Browsing by Subject "former av stöd"

Aim. An alarming rate of today’s teachers feel exhausted and burnout. Research points out that this exhaustion might commence already during teacher studies and is then transferred to the profession. According to international reports there is a global trend where newly qualified teachers choose a career change only a few years after their exam, which indicates that the transition from teacher student to qualified teacher is specifically challenging. Concurrently there seems to be a lack of adequate social support for newly qualified teachers. At the time of this study there were, for example, no regulated or unitary induction periods or designated mentors for beginning teachers in Finland. Nonetheless, studies concerning social support in teacher studies and teaching professions have confirmed that support is one of the foremost resources that enhances teacher students’ and teachers’ resilience, acts as a buffer against stress, promotes wellbeing and, therefore, has a protective effect on their health. The aim of this study was to investigate the teacher students’ and newly qualified teachers’ experiences of their social support system in their studies and in the profession. Did they receive support from different sources (Alsubaie et al., 2019; Malecki & Demaray, 2003; Thoits, 1995) and different forms (Cobb, 1976) of support? And does the given social support correspond to the needs of support? (Cutrona, 1990). The study also wanted to find out how inspiring/burdensome teacher students and newly qualified teachers perceived their studies/profession. The study also unravels the teacher students’ and newly qualified teachers’ experiences on social support during the pandemic. Methods. This research was a quantitative pilot study using descriptive methods. A total of 18 teacher students and 6 newly qualified teachers from a university in Finland responded to an electronic enquiry about their experiences on social support. The data was collected based on a social support system enquiry which has been validated in previous research (Cornér, 2020; Pyhältö et al., 2009; 2015; 2018; Väisänen, 2019). In order to measure the teacher students’ and newly qualified teachers’ experiences of wellbeing/burden in their studies/profession the measuring instrument Socio-Contextual Teacher Burnout Inventory (STBI) (Cornér, 2020; Pietarinen et al., 2013; Pyhältö et al. 2015; Väisänen, 2016) was used. As the sample was small (<30), non-parametric methods have been applied. The analysis was carried out by IBM SPSS version 26. The study included one open question (no 23) to identify which forms of support teacher students and newly qualified teachers would perceive as most beneficial to them. Results. The majority of teacher students and newly qualified classroom teachers were satisfied with their studies and their jobs. They received social support from several different support sources in several different forms. Teacher students as well as classroom teachers perceived that informational and emotional support would be most beneficial for them. Teacher students, on one hand, called for more and better constructive feedback (informational support) and more understanding and empathy from educators in their studies. Classroom teachers, on the other hand, asked for practical advice from colleagues. Furthermore, they requested support from a mentor, specifically assigned for a role to incorporate newly qualified teachers in the activities of the school and receive practical information about the profession and the daily tasks. The support fit corresponded well with the needs of newly qualified teachers at the workplace whereas the teacher students were more critical of the support fit in their studies. Already during teacher education, it would, therefore, be critical to communicate the importance of social support and teach student teachers to express their needs for support as well as to give and receive support.