Language,Identity, and Emotionality: Exploring the Potential of Language Portraits in Preparing Teachers for Diverse Learners

The present study, framed from a critical and transformative approach to teacher education, aims to investigate whether language portraits (Prasad, 2010)—the mapping of one’s language and cultural make-up on a body template—can help improve student teachers’ self-understanding about language and identities and can foster critical reflection regarding their attitudes towards linguistic diversity. This study looks particularly at how emotional engagement in autobiographical portraits and narratives of language experiences and practices could potentially facilitate personal interrogation of social assumptions and open up possibilities for greater intellectual examination of the sociopolitical dimensions of second-language teaching and learning.     

Reflecting Socially on Social Issues in a Social Studies Methods Course

The purpose of this study was to investigate how student teaching experiences impact the sense of teaching efficacy and feelings of preparedness of pre-service teachers in a nearly and elementary teacher education program (EC-6). The study used an action research, mixed-methods design. Seventy-one pre-service teachers at a large public university in the southwest completed surveys about their preparedness to teach and teaching efficacy pre and post the student teaching semester. Findings indicate that pre-service teachers’ perceptions of preparedness and sense of teaching efficacy both increased significantly (p < .5) from pre-student teaching to post-student teaching. In addition, three themes emerged from the answers to open-ended questions on learning components of student teaching experiences: opportunity for hands-on teaching, the opportunity to observe experienced teachers, and the relationship with their cooperating teacher.     

Enhancing student engagement in pre-vocational and vocational education: a learning history

Interest in student engagement has increased over the past decade, which has resulted in increased knowledge about this concept and about the aspects that facilitate engagement. However, as yet, only a few studies have focused on engagement from the perspective of the teacher. In this study, we capture the experiences of teachers who were explicitly working with their teams on fostering student engagement. We used the learning history method to capture those experiences and at the same time to stimulate learning within the participating teams. A learning history includes the voices of the different participants involved in order to stimulate reflection and learning. Three teams of teachers participated in the writing of this learning history. Several teachers (n = 10), students (n = 10), and managers (n = 5) from or related to the teams were interviewed. The learning history shows that, on the one hand, teachers emphasized positive relationships and structure in relation to student engagement, yet, on the other hand, students continued to provide examples of negative relationships and mentioned a lack of structure, although they also mentioned improvements. Furthermore, the learning history showed that teachers in all teams reflected on their experiences and learned from the activities employed to foster student engagement, which included taking a more positive approach, conversations about a skills form, and being more consequent. These results taken together indicate that it is possible for teachers to do a better job of engaging their students and that their repertoire can be expanded to include more engagement-related actions. Finally, the learning history produced offers insight into the difficulties experienced by the teams. An important limitation mentioned by all teams was that teachers found it difficult to address each other’s behavior when someone did not act as agreed upon.     

Building Expertise: a process perspective on the development or change of teachers’ beliefs

Based on a process perspective of expertise development, eight experienced teachers were interviewed about their beliefs about student learning, i.e. the way they developed their beliefs, and to what extent they have changed and intend to further change these beliefs. Learning or expertise development by teachers appears to be highly personalised or subjective, and rarely based on enhanced reflection. Primarily, dissatisfaction about the actual situation and, subsequently, attempts to improve that situation encourage teachers to develop or change their beliefs. As is the case with most teachers the change which occurs is gradually based on cumulative experiences, although also a radical change of beliefs on the basis of key‐experiences may not be excluded. It is predominantly personal motives which seem to determine teacher learning. It is argued that collaborative learning by teachers should be promoted in schools, though individually initiated learning by teachers may also had to improvements that can be implemented by colleagues.     

Reflective Classroom Practice: case studies of student teachers at work

Abstract

This paper addresses the nature of reflective classroom practice in a setting where action research has been undertaken by both the student teachers and the teaching practice supervisor. It is based on a cross‐case study of the processes through which student teachers learn to teach. Specifically, the analysis focuses on how student teachers reflect on their experiences in learning to teach. The data are based on student teachers’ reported thoughts about their learning over a period of one year. The results contribute to the understanding of reflective classroom practice by highlighting first student teachers’ perceptions about learning to teach and second their reviews on classroom practice. The discussion also adds to the literature on teacher development taken from the novice‐expert research tradition. Accordingly, implications for curriculum development in teacher education are drawn.     

Empowering Beginning Student Teachers: challenges for teacher educators

In recent years, the model of imparted learning underlying many traditional preservice—teacher programmes has given way to an emphasis on constructed learning, in which student teachers are encouraged to develop their own understanding of what it means to be a teacher. Underlying this trend is an assumption that student teachers are becoming more empowered as learners. This paper investigates that assumption. It reports on a study which used Belenky et al.’s (1986) conceptual framework to explore the epistemological perspectives of a group of first‐year early‐childhood student teachers. Although the student teachers were enrolled in a preservice programme which seeks to foster reflective practices, few could be considered empowered learners. The paper suggests that, if student teachers are to become more empowered, teacher educators may need to undertake considerable soul‐searching concerning their practice.     

