issn: 0128-7702 pertanikaj. soc. sci. hum. 4(2): 129-139 (1996)...

PertanikaJ. Soc. Sci. & Hum. 4(2): 129-139 (1996)ISSN: 0128-7702

© Penerbit Universiti Pertanian Malaysia

General Problems Experienced by Elementary Classroom Teachers

ZULKIFLI A. MANAFDepartment of Pedagogy and Educational Psychology

Faculty of EducationUniversiti Malaya

50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Keywords: teacher probletns, eletnentary school teachers, teacher probletn checklist,classrootn-related probletns

ABSTRAK.

Kajian ini membentangkan masalah-masalah umum yang biasa dialami oleh guru sekolah rendah (n = 439)di salah sebuah negeri dalam daerah Midwest, USA. Masalah ini dilaporkan melalui versi ringkas instrumen'Teacher Problem Checklist'. Lima masalah utama yang dilaporkan berlaku dalam kajian ini ialah: (I) masatidak mencukupi untuk membuat persediaan mengajar; (2) masa tidak mencukupi untuk mengajar dan jugauntuk menilai dan memperbaiki pengajaran; (3) masa lapang yang sangat terhad; (4) mendapatkan pelajarsupaya menggunakan waktu santai dengan baik dan; (5) mendapatkan pel~ar supaya mereka seronokbelajar untuk mendapatkan ilmu. Lima masalah utama yang menggusar jika ia berlaku adalah sarna jugadengan senarai masalah yang dilaporkan itu.

ABSTRACT

This study presents the frequency and bothersomeness of some general problems of a sample of elementaryschool teachers (n = 439) in a Midwest state, USA. The problems are from self-reports of teachers measuredusing the abridged version of the teacher problem checklist. The top five problems of elementary schoolteachers reported in the study are: (I) insufficient preparation time; (2) insufficient time to teach and also todiagnose and evaluate teaching; (3) insufficient free time; (4) motivating students to use their leisure timewell, and (5) motivating students to enjoy learning for its own sake. It was also found that the same top fiveproblems bothered all the teachers.

INTRODUCTION

Teacher problems have been studied since theearly 1960s (Dropkin and Taylor 1963;Cruickshank and Leonard 1967; Cruick-shank et at. 1968; Cruickshank and Broad-bent 1968) and research interest in this areawas sustained into the 1970s (Lee 1974;Cruickshank et at. 1974; Cruickshank andMyers 1975; Myers et at. 1975; Kennedy et at.1976; Jalali 1978; Hunter 1979) up to the1980s (Cruickshank and Associates 1980;Bainer 1986; Zulkifli 1987) and 1990s(Bainer 1993). The phenomenon was studiednot only in the United States, but was alsowell researched in other parts of the world(Veenman 1984).

Before looking at classroom-related tea-cher problems let us examine what constitutes

a problem in general, i.e. what is a problem?There are several possible definitions, includ-ing: (1) a question or situation that presentsuncertainty, perplexity or difficulty (2) anexpression of unmet need or unfulfilled goal(3) a problem arises when we want somethingand we cannot have it and (4) a problemexists when an organism, e.g. a teacher, ismotivated towards a goal and there is noready way to achieve it. Some problems aremore difficult than others and when weconsider a problem to be difficult, or seriousit is very likely that more than one element isinvolved. Teachers, like other people, areconfronted by problems at their workplace.Cruickshank et at. (1980) put forward strongarguments for wanting to identify teacherproblems in the workplace. These included:

Zulkifli A. Manaf

(1) trying to lessen the teacher burden andmaking them more productive and construc-tive in carrying out their duties; (2) theimplications for the teacher training curricu-lum, i.e. teacher preparation should begeared to, or based on, teachers' needs; and(3) unless classroom teachers are satisfied andhappy, the increasing rate of teacher shortagewill have detrimental effects on the educationof future generations.

A teacher problem is an example of goalresponse interference occurring during thecourse of a school-day. In order to understandteacher problems, it is essential to knowteacher goals. Teacher goals come from twosources. First, teachers have the same com-mon goals as all humans, sometimes referredto as general human needs. These aresubdivided into two categories, physiologicalneeds and socio-psychological needs. Physio-logical needs refer to the organism's require-ment for water, food and rest and so forth.Socio-psychological needs, on the other hand,are not inborn, but learned. These needs areacquired through the process of specializa-tion. These learned needs - achievements,social approval, status and so forth - exhibitthemselves in different forms and in differentamounts in different individuals (Cruick-shank and Associates 1980).

