Teacher shortages, wellbeing concerns, and an emphasis on creating inclusive and culturally responsive learning environments have recently come to the fore. Accordingly, the role of the teacher is more complex and the stakes of ensuring that teachers are equipped to handle their roles are higher. A teacher’s professional journey starts when they commence initial teacher education (ITE). Thus, ITE has a key role in ensuring that teachers can practice effectively in dynamic, complex, and diverse communities (Clinton et al., 2018). That role begins with teacher selection. The Teacher Capability Assessment Tool (TCAT), (Clinton & Dawson, 2018; Bowles et.al. 2015) is a comprehensive standardised online tool that informs teacher selection. The tool assesses a range of factors including; motivations for teaching, cognitive reasoning skills, non-cognitive domains and characteristics such as disposition, self-regulation and resilience. TCAT also includes self-report items related to a candidate’s communication style and self-awareness. The tool also asks candidates about their ability to act fairly, their cultural sensitivity, and their acceptance of difference. Our data suggest that there are key characteristics that predict intended behaviour and performance during a pre-service teachers’ journey. This paper will present evidence in relation to these dispositional factors and include a discussion of the measures of cultural sensitivity, ethics and social desirability. Building on the notion that teaching is a complex and challenging profession that requires a mix of knowledge, skills, and competencies, dispositions and personal characteristics must be an important focus given they are predictive of teacher behaviour, student outcomes and intention to stay in the profession. Research findings will be shared that illustrate the differences between what teacher candidates believe what makes an effective teacher in Australia, the USA and Ecuador. Data from a random sample of 100 candidates from each country were selected to illustrate variance across the three countries. The differences across the countries provide a diverse perspective while demonstrating latent dimensions across the key characteristics. For instance, Australian respondents were less likely than respondents from Utah to believe kindness and empathy were important aspects of being an effective teacher. Further, a common pattern across the countries was found around high-level dimensions relating to relationships, knowledge, skills, and evaluative thinking. This paper provides the foundation for examining teachers’ views about effective teaching, the importance of ongoing self-development, and implications for teachers’ professional journeys. The paper is relevant to educators, teacher educators, and policymakers in education and initial teacher education.

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