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ISSN 1989 - 9572
P o essional associa ions as con ibu o s o he
p o essional de elopmen o ECE eache s (Case
om C oa ia)
Asociaciones p o esionales como
con ibuyen es al desa ollo p o esional de los
docen es de educación in an il (Caso de C oacia)
Ad ijana Visnjic Je ic,
Uni e si y o Zag eb, C oa ia
Jou nal o Educa o s, Teache s and T aine s, Vol. 10 (2)
h p://www.ug .es/~je /index.php
Da e o ecep ion: 31 Augus 2018
Da e o e ision: 21 No embe 2018
Da e o accep ance: 22 Oc obe 2019
Visnjic Je ic, A. (2019). P o essional associa ions as con ibu o s o he p o essional
de elopmen o ECE eache s (Case om C oa ia). Jou nal o Educa o s, Teache s and
T aine s, Vol. 10(2), pp. 182 – 192.
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Jou nal o Educa o s, Teache s and T aine s, Vol. 10 (2)
ISSN 1989 – 9572
h p://www.ug .es/~je /index.php
P o essional associa ions as con ibu o s o he p o essional
de elopmen o ECE eache s (Case om C oa ia)
Asociaciones p o esionales como con ibuyen es al desa ollo
p o esional de los docen es de educación in an il (Caso de C oacia)
Ad ijana Visnjic Je ic, Uni e si y o Zag eb, C oa ia
[email p o ec ed]
Abs ac
This pape is a esul o he assump ions o he impo ance o he p o essional de elopmen o ea ly
childhood educa ion (ECE) eache s. P o essional de elopmen is seen as a de elopmen al p ocess
g ounded in li elong lea ning. While discussing he p o essional lea ning communi y as he op imal suppo
in p o essional de elopmen , he pape discusses he ole o p o essional associa ions in p o essional
de elopmen . Aim o he esea ch was o ind eache s’ opinion whe he he p o essional associa ion
con ibu e o hei p o essional de elopmen . In o de o ensu e he bes unde s anding o his p oblem, a
esea ch was conduc ed wi h he help o g oup in e iews. Focus g oup pa icipan s we e ea ly childhood
educa ion eache s (N=6) who a e also membe s o he Associa ion o P eschool Educa o s “K ijesnice”.
The analysis o he esul s indica ed ha ECE eache s highly alue he need o hei p o essional
de elopmen . They also emphasize li elong lea ning and mo i a ion as p e equisi es o p o essional
de elopmen . The Associa ion o P eschool Educa o s is seen as a suppo in p o essional de elopmen .
Resumen
Es e abajo es á basado en la suposición sob e la impo ancia del desa ollo p o esional de los maes os
de educación p eescola . El desa ollo p o esional se en iende como ap endizaje a lo la go de la ida.
Obse ando las comunidades p o esionales de ap endizaje como el apoyo ideal pa a el desa ollo
p o esional, se es á in es igando el papel de las asociaciones p o esionales en el desa ollo p o esional.
El obje i o de la in es igación ue in es iga la opinión de los maes os sob e la cues ión si la asociación
p o esional con ibuye a su desa ollo p o esional. Pa a asegu a la mejo comp ensión de es e p oblema,
se ha lle ado a cabo una in es igación en o ma de la en e is a en g upo. Los pa icipan es del g upo
ocal ue on los maes os que ambién son miemb os de la Asociación de los maes os de educación
p eescola (N=6) “K ijesnice” (“Lucie nagas”). El análisis de los esul ados demues a que los maes os en
g an medida alo an la necesidad del desa ollo p o esional de los maes os. También en a izan el
ap endizaje a lo la go de la ida y la mo i ación como p e equisi os del desa ollo p o esional. La
Asociación de los maes os p eescola es se conside a como el apoyo al desa ollo pe sonal.
Keywo ds
Ea ly childhood educa ion eache s; Lea ning communi ies; Li elong lea ning; P o essional associa ions;
P o essional de elopmen .
Palab as cla e
Maes os de educación in an il; Comunidades de ap endizaje; Ap endizaje pe manen e; Asociaciones
p o esionales; Desa ollo p o esional.