The second source of goals (Cruickshankand Associates 1980) arises when the indivi-dual takes on the role of a teacher andassumes role-derived needs. Here the person-as-teacher is expected, and usually expects, tobehave in institutionally sanctioned ways.That is, assuming the role of teacher makesone behave toward students in ways de-manded by the community or the teachingprofession.

Teacher problems result as teachers try tomeet both (1) their own human needs whichare physiological or socio-psychological innature and (2) role-derived needs that the jobof teaching demands. It seems that mostclassroom-related problems result when per-sons assume the teacher role and must achievegoals that are completely new or for whichthey are unprepared or ill-prepared, such asin controlling and managing the classroomand motivating the students.

Their inability to satisfy these needsmakes them feel alienated, discontented andfrustrated. If this is allowed to accumulateover the years there is a tendency for teachersto become dissatisfied with their job and leavethe profession in favour of another job, or optfor early retirement.

Classroom-related teacher problems arisewhen teachers are unable to achieve theirgoals or fulfil what they want to do in theirworkplace. For example, a certain teacher ishighly motivated to teach a class in a mid-cityschool where the students are not interested inlearning and other teachers are not enthu-siastic to teach this class because of thestudents' backgrounds. The students areapathetic towards their education and noth-ing will motivate them to learn because mostteachers expect them to fail. Out of speciallove and concern for the welfare and fu ture ofthese students, the teacher goes all the way toreach out to these students. He wants them tolearn and feel successful not only in school butalso in later life. Even though repeatedattempts are made to change their attitudeto encourage them to come to schoolregularly, and behave appropriately in class,the teacher's effort is futile. When he visitstheir parents he is told to mind his ownbusiness. The teacher gets very frustratedbecause he is unable to let go of this desire tohelp his students.

In another case, a teacher is veryenthusiastic in her work. She holds manypositions in the school and she is also veryactive in the Parent-Teacher Associationbesides other community services. Because ofthese commitments and burgeoning paper-work in the teaching profession she is not ableto cope up with her daily routine. She getsvery tense and is sometimes unable to relatevery well with her colleagues and students.She feels she is not doing a good job and feelsunappreciated. She is often seen in thecafeteria eating alone during recess. Theseare just two vignettes of a 'slice of life' fromthe classroom and some of the relatedproblems experienced by teachers in theirworkplace.

According to Cruickshank and Associates(1980) teacher problems can be grouped into

130 PertanikaJ. Soc. Sci. & Hum. Vol. 4 No.2, 1996


five categories: (1) affiliation; (2) control; (3)good parent relationships and understandinghome conditions;(4) student success; and (5)time.

These five categories or factors werederived through factor analysis. The factorsidentified and the various items that load onthem were later interpreted and presented asa teacher problem model based on therelationship among the items and the factorsthat underlie the relationship. This modelwas drawn up using the conventional pathdiagram and was the basis of the teacherproblem validation studies (Zulkifli 1987;Zulkifli and Loadman [in progress]).

According to Cruickshank and Myers(1975), there is a common assertion that ifyou can find out what teachers' problems are,you have gained enormously valuable insightinto their world and are in a position to helpthem at some level to consider and thusaccept, reduce, or eliminate those problems.

Teacher problems are real and will not goaway with the accumulation of teachingexperience. If these problems are extremelybothersome they will affect teachers' perfor-mance and job satisfaction (Engelking 1986;Leslie 1989). In addition to that, problems inthe workplace or 'environmental stressors'and job dissatisfaction contribute to stress andteacher burnout (Gold et al. 1992). Environ-mental stressors are a collection of stressorsinherent in schools over which teachers havevery little control. As such, the stage is set forjob-related stress when involvement in work ishigh (as in teaching) but feelings of control orpower in the work setting are limited (French1993) .

According to Wangberg (1984), teacherstress is not a simple issue. A review of theliterature on teacher stress and dissatisfactionincluded many areas of concern, includingpoor working conditions, excessive paper-work, poor relationships with others in theworkplace setting and loss of control overwhat happens with one's classroom. Severalitems from the 'affiliation' category of theoriginal instrument used in this study purportto measure this problem. Lack of affiliation oralienation also results from the sense of

isolation that many teachers seem to experi-ence. In a study of British teachers ( ewell1980) it was concluded that teachers withproblems see themselves as different fromothers and think they alone are havingproblems. As a result they internalize theirdifficul ties or problems rather than seekingaid or a solution. This is an unhealthysituation and should be looked into byteacher educators and teacher educationpolicy-makers.

