The preparation of highly motivated and professionally competent teachers in initial teacher education

Education systems around the world need to recruit highly motivated individuals to become teachers and prepare professionally competent teacher education graduates to take up these broadened and deepened roles and responsibilities with a deep and lasting engagement to the profession. This article reports on a mixed-methods study that examines types of teaching motivation in relation to various facets of professional competence and planned engagement in future teaching. One hundred and thirty-two student teachers of a postgraduate diploma in education programme participated in the quantitative survey of whom seven were interviewed. The quantitative data analysis shows the positive association between ‘intrinsic–altruistic motivation constellation’ and selected facets of professional competence, with ‘intrinsic–multifaceted and stimulating job nature’ as the most distinctive type of teaching motivation. To complement the quantitative findings, the qualitative data analysis reveals two professional orientations of the ‘intrinsic–altruistic motivation constellation’, namely (1) student-centred orientation and (2) subject-centred orientation. In addition, three types of professional development aspirations are identified: ‘classroom engaged careerists’, ‘highly engaged persisters’ and ‘pessimists’. The study provides insights into the design of appropriate ITE practices to support professional learning in the light of student teachers’ motivations. It also suggests the importance of matching career opportunities and beginning teachers’ professional development aspirations and supporting ‘pessimists’ in the face of the stringent job market.