Education Teacher Candidates Research Articles

The Impact of Coaching on Development of Transversal Skills: An Exploratory Study of Teacher Candidates in Kazakhstani Primary Education

In Kazakhstan, the development of future teachers' transversal skills is currently underemphasized in both curricula and basic educational programs. This gap poses a risk that many pedagogy graduates will lack essential transversal skills, thereby potentially reducing their effectiveness in their professional lives and hindering their career improvement. However, empirical data on the effectiveness of interventions, such as coaching, in enhancing transversal skills among future teachers are limited. This study aims to examine the impact of coaching interventions on enhancing transversal skills in future educators using a mixed methods approach. The experiment involved 100 participants and highlighted challenges such as limited knowledge of transversal skills, motivation issues in skill development, and difficulties in utilizing coaching technology effectively. However, the study findings reveal significant improvements in participants' transversal skills after implementing and testing an academic program designed for this purpose. These findings can serve as a basis for developing strategies to enhance transversal skills in university settings and inform the adaptation of educational programs focused on transversal skill development.

Diversifying the teaching workforce: challenges and opportunities in initial teacher education (ITE)

ABSTRACT Globalisation and migration have led to increasingly diverse classrooms. Yet teachers from ethnic minority backgrounds continue to be disproportionally under-represented in the teaching workforce. While education policies often focus on addressing student differences and diversity, the attention is rarely extended to diversifying the traditionally homogenous teaching workforce. The result is the widening diversity gap between teachers and the students they teach. This has implications for social justice, equity and inclusive education. While the benefits of a diverse teaching workforce are widely recognised, efforts to increase teachers from ethnic minority backgrounds yielded limited results. This paper discusses the challenges that support the attraction and retention of teacher candidates in initial teacher education and their transition into teaching and recommends strategies addressing structural, institutional, and environmental factors that deter them from the teaching profession.

The Relationship between Physical Education and Sports Teacher Candidates Attitudes toward the Teaching Profession and Levels of Satisfaction with Life

The Relationship between Physical Education and Sports Teacher Candidates Attitudes toward the Teaching Profession and Levels of Satisfaction with Life

Becoming Linguistically and Culturally Responsive Educators: Teacher Candidates’ Perspective Shifts in an Introductory Linguistics Course

ABSTRACT Many teacher education programs aim to address the acute need for culturally and linguistically responsive educators by fostering linguistic consciousness and awareness of language learner populations. This mixed-methods study explores how elementary education teacher candidates’ perspectives shift through critical reflection and dialogue about English learners’ education and equitable classroom practices. Using a transformative learning framework, our findings illustrate that collaborative learning tasks as well as peers’ and multilingual graduate teaching assistants’ experiences play a disorienting role in challenging monolingual and bilingual teacher candidates’ beliefs about language acquisition, bilingualism, and English learners’ education. We discuss implications for teacher language awareness and instructional practices in ESL endorsement courses.

Interest in science and mathematics teaching among non-science/mathematics initial teacher education candidates

ABSTRACT Many countries are experiencing teacher shortages, with particularly long-standing issues in attraction and retention in secondary science and mathematics. Policy initiatives often focus on science and mathematics undergraduates, with the aim of encouraging them to consider teaching by offering scholarships into teacher education or fast-tracking into employment permanency. However, those who have already chosen to teach in non-science and mathematics teaching specialisations have already shown their interest in teaching and form a pool of candidates that may potentially be recruited into science and mathematics teaching pathways. While these non-science and mathematics teacher candidates could have the capacity to address in part longstanding science and mathematics teacher shortages, there is a lack of research examining their motivations from the perspective of initiatives that may attract them into science and mathematics teaching, and little that examines their science and mathematics backgrounds. We sought to address these gaps by surveying 349 initial teacher education (ITE) students from four Australian universities, examining their career motivations, interest in science and mathematics teaching, and science and mathematics backgrounds. We explored perceived barriers to secondary science and mathematics teaching, and responses to potential policy initiatives. We found that 61% of non-science/mathematics ITE candidates indicated high interest in secondary science or mathematics pathways. Policy options such as support for science and mathematics retraining after several years of teaching in their current subject area or level, were selected as likely to support this choice. Our results suggest considerable capacity for policymakers and tertiary institutions to design initiatives that may attract non-science/mathematics ITE candidates into science and mathematics teaching.

