Newly Qualified Teachers: a comparative analysis of the perceptions held by B.Ed. and PGCE‐trained primary teachers of the level and frequency of stress experienced during the first year of teaching

Abstract

Two cohorts of newly qualified primary teachers from two LEAs responded to a questionnaire, circulated in the final month of their first year in post. The questionnaire was designed to elicit their perceptions regarding the degree and frequency of stress they had experienced throughout the first year. Factors which teachers felt had helped them cope with different stressful aspects of the job were also investigated. The structure of the research sample allowed detailed comparative analyses to be made of the perceptions held by B.Ed.‐ and PGCE‐trained teachers. Overall, teachers trained via the B.Ed, route tended to experience less stress during the first year. Key areas of the job, some of which relate directly to competency demands of Circular 14/93, are identified as particularly stressful, and represent areas of implication both in terms of initial training and in‐service support during the first year in post.