Differences between experienced and inexperienced teachers

¶ … experienced inexperienced teachers.

Differences between Experienced and Inexperienced Teachers

One of the most obvious differences that may be mentioned between the inexperienced and the experienced teacher is the very issue of experience itself. Experience in the teaching profession implies a depth of knowledge and insight, as well as the development of intuitive methods of teaching that often cannot be obtained in any other way other than through the teaching process. However there are many other differences that can be noted between the experienced and the inexperienced teacher. The following discussion will include findings from research studies on this topic.

One of the differences mentioned in the literature between these two categories of teacher is that very often the experienced teacher develops a sense of potential and possible problems and contingencies that might occur in the teaching situation and process. This is evident from a study by Griffey and Housner ( 1991), which investigated the approach to planning by experienced as opposed to inexperienced teachers. This study found that "…experienced teachers asked many more questions before they began planning than did inexperienced teachers" (Griffey and Housner,1991, p. 196 )

In other words, this finding shows that the experienced teacher has a certain foresight pertaining to possible problematic areas or difficulties that might occur in educational and teaching planning. This is the result of years of experience in the teaching arena. This finding suggests that a central difference therefore between the experienced and inexperienced teacher is the knowledge that one gains as a result of experience that provides the teacher with various insights and understanding that the inexperienced teacher may not have acquired. This also has the concomitant implication that the inexperienced teacher differs from the experienced teacher not in capability or innate teaching ability but rather in the accumulation of knowledge about education.

One of the issues raised in the literature on this topic is that inexperienced teachers tend to experience more stress than experienced teachers in the teaching process. In a study by Dana Yagil ( 1998) on the comparison of stress encountered by experience and inexperienced teachers, it was found that in most cases the inexperienced teacher has a higher level of stress. The author of this study goes on to state that major areas of stress for the inexperienced teacher include interaction with pupils' parents and workload. ( Yagil, 1998, p.179 ) However, the study also indicates that there may be other external reasons for these high levels of stress. The implication of these findings is that higher stress levels among inexperienced teacher is linked to insecurity and uncertainty in the classroom and in marking work. On the other hand the experienced teacher has generally overcome these insecurities, resulting in a lower level of stress.

There are also differences that have been found in cognition between these two categories of teacher, which has an effect on decision making. This indicates an important difference between the inexperienced and the experienced teacher. Research has found that,"…experienced teachers made more decisions concerning strategies for implementing instructional activities than did inexperienced teachers." (Housner and Griffey, 1985, p. 45) This finding would again suggest that more experienced teachers have more extensive and in-depth knowledge about the way that the educational and teaching system works. Another interesting finding from the above study was that inexperienced teachers tended to focus their attention on the class as a whole, while the more experienced teachers were more focused on individual teaching.