Search results for "collective agency"
showing 4 items of 4 documents
Collective agency and the concept of ‘public’ in public involvement: A practice-oriented analysis
2016
Background Public involvement activities are promoted as measures for ensuring good governance in challenging fields, such as biomedical research and innovation. Proponents of public involvement activities include individual researchers as well as non-governmental and governmental organizations. However, the concept of ‘public’ in public involvement deserves more attention by researchers because it is not purely theoretical: it has important practical functions in the guidance, evaluation and translation of public involvement activities. Discussion This article focuses on collective agency as one property a public as a small group of participants in a public involvement activity could exhib…
Collective Agency-Promoting Leadership in Finnish Teacher Education
2018
Globally, there is a political and social consensus that teacher education is a key priority for the twenty-first century. However, studies have so far paid little attention to a crucial issue, namely, leadership in teacher education. This chapter contributes to discussion on transforming teacher education practices by focusing on leadership practices in a particular Finnish teacher education department. Adopting a subject-centred sociocultural approach, we elaborate the main challenges, insights, and lessons learned, as perceived by the four leaders of the department, in efforts to move towards more innovative and collaborative practices. We argue that teacher education leaders currently r…
Teacher educators' collective professional agency and identity : Transforming marginality to strength
2017
Abstract This study investigated teacher educators' collective professional agency and identity within an identity coaching programme. The participants in the programme were teacher educators from the field of arts and crafts education. Through a shared process involving increased trust and togetherness, the teacher educators became empowered in terms of their collective identity and agency. The study points to the importance of addressing individual narratives and learning pathways in seeking to understand emergent collective agency and identity in professional contexts. Our theoretical contribution includes an advanced understanding of collective identity and agency, and of their close re…
EFL Teacher Education in Finland : Manifestations of Professional Agency in Teacher Educators’ Work
2020
English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teacher educators play a key role in the development of university-based teacher education and the preparation of preservice EFL teachers. However, the professional agency of EFL teacher educators in developing their work remains understudied. Employing a Vygotskian sociocultural theoretical perspective, this research considers the individual and collective professional agency of eight EFL teacher educators at two Finnish universities. Findings demonstrate that individual professional agency is enacted in the expression of professional identity and the development of professional relationships, and in offering and receiving professional assistance. Findin…