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•PROFESSIONAL COMMUNITIES
•CHANGES THEORIES AND PREMISES
PROFESSIONAL
LEARNING
•WORKSHOPS/LECTURES CYCLE
•CHANGES PRACTICES
PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
•A WORKSHOP/LECTURE
•IMPROVES KNOWLEDGE
PROFESSIONAL
TRAINING
•INDIVIDUAL
•RAISES AWARENESS
READING
1. In oduc ion
Cu en unde s anding o he educa ional compe ence has shown i is e iden ly a
de elopmen al cha ac e is ic, he e o e i assumes a con inuous lea ning p ocess. Some
au ho s (Hindin & Muelle , 2016; Kim & Taylo , 2016) emphasize li elong lea ning as a possible
op ion o imp o ing acqui ed compe ences. Since eaching p o essions, including he ea ly
childhood educa ion, a e obliga ed o pa icipa e in p o essional ainings and p og ams o
imp o e hei p o essional de elopmen , i is easonable o expec li elong educa ion o he ea ly
childhood educa ion p o essionals. The concep o he p o essional de elopmen o ea ly
childhood educa ion (ECE) eache s is de e mined by he cons an in e dependence o
a i udes, skills and p ac ices, which esul s in he change o p ac ices (T us , K u ka &
Ca pen e , 2016). New knowledge c ea ed in his in e ac ion eplaces he exis ing one, so i is
necessa y o design new modes o p o essional ainings, which would go e n and suppo
p o essional de elopmen .
Bo ko (2004) sugges s wo app oaches o p o essional de elopmen as possible means o
enhancing compe ences: indi idual, whe e high in ensi y p o essional de elopmen p og ams
lead o changes, and g oup, whe e lea ning communi ies design changes in de eloping exis ing
compe ences and lea ning. Campbell-Ba (2017) c i icizes his app oach emphasizing ha ECE
eache s do no need lea ning bu suppo in hei p o essional de elopmen . Tha iew
co esponds o Ca pen e 's (2016) iew o p o essional de elopmen , which desc ibes
knowledge ans e and cons an change o exis ing p ac ices as a adi ional app oach which,
despi e he change o p ac ices, does no con ibu e o i s de elopmen . Con empo a y
app oach which con ibu es o ac ual, long-las ing changes is always ocused on con en ,
in e connec ed wi h he cu iculum o he educa ional ins i u ion and collec i e suppo . Al hough
some con empo a y au ho s (B own & Engleha d , 2016; Ca pen e , 2016; S anbjö nsdó i ,
Macdonald & F ímannsson, 2016) iew p o essional de elopmen as a long-las ing p ocess o
acqui ing knowledge de eloped in communi y wi h p o essionals, i would be w ong o assume
he e is no place o he p o essional de elopmen o he indi idual in e es s o indi idual
p o essional quali ica ions. Despi e ha ing he p o essional esponsibili y owa ds hei own
p o ession, ECE eache s ha e hei own app oach o p o essional de elopmen as well.
Al hough occasional p o essional aining does no lead o pe manen changes in one's own
p ac ice, i can a ec an indi idual's awa eness o he possible di ec ion o p o essional
de elopmen . S ewa (2014) adds a new dimension o p o essional de elopmen – p o essional
lea ning as a mode which leads o changes o heo ies and p emises bo h in an indi idual
pe son and p o essional communi ies (Figu e 1.).
Figu e 1. Changes in p o essional de elopmen wi h espec o modes o lea ning (S ewa , 2014)
Al hough expe ience can con ibu e o he ad ancemen o p o essional compe ences o ECE
eache s, changes in indi idual p ac ice and heo y can be achie ed solely by con inuous
educa ion p ocesses wi hin he al eady exis ing p o essional communi ies o communi ies
b ough oge he by he same in e es . In-se ice lea ning wi hin a gi en con ex a ec s he
quali y o in e ac ion be ween all pa icipan s in he in e ac ion and con ibu es o he
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de elopmen o compe ences (Pee e s & Vandenb oeck, 2011; Unal & Unal, 2014; Visko ić &
Višnjić Je ić, 2017).
2. P o essional de elopmen o ea ly childhood eache s in C oa ia
P eschool and ea ly childhood educa ion (ECE) in he Republic o C oa ia is in ended o
child en aged 6 mon hs o 6 yea s and is pa o he na ional educa ion sys em. Child en a e
augh by ECE eache s who comple ed unde g adua e ECE s udies. Recen ly, ECE g adua e
s udies we e ounded, bu mas e ’s deg ee (MA) is no a equi emen o he p o ession, a he a
choice o each indi idual educa o . Ea ly childhood educa ion is egula ed by a ious
documen s, he ounda ion o which is he Na ional Cu iculum o P eschool and Ea ly
Childhood Educa ion (Nacionalni ku ikulum za ani i p edškolski odgoj i ob azo anje -
NKRPOO). The Na ional Cu iculum (NKRPOO, 2014) is based on he ollowing ou p inciples:
• Flexibili y o he ea ly childhood educa ion p ocess.
