Professional identity or image that one has of his or her own activities within a profession is the result, among other things, of the social identity of that profession. In every profession there are certain subgroups that... [ view full abstract ]
Professional identity or image that one has of his or her own activities within a profession is the result, among other things, of the social identity of that profession. In every profession there are certain subgroups that share certain dominant characteristics, sometimes atypical for a group of professionals. In such situations, their professional identity depends on how other members of that profession see the effect of this subgroup.
Men in early and preschool education are a significant minority in the profession of preschool teachers, and as such form a specific subgroup. Their professional identity, in addition to belief, behavior, experiences, and motives related to the profession, are also built on beliefs, behaviors, experiences, and motives based on gender roles. Their professional identity is also affected by the attitudes of their female colleagues, who create a professional culture to which men must adapt or try to influence.
Due to the nature of research in which we seek to gain insight into the personal paradigm of the participants, we used qualitative methodology for this research. The paper analyzed responses collected in three focus groups. The study included 16 female preschool teachers, who differed in the phase of professional development, education, and experience of working with male preschool teachers. Ten of them have experience working with men, and six were inexperienced. The aim of this study was to collect opinions on the roles of preschool teachers and position of preschool teachers. Thematic analysis revealed two key units in the professional identity of the men - position and role through the prism of understanding fellow female teachers. At the same time, preschool teachers with experience in working with men added the experiential dimension, and their thinking somewhat differs from that of their colleagues who have no experience in working with men.
