American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) ISSN (Print) 2313-4410, ISSN (Online) 2313-4402 © Global Society of Scientific Research and Researchers http://asrjetsjournal.org/ The Attitude of Non Bachelor of Education Students in the University of Cape Coast towards the Teaching Profession Theophilus Eshuna*, Hannah Araba Mensahb, Wilhelmina Marian Bonneyc, Cynthia Akakpod a,b,c,d Department of Arts & Social Sciences Education, University of Cape Coast, Ghana aEmail: theophilus.eshun@yahoo.com Abstract The objective of this study was to assess the attitude of students who have never read any related course in Education in the University of Cape Coast; towards the teaching profession. Two hundred and sixty five respondents who were reading Bachelor Degree programs in Arts, Agriculture and Commerce were randomly selected to answer questionnaires on the study. Frequency table and percentages were used to analyze the study. The study found out that the society’s attitude is unfriendly towards the teaching profession. Again, proper remuneration and attractive incentive which were to be made available to teachers to make the profession attractive were lacking. It also found out that teacher’s attitude has a great effect on the student’s choice of teaching as a profession and evident that parents do not want their wards to become teachers. The researchers recommend that school authorities and government bodies should educate parents that a nation without teachers cannot be developed therefore; there is the need for them to encourage their children to choose teaching as a profession for the betterment of the nation. Stakeholders should highlight the benefits and importance of the teaching profession and give equal platform to the teaching profession. Teachers should conduct themselves in a respectable manner and be good role- models to students in order to be respected and acknowledged for their efforts in the development of the society. The outcome of the study would present stakeholders a fair idea of the depreciation in the quality of teachers in our various schools and the reason as to how and why already employed teachers move away from the sector. Keywords: Attitude; Non Bachelor of Education Students; Teaching Profession ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- * Corresponding author. Mobile: +233-0245119705/+233-0271544543 E-mail address: theophilus.eshun@yahoo.com. 79 http://asrjetsjournal.org/ American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 1. Introduction Education is one of the most important tools for national development, as one of its measures; education has become one of the benchmarks responsible for progressive government, promoting educational policies that will help its people to acquire knowledge, skills and attitudes that enable them to develop their potentials. According to [1], Ghana took its first step towards a state- organized education in the last quarter of the 19th century. Prior to the introduction of formal education, Africans had their system of education; that is the traditional education. The main purpose of this traditional education was to provide good health, knowledge in industry and production, culture and produce the ideal man and woman. The methods used for instruction during that time included observation, imitation and participation. The main agencies were the home, total community and the traditional religion with the agents being adults and peer groups. The nature used in transmitting information and knowledge were informal, non-literate, unspecialized and practical. This traditional education catered for moral, social, vocational, physical and intellectual development strength. The origin of formal education in the Gold Coast or Ghana dates back to the humble beginnings of the castle schools. The castle schools served as the ‘melting pot’ for formal education with its attendant literacy and numeracy in Ghana. The first attempt in providing formal education in the country was at the Elmina Castle. The initiative came in 1529 when King John the third of Portugal instructed the governor at the Elmina Castle to teach the African children how to read and write and the subjects taught were reading, writing and religion. Mission schools followed the castle schools with the arrival of the missionaries in the country, the Wesleyan and Basel Missionaries established schools in Cape-Coast, Dixcove, Anomabo, Accra, all along the Coast and Akropong, few miles away from the Coast. The Wesleyan and Basel Missionaries saw the need to train people who would impact the knowledge, skills and other things they have for the Country. The Basel Missionaries established teacher education programs in the 1840’s.they started a seminary at AkropongAkuapim in 1848 to train teachers and catechists thus the first teacher training college, Presbytarian Training College. The second one was opened at Abetifi in 1898 but in 1924, it was merged with the seminary at Akropong. The Basel Mission remained the only body providing teacher education until 1909 when the government opened the Accra Training College. In 1927, Wesley College was opened in Kumasi to give a four- year teacher training course to students. In 1950, the number of training colleges had risen to nineteen (19) with a total enrolment of 1800. Now, there are about 38 government assisted training colleges in Ghana. Currently, the country has two Public Universities which are responsible for the training of teachers for the pre-school, Junior High Schools. Senior High Schools and other higher institutions and theses are University of Cape-Coast and University of Education, Winneba. Teaching in the opinion of some students and laymen is non-lucrative and marginal to other ‘white colour’ professions like medicine, law, engineering and the like. Information gathered show that about sixty percent of University Students do not appreciate the practice of teaching as a profession. 