• Pa ne ship o p eschool wi h pa en s and communi y.
• Ensu ing con inui y in educa ion and aining.
• Openness o con inuous lea ning and eadiness o imp o e p ac ices.
The imp o emen o p ac ices s a s wi h a eache – a e lec i e p ac i ione willing o
econside he p ac ices, bo h independen ly and in coope a ion wi h ellow p o essionals. I is
assumed ha he de elopmen o e lec i e p ac ices equi es he expe ience which is he esul
o no only immedia e wo k in educa ion bu also he p o essional de elopmen o he ECE
eache s. Since he Na ional Cu iculum o P eschool and Ea ly Childhood and Educa ion
(2014) p o ides simply guidelines, no s ic ly de ined ules on p ac ices in p eschool and ea ly
childhood educa ion, i emains unclea wha exac ly p eschool and ea ly childhood educa ion
ins i u ions conside an imp o emen in p ac ices, i.e. o wha ex en is he imp o emen ac ually
implemen ed.
In o de o egula e educa ion p ac ices in an indi idual coun y, i is necessa y o adop ce ain
s anda ds o p o ession. S anda ds o he educa ional p o ession in he Republic o C oa ia
we e de eloped h ough he Quali ica ions s anda ds and imp o emen o he quali y o s udy
p og ammes o p eschool and p ima y school eache s p ojec (K s o ić, Vujičić & Pejić Papak,
2016). Al hough he quali ica ions s anda ds exis , hey a e s ill no adop ed in p ac ice as in
some o he coun ies. C oa ian s anda ds a e designed as lea ning ou comes and compe ences
in six a eas (game and lea ning, lea ning en i onmen , cu iculum design, e lec ion and sel -
e lec ion, amily and communi y collabo a ion, and p o essional de elopmen ). K s o ić, Vujičić
& Pejić Papak (2016) de ine p o essional de elopmen as a con inuous, independen (bu also
in coope a ion wi h o he s!) p ocess o de eloping compe ences and comp ehension o he
educa ional p ocess. Acco ding o he Law on P eschool and Ea ly Childhood Educa ion (2013),
p o essional aining o ECE eache s is manda o y. None heless, he exac numbe o hou s o
he equi ed p o essional aining o ECE eache s is no de e mined. Some o he ins i u ions
s a wi h he o al numbe o hou s spen by he ECE eache in immedia e wo k wi h child en
(5.5 hou s pe day), and accoun o he addi ional necessa y weekly hou s by p o essional
aining (2 o 3 hou s pe week). Acco ding o he Regula ions on he modes and condi ions o
p o essional ad ancemen and p omo ion o educa o s and p o essional associa es o highe
anks in p eschool educa ion (P a ilnik o načinu i u je ima nap edo anja u s uci i p omicanju u
položajna z anja odgoji elja i s učnih su adnika u dječjim ićima, 1997), ECE eache s in
C oa ia can ad ance p o essionally o he posi ion o he eache men o and eache counselo .
The p e equisi e o he ad ancemen is he excellence o he indi idual eache . Ad ancemen
can be seen as pa o he p o essional de elopmen .
The p o essional de elopmen o he ECE eache is he pe sonal esponsibili y o he eache
himsel ollowed by he ins i u ion whe e he wo ks. In he Republic o C oa ia, along wi h he
men ioned ac i e pa icipan s, he o ganiza ion o ac i i ies con ibu ing o he p o essional
de elopmen o he ECE eache s is led by he Educa ion and Teache T aining Agency (ETTA)
o he Republic o C oa ia. Acco ding o he Educa ion and Teache T aining Agency Ac (2006),
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along wi h o he ac i i ies, ETTA o ganizes and conduc s p o essional aining o he eaching
s a . Al hough he Educa ion and Teache T aining Agency is no he only ins i u ion which
o ganizes p o essional aining o ECE eache s, i s ole canno be neglec ed. ETTA usually
o ganizes one-day p o essional mee ings which usually do no ollow con empo a y heo ies o
p o essional de elopmen . I S ewa ’s (2014) heo y o p o essional de elopmen is applied o
his issue, i can be concluded ha indi idual ac i i ies as well may lead o aising awa eness
and new insigh s. Those changes could c ea e p o essional communi ies wi hin he ins i u ions
and hus ensu e he sus ainabili y o p o essional de elopmen . Su ely wi hin indi idual
ins i u ions he e a e al eady p o essional lea ning communi ies, bu hey depend on he
de elopmen plan and cu iculum o hose ins i u ions.
