Book Description

Occupational socialization (OS) research has assisted in training preservice and developing inservice mainstream physical education teachers. Study one examined OS's influence on the practices and perspectives of adapted physical educators (APEs). Qualitative data were analyzed using analytic induction and constant comparison. The APEs possessed traditional or progressive teaching orientations having been indirectly attracted to a career as an APE through participation in sport and physical activity and interactions with persons with disabilities. High quality adapted physical education teacher education (A-PETE) appeared to exert a powerful influence on their values and pedagogies. School cultures and conditions experienced upon workforce entry served to either support or negate their programs. Several hypotheses are provided regarding the influences of acculturation, professional socialization, and OS on inservice APEs' teaching. The second study described OS's impact on nine Korean teachers' reading and delivery of PE. Qualitative data were analyzed by analytic induction and constant comparison. Findings showed the teachers underwent a unique pattern of OS resulting in seven of them possessing teaching orientations, one being coaching oriented, and one having a non-teaching orientation. The teachers' acculturation led to a high proportion of them being teaching oriented on entering PETE where traditional PETE reinforced this orientation. Innovative school cultures offset and compensated for the weak PETE experienced by some teachers. Suggestions for future research in this line were made. The third study examined OS's influences on 11 international sport pedagogy faculty members' (FMs) perspectives and practices regarding physical education teaching and PETE. Data sources (formal and informal interviews and documents illustrating the FMs' practices) were analyzed using constant comparison and analytic induction. FMs' current perspectives and practices did not differ from those espoused by native-born FMs and there were few differences between perspectives and practices of FMs from different regions of the world. The acculturation, primary professional socialization, and primary OS of most FMs had been positive leading to them possess strong traditional teaching orientations early in their careers. FMs' secondary professional socialization generally impacted their development of progressive ideas about physical education and PETE. FMs' secondary organizational socialization was also largely supportive of these progressive beliefs.