Abstract
This study investigated the fitness of the Factors Influencing Teaching (FIT) Choice scale in a Kurdish educational setting among undergraduate teacher-training students (N=1335) encompassing nursery, primary and secondary education. The factors motivating this population to become teachers were examined in the Iraqi-Kurdish educational context. The-FIT-Choice scale was translated into the Kurdish language and its reliability and validity were measured. Intrinsic/altruistic and social utility values were found to be the most important factors behind the choice of the teaching profession as a career. Intrinsic career value, social contribution, the experience of prior learning and teaching were also influential motivational factors in this choice, as were social influences and social status factors compared to similar research conducted in Australian and Turkish educational settings, however, fall back career, job security, time for family, job transferability, the opportunity to shape the future of children and enhance social equity did not demonstrate meaningful value as motivational factors in this survey. One of the most important results differentiating this from other studies was that the addition of moral value factors to the original scale revealed that these values played an important role in students’ perceptions towards the teaching profession as a career.
Highlights
Unlike many OEDC member countries (OEDC 2005), Iraqi Kurdistan does not a shortage of trained teachers, rather, as result in part of ISIS attacks in the region, the Ministry of Education (MoE) has been unable to run effective teacher recruitment exercises (Balyer and Ozcan 2014; Eren and Tezel 2010a; Fokkens-Bruinsma and Canrinus 2012a; König and Rothland 2012; Richardson and Watt 2006a)
The two important aims of this research study were to investigate the performance of the FITChoice scale among a large sample of diverse undergraduate teacher candidates in the autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq; and to examine the basic motivational factors of students in choosing the teaching profession in an autonomous region where there is a major economic crisis and the value given to teachers and teaching is very desperate in the Kurdish community
What are the motivational factors and perceptions of undergraduate student teacher candidates in respect to the teaching profession in a Kurdistan context? In this study, we found that Intrinsic/altruistic and social utility values are the most important factors behind the choice of the teaching profession as a career
Summary
Unlike many OEDC member countries (OEDC 2005), Iraqi Kurdistan does not a shortage of trained teachers, rather, as result in part of ISIS attacks in the region, the Ministry of Education (MoE) has been unable to run effective teacher recruitment exercises (Balyer and Ozcan 2014; Eren and Tezel 2010a; Fokkens-Bruinsma and Canrinus 2012a; König and Rothland 2012; Richardson and Watt 2006a). As a result of this obstacle, a huge number oversupply of prospective teachers waiting to be recruited has built up. The quality of teachers has a huge impact on the quality of education (Cuy Herrera, 2016), Kurdistan Region is trying to bring up quality teachers as well
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