Student Teachers’ Perspectives on Teaching: The Making of Teaching Profession as a First Choice ()
1. Introduction
The course content for Teacher education is a discipline of study centered on the ideas of learning pedagogy [1] . With this, instilling in the future generation the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and understanding they’ll need to make positive contributions to society is the primary goal of education. Rather, teaching is about helping students grow their skills to the best of their abilities based on what they’ve learned in school [1] . Modern teachers are also not limited to the above. Educators now have to deal with classroom management, student counseling, progress tracking in the classroom, and assessment in addition to traditional responsibilities like delivering lessons, creating examinations, and handing out grades. Educators are vital in society because they help shape the next generation and ensure that positive trends continue [2] .
The abilities and attributes that make a good teacher are also the ones that make an excellent educational institution. An effective teacher has eight core skills: content mastery, decision-making, critical thinking and problem-solving skills, self-reflection and self-correction, reflection, student awareness and understanding, applying research-based practices, and teaching and communication skills. These traits can be put into two different groups [3] : the critical thinker and self-directed educator. There is no denying that the role of the educator in shaping student character and academic achievement is crucial to this process. Teachers have a profound impact on their students’ lives by modeling appropriate behaviors and attitudes in the classroom, which in turn shapes their students’ perceptions of themselves and the world around them [4] . Teachers have a heavy burden of responsibility since their students will mimic their every move. Research conducted in the present day makes it abundantly evident that teacher-student relationships, methods of approaching students, and students’ perceptions of these factors all have an impact on student learning. Teachers who are able to engage their students positively by, for example, asking them questions to better understand their perspectives, demonstrating genuine interest in their work, and expressing gratitude for their efforts are more likely to see positive results in their classroom. Teachers serve as role models for their pupils by emulating positive behaviors and attitudes as they attempt to meet the needs of students at a certain developmental level in regard to the information, experience, and behavior being taught. Success creates positive ego attitudes, while failure breeds negative ego attitudes. If you want to be an effective educator, you need to have insight into how people communicate with each other. If an educator makes an effort to understand students’ emotions like interest, fear, and worry; if a teacher supports students’ social activities; and if a teacher appreciates, approves of, and compliments students for activities he or she finds valuable, the students will feel that the teacher is thinking of, loving, and helping them and is working for their good [5] . If a student has a guide like this, they are more likely to be kind and willing to help people in need [6] .
Thus, this research looked at the level of preference of student teachers in their perception of teaching in terms of profession, vocation, and choice at a state university particularly―Quirino State University-Maddela campus. It also gauges if there is a significant difference between the respondent’s profile and their level of preference in their perception of teaching in terms of the variables mentioned above.
2. Research Methodology
This study utilized the descriptive-inferential design to gather information on the significant difference between the respondents’ profiles and their level of preference of student teachers in their perception of teaching in terms of profession, vocation, and choice. This research method is best for this study because it gives a picture of what’s happening now, finds correlations between variables, and predicts what will happen in the future based on what we know now.
Additionally, freshmen students of A.Y. 2021-2022 from the College of Teacher Education at Quirino State University-Maddela Campus were purposively selected. The researchers created the survey questionnaire, which was then validated by four experts, and pilot testing was conducted to ensure the questionnaire’s reliability.
Furthermore, Annova was employed as a statistical method to determine whether there is a significant difference between the respondents’ demographic profile and their level of preference for their perception of teaching. Also, the mean was used to figure out the respondents’ age, gender, and level of preference in how they saw teaching.
3. Results and Discussion
Q1. Demographic profile of the respondents.
Table 1 exhibits the majority of the respondents. Out of 60 respondents, there were 40 (66.8%) who were enrolled in the Home Economics major. Following this were the Industrial Arts students, who had 20 (33.3%). This only implies that most of the freshmen students at the College of Teacher Education were enrolled in the Home Economics major.