Hadley, Waniganayake & Shepa d (2015) emphasize he c i ical iendship model o lea ning
along wi h he indi idual lea ning and p o essional lea ning communi ies. Al hough he concep
o c i ical iendship may ( alsely) imply a(n) (co-)expe whose ole is o ind he mis akes
(c i icize) in he p ocess, ano he pe son wi h di e en pe spec i e could wi hou a doub
con ibu e o a be e unde s anding o he p ac ice. The p e equisi e o (co-)expe e lec ion is
open communica ion, willingness o change, app ecia ion o di e en opinions and accep ance
o di e en solu ions.
P o essional communi ies p o ide ECE eache s wi h oppo uni ies o de elop and imp o e
compe ences and add a new dimension o he de elopmen – suppo . Hindin & Muelle (2016)
poin ou he need o suppo i e eache s in unde s anding he complexi y o co-ope a ion wi h
pa en s. A communi y based on us and open communica ion con ibu es o inding success ul
ways in es ablishing collabo a i e ela ionships wi h pa en s. P o essional de elopmen is
pe sonal and p o essional obliga ion o ECE eache s who iew hei educa ion p ac ices no
only in ela ion o child en bu also o hei amilies. Despi e he con inui y and cons an suppo
o he communi y o expe s, esea ch show ha he de elopmen is an indi idual ai .
In o ma ion and s a egies which a e con a y o pe sonal belie s o ECE eache esul in he
abandonmen o new s a egies and es o a ion o es ablished p ac ices (Ha well, 2003).
3. P o essional Associa ions o ECE eache s in C oa ia
Taking Ea ly Educa ion and Ca e (ECEC) in o conside a ion in he con ex o he educa ion
sys em, i can be concluded ha , despi e i s undispu able impo ance, i is s ill no as alued as
i should be. Possible con ibu o s o ha a i ude include i s non-obliga o y s a us, wo king
me hods and he eminiza ion o he p o ession. Those iews a e e lec ed in all aspec s o he
ECE p o ession. Ebbeck & Waniganayake (2003) highligh ha he ea ly child en educa ion
p o essionals a e unde paid, unde es ima ed, exploi ed, and mo e inclined o wo kplace bu n-
ou . Resea ch (Tam, 2015) show ha p o essional de elopmen con ibu es o he de elopmen
o collec i e p o essionalism and coope a ion.
P o essional associa ions could be one o he modes o collec i e p o essionalism. In he
Republic o C oa ia, he e a e cu en ly 5 ECE eache associa ions. The ad an age o a la ge
numbe o associa ions is ac i i y in a speci ic egional con ex , ocused on he ac ual needs o a
pa icula g oup o ECE eache s. The egional di ision can also be seen as he absence o
collec i e p o essionalism, which hen p e en s possible changes in he ECE p o ession. Višnjić
Je ić (2010) s a es ha he ac i i ies o p o essional associa ions include o ien a ion owa ds
he p o essional de elopmen o ECE eache s, p oposing measu es o imp o e p o essional
s a us and wo king condi ions o ECE eache s, o ganizing p o essional aining o ECE
eache s, pa icipa ion in planning he educa ion s a egies in ea ly childhood educa ion,
p omo ion o he quali y o ECE ins i u ions and adop ion o p o essional and e hical codices o
ECE eache s.
The ac i i y o he exis ing associa ions is mos ly ocused on he p o essional de elopmen o
ECE eache s. Associa ions o ganize p o essional ainings – anging om one-o lec u es o
modula aining. Al hough hey coope a e wi h C oa ian scien i ic au ho i ies, hey inc easingly
ely on sha ing he knowledge o p ac i ione s hemsel es.

