CoChat
Sign Up
Cited by 39Teacher Professional Development and MotivationSchool Choice and PerformanceTeacher Education and Leadership Studies

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 1 of the 1 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

Teaching as a Career Choice: Triggers and Drivers

Open access
National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Low, Ee Ling, Ng, Pak Tee, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Hui, Chenri, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Cai, Li, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore·2017·Australian Journal of Teacher Education
DOI 10.14221/ajte.2017v42n2.3
Open this paper in CoChat — free accountOpen PDF

Abstract

Why people are drawn to teaching has been a focal research area. However, previous studies seem to centre on the traditional conceptualisations of intrinsic, altruistic, and extrinsic motivations as well as some other similar categorisations. This study attempts to discuss the issue from a different conceptual stance, proposing a distinction between the “triggers” and the “drivers”. The influences on the motivation for joining teaching were explored through in-depth interviews with 26 student teachers. Results show that student teachers’ motivations for joining teaching in Singapore may differ in important ways from that of their counterparts in other places. More importantly, the results highlighted differences between “triggers” and “drivers” as well as the inter-relatedness between them. Some practical implications are drawn for teacher education both within Singapore and internationally.

Overview

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.14221/ajte.2017v42n2.3

Cites

1 of 1 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Verification

Claims the paper makes

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The self-check needs the paper’s full text.

