Prospective elementary classroom teachers' motives for selecting teaching profession

Abstract

This descriptive study is conducted to identify the factors influencing prospective teachers' career choices and to reveal if their career choice perceptions change at the end of a teacher education program. Participants were 157 prospective teachers from Pamukkale University, Faculty of Education, the Primary School Teaching Program (1-5) in the Department of Elementary Education. The data were gathered through using a questionnaire including close- and open-ended questions formed by the researchers. The gathered data were analyzed by employing the techniques of content analysis, frequency, and percentage. Findings demonstrate that mercenary, extrinsic, intrinsic and altruistic factors underlie prospective classroom teachers' career choices; however, the rate of intrinsic and altruistic motives increases at graduation. Gender also plays an important role for the career choice of classroom teachers.