The development of personal,intercultural and professional competence in international field experience in initial teacher education

This paper reports a qualitative case study of four preservice student teachers’ professional learning experiences in an international field experience programme situated in the language and cultural immersion component of a PGDE(Primary) Programme in Hong Kong. Two of the student teachers undertook the international field experience in Australia and Canada. The other two had their “non-local” field experience in mainland China1. The findings reveal student teachers' development in personal and intercultural competence in cross-cultural experiences. Their professional learning experiences in the action context, socio-professional context, and supervisory context of the cross-cultural school settings, and their reflection upon these experiences constituted the development of their professional competence. Suggestions for improvement of the international field experience programme and implications for future research are discussed.     

Facilitating Self-Study of Professional Development: Researching the Dynamics of Teacher Learning

In this study a teacher educator worked with two elementary teachers to facilitate a self-study of their learning during a professional development programme. The programme extended for 6 months and was underpinned by four learning processes—reflection, sharing, action and feedback. The two teachers documented their learning experiences and were interviewed several times during and after the study. At the end of the 6-month period, the teachers sketched and shared models of their learning and then collaborated to produce a joint model. Sue learned that she needed to start with a small change in her teaching and that her learning involved multiple factors that interacted to create change. Loraine learned that focusing on the teaching of science reminded her of childhood experiences and that it was important for her to analyse why she taught the way she did. Self-study helped the teachers to develop insights about how they learned and enabled them to better understand and manage their own professional development.     

The Role of Practicum Contexts in Enhancing Change in Student Teachers’ Professional Beliefs

This paper deals with practicum in a deviating classroom environment. The paper argues that to enhance critical examination, reflection and changes in student teachers’ beliefs and perspectives we need to offer them unfamiliar, problematic experiences causing cognitive conflict and making a break in the chain of experiences of cumulative socialisation of student teachers, dating back to their own school years.     

Positive experiences as input for reflection by student teachers

In many teacher training courses, reflection upon practice plays a very important role in learning to teach. A number of strategies have been developed to help student teachers learn to reflect. Current reflection strategies often focus on problematic instead of on positive experiences. Ideas from positive psychology and solution‐based therapy have inspired us to question whether problematic experiences should always be taken as starting point for reflection. Instead, teachers might learn even more from reflecting on positive experiences. Thus, the aim of the current study is to compare the outcomes of reflecting on difficult, problematic experiences with those of reflecting on positive experiences. We focused on three outcome areas: (1) the content of teachers’ resolutions after reflecting because decisions need to be productive, (2) their motivation to act on their decision because teachers need to implement their resolutions, and (3) the emotions they have during the process of reflection because emotions are very influential to thinking and learning. In an exploratory study, 16 student biology teachers were asked to reflect on two problematic and two positive teaching experiences and to take notes during the reflection process. Subsequently, these student teachers indicated their motivation for implementing their resolutions and they reported their emotions evoked by the reflection processes. In order to gain insight into results with respect to the three outcome areas, the content of the teachers’ resolutions was categorized, motivation scores were averaged, and emotions were scored and calculated. Our investigation showed that student teachers who reflected on positive experiences made more innovative resolutions, were more highly motivated to implement these resolutions and had more positive feelings compared to when reflecting on problematic experiences. Implications of the findings include the use of reflection methods based on positive experiences for experience‐based learning and for developing adaptive expertise in teacher education. We also present some avenues for further research.     

Active learning promoting student teachers’ professional competences in Finland and Turkey

This study investigates student teachers’ active learning experiences in teacher education (TE) in Finnish and Turkish contexts and attempts to determine how active learning methods’ impact student teachers’ professional competences. Student teachers (N = 728) assessed their active learning experiences and the professional competences they achieved during TE. Self-regulated and collaborative learning provided the theoretical framework for the active learning measurements. The professional competences included a wide range of teacher responsibilities in schools and society. The data were collected by a survey. A quantitative analysis utilising a regression analysis approach provided strong evidence that active learning has an impact on professional competences. A qualitative analysis further revealed that active knowledge creation with high engagement in learning tasks and a collaborative learning culture were important modes of active learning. While the study focused on two different TE systems, active learning was important in student teachers’ professional development in both contexts.     