Investigation of Burnout Levels of Special Education Teacher Candidates

The current research is to examine the burnout levels of special education teacher candidates. This study used a correlational survey design. 311 teacher candidates studying in the special education department in Turkiye in the 2023-2024 academic year participated in the research. The research data were collected through the Maslach Burnout Inventory-Student Form (MTE-Student Form). The analysis of the obtained data was carried out through the statistical package program. Independent groups t-test was used to reveal the differences in variables related to the gender of the teacher candidates, their satisfaction with the special education teaching department they studied in, and their interaction with individuals with special needs in the past. One-way analysis of variance ANOVA was used to determine the differentiation in terms of variables related to the grade level of education. In cases where differentiation was understood, the Tukey test was used to reveal the reason for the differentiation and to control the difference between the means. As a result of the research, it is revealed that there is a significant difference (p˂0.05) between the gender, grade level, satisfaction with the special education department and interaction with individuals with special needs in the past and burnout levels of pre-service teachers. In order to reduce burnout in pre-service special education teachers, personal achievement and skills of these individuals should be developed, activities that encourage learning should be included and group work should be included.

Δύναμη και πίεση. Καθημερινότητα και επιστήμη: Απόψεις προπτυχιακών φοιτητών παιδαγωγικού τμήματος

The present paper investigates the degree of influence of the polysemy of the concepts "force" and "pressure" and of everyday language in the formation of the opinions of primary education teacher candidates, regarding these concepts in the context of Physics. The sample of the research was 69 undergraduate students of the 4th semester of the Pedagogigal Department and for the analysis of the results the qualitative research method was followed. The students expressed their opinions in writing about what they believe force and pressure are, while focus groups discussions with randomly selected students followed. The results highlight the diversity of the students" answers, the diversity of their thinking and the fact that their opinions are not necessarily scientifically wrong or conceptually different from the scientifically correct but semantically different, examining them with a strict criterion of their formulation in purely scientific terms.

Reflective and critical thinking as determinants of academic achievement: A study in physical education and sport teacher candidates

This study examined the relationship between reflective thinking and academic achievement in physical education and sports teaching students. The research aimed to investigate to what extent the reflective and critical thinking tendencies of prospective physical education and sports teachers explain academic achievement. Based on John Dewey's vital and reflective thinking approaches, considered among thinking skills, an answer to this question was sought. A traditional and positivist paradigm was adopted as the research model, and a quantitative research approach was used. The study was designed with the relational method, and the relationship between critical and reflective thinking dispositions of physical education and sports teacher candidates and their academic achievement was analysed. The study group consisted of 200 participants studying in the first, second, third and fourth grades of the physical education and sports teaching program. The mean age of the participants was 22.20±2.98; 44.5% exercised regularly, and 49% were licensed athletes. Data collection tools included personal information forms, academic achievement grouping, the Critical Thinking Scale, and the Reflective Thinking Scale. The Critical Thinking Scale was adapted to Turkish using a two-dimensional model. The Reflective Thinking Scale has four sub-dimensions. The Confirmatory Factor Analysis indicated that some items were not suitable due to high error variances and cross-loading. After removing these items based on expert opinions, the remaining items in the reflection and critical reflection dimensions showed very good factor loadings. The reliability coefficients for the scale were satisfactory. Final year students scored higher in critical reflection and reflective thinking than third-grade students. No significant difference was found in critical openness, reflective skepticism, and critical thinking. Male physical education and sports teacher candidates scored higher in reflection, critical reflection, and reflective thinking tendency than their female counterparts. Consequently, the findings show that reflective thinking can potentially increase academic achievement in prospective physical education and sports teachers. These findings emphasize that developing thinking skills should be a priority in education programs.

Examining the Relationship Between Individual Innovativeness and Positive Future Expectation Levels of Physical Education Teacher Candidates

This study aimed to examine the effect of teacher candidates' individual innovativeness levels on their positive future expectations. A total of 412 teacher candidates, 194 women and 218 men, studying at sports science faculties of universities in Ankara, participated in the research. “Personal Information Form”, “Individual Innovativeness Scale” and “Positive Future Expectation Scale” were used in the data collection process. During the data analysis phase, Independent Samples T test, One Way ANOVA analysis, Pearson correlation analysis and Multiple Linear Regression Analysis were used in the SPSS 25.0 program. The research found that the individual innovativeness levels and positive future expectations of the teacher candidates were above the medium level. It was found that the individual innovativeness levels and positive expectations of teacher candidates differ according to the type of university (public, private) and the class they study in (p <0.05). It was observed that there was a positive relationship between the individual innovativeness level and positive future expectation among the teacher candidates participating in the research (p<0.05), and it was also determined that the individual innovativeness level positively affected the positive future expectation (pz0.05). As a result, it can be said that the high level of individual innovativeness in teacher candidates is a factor that increases positive future expectations.

