sure that the assistance offered fits with their identity, cultural beliefs, and educational environment.
• (4) Promoting teacher well-being: Teachers who are satisfied and feel well-cared for work better. Teachers’ motivation, work satisfaction, and general well-being all improve when they have a strong sense of their PI and feel appreciated in their field. The creation of a TPI scale can aid in determining the elements that contribute to teachers’ well-being, improving work satisfaction, and reducing burnout.
• (5) Promoting collaboration and networking: The TPI scale offers a common language and structure for teachers to engage in professional discourse, cooperation, and networking. It encourages pre-service teachers to share their expertise, intern experiences, and teaching methods so they may grow as professionals and learn from one another. The sharing of best practices, innovation, and professional development is encouraged in this cooperative atmosphere.

Using the current TPI scale, researchers, educators, and policymakers may be able to better understand the elements that influence teacher identity and how it affects instructional strategies, professional growth, and overall job satisfaction. By employing the scale, researchers and educators can quantitatively analyze the responses and produce data that can be used to shape professional development programs, inform policy decisions, and comprehend the connection between teacher identity and various outcomes, including teaching effectiveness, job satisfaction, and student achievement. In the meantime, it is worth noting that several scales might exist, as they are created by researchers and subject-matter specialists depending on their particular goals and research concerns. Compared with our scale, those scales may vary in the number of items, response options, and dimensions they assess, but the underlying goal remains to provide a standardized way of measuring TPI.

7. Research limitations

This study is not without limitations. First, the sample used for scale development was limited regarding the sample size and disciplines involved. Also, the sample included a predominant proportion of female respondents. A larger sample of pre-service teachers from various disciplines and institutions could help increase the generalizability of the findings across contexts. To enhance the applicability of future study outcomes across many contexts, it is recommended that future studies consider augmenting the sample size by including a larger cohort of preservice teachers from various disciplines and institutions. Furthermore, the acquisition of novel data can be facilitated by employing specialized techniques, including data translation, flipping, and zooming. In relation to the limitations imposed on teachers’ career choices based on gender, future research endeavors should adopt some measures to balance gender-related data, enhance the representation of male participants, and strive to achieve equilibrium in gender disparities. Second, the “Professional commitment” sub-scale now consists of two items. While it currently has relatively good reliability, it is not clear whether the reliability of the sub-scale is a result of the small number of indicators. New items are desirable for the sub-scale to increase its coverage and reliability. Various data sources, such as focus groups and in-depth interviews, can be exploited to develop new items and improve the theoretical constitutions of the scale. Finally, the concept of professional identity involves multiple dimensions. While this study has drawn on relevant literature and lengthy discussions with Chinese pre-service teachers, other aspects of professional identity could remain untouched. Future studies to refine this scale may administer this scale to a different sample of pre-service teachers and interview respondents with different levels of identity formation. Interview data makes it possible to identify hitherto unidentified aspects of teacher professional identity and factors determining teacher professional identity.

Supporting information

S1 file. minimal data set..

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0293156.s001

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MINI REVIEW article

On the role of teachers’ professional identity and well-being in their professional development.

• Faculty of Teacher Education, Pingdingshan University, Pingdingshan, China

In the former 20 years, professional identity has arisen as a different study domain in the area of language instruction and education. Educators’ professional identity frames educators’ explanation of their functions, academic changes, and alterations in syllabi, class exercises, utilization of approaches and strategies, and their connection to other problems in the academic setting. Also, well-being is one of the elements in which its influence and connection with identity are noted in various studies. However, their roles in professional development have not been examined; hence, this review of literature aimed to investigate the role of these constructs in professional development which is regarded as a noteworthy aspect of teacher quality. In a nutshell, some implications are proposed for the scholastic stakeholders.

Introduction

Within the past few decades, practitioners, scholars, and policymakers have increasingly focused on professional development (PD) and considered the reality that educators determine new necessities and criteria for the quality teaching system ( Živković, 2013 ). Indeed, PD refers to growing consciousness in educators about the way it works, the way they could enhance their work, their educational professionalization, and their overall education career ( Beara and Okanović, 2010 ). As a socio-cultural phenomenon, PD refers to a website wherein language educators can deepen pedagogical content material understanding and they can reform their professional identity (PI; Borg, 2017 ). Undoubtedly, educators utilized PD to educate themselves, reform working activities, think about professional identities and keep passionate about education. To be professionally developed teachers, it needs to take the presence of a series of the outer and inner state of affairs, while their PI should be at the center of attention ( Hanna et al., 2020 ). Indeed, taking the entity of a variety of outer and inner situations is needed for educators’ success and PD while focusing on educators’ PI entity ( Sharma and Pandher, 2018 ). Educators’ PI is an important field of research and a significant subject in the area of education, mainly for the past three decades that indicates a viewpoint toward a career and one’s professional function ( Wang et al., 2018 ; Derakhshan et al., 2020 ). Within the education field, PI is typically described as a group of perceptions and notions concerning how people consider themselves as educators and it refers to the fact that a person comprehends the effect and the significance of his job in the community that provides the mental basis for the influential execution of work and realizes the organizational objectives ( Zhang and Wang, 2018 ). Teachers’ PI is considered as a working record-based group of educators’ understanding of themselves as expert actors and it includes people’s contemporary professional interests, viewpoints on education and learners’ achievement, and potentialities in the future ( Sutherland et al., 2010 ). Developing PI can be attributed to internalizing information, competencies, viewpoints, professional values, and ethical standards that are then merged into individual personalities and manners in nursing teaching and activity ( Qiu et al., 2019 ). Taking part in the social and cultural activities of the educator society, they achieve identification as participants of the educator society, and step by step change from an outsider to an insider in the educators’ community ( Dahl, 2020 ). Consistent with Pillen et al. (2013) , educators could employ PI as an asset for justifying themselves and academic alterations and for informing their tasks and educational activities.

On the other hand, teachers’ competence principally is determined by their well-being which is the other mental component to be taken into account while assessing PI and professional commitment which is claimed to be crucially essential to each educator and the entire educational structure ( Lauermann and Konig, 2016 ). In agreement with the hypothesis of Positive Psychology (PP), well-being is regarded as a multi-faceted factor, whose predictors are personal, mental, and societal well-being ( Wang et al., 2021 ). It is known to have a vital role in the quality of educators’ lives, learners’ well-being, and the steadiness of educational organizations ( Wang et al., 2021 ). Similarly, Strauser et al. (2008) reported that well-being is a concept that greatly influences the PD cycle, and in this way, as mental well-being elevates, job-relevant stress is reduced, and the PD cycle becomes more successful. It should be mentioned that this causal relationship is true in both ways. Namely, PI influences well-being and the other way around as there is a dynamic connection between identity and well-being. Identity is scrutinized regarding the interplay of three cycles: commitment, in-depth examination, and adjustment of commitment ( Crocetti et al., 2008 ). A teacher’s PI and their sense of competence are crucially involved in determining the commitment they have to their careers, which also links with their sense of identity and, consequently, well-being ( Skinner et al., 2021 ). As stated by Mofrad (2016) , teaching is both a matter of implementing a decontextualized set of abilities and knowledge and a dynamic cycle dependent on the educators’ particular attributes and contextual elements. As numerous contextual elements have a function in the progress of PD, it appears to be a requirement to examine the constructs that affect this process. Moreover, based on the researcher’s knowledge, there is a lack of review of literature in this domain that takes the PP issues and teachers’ PI together. Hence, investigating the PI of educators and other crucial elements, such as their well-being are prominent aspects of this review.

