Trainee Teachers’ Readiness Towards Teaching Practice: The Case of Malaysia

Shireena Basree Abdul Rahman

Nabilah Abdullah

Radzuwan Abd Rashid

Faculty of Education Universiti Teknologi MARA Shah Alam, Malaysia

Abstract

Teaching in the 21st century is characterized primarily by reforms in the curriculum and methods of teaching. (Beeman,1998). This is primarily due to the various knowledge and technological advancements that has taken place over the past decade. Successful teachers of the 21st century need to play multiple roles – as guides, coaches, facilitators and advisers (Churches, 2008). He further explains that lessons should be “student centric, holistic and focus should be teaching about how to learn as much as teaching about the content or subject areas”. It is no more sufficient for teachers to be purely “dispensers of knowledge , instead, the move is towards teachers needing to spend more time thinking about the ways in which they can facilitate the process by which students learn (Beeman, 1998). The changes in the current teaching and learning scene effects not only the existing practicing teachers, in fact, it calls for serious impending reviews of teacher training programs offered by universities and teacher –training colleges. The study was carried out with the aim to identify and subsequently address challenges and issues faced by trainee teachers during their school attachment program or teaching practice. Specifically, the researchers investigated the current scenario of the practicum process via examining challenges that trainee teachers encounter in schools, and identifying the needs and expectations of the trainees as well as those of the schools’. A total of 200 questionnaires were distributed to final year education students who have gone for their teaching practice. In addition to the survey, in-depth data were also obtained through interviews conducted on selected trainees and school mentors. Preliminary findings suggest that the teacher education program has, across programs, adequately prepared the trainees with respect to the subject matter content. Nonetheless, certain areas such as application of theories into actual classroom practice, managing disciplinary actions, knowledge of school management, among others, needed improvement. Hence, this suggests a review of the current structure and content of courses provided in the Bachelor of Education programs. This is to ensure that the teacher education programs provided would be able to produce quality trainees who are able to meet the demands of classroom teaching and learning in the 21st century. Keywords: teacher training program, readiness and the new millenium

Introduction

Today’s education system faces irrelevance unless we bridge the gap between how students live and how they learn. Schools are struggling to keep pace with the astonishing rate of change in students' lives outside of school. Students will spend their adult lives in a multitasking, multifaceted, technology driven, diverse, vibrant world--and they must arrive equipped to do so.

(http://www.thegateway.org/help/archived-p21-pages/teaching-learning- retrieved 29-4-2010)

Teaching in the 21st century has become more demanding than ever. Teachers of this era are often characterized as needing to have the necessary skills and knowledge to cope with the rapid technological advancement and changes that are rapidly taking place all in the field of education. The important skills and demands of the 21st century include that of being able to engage in critical, analytical and creative thinking. The more profound shift is of course the sudden surge in focus and attention given to what is called “technological literacy” (Silva, 2009) which includes information science skills, digital media fluency, advanced computer and internet communications, as well as the newborn term –“technacy” a deep knowledge of technological systems (Silva, 2009)

Apart from being up-to date with the technological-know-how, there is also another current trend of belief in the discussion of what constitutes the essence of the 21st century skills that all students needs to be equipped with and this is “an emphasis on what students can do with the knowledge, rather than units of the knowledge they have” (Silva, 2009). In other words, the shift is towards practical and meaningful skills which are applicable in the classroom is seen to be predominantly important rather than courses which are theoretical or historical in nature. This is because, such skills are seen as less relevant and beneficial for students, in facing the challenges of the 21st century.

21st Century Teachers

In trying to meet the expectations and challenges of the 21st century education and increasing global competition, teachers need to be equipped with an array of knowledge, ranging from generic skills such as analytical and problem-solving skills, personal and inter-personal communication skills, management negotiation and organisational skills, together with the ability to apply these skills in a range of unique situations (Joshi & Chugh, 2009). It is no more sufficient for teachers to be comfortable with the content knowledge that they have gained during their undergraduate education, in fact, they are expected to constantly improve themselves, both in terms of content and pedagogical knowledge to come with the rapid changes that are taking place in the school environment every day. It is also argued that teachers of the 21st century technology need to be exposed to the latest information and techniques in teaching, learning and their ability to apply these skills in contemporary environment is becoming imperative (Joshi & Chugh, 2009)

