Teacher Applicants' Self-Efficacy and English Proficiency

Self-efficacy is a belief in one capability in accomplishing a particular task. Most of the related studies concluded that having a high self-efficacy has something to do with high performance at work. It has something to do with an individuals' work output/ production; however, some other literature revealed that it does not have something to do with an individual's performance. On the other side, the English language is the required medium of instruction yet the most feared. This study investigated the self-efficacy towards the English Proficiency Test of the teacher applicants from the Division of Romblon. Findings showed that respondents have Low Self- efficacy status towards English Proficiency Test. It concluded that proficient respondents have a Very Low Self-efficacy among the levels of English Proficiency compared to other levels that reached the Low level. Further, the overall English Proficiency of teacher applicants was at the Beginners level.

Anti-Corruption Practices on Teachers’ Recruitment in Selected Private Schools: The Philippine Experience

- The main purpose of this study is to know the different anti-corruption practices in recruiting/hiring qualified teachers used by selected private schools in La Union, and the processes of its implementation. Specifically, it sought to determine the anticorruption practices made by selected private schools in La Union in terms of hiring qualified teachers being strictly adopted by such private schools. This study made use of a Qualitative Thematic Analysis in determining the different anti-corruption practices uniquely used by selected private schools in the province of La Union. Based on the findings, the anti-corruption practices used by the selected private schools in La Union are in two themes. These are the anti- Nepotism, favoritism and cronyism practices and conducting background investigation on the teacher-applicants prior to his/her application. This implies that it is important to consider that nepotism, cronyism, favoritism should be avoided in recruiting teacher-applicants. This will lead to poor quality of education if hiring process will be influence by relatives or friends which are less qualified from among the other applicants.

An exploration of preferred teacher characteristics and hiring tools in Belize

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to answer the following research questions: what characteristics do key Belizean educational leaders value in teacher applicants and why? What hiring tools do they use to ascertain whether teacher applicants have the characteristics they prefer?Design/methodology/approachThe authors utilized a mixed-methods approach drawing upon three data sources – face-to-face interviews with Belizean educational leaders, field notes, and government documents. A card sorting activity of applicant characteristics and tools was embedded into the interview.FindingsInformants preferred motivation, caring, subject matter knowledge, and teaching skills. Intelligence was perceived as a potentially negative characteristic unless coupled with other characteristics, such as strong teaching skills, motivation, and caring or the umbrella of other characteristics, such as content knowledge or university training/credentialing. Professional characteristics, such as where one went for teacher training and academic performance, were perceived as having less relative importance than personal characteristics. Least important were applicant demographics. Consistent with the extant literature, Belizean informants perceived the interview, evidence of prior experience, and certification as the most important tools in vetting and hiring applicants.Research limitations/implicationsThe exploratory study is limited by the small sample of informants, but provides insights into preferences for applicant characteristics and hiring tools in an understudied international context. This study informs future research that may seek to survey representative samples of various stakeholder groups (i.e. general managers and principals) for their preferences in applicant characteristics and hiring tools from across Belizean schools and educational providers.Originality/valueThe study adds to limited research on preferred teacher characteristics among educational leaders responsible for hiring and/or working with teachers and to the limited international educational leadership research.

Understanding the Teacher Job Search Process: Espoused Preferences and Preferences in Use

Background/Context There is an extensive body of research on school and student characteristics associated with teacher career decisions that has contributed greatly to our knowledge of teacher preferences. Yet this research also has a number of limitations, including a lack of attention to the sociocultural influences on teacher careers and the processes teachers use to find a job. Purpose/Objective/Research Question/Focus of Study This article focused on the processes that teachers use to find a job and how they came to work in particular schools. In doing so, this article developed a new theoretical conception of teacher career decisions that incorporates Bourdieu's cultural reproduction theory and theories of action. Together, these frameworks highlight how teachers navigate through the hiring process using their practical understanding of how they could make the best match, rather than focusing on explicit preferences. Setting Teacher applicants were recruited from six colleges that provide teachers to one Midwestern metropolitan area. This area was experiencing an oversupply of teachers. Population/Participants/Subjects Participants included individuals currently completing teacher education programs and looking for their first teaching job. Research Design Data for this article came from a mixed-methods study of teacher applicants’ career decisions. The study design included a survey of 289 prospective elementary teachers and in-depth interviews with a subsample of 27 prospective elementary teachers at two points in the hiring season. Findings/Results Teacher applicants’ espoused preferences for schools were consistent with previous research, yet the data indicate that teacher applicants often contradicted these espoused preferences by the actual behavior on the job search. They did so by focusing on the district rather than the school when identifying open positions and focusing on feelings of comfort and familiarity when deciding where to apply. Further, teacher applicants had few sources of information about schools and districts, which forced them to make assumptions about schools and thus reinforced perceptions of familiarity, fit, and comfort. Conclusions/Recommendations Teacher applicants’ practical understanding of the job search was informed by their social and cultural background and emphasized characteristics such as familiarity when making career decisions. Policy makers who want to improve the quality of teaching should focus on developing teachers who want to teach in hard-to-staff schools and on providing teacher applicants with access to more information about schools. Teacher educators should also consider ways to increase teacher applicants’ familiarity and sense of comfort with schools serving high proportions of racial minority or low-income students.

The Mathematics Teacher Shortage—Some Solutions

Evidence continues to accumulate that mathematics education in the United States is facing a serious peril caused by the increasing shortage of qualified teachers. Dunathan (1979) surveyed school superintendents in nine midwestern states about this topic. Approximately 70 percent of those administrators who responded thought a shortage of qualified mathematics teacher applicants existed. Less than 5 percent indicated that they believed there was a surplus. A 1977 survey conducted by the federal government discovered that approximately one-fourth of the nation's school districts had at least one opening in some field for which no qualified applicant could be found (Jacobson, 1979). Data from other sources suggest that many of those unstaffed positions were in mathematics classrooms. Reporting figures prepared by the National Center for Education Statistics, Dessart (1979b) states “… 1100 mathematics teacher positions were unfilled in the secondary schools of the United States during the fall of 1977.” The November 26 issue of Education USA (“Teacher Shortage,” 1979) quotes the Houston, Texas, superintendent of schools as estimating “… that more than 5,000 of the school district's students have 'no certified mathematics or science teacher at a time when we are emphasizing those subjects.' “That same article reports that Dallas had 150 current vacancies, most of which were in mathematics, science, industrial arts, and special education at the secondary level.