This study explores teachers’ autonomy in relation to the implementation of a new Learning Management Systems (LMS). The purpose of this study is to study teachers’ work in relation to a new digital teaching tool to gain knowledge of how it can have impact on teacher autonomy. The research design was inspired by a mixed methods approach. The empirical data consists of a digital survey with 40 responding teachers, followed by six qualitative interviews with teachers. The research design later expanded by also including four qualitative interviews with school principles. The data was analyzed in light of Lortie’s (1969) conception of semi-professionals; Freidson’s (2001) theory of the logics of profession, market and bureaucracy; and Water’s (1989) theory of collegial structures. The result of this study indicates that the LMS has an impact on teacher’ autonomy by shifting focus from teaching for substantial knowledge to “teaching for the test”; and by giving parents and students a narrow insight into the teachers’ discretional work, which can challenge the discretion. However, the result also indicates that the teachers maintained autonomy by only using the LMS to a limited extent. This decision space, to choose whether or not use the tool, was understood as organized by the principals through collegial relations with the teachers.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:UPSALLA1/oai:DiVA.org:lnu-96403 |
| Date | January 2020 |
| Creators | Palm, Josefin |
| Publisher | Linnéuniversitetet, Institutionen för samhällsstudier (SS) |
| Source Sets | DiVA Archive at Upsalla University |
| Language | Swedish |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Student thesis, info:eu-repo/semantics/bachelorThesis, text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
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