To better understand the reasons underlying attrition and the teacher shortage, and to develop ways to attract and retain high-quality teachers in early childhood education, it is necessary to explore teacher motivation and commitment to teaching. Although previous research has investigated various aspects of teacher motivation and commitment to…

This Education Leadership Portfolio (ELP) focuses on addressing the increasing need for more racial diversity in the Delaware teacher workforce. It is a multi-dimensional effort to meet the increasing need for and supply of teachers of color in the state. Therefore, the scope of this ELP centers around the University of Delaware (UD) College of…

The aim of the study is to discursively identify student teachers' perceptions of the teaching profession early in their education and their motives for this career choice. Students wrote a letter sharing thoughts on why they want to become a teacher, how they regard the teaching profession and if someone inspired them in their career choice. The…

What does it mean to live a teacher's life? What does it mean to be a teacher, to become a teacher, to stay in teaching, or to leave the profession? Why are teachers doing what they are doing the way they are doing it? These questions have fascinated the author throughout his academic career as a researcher as well as in his teaching and his work…

With a growing shortage of teachers of color in public schools, the author asserts a necessity for more Critical Educators of Color--educators from racially marginalized backgrounds willing to confront injustices plaguing under-resourced communities of color. Rooted in her formative K12 experiences as a student of color exposed to critical…

This study examines factors that influence high school students' willingness to consider teaching as a career. Using predictive modeling, we identified five factors that are highly predictive of a students' willingness to consider teaching and their belief that teaching is their best career option. Results indicated that high school students were…

The teaching profession is facing difficulty recruiting and retaining talent in the U.S., especially in STEM subjects. This study identifies the key experiences that shaped the academic paths and career plans of 10 pre-service teachers in STEM education who are participating in a loan forgiveness programme in North Carolina. Using life history…

This study aimed to examine the links between motivation to become a teacher, sense of responsibility, and classroom management style. An adapted version of the Factors Influencing Teaching (FIT)-Choice scale, a translated version of the Teacher Responsibility scale, and a vignette instrument inspired by the Problems in School Questionnaire were…

The main purpose of this study is to investigate the relationships between the opinions of secondary school teachers about effective teacher characteristics and their reasons for choosing the teaching profession. In this context, the study first intends to develop a measurement tool to identify effective teacher characteristics. The study is of a…

Using grounded theory, we examined the ways in which undergraduate teacher candidates with disabilities developed a sense of purpose and constructed professional identities. Our findings suggest K-12 experiences with advocacy as well as exclusionary school experiences influenced their emerging professional identities. Resistance to a deficit view…

Colleges of Education are witnessing a decline in elementary teacher preparation programs creating an urgent need to recruit students. Part of these efforts means initiating recruitment efforts in junior and high schools. Included in these recruiting efforts is work around changing the narrative around teaching as a potential career. Here we share…

This paper provides the findings from an integrated diagnostic assessment of first-to-fourth-year pedagogics students' social-perceptive attitudes toward the chosen profession and their personal characteristics linked with those attitudes. The authors have explored students' understanding of the reasons behind the choice of the profession and some…

In the Grow Your Own Teacher (GYOT) program, an initiative developed by a university located on Long Island, New York, and funded by a congressionally-directed grant, a diverse cohort of 11th grade low-income students were financially, academically, and emotionally supported in their goal of becoming math or science teachers in predominantly high…

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to investigate, identify, and describe the lived experiences that influence female STEM majors to become secondary educators rather than enter a STEM-related corporate profession. This study was guided by Mezirow's transformative learning theory (TLT) and Lent, Brown and Hackett's…

In successful education systems, teachers' professional performance plays a great role. Moreover, the quality of teaching is closely related to teachers' perceptions of their profession. In this respect, this study aims to present a comprehensive picture of English teachers' perceptions of their profession, their perceived self-value, their…