Review of Literature

Teacher professional development.

The notion of educator PD idea has been developed and modified to encompass real execution of information and competencies in educator activities and ultimately, enhancement of the learners’ learning ( Darling-Hammond et al., 2017 ). The educators’ PD is the formal and informal uptake of learning visions that expand and deepen educators’ professional skills, encompassing information, incentive, and self-regulating competencies ( Richter et al., 2011 ). Similarly, Avalos (2011) emphasized that learning, assistance, and cooperation are vital factors in specifying the achievement of PD. The educators’ growth and professional learning pertain to the growth and improvement of educator knowledge resulting in the modification of their activities to enhance learners’ learning ( Opfer and Pedder, 2011 ).

Professional Identity

Professional identity is described as a group of understandings and notions concerning how people consider themselves as educators ( Fejes and Köpsén, 2014 ). The educator’s PI means the educators’ picture of themselves and recognizing that they belong to the group of professional educators ( Li and Qiu, 2016 ). An educator’s PI also includes peoples’ professional favorites, objectives, values, and ideas ( Ruohotie-Lyhty and Moate, 2016 ). Moreover, Van Veen and Sleegers (2009) presented a more extensive image of factors regarding the educators’ PI, specifying career incentives, central tasks, self-respect ideas about education, the topic of education, and education as work. Furthermore, Professional commitment shapes an essential factor of educators’ PI. Professional commitment is described as the integration of educators’ professional favorites, central values, desires, identifications, and perspectives in their significant functions ( Tao and Gao, 2017 ). Importantly, identity is described by peoples’ subjective mental experience, instead of several concepts of goal facts of the “real self” ( Vignoles et al., 2006 ). People can build their social or work identities based on the role from dimensions of their career or their institute because PI is people’s image of themselves, particularly the group of ideas, values, reasons, and experiences that individuals employ to describe themselves in their career potential ( Slay and Smith, 2011 ).

Well-being is a notion that describes peoples’ individual constructive professional experience, and it includes five eudemonic dimensions, such as relational skill at work, development at work, the feeling of capability, discerned appreciation at work, and a desire for participating at work ( Wang et al., 2021 ). Educators’ well-being is a constructive emotional situation caused through a balance among the amplitude of specific contextual factors, personal requests, and expectations considering the school ( Engels et al., 2004 ). Studying well-being was in two mechanisms, subjective well-being and mental well-being which are, respectively, assessed by hedonic and eudemonic methods. Contrary to the hedonic viewpoint, the eudaimonic addresses human struggling that is featured as a psychosocial growth that consists of success and proper links, feeling competent and decisive, and admitting that life is important and deliberate and emphasizes seriousness along with satisfaction ( Diener et al., 2010 ). PP aims at flourishing and alludes to well-being by employing high degrees of PERMA in life. It indicates constructive feelings, involvement with activities that take into account peoples’ strengths, enhancing positive individual rapport, figuring out the meaning by aiding a motive beyond oneself, and specifying elements of success and achievement ( Seligman, 2018 ). By this version, well-being comes from the positivity relations in all these factors which refer to the eudemonic perspective of wellbeing ( Mercer and Gregersen, 2020 ).

Empirical Studies

Jue and Ha (2018) examined the professional identity, job commitment, and well-being of art therapy learners in comparison with those of psychology learners. The results of their study through correlation displayed that professional identity is consistent with job commitment and well-being. Indeed, they concluded that these three concepts are significant for the identification of art therapy graduate learners’ PD. Moreover, Stenberg (2011) tries to promote student trainers’ PD with the support of identity work that refers to replicating not only individual but also practiced skills. The findings concluded the four diverse techniques of working with identities, each of them illuminating diverse facets of and methods to identity work and it is indicated that identity work has a significant relation with PD.

Since education knowledge is the core of educators’ teaching so knowing about the educators and their personalities is crucial in comprehending the procedure of education ( Varghese et al., 2005 ) and PD. For an instance, identity is an effective element of educators’ commitment, pleasure, and incentive in changing instructional, political, and social settings wherein they act and it is an effective path to apprehend the activity and the way educators decide in the process of performing activities in the PD ( Enyedy et al., 2005 ). As a result, educators’ PD must be formulated in close association with a quest of PI by how they characterize themselves and others. It is a development of the professional I, which develops throughout their profession and might be affected by the school, political changes, and contexts, and it is founded on individuals’ commitment, the presence to learn and instruct principles, and information on the topics they teach and how they teach them, their former experiences and professional helplessness. Furthermore, it influences their PD and assists them with managing academic alterations, bringing innovation and well-being into the class, and being creative in their teaching practice.

An educator’s PI, attained and intermediated through communications with others, is greatly included in well-being. The commitment educators have to their job also interweaves with their sense of identity and thus their well-being ( Skinner et al., 2021 ). Moreover, educators’ well-being offers factors of fulfillment among educators; therefore, it would also be linked to how educators feel regarding the supporting factors in the school setting. With the consciousness of the knowledge and abilities, they have mastered through PD exercises, in addition to the help attained from associations (achieved through identity aspects), educators are prone to be more successful in their instructing career. Individuals with a strong PI usually take pride in their careers and attain development and self-realization through their careers. Moreover, such a strong PI is greatly connected with personal well-being in the PD ( Jue and Ha, 2018 ). Regarding the importance of identity in PD and depending on how educators observe themselves and want to be observed by others, their teaching identities in their teaching circumstances should be developed through communication with other co-workers, pupils, supervisors, and the teaching approaches and materials that can be done through PD activities.

