An Approach to the Study of Negative Selection in Access to Teacher Training

In an international line focused on the identification of the profile of access to the teaching profession as a relevant variable in the improvement of educational systems, this research aims to gather evidence about the hypothesis of negative selection in Spain, taking into account the possible unequal distribution of academic background. By means of a non-experimental study, carried out with a large sample of data in the comparable subjects of the university entrance exam, Spanish Language and Literature, Spanish History and Foreign Language, differences are found in the average mark in these subjects according to the degree to which one aspires and according to whether the students come from a scientific-technological baccalaureate or not. From this, we conclude that there is more evidence of negative selection in applicants to work as early childhood education teachers, in some cases with significant effect sizes. On the other hand, differences between degrees tend to occur in the two groups of origin, so this is not a variable that can clearly explain the differences between degrees found.