FACTORS MILITATING AGAINST SCIENCE STUDENT TEACHERS DURING THEIR TEACHING PRACTICE

Abstract

This project work is a survey research, which was conducted to find out the problems militating against science student teachers during their teaching-practice.

The researchers used random sampling method to select 20% of the students that went for teaching practice during the 2009/2010 academic session in Enugu State College of Education (Technical), Enugu the only Government owned College of Education in Enugu North Local Government area of Enugu State.

The researchers used questionnaire in collecting data from the respondents. These were arranged on modified Likert scale of Strongly Agree (SA), Agree (A), Disagree (D) and Strongly Disagree (SD).

After the investigation, some findings were made, which are:-

That science student teachers use to face accommodation problems

during their teaching-practice (that is, they do not have enough place

to sit while waiting for school to close for the day).

That lack of permanent science teachers has lead the science

student-teachers to handle subjects that they didn’t study in the college.

It was recommended that:-

Adequate number of qualified permanent science teachers should be recruited in the secondary schools.

Good accommodation should be provided to the science student teachers during their teaching practice (that is, a place where they will sit while waiting for school to close for the day).

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

In many professions such as medicine engineering and pharmacy, the training period is characterized by practical exposure which allows the trainee to practice the skills they have learnt in theory. Practical training is planned to provide the trainee with experiences related to the practical aspects of the profession in order to enhance both the theory and practical aspect of the profession. Abbat (1999), emphasized that one of the ways of insuring that people work effectively after training is by giving them opportunities to practice during their training. The performance of trainees during the practical exposure is evaluated using a set of criteria.

The final score derived from the evaluation is used to determine whether a trainee’s performance is professionally accepted or not.

Teaching like most professions has a set of criteria that the student teachers must have to attain by the time pre-service training is over. These are the theoretical and practical component of the training. The focus of this paper is on the out –of college teaching experience, which is commonly referred to as “off campus teaching practice”. From observations, one noticed that during this period off campus teaching practice, student-teachers suffer a lot of untold hardship to the point that some of them abscond from their practicing schools. The big question is what actually are causing this hardship of the student teachers? What are the factors that are working against the smooth running of the vital component of the training of teachers? The answer or answers to these questions formed the focus of this study.

Statement of the Problem

The problems underlying this study (factor militating against science teacher during their teaching practice) as focused on the following:-

a) Most schools do not have enough room for the student –teachers. In most cases, you notice the student teachers running away from schools because they have no place to sit while waiting for school to close for the day

b) Some schools do not have enough permanent science teachers to direct the student teachers and this makes the student teachers not to know where to start from in the course of teaching the students

Specifically, one would like to ask

(i) what are the factors militating against science student

teachers during their teaching practice?

(ii) In what ways can these challenges be solved?

(iii) What roles have the science student teachers towards

these problems?

Purpose of the Study

Based on the background of the problems of this study, the main purpose underlying this project is to investigate the problems militating against science student-teachers during their teaching practice in Enugu State College of Education (technical) the only government owned College of Education in Enugu North Local government Area.

The student specifically seeks to determine

1. why student teachers run away from their positions in their practicing schools which may be due to lack of accommodation.

2. fear of not doing it right which contributes to the abscondment of science student-teacher from their practicing schools.

3. how the lack of insufficient permanent science teachers makes teaching difficulty for the science student-teachers. This can make teaching difficult. This makes teaching difficult and hectic for the science student teachers as the need the support and direction of the permanent

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The usefulness of this research work in the Educational system cannot be over emphasized. If the result of this study is utilized, it is going to be of benefit to the student teacher, parents and government.

To the Government, it will enable them to understand why science student teachers abscond or run away from school during their teaching practice and make policies that will punish such science student teachers that abscond from their practicing schools.

To the parents, it will help parents to encourage their wards/children to choose science in their schools. Thereby increasing the number of science student.

To the student teachers, it will enable the student teachers to know the various factors that make them run away from teaching praactice and know how to solve the problems for the betterment of everybody.

To the secondary school students, this study will enable them to know that science is good and therefore not scare away from it.

Scope of the Study

This study seeks to cover the factors militating against science student teachers, how they can be solved for the progress and success of education in general and science in particular.

Research Questions

i. How does accommodation affect science student teachers during their teaching practice?

ii. To what extent does accommodation affect science student –teachers?

iii. What effect does insufficient permanent science teachers have on the science student teachers?