In the push for excellence in education,administrators may forget that dissatisfiedteachers can weaken the educational pro-gramme. Engelking (1986) identified signifi-cant dissatisfaction factors among teachers as'relations with student and parents', 'lack ofachievement by students or teachers' and'communication with administrators'. Thisaspect is also measured by some items in theinstrument of the current study. Examples ofsuch items are: 'establishing good relationswith parents and understanding home condi-tions', 'holding worthwhile conferences withparents', 'getting my students to enjoylearning for its own sake', 'overcominganxieties related to being supervised', 'under-standing and helping the atypical or specialchild' and 'helping my students to know andaccept themselves as they are'. Being aware ofthe exodus of teachers from the teachingprofession through early and/or optionalretirement and realizing the importance ofkeeping teachers happy and satisfied in theirworkplace, this study seeks to identify some ofthe major classroom-related problems ofelementary school teachers.

Sometimes a problem may occur fre-quently but it may not bother the teacher atall. On the other hand, some problems mayoccur less frequently but are bothersome.

A bothersome problem is one tha tproduces a significant impact on the tea-cher's emotions and may linger in theteacher's life longer than other problemswhich are less bothersome. In this study, theresearcher will identify not only the mostfrequent common problems of elementaryclassroom teachers but also identify the mostbothersome ones.

Pertanika J. Soc. Sci. & Hum. Vol. 4 No.2, 1996 131

Zulkifli A. Manaf

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

The research questions in this investigationare:1. What are some common problems of

elementary school teachers?2. Which problems are the most bother-

some?3. What factors underlie all these pro-

blems?

METHOD

A survey of a sample of elementary schoolteachers in a Midwest state was carried out. Acluster sampling of classroom teachers wasdone using schools as the cluster. A systematicrandom sampling of 60 schools in local, cityand exempted village school districts wereselected to participate in this study. Everytenth school from the list provided by theState Education Directory was selected until60 schools were selected. A total of 439teachers from 51 schools participated in thisstudy. This represented a 39% return rate forthe teachers and 85% response rate for theschools. The sample was representative of thepopulation of elementary school teachers inthe sampling framework in terms of schooldistricts and sex ratio of teachers.

INSTRUMENTATION

In the current study, the teacher problemsinvestigated are self reports of a sample ofelementary school teachers surveyed using anabridged version of the teacher problemchecklist (TPC) which was developedthrough exploratory and confirmatory factoranalysis (Zulkifli 1987). This instrument wasadapted from the original version used in theBainer (1986) teacher problem study. Theabridged version with two scales had 40items. A list of these forty items is presentedin Table 1.

Several items in the teacher problemchecklist (TPC) specifically measure theproblem related to stress. One such item. is,'Overcoming anxieties related to bemgsupervised'. The concern with stress stemsfrom mounting evidence that stress maysignificantly impair teachers' ability to dis-

play effective instructional behaviour andgood working relationships with students.Another item in the TPC, 'Getting theunderstanding and sustenance of administra-tors and other teachers so that I can beefficient and feel professional' purports tomeasure problems related to stress. The twosubscales employed in the teacher problemchecklist were called 'Frequency' and 'Both-ersomeness'. The problem statements or itemswere listed in a central column with the'Frequency' of the problem placed on the left-hand side of the page and 'Bothersomeness' ofthe problem on the right-hand side. Theproblem statements were rated in terms offrequency of occurrence and degree ofbothersomeness. Respondents had to rateeach of the problem statements presented ona scale of 1 (lowest-never) to 5 (highest-always) on the frequency of the problems and1 (lowest-not at all) to 5 (highest-extremely)on the bothersomeness of each of theproblems presented. The dimensions of theproblems are measured in two ways, i.e. interms of their frequency and bothersomeness.The frequency of the problem subscaleindicates how often the problem occurs tothe teacher while the bothersomeness subscaleindicates how bothersome the problem is tothe teacher. Some problems may occurfrequently but do not bother the teacher atall. However, some problems may occur lessfrequently but bother them tremendously,and different individuals have differentdegrees of tolerance of these bothersomeproblems. In addition, there were 19 demo-graphic questions regarding the teachers' andschools' background and the teachers' level ofsatisfaction with their teacher preparationprogramme, teaching in general and theschool in which they were currently teach-ing. This instrument was developed throughexploratory and confirmatory factor analysisand had both construct and concurrentvalidity (Zulkifli 1987). The internal consist-encies of the items of both scales ranged from0.71 to 0.90. This indicates an acceptablelevel of reliability of the abridged version ofthe TPC used in this study.



