MAINSTREAMING GENDER IN TEACHER CANDIDATES’ USE OF STRATEGIES TO REDUCE DISSONANCE IN SUPERVISORS’ FEEDBACK
MAINSTREAMING GENDER IN TEACHER CANDIDATES’ USE OF STRATEGIES TO REDUCE DISSONANCE IN SUPERVISORS’ FEEDBACK

Summary/Abstract: Teacher candidates often experience cognitive dissonance due to conflicting feedback from university-assigned supervisors during teaching practice. Previous studies have examined strategies for reducing such dissonance and the factors influencing their use, often assuming the unidimensionality of these strategies rather than considering how specific factors affect each one. This study identifies four distinct dissonance reduction strategies: minimal intervention, recourse to supervisor, significant others, and self-directed learning. Given the influence of gender on decision-making, including teaching-related decisions, this study explores its impact on the use of these strategies among pre-service teachers. Using a descriptive research design, data were collected from 442 pre-service teachers at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria, through the Dissonance in Supervisors’ Feedback Reduction Strategies Use Questionnaire (DSFR-Q). The findings indicate that gender is not a statistically significant factor in the choice of dissonance reduction strategies. However, it is suggested that female pre-service teachers may be more inclined to use minimal intervention, significant others, and self-directed learning, whereas their male counterparts may prefer seeking recourse to supervisors. These findings are discussed in relation to the ethnographic realities of teacher education in Nigeria.

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