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Al hough p o essional associa ions canno ully be iden i ied wi h p o essional lea ning
communi ies, hey sha e some o he ea u es. Ho d (2004) highligh s he ac ha p o essional
lea ning communi ies p omo e suppo i e and sha ed leade ship, sha ed alues and isions,
collec i e lea ning, suppo i e en i onmen , and sha ing good p ac ice examples. I is possible
o ind hese cha ac e is ics in he ac i i ies o p o essional associa ions as well. Membe s o
a ious ins i u ions o ea ly and p eschool educa ion dis inguish a p o essional associa ion om
a p o essional lea ning communi y. I can be assumed ha membe s ha e di icul ies in
collec i e lea ning based on e lec ions due o insu icien knowledge o he con ex o an
indi idual ins i u ion. Though i is possible ha all membe s sha e he same ision alue is-à-
is he p o ession i sel , hey p obably do no sha e he same ision o he educa ion wo k.
The Associa ion o P eschool Teache s “K ijesnice” has been ope a ing since 2008. I o ganizes
a ious p o essional ainings annually. Bu so a i has no been able o se up a g oup o
eache s who would sys ema ically e-assess hei own p ac ices and change i acco dingly.
None heless, he mos popula p o essional ainings a e hose whe e indi idual ECE eache s
p o ide examples om hei own p ac ice. Al hough hese a e usually one-o lec u es, hey a e
belie ed o a ec he awa eness o he need o pe manen p o essional de elopmen .
4. Objec i e
Aim o he esea ch was o ind eache s’ opinion abou he ole ha p o essional associa ion
ha e in hei p o essional de elopmen .
5. Me hodology
Focus g oup esea ch was done in o de o gain insigh in o he ECE eache s’ unde s anding o
p o essional de elopmen and he ole a p o essional associa ion plays in p o essional
de elopmen . Al hough ocus g oups a e no sui able o gaining a comple e insigh in o a
pa icula issue, hey con ibu e o unde s anding he issue. Gawlik (2018) s a es ha he
ad an age o such mode o esea ch is mu ual s imula ion o hinking, which leads o
o mula ion o g oup opinion. I he e is a syne gy o opinion, Hyman & Sie a (2016) poin ou
ha indi iduals a e mo e likely o exp ess hei a i udes and belie s wi hin g oups because hey
expec he (co-) expe s’ suppo . Gi en ha he e is no esea ch in he Republic o C oa ia on
he ole o p o essional associa ions in he p o essional de elopmen o ECE eache s, his
esea ch could be he i s s ep o u he esea ch.
5.1. Pa icipan s and da a collec ion
The esea ch conduc ed in he sp ing o 2018 included membe s o he Associa ion o
P eschool Teache s “K ijesnice”. I is a p o essional associa ion ounded in 2008 wi h 358
membe s who a e ECE eache s om he no heas o C oa ia, mainly Medjimu je Coun y. The
pa icipan s in he esea ch we e women (N=6) aged 22 o 56 wi h he membe ship in
“K ijesnice” associa ion be ween 1 and 10 yea s (Table 1.). Only one pa icipan has eached
he s a us o eache men o . All eache s pa icipa ed in he esea ch olun a ily. The esea ch
was conduc ed in acco dance wi h he Code o E hics o he Uni e si y o Zag eb.
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Table 1.
Pa icipan s
Knowledge is a cons uc o socie y, cul u e, poli ics o some communi y which sha es he same
in e es s, and as such cons i u es a consensus (Kambe elis, Dimi iadis & Welke , 2017). The
esea ch esul s o he ocus g oup a e also a esul o a consensus and possibly could lead o
c ea ing new knowledge.
Focus g oup pa icipan s esponded o he ollowing esea ch ques ions:
1. Wha is p o essional de elopmen ?
2. Which a e he cha ac e is ics o p o essional de elopmen ?
3. Wha is he ole o he Associa ion o P eschool Teache s “K ijesnice” in p o essional
de elopmen ?
Al hough he ocus g oup is es ablished on a common se o a i udes and opinions, he
speake s in his esea ch i s sough o indi idually answe he ques ion Wha is p o essional
de elopmen ? ci ing six ea u es o p o essional de elopmen . A e ha , a common de ini ion o
p o essional de elopmen , i s cha ac e is ics, and he ole i plays in p o essional associa ion
we e modeled.
