Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this study was to determine if a relationship exists between the elementary level student teaching experience and the interns' perceptions of the internship, of the cooperating teacher, of themselves as teachers, of the teaching profession, and of the decision to enter the teaching profession.Procedures. Ninety-two elementary level student teachers from five universities in the Dade County, Florida area were queried using a survey instrument designed for this study. The One-Group Pretest-Posttest Research Design was utilized.Findings. Variables that were influenced by the internship experience at the.05 level of significance were the changes from the administration of the pre-internship survey to the administration of the post-internship survey in the elementary level student teachers' perceptions as follows: (1) The view of the cooperating teacher's professional abilities diminished. (2) The view of themselves as teachers improved. (3) The view of the support they received during the internship declined.Descriptively, the interns revealed the following perceptions. (1) The most important factors in determining the effectiveness of the cooperating teacher were the cooperating teachers' years of experience, and the cooperating teacher's aptitude as a teacher. (2) The least important factors in determining the effectiveness of the cooperating teacher were ethnicity and gender. (3) Aspects of the internship viewed as most positive were the relationship with the students, and lesson planning and preparation. (4) Aspects of the internship viewed as most negative were stress, and "at home" time spent on school work. (5) The strongest attractions to teaching were a feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment, and the stimulation of working with children. (6) The greatest deterrents from teaching were paperwork and fatigue.Conclusions. (1) The interns' perceptions of themselves as teachers were positively influenced by the internship experience. (2) The interns' perceptions of the cooperating teacher's abilities as a teacher were negatively influenced by the internship experience. (3) The interns' perceptions of the internship support received were negatively influenced by the internship experience. (4) The elementary level student teachers' view of the teaching profession, view of the internship, and decision to teach were not consistently influenced in one direction by the internship experience.