Session Information
10 SES 05 A, Research on Values, Beliefs and Understandings in Teacher Education: Choosing Teaching as a Career
Paper Session
Contribution
Switzerland, like other European countries (OECD, 2008), is currently facing a shortage of teachers (BFS 2010). Since 1960, there has been a decline in the percentage of male primary school teachers from 60% to 20%. It has become increasingly difficult to attract male students into teacher education. In addition, a greater proportion of male teachers tend to occupy management positions, such as principal, which lastly results in even fewer male teachers. This gender imbalance is evident in many European countries and has led to an ongoing debate on the "feminisation" of the teacher workforce and methods of attracting more men into the field of teaching, especially in urban areas. In order to achieve a more gender-balanced teacher education, it is important to understand the career decision-making process of young men interested in teaching, and plan courses of action that could encourage gender balance. Career decision-making theories are based on the interplay between individual factors, such as interest, abilities, values and contextual influences (Brown, 2002). From a sociological point of view, decision making is often explained by rational choice theory and primary and secondary effects of individual background (Boudon, 1974; Becker, 2004; Maaz, 2006).
Research on counter-stereotypical career choice has shown that early learning experiences lead to gender-stereotyped self-perceptions of one's abilities and interests, thus sustaining gender-determined subject choices (Eccles, 1994). Since teaching is often perceived as a female profession, it can be considered a counter-stereotypical career choice for men. At the same time, the minority of male teachers perceiving their profession as low status and "women's work" may act as a deterrent to teaching for other males (Thornton & Bricheno, 2006). Men who, in spite of these disincentives, decide to enter teacher training have been shown to have more extrinsic and less intrinsic motives than women (Kunter & Pohlmann, 2009; Malmberg, 2006; Richardson & Watt, 2005). Furthermore, while female teachers are likely to be more student-centred, male teachers tend to focus more on content and process (Fischman, 2000). In addition, research indicates that teaching in the case of men is often a second or third choice to other alternatives, which may have been impossible to pursue (Mulholland & Hansen, 2003).
In response to the shortage of men in the field of teaching in Europe, specific marketing and recruitment strategies targeting men were designed, nevertheless, they did not seem to have the desired impact (Cushman, 2007).
The aim of this study is to investigate the motivation and considerations of potential male teachers in choosing teacher education for their career, and through this, to better understand the underlying reasons for the scarcity of men in teacher education. The following questions are being investigated: Who are the men interested in teaching? What is their motivation for their career choice? What are their life ambitions and goals? How do they construct their vocational identity? How important are gender-related considerations compared to intrinsic and extrinsic motivation? A significant challenge for the sample of this study is the overall shortage of male candidates.
Method
Expected Outcomes
References
BFS (2010). Bildungsperspektiven. Szenarien 2010-2019 für die obligatorische Schule. Neuchâtel: BFS. Bieri, C., Denzler, S. & Keck, A. (2008). Wohin nach der Matura? Faktoren der Studienfachwahl von Maturandinnen und Maturanden. In: Gymnasium Helveticum, 2, 14-19. Brown, D. (2002). Career choice and development. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Boudon, R. (1974). Education, opportunity and social inequality: Changing prospects in western society. New York: Wiley. Becker, R. (2004). Soziale Ungleichheit von Bildungschancen und Chancengleichheit. In: R. Becker & W. Lauterbach (Hg.). Bildung als Privileg. Erklärungen und Befunde zu den Ursachen der Bildungsungleichheit, 161-193. Wiesbaden: VS Verlag. Cushman, P. (2007). The male teacher shortage: A synthesis of research and worldwide strategies for addressing the shortage. KEDI Journal of Educational Policy, 4, 79-98. Eccles, J. (1994). Understanding women's educational and occupational choices. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 18, 585-609. Fischman, G.E. (2000). Imagining Teachers: rethinking gender dynamics in teacher education. Oxford: Rowman & Littlefield. Glaser. B. & Strauss, A. (1967). The discovery of grounded theory. Strategies for qualitative research. Chicago: Aldine. Kunter, M. & Pohlmann, B. (2009). Lehrer. In: Wild, E. & Möller, J. (Hg.). Pädagogische Psychologie. Heidelberg: Springer, 261-282. Maaz, K. (2006). Soziale Herkunft und Hochschulzugang. Effekte institutioneller Öffnung im Bildungswesen. Wiesbaden: VS Verlag. Malmberg, L. (2006). Goal-orientation and teacher motivation among teacher applicants and student teachers. Teaching and Teacher Education, 22, 58-76. Mulholland, M. & Hansen, P. (2003). Men who become Primary School Teachers: an early portrait. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 31, 213-224. OECD (2008). Education at a Glance 2008. OECD Indicators. Paris: OECD. Richardson, P. & Watt, H. (2005). "I've decided to become a teacher": Influences on career change. Teaching and Teacher Education, 21, 475-489. Strauss, A. & Corbin, J. (1990). Basics of qualitative research. Newbury Park: Sage. Thornton, M. & Bricheno, P. (2006). Missing men in education. Stoke-on-Trent: Trentham.
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