CHAPTER 3
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Presented in this chapter are the discussions, presentations, and analysis
of findings. The following heading centers the discussion on how do beginning
teachers differ in their level of concern when analyzed by gender, civil status,
or months of service in teaching.
Beginning Teachers’ concerns
Presented in Table 2 was the result of means and standard deviations for
the levels of concerns. The top five concerns of beginning teachers indicated in
the table had a highest M=4.3, SD=.5 means that the highest concerns of
beginning teachers was helping students to value learning. Moreover, statement
whether each student is reaching his or her potential had a M=4.0, SD=.4.
Furthermore, statements Doing well as I am observed during lessons,
Increasing students’ feelings of accomplishment, Seeking alternative ways to
ensure that students learn the subject matter, and Understanding what factors
motivate students to learn had the same M=3.9 but differ on their SD=.7,
SD=.6, SD=.8, and SD=.4, consecutively. Additionally, Recognizing the social
and emotional needs of students and Challenging unmotivated students had
equal M=3.9 and SD=.5.
Table 2. Means and standard deviations for the levels of concerns
Statement M SD
1. Insufficient clerical help for teachers 3.0 1.0
2. Whether the students respect me 3.8 .8
3. Too many extra duties and responsibilities 3.5 1.1
4. Doing well as I am observed during lessons 3.9 .7
5. Helping students to value learning 4.3 .5
6. Insufficient time for rest and class preparation 3.5 .8
7. Not enough assistance from specialized teachers 3.1 .9
8. Managing my time effectively 3.8 .7
9. Losing the respect of my colleagues 2.9 1.3
10. Not enough time for grading and testing 3.0 1.0
11. The inflexibility of the curriculum 3.4 .6
12. Too many standards and regulations set for teachers 3.3 .9
13. My ability to prepare adequate lesson plans 3.7 .8
14. Having my inadequacies become known to other teachers 2.8 1.0
15. Increasing students’ feelings of accomplishment 3.9 .5
16. The rigid instructional routine 3.3 1.0
17. Diagnosing student learning problems 3.7 .7
18. What the principal may think if there is too much noise 3.2 1.0
19. Whether each student is reaching his or her potential 4.0 .4
20. Obtaining a favorable evaluation of my teaching 3.5 .8
21. Having too many students in a class 3.0 1.1
22. Recognizing the social and emotional needs of students 3.9 .5
23. Challenging unmotivated students 3.9 .6
24. Losing the respect of my students 3.0 1.1
25. Lack of public support for schools 2.9 1.0
26. My ability to maintain the appropriate degree of class control 3.6 .6
27. Not having sufficient time to plan 2.9 .9
28. Getting students to behave 3.6 .6
29. Understanding why certain student make slow progress 3.7 .8
30. Having embarrassing incident occur in my classroom for which I might be judged 3.0 1.1
responsible
Table 2. Means and standard deviations for the levels of concerns (Continued)
Statement M SD
31. Not being able to cope with troublemakers in my classes 2.8 1.0
32. That my colleagues may think I’m not doing an adequate job 2.5 1.1
33. My ability to work with disruptive students 3.2 .6
34. Understanding ways in which student health and nutrition problems can affect learning 3.4 .9
35. Appearing competent to parents 3.3 1.0
36. Meeting the needs of different kinds of students 3.8 .6
37. Seeking alternative ways to ensure that students learn the subject matter 3.9 .8
38. Understanding the psychological and cultural differences that can affect my students’ behavior 3.8 .7
39. Adapting myself to the needs of different students 3.7 .7
40. The large number of administrative tasks 3.1 1.1
41. Guiding students toward intellectual and emotional growth 3.8 .5
42. Working with too many students each day 3.2 1.1
43. Whether students can apply what they learn 3.8 .4
44. Teaching effectively when another teacher is present 3.0 1.1
45. Understanding what factors motivate students to learn 3.9 .4
Overall level of beginning teachers’ concern 4.25 .4
On the other hand, statements Having my inadequacies become known
to other teachers and Not being able to cope with troublemakers in my classes
had an equal M=2.8 and SD=1.0 rank as the second least concerns of beginning
teachers and statement That my colleagues may think I’m not doing an
adequate job M=2.5 SD=1.1 give the least concern of beginning teachers. Thus,
overall level of beginning teachers’ concern had M=4.25, SD=.4. These results
indicated that numerous sets of analysis were used in answering the stated
research questions.
Difference in the level of beginning teachers’ concerns by gender, civil
status, and months of service
Data in Table 3 presented the difference in the level of beginning
teachers’ concerns by gender, civil status, and months of service presented.
One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to determine whether is
there a significant difference in the level of concern when analyzed by gender,
civil status, or months of service in teaching. The result revealed that Female
beginning teachers (M = 4.30, SD =0.07) had higher level of concerns than did
male teachers (M = 3.84, SD =0.08), F = 5.18, p<.[Link], single
beginning teachers (M = 4.37, SD =0.28) had higher level of concerns than did
married teachers (M = 4.11, SD = 0.39), F = 4.59, p<.05. But, they did not
significantly differ in their concern level when analyzed by length of service, F
= 0.40, p> .05.
Table 3. Difference in the level of beginning teachers’ concerns by gender, civil status, and
months of service
Characteristics n M SD F p
Gender
Male 3 3.84 0.08
Female 26 4.30 0.07 5.18 .031
Civil status
Married 13 4.11 0.39
Single 16 4.37 0.28 4.59 .041
Months of service
< 12 14 4.27 0.37
> 13, but < 24 11 4.20 0.37
> 25, but < 36 4 4.38 0.33 0.40 .677
Note: Equal variances were assumed.
Discussion
Based on the tables and interpretations presented, that overall level of
beginning teachers’ concern had M=4.25, SD=.4. Thus, the result indicated that
numerous sets of analysis were used in answering the stated research questions.
It also means that the highest concern of beginning teachers was helping
students to value learning. In the study conducted by Cherubini (2008)
contends that beginning teachers struggled to negotiate the enigma of loving
the idea of being a teacher, but not necessarily liking the work as a teacher.
Beginning teachers recognized the often overwhelming professional
responsibilities of teaching, yet assumed personal responsibility for creating
contextually relevant learning experiences for students (Cherubini, 2008).
One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to determine whether
is there a significant difference in the level of concern when analyzed by
gender, civil status, or months of service in teaching. Thus, result revealed that
they did not significantly differ in their concern level when analyzed by length
of service. In the study of Stair, Warner, and Moore (2012) encourage teacher
educators to consider how beginning teachers’ thinking may evolve and change
over the course of their educational career. Additionally, teacher educators can
also examine how course content and in–service programming can better
address the evolution in beginning teachers’ thinking and concerns.
In the light of the studies conducted by researchers investigating
beginning teachers’ concerns provides crucial points which should be
considered by teacher educators and researchers who study this issue. The
implications of this study’s findings can be considered with an aim to improve
the quality of teacher education. It should be considered that the significance of
identifying the sources of beginning teachers stress lies in the fact that stress
affects teachers’ behavior.
Recommendation
In regards to further research, it is recommended that this study be
replicated on a larger scale to examine the concern levels of beginning teachers.
Also, additional research would be beneficial to investigate what factors
contribute to these concerns over time. Participants in this study did seem to
begin the process of shifting their concerns from self-concerns to task and
impact concerns. Teacher education programs in the development of course
content and sequencing and the continued implementation of strategies deemed
successful in addressing various concerns. Finally, a longitudinal study should
be conducted to explore how concern levels impact long–term teacher
development and retention.