Dr.Hab., Professor G.N. Ponomarev¹
Dr.Hab., Professor N.F. Radionova¹
PhD S.V. Rivkina^1
1Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia, St. Petersburg

Keywords: professional pedagogical education, vocational progress, vocational training, teaching service, physical education teacher, attitudes to vocational teaching service.

Background. Vocational progress of the future physical education teachers is known to largely depend on the specific academic education climate with its motivators on the one hand; and (as was found by some studies [1, 3-5]) on own commitment of the trainee on the other hand.
The progress is achievable when supported by the external and internal requirements and motivations with the latter dominated by own physical education teachers attitudes to the vocational teaching service and, hence, training for it. That is the reason why the physical education system and professionals give a high priority to the studies geared to accumulate and effectively apply database on the future physical education teachers’ attitudes to vocational training and vocational teaching service.
Objective of the study was to find attitudes to vocational training of the future physical education teachers to the vocational training and future service using a special survey method, and offer the academic vocational training service improvement options to facilitate the training.
Methods and structure of the study. The study was designed on a competence-prioritizing basis [2, 3]. The study was run at the Institute of Physical Education of Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia, with the 2-4-year bachelors of Pedagogical Education sampled for the study. Sampled for the study were 79 physical education university students (48 women and 31 men), including 4 graduates of a pedagogical college, 63 general school graduates, 9 gymnasia graduates and 5 lyceum graduates. The sample included 25, 27 and 27 second-, third- and forth-year students, respectively. We designed a special vocational training survey form for the purposes of the study with the following groups of questions: Group 1 tested the attitudes to the vocational teaching service; Group 2 probed the attitudes to the academic physical education service content and quality; and Group 3 identified the respondents’ determinations in the vocational training.
Results and discussion. Group 1 responses showed the sample being well motivated for the vocational teaching service regardless of the academic year, with their motivations dominated by the ‘interest in physical education and sports’, ‘love to teaching children’, and the ‘desire to get a quality education’. It should be noted, however, that there are quite many other reasons like ‘I chose the university by chance’, ‘easy to enter and easy to learn’, ‘I had no chance to enter a different university’ (5%, 8.75% and 9.38% respectively). ‘Good example of my own teacher’ as the prime reason for choosing the vocation was mentioned only by 3.75% of the sample.
Second, the high motivations are manifested in the good understanding of the vocational teaching service sense and mission, with such motivations as ‘securing a good education for children’ (32.03%) followed by ‘sharing the own knowledge and skills’ (23.53%); and ‘facilitating the children’s progress in every aspect’ (22.2%). Own self-fulfillment agenda as one of the core motivations for the vocational teaching service was found to grow from the second to the forth academic year (with the scores of 13%, 16% and 19%, respectively).
Third, the sample was found to appreciate many things in the vocational teaching service including ‘contacts with children’ (22%), ‘contacts with many interesting people’ (17%) and ‘social benefits of the service’ (17%) followed by the ‘wide field for the creativity’ (ranked forth with the score of 15%).
Forth, the future physical education teachers were found to well prioritize the vocational teaching service goals into the service design goals (place 1); good communication with the students (place 2) and tutorial process design (place 3); followed by the ‘contacts with the families, colleagues and management’, ‘proficiency in the progress test methods’ and the ‘progress facilitating educational environment building’.
Fifth, the bachelor students were found committed for vocational teaching service at schools and in the advanced educational system (31% and 22%, respectively) albeit would not exclude professional service in some other fields (38%).
Group 2 responses showed the future physical education teachers clearly seeing the strong and week sides of the academic physical education service. They believe that the university education is critical for success of their ‘physical education service design and management mastery’ (above 70%), 'relations with the students' (69%); and ‘tutorial practice design and management’ (69%); followed by ‘progress test mastery’ (58%); ‘professional and personality progress’ (53%); ‘contacts with families, colleagues and management’, (48%); and ‘off-class and advanced education service design and management’ (38%).
Furthermore, the physical education students believe that their vocational training quality is determined by the practical experience (88%), special physical-education-and-sport-related disciplines (76%), psychological and didactic disciplines (66%), and special professional literature (50%). Role of the individual consulting service from the faculty is appreciated by about 50% of the sample, with this motivation growing with academic years (44%, 48% and 54%, respectively). And only 29% were found to appreciate contribution of the general cultural disciplines in the vocational training service.
The sample was found to prefer the following forms of the academic vocational training service: practical sessions, lectures, and individual consulting service from the faculty (41%, 23% and 17%, respectively); followed by the self-reliant learning (11%) and research projects (5%). The sample believes that the academic vocational training service is actually dominated by lectures (40%), practical sessions (34%) and self-reliant learning (18%). Given on Diagram 1 hereunder is the analysis of the vocational training service preferences and actual forms.
The students prefer primarily the following academic education design options: group work (29%), discussions (21%), and games (21%); followed by presentations (10%); self-reliant studies of the educational materials, manuals and monographs (7%), information/ communication technologies (7%), and project education (5%). Given on Diagram 2 hereunder is the analysis of the training service preferences and actual service forms.
The students were also found to prefer the self-reliant learning forms with the optional individual tasks (39%), in the small groups (32%), and with the same tasks for everyone (18%). The respondents believe that the actual academic practices are dominated by the same tasks for everyone (34%, versus the preference of 18%), tasks of choice (29%, versus the preference of 39%), small group tasks (25% versus 32%), and individualized tasks (10% versus 13%).
Group 3 responses showed the sample having a clear understanding of the future vocational teaching service, with 66%, 22% and 11% of the sample reported being fairly, perfectly and poorly aware of the vocational teaching service, respectively (with the rest uncertain on the point). Furthermore, 62%, 15%, 22% and 1% of the sample was found fairly, perfectly, poorly satisfied and fully unsatisfied with the self-reliant learning process design and content. The sample was also found 70% and 30% unengaged and seldom engaged in the research projects, with 47% and 11% reportedly satisfied by own engagement (rather disengagement) in the academic research.
Students were of widely different opinions on their own commitment for the academic studies, with 47% reporting ‘doing everything required and nothing above that’; 35% ‘learning within own abilities’; 13% ‘doing more than required’; and only 3% reportedly reluctant to learn.
One of two students was found to reportedly contribute to the academic life. However, the sample was quite critical about own fitness for the future vocational teaching service. Thus only 72%, 59% and 55% of the second-, third- and forth-year students, respectively, believe being ‘partially’ fit for the service; with 4% and 7% of the second- and forth-year students, respectively, feeling ‘totally non-fit’. It should be noted that 16%, 7% and 3.7% of the second-, third- and forth-year students, respectively, were uncertain on the issue.
Conclusion. The questionnaire survey data yielded by the survey form of our own design and the survey data analyses showed a higher priority needs to be given to the following: vocational progress-centered trainings of the future physical education teachers, with due assistance in the vocational identification at school and university; students’ activation by optional creative activities; and the efforts to encourage their broader engagement in the vocational training-facilitating projects at university.

