Becoming a teacher: the thoughts of undergraduates training to work in Primary Education and ideas for their university education

ABSTRACT

What makes a good teacher and what motivates a person to want to teach are timeless questions that concern us all. This study focuses on those who are currently training to become teachers, more specifically undergraduates studying a degree in Primary Education in the universities of Catalonia. It adopts a quantitative methodology based on a self-administered questionnaire conducted with a representative sample. Participants’ open-ended responses are recorded and codified. Three main categories are constructed: personal, authentic teacher; the teacher as story teller; and, the teacher as motivator of learning. Results highlight important differences between these categories, extolling above all the authentic, personal teacher, who leaves a mark thanks to their character and way of being. This, together with other findings, raises various considerations for the university training of future teachers.

KEYWORDS:

• University education
• European Higher Education Area (EHEA)
• degree in Primary Education
• educational influence

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Francisco Esteban Bara

Dr. Francisco Esteban Bara is a teacher in the Department of the Theory and History of Education at the University of Barcelona (UB). His most recent research has focused on character education at university, and the mission of the university in the twenty-first century. He is a member of the UB Research Group on Moral Education. He has recently published several articles in leading journals, and contributed chapters to various books, on these subjects.

Teodor Mellén Vinagre

Dr. Teodor Mellén Vinagre is a teacher in the Department of Social Sciences at ESADE-URL. His most recent research has focused on the study of values and social change. He has participated in various studies in this area, and has published both books and articles in leading journals, and contributed chapters to various publications. He is currently a member of the research team: Teacher Character Education and a frequent collaborator with the Research Group on Moral Education at the University of Barcelona