The practicum in pre-service teacher education programs, whether in the form of field experience, student teaching, clinical teaching, or mentoring programs, typically constitutes the longest and most intensive exposure to the teaching profession experienced by prospective teachers. In the practicum, pre-service teachers are normally placed under the guidance of a mentor, supervisory teachers, or supervisors from a university/college of education. Graham and Thornley (2000), explicate that this is the typical training structure that provides both theoretical studies in the teacher education programs and hands-on experience on the school premises. Teaching practicums can contribute to pre-service teachers’ professional development, especially in terms of professional identity construction (Zhu et al. 2018). According to Hascher (2004), for pre-service teachers, the teaching practicum becomes their first experience to gain pedagogical skills and knowledge as well as professional competence as a teacher. This is because the fundamental purpose of practicum experiences is to provide opportunities to familiarize pre-service teachers with the responsibilities of future teaching, construct pedagogical repertoires, and form professional identities (Lawson et al. 2015).

Pre-service teachers in Institutes of Teacher Education (ITE) in Malaysia under the Bachelor of Teaching Degree are required to complete a component known as the School-Based Experience before going on to their teaching practicum phases. The School-Based Experience (SBE1 and SBE 2) which is carried out for two weeks is more focused on school management and administration. The course encompasses aspects of examining the curriculum, student affairs, co-curriculum, and community as well as education policies. The main purpose of the SBE is to provide the pre-service teachers the opportunity to understand the function of schools as educational institutes and the teachers’ roles in the classrooms. At the end of the two-week placement in schools, the pre-service teachers would be required to submit a portfolio and a written reflection as part of the assessment for this course. As a teacher-educator in one of the ITE campuses in the state, I had eight pre-service teachers who are currently in their first year under my supervision during the first SBE. They have all successfully completed the SBE and have just handed in their two assessment tasks. As a teacher educator and a curious researcher, I was very interested in the thoughts and feelings of my eight student-teachers as they navigated through the SBE as this was the first real experience for all of them in actual schools and classrooms. More specifically I wanted to explore the concept of teacher metaphors and how they viewed themselves as teachers after having undergone two weeks of being “teachers”. 

There are a substantial number of studies in the area of the metaphors that teachers use to reveal their self-understandings  (Hunt, 1987; Miller & Fredericks, 1988). Metaphors represent teachers’ understanding of teaching and conceptions of themselves as teachers. This view is based, in part, upon the belief that metaphor is the primary means by which humans come to terms with experience (Pajak, 1986). Metaphors offer us a unique way of portraying the world by helping us to frame the meaning of the human experience. The essence of metaphor is “understanding and experiencing one kind of thing in terms of another,” with something more familiar, concrete and visible (Lakoff & Johnson, 1980, p. 5; Zhao & Huang, 2008) In this article, I used the teaching metaphor as a way to encapsulate my pre-service teachers’ experiences in terms of how they conceptualized themselves as teachers after the SBE. The following excerpts are some of the teaching metaphors my student-teachers identified themselves as and the reasons they felt this way:

Narrative 1 (Ell’s Story) : I think of myself as a sculptor

“My identity as a teacher would definitely be as a sculptor. During my School-Based Experience, I noticed that all students desperately need teachers to guide them and give them the best knowledge. It is the job of us to provide them with knowledge. At first, they might be unfamiliar or misunderstood by the topic, but as we go along, we can guide them until they understand. This is why I consider my teacher identity as a sculptor, we start with a big piece of rock, sculpturing it until it’s more refined and taking shape. This is why I consider myself a sculptor. Although this note is cute, it has some errors in the spelling. It’s necessary for us to give the students the correct knowledge. Hehehe. All in all, the experience during my SBE is quite extraordinary and worthwhile. The students makes me feel loved and welcomed!”