Implications and Suggestions for Further Research

It can be inferred that learning PI is important since educators’ discernments of their own PI influence their PD and their capability and inclination to manage academic alteration and to apply innovations in their own instructing practice. Educators possess their peculiar reasoning of the syllabus plans and their particular strategies of instructing that are fastened to their identities; therefore, comprehending educators’ identities is required for high-standard mastering of the career in a continuous paradigm of academic change. Also because of the intricacies of identity, educator trainers in higher education organizations should pay more attention to educators’ identity deeply. By taking time for in-service educators to become aware of their own identities, and their suggestions, and offering space for individual contemplation, it might be possible to make identities more logical to unanticipated changes. In other words, a consciousness of identities might have a significant function to improve educators’ ownership of identities in their professional trajectories because numerous elements make contributions to educators’ belief of their PI which includes education, teaching, job setting, years of working experience, and so on, thus, further research should be accomplished to consider them to help shaping educators’ PI. In theoretical works, it is comprehensively acknowledged that educators’ identity is a critical aspect of their progress so investigating educators’ PI has remarkable applications for educational program reforming, class education, and learner learning. This review has feasible suggestions for those working with teachers in educator training and PD throughout their professions.

Author Contributions

The author confirms being the sole contributor of this work and has approved it for publication.

Conflict of Interest

The author declares that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher’s Note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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Keywords : teachers’ professional identity, professional development, well-being, education, academic

Citation: Zhao Q (2022) On the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity and Well-Being in Their Professional Development. Front. Psychol. 13:913708. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.913708

Received: 06 April 2022; Accepted: 25 April 2022; Published: 26 May 2022.

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Copyright © 2022 Zhao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) . The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

*Correspondence: Qian Zhao, [email protected]

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

UC Berkeley

Exploring the Complexity of Teacher Professional Identity

• Hsieh, Betina
• Advisor(s): Freedman, Sarah W

This dissertation is based on a case study of 8 beginning English teachers who participated in a collaborative inquiry group at an urban, comprehensive, high school in the San Francisco Bay Area. Qualitative data (including audio-transcribed meeting data, individual interview data, and classroom observations) were collected over two school years, with a follow-up interview about teacher professional identity conducted in the school year following the dissolution of the inquiry group. The study utilizes a theoretical framework grounded in notions of agency, power and discourse as critical elements in the social construction of identity to examine how the focal teachers construct and enact a teacher professional identity in their early careers. Teacher professional identity is defined as the beliefs, values, and commitments an individual holds toward being a teacher (as distinct from another professional) and being a particular type of teacher (e.g. an urban teacher, a beginning teacher, a good teacher, an English teacher, etc.)

The data indicated three types of factors that were important to focal teachers in establishing their early professional identities. The first type was individual factors such as personal experiences as students and pre-professional teaching experiences. A second group included practice-based or classroom-related factors such as subject matter, curriculum, instructional planning, and classroom based goals. Finally, the third type was connected with external discourses related to teaching and learning. These discourses came from theory, policy, contexts in which teachers were embedded and from collegial or expert models of practice.

While all three types of factors were important to the focal group of teachers, individual teachers were oriented toward a particular set of factors over others in the construction of their professional identities. The orientation of teachers had consequences for their classroom practice as well as their sense of what it meant to be a teacher professional. The teacher who emphasized individual factors, constructing his teacher professional identity around a personal image of teaching, was described as an individually-oriented teacher. Teachers who emphasized classroom practice as the focal aspect of their identities were considered classroom-oriented teachers. Teachers who approached their classroom practice and professional decision making with a clear sense of external discourses related to teaching and learning and a sense that they might affect these discourses through their professional practice were called dialogically-oriented teachers. Dialogically-oriented teachers were the only group of teachers able to articulate both their classroom practice and the thinking which was underlying their choices as teachers.

The collaborative inquiry group was embedded in a parent program which advocated a dialogically-oriented approach to teacher professionalism. Group meetings were structured to promote such a stance toward professional identity. The data indicated that there was a predominance of dialogically-based interactions within inquiry group meetings; however, in examining these interactions more closely, teachers' individual professional identity orientation connected closely with the focus and nature of their participation in the inquiry group. Further, although classroom-oriented and individually-oriented teachers engaged in various forms of dialogic interaction within meetings, these types of interaction did not seem characteristic of their self-descriptions of their own teacher professional identities.

Implications of the study include: the importance of advocating a stance toward teaching as a profession; investing in teacher education programs which promote a dialogically-oriented stance toward teaching; exploring the expansion of university-based partnerships between the pre-service and induction phases of teacher education; promoting increased dialogue between K-12 teachers and educational researchers and encouraging a broader audience for educational research, particularly research focused on teaching and learning.

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Teacher’s Identity Development Through Reflection

The aim of a person’s professional development is a gradual awareness of one’s own personality, professional and life activity and its planning and perfection, readiness to analyse oneself and find a personally significant meaning in a particular professional activity that defines and forms a person's professional identity. In today's world, the key to successful professional activity is a strong development of self-identity. As reflection makes human actions more meaningful, raises awareness and suggests changes in attitudes, behaviours, actions in individual and professional contexts throughout life, the aim of this study is to reveal how Latvian teachers, working in different educational institutions and with several years of pedagogical experience, understand the essence of teacher’s professional identity by analysing their past, present and future teaching practices. The teaching experience of research participants – 80 Master’s students of Liepaja University, study programme General Education Teacher, are summarized applying a thematic analysis method, which allows to determine the factors influencing one’s own identity, sources of experience, weaknesses, ways for overcoming the obstacles, and specificity of the teacher’s identity. The research questions deal with teachers’ self-reflection, self-perception as educators, and professional activities that shape their professional identity. The research results describe teachers' reflections on their pedagogical activities, revealing several professional identity perfection dimensions, such as social responsibility, attitude change, search for alternative solutions, assessment of progress, and others.

Keywords: Reflection , self-conception , teacher’s experience , teacher’s professional identity

Introduction

Reflection is a key to learning and also to formation of one’s identity. It is a strategic instrument that leads to understanding the professional I-concept, allows using different reflection frameworks allowing analyzing one’s own pedagogical activity, giving opportunity to work independently ( Avraamidou, 2014 ; Brooks, 2016 ; Davey, 2013 ; Mikelsone & Odina, 2016 ).

Globalization of education and personal experiences contribute to modernization of the teacher’s profession, mobility, new values and methods and effects of commercialization and privatization ( Arber et al., 2014 ; Luk-Fong, 2013 ; Ospina, & Medina, 2020 ). The changing policies demand adjustment to the new vision, accountability, management and effectiveness ( Edwards & Edwards, 2017 ). Meanwhile, the teachers can either have faith and hope in the reforms proposed, or oppose them – undoubtedly it will affect the learning outcomes as well as reflection and professional identity; moreover, at the same time teachers as agents of innovations should be loyal to the schools, children and authorities ( Bower & Parsons, 2016 ; Buchanan, 2015 ). Every generation of teachers re-introduces the following questions: what kind of teacher am I; how can I be a ‘good’ teacher; what is the teacher’s scope of responsibility; how can I assess the quality of education. These questions are directly linked to reflection ( Bukor, 2015 ). As Dewey ( 2012 ) has stated: “We do not learn from experience – we learn from the reflection on experience” (p. 35).