Building international standards for Islamic education teacher candidates with reference to CAEP guidelines

PurposeThis paper aims to develop precise statements (standards) to describe the knowledge and skills that should be possessed by Islamic education (IE) teacher candidates who receive their initial preparation in various international higher-education institutions. These statements must be compatible with the requirements and guidelines for building specialized standards set by the Council for Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP), so that they can be used for accreditation and improving quality.Design/methodology/approachTwo panels of IE experts participated in developing and validating the standards, using a combination of Delphi and content validity methods. Alongside this research activity, management activity ensured that the process ran smoothly, as the researcher coordinated panels, allocated resources and tracked progress during standard development.FindingsTwenty-six components divided into five standards were developed into a final list based on the panels.Originality/valueThis study provides standards for the preparation of IE teachers in higher-education institutions that can be applied in different countries and geographical regions. Furthermore, it aims to make the subject of IE more comparable with other academic disciplines, and appropriate for CAEP accreditation.

The Relationship between Philosophical Tendencies and Teaching Style Preferences of Physical Education Teacher Candidates

The teaching methods employed by teachers are interconnected with their educational philosophy tendencies. Determining teacher candidates' teaching style preferences and philosophical orientations toward education, as well as studying their relationship, might provide insights about the classroom environment they will establish when they begin their teaching career in the future. To examine this connection, this study aimed to compare the educational philosophy tendencies of PE teacher candidates, their preferred teaching styles, and their value perceptions of styles based on gender and grade levels and to determine if there is a relationship between philosophical tendencies and teaching style preferences. The research included 242 PE teacher candidates. The study utilized the "Physical Education Teachers' Use of Teaching Styles and Perceptions of Styles Questionnaire" and "Educational Philosophy Tendencies Scale" for data collection. The data was analyzed using independent samples t-test, ANOVA, and Pearson correlation analysis. The research results revealed that among the educational philosophy tendencies of PE teacher candidates, there was only a difference in the essentialist philosophy of education according to gender, and there was no difference according to grade level. However, it was observed that the teaching style preferences of PE teacher candidates did not differ according to gender and grade level. The study revealed a correlation between the preferred teaching styles, the value perceptions of these styles, and the educational philosophy approaches of teacher candidates.

Insights into Multicultural Competence of Early Childhood Teacher Candidates in Indonesian Islamic Higher Education

This study investigates multicultural attitudes among 168 ECE teacher candidates from four state Islamic universities in Indonesia, using a quantitative descriptive design and the Multicultural Attitudes Survey for Teachers. Results indicate a high average multicultural attitude score of 74.12, with candidates demonstrating confidence in managing multicultural classrooms and promoting cultural pride among children. However, their attitudes are primarily based on personal interactions rather than formal coursework. Interviews with 27 respondents further explore multicultural education practices during teaching practicum, revealing a need for improved collaboration with parents and greater emphasis on multicultural education in both teacher education and ECE curricula. Practical implications include integrating multicultural education into teacher education programs, fostering experiential learning for attitude development, and expanding multicultural education coverage in ECE curricula to enhance children's multicultural awareness.

Conceptualizing Professionalism: Perspectives of Science and Religion Teacher Candidates in Islamic Higher Education

This study explores prospective science and religion teachers' perceptions of professionalism within Islamic education at Islamic universities. Purposive sampling was used, and in-depth interviews were conducted with 17 students, including nine science majors and eight religion majors. Thematic data analysis was employed to examine the views, values, and practices that underpin their understanding of professionalism. The findings reveal that prospective Science teachers emphasize the significance of deep and applicable scientific mastery, while prospective Religion teachers prioritize moral and spiritual professionalism in teaching Islamic values. Both groups, however, concur that professionalism encompasses integrity, good teaching ethics, and a commitment to the mission of Islamic education. Factors such as the educational environment, institutional policies, and societal expectations significantly influence their perceptions. This study provides valuable insights into how professionalism is conceptualized and practiced within Islamic education, highlighting the need for more inclusive and relevant teaching approaches. These findings offer a foundation for enhancing educational policies and practices to better develop professionalism among future educators in Islamic higher education institutions.

