Examination of the reasons of social study teachers for choosing the teaching profession

The purpose of this research is to examine the reasons for choosing the teaching profession of social studies teacher candidates in terms of various variables by means of pairwise comparisons. In the research, explanatory sequential design, one of the mixed method designs, was used. The study group of the research consisted of first-class social studies teacher candidates studying at a state university in the Mediterranean region in the 2021-2022 academic year. As a data collection tool in the research; A semi-structured interview form named "The Scale of Reasons for Pre-service Teachers Choosing Teaching Profession" developed by Göçer Şahin and Gelbal (2016) and "Reasons for Pre-service Teachers Choosing Teaching Profession" developed by the researcher was used. The data collection process of the research started with the application of the scale of "Reasons for Pre-service Teachers to Choose Teaching Profession" to first-year social studies teacher candidates. After the collection of the said data, the data were arranged and analyzed by the method of pairwise comparisons. After the application and analysis of the scale to all first graders, face-to-face interviews were conducted with the volunteers from the research group. The qualitative data obtained from the study group consisted of the themes used in the quantitative data (because it is prestigious in the society, because my score is sufficient, because the working conditions are comfortable, because my family/relative/friend wants it, because I want to work with children/young people, because it is easy to graduate, because it is easy to find a job. It was analyzed using descriptive analysis using. When the results of the research are evaluated in general, it is possible to say that the quantitative results of the research are due to internal reasons (because I want to work with children/young people, because I like teaching) why pre-service teachers choose the teaching profession. When the qualitative results of the research are evaluated; that pre-service teachers can produce reasons similar to the reasons in the quantitative results for choosing the teaching profession (because it is my dream to be a teacher, it is a profession that is considered important by the society, I cannot choose the department I want, because the majority of my family is a teacher) and they put forward different reasons besides the reasons stated in the quantitative results (being a teacher). because it seems easy, because it is the profession in which I can express myself best, because I have a dream, because I am an idealistic adult) and qualitative results are seen to support the quantitative results. Keywords: Social Studies, teacher candidate, teaching profession