Power and Teacherhood: Student Teachers’ Perceptions of Teachers’ Power and Authority

Power is an inevitable part of teachers’ work. The purpose of the study was to dissect how student teachers realize the power element that their prospective profession involves and how the nature of teachers’ power can be described and illustrated. Student teachers (N=12) participated in the study by writing an essay about power in teachers’ work. The following research questions were set for this study: (1) How do student teachers perceive the nature of teachers’ power? (2) How does power differ from authority in student teachers’ perceptions? (3) What kind of effects does the exercise of power have according to student teachers’ perceptions? The data were studied through existing theoretical framework, in this case, definitions of power and authority. Based on the results, teachers’ power and authority were one the one hand connected to the values and ontological ideas but on the other hand very concretely manifested in practice. Teachers’ power is a multidimensional phenomenon that challenges teachers to deliberate their work and own action. The concept of pedagogical authority is further discussed based on the findings.