Citations

Cites

Show all 1 references

Research works printed but not linked: 40

  1. Alexander, P. A. (2008). Charting the course for the teaching profession: The energizing and sustaining role of motivational forces. Learning & Instruction, 18(5), 483-491. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.learninstruc.2008.06.006 · DOI
  2. Andrews, P., & Hatch, G. (2002). Initial motivations of serving teachers of secondary mathematics. Evaluation & Research in Education, 16(4), 185-201. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500790208667018 · DOI
  3. Azman, N. (2013). Choosing teaching as a career: Perspectives of male and female Malaysian student teachers in training. European Journal of Teacher Education, 36(1), 113-130. https://doi.org/10.1080/02619768.2012.678483 · DOI
  4. Bogdan, R. C., & Biklen, S. K. (2007). Qualitative research for education: An introduction to theories and methods (5 th Ed.). Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon.
  5. Butt, G., MacKenzie, L., & Manning, R. (2010). Influences on British South Asian women's choice of teaching as a career: "You're either a career person or a family person; teaching kind of fits in the middle". Educational Review, 62(1), 69-83. https://doi.org/10.1080/00131910903519769 · DOI
  6. Chang-Kredl, S., & Kingsley, S. (2014). Identity expectations in early childhood teacher education: Preservice teachers' memories of prior experiences and reasons for entry into the profession. Teaching and Teacher Education, 43, 27-36. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2014.05.005 · DOI
  7. Chong, S., & Low, E. L. (2009). Why I want to teach and how I feel about teaching: Formation of teacher identity from pre-service to the beginning teacher phase. Education Research Policy and Practice, 8, 59-72. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10671-008-9056-z · DOI
  8. Corbin, J., & Strauss, A. (2015). Basics of qualitative research: Techniques and procedures for developing grounded theory (4 th Ed.). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
  9. Cross, M., & Ndofirepi, E. (2013): On becoming and remaining a teacher: Rethinking strategies for developing teacher professional identity in South Africa. Research Papers in Education, https://doi.org/10.1080/02671522.2013.851729 · DOI
  10. Darling-Hammond, L., Goodwin, L., & Low, E. L. (in press). Singapore as a case of quality teachers and teaching: Recruiting, preparing, retaining, and sustaining. A Center for International Education Benchmarking Study, National Center on Education and the Economy.
  11. Eccles, J. S. (2005). Subjective task values and the Eccles et al. model of achievement related choices. In A. J. Elliott & C. S. Dweck (Eds.), Handbook of competence and motivation (pp. 105-121). New York: Guilford.
  12. Eccles, J. (2009). Who am I and what am I going to do with my life? Personal and collective identities as motivators of action. Educational Psychologist, 44(2), 78-89. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520902832368 · DOI · Paper page
  13. Eccles (Parsons), J., Adler, T. F., Futterman, R., Goff, S. B., Kaczala, C. M., Meece, J. L., et al. (1983). Expectancies, values, and academic behaviors. In J. T. Spence (Ed.), Achievement and achievement motivation (pp. 75-146). San Francisco: Freeman.
  14. Fokkens-Bruisma, M., & Canrinus, E. T. (2012). The Factors Influencing Teaching (FIT)-Choice scale in a Dutch teacher education programme. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 40(3), 249-269. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359866X.2012.700043 · DOI
  15. Ganchorre, A. R., & Tomanek, D. (2012). Commitment to teach in under-resourced schools: Prospective science and mathematics teachers' dispositions. Journal of Science Teacher Education, 23, 87-110. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10972-011-9263-y · DOI
  16. Glaser, B. G. (1978). Theoretical sensitivity: Advances in the methodology of grounded theory. Mill Valley, CA: The Sociology Press.
  17. Goodwin, A. L., Low, E. L., & Ng, P. T. (2015). Developing teacher leadership in Singapore: Multiple pathways for differentiated journeys. The New Educator, 11(2), 107-120. https://doi.org/10.1080/1547688X.2015.1026782 · DOI
  18. Gu, M., & Lai, C. (2012). Motivation and commitment: Pre-Service teachers from Hong Kong and mainland China at a training institute in Hong Kong. Teacher Education Quarterly, 45-61.
  19. Heinz, M. (2015). Why choose teaching? An international review of empirical studies exploring student teachers' career motivations and levels of commitment to teaching. Educational Research and Evaluation, 21(3), 258-297, https://doi.org/10.1080/13803611.2015.1018278 · DOI
  20. Josselson, R. & Lieblich, A. (Eds.) (1993). The narrative study of lives. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
  21. Kılınç, A., Watt, H. M., & Richardson, P. W. (2012). Factors influencing teaching choice in Turkey. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 40(3), 199-226. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359866X.2012.700048 · DOI
  22. König, J., & Rothland, M. (2012). Motivations for choosing teaching as a career: Effects on general pedagogical knowledge during initial teacher education. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 40(3), 289-315. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359866X.2012.700045 · DOI
  23. Kyriacou, C., & Coulthard, M. (2000). Undergraduate's views of teaching as a career choice. Journal of Education for Teaching, 26(2), 117-126. https://doi.org/10.1080/02607470050127036 · DOI
  24. Lam, B. H. (2012). Why do they want to become teachers? A study on prospective teachers' motivation to teach in Hong Kong. Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, 21(2), 307-314.
  25. Lin, E., Shi, Q., Wang, J., Zhang, S., & Hui, L. (2012). Initial motivations for teaching: Comparison between preservice teachers in the United States and China. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 40(3), 227-248. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359866X.2012.700047 · DOI
  26. Lortie, D. C. (1975). Schoolteacher: A sociological study. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
  27. Low, E. L., Lim, S. K., Ch'ng, A., & Goh, K. C. (2011). Pre-service teachers' reasons for choosing teaching as a career in Singapore. Asia Pacific Journal of Education, 31(2), 195-210. https://doi.org/10.1080/02188791.2011.567441 · DOI
  28. Manuel, J., & Hughes, J. (2006). It has always been my dream: Exploring pre-service teachers' motivations for choosing to teach. Teacher Development: An International Journal of Teachers' Professional Development, 10(1), 5-24, https://doi.org/10.1080/13664530600587311 · DOI
  29. Marshall, J. M. (2009). Describing the elephant: Preservice teachers talk about spiritual reasons for becoming a teacher. Teacher Education Quarterly, 25-44.
  30. Mee, M, Rogers Haverback, H., & Passe, J. (2012). FOR THE LOVE OF THE MIDDLE: A glimpse into why one group of preservice teachers chose middle grades education. Middle Grades Research Journal, 7(4), 1-14.
  31. Moran, A., Kilpatrick, R., Abbot, L., Dallat, J., & McClune, B. (2001). Training to teach: Motivating factors and implications for recruitment. Evaluation & Research in Education, 15(1), 17-32, https://doi.org/10.1080/09500790108666980 · DOI
  32. Moreau, M.-P. (2014): Becoming a secondary school teacher in England and France: Contextualising career 'choice'. Compare: A Journal of Comparative and International Education, https://doi.org/10.1080/03057925.2013.876310 OECD. (2014). Singapore: Key findings from the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS). Retrieved from: http://www.oecd.org/edu/school/TALIS-2013-country-note- Singapore.pdf. · DOI
  33. Olsen, B. (2008). How "reasons for entry into the profession" illuminate teacher identity development. Teacher Education Quarterly, 35(3), 23-40.
  34. Richardson, P. W., & Watt, H. M. G. (2006). Who chooses teaching and why? Profiling characteristics and motivations across three Australian universities. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 34(1), 27-56, https://doi.org/10.1080/13598660500480290 · DOI
  35. Urquhart, C. (2013). Grounded theory for qualitative research: A practical guide. London: Sage. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781526402196 · DOI · Paper page
  36. Wang, H. H. (2004). Why teach science? Graduate science students' perceived motivations for choosing teaching as a career in Taiwan. International Journal of Science Education, 26(1), 113-128, https://doi.org/10.1080/0950069032000070243 · DOI
  37. Watt, H. M. G., & Richardson, P. W. (2007). Motivational factors influencing teaching as a career choice: Development and validation of the FIT-Choice scale. Journal of Experimental Education, 75(3), 167-202, DOI: 10.3200/JEXE.75.3.167-202 https://doi.org/10.3200/JEXE.75.3.167-202 · DOI
  38. Watt, H. M. G., & Richardson, P. W. (2012). An introduction to teaching motivations in different countries: Comparisons using the FIT-Choice scale. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 40(3), 185-197. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359866X.2012.700049 · DOI
  39. Wigfield, A., & Eccles, J. S. (2000). Expectancy-value theory of achievement motivation. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25, 68-81. https://doi.org/10.1006/ceps.1999.1015 · DOI · Paper page
  40. Yong, B. (1995). Teacher trainees' motives for entering into a teaching career in Brunei, Darussalam. Teaching and Teacher Education, 11(3), 275-280. https://doi.org/10.1016/0742-051X(94)00023-Y Yuce, K., Sahin, E. Y., Kocer, O., & Kana, F. (2013). Motivations for choosing teaching as a career: A perspective of pre-service teachers from a Turkish context. Asia Pacific Education Review, 14(3), 295-306. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12564-013-9258-9 · DOI