80 American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 According to [2], people’s attitude portrays the kind of perception they have towards the teaching profession. An attitude is an important concept to understand human behaviour. People’s attitudes towards their profession have an effect on their performance and also affect their life expectancy. This issue is also valid for the profession of teaching. In this case, people who perceive teaching as good, secure and important for the well- being and the progress of the nation will tend to develop a favourable attitude towards the teaching profession. To these people, teaching is as significant as any other lucrative jobs. Besides, a person who will remain in the teaching profession for a longer time, all other things being equal, is more likely to express satisfaction for it. However, other people view the teaching profession with dissatisfaction and discontentment. To these group of people, teaching as a profession is not lucrative and satisfying. Such people are also more likely to transmit these negative values and attitudes to the younger ones since most serve as role-models. This makes it very necessary for one to consider the attitude of individuals towards the teaching profession; because a positive attitude is likely to affect the profession positively and vice-versa. 1.1. Statement of problem Profession can mould a person’s life; determine his social class, his dressing and even his place of living. Reference [3] asserts that dignity, honour, praise and privilege by an individual in the society even within his immediate environment could depend on the type of job such individual does. This is not to say that everything in life has a bearing with profession. In most African nations it is assumed that many people enter teaching because teaching is viewed as a ladder through which one can climb on to other professions, among other reasons. There are wide ranges of perception people have on the teaching profession. It is in view of this that the study sought to find out the attitude of Non- Bachelor of Education students towards the teaching profession. 1.2. Purpose of the study The purpose of this study sought to find out: 1.2.1. societal attitude towards teaching as a profession 1.2.2. effects of the attitude of teachers on student’s choice of performance. 1.2.3. parental influence on their children’s choice of profession 1.3. Research questions The following research questions were formulated to help find out the attitude of students on the teaching profession. 1.3.1. How does the society perceive and affect students’ choices towards teaching as a profession? 1.3.2. What effect does the attitude of teachers have on student’s choice of profession? 1.3.3. What effect does parental influence have on their children’s choice of profession? 81 American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 2. Review of related literature attitude Reference [4] define attitude as a description of how people feel or typically behave rather than description of what they know or do. Attitude therefore reflects how people behave towards situations. They are thoughts and feelings that encourage people to act as if they like or dislike something or favour against something. An attitude is a predisposition to experience, to be motivated by, and to act toward a class of objects in a predictable manner [5]. Reference [6] also asserts that an attitude is a tendency to act toward or against something in the environment, which becomes thereby a positive or negative value. From the above definitions, it is realized that like other psychological constructs, attitude has no universally accepted definition. It can therefore be said that ‘attitude’ is a way by which a person makes use of her senses to form impression and ideas about an object, event or another person in order to adopt behaviour towards that attitudinal object. These scholars views and ideas on the attitude expounds that attitude informs on the manner in which we act, feel and think about situations. Attitude is innate and it’s made visible by our reaction towards situations. 