Cultivating teacher professionalism in Chinese and U.S. settings: contexts, standards, and personhood

Abstract

Our global era invites research on teacher reflection that is grounded in local contexts and enriched by cross-regional collaborations. Teacher professionalism is a shared global interest that is shaped by unique cultural factors in local settings. This study examines Chinese and U.S. undergraduate teacher education student views on the criteria for and standardised measures used to assess teacher professionalism. Data analyses of participant products, specifically group rubrics and individual reflections, involved constant comparative analyses to highlight convergent and divergent themes in student conceptions of teacher professionalism within and across the U.S. and Chinese university contexts. Findings demonstrate similarities and distinctions across participant views on the professional knowledge, skills, and dispositions involved in becoming a teacher, and reveals teacher professionalism as a dialectic among contexts, standards, and persons. Context distinguishes professional practice in ways that bring meaning and relevancy to local student needs. Standards provide a shared foundation for global discourse around key elements of a profession. Maintaining a person-centred view helps ensure assessment practices keep education’s broader civic goals central. Engaging in international dialogue on the meaning of teacher professionalism across regional cultures expanded understandings of professionalism, and how it may be fostered and evaluated more effectively in teacher education.