A Phenomenological Study of Teacher Emotions as an Essential Construct of a Liberal Arts College’s Signature Pedagogy using Sense-Making Methodology

Author(s): Felicidad Galang Pereña

This research aims to explore the emotional geographies of teachers’ relations with colleagues in a liberal arts college, with the premise provided by Hargreaves of the International Center for Educational Change, that teaching together is better than teaching apart. It seeks to establish the status of the emotional aspect of teaching, in particular, what Hargreaves pinpointed as “the teachers’ relations with other adults that seem to generate the most heightened expressions of emotionality among them,” It will take issue with what he identified as the “absence of systematic efforts to understand and explain what patterns and components of teachers’ relationships with colleagues create positive or negative emotions among them.” The study made use of Focus Group Discussion (FGD) with Doodling exercise and Sense-Making Methodology (SMM), an approach developed by Brenda Dervin as a platform to conduct audience research by interviewing methodologically, to replace the noun-based frameworks that dominate research, practice and design with verb-based frameworks) with the hope that reflections yielded will gauge the emotional dimention of faculty life and shed light on the issue of collegiality in the institution under study.

emotional geography, focus group discussion, doodling, Sense-Making Methodology (SMM), collegiality

1. Acker, S. (1999). The Realities of Teachers' Work: Never a dull moment. London: Cassell
2. Adler, A. (1988). On Doodlings: the craving for symmetry. Individual Psychology Vol. 44 No. 4 , 441-443
3. Bar-On, R. (2010). Emotional Intelligence: an integral part of positive psychology. South African Hournal of Psychology (40) , 54-62
4. C. Bruce, L. B. (2004). A Phenomenographic Study of Introductory Programming students at university. Journal of Information Technology Education Vol 3 , 143-160
5. D. Clandinin, M. M. (2010). Negotiating Narrative Inquiries: living in a tension-filled mist. The Journal of Educational Research, 103 , 81-90
6. Day, C. (2004). A passion for teaching. California: Routledge
7. Dervin, B. (2008). Interviewing as Dialectical practice: Sense-making Methodology as Exemplar. Stockholm: International Association for Media and Communication Research
8. Dervin, B. (2008). Interviewing as Dialectical Practice: Sense-making Methodology as Exemplar. Stockholm, Sweden: International Association for Media and Communication Research
9. Dervin, B. (2010). Why polarities impede the research, practice and design of information systems and how sense-making methodology attempts to bridge the gaps. Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice Vol 16 No. 5 , 998-1001
10. Dervin, B. (2010). Why polarities impede the research, practice and design of information systems and how SMM attempts to bridge the gaps. Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice Vol. 16 , 998-1001
11. Flavin, P. (1995). Simple Delights of Doodling. Retrieved September 25, 2013, from Christian Science Monitor: http://www.csmonitor
12. Flores, M. (2004). The impact of school culture and leadership on new teachers' learning in the workplace. International Journal of Leadership in Education, 7(4) , 297-318
13. Fried, R. (1995). The Passionate Teacher: A Practical Guide. Boston: Beacon Press
14. Glitz, B. (1998). Focus Groups for Libraries and Librarians. New York: Forbes Custom Publishers
15. Goldstein, L. (2005). Becoming a teacher as a hero's journey: using metaphor in preservice teacher education. Teacher Education Quarterly, 32(1) , 7-24
16. Goleman, D. (1995). Emotional Intelligence. New York: Bantam Books
17. Goodson, F. H. (2004). Social Geographies of Educational CHange: Drawing a Map for Curious and Dissatisfied Travellers. In F. H. Goodson, Social Geographies of Educational Change (pp. xi-xxi). Dordrecht, Netherlands: Kluwer Academic
18. Hargreaves, A. (2001). The Emotional Geographies of Teachers' Relations with Colleagues. Barcelona, Spain: Spencer Foundation Funded Invitational Conference on Social Geographies of Educational Change
19. Hargreaves, A. (1998). The Emotional Practice of Teaching. Teaching and Teacher Education, Vol. 14 No. 8 , 835-854
20. Huber, M. (2010). Caring for students: pedagogy and professionalism in an age of anxiety. Emotion, Space and Society, Vol. 3 , 71-79
21. Kitzinger, R. B. (1998). Developing Focus Group Research. London: Sage
22. Kitzinger, R. (1998). Developing Focus Group Research. London: Sage
23. L. Bondi, J. D. (2005). Geography's Emotional Turn. In K. B. J. Davidson, Emotional Geographies (pp. 1-16). Aldershot, UK: Ashgate
24. Lee, H.-b. Y.-K. (2011). Emotions Matter. Chinese Education and Society Vol 44 No. 4 , 82-97
25. Leith, C. D. (2001). Teachers' and Teacher Educational lives: the role of emotions. Teaching and Teacher Education, Vol. 17 , 403-415
26. M.A. Martinez, M. G. (2001). Metaphors as blueprints of thinking about teaching and learning. Teaching and Teacher Education Vol. 17, No. 8 , 956-967
27. Maclaran, M. C. (2008). Sociological Research online. Retrieved march 17, 2011, from International Electronic Journal for Leadership Learning: http:/www.socresoline.org.uk
28. Maclaran, M. (2011). Sociological Research Online. International Journal for Leadership Learning , http://www.socresoline.org.uk
29. Makinen, M. (2013). Narrative Reflection on teaching as descriptors of teachers' work engagement . Teaching and Teacher Education, Vol 35 , 51-61
30. Mayer, P. S. (1990). Emotional Intelligence. Imagination, Cognition and Personality (9) , 185-211
31. Merton, R. K. (1968). Social Theory and Social Action. New York: Free Press
32. Merton, R. (1968). Social Theory and Social Action. Ney York: Free Press
33. N. Carbonneau, C. F. (2008). The role of passion for teaching in interpersonal outcomes. Journal of Educational Psychology 100(4) , 977-987
34. Noemie Carbonneau, R. V. (2008). The Role of Passion of Teaching in Intrapersonal and Interpersonal Outcomes. Journal of Educational Psychology Vo. 100 No. 4 , 977-987
35. Palmer, P. (2007). The courage to teach: exploring the inner landscape of a teacher's life. San Francisco: John WIley & Sons
36. Platsidou, M. (2010). Trait emotional intelligence of Greek special education teachers in relation to burnout and job satisfaction. School Psychology International (31) , 60-76
37. Read, J. (1997). art _of_doodling. Retrieved September 25, 2013, from enhanted mind: http://enchantedmind.com
38. Read, J. (1997). art_of_doodling. Retrieved september 25, 2013, from creativity techniques: http://enchantedmind.com
39. Salovey, J. M. (1997). What is Emotional Intelligence? New York: Basic Books
40. So, K. (2013). From Knowledge Construction among teachers within a community-based inquiry. Teaching and Teacher Education, Vol 29 , 188-196
41. Trigwell, K. (2012). Relations between teachers' emotions in teaching and their approaches to teaching in higher education. Instructional Science (40) , 607-621
42. Woods, D. C. (2002). The Emotions of Teacher Stress. Stoke-on-Trent, UK: Trentham Books
43. Zembylas, I. I. (2006). The emotional labour of caring in teaching. Teaching and Teacher Education, Vol. 22 , 120-134
44. Zembylas, M. (2003). Interrogating "Teacher Identity": Emotion, Resistance and Self-formation. Educational Theory Vol. 53 No. 1 , 107-127