Why do they want to teach? The multiple reasons of different groups of students for undertaking teacher education

In times of teacher shortage, well-considered, goal-oriented teacher recruitment is important. An understanding of the reasons why different groups of students undertake teacher training would be useful in developing targeted campaigns. Against this background, the research question is as follows: what are the motivations prompting students to enter primary teacher training and do these motivations vary according to student characteristics? A questionnaire based on the reasons and expectations included in the Learning and Studying Questionnaire was administered during a compulsory course. Participants were 1,805 pre-service primary education teachers starting their first year of study at 14 different schools in Flanders (Belgium). Results show that students mainly undertake teacher training for intrinsic and altruistic reasons such as developing skills and knowledge that will be useful in their future teaching career, attending interesting and well-taught courses, gaining an understanding of the subject and helping children and making a difference in the world. In addition, students also take into account extrinsic factors such as good working conditions, long holidays and the ability to balance work and family responsibilities. Significant differences in motivation were found to be related to student characteristics such as gender, age, educational background and self-reported academic achievement, suggesting that teacher recruitment could benefit from population-specific approaches aimed at increasing the attractiveness of teaching and teacher training.     

The teacher as a ‘colony’: a case study of agentive responses to ‘colonising’ education policy in Vietnam

Neo-liberal educational policies that are being implemented globally work to foster competition among schools and teachers, as well as among children. In this situation, teachers must often come to accept the dominant representations of curricular policy developed by higher authorities. In this study, a case study design is used to describe how one school in Vietnam shifted away from this state of ‘colonisation’ by reforming the school under the framework of lesson study for learning community (LSLC). This paper subsequently argues that there is a need for school-level policies that democratise school culture and practices, resisting the negative impacts of colonising policies.     

The teacher educator’s role as enacted and experienced in school-based development

ABSTRACT

This article focuses on teacher educators’ role and how it was enacted and experienced by teachers and leaders in a school-based development project. The arena for the teachers’ professional development was the school, and teacher educators at one teacher-education institution and three schools took part in the research. Teacher educators, teachers and school leaders were interviewed two years and two months after they formally took part in the project, for one year in a pilot program and afterward for three semesters. The findings show that the teacher educators enacted their roles differently, and that they realise that they should have collaborated more and coordinated their experiences from collaborations with teachers and leaders to learn from their experiences in school. The leaders and teachers were satisfied with the teacher educators’ lectures, but the teachers wanted more dialogue with teacher educators and felt that teacher educators should have helped them transform their knowledge into teaching actions in practice. Teacher educators taking part as supporters in teachers’ practice truly could infiltrate instruction and learning. The study demonstrates that culture, structure and content need to be coordinated to enhance school-based development.     

Assessing the Practicum in teacher education – Do we want candidates and mentors to agree?

One of the most important components of teacher education is the practical part, the Practicum, and assessment of the candidates’ performance plays a major part in forming the future generation of teachers. Little is known about the extent of agreement between the two main actors in the Practicum, the candidates and the school-based teacher educators. The aim of this paper is to add information about a rather blurred area of assessment in teacher education. The findings indicate there is a considerably extent of disagreement about assessment in the Practicum between the mentors and the candidates. It is suggested that instead of seeing the disagreements merely as obstacles to valid assessment, they can be exploited to initiate professional learning for the candidates.     

Unit 9 Do you want to go to a movie?

Ⅰ.根据图片写出相应的单词。1.This is a p of mylittle sister.2.Jack’s brother is a goods.He studieshard(努力).3.ThisisTom’s g,he isveryo.4.Look!Who is thisb?He is verylovely(可爱).5.Mr Monkey likes aand he wants to be anartist(艺术家).6.John doesn’t like thismovie.He thinks it iss.7.The two p lookthe same(看起来一样).8.My father is a Cteacher.Ⅱ.按要求写出下列单词。1.interesting(反义词)2.comedy(复数)3.knife(复数)4.singular(反义词)5.they(反身代词)6.Chinese(复数)7.he(宾格)8.twelve(序数词)…     

From splendid isolation to crossed boundaries? The futures of teacher education in the light of activity theory

Many policy documents addressing the future of teacher education do not take into account the fundamental unpredictability of the future, nor the opposing forces that will try to influence that future. Through the analysis of 48 scenario documents on the future of education or teacher education, we identified a set of unpredictable key factors that have to be taken into account when addressing the future of teacher education. We also identified four main futures that may lie ahead for teacher education. We analyzed these four scenarios using the concepts of activity systems, boundary objects, and boundary crossing. This revealed that the extent to which activity systems are open to boundary crossing and are willing to remove institutional boundaries will largely define the future that lies ahead for teacher education. Future scenarios in themselves can play a role as boundary objects that facilitate the dialogue and boundary crossing between these activity systems.     

