Challenges Confronting Career-Changing Beginning Teachers: A Qualitative Study of Professional Scientists Becoming Science Teachers

Abstract

Recruitment of highly qualified science and mathematics graduates has become a widespread strategy to enhance the quality of education in the field of STEM. However, attrition rates are very high suggesting preservice education programs are not preparing them well for the career change. We analyse the experiences of professionals who are scientists and have decided to change careers to become teachers. The study followed a group of professionals who undertook a one-year preservice teacher education course and were employed by secondary schools on graduation. We examined these teachers' experiences through the lens of self-determination theory, which posits autonomy, confidence and relatedness are important in achieving job satisfaction. The findings indicated that the successful teachers were able to achieve a sense of autonomy and confidence, and, in particular, had established strong relationships with colleagues. However, the unique challenges facing career-change professionals were often overlooked by administrators and colleagues. Opportunities to build a sense of relatedness in their new profession were often absent. The failure to establish supportive relationships was decisive in some teachers leaving the profession. The findings have implications for both pre-service and professional inservice programs and the role that administrators play in supporting career-change teachers.

Prevalence and predictors of out‐of‐field teaching in the first five years

“…It may be that factors beyond subject area preparation are more influential in determining whether a teacher accepts a specific position. For example, past researchers have found that factors such as school location, student population, and school context strongly influence teachers' decisions to accept and remain in a position (Boyd, Lankford, Loeb, & Wyckoff, 2005;Engel, Jacob, & Curran, 2014;Watters & Diezmann, 2015).…”

The Effects of the Professional Development Program Supported by On-the-job Visits on the Pedagogies of Mathematics Teachers

“…There are some examples in mathematics education where teachers and researchers collaborate during PD programs (e.g. researchers get into teaching position and teachers take researcher role in their classrooms) (Ball & Forzani, 2010;Diezmann & Watters, 2015;Knight et al, 2015;Sykes, Bird, & Kennedy, 2010;Wallace, Cederberg, & Allen, 1994;Walshaw & Anthony, 2008;Wasserman, 2015).…”

Early Career Teachers

“…These include increasing satisfaction and commitment, better performing in some aspects of teaching or higher scores in students' academic tests (Ingersoll and Strong, 2011[112]). However, the connection with teacher retention is mixed and inconclusive (Waterman and He, 2011 [113]).…”