Turnover and professional identity

Abstract

Portuguese teachers of elementary and secondary education are often subject to a mobility process imposed by a centralized placement model by the Ministry of Education. This study aims at understanding the impact of mobility upon the formation and construction of the teacher's professional identity. To achieve this purpose, we chose a qualitative approach within a phenomenological perspective, underpinned by the implementation of semi-structured interviews in a group of teachers with a long record of mobility. Drawing on the content analysis of the interviews, we concluded that teachers with a frequent mobility record experience feelings and emotions which, associated with the underlying precariousness and unpredictability, trigger malaise with professional outcomes. Mobility exerts some impact on teachers' personal and professional motivation, on their professional performance, on their relationship with the community, on their commitment with educational projects and their professional development. Teachers show some frustration and disappointment in relation to the profession due to the mobility record as well as to other aspects which affect the school context. Yet, they still show professionalism. The afore mentioned mobility effects are enough to claim for a change in teachers’ placement policies towards higher stability.