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This thesis reports on a practitioner research project aimed at developing the resilience of pre-service teachers of mathematics. Developing teacher resilience involves the process of employing strategies to meet both daily and exceptional demands of the teaching profession in a given context through developing five aspects of resilience, namely: professional, motivational, emotional, social and physical. Relationships between teachers’ resilience and teacher retention have been well established; however, less is known about practical strategies which can strengthen teacher resilience. This research was conducted in two phases in which the first phase focused on assessing perceptions of resilience and phase two focused on implementing interventions to develop resilience among 25 pre-service teachers of mathematics attending one initial teacher education programme. Data were collected over both phases. Qualitative surveys were used in phase one to explore participants’ perception of a resilient mathematics teacher. The participants’ conceptualisations were compared with previous research and theory-based literature on teacher resilience, and directions for interventions were identified. Phase two involved implementation of the interventions. Quantitative questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and observations were carried out during phase two to assess the impact of the interventions and to modify interventions as well as to explore the strategies and processes that facilitated the development of teacher resilience. The findings reveal that, while at the start of the research some anti-resilient thinking seemed to be prevalent among the participants, more participants at the end of the research attributed their experience of resilience building to the support from the context and the community surrounding them. This research, therefore, highlights the crucial role of growth-enhancing social resilience and increased awareness of the role of recruiting support and agency in development of resilience. Implications and systematic interventions for pre-service education programmes and teachers themselves are discussed. |
