Teaching as a career choice: the motivations and expectations of students at one Scottish University

Wang, W. and Houston, M. (2021) Teaching as a career choice: the motivations and expectations of students at one Scottish University. Educational Studies, (doi: 10.1080/03055698.2021.1921703) (Early Online Publication)

Abstract

The recruitment of quality students to teacher training programmes and entering the teaching profession is an important ongoing concern in many countries including the UK. This paper presents the results of a mixed methods study on the motivations for and perceptions of teaching as a career choice from the perspective of student teachers in Scotland. Results showed that most participants were positively attracted to the teaching profession, although there appeared to be a perceived mismatch between the demands of, and the returns to, teaching, which may be related to the presence of common myths and stereotypes related to teaching and propagated in the media that are not always grounded in objective reality.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Early Online Publication
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Houston, Dr Muir and WANG, WENTING
• Authors: Wang, W., and Houston, M.
• College/School: College of Social Sciences > School of Education; College of Social Sciences > School of Education > People, Place & Social Change
• Journal Name: Educational Studies
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis
• ISSN: 0305-5698
• ISSN (Online): 1465-3400
• Published Online: 17 May 2021
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2021 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor and Francis Group
• First Published: First published in Educational Studies 2021
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced in accordance with the publisher copyright policy