How Do They Meet The Challenges?

As a group of Chinese professional women with outstanding quality and status,university female teachers have a non-negligible influence in higher education.They face enormous opportunities and challenges under the impact of the current socialist market economy: on the one hand,with the progress and development of society,female teachers in universities have the right,ability and opportunity to work hard to achieve personal value.On the other hand,under the influence of traditional social concepts and women’s own traits,they have to make sacrifices for their families.It can be said that independent and thoughtful university female teachers will surely encounter many challenges.The experience that they grow after experiencing the “baptism” of challenges is a valuable asset which is worth exploring.This study used qualitative research methods to select four representative female university teachers from H Universities in X province of Central South China as the research objects.The author has not only conducted multiple interviews and observations,but also has interviewed surrounding personssuch as students and colleagues,and write reflection records after interviews.Through the analysis and reorganization of interview materials,reflective records and physical objects,the author extracts the valuable experience of female teachers in universities to cope with challenges,and combined with the perspective of ecology,this paper summarizes the constraints and guarantee conditions for the professional development of female teachers in universities.This study firstly reproduces the challenges faced by the four female university teachers in their professional development process in a narrative manner,and summarizes their respective attitudes toward the challenge: “do her best”,“to act with ease”,“follow the heart” and “put public interests before private ones.” Secondly,the author has refined the personal reflections of female teachers in a theoretical way to show valuable experience of the university female teachers to meet the challenges which are“self-improvement-actively respond to the environment”,“pay attention to the family-rational put into work”,“teaching and research-maintain a steady pace and work” and“teachers and students advance together –to grow hand inhand.” Finally,the paper analyzes the regrets of the four female teachers in professional development from an ecological perspective,and sums up four main factors restricting the professional development of female teachers which are “strong administrative force”,“cumbersome work affairs”“heavy family responsibilities” and “unlimited pursuit of perfection ”.It also summarizes the main conditions for guaranteeing the professional development of female teachers:the government has to implement relevant policies to ensure that “administrative” and “academic” perform their duties;universities have to improve the management system to ensure the quality of professional development of female teachers;society has to provide relevant support to alleviate the conflicts between their work and family,and relevant departments have to organize teacher training and further education to promote the professional development of female teachers.