The road to socialization : a descriptive study of the Filipino immigrant teachers' search for their place in the Hawaii Department of Education

xii, 206 leavesA large number of Philippine-trained teachers are presently employed in the Hawaiʻi Department of Education (HIDOE). Although a big percentage have earned their tenure and working full-time as teachers in the Department, about half of Filipino immigrant teachers are holding part-time positions and more than half of them are still working on completing their credentials to meet the requirements for teaching in the HIDOE. Many of those who are non-tenured or temporary hires often encounter difficulty earning tenure and permanency. As teacher shortage continues to afflict the HIDOE and new educational reforms and initiatives are being introduced to the school system, descriptive studies that examine the socialization of Filipino immigrant teachers are necessary. This study was designed to describe the professional and organizational socialization processes of Filipino immigrant teachers in HIDOE. Five questions were developed to guide this study: (l) what are the institutional factors that affect the socialization of Filipino immigrant teachers in the HIDOE? (2) what have been the socialization experiences of Filipino immigrant teachers in the HIDOE? (3) what assumptions about teaching in the HIDOE did Filipino immigrant teachers hold prior to their initial teaching assignment into the school system? (4) did these assumptions change over time, and if so, what were these changes? and (5) what factors helped these changes? A case study design combined with survey research, socialization theories, and theoretical framework, was used to collect and interpret the data from interviews and questionnaires. Findings of the study indicate that commitment to student learning is the most powerful variable influencing the socialization of Filipino immigrant teachers, that the overall level of socialization was generally high, and that assumptions held by Filipino immigrant teachers prior to teaching in HIDOE concern student behavior, teacher orientation, parents, administrators, colleagues, curriculum, and teaching materials. Other themes that emerged from the study were challenges, coping strategies, commitment to students, and professional commitment and empowerment. Research findings contribute to the recruitment, retention, and professional development for teachers and will be valuable to school administrators and university personnel