6. Findings and discussion
Based on indi idual e lec ions on he cha ac e is ics o p o essional de elopmen , he
ag eemen be ween esea ch pa icipan s was eached. I iden i ied 6 ea u es de e mining he
p o essional de elopmen o ECE eache s. Focus g oup de ined p o essional de elopmen as a
p ocess es ablished on li elong lea ning, mo i a ion, eache ’s pe sonali y ai s and sel -
ac ualiza ion (Table 2). This de ini ion co esponds o he de ini ion o T us , K u ka & Ca pen e
(2016), who de ine p o essional de elopmen as a p ocess o changing he p ac ice and
c ea ing new knowledge based on he in e dependence and co-ope a ion o he pa icipan s. In
s i ing o iden i y he cha ac e is ics ha con ibu e mos o p o essional de elopmen , esea ch
pa icipan s ha e anked he con ibu ion o he p e iously men ioned cha ac e is ics, deciding
ha li elong lea ning and mo i a ion con ibu e mos and sel -ac ualiza ion leas o ECE
eache s’ p o essional de elopmen .
Pa icipan
Age
Membe ship in
Associa ion
Educa ion
PA1
22
1
Bachelo ’s deg ee in ECE
PA2
30
8
Mas e ’s deg ee in ECE
PA3
35
10
Bachelo ’s deg ee in ECE
PA4
38
9
Bachelo ’s deg ee in ECE
PA5
42
9
Bachelo ’s deg ee in ECE
PA6
56
10
Bachelo ’s deg ee in ECE
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Table 2.
Cha ac e is ics o p o essional de elopmen
Cha ac e is ics
Cha ac e is ics explained
Li elong lea ning
Sel -de elopmen
“keeping up”
P o essional aining
Educa ion
Re lec i e p ac ices
Ac ion esea ch
Mo i a ion
Child en’s wel a e
Mo i a ion o lea ning
Ad ancemen possibili y
Teache ’s pe sonali y ai s
En husiasm
Openness (open-mindedness)
Knowing “when o ake a b eak” – bu n-ou synd ome p e en ion
Sel -ac ualiza ion
Possibili y o p esen one’s wo k
I is in e es ing ha he pa icipan s easily eached a consensus on all he ea u es wi h he
excep ion o sel -ac ualiza ion and mo i a ion. Al hough i could be assumed ha he
ad ancemen possibili y is an in eg al pa o sel -ac ualiza ion, mos pa icipan s conside ed he
ad ancemen possibili y as pa o he mo i a ion o p o essional de elopmen o an indi idual.
The pa icipan s emphasized ha i is ex e nal mo i a ion (money) and he e o e does no
ep esen p o essional sel - ealiza ion. Kennedy (2005) also desc ibes he concep o awa d-
bea ing as pa o he ad ancemen sys em o eache s. Mo i a ion o aining is no in insic,
bu i is a p e equisi e o s a us p og ess. This o m o aining can be analyzed in he con ex o
li elong lea ning. I is possible o indi iduals who concep ualize hei de elopmen h ough he
ad ancemen sys em o lose mo i a ion o u he aining a e gaining ecogni ion. Thus, hey
do no belong o a communi y ocused on li elong lea ning.
Child en’s wel a e as a mo i a ing ac o o p o essional de elopmen also equi es
econside a ion. Ebbeck & Waniganayake (2003) emphasize child en’s wel a e s anding ou as
a basis o exploi ing membe s o he educa ional p o ession – eache s a e expec ed o non-
c i ically app oach o he expec a ions o socie y o he sake o child en’s wel a e. The
pa icipan s in his esea ch do no suppo ha app oach.
Resea ch pa icipan s de ined li elong lea ning as o mal educa ion (con inua ion o educa ion in
MA s udies) and non- o mal educa ion (p o essional ainings, lec u es, wo kshops, p o essional
li e a u e). Desimone (2009) also s a es ha pa icipa ion in a ious ac i i ies con ibu es o ECE
eache s’ pe sonal and p o essional de elopmen . When discussing p o essional aining as pa
o li elong lea ning, one o he pa icipan s emphasized:
PA4: P o essional ainings o ganized by ETTA do no always con ibu e o
p o essional de elopmen . Some imes i seems ha hey a e o ganized only o
comple e he quo a o lec u es and semina s o be held. O he o ganize s also
ha e quali y ainings, bu hey a e no ecognized by he sys em. Fo example
– associa ions.