2.1. Component of attitude Reference [7] points out that attitude have the basic components and they are cognitive component, affective component and behavioral component. Cognitive Component: it consists of the person’s thought processes, perceptions and beliefs, evaluations about the attitude object. This component could for example, result in someone having a positive attitude towards the policies of a particular political party because he or she believes that these will result in a better- ordered society. Affective Component: it expounds on the emotional/feeling aspect to the attitude and this is characterized by liking or disliking an object. In the example of the political party above, a person will have a strong attachment for a particular political party or might dislike a particular party. Reference [8] suggests that the inter-structural composition of an associative network can be altered by the activation of a single node. Thus, by activating an effective or emotion node, attitude change may be possible, though affective and cognitive components tend to be intertwined. In primarily affective networks, it is more difficult to produce cognitive. Behavioral Component: this refers to the tendency to act towards the object in a consistent and characteristic way; again, in the example of the political party, to cast a vote in favour or to work actively on its behalf portrays the behavioral aspect of the attitude. 2.1.1. Theory of attitude Balance Theory: this is a motivational theory of attitude change proposed by [9] which conceptualizes the consistency motive as a drive toward psychological balance. Reference [9] proposed that “sentiment” or liking 82 American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 relationships are balanced if the affect valence in a system multiplies out to a positive result. For example, celebrity endorsement affect consumer’s attitude towards products. If a person likes a celebrity and perceives that said celebrity likes a product, the said person tends to like the thing more in order to achieve psychological balance. However, if the person already had a dislike for the product being endorsed by the celebrity, he/she may like the celebrity less in addition to liking the product more again to achieve psychological balance. Self- Perception Theory (SPT): it is an account of attitude change developed by psychologist Daryl Bem. It asserts that we develop our attitudes by observing our behaviour and concluding what attitude must have caused it. The theory is counterintuitive in nature, as conventional wisdom is that attitudes determine behaviours. Furthermore, the theory suggests that people induce attitudes without accessing internal cognition and mood states. The person interprets their own overt behaviours rationally in the same way they attempt to explain others’ behaviours. 2.1.2. Attitude formation Attitudes take shape as part of our mental and emotional development and they result from our experience in life. This means that there are a number of potential sources from which we derive our attitudes. The most prominent of which are; • Direct Experience: as the saying goes, ‘only fools fail to learn from their experience’ and so the direct experiences of people, object and events are probably the most easily understood sources of attitude. They are very real to us, can easily be accessed from memory, and we usually have much more confidence in opinions we form in this way than in those we gain hearsay or second-hand information [10]. Also, [11] said the effects of frequent interaction with object of attitude were observed in this study of racial integration. The evidence suggested that the interaction between people initially intensifies pre-existing attitudes; amiably-disposed people become even friendly while those with negative feelings grow hostile. • Exposure to Objects: familiarity brings a degree of predictability. Most of us are more positively disposed towards familiar object or event than towards those which are unfamiliar [12]. • Socialization and Social Learning: our basic values are required from our family, our peer group at school, later at work [13]. In addition, a great deal of what we take to be fact is derived from received wisdom passed on to us in our experience of social development. Beliefs and values, it can be noted, are the basic building blocks of attitude [14]. Thus, someone brought up in a home where swearing bad language are strictly forbidden might have difficulty of adjusting to life on the shop floor of a factory where these things can be commonplace. Also, [14] came out with some fact to concretize the factors that determine attitude formation. In their view, the formation of a particular attitude is the belief individuals have about themselves and the environments. In other words, the information individuals have about themselves and the world in which they live. • Self-Image: this usually has an indirect but powerful influence on our attitude. [15] argues that one of the prime functions of an attitude is to give a measure of protection from information that could threaten our concept of self. Therefore, to protect our ego, we sometimes develop attitude that legitimize our behavior when it contradicts our values. For instance, some men feel that women are inferior to men, and to defend 83 American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 this self-image and justify discrimination against women for promotion, they rationalize an attitude of ‘women have a lot of good qualities but not those necessary to make a good manager’ • Value-Expression: in some respects, this is the reverse of self-image. Instead of developing attitudes that shield from the true nature of our values and beliefs we sometimes need to give open-expression to our core values [15]. Academics, for example, place a high value on advancing knowledge through scholarship. Thus, they tend to develop positive attitudes towards reasoned argument, the development of theory and its rigorous testing through empirical investigation, and these things become the benchmarks for evaluating the work of colleagues and students. A greater number of psychologists as a matter of fact agree that attitudes are learned through exposure, conditioning and socialization. These do not disprove the fact that attitudes can be learnt from others. 