The Challenge of Developing a ‘Reflective Practicum’

This paper reports on a study in which I have been involved for the last 4 years, investigating the learning of final‐year primary student teachers and their school‐based teacher educators during the practicum. It highlights specifically the findings associated with the process of reflection in which the student teachers were engaged. Three particular findings are presented and discussed in relation to: the impact of reflection on student teachers’ learning; the quality of reflection in which they engaged; and specific strategies designed to facilitate reflection. It is argued that developing a ‘reflective practicum’ presents many challenges for teacher educators, including changing how the practicum is conceptualised and structured. A further challenge arises as a result of the inevitable shift in power and control which will occur if the changes are embraced. Teacher educators will be faced with some new questions regarding the ways they work in the practicum, if developing a reflective practicum is a priority.     

Prospective teachers’ teaching experience: teacher learning through the use of video

Background: Future teachers need to observe, interpret and analyse teaching during the initial teacher education period. The use of videoed teaching and learning in teacher education promotes reflection, and analysing videos of teaching is helpful in learning effective classroom practices that prospective teachers mostly do not have the chance to observe during fieldwork experiences. The analysis of videos of teaching can be seen as a way to enhance the development of prospective teachers’ professional vision, which, in turn, improves instruction. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine prospective teachers’ reflections on video examples depicting their own teaching experiences. It aimed to create a professional development environment to facilitate the prospective teachers’ reflection on their own videos and those of their peers to improve their professional vision. Sample: This study was conducted with over 200 (in 31 groups) third-year prospective mathematics teachers in a university in Western Turkey. The student teachers, receiving training to teach first- to fourth-grade elementary school pupils, were taking a teaching methods course. Design and methods: In the first week of the semester, the student teachers, working in groups, were assigned mathematics topics to teach the elementary school pupils. During the semester, each group prepared by trying out their activities in front of other student teachers in other groups. At the end of the semester, one student teacher from each group presented a short lesson related to their mathematical topic to the elementary school pupils. This lesson was videotaped, then later it was watched and discussed by the student teachers. Of the student teachers who undertook the teaching in the videos, 22 volunteers agreed to be interviewed. All groups of student teachers provided written reflections on their experience. Selected videos of the class discussions about the videos of teaching were also used for triangulation. The data were analysed to identify the issues the prospective teachers reflected upon. A content analysis technique was employed. Results: The data indicated that the prospective teachers were able to reflect on several issues related to effective teaching, connect their theoretical knowledge to their practice and consider issues related to pupil learning and difficulties. Conclusion: The findings suggested that the use of video, together with discussions between the student teachers, had the potential to create promising learning opportunities for prospective teachers.     

Effects of communities of reflecting peers on student‐teacher development – including in‐depth case studies

Despite continuing interest in teacher reflection and an extensive body of research on peer assessment, the interaction between these areas has not been sufficiently investigated. This study on reflection and peer feedback is part of an ongoing action research addressing the design and pedagogical model of a theoretically oriented teacher training course. The course comprised face‐to‐face lessons followed by written reflections of the student‐teachers concerning their learning experiences. These reflections were presented for peer feedback – thereby initiating a community of reflecting peers (‘co‐reflection’) – and were additionally subjected to instructor feedback under two conditions (full vs. diluted). Student‐teachers’ perception of their professional development that resulted from these co‐reflecting communities were quantitatively evaluated (using a self‐reported questionnaire) over a three‐year period. An enhanced positive effect over the three‐year period was found – regardless of the instructor feedback condition – as well as significant differences between parallel groups (higher for science vs. mathematics student‐teachers). These are described in the first part of the paper, followed by an in‐depth case study analysis in the second section. The case studies reported inclusive analysis of the students’ written reflections and feedback. It provides an insight into the processes of co‐reflection, identifies changes over time in the quality of reflections and feedback, as well as in the personal, professional and social development of the student‐teachers, attempting to identify the mechanisms leading to these changes. Examples are cited to illustrate the ways in which the students developed and what activated their motivation for development. The case studies reveal two developmental models, one of external orientation and the other internal. These are characterized by a willing receiver and willing donor, respectively. The importance of a ‘maturity interval’, when the student is ‘ripe’ for developmental change, was also demonstrated. Offering an appropriate trigger at this mature point may stimulate crucial development. Teacher development is further interpreted in terms of interpersonal variables. The current paper may encourage teacher educators and student‐teachers themselves to incorporate co‐reflecting in their course planning and community planning. Ways may be designed to train student‐teachers to offer and use feedback effectively. For feedback to be valuable, it should be reinforcing, challenging, thorough and sincere, radiate faith, and be of a friendly nature – it should be non‐insulting and non‐judgemental. They may be used for in‐text as well as summary remarks.     

Secondary mathematics cooperating teachers’ perceptions of the purpose of student teaching

This article reports on the results of a survey of 45 secondary mathematics cooperating teachers’ perceptions of the primary purposes of student teaching and their roles in accomplishing those purposes. The most common purposes were interacting with an experienced, practising teacher, having a real classroom experience, and experiencing and learning about classroom management. The most common roles were providing the space for experience, modeling, facilitating reflection, and sharing knowledge. The findings provided insights into the cooperating teachers’ perceptions about both what should be learned through student teaching and how it should be learned. These findings paint a picture of cooperating teachers who do not see themselves as teacher educators—teachers of student teachers. Implications for mathematics teacher educators are discussed.     

