PROSPECTIVE TEACHERS' PERSPECTIVES ON THE TEACHING PROFESSION IN NIGERIA

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1     BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

It is impossible to overstate the universal claim that education is a significant sure and powerful weapon for achieving sustainable development in all human societies today. Education is viewed as a potent tool for bringing about desired changes in a country's social and cultural life. Developing nations suffer a slew of unusual issues, like extreme poverty, illiteracy, and so forth. Of course, the solution lies in appropriate citizen education. According to Ogunna, as cited in Okemakido (2013), education helps buffer the high rate of literacy effect, emancipate the masses from the shackles of ignorance, equip them with cognitive skills to induce development, make them aware politically, economically, and socially, and enable them to produce and develop teaming human resources, producing caliber of personnel imbued with productivity skills. According to Uwaifo (2009), education is the key that opens the door to modernity and sustainable development, and teachers are the key. The entire educational process is sculpted and molded by a human being known as a teacher, who plays a crucial part in every educational system. As a result, the teacher is responsible for putting educational policies and plans into effect. The teacher is the cornerstone of educational progress. The quality of education provided to a country's citizens, among other factors, determines its degree of growth. This work is based on the assumption that instructors' attitudes, willingness, motivation, and, above all, passion for the teaching profession are the main emphasis of this work (Weje, 2007). It is critical for the educational sector to have dedicated and skilled instructors who will contribute to the advancement of an educational system that is on the verge of collapse, particularly in Nigeria. Teachers are the most important group of people in the educational system. They pass on accumulated present-day knowledge from generation to generation, and interpret this information in light of the past in order to alter the future. In a formal school context, this is the teacher's professional job and obligation (Pathy, 2009). Given the huge obligations entrusted to teachers by their profession and society, their state of service is pitiful. In truth, parents, as well as the general public, need to be informed about the realities of teaching and the teaching profession. They had never considered that the negative and low ratings of teachers had a cascading impact on the educational system and society as a whole (Barros, 2006). An individual's response to stimuli is influenced by their attitude, which is described as a state of readiness molded by experience. It is a prelude to behavior and ranges from positive to negative to neutral. As an indicator of individual behavior, attitude is made up of three components: emotional, behavioral, and cognitive (Bhargava, 2014). Domestic environment, family background, socioeconomic background, beliefs, and educational institutes, among other things, all have an impact on the teacher's attitude. School prestige, school infrastructure, school safety conditions, social and professional position are all important elements in influencing teachers' attitudes (Ela, 2008). Experience is another component that has an impact on one's attitude. This is also true in the teaching profession. The teacher's teaching experience has an important role in shaping attitudes (Suja, 2007). The teacher's attitude toward the topic and the pupils has a considerable impact on the students' motivation to study. Gender and kind of training are the most important elements determining a teacher's attitude (Bozdoge, 2007). Female instructors are shown to have a good attitude about their career (Capa, 2007). Inadequate financial recompense and salary delays are the main reasons for teachers' dissatisfaction with their career (izevbigie, 2006). When these negative variables are eliminated, it might motivate teachers to be more aware of and accountable for their responsibilities. Initial teacher education aids in the development of student teachers' attitudes toward the teaching profession. The cultivation of a good attitude toward one's career aids in the development of creative thinking and the motivation of pupils (Celikoz, 2004). Differences in student instructors' attitudes about teaching are also due to differences in learning environments, instructional materials, and tactics used in first teacher training programs. The quality of the job completed and the instruction is influenced by the teacher's attitude. The teacher's attitude is influenced by the skills she possesses (Pathy, 2014).

1.2     STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

When compared to other professions such as engineering, medicine, and law, the way teaching is regarded in Nigeria is nothing to write home about; the profession continues to be held in low regard and lacks professional autonomy (Oral, 2004). The amount of prospective university undergraduate students who pick a teacher education program each year through the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) is evidence of this, and most of them do so as a last choice. Because there are so few prospective applicants, candidates who do not meet the cutoff points in other faculties or who have certain flaws even after being registered in other faculties are pushed to the faculty of education to make up for the shortfall. Similarly, the majority of non-academic university administrators feel that students who are not qualified for specialized studies such as management sciences or pure and fundamental medical sciences should be steered to the education faculty (Osunde, 2009). This condition contributes to an unfavorable perception of instruction. Because university faculty of education students are trained to possibly take on teaching duties following completion of their degree, examining prospective teachers' attitudes toward teaching is critical (Cetin, 2005). As a result, obtaining a better understanding of their views about teaching may give helpful information regarding the profession's future and acceptance. As a result, the study's findings will be used to assess potential teachers' attitudes and likely teaching practices in Nigeria.

1.3     OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

The primary goal of this study is to determine prospective teachers' attitudes toward teaching in Nigeria. More specifically, the study aims to:

i. Determine prospective teachers' attitudes toward teaching;

ii. Determine whether there is a gender difference in prospective teachers' attitudes toward teaching.

iii.  Analyze the impact of the government's attitude toward education on prospective teachers' attitudes in Nigeria.

iv. Examine the causes behind prospective teachers' diverse views regarding the teaching profession.

1.4     RESEARCH QUESTIONS

i. What are the  prospective of  teachers' attitudes towards teaching?

ii. is there a gender difference in prospective teachers' attitudes towards teaching?

iii. What are  the impacts of the government's attitude toward education on prospective teachers' attitudes in Nigeria?

iv. What are  the causes behind prospective teachers' diverse views regarding the teaching profession?

1.5     SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The study will focus on the motivations for pre-education students to pursue a career in teaching, the perspectives of higher education students (in service), the obstacles that impede the teaching profession, and ways for enhancing the teaching profession. The report will also be an important document for the education policy maker or framework, since the recommendations will be useful in policy creation. The study will also present fresh ideas for those wishing to conduct more policy studies and areas for future literatures that will address the perception of instruction among education students in Nigerian higher learning institutions. This research will provide fresh ideas for individuals who want to do more research on teaching students' perceptions of the profession in higher education institutions. It will also add to Nigerian higher education's knowledge base on student views and the teaching profession.

1.6     SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The purpose of the study was to determine how education students at Nigeria's higher education institutions viewed the teaching profession. This research will take place among education students at a few colleges.

1.7 DELIMINATION OF THE STUDY

The study examined a wide range of topics. Teachers in various parts of the country were polled on their thoughts about teaching as a vocation in Nigeria.