Teacher Education in the New Millennium

The current trends and changes that are taking place in the field of education in this new millennium has, in one way or another, has called for a re-look into kind of training that should be provided for would be teachers who will be taking their place in schools. There is an imperative need to re-evaluate the teacher training curriculum to see if it met the current needs and demands of the schools. The urge for the re-evaluation is reflected by the rising research pertaining to such issues carried out worldwide. For instance, research conducted by Way and Holden (2009) in University of Wisconsin-Madison involving 1,200 K12 teachers revealed that these teachers demanded for more training to develop capacity to teach financial education topics as they believed that financial management is one of the main issues among their students. Whilst Gnawali (2010) points out that there is something wrong in the teacher training curriculum in Nepal as he found that English teachers who had gone for a teacher training program did not show any development in the teaching methodology after coming back to the schools. In Vietnam, Belgian Development Agency (2010) demands for changes in the teacher training curriculum as they found that traditional practices are still commonly used, requiring students to learn by rote and hinders their active participation and discouraging independent thinking and creativity. All these show that re-evaluating teacher education in the new millennium is a global issue that needs to be addressed carefully so that it could benefit both the teachers and the students. Thus this research was born out of concern to re-evaluate the teacher training program in Malaysia and suggest necessary reforms that could be taken so that it would not be left behind in meeting the challenging needs and demands of the new millennium.

Research Objectives

This study was carried out with the following objectives:

1. To find out students’ level of general readiness towards practicum teaching;

2. To identify Malaysian trainee teachers’ perception towards the challenges encountered during teaching practice; and

3. To investigate the needs of trainee teachers prior to going for practicum.

Research Questions

The research questions that forms the basis of this study is as listed below: 1. What are the trainee teachers’ levels of general readiness towards practicum teaching?

2. What are Malaysian trainee teachers’ perceptions towards the challenges encountered during teaching practice?

3. What are the trainee teachers’ needs prior to going for practicum?

Methodology This study employs a combination of quantitative and qualitative approaches to data

collection. The research respondents are final year students who have gone for their teaching practice in schools in the previous semester. These students are enrolled in different teacher education programs namely science (biology, physics and chemistry) education, mathematics education, Teaching of English as Second Language (TESL), and physical and health education.

Data for this study was obtained using two methods. A questionnaire was used to collect data on the adequacy of practicum preparation prior to going for teaching practice, as well as the experiences the participants encountered in schools. Except for open-ended questions, students are required to indicate their agreement or disagreement (on a scale of 1=strongly disagree to 10=strongly agree) to other given items. Selected respondents were also interviewed to obtain input on how aspects of practicum process could be further improved.

Findings

From a total of 200 students who went for practicum in schools during the second semester of 2009, 150 responded to the questionnaire. The distribution of respondents by program and gender is as follows:

Table 1: Demographic profile by program and gender

Program Gender

Total Male Female

TESL 22 51 73

Math Education 8 17 25

Biology Education 2 10 12

Chemistry Education 7 11 18

Physics Education 4 14 18

Physical & Health Education 4 0 4

TOTAL 47 103 150

Apart from the demographic profile, the questionnaire also sought respondents’ perception towards, and reflection of the processes involved before and during teaching practice. Specifically, section b of the questionnaire tapped into students’ practicum readiness and school experience.

Practicum readiness refers to the extent of student preparedness prior to the teaching practice. Among the dimensions looked into include the students’ awareness of teacher’s roles and responsibilities, English language proficiency, capacity to work with other people, knowledge and skills related to teaching, and problem solving ability. Analysis on the students’ level of readiness for teaching practice is as follows:

Table 2 : Respondents’ general level of readiness

Level of Readiness Frequency Percentage

High 84 59.2

Medium 57 40.1

Low 1 0.7

Out of 142 valid responses, the majority of respondents (n=84, 59.2%) fell under the high

readiness category. Only one (0.7%) respondent is low in readiness while the remaining 57 (40.1%) are moderately ready for their teaching practice. Further analysis for practicum readiness by the five dimensions highlighted earlier shows the respondents obtained highest mean score for awareness of teachers’ responsibilities. The respondents, in other words, knew what were expected of them in schools, believed that their behavior and conduct fit that of a teacher, and understood what it takes to be in charge of co-curricular activities. The dimension which the respondents were least ready is their proficiency in English language.

