Looking at Learning as Preparation for Teaching

One of the more heated and consequential debates in teacher education today concerns the instructional methods used in preparation programs and the knowledge and skills that teacher candidates should acquire. In this study, I examine looking at learning as a pedagogical approach to transition teacher candidates from the technical conceptions of teaching that they bring to the field toward a conception that more closely aligns with the research on how people learn for understanding (National Research Council 2000, 2005). Data are taken from responses given by teacher candidates to a writing prompt administered at the course outset and field reports they submitted following field assignments that required them to detail moments of learning as they presented volunteer learners with materials they selected to spark their curiosity and elicit exploration. The approach is an application of Duckworth’s critical exploration methodology (2006) in the field of teacher education and responds to the call of leaders in the field of teacher education to articulate a “pedagogy of teacher education” that is grounded in theory (Grossman, 2005) and reflects the nature of teaching for understanding itself (Loughran, 2006).     

Purposeful Tensions: Lessons Learned from Metaphors in Teacher Candidates' Digital Stories

This collective case study examines how two teacher candidates' digital story projects created in literacy methods courses made visible their negotiated and evolving visions of teaching and learning. The digital stories were created to show and describe their future literacy classrooms. Using metaphoric analysis, the researchers uncovered the implicit metaphors of teachers and students present in each of the teacher candidates' digital stories. Looking across these metaphors, tensions and alignments between how the teacher candidates envisioned the role of teacher and the role of student and how these relate to prominent models of education including Industrial and Inquiry models are apparent. Implications for practice include modifications made to literacy methods courses to support teacher candidates to begin the negotiation of their professional identities as they explore multiple experiences of teaching and learning. These modifications include: (a) prompting teacher candidates to see themselves as readers, writers, and inquirers; (b) modeling and experiencing inquiry in teacher education coursework; and (c) providing opportunities for teacher candidates to experience purposeful tensions within their teacher education classes.     

Building awareness of dispositions: enhancing moral sensibilities in teaching

The purpose of this paper is to explain why and how dispositions can operate as a mechanism for enhancing teacher candidates’ moral sensibilities. Dispositions conjoin the knowledge and skills of teaching with the commitments one has to achieve intended purposes. Dispositions build candidates’ awareness of their own perceptions (and misperceptions) and how they can best connect their intentions with their practice, given their perception of the specific teaching situation. Teacher education programs foster candidates’ moral sensibilities when they help candidates connect their intention with their perception and with their practice. After exploring a conceptual rationale, three teacher candidates’ case study analyses are presented, illustrating a window into candidates’ inclinations toward particular behaviors and their awareness, or lack of awareness, into how they perceive teaching situations and connect their intention and practice.     

Exploring the Structure and Benefits of an Integrated Yearlong Dual Certification Student Teaching Internship

Abstract

Many teacher preparation programs offering dual certification have engaged in program redesign to establish greater integration between general education and special education. This article presents findings from an exploratory case study that examined the perspectives of former preservice teacher candidates and school personnel regarding an integrated yearlong dual certification internship. Findings indicated research participants (a) placed value on the breadth and authenticity of the experience; (b) built deep relationships with students and staff that contributed to building confidence; and (c) felt the structure and impact of the model yielded positive outcomes for both the school and for preservice teacher candidates. Implications for practice include suggestions for how teacher preparation programs might move toward integrated models of dual certification teacher preparation and explore the importance of clinically rich partnerships that benefit both preservice teacher candidates and field sites.     

Developing preservice teachers’ sensitivity and confidence: a service-learning experience at a homeless shelter

ABSTRACT

This article describes how early childhood preservice teachers can develop sensitivity toward and confidence in working with children who are homeless through a service learning project. The 14 weeks intervention provided an opportunity for undergraduate early childhood teacher candidates to gain real-life experience working with among the most vulnerable of all children—those who are homeless. Results of this project suggest that through implementing art integrated literacy activities with children in a homeless shelter, teacher candidates alter their deficit views of homelessness and at the same time develop confidence in their ability to work with homeless children and their families.     

