prof. dr. P.C. Meijer (Paulien)

In more than 25 years of experience as teacher, teacher educator and (since 2013) full professor at various universities throughout the Netherlands, my research focused on the learning and development of (student, beginning and experienced) teachers. I pay special attention to those processes that cannot be characterized as showing “steady” or even “straightforward" development and thus processes that are less predictable than usual; processes that frequently fluctuate (i.e., go up and down); and processes that sometimes even stagnate or decline — only to show later, rapid growth. Particularly the processes that are always reported in hindsight by teachers to have had a major impact on them and which I have come to understand from the perspective of the development of a professional identity.
In my teaching, I value a focus on teaching for creative thinking (in the school subjects), since there is parallel with identity learning, as uncertainty, resistance and growth (among other things), play a large role in both. Consequently, in my research activities, I prefer and stimulate creative ways of researching. I supervise a number of PhD-students in preparing a PhD and becoming creative scientific thinkers as well. The projects that I supervise and am involved in, all focus on the role of teachers and teacher learning in (the improvement of) teaching. They range from studies that include beginning teachers from various subjects and mainly in (but not limited to) secondary education, to studies about teacher education and teacher educators in an (inter)national setting. In all these, I stimulate the inclusion of schools and educators where possible, from the set-up of studies to the writing of scientific articles.

• Cultivating Creativity in Education: Interactions between Teaching and Learning (2016-2021)