Understanding the beliefs, concerns and priorities of trainee teachers: a multi‐disciplinary approach

Abstract

Individual trainees have various responses to the initial teacher training process, but there are some frequently occurring patterns that require explanation, understanding and attention. Drawing on the literature, a multi‐disciplinary approach is developed to examine the beliefs, concerns and priorities of trainee teachers’ thinking from social, cultural, physiological and psychological perspectives. The resulting discussion is illustrated by a consideration of how best to encourage trainee teachers to broaden their teaching repertoire. This analysis suggests that the implementation of personal educational belief is likely to be deferred by trainees because many trainee teachers do not have time in a one‐year training course to reach the stage of testing their intentions in practice. This results in their beliefs surviving intact. In terms of developing a wider teaching repertoire for trainees, the analysis suggests that it would be appropriate to consider the trainee teacher’s developing self‐efficacy, their beliefs about the value of an extended repertoire, their beliefs about the effects of an extended repertoire and their subjective norm beliefs about the views of their mentors and pupils regarding the extended repertoire. To broaden the repertoire of trainee teachers will require mentors to seek out, support and praise the use of a wide repertoire by trainees. This will reduce cognitive dissonance and make use of reciprocal determinism to affect the trainee teacher’s sense of self‐efficacy, so that, in turn, trainees will be encouraged to value and develop an extended teaching repertoire. As well as offering this challenge, mentors would need to provide support as a positive role model, and try to reduce the trainee teacher’s fear of failure.

Notes

* Bishop Grosseteste College, Newport, Lincoln LN1 3DY, UK. Email: [email protected]

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Jim D. N. Smith *

* Bishop Grosseteste College, Newport, Lincoln LN1 3DY, UK. Email: [email protected]