Table 3: Respondents’ practicum readiness

Practicum Readiness Component Mean Standard Deviation

Awareness of teachers’ roles and responsibilities

7.61 1.14

English language proficiency 6.79 1.41

Capacity to work with other people 7.06 1.02

Knowledge and skills related to teaching 6.98 1.16

Problem solving ability 6.91 1.14

Statistical analysis comparing practicum readiness by gender showed no differences in

perception of practicum between male and female. Similarly, a look into the relationship between students’ cumulative grade point average (CGPA) and practicum readiness revealed there is no relationship between the two. This shows that CGPA does not influence the respondents’ perception towards teaching practice. Analysis of variance by different programs, however, indicated there is significant difference for all practicum readiness dimensions except for English language proficiency. But the post hoc test ran on the data revealed no real significance difference exist.

Logically, students’ level of readiness towards teaching practice will influence their school experience. School experience here refers to what the students went through when teaching in schools. The dimensions of school experience include being able to carry out teachers’ roles and responsibilities, capable of handling and solving problems, possess the competence to work with others, and know what it takes to carry out lessons in school. Specifically, knowledge related to teaching encompassed aspects of lesson planning and implementation. Students’ accounts of their school experience have been categorized into three: good, moderate and bad.

Table 4: Respondents’ general school experience

School experience Frequency Percentage

Good 6 4.4

Moderate 130 94.9

Bad 1 0.7

From the above table, six respondents reported having trouble-free, enjoyable experience in school. For these students, they adjusted well to the school culture, had no problems planning and carrying out lessons, managed to motivate and manage students’ behavior and were perceived by others as having competently carried out their roles and responsibilities as trainee teachers in schools. 130 others claimed their experiences in school were moderate, perhaps with occasional difficulties in the highlighted school dimensions while one student described her experience as relatively bad. Thirteen people were not included in the valid list of respondents.

Descriptive statistics on responses pertaining to school experience revealed students obtained highest mean score (x = 7.27, SD = 0.94) for capacity working with other people. It could be said that students, in general, were able to adapt to the school culture fairly easily and were able to interact, cooperate and work with others, including students, amicably.

Table 5: Respondents’ school experience: by dimension

School Experience Dimension Mean Standard Deviation

Teachers’ roles and responsibilities 7.15 0.97

Knowledge related to teaching

Planning 6.70 0.86

Implementation 6.80 0.77

Problem solving ability 6.46 1.03

Capacity to work with other people 7.27 0.94

On the other hand, the lowest mean score (x = 6.46; SD = 1.03) obtained was for problem solving ability dimension. Among the challenges encountered by the respondents concerns managing students’ behaviour in class, figuring out and applying specific theories to motivate students in class, and finding out the sources of students’ difficulties when learning specific topics. The respondents, in other words, are lacking in critical thinking and decision making skills needed to react to issues related to classroom management.

Comparison of school experience dimensions’ mean score by educational program shows that all respondents rated problem solving dimension the lowest. Within that dimension, TESL respondents were found to have the lowest score with a mean score of 6.14. Apart from TESL respondents, those majoring in Mathematics Education, Biology Education and Chemistry Education also obtained the low scores for the same dimension. Perhaps, these trainee teachers do not possess good problem solving skills because they are not exposed to problem-based learning approach in the teacher training curriculum. Tan (2004) affirms that it is through problem-based learning that learners develop their critical thinking and problem solving skills. Unfortunately, in Malaysia, problem-based learning is relatively something very new which is not yet widely applied across disciplines especially to that of teaching and learning in the ESL context (Radzuwan, 2010).

Apart from the problem solving dimension, TESL respondents also scored lowest for both planning and implementation of teaching dimensions of school experience, suggesting that teaching English in Malaysian schools is not only testing but also exigent for the trainee teachers. Online survey conducted by British Council in 2010 revealed that English teachers all over the world face few similar problems when teaching English in school. The problems are overcrowded classrooms, the bad behaviour of students, attitudes of parents, attitudes of educational managers, demands of the syllabus, teaching too many hours, lack of support, and lack of training and development opportunities. Even though this survey was not specifically carried out in Malaysian context, it is believed that trainee teachers in Malaysia face similar problems when teaching English in schools.

Meanwhile, the Physical and Health Education (PHE) respondents obtained lowest mean scores for teachers’ roles and responsibilities, as well as implementation of teaching dimensions. This finding seems to give raise an old issue put forth by Placek (1983) as cited in Hickson and Fishburne (2005) that PHE teachers regard their lessons as successful when students are busy, happy and good without giving much attention to whether or not students’ are actually learning. This is perhaps largely due to the fact that because in university, they are by and large exposed to the theoretical foundations of sports and health-related in class. Whereas, when in schools they have to actually apply theory into practice; hence teaching is very hands-on. Perhaps lack of experience to put into operation theoretical knowledge into practice have actually contributed to the perceptions that implementation of lesson are difficult and that they have not been able to carry out the roles and responsibilities of PHE teachers effectively.

