A Habermasian Analysis of Qatar's National Teacher Professional Standards

Abstract

The belief that implementing professional standards will improve teaching and learning has
led many countries to embrace standards based educational reforms. Qatar is one of those
nations implementing, Education for a New Era that includes the adoption of professional
teacher standards. This paper examines Qatar’s professional standards for teachers using
Habermas’ knowledge constitutive interests (KCIs) as a theoretical framework. Findings
provide insight into how the KCIs are embedded in the professional standards. Suggestions
are provided regarding the possible use of Habermas’ knowledge constitutive interests in the
preparation of teachers.