An exploration of novice teachers’ experiences regarding psycho-social support provision as an aspect of their situated professional development at a selected Western Cape Primary School

Abstract

The work environment of teachers exposes them to situations known to generate negative work attitudes and occupational stress which can influence their psycho-social well-being. There is also the possibility that positive resources, such as induction, resilience, mentoring, and acculturation, could increase the capacity of teachers to manage the degree to which psycho-social factors influence psychological well-being. Thus, it is assumed that those psycho-social factors could negatively or positive influence the psychological well-being of novice teachers. Disturbingly, in the last five years, the Department of Higher Education and Training in South Africa has invested liberally in research and training of foundation phase teachers, heeding the call that there are too few teachers in this category and that there is a need to overhaul the pre-service education sector to meet the needs of the twenty-first century. Although a number of professional development programmes have emerged since, the attrition rate of novice teachers remains high in South Africa. Studies have shown new teachers are at high risk of leaving the school or even leaving the career within their first five years of teaching (Haynes, 2014; Phillips, 2014). The aim of this study is to investigate the experience of the psycho-social support available to novice teachers in a selected Western Cape primary school. Despite transformation in the Department of Basic Education, there has been no concerted effort to investigate whether novice teachers receive psycho-social support and how this support can be implemented or improved. The presence or lack of psycho-social support for novice teachers is related to their well-being. On this basis, it became clear that the relationship between psycho-social factors and psychological well-being, with psychological capital as a moderator, could be researched. With novice teachers in South Africa at a selected school as participants, the current study used a qualitative case study methodology to attain its purpose. One principal and five novice teachers were interviewed about their experiences regarding the psycho-social support available to them. Questionnaires were used to collect data which was analysed thematically. The study revealed that novice teachers at the school do not get sufficient +psycho-social support from school management and the education department; this results in low morale and burnout, subsequently having an effect on teacher attrition.