Based on institutional theory, this study explores the causal relationship between teacher professional identity, perceived institutional norms, and teachers’ conformity behavior in colleges and universities in Hunan Province. A questionnaire survey was conducted on 500 teachers from two universities in Hunan Province. The reliability and validity test results and structural equation modeling analysis show that the professional identity of college teachers positively affects their conformity behavior, and that perceived institutional norms partially mediate the relationship between teacher professional identity and teacher conformity behavior. The research enriches the application of institutional theory in university organization and provides an empirical basis for universities to improve teachers’ conformity behavior.

Education systems worldwide have been significantly disrupted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, creating an immediate need for a revamp of conventional teaching and learning techniques. To explore how this has affected the educational landscape, a scoping review was conducted. This scoping review aimed to examine the changes that occurred in the education field and to explore how it has transformed the educational landscape review. Using Arksey and O'Malley's methodology, 51 articles were selected for analysis from two leading databases: Scopus and Web of Science. All chosen articles were then subjected to thematic analysis. Three main aspects impacted by this global event were uncovered, which are technological advancements and digital transformation, changes in pedagogy and teaching methods, and mental health and well-being issues. This scoping review provides valuable insights into one of the most critical sectors affected by COVID-19, which can assist with planning future strategies for similar crises.

This study aims to explore the relationship between proactive behaviors, teaching performance, and organizational support among vocational college teachers. Based on the theory of organizational support, we conducted a survey of 373 teachers from four vocational colleges in Shanxi Province, using scales for proactive behaviors, organizational support, and teaching performance. The results indicate that: (a) There is a significant correlation between teachers' proactive behaviors and teaching performance; (b) There is a significant correlation between teachers' proactive behaviors and organizational support; (c) Organizational support plays a significant mediating role in the relationship between teachers' proactive behaviors and teaching performance. This study enriches the application of organizational support in vocational colleges, providing empirical evidence for improving teachers' proactive behaviors in higher education institutions, which could be useful for central or local education policy decision-makers and implementing units. Additionally, this model could be further applied beyond vocational education to other contexts or policies, demonstrating both theoretical and practical significance.

This research concentrated on observing academic student teachers’ teamwork, especially its effectiveness and their attitudes to collaboration and transformation, as well as their reflective, written self-assessments in relation to teamwork. Teams have been studied widely, but these kinds of special contexts are rare. The target group was higher education teachers, the context was an introduction of a new pedagogical program, and the teams acted under the guidance of mentors and occasional lecturers. Besides the content analysis, the study method was a deep analysis of the essays. The most effective positive influencers proved to be social exchanges, including mentoring, peer support, input for learning and the experiences of wellbeing. Individual distrust of working methods in teams, and emotional suspicions of their self-efficacy in transformational settings emerged as latent factors, revealing mainly the difficulty of changing traditional mindsets. The analyses offered individual and community-wide opportunities to steer education in the future.