College and University Educators General Research-Oriented Presentation
An Analysis of TESOL Teacher Motivation – Values vs. Rewards
The COVID-19 pandemic brought a renewed and much needed spotlight on the plight of teachers at all stages of education. This has been a welcome development, as while motivation of students continues to be a heavily researched area, in-depth looks at teachers have been sparse, with even less focus being directed specifically at second language teachers. The current study sought to explore TESOL teachers’ values related to, and rewards gained from, their teaching jobs and careers. Responses to a modified version of the instrument used in Kassabgy, Boraie, & Schmidt’s (2001) study were obtained from 368 in-service instructors spanning the globe and analyzed by factor analyses. Like Kassabgy et al., intrinsic motivation was found to be central to reported feelings of job satisfaction and motivation, which were positive overall despite disparities between values and the realities of the job. However, slightly different factors and loadings were found from Kassabgy et al., namely a trend away from relationships with coworkers. One hypothesis is that the development of social networking over the past 20 years may be the key factor, revealing a shifting support structure away from the workplace and into cyberspace.
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James Broadbridge is a teacher, researcher, and materials writer. He is currently working on his Ed.D in TESOL from Anaheim University and is an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Foreign Studies at Bunkyo Gakuin University. His main research interests are preparing students for EMI/CLIL courses, the connection between research and the classroom, and pragmatics.
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Bradford J. Lee (ORCID ID 0000-0001-9833-5631) holds an Ed.D. in TESOL from Anaheim University, a M.A. in Applied Linguistics from the University of Newcastle, and a B.A. in Linguistics from the University of Hawaii. He is currently an Associate Professor in the Organization for Fundamental Education at Fukui University of Technology. His main research areas include phonology/pronunciation instruction, noticing/perception-based instruction, and smartphone-based writing.
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Miori Shimada has been teaching English in Japanese universities for 15 years both as a part-timer and a lecturer. Her research interests include English for young learners (application of picture books and songs), effects of anxiety on EFL students, and teacher education and professional development. She is a doctoral candidate at Anaheim University.