2.1.3. Attitude and behaviour Research has shown that our attitudes are mediocre predictors of our behavior [16]. In other words, social psychologists have found that a favorable attitude toward a candidate may not translate into vote for the candidate. Similarly, an unfavorable attitude about a product may not prevent its purchase, and a positive attitude about an organization may not mean that you will contribute to it. Why are attitude-behaviour relations not more consistent? One reason, according to the researchers, is that we often discuss the cognitive and affective components of our attitudes (beliefs and feeling) in a general way that is not likely to predict specific behaviour. 2.1.4. How attitude affects a person’s behavior According to [17] a group attitude does not reflect an objective appraisal of the characteristics of the group but it’s based on misconception of its attributes. Thus, a male may view females with contempt because he subscribes to the mistaken belief that the latter are naturally inferior in intellectual ability. The classification of females by their male counterparts as intellectually inferior is based on the attitude they have formed about females. This sort of attitude in the estimation of [17] is negative which in his view is directed towards a group which one does not belong. The attitude formed by an individual towards an object or event affects his or her behavior towards it. 2.2. Teaching Teaching is undertaking certain ethical task or activities with the intention of inducing learning. It is therefore the process of imparting knowledge and skill. [18], assert that teaching is an activity that impact knowledge, skill, attitude and value to learners. From the researchers view, teaching constitutes sets of instruction that aim at imparting knowledge or skills to learners. A teacher, therefore, is a person employed in an official capacity for the purpose of guiding and directing the learning experiences of pupils and students in an educational institution. The teacher is a person who is assigned to instruction or one who helps students often in a school as well as 84 American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 community setting as an acknowledged guide or helper in processes of learning. [19] explained teaching as the activity which induce learning and comprise a deliberate and methodical creation and control of learning conditions. From the above definition, teaching therefore, can be an interpersonal, interactive activity, typically involving verbal communication, which is undertaken for the purpose of helping one or more student learn or change the ways in which they can or will behave and attain a certain goal or purpose in life 2.2.1 Attitude towards the teaching profession Teaching has been an age-long profession and common to almost all the people in the world. The teacher is an indispensable factor in any educational system. But, it cannot be said that all is well with the classroom teacher. According to [20], teachers are elbowed to the background in occupational analysis as far as public esteem and the image of the profession are concerned especially when compared to other professional workers such as judges, accountants, managers and so on. It has been observed that many students in schools and the societies look down upon the teaching profession and considers the doctors and lawyers as the highly respected and recognized professions in the world. According to the [21], negative attitude of the public towards teachers and poor salaries respectively are some of the reasons that hugely affect people’s love and interest of choosing teaching as a profession. Many people thus rely on the profession as the last resort when any other door is closed. [19] also outlines major factors that have contributed to this state of affairs are lack of promotional prospect compared to other occupations. It must be noted that socio-economic class into which one is born and the emotional climate in which he is trained as well as the values and orientations of one’s family largely affect one’s aspiration in life. As a result, students’ attitudes to any profession are likely to be either favorable or unfavorable, depending on their socio-economic background. 3. Materials and Methods 3.1. Research design The descriptive survey method was used for this study. According to [22], the descriptive sample survey involves collecting data in order to test hypothesis or answer questions regarding the current status of the subject of the study. The descriptive sample was considered to be the best design from which valid conclusion can be made in investigating the attitude of non B. Ed students towards the teaching profession. 