The teacher’s professional identity and status have to be defined by the teachers themselves. It is usually difficult to measure the long-term impact of any teaching. Davey ( 2013 ) suggests that the identity of a teachers’ educator is even more complex, and the self-understanding of identity is rooted in reflections, which are, indeed, very common when it comes to the goals and dispositions of teacher’s profession. The historical, economic and political context of a particular country must always be taken into the account ( Bates et al., 2011 ). When developing the individual approach to professional identity, it is important to respect also its wider context. It can take place through listening to oneself, writing and re-storying, but imaging and revisioning is also possible.

Hanna et al. ( 2019 ) have developed an overview of quantitative identity measurement methods and have summarized them under six domains, such as self-image, motivation, commitment, self-efficacy, task perception, and job satisfaction. In another study, the same authors ( Hanna et al., 2020 ) consider the teacher’s identity as a second-order construct (deconstructed into motivation, self-image, self-efficacy, and task perception), and they use through learning, teaching, practicing and autobiographical reports, interviews and observations quantitative and qualitative approaches allowing a factorial design experiment. Although diverse identity theories use different terminology, they usually support solid and strong, emotional and enthusiastic teachers, and speak about role anticipation, occupational values, and feelings of intrinsic satisfaction ( Hanna et al., 2020 ). Another important instrument for exploring teacher’s professional identity is a narrative analysis, which enables understanding of the teacher’s unique multifaceted personality, never applying the existing solutions in the same way, but inventing new ones every day; narrating helps self-positioning and understanding of the ongoing events ( Sultman & Brown, 2019 ; Taylor, 2017 ).

Discourses, longitudinal and life-history studies are instrumental for strengthening teacher’s identity. The personal narratives of teachers, revealed during the teaching, learning, autobiographical reports, interviews and observations reveal the essence and specifics of professional identity, which are essential for teacher’s profession. Also, metaphors are recognized as efficient tools for developing teacher’s professional identity ( Erickson & Pinnegar, 2017 ; Mikelsone & Odina, 2016 ).

Teachers’ interactions are often filled with tensions, and they become aware of the necessity to look at themselves through a critical lens and rebuild their identity while evolving as human beings ( Jenlink, 2014 ). Unfortunately, many early career teachers drop out, and this is often related, among other factors, to their personal identity, which must be supported, reinforced and acknowledged ( Johnson et al., 2015 ; McIntyre & Hobson, 2016 ). Becoming a teacher and continuing to keep up with self-development is a never-ending activity ( Olsen, 2016 ).

The issues of teacher’s identity formation and reflection in the context of Latvia are explored by Silova et al. ( 2010 ); there are studies dedicated to formation of Latvian music and language teachers’ identity ( Fernández & Manuel, 2010 ; Ivanova & Skara-Mincāne, 2016 ). As Mikelsone et al. ( 2014 ) suggests, the self-awareness in teacher’s profession is growing, although the society does not always support the teachers.

Problem Statement

In the times of change the teaching requires new vision. Changes in education system create changes for teachers’ professional activity, as well as identity. The role of teachers has changed; therefore teachers must constantly work on their self-development. Often teachers professionalize and commercialize their work in order to survive these changes, but reflection remains crucial for developing this new professional identity. In other words, changes in education bring on changes in teacher’s work and professional identity, and this can take place through reflection.

Research Questions

The research questions deal with teachers’ self-perception as educators, self-reflection, and professional activities that shape their professional identity. The research questions are:

• What are the main concerns of teachers in Latvia?
• What experience influences teacher’s professional identity?

Purpose of the Study

The goal of this study is to gather and present the ongoing processes related to the Latvian teachers’ understanding of the development of their professional identity through self-reflection. The obtained results help to understand the teacher’s identity within its development.

Research Methods

The data for this phenomenological research study was gathered from analyzing focus group discussions and participants’ essays employing content analysis method. The participants of this qualitative study are 80 Liepaja University Master’s level students, practicing teachers, mostly women (3 men), aged from 23 to 65, working in different parts of Latvia – in big cities, small towns and villages, teaching the regular curriculum, afterschool activities, and different disciplines from pre-primary to higher education levels including life-long education sector. In the process they participated in pair and group discussions, performed video-analysis of their own work and work of others, discussed the content of books, articles and episodes of films. Then they presented short sketches on themes borrowed from everyday events of teaching practice. Later, they wrote essays about their professional career and reflected upon their understanding of teacher’s identity. While perfecting their own professional knowledge, teachers had to retrospectively reflect upon the gains and losses, as well as compare their experience on various stages of professional development working in diverse fields and in various circumstances. They also demonstrated the assessment methods they use in everyday teaching encounters and engaged in the role-plays.

The answers are coded and grouped around the key themes, generalizing ideas and supporting the selected points through the excerpts from the essays. The data will be summarized in following sections: Self-perception of what it means to be a good teacher, Self-perception of teacher’s professional identity, Sources of experience for development of teacher’s professional identity, The factors hindering the development of teacher’s professional identity, The impact of the school environment on teacher’s professional identity, and finally some practical remarks related to teacher’s professional identity, employing teacher’s professional identity components described by Rivilla and Mata ( 2009 ). The obtained results help to understand the teacher’s identity within its development.

According to Rivilla and Mata ( 2009 ), the teacher’s professional identity is formed by 1) knowledge about profession, 2) professional knowledge of how to be a teacher, which includes attitude, morals, professional values; 3) involvement in pedagogic activity, and 4) practice - to know how to act professionally. The results help to understand the teacher’s identity within its development. The research data shows that teachers mostly link their understanding about professional identity with professional knowledge of how to be a teacher or examples of good practice. They rarely talk about their own involvement in pedagogical activities, although it can be sensed when they describe their satisfaction with work and their ideals. When characterizing oneself as a teacher, the respondents tend to describe more the real self – how I perceive myself, and less the reflective self - how I am perceived by others, and the ideal self – how I want to be in the future ( Horney, 2013 ). From 80 respondents, 50 were focusing on the real self.

Further we will illustrate the findings with ideas and quotes from focus discussions and essays written by the respondents reflecting of teacher’s professional identity.

Self-perception of what it means to be a good teacher

For children a teacher is the important Other who differs from their family members but collaborates with them as well as with colleagues. According to the respondents, it is not fair if the child considers the teacher as his/her second mother (or father). The teacher must be tough and nice at the same time, should have authority, and the children should listen to him/her and obey. Pupils feel who loves them and who enjoys being with them. They recognize the value of justice and equality of treatment.

