'It has always been my dream': exploring pre-service teachers' motivations for choosing to teach

• Published in: Teacher development 2006-03, Vol.10 (1), p.5-24
• Main Authors: Manuel, Jackie, Hughes, John
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Attitude Measures; Australia; Career Choice; Expectation; Foreign Countries; Goal Orientation; Occupational Aspiration; Preservice Teacher Education; Questionnaires; Student Characteristics; Student Teacher Attitudes; Teacher Persistence; Teaching (Occupation)
• ISSN: 1366-4530; 1747-5120
• DOI: 10.1080/13664530600587311

This article reports on an investigation into the motivations of a cohort of pre-service teacher education students, undertaking a five-year, full-time combined undergraduate and initial teacher education degree program at the University of Sydney, Australia. Participants completed an extensive questionnaire which sought to gather data on the characteristics of the cohort; the factors that influenced their decision to undertake a teaching degree; their educational and work backgrounds; their perceptions of teaching, teachers and students; their expectations of teaching as a career; and their professional goals. The study found that a majority of participants made the decision to teach based on reasons that reflect personal aspirations to work with young people to make a difference in their lives; to maintain a meaningful engagement with the subject area they were drawn to; and to attain personal fulfilment and meaning. The study found that more than two-thirds of the sample intended teaching for at least 10 years after being appointed. The article explores the implications of the findings for early career teacher satisfaction, teacher retention and early career teacher attrition.