The o he pa icipan no ed ha in insic mo i a ion is also impo an o li elong lea ning,
especially when i comes o p o essional aining, as indi iduals conside he pu pose o
p o essional aining o be he comple ion o equi ed hou ly a e. The conclusion eached is ha
his does no con ibu e o p o essional de elopmen . Simila ly, he s udy by Visko ić & Višnjić
Je ić (2018) con i ms he e is a posi i e co ela ion be ween in insic mo i a ion and
pa icipa ion in p o essional ainings. In discussion on e lec i e p ac ice as pa o li elong
lea ning, indi idual pa icipan s hough ha e lec i e p ac ice should be conside ed a sepa a e
ca ego y o p o essional de elopmen . E en ually, hey ag eed ha e lec i e p ac ice
con ibu es o lea ning, and is in i sel a mode o lea ning as well. I is indica i e how i is
di ec ed a a e lec i e iend o lea ning communi y:
Jou nal o Educa o s, Teache s and T aine s JETT, Vol. 6 (2); ISSN: 1989-9572
190
PA2: Some eache s hink abou hei own p ac ice, and can analyze i , bu hey
do no know how o aise i o a highe le el. Tha is why co-ope a ion be ween
eache s and common e lec ion a e needed.
PA5: I is e y di icul o co-ope a e. In ac , i is e y ha d o hea ha you need
o change some hing because you a e con inced i is he bes you can do. You
a ely ge a i ma i e commen s. I is mos o en c i icism. I does no lead o
change, a he i leads o sel -isola ion.
Resea ch pa icipan s ha e concluded ha ECE eache s a ely ha e oppo uni ies o
expose hei p ac ice and hus con ibu e o hei own p o essional de elopmen . They
poin ou ha ac i i ies which could p esen hei p ac ice o o he eache s a e a he
same ime bo h a challenge and a pleasu e. One such e en is he p esen a ion o
p ac ices o ganized by he Associa ion o P eschool Teache s “K ijesnice”.
Pe sonali y ai s o he pa icipan s a e highligh ed as a p e equisi e o he p o essional
de elopmen o each ECE eache . Pa icula emphasis is placed on openness (open-
mindedness) as a ea u e which enables he acquisi ion o new knowledge and he accep ance
o new lea ning s a egies. Bu n-ou synd ome is seen by all as a possible ba ie in
p o essional de elopmen , and i is common in he educa ional p o ession (Ebbeck &
Waniganayake, 2003; Višnjić Je ić & Hala uk, 2018).
Du ing he discussion on he ole o p o essional associa ions in ECE eache s’ p o essional
de elopmen , all he pa icipan s emphasize he Associa ion o P eschool Teache s o
“K ijesnice” as an incen i e o p o essional de elopmen .
PA1: I am inspi ed and mo i a ed by he Associa ion, i.e. he membe s. I ind
he p esen a ion o good p ac ices mos use ul. I hink ha is when I hink abou
he p ac ice mos and I am encou aged o change my own p ac ice.
PA3: While I was wo king in an uns imula i e en i onmen , I s a ed looking o
incen i es o help me change mysel and my p ac ice. When I joined one o he
wo kshops o ganized by he Associa ion, I knew I wan ed o be pa o ha
p o essional communi y.
PA6: I hink a young pe son, om a small communi y, needs a sense o
belonging. And he Associa ion is pe cei ed exac ly like ha . I o e s he abili y
o connec wi h p o essionals, p o essional de elopmen , p o essional aining,
sel -ac ualiza ion.
I is possible o conclude ha smalle communi ies expe ience he need o ne wo k, and
p o essional associa ions allow hem o do so. Resea ch (Tam, 2015) shows ha ne wo king
c ea es a collabo a i e cul u e and a suppo cul u e. Suppo in p o essional communi ies leads
o g ea e dedica ion o wo k, new ideas, and eal-li e p o essional change. Bledsoe & Pilg im
(2016) highligh Social ne wo king as one o he possibili ies o p o essional associa ion. As a
Web 2.0 ool, hey highligh he a ailabili y and he abili y o sha e he a ious esou ces which
con ibu e o p o essional de elopmen . One such example o ne wo king is E winning po al
which p o ides he possibili y o socializing ECE eache s and elemen a y o highschool
eache s independen ly o hei place o esidence. E winning is a p o essional eache
communi y based on join wo k, e alua ion, planning, aining and mu ual suppo , and i mee s
he equi emen s o li elong lea ning as well.
Pa icipan s ag eed ha membe ship in a p o essional associa ion is pa o hei p o essional
iden i y. They also concluded p o essional associa ions should posi ion hemsel es as
p o essional au ho i ies and ake o e hei membe s' p o essional de elopmen .