Everybody, and especially teachers, must learn new things all the time because everything around is changing so fast. Teachers can learn from their pupils and pupils’ parents, from colleagues, courses, books, films, etc. When discussing a problem, they learn from a spectrum of opinions and become richer and more flexible than before. Teachers should be ready to detect the specificity of every child’s learning process, to encourage and motivate him/her to overcome the obstacles. Therefore, one should never say that he/she knows how to teach or how to solve a difficult issue, but to continue acquiring new knowledge about the essence of human development.

Questions make pupils think. Photographs taken by the teacher are more interesting than those downloaded from the Internet. Personal views and stories stimulate more than texts from the textbooks. Whenever it is possible, the connection to literature, drama, and improvisation should be established. When children attend school with joy and willingness to learn, it is a success.

Good teaching is comprehensive, systematic, based on humane principles and sustainable development, broad and versatile, without borders, specific, focused on meaningful understanding of the material, which is pragmatically applicable in the future. Self-confidence hatches when a professional is confident in the teaching material, and thus he/she earns respect from the students. The best educators have a charisma, they are confident, they do not need to “buy” attention from the class, they do not concede to provocations, and they work with all pupils.

“As a teacher I do not just want to be a person who helps others (children, teenagers and adults) to obtain some new knowledge, I want to give to my disciples professional skills and to prepare them for their future, to promote their self-development, both physically and mentally, as well as to teach self-evident life skills. I want to be an example for my students helping to find the right way in everything – polite manners, behavior in society. I want them to be interested in education, improve their knowledge, and promote their self-growth and to help them to achieve their goals reaching them as fast as possible. I want to be like a friend to my students, so they feel free to come to me and tell me what is suppressing them, or explain things they don’t understand. Therefore, it is important that children communicate with their peers and adults, not just be with themselves.”

The outer image of the teacher must be calm, self-confident, polite, and emotionally intelligent, but the communication style should be firm, peaceful and friendly. “The strongest teachers were those who put their pupils ‘in place’ but manage to do that gently and without threats.” Teachers should keep the record of everything they do in class and be accountable for their actions because children are watching, judging, copying, imitating, generalizing, or rejecting the world around them.

In participants view, a teacher is not just a profession; teacher is a supportive friend, a trustful and attentive person. Students must realize that they are learning for themselves and for their own future, and the teachers should be aware of the pace in which they demonstrate this road. Moreover, teachers must show how the goals can be achieved and how the knowledge is acquired, so that pupils can organize these processes themselves. Visualization and self-employment are important part of bootstrapping.

Self-perception of teacher’s professional identity

The data analysis shows that often teachers link their self-perception with their memories from the time they were pupils at school. About their past teachers speak with emotions, but often generalizing and not providing particular substantiations and facts. It can be explained with unwillingness to talk about themselves, but others, for example, by saying that “dutiful pupils gained more from school than the rebels who constantly expressed their opinion”.

Several respondents admitted that not all of their educators have been good, but with some they had positive relations. The need for communication in the pedagogical process is acknowledged also for development of self-identity. Respondents stress that the chance to talk and discuss, not only to acquire knowledge, was appreciated. They liked teachers who were interested in their students and who gave positive feedback. Good teachers adjusted their assessment criteria to the interests and abilities of students; they changed along with the new generation and new instruction tools, striving to attain quality, to respect children, to promote their well-being in the society and to love their job. Their inner motivation stimulated the growth of their students, leading to the achievement.

Teachers must be tolerant towards innovations. The participants point out that every teacher has many roles, and a novice educator must try to build simultaneously multiple connections, acquire ways of self-regulation and control over the events. There are no ready-made formulas; open-mindedness, adaptability, endurance, and readiness to try out innovations help a person to evolve as a teacher. Textbooks are not enough; the university gives only guidelines, yet, teachers continue to learn, otherwise they risk becoming boring and using outdated methods. Teachers’ curiosity never ends, as well as their desire to show the joy of discovery to other people.

“I think I am fortunate that the teaching process has gone smoothly. It is probably due to being a dad myself and being an assistant coach for some time. Since I was not associated with the school at the beginning of my teaching career …, it was other teachers who encouraged me to move forward. My family and friends, who often said - I need to become a teacher, also provided a valuable support and encouragement. Of course, before starting my teaching, I studied in-depth various sources and watched different videos about conducting classes in schools. Prior education also played an important role, providing me with the theoretical insights into social interaction, communication, work groups and more.”

Teachers should meticulously observe pupils during all their activities, discovering new ideas, understanding what is going on and comparing already established views to the reality. Teachers need a sense of humor, but also they need to understand the peculiarities of the developmental stage – thus the teachers must be careful when choosing and telling jokes. They give to their audience at least as much as they had once received themselves. “If the teacher has lost his/her pedagogical conviction, he/she has to walk away from this work. No child will benefit from a teacher who does not understand what his/her own job motivation is”.

Sources of experience for development of teacher’s professional identity

The very first childhood encounters relationships in the family, educational institutions and in the playground may reveal the type of personality. Childhood experiences are often transferred to one’s career, as well as role-plays to the profession. Many children like to play ‘schools’, they try out teacher-pupil roles, developing empathy, cooperation skills – skills needed for the teachers. Later, the childhood experiences gain a new quality. Very often, the best students start their pedagogical careers already during their studies: when they succeed in learning, they are involved into teaching as assistants to the main teacher. Moreover, students explain to each other how to solve problems and discuss various subjects. The teachers who treat their pupils with respect continue to be the role models for their former pupils.

It is important that different pedagogic methods and approaches are utilized to avoid uniformity. Despite of old or new teaching methods applied, the teacher’s personality, his/her manners and the language that he/she uses is more important. Another methodological question remains: which teaching is more effective – the one that tries to teach everything to everyone and prepare the pupils for the final examinations or the one that steers up curiosity and fun? The participants mostly endorsed the second approach but could suggest only a couple of cases when it really was implemented.

It is a privilege to be born in a teacher’s family. When growing up, interesting dialogues take place at home. Discussions with one’s own parents, sharing of knowledge, observations of their behavior and explanations they give become an important investment. It is useful to watch educational videos, workshops, blogs and webinars on certain topics. When some tips and hints are needed for solving complex situations, one can start chatting to those who are in the same field to get the clues, ideas and instructions, most of which can be implemented immediately.

Teachers’ own children make them to understand what the teaching means, especially if one has a child whose health is not perfect. A lot can be learnt from the colleagues when they exchange memories of all the that they have had as novice teachers. It helps to take the videos of lessons and watch them alone or in a group analyzing what was successful and what need improvement. Some books, movies and Internet resources may open new horizons.

