An investigation of metaphors used by primary school teachers to describe supervisors

Abstract

This study is a qualitative exploration of the perceptions of primary school teachers of their supervisors using metaphors. Data in this study was obtained from interviews with 106 classroom teachers who had been supervised at least once. They worked at schools in Istanbul during the 2015-2016 academic year in the following districts: Esenler, Küçükçekmece, Başakşehir, Kartal, and Bağcılar. Interviews were coded and analyzed using the content analysis technique. The metaphors teachers used to describe supervisors could be grouped into the following categories: profession, sports, family, fear, food, animals, guidance, and objects. Results show that primary school teachers have mostly negative perceptions of supervisors, which agrees with other studies. To address this, we recommend improving communication between teachers and supervisors.