Development of preservice teachers’ competence beliefs, career values, and perceptions of teaching as a profession: A longitudinal study

Abstract

Competence beliefs, career values, and perceptions regarding teaching as a profession have important implications for preservice teachers' professional development. Longitudinal research concerning the development of preservice teachers' competence beliefs, values, and perceptions of teaching remains scarce. We investigated a sample of 270 Chinese preservice teachers on three measurement occasions. The expectancy-value theory framework was employed as a theoretical framework. We first tested the longitudinal measurement invariance of the FIT-Choice scale and then examined the growth trajectories of preservice teachers’ competence beliefs, career values, and perceptions of teaching as a profession over time. The results showed that the FIT-Choice scale was characterized by longitudinal measurement invariance. The Chinese preservice teachers included in our sample exhibited an overall decline in the growth trajectories of values (e.g., social utility value) and perceptions of teaching (e.g., expertise, social status, salary, and career choice satisfaction) over time, with the exception of their perceptions of difficulty, which exhibited an overall increase over time. Their initial levels of all types of values and perception constructs exhibited individual variability. We did not find individual differences in the development of the constructs that we studied. Practical implications are discussed.