Martine van der Pluijm

112 Chapter 4 explained: “ The network sessions, that’s where you find the tools .” Some teachers reported they felt free because they were explicitly encouraged to find their own approach, but could also ask for support. Teacher (2) said: “ I liked the fact that you could go your own way, but if you needed help, you got support, tips or suggestions. ”Teacher 9 felt that her organization was not supportive enough: “ It is just that our organization is limiting sometimes, that’s the only thing.” Most teachers reported that they felt more related to parents and colleagues. Teacher (2) explained her relatedness as follows: “ I have a good feeling about the way parents approach me now. They don’t call me ‘ma’am’ but Irene (pseudonym), my first name. You know, these are the details that tell you that they think you’re okay .” Teachers reported feeling more competent in their role towards parents. They described how they were more open to learning and to systematically improving their practice. Teacher 13 reported: “ I tried to let go of my old structures and to find out if I could improve things. ” Teacher 2 explained the tension to provide the differentiation that is needed: “ The difficulty is to adapt to the level of the parent and contribute something meaningful. That’s the tension I feel in my work. Now, I can manage this better.” Teacher 1 explained that she felt more competent in finding answers : “Like now, I’m wondering how I can help this parent, but I’ll figure it out, I’ll try something.” Most teachers reported they were challenged to experiment during the network sessions. Teacher (7) reported: “ I experiment a lot. What I learned during the recent network session is that you can use parent-child activities that are spelled out, or you can use more openness and stimulate parent and child to think about the content themselves.” Approximately half of the teachers felt more competent when they discovered that their work with parents was valued by others. These teachers reported that parents and colleagues in the school praised their improvements, which they experienced as a confirmation that they were doing the right thing. Some teachers also mentioned limitations. These teachers experienced a lack of relatedness to their colleagues. Teacher 3 reported: “ I hope I did well, but I think I was the only one who did it (worked with the AHL principles). We can improve. We also want to reach parents in other grades. If these colleagues don’t continue this, I wonder if I could have done something different to involve my colleagues and create more enthusiasm to continue.” These teachers do not have doubts about their competence to work with parents, but experience boundaries (such as energy, time, and involvement of colleagues). Teacher 4 explained: “ The lack of possibilities you have at school. I see possibilities as a teacher, but it is not easy for everyone.” Teacher 10, who only partially participated in the professionalization program, did not experience relatedness and competence. She had problems with parents who did not speak Dutch and with the fact that she was unable to change parents’ behavior: “ It bothers me that I have to tell parents to talk in Dutch. And when I turn around, I hear them talking in different languages. I ask them to do something, and they don’t do what I ask. They don’t listen. It’s really difficult.”