German Title: Orientierung als Teil von Lehrerbildung – Das Zusammenspiel von Berufswahlmotivation und beruflicher Identitätsentwicklung, ihre Zusammenhänge mit Zielorientierungen und die Auswirkungen eines Orientierungspraktikums

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Abstract

Student teachers are not only learners in a teacher education programme, but also emerging adults in the process of finding and building their professional identities and roles. “Orientation” might therefore be as important for them as professionalisation and has been implemented in German teacher education programmes through orientation practicums. This dissertation aims to provide a better psychological understanding of orientation and the function of these practicums in teacher education. It therefore draws on theories of student teachers’ career choice motivation (Richardson & Watt, 2014) and theories of emerging adults’ professional identity development (Crocetti, 2018). It explores the links between career choice motivation and professional identity development, and their relationship with indicators of long-term professionalism, such as goal orientations. It also examines the impact of an orientation practicum on these factors. A first paper (Paper 1) explores the associations between relational factors of student teachers’ career choice motivation and relational goal orientation. Educational interest and the desire to work with children/adolescents for reasons of social utility emerge as predictors of relational goal orientation, complementing previous research on the associations between career choice motivation and goal orientations. Paper 2 extends these findings by examining the levels of career choice motivation factors and goal orientations in different statuses of professional identity. A professional identity characterised by commitment and exploration is associated with high levels of career choice motivation factors such as perceived teaching abilities and intrinsic value and high levels of learning goal orientation. Paper 3 examines the effects of an orientation practicum on the career choice motivation factors of perceived teaching abilities and intrinsic value, and consequences for student teachers’ professional identity. Perceived teaching abilities increase as a result of the practicum, and higher perceived teaching abilities after the practicum are associated with a highly committed and engaged professional identity. In summary, this dissertation provides an approach to a psychological understanding of orientation as part of teacher education. The findings highlight the importance of perceived teaching abilities and intrinsic and relational orientations for student teachers’ professional identity development and show that an orientation practicum tends to have positive effects in this regard. The findings are discussed with regard to their limitations and future research that needs to be done. The thesis also offers practical implications for teacher educators.