A stable and healthy personality is a requirement to deal effectively with the different
stressors and demands that are part and parcel of a profession in education.
Therefore, it is of the utmost importance to ensure that prospective teachers present
well balanced personality profiles, which will enable them to become good teachers.
Against the abovementioned background, this research study had the aim to:
• by means of a literature study, determine the criteria that are generally used
in the selection process of prospective education students nationally and
internationally, and to determine the role and function of a personality
assessment in the selection of prospective education students;
• by means of a literature study, determine the characteristics of the desired
personality profile of a teacher by applying the Five Factor Model of
personality;
• empirically determine the characteristics of the personality profiles of full-time
registered education students at a higher education institution;
• empirically determine whether there are differences between the personality
profiles of 1) male and female education students; 2) education students in
the different education phases; 3) education students with different home
languages; 4) education students at different academic levels; and 5)
education students who indicated education as first choice of study, and
those who did not; and
• to determine what the application possibility of the NEO-FFI is in the selection
of prospective education students.
The literature study produced the following results:
• Academic criteria are mostly used in selecting education students, nationally
and internationally and personality assessment does not play a role in the
selection of education students in South Africa.
• The desired personality profile of teachers, according to the Five Factor
Model of personality, renders low scores on Neuroticism and high scores on
Extraversion, Openness to Experience, Agreeableness and
Conscientiousness.
The empirical study produced the following results:
• The group of education students generally presented the characteristics of
the theoretical preferred personality profile with regard to Neuroticism,
Extraversion, Agreeableness and Conscientiousness, but they presented
relatively low mean raw scores for Openness to Experience.
• No meaningful differences were found between the personality profiles of
education students with regard to the education phase, home language,
academic year and education as study choice, however, there were
meaningful differences between male and female education students
pertaining Agreeableness, where female education students presented higher
mean raw scores than their male counterparts.
Stanines were calculated to develop norms which can be used for personality
assessment in the selection of prospective education students. Gender-specific
norms were developed for this purpose.
On grounds of the results of the investigation, it is recommended that personality
assessment form an integral part of the selection process of prospective
education students and that the NEO-FFI appears to be fruitful in this regard. / Thesis (MEd (Educational Psychology))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2013
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:nwu/oai:dspace.nwu.ac.za:10394/8710 |
| Date | January 2012 |
| Creators | Kok, Rumando |
| Publisher | North-West University |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | other |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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