Capturing the Transformation and Dynamic Nature of an Elementary Teacher Candidate’s Identity Development as a Teacher of Science

This study examines the transformation and dynamic nature of one teacher candidate’s (Susan) identity as a learner and teacher of science throughout an innovative science methods course. The goal of this paper is to use theoretically derived themes grounded in cultural-historical activity theory (CHAT) and situated learning theory to determine the ways in which Susan’s identity as a learner and teacher of science was influenced by her experiences in the course, and to describe how she made meaning of her transformative process. The following are the three theoretical themes: (1) learning contributes to identity development, (2) identity development is a dialogical process that occurs between individuals, not within individuals, and (3) social practice leads to transformations and transformations lead to the creation of new social practices. Within each theme, specific experiences in the science methods course are identified that influenced Susan’s identity development as a teacher of science. Knowing how context and experiences influence identity development can inform design decisions concerning teacher education programs, courses, and experiences for candidates.     

Designing for Critical,Relational, Practice-Immersed Teacher Preparation: Weaving Threads into Tapestry in a Critical Project-Based Literacy Partnership

As teacher educators located in K–12 and university contexts, we had experienced the often-highlighted disconnections between university teacher education and preservice apprenticeships in schools. Thus, calls for innovations in preparation programs aimed at deeper immersion in practice spoke to our desires to move literacy methods preparation into schools in ways that allowed teacher candidates, children, classroom teachers, and university instructors to be together in practice. A central goal of our work was to use our partnership as a path toward deeply intertwining practices of literacy teaching with critical lenses and pedagogies centered on justice. In this article, we situate our partnership in the landscape of research on practice-based teacher preparation and critical scholarship in teacher education. We describe our partnership, including its layers of contexts, relationships, and opportunities for critical, mediated practice, and our methods of studying our work over time. Our findings illustrate how the design of our partnership has afforded opportunities to (a) trace how critical ideas and practices thread across contexts of participants’ learning and (b) critically reframe problematic language, policies, and practices with novice teachers. We end by highlighting implications of our work for others invested in critical project-based partnerships.     

Methods that matter in addressing cultural diversity with teacher candidates

Drawing on a combination of prior experience, theoretical stance, and intuition, along with pedagogical practices identified to be effective in addressing diversity with teacher candidates, a model for teaching multicultural education to teacher candidates was designed. This study examined how particular elements of this model were effective in developing teacher candidate’s cultural competence. The results indicate that teacher candidates gained substantial knowledge about and experiences with issues of diversity by the end of the course. Participants pointed to the multiple methods employed in the class; in particular the interactive strategies, group work, diverse cultural experiences, and opportunities to critically reflect on these experiences as accounting for their gains. Their sense of ownership and understanding has given them the ability to use these strategies in their own future work. Implications for research and teacher education are discussed.     

Integrating Differentiation in English Education Methods Courses: Learning from the Perceptions and Experiences of Teacher Candidates

The practice of inclusion as a response to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act means that English teachers teach students who demonstrate a wide range of abilities in the same classroom. This qualitative study explored the developing attitudes toward differentiation of English education teacher candidates participating in a methods course cotaught by an English education professor and a special education professor. Findings revealed that their pedagogical beliefs were influenced by having knowledge of individual students, proactively engaging with professional concepts, and attending to students' affective needs in academic contexts. The teacher candidates in this study were able to discuss differentiation, but they struggled to implement it in practice; therefore, we argue that instruction on differentiation must be explicitly integrated into English methods courses. Using cognitive flexibility theory, we suggest ways teacher educators can help future teachers develop advanced knowledge of differentiation to meet the needs of their future students.     

