A Narrative Study On The Career Adaptation Of Transferred Kindergarten Directors

Several Opinions of the State Council on the Current Development of Preschool Education states,"Surplus teachers in primary and secondary schools may be transferred to preschool education after training and qualification." Several Opinions on the Deepening Reform and Standardized Development of Preschool Education states the goal that the percentage of children in public kindergartens should reach50% in principle.Guided by the policy,all regions are building and expanding public kindergartens,and the number of public kindergartens is growing,along with a rapidly growing demand for public kindergarten directors.In order to solve the problem of job demand,some kindergarten directors,especially in township centers,are transferred from primary and secondary school teachers or middle-level leaders to kindergarten directors.However,almost all kindergarten directors are non-preschool education majors,lacking professional knowledge of preschool education and kindergarten management experience,and the most prominent problem after the transfer is professional adaptation.As the leader of kindergarten reform and development,the director is responsible for leading the development of kindergartens and teachers.Therefore,it is necessary to pay attention to the professional adaptation of the transferring kindergarten principals because it is a prerequisite for their professional improvement and a guarantee for the better and faster development of kindergartens.This study adopts a narrative research method,combining in-depth interviews and non-participant observation,and takes the life of the director of kindergarten G as the background,while trying to maintain the integrity and plot of the story.By describing the "story" of the director’s life and work after her transfer to the kindergarten,we contextually present the dilemmas and ways to solve them,analyze the factors influencing her professional adaptation,and try to explore the support paths needed in the process of professional adaptation of the transfer director by combining social support theory and complex adaptive system theory.The professional adjustment of the director is a complex and multidimensional process.Combining the real-life story of Director G,the process of professional adaptation is divided into three stages: the stage of ignorance and anticipation-the "stranger" in kindergarten;the stage of conflict-the "outsider" walking on the edge The "outsider" stage;and the adjustment stage-the "insider" stage of becoming center stage.Through an in-depth analysis of the professional adaptation process of the director,the factors affecting the professional adaptation of the director were summarized: external influencing factors include the training intensity of the director of the transfer,the influence of key people,the influence of interpersonal relationships,the influence of family and friends,work tasks and pressure;internal influencing factors include the level of awareness of the concept of preschool education,professional knowledge and management ability,self-efficacy,their own personality traits and personal internal influences include the level of conceptual awareness of preschool education,professional knowledge and management ability,self-efficacy status,own personality traits,and personal attitude toward work.The study revealed that external "social support" and the director’s "self-support" are the "passport" to the professional adaptation of the G director.The government,institutions,kindergartens and families play an important role in "social support".The government should provide financial support,space for trial and error,and humanistic care;the institution should provide a staged training model,practical training content,and a mentorship program;and colleagues in the kindergarten community,staff,sister kindergartens,and family members can provide emotional support for the transferring director.In "self-support," directors should use their own efforts to improve their learning,identify themselves,adjust themselves in a timely manner,reflect habitually,and develop a high level of self-awareness in order to move toward professional adaptation through self-support and social support.