The factors hindering the development of teacher’s professional identity

According to the respondents, many good initiatives stumble upon limited time, absence of wisdom, deficient willpower. A poor skilled teacher is not able to make decisions, has no compassion, cannot admit errors or refuses to explain them. Such teacher has no ability to notice every pupil’s individual capacities and to engage with pupils in in-depth conversations. The teacher must work with the pupils towards their growth, protecting and nourishing their abilities and their minds.

It shows lack of professional mastery, which manifests itself in lack of methodical knowledge ( Rivilla & Mata, 2009 ). A weak teacher is inconsistent and incoherent, he/she promises and forgets, gives too much of useless homework, punishes and praises without explanation, shouts when children do not listen to, and is simply too lazy to search for new information or to do something outside of his/her obligations. The absence of pedagogical skills manifests itself in handling serious cases, showing helplessness in front of the class. Thus, the obstacles for professional teaching are the lack of academic knowledge and poor understanding of organizational culture.

The learning communities can be oriented towards gossiping and not self-development. It is tricky to work in a small town where people know each other and keep gossiping about everyone. Additional challenge is to work at a school where one of your parents is a teacher and all others know everything about your family; or to work in a school where you studied yourself. The difference between the levels and quality of education that the teachers received before in the same educational establishment can also cause mutual disagreements.

“I think it is important to work on the motivation of pupils, the development of self-motivation, because motivated pupils feel the need for quality education. I am aware that there are many gaps in our education system, and pupils must learn things that later will not be applicable. Neither the assessment system is friendly to them. I've had a lot of tough moments in my life. My hard life experience as a child allows me to understand other children. In the past, my way of thinking was similar to many others. It was easier to see the bad things around than to weigh the situation and act. For self-improvement, I try to attend different courses in which I learn to understand the pupils. I have improved my own way of thinking because I believe that the change in education starts with the teacher. I also read unconventional literature that expands my thinking. In order to be a good educator, one does not need to read purely pedagogical literature. There is also a need to read what children are reading today, because it helps to understand the pupils, as well as address the inner child in yourself”.

Impact of the school environment on teacher’s professional identity

Educational establishment is a place for innovations. Besides, the school must feel like a confident and comfortable space where a common life takes place for the children and teachers. Even if we know some stories about the others, we should every person as individuals. When a class functions like a team and the school is like a second home, the synergy of many souls achieves the best results.

The classroom environment influences the degree of involvement and successful learning. It is much easier for a subject teacher to have his/her own classroom arranged in a way that the children may learn from the environment. A clean, bright, good, informative, joyful atmosphere helps promoting the progress. Too much decorations, games, posters restrict freedom. Structured purposeful teaching aims to lighten the burden of everyday planning; with the help of reflection it is possible to organize the process, to set the rules, to develop the content, to decorate the everyday routine, to liven up the imagination, and to relieve the load of work.

Some practical remarks related to teacher’s professional identity

All parties involved in the pedagogical process must be aware of their rights, obligations, and responsibilities. All parts in the teaching process must contribute to the development of a suitable, confident, and engaging atmosphere. An effective teacher-student interaction is built upon a constructive dialogue. Teachers must look through the students’ eyes in order to solve the problems and find answers. Some teachers are guides, and some are leaders, but all of them must stand for justice and morality and not give up. The initiative of the teacher takes diverse forms (e.g., events) corresponding to different aims. Teachers should seek for interaction with a wider society, cooperate with diverse stakeholders, and not be afraid to get feedback whenever they can.

Novice educators spend a lot of time preparing each lesson hoping that later, when the process becomes familiar and materials are ready, everything will run effortlessly. Flexibility must be squarely equipped. The teacher must constantly follow what happens in the world, in other countries and cultures, as it is beneficial when organizing debates, quizzes, games. “The educator develops his/her personality through nonbinding activities like music, sport, travel, visits of cultural events and, of course, reading, and teacher must be prepared for everything”.

The appropriate body language is important, the feelings must be handled, and emerging problems discussed. The speech of some teachers is too monotonous. Many have problems with their voice and must take care of it; they must also learn how to alternate it. Educational process can also be emotionally draining and therefore requests control over the feelings. Educators must switch from the classroom teaching to their life at home remembering that those who live with them are not their students.

Teachers are people who want to improve the society, who try to be the best they can be: “I love my work; I love the pupils I work with and I hope we can do better together in our surrounding world. The result will come slowly, but it will be worth it!”

“A teacher should not only be a, who serves the people by doing his/her job. A teacher should be an exampleto his/her students, a person in whose footsteps the students would gladly walk”. Improvisation allows the teacher not to stick to the prepared plan but to adjust it anew to the current setting. Still, “it seems that the longer you work at school, the less you know how to do the job”. A self-assessment should be supplemented by valid proofs and evidence. Satisfaction comes when the job is also the hobby.

The teachers who follow a different paradigm struggle to change their point of view.

According to the respondents, communication awakens the thought, thus, it is important that teachers understand the students and. Respondents often idealize the teacher and believe that this ideal can be reached – although randomly, not always and not by everybody. They realize that all the time the students want something new, ambitious, fascinating and exciting, something that would bring joy and significance into the subject teaching. The research participants are against the dullness. This can be viewed as exaggerated statement, because the pupils must also learn to cope with boring things, they must acquire the ability to find activities for themselves and must learn to see some beneficial and practical sides also in the dull situations they encounter.

The teachers learn from their colleagues, students, encounters, and other sources; this is immanent to the profession, although not easy to grasp. Paradoxically, they tend to be conservative but at the same time emphasize the innovative methods; and they do not trust the textbooks too much. A positive, inspiring attitude helps to overcome the difficulties; it stimulates the “ability to smile, joke, and search for opportunities and not for excuses”.

Applying self-reflection, teachers can better understand themselves, develop their pedagogical identity and their teaching methods. The reactions of students help to analyze what was a failure and what can be a success. Many who suffered from their teachers in their childhood can now comprehend their students better.

All participants highlighted the ability of the teachers to have authority and to maintain the discipline. At the same time, they supported the idea of making everybody feel special and of practicing democracy. Not surprisingly, the pupils like active, attractive, interesting and creative lessons the most. Nowadays, the teachers are especially exposed to the criticism and therefore must be brave enough to face the frustrations. It does not mean that the teachers must reject all the comments but that they are obliged to integrate their advanced experience into curriculum.