Online and blended learning approach on instructional multimedia development courses in teacher education

In this study, an e-learning environment was designed for teacher candidates. Teacher candidates developed multimedia-based projects by means of multimedia tools. This research aims to determine the effects of online and blended learning approaches on the success level of multimedia projects and the teacher candidates' attitudes, opinions and perceptions on e-learning. This study used a combination of qualitative and quantitative methods. There were two different groups in the study: online and blended groups. The online and the blended groups consisted of 30 and 32 teacher candidates, respectively. Teacher candidates in the blended group developed multimedia-based projects and shared information communicating in a WiziQ and Facebook environment with their peers and instructors when they were not at school. On the other hand, the teacher candidates in the online group communicated with their instructors and peers only in a WiziQ and Facebook environment. The results showed that the blended learning approach was more effective than the online learning approach. The usability of online learning and blended learning in higher education is addressed in recommendations for future research and practice.     

Professional portfolios: The “talk” of the student teaching experience

Professional dispositions are an important component in teacher education programs. Therefore, it is important that teacher education candidates and teacher educators agree on what dispositions mean, understand how dispositions will be assessed, and agree on how they are portrayed. This study compared dispositional self-assessments from 248 undergraduate elementary education and special education candidates with their instructors over five semesters. Overall, results indicated that candidates and instructors shared similar perceptions. Specifically, candidates and instructors agreed that candidates were frequently tardy to class and submitted written work that did not meet program standards. However, candidates acknowledged displaying off-task behaviors during class that were not noted by faculty. Implications for teacher educators based on the data are included.     

Carrying the Message of Counter-Hegemonic Practice: Teacher Candidates as Agents of Change

In an effort to support future teachers in their work toward enacting (and not just espousing) counter-hegemonic, social justice concepts, this research describes a course assignment that required teacher candidates (N = 134) to identify an issue related to power and/or privilege with which they personally grapple, and to then construct a professional workshop intended to work toward deepening their own understandings and the understandings of the participants in the workshop. With an emphasis on risk-taking and decentering their own authority, the teacher candidates in this study created critical workshops intended to reduce oppression (at the personal or institutional level), addressing topics across a broad spectrum of inequities. The findings from this research suggest that, given a supportive and collaborative forum, teacher candidates may be equipped to challenge hegemonic ideas and emerge as leaders in a new era of social justice.     

Supervising the Teacher Education Practicum: A Self-Study with a Critical Friend

ABSTRACT

If the practicum is the most valued element of a teacher education program, how good is each teacher candidate’s learning and how well is it supported by the university supervisor? While most self-studies of teacher education practices focus on practices in the university classroom, this article reports an analysis of a supervisor’s practices, with special attention to underlying assumptions of the supervisor. Data permitted identification of patterns in the supervisor’s pedagogy and in teacher candidates’ responses to that pedagogy. The supervisor’s underlying assumptions and the contribution of conversations with a critical friend were identified. A table was constructed to contrast the assumptions in two stances toward supervision, one characterized as transmission and the other as interpretation. Conclusions emphasize the importance of listening to each candidate’s voice and including a metacognitive element in a supervisory conversation after a lesson observation.     

Examining the Challenges Early Childhood Teacher Candidates Face in Figuring Their Roles as Early Educators

Federal, state, and local policy makers' high-stakes standards-based accountability reforms are transforming the early childhood teacher education process. These reforms affect how early education teacher candidates figure their role as teachers. By employing Holland, Lachicotte, Skinner, and Cain's conception of figured worlds to analyze the findings of a qualitative case study, this article examines how three early childhood teacher candidates' figured conceptions of themselves as early educators evolve in high-stakes classrooms and teacher education environments. It also investigates how these candidates see themselves addressing these reforms in their own classrooms. Such a study not only further details the impact reforms have on preservice teachers' conceptions of teaching, but it also provides a chance for early childhood teacher educators to consider strategies they might employ to assist their candidates in developing a figured conception of teaching that addresses these reforms in an developmentally appropriate manner.     