Case‐Based Teaching: Four Experiences in Educational Software Design

Abstract

Good teaching is good story telling. Case‐based teaching exploits the basic capacity for students to learn from stories and the basic desire of teachers to tell stories that are indicative of their experiences. The premise of software that used case‐based teaching would be to place a student in a situation that the student found interesting and where the telling of a story would be appreciated. First, case‐based teachers teach the student what he or she needs to know at precisely the point of becoming interested in knowing the information. This information should be presented in the form of stories. Law schools and business schools have been teaching this way for years. They teach cases rather than rules because, by and large, they don't have rules to teach. The second critical part of learning in a case‐based environment is teaching a student to abstract from what the student has been told, and adapting it to situations for which the student was not specifically trained.

At the Institute, we have, to date, built four examples of case‐based teaching software. The programs are:

VICTOR — a voice and image courtesy tutor — built for Ameritech

DUSTIN — a language experience — built for Andersen Consulting

CREANIMATE — a biology experience‐built for schools and supported by IBM

TAXOPS — a tax opportunity advisor and cross seller — built for the Tax division of Arthur Andersen     

Student group presentations: a learning instrument in undergraduate mathematics for engineering students

In this study we created an environment for peer learning, where students teach students by making oral presentations in groups about solving mathematical problems and explaining the theoretical background in mathematics, during the first year of an undergraduate engineering programme at the Norrköping campus of the Linköping University. In order to strengthen the students’ understanding and perception of central mathematical concepts, the study was designed to take the students through five different learning experiences, preparing the presentation, presenting the mathematics, listening to others presenting, discussion by all students after the presentation and feedback by the teacher to the small group of students separate from the other students. We study how oral presentations work as a learning and assessment method. The study consisted of three stages. After a first run of the presentations as a learning instrument, three guidebooks with recommendations for students and teachers were developed in order to assist students as well as teachers about their role in this learning environment. Students’ and teachers’ views on the student presentations as learning instrument were surveyed before and after the intervention. In stage three, students were interviewed individually to ascertain the relevant success of the different learning experiences.     

Student‐teachers' Learning Outcomes during Science Subject Matter Courses

This paper is about a longitudinal study to investigate how student‐teachers developed understanding of some key ecological concepts during a teacher education programme. Another aim was to interpret the student‐teachers' intentions in respect of the programme and to examine how these intentions influenced their learning. A group of students were followed through 2.5 years of a teacher education programme. The whole student group (n = 47–60) answered a questionnaire three times. Their understanding of scientific concepts, relevant to environmental education, was examined. Fourteen students were interviewed three times about a newspaper article discussing the use of surplus heat from a crematorium. The students were also asked about expectations of the teaching programme and of learning experiences from their science courses and from school practice. It is concluded that many of the student‐teachers did not develop the conceptual understanding necessary to be able to engage with the socio‐scientific issue presented to them. It also concludes that many of the student‐teachers approach the learning of science content from the perspective of their personal notions of the tasks of a primary schoolteacher, which is significantly different from the perspectives underpinning the curriculum and the intention of teacher educators. The connection between these two conclusions is discussed.     

Before Student Teaching: How Undergraduate Students in Early Childhood Teacher Preparation Programs Describe Their Early Classroom-Based Experience

Classroom-based experiences, alternatively known as practica, are an integral component of undergraduate teacher preparation programs, which provide students essential opportunities to apply knowledge in practice. Though much is known about student teaching, much less is known about students’ earlier classroom-based experiences. This qualitative study explores how early childhood care and education students describe their early classroom-based experience. Thirty-four students enrolled in a teacher preparation program participated in interviews, submitted journals, and responded to survey questions about their early classroom-based experience. Results are presented in terms of how students talk about their experiences—belonging or not belonging in the classroom—and what students talk about when discussing their experiences, including communication, support, freedom, new learning, and “the children.” These themes are discussed in terms of students’ experiences in the classroom and implications for undergraduate teacher preparation in early childhood education.     

Learning to know,be, do,and live together with in the cross-cultural experiences of immigrant teacher educators

This study examined three Afro-Caribbean immigrant teacher educators whose learning based on reflections about their experiences with teachers in the United States revealed how they developed knowledge beyond practice in their learning to know, do, be and live together with others. The educators' learning reflected the processes of observation, reflection, awareness, requesting student feedback in the moment, and the passing of time that resulted in adjustment to their body language, changes in their expectations of students, a modification in their communication, code-switching and sensitivity. Implications based on the study for the new kind of teacher educator are subsequently addressed.