Why do they want to become teachers? A study on prospective teachers’ motivation to teach in Hong Kong

Bick Har LAM

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlespeer-review

30 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Teaching as an occupation in Hong Kong differs significantly from the western context from which most researches on teaching motivation originate. Through in-depth interviews with 38 graduands of a teacher-preparation programme, beginning teachers’ motivations for choosing teaching were explored using grounded theory methods. Respondents’ motivations coalesce into two categories, “teaching as a safe haven”, and “internal satisfaction”. Participants were conceptualized as falling into two groups: one group was motivated exclusively by “internal satisfaction”, the other saw “teaching as a safe haven” but at the same time also appreciated teaching’s internal satisfaction. Copyright © 2012 De La Salle University, Philippines.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)307-314
JournalThe Asia-Pacific Education Researcher
Volume21
Issue number2
Publication statusPublished - Jul 2012

Citation

Lam, B. H. (2012). Why do they want to become teachers? A study on prospective teachers’ motivation to teach in Hong Kong. The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 21(2), 307-314.

Keywords

  • Motivation
  • Beginning teachers
  • Teachers’ income

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