Long‐term effects of a programme for teacher training

Abstract

The long‐term effects of a three‐week training programme for new teachers have been studied. A questionnaire was sent to all those who participated in the years 1988‐1992. The directors of study of ten departments were also interviewed. The teachers, who were mainly graduate students, say the training has been of use to them by increasing their self confidence, leading to a deeper understanding of the teaching/learning process or providing new teaching skills. All directors of study report positive effects in the teachers. Six consider there have been spreading effects within the department. Teachers and directors of study agree that the priority given to research over teaching is a major obstacle for anyone who wishes to invest time and energy in teaching. A conclusion is that the teachers who took part in the training programme acquired skills and attitudes of use to them in their work. Some suggestions are made on how to improve the programme. However, the most important change to improve teaching would be to alter the relative value of teaching and research.     

Some sources for the history of teacher‐training in England and Wales

Abstract:

Though his best‐selling novel of school life Eric, or, Little by Little: A Tale of Roslyn School has over the years been the subject of much attention, the wider educational thought and practice of Frederic William Farrar, teacher, novelist, scientist, classicist, theologian, and Dean of Canterbury, has for the most part been neglected by scholars. This paper discusses certain aspects of Farrar the educationist, including his distinctive evangelical attitude toward children; his fervent criticism of the prevailing Classical public school curriculum; his advocacy that much more science be taught; his strong antipathy to corporal and other punishment; his distaste for the increasing athleticism in the public schools; his view of the main purpose of education, namely the inculcation of morality, religious conviction, and intellectual rigor.     

A cross‐cultural study of teacher perspectives on teacher roles and adoption of online collaborative learning in higher education

This study aims to understand teachers’ perspectives on their roles in higher education, their views about the adoption of a social‐constructivist approach to teaching and learning and the integration of online collaborative learning in blended learning environments in higher education from a cross cultural perspective. We interviewed 60 Chinese teachers from Beijing Normal University and Capital Normal University in Beijing, China and 30 Flemish teachers from Ghent University in Flanders, Belgium. The results revealed differences as well as specific similarities in perspectives between the Chinese and Flemish university teachers. The cultural and educational context is taken into consideration when discussing the results.     

Prioritization of online instructor roles: implications for competency‐based teacher education programs

Online instructors need to take on a multi‐dimensional role and to be an effective online educator they are required to possess a varied and wider range of competencies. Preparing teachers for online education involves preparing them for a wide variety of roles and developing related competencies. However, the extent of emphasis required to be placed on each of these roles or competencies during a teacher training program may vary according to its culture and the context. The investigation reported in this article obtained expert opinions with regard to the priority and criticality of eight online instructor roles identified in earlier research on online education. Pedagogical roles received the highest priority by the respondents, followed by professional, evaluator, social facilitator, technologist, advisor, administrator, and researcher roles. These results have implications for teacher education and further research pertaining to the context in India.     

Utopia vs. reality: the effectiveness of in‐service training courses for EFL teachers

The article explores the long‐term effectiveness of in‐service teacher training courses for English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers in the Greek educational context. It presents the results of a questionnaire designed and issued to teacher‐trainees a year after the completion of 60‐hour courses. The questionnaire assessed, among others, (a) teacher trainees' beliefs regarding the relevance of the knowledge acquired to their individual needs, (b) the extent to which they used the materials provided in the course, and (c) the usefulness of the subjects offered. The data are discussed in relation to strategies for optimising teacher training services and implications are drawn for the implementation of change in a broader educational context. A ‘cooperative model' is proposed for the promotion of change involving active cooperation between all agents involved in the educational process and necessitating top‐down and bottom‐up cooperation.     

An analysis of the effects of in‐service teacher training on Turkish preschool teachers’ attitudes towards inclusion

Any implementation of an inclusive policy is largely dependent on educators’ attitudes. In Turkey, many teachers who educate preschool children with Special Educational Needs (SEN), and who have not received in‐service teacher training (INSET) are observed to have negative attitudes towards their SEN students. The aim of this article is to examine differences between the attitudes of preschool teachers before and after an INSET course. Sixty‐six preschool teachers were selected for this study which had a single group pre–post‐test design. The teachers’ opinions and attitudes relating to mainstreaming SEN students in regular educational environments were assessed using the ‘Opinions Relative to Mainstreaming’ scale. The data indicate that these teachers were affected by the INSET programme in such a way that their attitudes towards the inclusion of SEN students became more positive.     

