Perceptions of newly posted teachers about their pre-service preparation in Kumasi Metropolis of Ghana

Abstract

This study investigated newly posted public basic school teachers’ perceptions of their preservice preparation. The study was guided by Schlossberg’s theory of transition. The descriptive cross-sectional survey design was chosen for this study. All 322 newly posted teachers in public basic schools in the Kumasi Metropolis of the Ashanti Region, Ghana, were included (census) in the study. A questionnaire was used to collect data from the teachers. The questionnaire with a Cronbach alpha reliability test of a .799 coefficient was used for data collection. Appropriate ethical guidelines, including verbal and oral informed consent, were sought prior to data collection. The Test Analysis for Surveys (TAFS) was used for analyzing the data using descriptive and inferential statistical tools. The study revealed that preservice teacher preparation programs are directly related to knowledge and skills these newly posted teachers need to teach effectively. It was concluded that the newly posted teachers perceive their preservice training as adequate and impactful during their first year of posting into their schools. This adequacy resulted from the effectiveness of their preservice training in pedagogy and pedagogical content knowledge, class management techniques, and class control techniques. It was recommended that principals of the colleges of education and district/municipal/metropolitan education directorates should collaborate with the Ghana Education Service and the Ministry of Education to institute proper and formal induction and orientation programs for newly posted teachers within their first year of posting to properly integrate them into the classroom.