Water can be messy, but that’s OK: reflections on preparing elementary teachers to teach science

Building on Christina Siry and Johaira Lara’s account of one teacher’s (Johaira’s) identity formation, we describe how our own experiences with elementary teacher candidates inform, and are informed by, this account. Chris and Johaira provide a lens that helps us consider how experiences in elementary science teacher preparation courses and in elementary classrooms impact the development of a teacher candidate’s identity as a teacher. The course taught by Chris was one in which teacher candidates encountered uncertainty and ambiguity in the teaching process. While uncertainty and ambiguity can be uncomfortable, we suggest that uncertainty and ambiguity can help teacher candidates view science teaching as a process of continuous inquiry. Concomitantly, working within a context marked by ambiguity and uncertainty can prompt teacher candidates to confront—and possibly transform—their own assumptions about students and science. We suggest that the account by Chris and Johaira illustrates the importance of providing teacher candidates with a set of experiences and theoretical tools to assist them in conceptualizing the possibilities of practice as they construct their identities as teachers.     

Using Online Education to Transition Teaching Assistants to Teacher Certification: Examining the Differences Between Teacher Education Programs

Elementary education teacher candidates who studied under two delivery methods—online and face to face—were compared to determine if there was a significant difference in professional knowledge and skills using Praxis II test scores. The participants included 60 teaching assistant program (TAP) online candidates and 564 face-to-face candidates. The two groups’ perceptions of self-efficacy were also compared. Results indicated a significant difference in professional knowledge based on Praxis II test scores and no significant difference in perceptions of self-efficacy. Although both groups felt confident in their teaching abilities, the traditional candidates outperformed TAP candidates on Praxis II. However, in the ancillary findings of this study, 41.6% of traditional candidates were admitted to the teacher education program with a Praxis I exemption, whereas only 23.4% of TAP candidates were exempt from the requirement. This suggests that traditional candidates entered the program at a more advanced level than the TAP candidates, possibly explaining the significant difference in the finding of the Praxis II test scores.     

Prioritising classroom community and organisation in physical education teacher education

This research investigates how teacher candidates in a primary physical education curriculum and methods course learned about and were influenced by efforts to emphasise classroom community and organisation. Qualitative data in the form of interviews, focus groups, and course artefacts were gathered from nine participants throughout one academic term. Analysis of data suggested that most teacher candidates came to recognise pedagogies that fostered a sense of community; however, only a few were able to connect this to their developing visions for teaching. Despite this, all participants came to view the development of a sense of community as one of the most important aspects of their evolving teaching practice.     

Unpacking teacher candidates’ decision-making and justifications in dilemmatic spaces during the student teaching year

Learning to teach is a complex process that hinges on teacher candidates’ personal experiences, values, beliefs and characteristics, as well as the contexts they are exposed to. Student teaching as a transitional period may create dilemmas for teacher candidates, who are new to the profession and still learning about what it means to be a teacher. Thus, this study examined the dilemmas experienced by a group of Taiwanese teacher candidates during the student teaching phase. Using the framework of dilemmatic spaces, we identified the sources of their dilemmas and the decisions they made towards the dilemmatic situations and further examined how they justified their decisions. Our findings suggest that conflicting ideologies and teacher candidates’ identities as student teachers are the main sources of their dilemmas. In response to the dilemmas, teacher candidates showed different decision-making trajectories that revealed the different actions and justifications they took within the dilemmatic space.     

Understanding Teacher Candidate Misconceptions and Concerns about Differentiated Instruction

While teacher education programs are expected to teach effective methods of differentiating instruction, limited research to date has examined the meaning-making processes through which candidates build an understanding of this complex philosophy of teaching and learning. Drawing upon activity theory, this interpretive qualitative study examined how candidates’ understandings of differentiation's conceptual and practical tools—and their concerns about its implementation–changed as they encountered accurate, in-depth information about the model in a course on differentiation. Data sources included interviews, assignments, and observations. Findings suggested candidates entered the course with common misconceptions about differentiation's conceptual tools. Although many candidates originally conceptualized differentiation as a set of practical tools, they later viewed it as a conceptual framework that guides practice. As candidates appropriated practical tools of differentiation, common concerns about implementing differentiation diminished. Implications include questions teacher educators who teach candidates about differentiation should pose to guide their own instruction.