Abstract
Teacher attrition continues to threaten educational quality, with professional commitment emerging as a key determinant of teacher retention. This study examined how cooperating teacher (CT) effectiveness predicts pre-service teachers’ (PTs’) teaching commitment and how this relationship is moderated by workload and grit. Through the lens of Social Learning Theory, Self-Determination Theory and the Job Demands–Resources model, the study proposed that high-quality mentoring enhances teaching commitment, but that excessive workload may diminish and grit may strengthen, this effect. A sequential explanatory mixed-methods design was employed to empirically test the claim. Quantitative data were collected from 205 PTs enrolled in internship programs across central Palawan, Philippines, using validated measures of CT effectiveness, teaching commitment, workload, grit and teaching self-efficacy. Hierarchical moderated regression analyses revealed that CT effectiveness significantly predicted PT teaching commitment, with work overload attenuating and grit amplifying this relationship. Qualitative follow-up using extreme case sampling reinforced these findings: supportive CTs nurtures teaching commitment, but these benefits were undermined under excessive workload and sustained through high grit. Integration of both phases yielded meta- inferences that effective mentoring alone may not be sufficient without manageable demands and resilient dispositions. The findings emphasized the necessity of designing internship pre-deployment programs and environments that promote resilience, balance task load and enhance mentor preparation.
Keywords: Internship, Mentorship, Moderation, Resilience, Teacher.