Cited by

Sorted by citations

See all 39

Metadata

Authors
National Institute of Education, N. T. U., Low, E. L., Ng, P. T., National Institute of Education, N. T. U., Hui, C., National Institute of Education, N. T. U., Cai, L., & National Institute of Education, N. T. U.
Affiliations
Nanyang Technological University (SG)
ORCID
Venue
Australian Journal of Teacher Education
Publisher
Edith Cowan University
Published
2017-02
Pages
28-46
DOI
10.14221/ajte.2017v42n2.3
OpenAlex
W2593040748
Cited by
39
References
1
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 10 · 2021: 4 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 2
FWCI
9.74
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • NIE Digital Repository (National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University) (publishedVersion)
  • Australasian Journal of Paramedicine (submittedVersion)
Funders
Nanyang Technological University
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Education › Teacher Professional Development and Motivation
  • Social Sciences › Education › School Choice and Performance
  • Social Sciences › Education › Teacher Education and Leadership Studies
Keywords
career choice, teaching profession, teacher motivation, pre-service teachers, teacher professional development, Singapore

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review

How to cite

Cite CoChat for the checks on this page, and the paper for its own findings.

This page
CoChat. (2026). Citation check: Teaching as a Career Choice: Triggers and Drivers. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.14221/ajte.2017v42n2.3
The paper
National Institute of Education, N. T. U., Low, E. L., Ng, P. T., National Institute of Education, N. T. U., Hui, C., National Institute of Education, N. T. U., Cai, L., & National Institute of Education, N. T. U. (2017). Teaching as a Career Choice: Triggers and Drivers. Australian Journal of Teacher Education. https://doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2017v42n2.3