Professor of Education Sonja Kosunen has received Starting Grant funding from the European Research Council (ERC) for theoretical development of research on teacher segregation.
Grants awarded by the ERC are among the most prestigious and sought-after in Europe. ERC Starting Grant funding is intended for pioneering and high-quality research projects by promising researchers and only between 10 percent and 15 percent of the applications are approved. This year, only 12 percent of applicants received funding. The five-year grant awarded to Sonja Kosunen amounts to EUR 1.5 million.
Until now, research on the impact of teachers’ class background has been fragmented
Kosunen’s SegrEd project examines teachers’ social class backgrounds and their socio-spatial segregation in education markets. Focus in the project is on theoretical and conceptual development across fields of science. The conceptual framework to be built in the project will be tested and compared empirically in Finland, Sweden and France using both quantitative and qualitative methods and developed on the basis of the comparison.
“Until now, research on teachers’ class backgrounds and their educational and career paths has been fragmented in different fields of science. It therefore lacks a coherent or shared set of concepts and a theoretical approach. When these can be developed, we can better explain how teachers from different class backgrounds choose teacher education and become teachers for example in affluent or disadvantaged urban areas,” Kosunen explains.
For this reason, theoretical and conceptual development are required and empirical testing of these concepts in different education markets is needed.
According to Kosunen, the relations between the emergence of inequalities and the socio-spatial segregation of areas and schools are well documented unto a certain extent. However, in her view, we need to know more about the mechanisms producing inequality, especially from the perspective of the segregation and stratification of the teaching profession.
Potential for breakthroughs
The research project will produce research knowledge in the junction of educational sociology, human geography and pedagogy with multimethodological approaches. According to Kosunen, the project will combine register data, surveys and interviews with teachers in three countries.
“I have high expectations, especially with regard to the theoretical part of the project combining discussions between fields of science and international comparisons. In my view, they can lead to significant breakthroughs in explaining educational inequalities at an international level.”
The European Research Council (ERC) has selected 478 early-career researchers across Europe to receive this year’s Starting Grants. With a total funding of 761 million euros, these grants support excellent research across diverse fields. From Finland, seven researchers received funding.
