Teacher education in hard-times: preservice teachers' career-goal contents and their relationships with class participation motivation in higher education in Africa

摘要

In the global edu cation context, adequate supply of teachers is recognised as crucial in efforts to achieve the education targets set in both the Dakar Framework for Action and the Millennium Development Goals. But the situation in many countries inside and outside Africa is that fewer and fewer secondary school leavers are pursuing career in teaching. This study identifies one African country of exception where, contrary to global trends, interest among secondary school leavers to enrolment in teacher education or to pursue teaching career is elevated. Using quantitative and qualitative methods, and guided by the self-determination theory of motivation, the study investigated the career-goal contents and their relationships with the preservice teachers' class participation motivation, in pursuit of these goals . Significant relationships emerged between the goal contents and motivation types. Preservice teachers were in pursuit of multiple career goals, which were predominantly extrinsic in nature, and they sought predominantly extrinsic motivation to participate in class in pursuit of these goals. A contextual rationale is advanced for the findings. Both implications for class participation in higher education and suggestions for further research have been recommended.