Context / probleemstelling of aanleiding

Probleemstelling (inclusief theoretische onderbouwing en onderzoeksvraag/vragen):
Health professions (HP) educators operate in complex and ever-changing environments within their field of expertise and their teaching practice, highlighting the importance of continuous professional development and adaptive performance. Adaptive performance, a key aspect of adaptive expertise, is shaped by the task, the individual, and the environment¹. Expert teachers dynamically adjust routines, supporting student learning in changing contexts². To foster this capability, teacher training programs should focus on developing adaptive performance instead of preparing for routine teaching situations. This research explored teachers’ perceptions of adaptive performance, how it develops, and required types of teaching situations. It also examined why situations are challenging and how teachers’ age or experience relates to adaptive performance.
Methode:
Through an exploratory semi-structured interview study, we compared perceptions of novice (n=18) and experienced (n=20) HP and university teachers regarding adaptive performance in teaching and its development and collected lived examples of situations requiring adaptive performance. Interview transcripts were thematically analyzed to identify common understandings and variations. Drawing on the collected examples and the researchers’ own teaching experience, 23 teaching situation statements were formulated. Next, using Q-sort workshops, 93 HP and university teachers first ranked these statements individually, from least to most challenging. Subsequently, participants discussed their rankings in small subgroups. Patterns in rankings were identified using Q-method software and Excel. Associations between patterns, age, and teaching experience were studied. Discussion transcripts were thematically analyzed to explore (underlying) arguments for certain rankings.
Resultaten (en conclusie):
Results showed that novice and experienced teachers shared similar perceptions of adaptive performance and its development. Both groups emphasized that “no teaching situation is the same, and you always need to adapt”. They associated adaptive performance with traits such as flexibility, creativity, openness, and situational awareness, and noted that adaptive performance develops through experience and reflection. When describing (challenging) situations that demand adaptive performance, starting teachers more often mentioned situations related to classroom management and their teaching content compared to experienced teachers, who shared more examples involving complex interactions with students or conflicts within student groups. Based on these interview results, we anticipated novice teachers to perceive challenging teaching situations differently from more experienced teachers. Results of the Q-sort ranking, however, suggest that statements’ perceived challenges do not appear to depend on age and/or experience. Situations tended to be seen as less challenging after they had been encountered once or twice. Across all participants, the most challenging situations were those affecting a safe learning environment, touching on personal values or standards, involving strong teacher responsibility, or limiting the teacher’s control.
Discussie (beschouwing resultaten en conclusie in het kader van de theorie):
Collected perceived characteristics for adaptive performance in teaching align with the literature on characteristics of adaptive expertise in general. The given examples show that teachers mark different situations as those in need of adaptive performance. Our key finding is that perceived challenging teaching situations are not linked to age or years of experience but to personal encounters and confidence. Therefore, teacher training programs should focus on individualized development options for teachers to practice and experiment with different types of teaching situations, combined with (guided) reflection on these teaching experiences.
Referenties:
Pelgrim, E., Hissink, E., Bus, L., van der Schaaf, M., Nieuwenhuis, L., van Tartwijk, J., & Kuijer-Siebelink, W. (2022). Professionals’ adaptive expertise and adaptive performance in educational and workplace settings: an overview of reviews. Advances in Health Sciences Education, 27(5), 1245-1263. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10459-022-10190-y
Van Tartwijk, J., Zwart, R. & Wubbels, T. (2017). Developing teachers’ competences with the focus on adaptive expertise in teaching. In The SAGE handbook of research on teacher education (Vol. 2, pp. 820-833). SAGE Publications Ltd, https://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781529716627