Novice Teachers’ Early Professional Career

• In Event: Teaching and the Changing Circumstances of Teaching Across the Baltics

Abstract

Novice teachers experience a variety of challenges in their first years of teaching. The new roles, environments and cultures they encounter pose various demands on the them, but also present substantial opportunities for self-development. The main aim of this research was to analyse how personal and contextual factors interrelate during a newly qualified teacher’s first years of work in order to understand how to better support their development and encourage them to stay in the profession, and thus alleviate the teacher shortage problem. This research draws on social cognitive theory (Bandura 1977) and self-determination theory (Deci and Ryan 1985, 2000) in exploring the experiences of novice teachers.
The sample of this research consisted of 373 teachers and was based on five studies during three years that made use of qualitative and quantitative research methods. The research seeked answers to the following research questions: What kind of role do personal and contextual factors play in the decisions of novice teachers to stay or to quit the profession? How do personal and contextual factors interrelate at the beginning of a novice teacher’s professional career?
The most important findings of this research are that a positive school climate, especially a positive sense of community, a supportive collegial atmosphere, a professional mentoring system and systematic supportive feedback help promote the self-efficacy beliefs of novice teachers and to retain the high level of motivation to work as a teacher, as well as increase job satisfaction that in turn encourages teachers to stay in the profession.

Short Bio

Merilyn Meristo completed her PhD in studying novice teachers and factors that shape their career. She has published several articles and presented papers at international conferences introducing the results. In addition, her research focuses on different aspects of motivation, not only of teachers but of students’ as well, for example motivation to complete homework. She is also a referee to many scientific journals. At Tallinn University she works as a French teacher and teacher trainer.

Author

• Merilyn Meristo, Tallinn University