TABLE IItems in the abridged teacher problem checklist

Factor I - Professionalism

ItemsI. Employing retribution or punishment.2. Working effectively with university student teacher supervisors.3. Getting the understanding and sustenance of administrators and other teachers so that I can be efficient

and feel professional.4. Dealing with students' absenteeism and tardiness.5. Establishing and maintaining rapport with other teachers.6. Being awake and alert.7. Overcoming or counteracting interruptions to my teaching or classroom routine.8. Helping my students to feel secure and unafraid.9. Developing confidence in my colleagues.

10. Eliminating parental interference with my teaching.II. Improving conditions so that students can study better at home.12. Getting students to enjoy learning for its own sake.13. Holding worthwhile conferences with parents.14. Overcoming anxieties related to being supervised.15. Liking my students.16. Dealing with students who have been abused or neglected.17. Monitoring the behaviour of students outside the classroom but still in the school area.18. Establishing good relations with parents and understanding home conditions.19. Understanding and helping the atypical or special child.20. Handling problems that may have racial implications.21. Helping my students to know and accept themselves as they are.22. Maintaining student attention.23. Planning and monitoring more than one classroom activity at a time.24. Extending learning beyond the classroom.25. Promoting student self-evaluation.26. Overcoming students' feelings of upset or frustration with themselves.

Factor 2 - Time Management

ItemsI. Having enough free time.2. Having enough preparation time.3. Having enough time to teach and also to diagnose and evaluate learning.4. Avoiding duties inappropriate to my professional role.5. Controlling and using my professional time in the most functional, efficient way.

Factor 3 - Relationships

I. Maintaining order, quiet, or control.2. Getting students to use their leisure time well.3. Getting students to behave appropriately.4. Creating interest in the topic being taught.5. Enforcing considerate treatment of property.6. Helping students academically and personally - helping them to be efficient and effective.7. Getting my students to feel successful in school.8. Helping students improve academically.9. Getting all my students to participate in class.

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RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The results of the data analysis presented anordered list of the classroom related problemsand the problems that were bothersome. Ingeneral, the top five problems reported tooccur frequently were: (I) having enoughpreparation time; (2) having enough time toteach and also to diagnose and evaluateteaching; (3) having enough free time; (4)getting students to use their leisure time well;and (5) getting my students to enjoy learningfor its own sake. The top three items comefrom the "time management" factor of theinstrument, and were from the 'time' factor ofthe original teacher problem checklist(Cruickshank and Associates 1980). Time isa finite commodity and in the classroom timeis a major problem with most teachers. Thereis an increasing amount of paperwork,clerical and non-teaching duties expected ofteachers so they have been deprived of muchvaluable time that could be used for moreproductive teaching and the evaluation oflearning in the classroom. This problem oftime constraint is also mentioned in a recentstudy in Malaysia regarding the problems ofteachers in the implementation of the school-based evaluation programme in the newprimary school curriculum (Mohd. Yasin1994). It was reported that the frequency oftesting (35 times per academic year) andincessant record-keeping and paperwork istaking too much of their professional time. Asa result of this problem many teachers weredissatisfied with their job, especially thosewith large classes of more than 35 students.

The fourth-ranking problem 'gettingstudents to use their leisure time well' isfrom the 'relationships' factor; this item isfrom the 'student success' factor of theoriginal TPC. Dedicated teachers alwaysstrive for a good relationship with theirstudents and they are concerned about thewelfare of their students in and out of theclassroom. They want their students tosucceed in their academic and personal life.The inability to fulfil this function makesteach.ers feel inadequate and perceive it to beproblematic. The fifth-ranking item, 'Gettingmy students to enjoy learning for its own sake'

comes from the 'professionalism' factor iden-tified in the current study. One of the virtuesof professionals is the desire to provide sincereservices to their clients. Getting students tolearn something for its own sake is a bigproblem for many teachers because studentsperceive learning as preparation only forexaminations. Teachers who are successful(no problem) in this aspect tend to havestudents who learn not only for examinationpurposes but also to continually seek know-ledge for the love of it.