Table 2 presents the frequency and percent distribution of the respondents in terms of sex. The majority of the respondents were female, with a frequency of 42 and a percentage share of 70%. On the other hand, males had a frequency of 18 and had a percentage share of 30%. The data shows that most of the Freshmen College of Teacher Education students were female.
Table 3 presents the frequency and percent distribution of the respondents in terms of socio-economic status. Most of the respondents’ families earn 10,000
below monthly with a frequency of 30 and a percentage share of 50.8 percent, followed by a monthly earning of 15,000, which has a frequency of 16 (27.1%). A monthly earning of 20,000 got a frequency of 10 and a percentage share of 16.9%. Lastly, monthly earnings of 20,000 above have a frequency of 3 and a percentage share of 5.1. The data shows that most of the College of Teacher Education students’ family earnings are 10,000 below.
Q2. Determine the level of preference of student teachers in their perception of teaching in terms of:
Table 4 shows the extent of preference of student teachers in their perception of teaching in terms of teaching as a profession. From this, we could infer that the respondents agree that the fourth indicator, which is, “I believe that teachers explain complex and difficult topics through fun activities and make them easier for students to understand”, has the highest qualitative description of 4.61 and is described as extremely high. Other indicators that are also described as extremely high are these: “I believe that being a teacher comes with so much responsibility and duty towards students” which has a mean percentage of 4.59, followed by the third indicator, which is, “I believe that teachers do not only teach and impart knowledge but inspire and motivate students for life and take important steps in life”, which has a mean percentage of 4.55.
Legend: 1 - 1.49: Very Low; 1.50 - 2.49: Moderately Low; 2.50 - 3.49: High; 3.50 - 4.49: Very High; and 4.5 - 5.0: Extremely High.
Meanwhile, the respondents rated, “ I believe that teaching is the noblest profession” and “I believe that teachers keep working to boost the confidence of students and direct them in the right direction”, which all have “Very High” as their qualitative description, with a mean score of 4.47 and 4.44. In general, the overall mean rating for all the indicators was 4.53 (0.53), which has “Extremely High” as its qualitative description. The result would imply that the College of Teacher Education students’ extent of preference in their perception of teaching as a profession has a very high perception. This is a good manifestation that they see education courses as very respectable and highly regarded professions.
These results can be affirmed by the responses of the students to the open-ended question (the following are translated into the target language as follows):
Student C:
I do believe the following indicators because it is evident that teachers explain complex and difficult topics through fun activities so that students like us can understand them easily. And later, when we become teachers, we will also adopt the good practices of our teachers.
Student E:
Like what we have learned from our previous lessons in our professional subjects, it is true that a teacher comes with so much responsibility and duty towards students, and this experience is evident in the real-life practices of our teachers. That’s the reason why teachers are called the Noblest Profession, which motivates us to pursue this teaching course or education course.
These findings were substantiated by the following related literature: reference [7] stated that the valuable concept of academic freedom that allows teachers in secondary and primary years to employ a variety of meaningful and theoretically-based teaching and learning strategies can make teaching strategies more interesting. This can actually motivate learners to become just like their teachers. Further studies by reference [8] state that students desire to become teachers because of some quality of a teacher. One of them thinks that a teacher is an expert in his or her subject (expert innovator) and, from this, they are motivated to pursue education as they perceive the impact of teachers on their learners.
Table 5 shows the extent of preference of student teachers in their perception of teaching in terms of teaching as a vocation. From this, we could infer that the respondents agree that the first indicator, which is, “A teacher spends most of his or her time teaching inside and outside the four walls of the classroom”, has a mean percentage of 4.47 and a qualitative description of very high. Followed by the third indicator, “Teachers often spend less quality time with their families because most of their time is devoted to teaching”. Meanwhile, the indicator “I consider teaching as an avocation because this profession is worthwhile” has the lowest mean percentage among the following indicators, which has a 2.74 mean percentage. In general, the student teachers’ perception in terms of teaching as a vocation is 3.72 and has a qualitative description of very high. This means that
Legend: 1 - 1.49: Very Low; 1.50 - 2.49: Moderately Low; 2.50 - 3.49: High; 3.50 - 4.49: Very High; and 4.5 - 5.0: Extremely High.
the student teachers on campus thought of teaching as a vocation, which is shown by the qualitative description as “very high”.
