Teacher Nostalgia and the Sustainability of Reform: The Generation and Degeneration of Teachers’ Missions, Memory, and Meaning

TLDR

Unwanted change triggers nostalgia for lost missions, which teachers experience as both social and political, and as they age, their responses are shaped by degeneration and long‑standing generational agendas. This article examines how teachers’ nostalgia influences the sustainability of reform among a dominant cohort of experienced older teachers. The study finds that cumulative demographic and educational changes, coupled with nostalgia, leave teachers resistant to reform, insecure in their capacity, disenchanted with students, and pessimistic about schools, highlighting practical implications for policymakers, administrators, and teachers.

Abstract

Purpose : This article focuses on the sustainability of reform through the lens of teachers’ nostalgia—the major form of memory among a demographically dominant cohort of experienced older teachers. Unwanted change evokes senses of nostalgia for these lost missions that take two forms: social and political. As teachers age, their responses to change are influenced not only by processes of degeneration (loss of commitment, energy, enthusiasm, etc.) but also by the agendas of the generation—historically situated missions formed decades ago that teachers have carried with them throughout their careers. Findings: Findings indicate that the effects of cumulative demographic and educational change and the resulting nostalgias have left teachers feeling resistant to mandated reform, insecure about their own professional capacity, disenchanted with their students, and pessimistic about their schools’ future. The results of this research have practical implications for policy makers, administrators, and classroom teachers.