Attitude of College Students towards Teaching Profession

Abstract

Teacher is the dynamic force and pivotal of the educational system for the young generations. Teachers are apparently the central actors in education, facilitators of learning knowledge and in developing healthy relationship between pupils and societies in which they live. Changing times have added new dimension to this profession, which requires specified competencies and right attitude. Behavior, attitude and interest of teacher help in shaping the personality of the student. Attitude is made up of three components—affective, behavioral and cognitive; hence acts as a yardstick of the individual behavior. Teaching attitude is concerned with mental or emotional readiness of a person to react in a teaching learning situation. In this case some students have positive attitude towards teaching profession and some are not. It is well known that without having a positive attitude towards teaching profession, classroom teaching is not benefited to others. Keeping the importance of teaching profession, the researcher was interested to conduct an investigation, to know the attitude of college students towards teaching profession in two colleges of Bhubaneswar, India. The present study utilizing descriptive survey method endeavors to measure the attitude of college students towards teaching profession. For the present study, investigator selected sixty college students in Bhubaneswar purposively. Out of 60 students, 30 Arts (15 male and 15 female) and 30 Science (15 male and one female) students studying in +3 Arts and General Science streams were selected as sample of the present study. The present study was delimited to general education only. Attitude scale towards teaching profession (ASTTP), by Dr Ummekulsum (2008) was used. On the strength of analysis and interpretation of data, the researcher found that, majority of the college students had favorable attitude towards teaching profession, whereas there was significant difference between attitude of male and female college students towards teaching profession and there is no significant difference between the attitude of Arts and Science college students towards teaching profession. The study indicated outcomes of far reaching significance through indication of favorable attitude of majority of college students towards teaching profession.

Keywords: Attitude, behavior, teaching profession, college students, ASTTP