On the whole, the top five problemsbothersome to the teachers in the study werethe same. The correlations of the scores on the'Frequency' and 'Bothersomeness' scales werequite high, ranging from .48 to .77. It wasalso observed that the mean of the items inthe bothersomeness scales was always higherthan the means of the frequency scale. Whatit implied is that most problems bothered theteachers very much whenever they occurred.The results of this study were similar to thetrend found in the Bainer (1986) study. Themeans, standard deviations and rank order ofthe problems that occur frequently and theproblems that were bothersome are presentedin Table 2. The minimum value recorded foreach of the problems was I and the maximumwas 5 in both scales of the instrument.However, the highest mean value for thefrequency scale was recorded for the item,'having enough preparation time' (3.92). Asmentioned earlier, the mean for the items onthe bothersomeness scale was higher (4.15)than that of the frequency scale.

Separate analyses of the subsamples fromurban, suburban and rural areas indicatedthat the top five problems occurring mostfrequently as reported by the teachers werenot significantly different. This finding con-curs with that of Cruickshank et al. (1968).However, the top five problems that botheredthe suburban and rural elementary schoolteachers were a little different from those oftheir urban counterparts. The suburbanteachers reported problems of 'maintainingorder, quiet, or control' and 'getting studentsto behave appropriately'. However, the fifth-ranking problem that bothered rural teacherswas 'dealing with students who have been

134 Pertanika J. Soc. Sci. & Hum. Vol. 4 No.2, 1996


TABLE 2Means, standard deviations and rank order of top five items in the frequency and bothersomeness scale

Items Frequency BothersomenessMeans S.D :'i[eans S.D Rank

1. Having enough preparation time. 3.92 1.19 4.15 1.272. Having enough time to teach and also

to diagnose and evaluate teaching. 3.86 1.16 4.05 1.23 23. Having enough free time. 3.77 1.12 3.80 1.43 34. Getting students to use their

leisure time well. 3.26 1.13 3.39 1.47 45. Getting students to enjoy learning

for its own sake. 2.99 1.34 3.36 1.33 5

N=439

abused or neglected'. This same bothersomeproblem was also reported by Bainer (1993).

Exploratory factor analysis of the fre-quency of the problem data from Bainer(1986) reported in Zulkifli (1987) revealedthat three factors: (1) professionalism; (2)time management; and (3) relationships,underlie the various problems experiencedby the elementary school teachers. This wasfurther confirmed with new data in thesecond phase of the teacher problem studythrough confirmatory factor analysis usingLISREL (Zulkifli 1987). The factor loadingsof the items on the three factors are presentedin Table 3. Readers are reminded that inconfirmatory factor analysis the researcherhas the ability to fix the loading of specificitems on specified factors to be zero, becausebased on prior research findings, theory andexpert opinion from the field, certain itemsare not supposed to load significantly on anybut the major specified factor. This willenhance interpretability of the results.

These factors were labelled as such basedon the items loaded on them. 'Professional-ism' was chosen because the items loaded onthis factor described the qualities that ateacher should have in order to functionwell in the profession. It included goodinterpersonal relationships with other peoplein the workplace (superiors, colleagues,subordinates or clients), feeling of responsi-bility and accountability towards the successof students in and beyond the classroom, andhaving good communication skills for effec-

tive interaction with parents of students.These items came from the categories called'affiliation', 'student success' and 'goodparent relationship and understanding homeconditions' as presented by Cruickshank andAssociates (1980).

'Time management' was chosen as a labelfor the second factor because of the items tha treflect wise or effective use of time loaded onthis factor. These items came from thecategory called 'time' in Cruickshank andAssociates (1980).

'Relationships' was chosen as the label forthe third factor because the items loaded on itreflected relationships teachers should havewith their clients or students as the person incontrol in the classroom. The items reflectedthat teachers assumed this role out of theirconcern for the students' academic and socialsuccess. These items came from the categoriesknown as 'control' and 'student success'(Cruickshank and Associates 1980).

The three factors that underlie teacherproblems in this study were highly correlatedwith each other, varying from .445 to .937.What it means is that teachers who reportedproblems in the category of 'professionalism'tend to have problems in 'time management'and 'relationships' as well. The reverse is alsotrue.

