Factors that Influence the Desire to Become Teachers of Technology: An Australian Study

Abstract

In this study, 337 pre-service teachers enrolled in Technology Teacher Education Programs (TTEP), in eight tertiary institutions across Australia, responded to a questionnaire seeking information about those factors that influenced their decision to become teachers of Technical and Applied Studies (TAS). The study found: a majority of the respondents were male (71%); most came from urban areas (61%); just over half (51%) entered the course from the workforce and just over a third of the respondents entered the course direct from school. Of the 172 respondents who came from the work force, a total of 93 (86 male) had prior trade experience. Factor analysis of attitudinal items set against a four-point Likert scale produced three factors related to their decision to become TAS teachers. These included encouragement from members of the community, the influence of experiences in technology at school, and a desire to teach. A three stage regression model was created with the scale ‘Desire to Teach’ as the ultimate dependent variable. Factors most strongly influencing ‘Desire to Teach’ included hobbies and interests prior to enrolment, encouragement from members of the community and the influence of experiences in technology at school. The authors propose a number of strategies for promoting technology teaching and increasing the TTEP student intake, based on their findings.