Influence of Situational Factors on Teacher Decision-Making and Problem-Solving

Curriculum implementation in Australian transnational vocational education is conceived as a series of problems and dilemmas teachers must resolve. This chapter explores how situational factors influenced 13 teachers’ decision-making and problem-solving in enacting the curriculum in nine countries. Teacher decision-making and problem-solving were driven by the teachers’ desire to overcome the mismatch between the curriculum intentions and the circumstances for enactment. In these situations of dissonance, teachers utilised four main approaches to decision-making and problem-solving in curriculum implementation: (a) reactive, (b) practical, (c) interactive, and (d) subjective. Teachers experienced varying levels of success resolving curriculum problems in situations different to Australia. Success depended on the relational conditions and the capacity to influence local factors. These findings reveal that the ability of teachers to maintain Australian standards and fidelity to the curriculum offshore will, at times, be compromised by such factors. The analysis indicates that the quality of curriculum implementation depends on Australian and local stakeholder support for an extended scope of role for transnational teachers to make decisions and solve problems.