The top three reported problems on thefreq uency and bothersomeness scales camefrom the 'time management' category whilethe fourth-ranking problem came from'relationships' and the fifth-ranking problem


Zulkifli A. Manaf

TABLE 3Factor loading of items in the instrument

I terns Professionalism Time Management Relationship

I. .266 0 02. .449 0 03. .161 0 04. .294 0 05. .540 0 06. .541 0 07. .245 0 08. .279 0 09. .496 0 0

10. .514 0 011. .399 0 012. .634 0 013. .396 0 014. .515 0 015. .333 0 016. .615 0 017. .493 0 018. .353 0 019. .459 0 020. .577 0 021. .579 0 022. .503 0 023. .625 0 024. .324 0 025. .606 0 026. .505 0 027. 0 .679 028. 0 .721 029. 0 .682 030. 0 .413 031. 0 .399 032. 0 0 .44933. 0 0 .55234. 0 0 .63535. 0 0 .54836. 0 0 .61637. 0 0 .60638. 0 0 .68939. 0 0 .73340. 0 0 .715

was from the 'professionalism' category.These problems and their ranking weresimilar to those found in Bainer (1986,1993) teacher problem studies.

Even though the findings of this studyexplained the relationship among the pro-blems with only three factors, its meaning andsignificance were not different from those

problems and factors identified in previousteacher problem studies. The essence of thefive-factor teacher problem model suggestedin Cruickshank and Associates (1980) was notlost at all. They were just summarizedsuccinctly into three new interpretable fac-tors. If a phenomenon can be explained in asfew factors as possible without losing signifi-



cant information then it should be the modelof choice. Every researcher has his or heridiosyncratic way oflabelling factors based ontheir interpretations and this should beacceptable as long as it does not deviate toomuch from the ideas and knowledge alreadyestablished and known in the field.

SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Teacher problems are real and numerous.However the problems that occur mostfrequently as reported by teachers in thecurrent study were: (1) having enoughpreparation time; (2) having enough time toteach and also to diagnose and evaluateteaching; (3) having enough free time; (4)getting students to use their leisure time well;and (5) getting students to enjoy learning forits own sake. These problems were also themost bothersome. In this study the resultsshowed that there is a strong relationshipbetween the responses on the frequency scaleand the responses on the bothersomenessscale. Generally speaking, if the problemoccurs frequently, then the problem is morelikely to bother the teacher.

Even though there are numerous class-room-related problems experienced by tea-chers, these problems are interrelated and canbe classified into three major underlyingfactors categories: (1) professionalism; (2)time management; and (3) relationships.These problem categories or factors havebeen identified and confirmed through ex-ploratory and confirmatory factor analysis.

Teacher problems exist, and steps mustbe taken to look into this phenomenon inorder to help teachers stay satisfied in theworkplace. Knowing their problems shouldhelp curriculum planners to incorporatecourses in future teacher education pro-grammes to help teachers deal with theseproblems. Courses or workshops for futureteachers on topics such as 'time manage-ment', 'professionalism' and 'relationships'are examples of ways to help them cope inthe workplace. Teacher education pro-grammes have been criticized for not prepar-ing teachers based on their needs in theworkplace (Smith et at. 1969; Smith 1980)

and that most teacher education programmeswere designed to cater to teachers insuburban areas (Bainer 1993). Classroomrelated teacher problems exist and cannotbe ignored. They affect teacher performanceand job satisfaction and contribute to teacherstress and burnout (Gold et at. 1992). Teachereducators need to be sensitive to this issue andmake a conscious effort to try to eliminate orreduce these problems. Restructuring orrefining the courses in teacher preparationprogrammes to prepare them realistically fortheir workplace is one way to help alleviatethe problem. As Bainer (1993) noted,teachers in different school localities havedifferent kinds of problems and unlessteachers are trained to prepare themselvesfor various kinds of work environment, newteachers will find themselves struggling tocope with the challenge of the workplace.This is because most teacher preparationprogrammes prepare teachers for the generaland ideal school situation that usually fits thedescription of a suburban upper-middle classneighbourhoods. New teachers will experi-ence problems if they are placed in aworkplace environment very different fromwhat they expect.

Teacher trainees should be exposed to atleast a simulation of the various workenvironments they could be faced with toprevent culture shock on the first day of theteaching assignment.

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