Investigation of Early Childhood and Primary School Education Teacher Candidates' Attitudes to Gender Roles in Terms of Gender, Grade, Mother’s and Father’s Education Levels

Gender inequality indeed persists as a pervasive issue worldwide, infiltrating numerous facets of society and impeding progress toward a more equitable and just world. Schools play a crucial role as essential institutions where children embark on their initial journey into social life, contributing to the formation of values, norms, and social relationships. During these early years, children observe, imitate, and internalize the words, behaviors, and attitudes of teachers, shaping their understanding of the world around them. Therefore, children's perceptions of gender and attitudes toward gender can be significantly influenced by the attitudes and behaviors of their teachers. This research aims to examine whether there are differences in the gender-role attitudes among pre-service early childhood and primary school teachers based on gender, grade level, mother's and father's education level. The study was designed as a cross-sectional survey model, and data were collected from 1st and 4th-grade students enrolled in Early Childhood and Primary School Education Programs at a university in Turkey. The data were collected using a Personal Information Form and the Gender Role Attitude Scale (GRAS). The data were analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests in SPSS 22.0, and effect sizes were calculated. Analysis indicated that there were statistically significant differences in gender role attitudes between genders, grade level, and mother’s education level. However, there was no statistically significant difference in the scores based on the father's education level. Female teacher candidates were found to have more egalitarian gender role attitudes compared to male teacher candidates, and 4th-grade students exhibited more egalitarian attitudes than 1st-grade students. Additionally, it was observed that teacher candidates whose mothers were illiterate tended to have more traditional gender role attitudes compared to those whose mothers had primary school, middle school, high school, or college degrees.

On-entry teacher screening using simulation: capturing and measuring ITE candidates’ non-academic teaching dispositions

ABSTRACT Australian universities are mandated to implement non-academic on-entry evaluations for all initial teacher education candidates. Universities have introduced interviews, written applications, psychometric tests, and more recently, simulation. This research sought to determine if simulation as an evaluation tool had utility as a measure of teaching dispositions and its utility in measuring candidates’ pre-existing dispositions such as self-confidence, resilience, and conscientiousness during and after a classroom simulation evaluation session. The mixed method design explored students’ perceptions of the effectiveness of the simulation tool and evaluation of their own on-entry performance. The findings showed that the utility, fairness and validity of on-entry assessments of this entry requirement were justified and candidates’ self-confidence as a distal measure of classroom preparedness was affirmed. The implications of these data and findings include the refinement of processes and tools for assessing non-academic teaching dispositions and an expanded evidence base for assessing the suitability of candidates for initial teacher education.

Bridging Literacy Theory with Practice: Differentiated Academic Service Learning Projects with Children's Literature

AbstractThis academic service learning initiative enabled teacher education candidates to create research‐based family literacy activities around a diverse selection of children’s books. Each project included a detailed parent or caregiver letter, which provides an overview of the family literacy activity; materials and props; step‐by‐step procedures; prompting questions; ideas for differentiation to meet the needs of varied learning styles; and real‐world extensions. As pre‐service teachers selected from a menu of literacy strategies that fit their individual letter and project design, the concept of differentiation was being actively implemented. Pre‐service teachers reflected on the experience of creating the family literacy project and their future plans for involving families in their students’ literacy learning.

Examining the Relationship Between Physical Education and Sports Teacher Candidates' Speaking Self-Efficacy Perceptions and Speech Anxiety

The study was conducted to determine the speaking self-efficacy perception and speaking anxiety levels of prospective physical education and sports teachers and to test the predictive effect of speaking self-efficacy perception on speaking anxiety. The research was designed in quantitative research method and relational survey model. The research was conducted on 309 physical education teacher candidates studying at different universities. The data of the study were obtained by using Personal Information Form, Speaking Self-Efficacy Scale for Student Teachers and Speaking Anxiety Scale for Student Teachers. Since the data were normally distributed, descriptive analysis, independent sample t-test, one-way analysis of variance, Pearson correlation analysis and simple linear regression analysis were used to analyze the data. According to the results of the analysis, it was observed that pre-service teachers' speaking self-efficacy perceptions were at a high level and their speaking anxiety was at a low level. It was determined that pre-service teachers' perceptions of speaking self-efficacy and speaking anxiety differed significantly in favor of those who had an athlete background and those who regularly read books. It was determined that as the pre-service teachers' perceptions of speaking self-efficacy increased, their speaking anxiety decreased, and it was concluded that their perceptions of speaking self-efficacy negatively affected their speaking anxiety. As a result, it can be said that having done sports in the past and reading books regularly can be effective in increasing speaking self-efficacy perception and decreasing speaking anxiety in pre-service teachers. In addition, considering that speaking self-efficacy perception negatively predicts speaking anxiety, it is recommended that practices that will increase speaking self-efficacy perception should be emphasized to reduce speaking anxiety.