3.2. Population Reference [23] explains population as “the entire aggregation of cases that meet a designated set of criteria”. The study was conducted in the University of Cape Coast. The accessible population of the study is the level hundred students reading Bachelor of Art, Bachelor of Science (Agriculture) and Bachelor of Commerce. The 85 American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 total number of students reading B.Sc. Agriculture, Bachelor of Commerce and B.A. Arts are 128, 428 and 252 respectively; making a total population of 808. 3.3. Sample and sampling procedure “Sample is the subset of a population that is used to represent the entire group of a whole”[24]. The sample size was 265. This was derived using [25] scientific table for finding sample size. The sampling size was generated using the simple random sampling technique. This sampling technique was very appropriate in generating the sample size because; characters/ individuals in the population had equal chance to be selected and that it is free from human bias. Again, the sampling technique’s simplicity made it relatively easy to interpret data collected by researchers. Thus the use of this technique was a highly representation of the population. 3.4. The research instrument The type of instrument that was used in conducting the study was Questionnaire. Reference [26] asserts that questionnaire consist of a list of questions or statements relating to the aims of hypothesis or research questions to be verified and answered and which the respondent is required to answer by writing or shading. The researchers used questionnaires because questionnaires are more objective as compared to other instruments. Also, researchers were able to collect large amount of information from a large number of people in a relatively short period of time. Again, the use of the questionnaire also ensured high anonymity. Moreover, the result of the questionnaire was quickly and easily quantified by the researchers. 3.5. Validity and reliability of instruments The instrument that was used in this study was scrutinized under the screen of validity and reliability. Here, a pilot testing was conducted on the instrument. The instrument was administered to the Bachelor of Social Sciences students in the University of Cape Coast. This was to find out if it worth using the instrument to acquire the exact information the Researchers need or to make necessary changes to make it valid. The reliability of the instrument was determined using Cronbach’s Alpha reliability co-efficient. 3.6. Data collection procedure In attempt to collect the data, the researchers presented copies of an introductory letter from the head of the Department of Arts and Social Science Education (DASSE), UCC to the various heads in the three selected faculties namely; Faculty of Art, Faculty of Science and the School of Business. This helped solicit for their assistance in the collection of the data. Simple Random Sampling technique was used to get the sample size to respond to the instrument. The period for the collection of data was exactly one week. 3.7. Data analysis The data that was collected on “the attitude of Non-B. Ed students of University of Cape Coast towards the teaching profession” was analyzed using the Statistical Product for Service Solution (SPSS). Data collected with 86 American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 regards to the formulated research questions was analyzed through the computation of test-scores, frequencies and percentages using the 2007 version of SPSS. 4. Results 4.1. Presentation and analysis of demographic data TABLE I: Gender Name of disciplines male % female % total % B.A (Arts) 34 20.8 50 49 84 31.7 B. COM 84 51.5 44 43.1 128 48.3 B. Sc. (Agric) 45 27.6 8 7.8 53 20.0 Total 163 100 102 100 265 100 In relation to table 1, Bachelor of Arts (Arts) had it male respondents being 34 (20.8%) and female respondents being 50 (49%) out of the total number of 84; out of 128 respondents offering Bachelor of Commerce 84 (51.5%) were males and 44 (43.1%) were females; out of the total of 53 respondents reading Bachelor of science (agriculture) 45 (27.6%) were males and 8 (7.8%) were females. TABLE II: Age Name of disciplines 16-18 % 19-21 % 22-24 % 25&above % Total % B.A. (Arts) 9 28.1 56 35.4 16 28.5 3 15.7 84 31.7 B. COM 21 65.6 73 46.2 23 41.0 11 57.8 128 48.3 B. Sc. (Agric) 2 6.2 29 18.3 17 30.3 5 26.3 53 20.0 Total 32 100 158 100 56 100 19 100 265 100 In relation to table 2, it can be observed that majority of respondents, thus 158 were between the ages of 19- 21 years followed by 56 who were between the ages 22-24 years, followed by 32 who were between the age range 16-18 years and the ages between 25 & above recorded the least number which is 19. 87 American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 TABLE III: Disciplines Name of discipline No. % B.A.(Arts) 84 31.7 B. COM 128 48.3 B. Sc. (Agric) 53 20.0 Total 265 100 TABLE IV: What profession do you want to be in future? Profession B. A (Arts) % B. COM % B. Sc. (Agric) % Total % Teacher 2 2.3 7 5.4 14 26.4 23 8.6 Accountant 0 0.0 73 57.0 5 9.4 78 29.4 Doctor 9 10.7 9 7.0 10 18.8 28 10.5 Lawyer 40 47.6 15 11.7 4 7.5 59 22.2 Journalist 16 19.0 10 7.8 0 0.0 26 9.8 Others 17 20.2 14 10.9 20 37.7 51 19.2 Total 84 100 128 100 53 100 265 100 As indicated in table 4, it can be observed that majority of respondents representing 29.4% want to be Accountants, followed by 22.2% of the total opting to be Lawyers. 19.2% opted for other profession apart from the ones stated. Doctor recorded 10.5% whilst journalist recorded 9.8%. However, 8.6% of the total population chose to be teachers. 