Narrative 2 (Shazzie’s Story) : I think of myself as a “big hug” for my students

“In my personal belief, I see teachers as embodying the metaphorical image of a “big hug.” This notion resonates deeply with me, as I have witnessed this beautiful metaphor come to life through the teachers I’ve encountered throughout my SBE. Allow me to paint a vivid picture of this metaphorical realm. Within this realm, teachers transcend their conventional roles as mere instructors. They elevate themselves, adorning a cape woven from threads of kindness, compassion, and empathy. They step forward as “big huggers,” embracing their students’ lives with open arms and hearts that overflow with understanding. In their presence, students receive more than just knowledge; they find solace within a sanctuary of security and profound comprehension. The classroom or literally the school itself turns into a refuge – a safe place where the worries and fears dissipate allowing smiles to bloom like a flower in the spring”.

Narrative 3 (Fazzy’s Story) : I think of myself as a “trial and error” teacher 

“I believe this illustration is the closest depiction of my own teacher’s identity that I have come to perceive during the School-Based Experience (SBE). The reason for this is because the illustration above portrays a somewhat chaotic everyday morning routine with the egg shells scattered around the stove – not thrown in the rubbish can, the messy pots dangling on the wall, and the soup, eggs, and water being boiled and cooked all simultaneously capable of showing a chaotic life. I believe that I am a rather messy teacher – not because of my appearance, but because of the inner turmoil that I constantly feel during the SBE. One most valuable thing I have learned is the life of a teacher is not easy at all. Teaching is one part of the job, but not all. There are so many overlooked job scopes of this profession. For example, having to deal with the parents’ commotion, keeping up with the expectations from different parties, and the never-ending workload. That is why I am a ‘trial-and-error’ teacher because I am still learning. Thankfully the SBE has shown me the reality of what to really expect as a future teacher. I hope to have a better teacher identity in the future but for now, I will stick with this identity”

Narrative 4 (Eddie’s Story) : I think of myself as water 

“I’m a person who is easily overwhelmed by many things, including people. However, during my School-Based Experience, I managed to overcome that issue when facing crowds of pupils because I needed to be functional to complete my SBE. Just like water, we need to adapt to any shape and form when we enter a situation. Staying in your current form when it does not benefit you will get you nowhere unless you go with the flow and change to suit the conditions. I feel like the picture really showcases my identity as a teacher since we, as educators, need to be able to adapt and overcome many things whether they be physical, emotional, or mental challenges since we need to do our job and educate the future generation”.

The  “voices” above are those of young teachers-still-in-training just beginning to make their foray into the teaching profession. Whilst they have a long way to go in developing their professional identities as the teachers they intend to become, practical experiences such as these could help in shaping those identities. What needs to be done in shaping those identities however, could include articulation of their thoughts, feelings, and emotions through the use of teaching metaphors as the premise behind this methodology is that by examining the metaphors that human beings use in describing their experiences and beliefs, people can begin to uncover meanings beneath those directly and consciously (Lakoff & Johnson, 1980)

References

Deng, L., Zhu, G., Li, G., Xu, Z., Rutter, A., & Rivera, H. (2018). Student teachers’ emotions, dilemmas, and professional identity formation amid the teaching practicums. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 27, 441-453.

Graham, S., & Thornley, C. (2000). Connecting classrooms in pre-service education: Conversations for learning. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 28(3), 235-245.

Hascher*, T., Cocard, Y., & Moser, P. (2004). Forget about theory—practice is all? Student teachers’ learning in practicum. Teachers and teaching, 10(6), 623-637.

Hongqin, Z., & Jianbin, H. (2008). Interpreting metaphor in use by Mandarin teachers of English. Polyglossia, 15, 1-9.

Hunt, D. E. (1987). Beginning with ourselves in practice, theory, and human affairs. Cambridge, MA. Brookline Books

Lakoff, G., & Johnson, M. (1980). Metaphors we live by. Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press.

Lawson, T., Çakmak, M., Gündüz, M., & Busher, H. (2015). Research on teaching practicum–a systematic review. European journal of teacher education, 38(3), 392-407.

Miller, S. I., & Fredericks, M. (1988). Uses of metaphor: A qualitative case study. Internation Journal of Qualitative Studies in Education, 1(3), 263-272.

Pajak, E. F.. 1986. Psychoanalysis, teaching, and supervision. Journal of Curriculum and Supervision, 1, 122-131.

Written by Shubashini Suppiah