Data from Table 5 also showed Physics Education respondents scored the lowest for working with others dimension. The findings suggest respondents took longer time to adapt to the school culture, encountered more difficulties getting others to cooperate in activities they organize or handle, and felt others were not quite comfortable working with them. This finding reflects a concomitant setting to the finding of the previous research carried out by Eryilmaz and Ilaslan (1999) who found that pre service Physics teachers had very low knowledge of classroom management, sociology and psychology as well as knowledge of teaching methods and school administration. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why pre service Physic teachers involved in this

study faced difficulties in schools. They are not equipped with enough skills to engage students in classroom activities and how to socialize with others in the school.

Table 6 : Mean Score of School Experience Dimension by Program

PROGRAM

SCHOOL EXPERIENCE DIMENSIONS

TchResp Planning Implement ProbSolvg WorkWOth

TESL 7.04 6.55 6.69 6.14 7.22

Math Education 7.23 6.61 6.73 6.57 7.23

Biology Education 7.48 7.13 6.98 6.85 7.57

Chemistry Education 7.28 6.98 7.16 6.87 7.63

Physics Education 7.25 6.90 6.91 6.90 6.95

Physical & Health Edu

6.79 6.84 6.69 6.56 7.57

Open-Ended Questions

Areas that students’ need improvement on

An open ended question was posed to the trainees to elicit their views on what are the aspects related to teaching which they think they should improve on before having gone for their practicum. A study of the recurring themes revealed that their main concern were still rooted to the basic mechanics of teaching and this can be grouped under three main sub-headings:

1. Content and pedagogy 2. Classroom management 3. Inter-personal skills

It was very obvious from the feedback gathered, that the students generally felt that they needed more exposure in terms of content knowledge and pedagogic skills which to them are most crucial in determining the quality of teaching and learning that takes place in the classroom. In fact, more than half of the trainees shared this same concern. They must be feeling that they are not apt or ready to teach because they lack in the skills mentioned above.

In terms of content knowledge and teaching pedagogy, many felt that they were still lacking in skills such a, preparing effective lesson plan . This included preparing for an effective set induction, lack of exposure to new methods and approaches which can be used in teaching, preparation of authentic teaching materials and teaching aids/ materials. Apart from that, they were also concerned about the type/kind of activities that were carried out in the classroom. There is a generally consensus that they needed to be exposed to how to use creativity in the classroom especially through incorporating games and ICT in the classroom

Apart from concerns relating to content and pedagogy, the trainees also voiced their concern over their lack of classroom management skills which they feel needs to be looked at and stressed on. Students find that they are relatively ill-prepared in how to handle misbehaviour among students and also how to manage students’ behaviour in the classroom.

Finally, there is a general concern with regard to handling inter-personal skills. This involves dealing with colleagues, dealing with students and personal skills within the context of the school and departments. These are the three areas which trainees find most challenging and which they feel that they need to be equipped with more information in order for them to function and participate well in school.

New Courses Needed

In the open-ended section of the questionnaire, trainees were also ask to reflect on the subjects that they took during their B.Ed program and suggest if there are other courses which they deem necessary to be included in the 4 year program. Although the trainee comes from different background or area of specialization, they generally had similar concerns as to which subject should be included. Among the areas that received students attention is classroom management. This include handling difficulties in the classroonm, dealing with students behaviour and handling of adolescents. This seems to suggest that students feel that they are pedagogically ill-prepared, but content wise, they seemed apt at it.

Aside from classroom management, there was also a need for the practical aspect of assessment that students feel that they lack of. This include practical skills like marking students essay work, and how to mark papers, test papers. For science students, another big category arised and that is laboratory skills and how to prepare teaching aids for science subjects.

Courses that should be removed

Teacher trainees were also asked the question as to what are the current courses that should be considered to be removed from the program to make way for some of the courses which were suggested in the previous section. The general pattern of feedback shows that students found subjects which are theoretical and historical in nature, most unuseful , hence, they are in the opinion that these course should be substituted with other more practical and relevant courses which are directly useful for them in the classroom. They generally share similar opinions that generic subjects such as Foundation of Education, Education in Malaysia, TITAS, and Sociology should be removed from the content of the degree course. For the science students on the other hand, subjects such as Philosophy of Science, Industrial Chemistry and Analytical chemistry were seen as least useful and should be taken off from the four year degree programme.