References

1. Kozyrev V.A. Humanitarian educational environment of pedagogical university: essence, model. St. Petersburg: HSPUR publ., 2004. 327 p.
2. Radionova N.F., Tryapitsyina A.P. [ed.]. Competency building approach in pedagogical education. St. Petersburg: HSPUR publ., 2008. 392 p.
3. Radionova N.F. [ed.]. Domestic and foreign experience in formation and development of scientific educational environment of modern university in three-tier professional training system. St. Petersburg: HSPUR publ., 2013. 238 p.
4. Ponomarev G.N. Development of variable training of physical education specialists in modern socio-cultural conditions. Doct. diss. abstr. (Hab.). St. Petersburg: HSPUR publ., 2003. 35 p.
5. Elmurzaev M.A., Ponomarev G.N. Sociocultural Potential of Physical Recreation. Teoriya i praktika fiz. kultury. 2014. no.2. pp. 52-54.

Corresponding author: g-ponomarev@ inbox.ru

Abstract
Vocational progress of the future physical education teachers is known to largely depend on the specific academic education climate with its motivators on the one hand; and (as was found by some studies) on own commitment of the trainee on the other hand. Subject to the study were the attitudes to vocational training of the future physical education teachers. The study was run at the Institute of Physical Education of Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia, with the 2-4-year bachelors of Pedagogical Education sampled for the study. The vocational training of the sample was surveyed and rated using the following criteria: vocational motivations; commitment for the future service mission; vision of own professional career and its promises; academic process design and management quality in the students’ opinion; and the self-rate of own contribution to the vocational training. The study data and analyses showed that a higher priority needs to be given to the following: vocational progress-centered trainings of the future physical education teachers, with due assistance in the vocational identification at school and university; students’ activation by optional creative activities; and the efforts to encourage their broader engagement in the vocational training-facilitating projects at university.