The purpose of this study is to explore the process of becoming and living as a teacher in a “Teacher-Cooperative Community Childcare Center,” a new type of cooperative childcare community, through the life history of a teacher who has founded and...
The purpose of this study is to explore the process of becoming and living as a teacher in a “Teacher-Cooperative Community Childcare Center,” a new type of cooperative childcare community, through the life history of a teacher who has founded and operated such a center, and to elucidate the meanings of this experience.
To this end, the researcher used a self-descriptive narrative and personal research materials as the primary data for analysis, and additionally collected semi-structured in-depth interview data with fellow teachers, personal journals in which teachers, parents, and graduates articulated their perceptions and evaluations of their experiences at the childcare center, as well as the charter and archival documents of the “Teacher Cooperative Childcare Center.” In data analysis, both chronological analysis and meaning-centered analysis were applied. In the chronological analysis, the researcher’s life experiences were divided into two phases—“becoming a teacher in a teacher-cooperative community childcare center” and “living as a teacher in a teacher-cooperative community childcare center”—to structurally understand life transitions and experiential changes. In the meaning-centered analysis, the researcher sought to interpret life experiences not merely at a personal level but within the educational context of a teacher-cooperative childcare community. While the self-narrative was placed at the center of analysis, the researcher sought to ensure ethical rigor and validity by cross-checking the consistency of interpretations with narratives from fellow teachers and parents, as well as institutional documents related to childcare center management.
The findings of this study are as follows. First, the findings indicate that the process of becoming a teacher in a teacher-cooperative community childcare center was formed through the accumulation of experiences including family relationships in childhood, participation in civil society organizations and labor movements, life as a parent, encounters with alternative education, and practical experiences in community childcare. Second, the findings indicate that the process of living as a teacher in a teacher-cooperative community childcare center revealed how teacher identity, professionalism, and relationality were not formed separately but were closely intertwined and mutually expanded. Teacher identity was shaped through the practice of the philosophy of community childcare, while professionalism was expressed beyond technical competencies as relational and ethical practice. The findings indicate that relationality, encompassing cooperation and conflict with fellow teachers, parents, and the local community, functioned as a core condition of teachers’ lives.
In conclusion, the researcher’s experience of actively participating in the establishment of educational philosophy and overall operation of a teacher-cooperative community childcare center contributed positively to enhancing professional pride and professionalism as a childcare teacher. Although differences in perspectives between fellow teachers and parents sometimes led to conflict, democratic communication and cooperative processes grounded in mutual trust served as opportunities for professional maturation. Through this process, teachers and parents were able to form a collaborative partnership characterized by cooperative balance, fulfilling their respective roles while working together.
The significance of this study lies in demonstrating how the researcher’s life history, rather than serving as a simple autobiographical record, reveals the ways in which alternative childcare practices embodied in teacher-cooperative community childcare are formed, internalized, and reconstructed within an individual’s life. By doing so, this study offers a multifaceted understanding of the educational and communal significance of teacher-cooperative community childcare centers. The findings are expected to contribute to enhancing the educational value and broader dissemination of this alternative childcare model.