Teachers confess that they like children, and pedagogy for them is more satisfying than commerce. It seems that all of them want to be great and passionate teachers – teachers in a unique manner; nobody wants just to fulfill the standards. The relationships between students, parents and educators must be developed on the grounds of reciprocal empathy, recognition of rights, fair play, and awareness of emotional impact. The educators must abandon some of their persisting stereotypes and superstitions and evolve into self-confident persons; they are on the way to competence-based approach, ready to accept challenges and invest in the development of the reformed system. The teachers must reflect upon their own skills and find out what their strengths and weaknesses are, and the pupils should do the same. The teachers help their students to develop their own identity, understand the beauty of learning, and to acquire knowledge, competences, and values. Everyone has several teachers behind, and the best reward is when the students make progress and are grateful.

For reflection to be fruitful, it is important to change the way of thinking and attitude. First of all, it is important to understand and accept the reflection as a value, to develop ability to observe, describe and analyse events and activities, search for alternatives. Reflection allows seeing clearer one’s own achievements and growth has well as growth of the students. Reflection and search for teacher’s professional identity go hand in hand.

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Protassova, E., Mikelsone, I., & Latsone, L. (2021). Teacher’s Identity Development Through Reflection. In A. G. Shirin, M. V. Zvyaglova, O. A. Fikhtner, E. Y. Ignateva, & N. A. Shaydorova (Eds.), Education in a Changing World: Global Challenges and National Priorities, vol 114. European Proceedings of Social and Behavioural Sciences (pp. 67-77). European Publisher. https://doi.org/10.15405/epsbs.2021.07.02.9

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On the Role of Teachers’ Professional Identity and Well-Being in Their Professional Development

In the former 20 years, professional identity has arisen as a different study domain in the area of language instruction and education. Educators’ professional identity frames educators’ explanation of their functions, academic changes, and alterations in syllabi, class exercises, utilization of approaches and strategies, and their connection to other problems in the academic setting. Also, well-being is one of the elements in which its influence and connection with identity are noted in various studies. However, their roles in professional development have not been examined; hence, this review of literature aimed to investigate the role of these constructs in professional development which is regarded as a noteworthy aspect of teacher quality. In a nutshell, some implications are proposed for the scholastic stakeholders.

Introduction

Within the past few decades, practitioners, scholars, and policymakers have increasingly focused on professional development (PD) and considered the reality that educators determine new necessities and criteria for the quality teaching system ( Živković, 2013 ). Indeed, PD refers to growing consciousness in educators about the way it works, the way they could enhance their work, their educational professionalization, and their overall education career ( Beara and Okanović, 2010 ). As a socio-cultural phenomenon, PD refers to a website wherein language educators can deepen pedagogical content material understanding and they can reform their professional identity (PI; Borg, 2017 ). Undoubtedly, educators utilized PD to educate themselves, reform working activities, think about professional identities and keep passionate about education. To be professionally developed teachers, it needs to take the presence of a series of the outer and inner state of affairs, while their PI should be at the center of attention ( Hanna et al., 2020 ). Indeed, taking the entity of a variety of outer and inner situations is needed for educators’ success and PD while focusing on educators’ PI entity ( Sharma and Pandher, 2018 ). Educators’ PI is an important field of research and a significant subject in the area of education, mainly for the past three decades that indicates a viewpoint toward a career and one’s professional function ( Wang et al., 2018 ; Derakhshan et al., 2020 ). Within the education field, PI is typically described as a group of perceptions and notions concerning how people consider themselves as educators and it refers to the fact that a person comprehends the effect and the significance of his job in the community that provides the mental basis for the influential execution of work and realizes the organizational objectives ( Zhang and Wang, 2018 ). Teachers’ PI is considered as a working record-based group of educators’ understanding of themselves as expert actors and it includes people’s contemporary professional interests, viewpoints on education and learners’ achievement, and potentialities in the future ( Sutherland et al., 2010 ). Developing PI can be attributed to internalizing information, competencies, viewpoints, professional values, and ethical standards that are then merged into individual personalities and manners in nursing teaching and activity ( Qiu et al., 2019 ). Taking part in the social and cultural activities of the educator society, they achieve identification as participants of the educator society, and step by step change from an outsider to an insider in the educators’ community ( Dahl, 2020 ). Consistent with Pillen et al. (2013) , educators could employ PI as an asset for justifying themselves and academic alterations and for informing their tasks and educational activities.

On the other hand, teachers’ competence principally is determined by their well-being which is the other mental component to be taken into account while assessing PI and professional commitment which is claimed to be crucially essential to each educator and the entire educational structure ( Lauermann and Konig, 2016 ). In agreement with the hypothesis of Positive Psychology (PP), well-being is regarded as a multi-faceted factor, whose predictors are personal, mental, and societal well-being ( Wang et al., 2021 ). It is known to have a vital role in the quality of educators’ lives, learners’ well-being, and the steadiness of educational organizations ( Wang et al., 2021 ). Similarly, Strauser et al. (2008) reported that well-being is a concept that greatly influences the PD cycle, and in this way, as mental well-being elevates, job-relevant stress is reduced, and the PD cycle becomes more successful. It should be mentioned that this causal relationship is true in both ways. Namely, PI influences well-being and the other way around as there is a dynamic connection between identity and well-being. Identity is scrutinized regarding the interplay of three cycles: commitment, in-depth examination, and adjustment of commitment ( Crocetti et al., 2008 ). A teacher’s PI and their sense of competence are crucially involved in determining the commitment they have to their careers, which also links with their sense of identity and, consequently, well-being ( Skinner et al., 2021 ). As stated by Mofrad (2016) , teaching is both a matter of implementing a decontextualized set of abilities and knowledge and a dynamic cycle dependent on the educators’ particular attributes and contextual elements. As numerous contextual elements have a function in the progress of PD, it appears to be a requirement to examine the constructs that affect this process. Moreover, based on the researcher’s knowledge, there is a lack of review of literature in this domain that takes the PP issues and teachers’ PI together. Hence, investigating the PI of educators and other crucial elements, such as their well-being are prominent aspects of this review.

Review of Literature

Teacher professional development.

The notion of educator PD idea has been developed and modified to encompass real execution of information and competencies in educator activities and ultimately, enhancement of the learners’ learning ( Darling-Hammond et al., 2017 ). The educators’ PD is the formal and informal uptake of learning visions that expand and deepen educators’ professional skills, encompassing information, incentive, and self-regulating competencies ( Richter et al., 2011 ). Similarly, Avalos (2011) emphasized that learning, assistance, and cooperation are vital factors in specifying the achievement of PD. The educators’ growth and professional learning pertain to the growth and improvement of educator knowledge resulting in the modification of their activities to enhance learners’ learning ( Opfer and Pedder, 2011 ).