Choosing Teaching as a Career: Examination of Motivational Sources of Special Education Teacher Candidates

Choosing Teaching as a Career: Examination of Motivational Sources of Special Education Teacher Candidates

Examination of Self-Efficacy Levels of Physical Education Teachers and Trainer Candidates in Terms of Different Variables

Self-efficacy belief is the belief of individuals in performing a particular job by relying on the knowledge, experience and skills needed for the job. In this study, it was aimed to examine the general self-efficacy of physical education and sports teacher candidates and coach candidates in terms of different variables. The sample of the study consists of 245 teacher and coach candidates, 124 female and 121 male, with an average age of 21.87±2.36 years, studying at Kahramanmaras Sutcu Imam University Faculty of Sport Sciences in the 2022-2023 academic year. The general self-efficacy scale developed by Magaletta and Oliver (13) and validated in Turkish by Yıldırım and İlhan (24) was used as a data collection tool. Obtained data were analyzed with Independent sample-t test and One-way Anova test. In terms of gender, candidates do not differ in their self-efficacy (p>0.05). It is understood that those who see their professional future as negative get a lower score than those who see their professional future as positive in the persistence-insistence sub-dimension, although their total self-efficacy and starting sub-dimension are higher (p<0.05). It is observed that physical education teacher and coach candidates differ in the starting sub-dimension of the self-efficacy scale according to their past athletic status (p<0.05). Accordingly, those who have 2 branches have higher scores in the starting dimension than those who have no branches. It was found that teacher and coach candidates differed in the sub-dimension of not giving up, trying to start and continuing-persistence of the self-efficacy scale in terms of departments (p<0.05). However, it was not found to be significant in terms of their total self-efficacy (p>0.05). As a result, it was found that the self-efficacy of physical education teacher and coach candidates did not differ in terms of gender. In terms of the departments studied, the self-efficacy scale of teacher and coach candidates; It was found that they differed in the sub-dimension of not giving up, starting and continuing effort. From this point of view, it can be said that having an athlete background in a certain sports branch at the stage of admission to the departments they study can contribute positively to their future professional life.

Disaster Preparedness: Beliefs of Physical Education Teacher Education Majors

This study examined the differences in disaster preparedness beliefs among physical education teacher candidates based on gender and grade level. A total of one hundred and forty-nine physical education teacher candidates, 61 male and 88 female took part in the study. The General Disaster Preparedness Belief Scale, which encompasses six sub-dimensions (Self-efficacy, Cues to Action, Perceived Susceptibility, Perceived Barriers, Perceived Benefits, and Perceived Severity) was used to collect data. An independent samples t-test was used to analyze normally distributed data to determine whether physical education teacher candidates’ beliefs on general disaster preparedness sub-dimensions differed by gender, and a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to determine whether they differed by grade level (1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th). The results indicated significant variations between genders in almost all aspects of general disaster preparedness beliefs, with female physical education teacher candidates scoring higher in Self-efficacy, Cues to Action, Perceived Susceptibility, Perceived Barriers, Perceived Severity, and general disaster preparedness. However, Perceived Benefits scores were similar across genders. No notable differences were found in the general disaster preparedness beliefs and sub-dimension scores of physical education teacher candidates based on the grade level of the candidates. The findings indicate that, except for Perceived Benefits, physical education teacher candidates' general disaster preparedness beliefs and beliefs regarding sub-dimensions differed by gender but not by grade level studied, which may indicate that gender is related to disaster preparedness beliefs. The study underscores the importance of addressing gender disparities in disaster preparedness beliefs to ensure equitable societal preparedness efforts. Efforts should focus on enhancing disaster preparedness beliefs among all individuals, irrespective of gender, to foster a more resilient and prepared community.