These results can be affirmed by the responses of the students to the open-ended question (the following are translated into the target language as follows:
Student B:
Indeed, the teacher spends most of his or her time teaching inside and outside the four walls of the classroom, because I can also observe it with my sister… Since even on Saturday and even for family time, they spend it doing their paper work.
Student F.:
Teachers often spend less quality time with their families because most of their time is devoted to teaching, and this is evident to some of our instructors and teachers because they tell us that they spend most of their time doing their paperwork responding to the needs of their students…
Reference [9] concluded that teaching is one of the most challenging professions, but despite its difficult job description, the fulfillment of every teacher paves the way for their uncertain tiredness. Furthermore, teachers always give their best in managing the classroom and giving a variety of strategies to have a positive impact on students [10] . Because of this, students want to become teachers so they can help build a strong and competitive economy in their country. This is because teachers are skilled workers who will work in different parts of the economy. In relation to this, students have a positive view of becoming a teacher and a clear expectation of being able to teach students. This is because the government continues to help teachers, raise their salaries, and help their learning be useful by giving them incentives, scholarships, and free tertiary tuition fees.
Table 6 shows the extent of preference of student teachers in their perception of teaching in terms of teaching as a choice. From this, we could infer that the respondents agree that the fourth indicator, which is, “I enrolled in this course since I want to become a teacher”, has the highest mean percentage of 3.77 and a qualitative description of very high. On the other hand, all the other indicators have a qualitative description of high. In general, the student teachers’ perception in terms of teaching as a vocation is 3.41 and has a qualitative description of high. This implies that most of the student teachers on the campus perceived that they enrolled in the College of Teacher Education as their first choice, which is evident in its qualitative description as “high”.
These results can be affirmed by the responses of the students to the open-ended question (the following are translated into the target language as follows):
Student B:
…I enrolled in this course since I want to become a teacher like my mother.
Student F:
Yes, education is my first choice because it will make it easier for me to apply for a job in the near future.
Legend: 1 - 1.49: Very Low; 1.50 - 2.49: Moderately Low; 2.50 - 3.49: High; 3.50 - 4.49: Very High; and 4.5 - 5.0: Extremely High.
These results found assertions in the following related literature: According to the study by reference [11] at some point, students shall be given full freedom in the choice of subjects relating to their personal interests that will suit them and somehow bear fruitful results in their education and later life. Students, on the other hand, understand and value the importance of teaching as a course for their future, and they are willing to invest effort in succeeding studies because they want to motivate other students [12] . And these students take their learning seriously, value their educators and the settings that facilitate their learning, and as a result, take pride in their accomplishments due to the fact that they entered the academic field of teaching [13] .
It can be seen from Table 7 that in terms of sex, the indicators of vocation and choice were found to have a significant difference in the students’ perceived perception of teaching, while the indicator of profession in terms of sex revealed that there was no significant difference. In addition, their course major, all indicators of their perception of teaching as a profession, vocation, and choice found that there was a significant difference. Lastly, as shown in the table, in terms of socio-economic status, the student teachers’ perception of vocation and choice has a significant difference, while the indicator profession reveals that there is no significant difference. The results imply that student teachers’ level of preference in their teaching perception in the two indicators (Vocation and Choice) as well as on socio-economic status under the indicator Profession, found that there is no significant difference. Meanwhile, the rest of the indicators were found to have a significant difference.
These results found assertions in the following related literature: According to the study of [14] [15] the interests, expectations, and goals of college students also report quite practical reasons for course choices of students who have a significant difference in their sex, socioeconomic status, and in choosing their own
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Table 7. Significant difference between the respondent’s Demographic Profile and their level of preference in their perception of teaching.
courses. In addition, both qualitative and quantitative studies have revealed that students choose courses based on the demand for the courses in their respective localities and how this particular course affects the way others perceive their future [13] . The mentioned assertions strengthen the reason why the majority of students perceive teaching as a profession, vocation, and choice at a very high level.
