A Study on the Development and Validation of the Career Teacher’s Professionalism Scale

Objectives This study aims to develop a scale to assess the professionalism of career teachers and to confirm the reliability and validity of the scale. Methods To achieve this, preliminary items for the scale were constructed by reviewing previous studies and existing relevant scales. The content validity of the preliminary survey items was then confirmed by reviewing them with content experts and field experts in career education and career counseling. A preliminary survey was conducted with 173 current career teachers, and then the main survey was conducted with 225 current career teachers. Reliability analysis and factor analysis confirmed the factor structure, and convergent, discriminant and concurrent validity tests produced a final scale of career teacher professionalism consisting of 9 factors and 32 items. Results The 9 factors of a career teacher's professionalism include ‘multifaceted professional knowledge including career, education, counseling, etc.’, ‘respect for diversity’, ‘open-mindedness to try new things’, ‘passion with affection’, ‘collaborative and progressive problem solving’, ‘facilitation of student-directed growth and development’, ‘positive contribution to career education advancement’, ‘broad personal experiences’, and ‘community learning experiences’. Conclusions As the career teacher professionalism scale developed in this study was found to be reliable and valid, it can be used as a useful tool to measure career teacher professionalism in future research.