Helpful Courses

The trainees were also asked to list down courses which they found useful during their practicum stint in schools. It is interesting and expected to observe that the students found most methods or pedagogy courses to be the useful ones which has helped them in their practicum. Among the courses which almost all of them felt was useful include, all methods courses, Educational Psychology, Classroom management and Counselling classes . For the TESL students,

the range of courses which they found helpful were also related to the main areas listed above, which includes PELT (Principles in English Language Teaching) and CALL (Computer Assisted Language Learning). For the math and science students, the list of subjects which they found useful are method of teaching math and science, problem solving in science and science in society. Clearly, what the trainees find useful are practical courses which provide information and knowledge which they can directly apply in the classroom. Perhaps this also suggests the kinds of content and pedagogical knowledge which teacher trainers need to be aware of. At the end of the day, the crux of the issue remains that teacher are looking for things that they can make use of in the classroom, practical and helpful information.

Not helpful courses

The trainees were also asked to list down the courses that they found not helpful in the 4 year degree programme that they majored in. A close analysis of the items listed under the heading of “not so helpful courses” shows a lot similarity to the item which they listed for the item “courses that should be removed” from the programme. This highlights that there is a certain degree of consistency in the feedback given by trainees. Among the subjects that they found not helpful are Sociology, Education in Malaysia, Foundation of Education, TITAS, CTU and Ethics.

On the other hand, the science students found subjects such as industrial chemistry, physical and analytical chemistry as being not helpful for them in their teaching. The clear pattern that can be derived from the feedback given is that, students are in the opinion that courses which are theoretical, philosophical and historical in nature, which do not lend themselves directly to classroom usage, are not helpful and should therefore be replaced from the four year programme.

What do teachers need to improve on

An open ended question was posed at the end of the questionnaire to elicit students response on what are the changes that teachers need have in order to improve in their teaching. A few interesting areas surfaced from the feedback received, among others, the trainees see the overwhelming need of being exposed to knowledge on how to integrate technology and ICT in the classroom. The trainees are extremely aware that teachers need to be techno-savvy and up-to-date with the latest knowledge on ICT usage in the classroom. This is in fact very much in line with the global concerns of teaching in the 21st century, where ICT in classroom is said to be one of the predominant features which needs to be looked into seriously. (William, 2009)

Apart from technology, the trainees also had deep concerns over the issue of teacher personality, which includes teacher-student interaction, teacher and staff relationship, teacher attitude and motivation and the need for teachers to improve on their communication with others or what is now known as the soft skills. Somehow this people and personality related issues are seen as very crucial for teachers to have and this I think, is very much related to the trainees experience in the schools. Having gone to schools, these trainees are aware of the importance of what is also known as EQ (emotional quotient) in order to survive in the school environment. It is indeed very comforting to know that the trainees are aware of the importance of the affective factor in teaching. It is imperative for teachers to know that the success or failure of a class is , at most times, very much affected by the affective factors in teachers. This is to ensure that the “humane” factor is

effectively transmitted by teachers to students. Hence, teachers should take time to focus on this matter and not only that of content area.

Conclusion

The overall findings of this study suggest interesting insights on trainee teachers’ needs and challenges in the new millennium. In terms of readiness, trainees are in the opinion that they are generally ready for their practicum teaching or placement in schools. However, they have their share of concerns as to what are the subjects or courses which they need more exposure to in order to improve in their teaching. Among the courses which they felt necessary include classroom management courses and also pedagogy based courses, which would provide them with hands-on knowledge on how to go about maximising their teaching in the classrooms.

Apart from that, they were also quite consistent in their views as to what are the courses which should be removed from the programme. Basically, they saw very little need for theoretical, historical and philosophical based subjects such as Foundation of Education, Education in Malaysia, CITU , as these subjects are not useful and practical for them in their teaching. They find that other practical subjects such as educational psychology, all the methods courses, classroom management as being very crucial for them and they hope to see more practical and classroom-useful courses to be included into the four year B.Ed degree programme. It is therefore timely to look at necessary measures that should be taken to ensure that the teacher training programme provided for the students is effective and practical for their future classroom use:

...Teachers and teacher educators must make a fundamental change in their paradigm for teaching and learning. We must recognize that the current education system has been set up to prepare students perfectly for a world that no longer exists. Massive, re-thinking of training for educators is essential if schools are to be made relevant to the modern needs of all students... (Jukes, McCain and Crockett, 2010)

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