A cross-national study of teacher’s perceptions of online learning success

This study examines success factors in online learning from the instructors’ perspective. Academic success comprises not only student satisfaction and good grades, but also perception of learning and knowledge transfer. A systemic model of inputs–process–outputs of learning was used. A total of 322 online teachers from four different universities and countries were used to study factors of attainment. Findings suggest that: (i) instructors from the University of Peking and the Autonomous Popular University of the State of Puebla reported learner factors as the most important for students on online courses, (ii) instructors from the University of New Mexico perceived institutional factors as the most important for establishing effective online learning and (iii) instructors from the Open University of Catalonia reported outcome factors as the most important for learners in online courses. Compared with other research results in online learning, instructors in this study generally reflect a greater concern about the content, social presence, instruction and their interactions than about technological matters.     

The myth of the research‐led teacher

This paper examines the contention that achievement in research is a prerequisite for effective teaching in higher education. It also explores university level teaching more generally with the purpose of examining the links between teaching and research. Concept mapping, in particular, is described as a means of exploring both the knowledge structures of experts (teachers and researchers) and the cognitive changes that are indicative of meaningful learning among students. We use the approach to suggest that rich and complex networks are indicative of expert status, but that these are seldom made explicit to students in the course of teaching. Instead, simple, linear structures comprise most lesson plans or teaching sequences. This linearity is often made transparent through the lecturers’ use of PowerPoint presentations to structure teaching. Thus the transmission mode of teaching predominates in HE and evidence of authentic research‐led teaching remains scant. This is likely to reinforce surface learning outcomes among university students and be an impediment to the emergence of expert status. The linear chains that are commonly espoused in teaching lend themselves to rote learning strategies rather than to individual meaning making. The approach we describe here has the potential to reinstate expert status as the prime qualification for teaching in higher education. Where concept mapping is used to share and explore knowledge structures between students and experts, then learning can be shown to occur in ways that are synonymous with research and discovery. Using this approach, the teacher–student distinction becomes legitimately blurred so that the sharing and advancement of knowledge are concomitant. In conclusion, we suggest that this is a basis for a pedagogy that is appropriate to HE and distinct from the compulsory sector.     

The impact of an Irish‐medium education option in initial teacher training on a third level institution

Abstract

This paper is based on a small‐scale study carried out to evaluate the change situation that arose in a Belfast third level institution with the introduction of an Irish‐medium option in initial teacher training within the BEd degree in 1996. Data were collected from stakeholders by way of questionnaire and semi‐structured interviews with a focus on four aspects. The first of those aspects was the change's impact on the institution. Stakeholders’ perceptions of the change was the second aspect and included academic staff, management, students taking the Irish‐medium option and head‐teachers in Irish‐medium schools. The third aspect was the way in which the academic staff coped with the change situation and the fourth was the likely future of the provision. The paper reports on recommendations around both the use of a second language as a teaching medium in teacher training and striking a balance between subject‐content and language teaching in teacher training for Irish‐medium education.     

Longitudinal study of stages of beginning teacher development in a field‐based teacher education program

Abstract

Field‐based teacher education programs are part of a growing trend in education to provide long‐term classroom teaching experience and acculturation to the school environment as part of the certification process. This article reports on a study of stages of teacher development across ½ years of full‐time teaching as teacher candidates work to complete coursework in fulfillment of a masters of education program. Beginning teachers completed a Teachers Concerns Checklist at six points in the program. Factor analysis and ANOVA were utilized to develop a chronology of stages across these years to inform programmatic development. Findings suggest reduced concerns for classroom management as full‐time teaching begins and increased concerns for delivery of instruction as teachers are immersed in full‐time teaching. Strong concerns for professional development emerge only after a full year of teaching. Implications for the academic program, supervision, and future research are discussed     

Frequency of co‐teaching in different teacher categories

Co‐teaching – or the use of more than one teacher in a classroom – has been commonly recommended as a means to promote inclusive education. The aim of the present study was to survey the actual frequency of co‐teaching among different teacher categories in the comprehensive school level in one Finnish city. The data were collected through a questionnaire answered by two representative samples of teachers including 117 resource room teachers in the first survey, and 317 teachers of various teacher categories in the second. The results showed that co‐teaching was a widespread phenomenon among resource room teachers and special class teachers but less frequent among other teacher groups. Overall, it was used only infrequently, typically from two to three hours a week. On a weekly basis it was implemented by every second special education teacher, every third classroom teacher and every sixth subject teacher. A comparison with a study from the early 1980s confirmed that the relative popularity of co‐teaching had increased only slightly during the years. Although co‐teaching is used sparsely, the teachers reported almost uniquely positive experiences obtained from it. It is argued that the promotion of co‐teaching needs additional incentives if it is hoped to make it more common.     

Video‐courses in the inservice training of social‐service staff

This study describes the development and dissemination of a multi‐media package for inservice education for ‘teachers’ (INSET) in social‐service settings, and details its effectiveness when used in a variety of services with a diversity of staff. Three elements, critical to the success of this model, are identified and discussed. It is argued that this approach is a feasible strategy for future developments.