Abstract
As fewer and fewer students choose teaching as a career, the teaching profession struggles to understand how to recruit more students into the field, and prevent current teachers from leaving. Data shows the need for new teachers will continue to increase (Sutcher, Darling-Hammond and Carver-Thomas (2016), while almost 70% of schools reported at least one unfilled vacancy to begin the 2011-12 school year (Malkus, Hoyer, & Sparks, 2015). Teacher preparation programs are also graduating fewer students into teaching (2016). This qualitative case study investigated the perceptions and beliefs of undergraduate students enrolled in an introductory course on teaching. Data from this case study is expected to confirm prior research on the reasons why students choose teaching as a profession, and help teacher preparation programs investigate if students’ perceptions about becoming a teacher have changed. Results from this study support prior research on why students choose to become teachers, but also explores students views on how society views teaching, the continued salary gap with other professions, and the future of teaching.
Highlights
The size of the teaching force in the United States is expected to grow at least until 2025 (Institute of Educational Sciences, 2015), the continued shortage of teachers to fill existing and new vacancies is not allowing districts to find qualified or interested candidates (Malkus, Hoyer, & Sparks, 2015)
Of the four factors they cite driving this emerging and current teacher shortage “based on the evidence available”, one in particular is concerning for teacher preparation programs across the country-a decline in teacher preparation enrollments (Sutcher, et al, 2016, p. 37)
With colleges and universities graduating fewer and fewer students with degrees in education prepared to teach in the classroom, the demand for new teachers coupled with higher teacher attrition rates (Sutcher, et al, 2016) will only continue exacerbating the issue of teacher shortages
Summary
The size of the teaching force in the United States is expected to grow at least until 2025 (Institute of Educational Sciences, 2015), the continued shortage of teachers to fill existing and new vacancies is not allowing districts to find qualified or interested candidates (Malkus, Hoyer, & Sparks, 2015). 77% of Hispanics in the survey favored their child working as a teacher vs 51% for African-American parents, and only 40% of white parents (PDK Poll, 2018) This may reflect the fact that in today’s classroom, nearly 50% are students of color vs 82% of public school teachers that are white (Boser, 2014). This may suggest that while for white respondents, becoming a teacher as a sign of economic upward mobility may not have the same impact as in the past, for African-American and especially Hispanic parents, teaching is still seen as a viable career path. A continuing qualified teacher shortage and decreasing support for becoming a teacher creates even more difficulties in addressing the future of teacher education preparation programs and the teaching profession
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