88 American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 TABLE V: Why do you want to be in any of the profession selected above? Reasons B.A.(Arts) % B.COM % B.Sc(Agric) % Total % Conditions of service 24 28.5 23 17.9 12 22.6 59 22.2 Prestige 27 31.2 27 21.0 17 32.0 71 26.7 Salary 22 26.1 40 31.2 20 37.7 82 30.9 Fringe benefits 2 2.3 12 9.3 1 1.8 15 5.6 Others 9 10.7 26 20.3 3 5.6 38 14.3 Total 84 100 128 100 53 100 265 100 In the researchers’ quest to find out the motivating factor that accounted for the respondents’ choice for their future profession, the researchers realized that 82 students representing 30.9% are motivated by the salary. 71 (26.7%) are motivated by prestige. 59 respondents (22.2%) are motivated by the condition of service. All in all 38 respondents (14.3%) opted for other forms of motivation apart from the ones stated. TABLE VI: Individuals in the society shun away from the teaching profession because of the poor wages and salaries Name of discipline B.A.(Arts) % B.COM % B.Sc.(Agric) % Total % SA 42 50.0 73 57.0 27 50.9 142 53.5 A 32 38.0 40 31.2 23 43.3 95 35.8 SD 1 1.1 7 5.4 0 0.0 8 3.0 D 9 10.7 8 6.2 3 5.6 20 7.5 Total 84 100 128 100 53 100 265 100 According to the [21], negative attitude of the public towards teachers and poor salaries respectively are some of the reasons that hugely affect people’s love and interest of choosing teaching as a profession and empirically, 89 American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 Table 6 affirms this assumption as the sum total of 234 representing 89.3% of respondents ‘strongly agree’ and ‘agree’ respectively to the claim that poor wages and salaries deter them from the teaching profession. However, 10.5% of the population disagrees to this assumption. TABLE VII: Is the respect or repute given to other profession given to the teaching profession as well? Name of discipline B.A.(Arts) % B.COM % B.Sc.(Agric) % Total % Yes 28 33.3 33 25.7 12 22.6 73 27.5 No 56 66.6 95 74.2 41 77.3 192 72.4 Total 84 100 128 100 53 100 265 100 [20], asserts that teachers are elbowed to the background in occupational analysis as far as public esteem and the image of the profession are concerned especially when compared to other professional workers such as judges, accountants, managers and so on. It is generally assumed that the teaching profession as compared to other profession commands no respect from the society. Empirically, the finding arrived at from the response of the students confirm this assumption. Table 7 affirms that the respect given to other professions is not given to the teaching profession. Out of 265 respondents, 192(72.4%) agree that the teaching profession is not respected whilst 73(27.5%) opted for ‘yes’. This indicates that majority of people do not have any respect for the teaching profession. TABLE VIII: The increase in teachers’ salaries will motivate you to take up the teaching profession Name of discipline B.A.(Arts) % B.COM % B.Sc.(Agric) % Total % SA 29 34.5 57 44.5 19 35.8 105 39.6 A 27 32.1 38 29.6 23 43.3 88 33.2 SD 6 7.1 15 11.7 5 9.4 26 9.8 D 22 26.1 18 14.0 6 11.3 46 17.3 Total 84 100 128 100 53 100 265 100 With reaction to Table 8, the researchers sought to find out if the increase in teachers’ salaries will motivate them to take up the teaching profession and the researchers found out that if something is done about the salaries, people will be enticed to take up the profession; as 105(39.6%) of respondents chose ‘strongly agree’, 88(33.2%) opting for ‘agree’ with 46(17.3%) disagreeing and just 9.8% strongly disagreeing to it. 90 American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 TABLE IX: Public lectures on career development in the society are geared towards other profession at the detriment of the teaching profession. Name of discipline B.A.(Arts) % B.COM % B.Sc.(Agric) % Total % Yes 67 79.7 102 79.6 43 81.1 212 80.0 No 17 20.2 26 20.3 10 18.8 53 20.0 Total 84 100 128 100 53 100 265 100 Table 9, gives a clear indication to how donor agencies and career developmental agencies instigate the choice of professions into individuals to the neglect of the teaching profession. Out of 265 respondents, 212 of the respondents representing 80% agree to the fact that public lectures do not promote the zeal in people to opt for the teaching profession whilst 20% accepted that there are some public lectures on the development of the profession for people to choose. TABLE X: People see the teaching profession as a stepping stone to other profession. Name of discipline B.A. (Arts) % B. COM % B. Sc.(Agric) % Total % SA 36 42.8 44 34.3 22 41.5 102 38.4 A 35 41.6 53 41.4 21 39.6 109 41.1 SD 4 4.7 17 13.2 1 1.8 22 8.3 D 9 10.7 14 10.9 9 16.9 32 12.0 Total 84 100 128 100 53 100 265 100 As indicated in table 10, 109 respondents representing (41.1%) and 102 (38.4%) agree and strongly agree respectively on the fact that people see the teaching profession as stepping stone. However, 32 (12%) and 22 (8.3%) disagree and strongly disagree respectively. These indicators establish the concern that many choose teaching as the last resort amongst the various reasons that severely affect the status of the teaching profession [21]. 91 American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 TABLE XI: Teacher makes negative statement about the teaching profession and that does not motivate you to take up the teaching profession. Name of disciplines B.A.