PhD project
Student teachers’ commitment to teaching
What are relationships between student teachers’ personal characteristics, learning experiences and perception of external environmental aspects impacting teacher career and their commitment to teaching?
- Duration
- 2013 - 2017
- Funding
- Netherlands Fellowship Programmes (NFP)
Researchers
- Ikupa Moses MA - PhD candidate
- prof.dr. W.F. Admiraal - supervisor
- dr. N. Saab - co-supervisor
Project description
This project intends to examine student teachers’ identification, involvement and loyalty to teaching as a profession, to students learning and subject knowledge as key activities of the teaching profession.
Social relevance
Findings from this study will inform both the government policy makers and teacher education institutions on the practical measures for increasing commitment to teaching among student teachers.
Scientific relevance
The study is an elaboration of research works on teacher commitment which will contribute to a detailed understanding of commitment to teaching and factors that explain student teachers’ commitment to teaching.
Description of the topic
From the Social Cognitive Theory perspective, individuals’ psychological functioning is a result of a dynamic and reciprocal interaction of the person, learning experiences, and environment. How this interaction can explain student teachers’ commitment to teaching? Thus, the study is expected to answer the following questions:
- What are the relationships between student teachers’ personal characteristics; learning experiences; and perceived environmental aspects and their commitment to teaching? And which factors explain differences in student-teachers’ commitment to teaching?”
- How can gender traits explain student teachers’ differences in commitment to the teaching?
- What are student-teachers’ profiles based on their levels of commitment to teaching?
- What are teacher education factors that influence student teachers’ commitment to teaching?
Methods
The study involved about 3246 student teachers in one teacher education university college in Tanzania. It employed descriptive and correlational design. Data were collected through questionnaires and interviews.
Foto: Mark Hunt\Universal Images Group
Moses, I., Admiraal, W. F., & Berry, A. K. Gender and gender role differences in student–teachers’ commitment to teaching. Social Psychology of Education, 1-18.
September 2017: dissertation