4. Conclusion and Future Works
This study has examined the demographic profile of the respondents as well as the level of preference of student teachers in their perception of teaching in terms of profession, avocation, and choice. It also gauges if there is a significant difference between the respondent’s profile and their level of preference in their perception of teaching in terms of the mentioned variables above. The study revealed that most of the respondents are female, while in terms of major, most of them are majoring in Home Economics, and in terms of socio-economic status, most of the respondents’ families earn 10,000 below monthly. Meanwhile, when considering the perceptions of student teachers regarding teaching as a profession, a vocation, and a choice, it was revealed that student teachers’ level of preference in their perception of teaching as a profession has the highest descriptive qualitative description of “Very High”. On the other hand, student teachers’ level of preference in the indicators of teaching as a vocation and choice has a qualitative description of “High”. Lastly, the student teachers’ level of preference in their teaching perception in the two indicators (Vocation and Choice) as well as on socio-economic status under the indicator Profession, found that there is no significant difference. Meanwhile, the rest of the indicators were found to have a significant difference.
The students’ level of preference in their perception of the three given variables, namely: teaching as a profession, vocation, and choice is a manifestation that students in our locality have a positive perspective towards teachers. This is because student teachers are often nurtured with a positive perspective towards teachers, which motivates them to pursue education courses. They then transfer the positive values, lessons, and inspired drive that they adopted and learned from their teachers during their primary, junior, and senior years, to their current tertiary studies.
Students will undoubtedly develop a variety of views about what kind of person they want to be in the future. By becoming doctors, engineers, architects, and a host of other professions, they can earn among the highest salaries both domestically and abroad, but no one will ever be able to replace the fact that all these professions were created by teachers, which encourages the student teachers to become future licensed teachers. As a future teacher’s perception of teaching as a profession, vocation, and choice is critical, the following recommendations are advanced: First, the various stakeholders in the university need to develop strategies geared toward identifying the diverse perceptions of student teachers in connection with teaching. Second, this study may enable them to clearly understand the nature of the perceptions of student teachers and thus handle them with ease and appropriateness so as not to hamper their educational progress. Third, the administrator can also create an intervention strategy to address different issues of students’ lack of skills and problems in their performance in their studies [15] . Forth, school administrators and faculty instructors need to develop frequent virtual-based forums that are specifically structured towards encouraging/enhancing/strengthening student teachers’ perspectives towards teaching. During these forums, the student teachers may be highlighted on the roles of teachers in the school, society, and the world not only to prepare for their future career development but also to improve their lives, thus contributing to the community’s success.
5. Recommendation
The following recommendations were made based on the findings and conclusion of the study:
1) To promote learners’ interest in choosing teaching as a career and profession, a range of webinars and seminars should be held. This will encourage students to follow through on all the demands and tasks set forth in the school, which are necessary and pertinent for completing the fundamental requirements of an education course.
2) The administration should set up an intervention strategy, such as conducting seminars to raise student teachers’ awareness of what it takes to become a teacher, as well as the importance and influence of teachers on students and society.
3) The teachers should make sure that the assignments they assign can spark students’ interest in pursuing their careers in teaching.
4) The following researcher should carry out additional research on the actual experiences of student teachers while studying.
Acknowledgements
The researchers would like to extend their appreciation to the administration of the Maddela Campus of Quirino State University for allowing them to carry out the research, as well as to the participants for their cooperation and support throughout the process.
In addition, the authors want to convey their deepest respect and gratitude to their family for their boundless love, kindness, and morals as well.
Above all else, the researchers give thanks to the Almighty God for all of his blessings, including his unfaltering love, the knowledge that he has bestowed over the years, and good health. These are the things that have made everything in this academic endeavor possible.