Professional Identity

Professional identity is described as a group of understandings and notions concerning how people consider themselves as educators ( Fejes and Köpsén, 2014 ). The educator’s PI means the educators’ picture of themselves and recognizing that they belong to the group of professional educators ( Li and Qiu, 2016 ). An educator’s PI also includes peoples’ professional favorites, objectives, values, and ideas ( Ruohotie-Lyhty and Moate, 2016 ). Moreover, Van Veen and Sleegers (2009) presented a more extensive image of factors regarding the educators’ PI, specifying career incentives, central tasks, self-respect ideas about education, the topic of education, and education as work. Furthermore, Professional commitment shapes an essential factor of educators’ PI. Professional commitment is described as the integration of educators’ professional favorites, central values, desires, identifications, and perspectives in their significant functions ( Tao and Gao, 2017 ). Importantly, identity is described by peoples’ subjective mental experience, instead of several concepts of goal facts of the “real self” ( Vignoles et al., 2006 ). People can build their social or work identities based on the role from dimensions of their career or their institute because PI is people’s image of themselves, particularly the group of ideas, values, reasons, and experiences that individuals employ to describe themselves in their career potential ( Slay and Smith, 2011 ).

Well-being is a notion that describes peoples’ individual constructive professional experience, and it includes five eudemonic dimensions, such as relational skill at work, development at work, the feeling of capability, discerned appreciation at work, and a desire for participating at work ( Wang et al., 2021 ). Educators’ well-being is a constructive emotional situation caused through a balance among the amplitude of specific contextual factors, personal requests, and expectations considering the school ( Engels et al., 2004 ). Studying well-being was in two mechanisms, subjective well-being and mental well-being which are, respectively, assessed by hedonic and eudemonic methods. Contrary to the hedonic viewpoint, the eudaimonic addresses human struggling that is featured as a psychosocial growth that consists of success and proper links, feeling competent and decisive, and admitting that life is important and deliberate and emphasizes seriousness along with satisfaction ( Diener et al., 2010 ). PP aims at flourishing and alludes to well-being by employing high degrees of PERMA in life. It indicates constructive feelings, involvement with activities that take into account peoples’ strengths, enhancing positive individual rapport, figuring out the meaning by aiding a motive beyond oneself, and specifying elements of success and achievement ( Seligman, 2018 ). By this version, well-being comes from the positivity relations in all these factors which refer to the eudemonic perspective of wellbeing ( Mercer and Gregersen, 2020 ).

Empirical Studies

Jue and Ha (2018) examined the professional identity, job commitment, and well-being of art therapy learners in comparison with those of psychology learners. The results of their study through correlation displayed that professional identity is consistent with job commitment and well-being. Indeed, they concluded that these three concepts are significant for the identification of art therapy graduate learners’ PD. Moreover, Stenberg (2011) tries to promote student trainers’ PD with the support of identity work that refers to replicating not only individual but also practiced skills. The findings concluded the four diverse techniques of working with identities, each of them illuminating diverse facets of and methods to identity work and it is indicated that identity work has a significant relation with PD.

Since education knowledge is the core of educators’ teaching so knowing about the educators and their personalities is crucial in comprehending the procedure of education ( Varghese et al., 2005 ) and PD. For an instance, identity is an effective element of educators’ commitment, pleasure, and incentive in changing instructional, political, and social settings wherein they act and it is an effective path to apprehend the activity and the way educators decide in the process of performing activities in the PD ( Enyedy et al., 2005 ). As a result, educators’ PD must be formulated in close association with a quest of PI by how they characterize themselves and others. It is a development of the professional I, which develops throughout their profession and might be affected by the school, political changes, and contexts, and it is founded on individuals’ commitment, the presence to learn and instruct principles, and information on the topics they teach and how they teach them, their former experiences and professional helplessness. Furthermore, it influences their PD and assists them with managing academic alterations, bringing innovation and well-being into the class, and being creative in their teaching practice.

An educator’s PI, attained and intermediated through communications with others, is greatly included in well-being. The commitment educators have to their job also interweaves with their sense of identity and thus their well-being ( Skinner et al., 2021 ). Moreover, educators’ well-being offers factors of fulfillment among educators; therefore, it would also be linked to how educators feel regarding the supporting factors in the school setting. With the consciousness of the knowledge and abilities, they have mastered through PD exercises, in addition to the help attained from associations (achieved through identity aspects), educators are prone to be more successful in their instructing career. Individuals with a strong PI usually take pride in their careers and attain development and self-realization through their careers. Moreover, such a strong PI is greatly connected with personal well-being in the PD ( Jue and Ha, 2018 ). Regarding the importance of identity in PD and depending on how educators observe themselves and want to be observed by others, their teaching identities in their teaching circumstances should be developed through communication with other co-workers, pupils, supervisors, and the teaching approaches and materials that can be done through PD activities.

Implications and Suggestions for Further Research

It can be inferred that learning PI is important since educators’ discernments of their own PI influence their PD and their capability and inclination to manage academic alteration and to apply innovations in their own instructing practice. Educators possess their peculiar reasoning of the syllabus plans and their particular strategies of instructing that are fastened to their identities; therefore, comprehending educators’ identities is required for high-standard mastering of the career in a continuous paradigm of academic change. Also because of the intricacies of identity, educator trainers in higher education organizations should pay more attention to educators’ identity deeply. By taking time for in-service educators to become aware of their own identities, and their suggestions, and offering space for individual contemplation, it might be possible to make identities more logical to unanticipated changes. In other words, a consciousness of identities might have a significant function to improve educators’ ownership of identities in their professional trajectories because numerous elements make contributions to educators’ belief of their PI which includes education, teaching, job setting, years of working experience, and so on, thus, further research should be accomplished to consider them to help shaping educators’ PI. In theoretical works, it is comprehensively acknowledged that educators’ identity is a critical aspect of their progress so investigating educators’ PI has remarkable applications for educational program reforming, class education, and learner learning. This review has feasible suggestions for those working with teachers in educator training and PD throughout their professions.

Author Contributions

The author confirms being the sole contributor of this work and has approved it for publication.

Conflict of Interest

The author declares that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

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Analysis of Error Mechanisms of Vibrating Gyroscopes Operating in a Slowly Changing Environment 2024-01-5044

This study presents the constructed electromechanical model and the analysis of the obtained nonlinear systems. An algorithm for compensating the nonlinear drift of a gyroscope in a microelectromechanical system is proposed. Tests were carried out on a precision rotating base, with the angular velocity changing as per the program. Bench testing the gyroscope confirmed the results, which were also supported by the parameter calibration. The analytical method was further validated through experimental results, and a correction algorithm for the mathematical model was developed based on the test results. After calibration and adjusting the gyroscope’s systematic flaws, the disparity in calculating the precession angle was within 1/100th of an angular second over an interval of approximately 1000 s. Currently, research is underway on the new nonlinear dynamic characteristics of electrostatically controlled microstructures. The results of the integrated navigation system of small satellites, which successfully passed bench tests, are presented.

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