(Arts) % B. COM % B. Sc.(Agric) % Total % Yes 51 60.7 72 56.2 24 45.2 147 55.4 No 33 39.2 56 43.7 29 54.7 118 44.5 Total 84 100 128 100 53 100 265 100 Table 11, indicate that 147 of the total respondents representing 55.4% agree to the fact that teacher makes negative statement about the profession which deter them from taking it as a profession; however, 118 (44.5%) do not agree to the aforementioned. TABLE XII: Teachers exhibition of enthusiasm influences you to become a teacher Names of disciplines B.A.(Arts) % B.COM % B.Sc.(Agric) % Total % Yes 48 57.1 56 56.2 40 75.4 144 54.3 No 36 42.8 72 43.7 13 24.5 121 45.6 Total 84 100 128 100 53 100 265 100 The indication in table 12 is that teachers exhibition of enthusiasm can influence the students to take up the teaching profession; as 144(54.3%) respondents ticked “yes” with “no” having 121(45.6%) respondents. TABLE XIII: Your choice of profession is instigated by your parent? Name of discipline B.A.(Arts) % B.COM % B.Sc.(Agric) % Total % Yes 26 30.9 38 29.7 12 22.6 76 28.6 No 58 69.0 90 70.3 41 77.3 189 71.3 Total 84 100 128 100 53 100 265 100 The table, articulate that Parents influence on their wards choice of profession largely, does not occur. 189 (71.3%) respondents claim to be making their own choices whenever it comes to their profession, whilst 92 American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 76(28.6%) state their profession is made possible through the instigation of their parents. However, it indicates that the parents do not want them to become even if it is their choice. 5. Conclusion The researchers sought to find out societal attitude towards the teaching profession and from the various responses to the items that answer this question; it was observed that the society’s attitude is unfriendly towards the teaching profession. Even though they agreed that teaching imparts knowledge and produces prominent people in the society, the society do not see the teaching profession as reputable, but rather a stepping stone to other profession this was mainly attributed to the poor wages and salaries of the teaching profession. From the findings it was revealed that the attitude of the individuals in the society also has great influence on the students’ choice of career. However, in the case of teaching profession, the society do not influence the students positively to take up the profession because when the respondents were asked whether the society motivates them to take up the teaching profession, 158 respondents representing the majority of the population said ‘no’ to this question. Another research question was ‘what effect does the attitude of teachers have on students?’ The findings from the students have confirmed that, really, teachers’ attitude has a great effect, contextually, negative one, on students. Out of 265 students, 147(55.4%) noted that their teachers’ makes negative statements about the teaching profession and their attitude does not motivate them to consider teaching as their life-long profession ‘What effect does parental influence have on their children’s choice of profession?’ was also another research question. The response revealed from the question portrayed that parents are highly influential in the choice of the wards future career. The findings reveal that parents’ interest in a profession necessitates the students’ choice of such profession. So when the respondents were asked whether their parents would want them to be teachers, the majority of the students, thus 187 out of 265 representing 71.3% responded negatively. 6. Recommendations The recommendations that follow shortly are in reference to the conclusions discussed above in terms of the attitude of students towards the teaching profession. Firstly, it was observed from the study that the society’s attitude is unfriendly towards the teaching profession. The researchers therefore recommend that the society should be made to understand that there would be no development without teachers and teachers are to be respected and acknowledged for their efforts in the development of the society. Proper remuneration and attractive incentives should be made available to teachers to make the profession attractive. Secondly, the study revealed that parents do not want their wards to become teachers. The researchers recommend that school authorities and government bodies should educate parents that a nation without teachers cannot be developed therefore; there is the need for them to encourage their children to choose teaching as a profession for the betterment of the nation. 93 American Scientific Research Journal for Engineering, Technology, and Sciences (ASRJETS) (2014) Volume 8, No 1, pp 79-95 Thirdly, the study also confirmed that teacher’s attitude has a great effect on the student’s choice of teaching as a profession. The researcher therefore recommends that teachers should conduct themselves in a respectable manner and be good role- models to students. Finally, the researchers recommend that, public lectures should be geared towards the teaching profession. Stakeholders should highlight the benefits and importance of the teaching profession and give equal platform to the teaching profession. 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