利用隐喻作为一种研究媒介来探索农村中学教师对教师角色认同的情况是一次有意义的尝试。 在从教师和学生当中搜集到的180个教师隐喻的基础上，最终制成了一个包含24个教师隐喻角色的李克特式的调查问卷，并对一个县域内的221中学任课教师和327名中学学生分别进行了调查。通过教师和学生之间的差异分析、对不同背景变量的教师之间的差异分析以及对学生之间的差异分析，发现出农村中学教师角色认同上的一些特点。并为此提出了一些改进的建议。主要发现：(1) 农村中学教师最赞同的三个角色是：教师是终身学习者；教师是向导；教师是培养兴趣的土壤。赞同度低的5个角色是教师是警察；变化莫测的天气；别人的出气筒；鞭子；授课的机器。农村中学学生最赞同的教师角色是：教师是提供学习帮助者。农村中学学生不认同的1个角色是教师是别人的出气筒；赞同度低的5个角色是警察；长大的愿望；鞭子；授课的机器；超载的司机。 (2) 农村中学教师认同的教师角色，整体上可以被归纳为10个类别并排序为：①教师和学生是平等者；②教师是提供学习帮助者；③教师是民主的领导者；④教师是养育者；⑤教师是知识传授者；⑥教师是促使学生发生改变者；⑦教师职业是有吸引力的职业；⑧教师是特权者；⑨教师是为学生提供服务者；⑩教师是惩罚者。农村中学教师既认同以学生为中心的教师角色，又认为教师和学生应该是平等的关系，还认同以教师为中心的角色。(3)农村中学教师和学生之间在教师角色认同上存在巨大差异。除了在教师是惩罚者的角色上，学生的认同高于教师之外，在养育者、提供学习帮助者、民主的领导者、提供服务者、知识传授者和平等者六类角色的认同上都是教师高于学生。(4)不同背景变量如学校所在地、学段、性别、学历和工资收入都对农村中学教师的角色认同产生显著差异。具体地说，乡镇教师对教师角色的认同高于城镇教师，城镇教师又高于县城教师；初中教师对教师角色的认同高于高中教师；女性教师与男性教师相比更加倾向于以学生为中心；专科学历的教师无论是在对教师角色的正面或是负面认同上都高于本科或研究生学历的教师；收入较高的教师对教师角色认同度也较高。36-40年龄段的教师对教师是别人的出气筒的角色认同度最高，工作满意感下降。而其他的背景变量如教龄、职务、职称、是否师范专业毕业没有对农村中学教师的角色认同产生显著影响。(5)农村中学学生对教师角色的认同也因学校所在地和学段的不同而呈现显著的差异。

This study employs metaphor as a means of research to explore rural secondary school teachers’ current identity towards their roles as professional teachers. Based on hundreds of metaphorical images gathered from both students and teachers in a rural area, a Likert-style questionnaire consisting of 24 teachers’ metaphors was finally made and used. 221 classroom teachers participated in this study. To get a complete picture, 327 students were also chosen. The findings of significant discrepancies between the teachers’ perceptions of themselves and students’ perceptions of their teachers 、among teachers with different background variables and between students in different school location and stage serve as a mirror to reflect some characteristics of rural secondary school teachers’ role identity. And some solutions to improve are also recommended. Results indicated that: (1) the first three most representative metaphors that received the highest scores from the rural secondary school teachers were: long life learner, guide, soil nurturing interest. Teachers showed low perceptions towards the metaphor of teacher as a policeman, as changing weather, as vent to others’ anger, as whip to punish, as machine to give lessons. Likewise, students’ most common view of their teachers was facilitator, while students’ one rejected choices was the metaphor of teacher as a vent to others’ anger and students’ five more negative perceptions of their teachers were policeman, wish when growing up, whip to punish, machine to give lessons, driver carrying too much. (2) Rural secondary school teachers’ metaphorical role images can be generally put into 10 conceptual categories in the following order: ①first among equals; ②facilitator; ③democratic leader; ④nurturer; ⑤transmitter of knowledge; ⑥agent of change; ⑦an attractive job; ⑧ superior authority figure; ⑨service provider; ⑩punisher. In conclusion, teachers picked a combination of metaphors from both student-centered and teacher-centered theoretical perspectives. They also perceived the relationship between teachers and students from the perspective of people among equals. (3) There existed a significant difference between teachers’ perceptions of themselves and students’ perceptions of their teachers in this study. Teachers’ preferred choices differed greatly from those of students. Teachers believed they represented the metaphors of teacher as a nurturer, as facilitator, as democratic leader, as service provider, as knowledge transmitter, as people among equals more when compared with students’ images of their teachers, while the metaphor of teacher as a punisher was more prevalent among students’ choices. (4) Some other characteristics of rural secondary school teachers’ role identity are: Background variables such as schools’ different location, stage, gender, academic background, salary, and age had a significant impact on teachers’ role identity. Rural town teachers’ role identity was higher than urban town teachers and county teachers; Junior secondary school teachers had higher role identity than senior secondary school teachers; Female teachers were more student-centered than their male peers; Teachers with a college degree had much higher positive choices and negative choices as well than those with a bachelor or a master degree; Teachers with a higher salary had higher role identity than those with a lower salary. The metaphor of teacher as a vent to others’ anger appealed most to teachers aged 36-40, their job satisfaction dropped sharply. Other background variables such as length of teaching service, title, subject, post at school, normal school graduate or not, did not differ significantly. (5) Students’ perceptions of their teachers’ role images also differed significantly in different school location and stage.