A vigilante serial killer as ethics educator? An exploration of Dexter as a tool for moral education in the professional domain

This study aims to inform the discussion over the proposed merit of morally ambiguous dramas as a tool in moral education in the professional domain, by providing insight into student groups’ moral evaluations of Dexter. In-depth interviews (N = 61) were conducted among a diverse sample of law and (developmental) psychology students. The results demonstrate differences in moral evaluations, according to the degree of ‘professional’ experience. Remarkably, law students follow the unlawful reasoning of vigilante killer Dexter instead of their own moral make-up; yet slowly develop a professional, strict procedural, point-of-view during their education. Conversely (developmental) psychology students ground moral evaluations instantly in professionalism, but proceed from an idealistic to a more realistic and nuanced point-of-view. To fully reach its potential as a launch pad for discussing professional predicaments, we recommend that Dexter is incorporated later in the curriculum after both student groups have had more experience in the field.     

The activities of a school‐based teacher educator: a theoretical and empirical exploration

Teacher education all over Europe is increasingly becoming school‐based oriented. This implies new roles for those who support student teachers learning in school. This article describes the way four school‐based teacher educators fulfill their role as educators of student teachers who learn how to teach while participating in the workplace. Based on theoretical notions derived from the literature on teacher education and workplace learning, the Cognitive Apprenticeship Model was specified and used in a case study as a framework to describe the activity of these school‐based teacher educators. They use tools (e.g., apprenticeship assignments) developed within the teacher education institute and rely on their professional knowledge as experienced schoolteachers. This results in student teachers being provided with useful tricks which, however, hardly helps them to interpret and elaborate their experiences from a more conceptual or theoretical perspective. Also the possibilities of the social context of the school as a learning environment are not systematically used.     

The public face of teacher identity—narrative construction of teacher identity in public policy documents

Youth ‘at risk’ is the currently favoured label used in Australian policy for youth whose educational outcomes are considered too low, with an emphasis on the risk of not completing senior secondary education. Although some research has identified factors contributing to this risk as stemming from complex interactions between individual and family circumstances as well as characteristics of schools and society, policy identification of youth ‘at risk’ has tended to simplistically focus on personal attributes of young people. Moreover, this identification has set up a false distinction between a supposed problematic minority versus a ‘normal’ majority. Thus, the dominant conceptualization of youth ‘at risk’ draws attention to what is wrong with these youth, rather than to what may be wrong with schooling. This paper examines both empirical observations and discursive conceptualizations to critique the ‘youth at risk’ label, and proposes use of the concept of ‘marginalized students’ instead, which identifies individuals not through their personal characteristics but through their relationship with schooling. This approach allows recognition that marginalization is at least in part a product of schools and society, and requires action in those arenas.     

Who makes higher education graduates ready for work? The case of teacher education in Slovenia

This paper starts by focusing on the problem of students' transition to working life in the domain of teacher education. Second, it problematises the teacher educator concept. Particular attention is paid to the question of which professionals regard themselves as teacher educators, and why. Third, it presents young teachers' acquisition of working experience and their transition from education to work in Slovenia as linked to three processes: practical and developmental work in schools during studies, traineeship period, and continuous professional learning. The general findings indicate that teacher education, training and professional development are all characterised by a sharp division between the role of academics (transmitters of theory), and senior teachers (facilitators of teachers' practical experiences). In our findings we demonstrate that young graduates lack a well-considered and integrated acquisition of practical experience as they move from education to the labour market. The paper is concluded with a call for better understanding the role of academics in preparing graduates for the world of work.     

The rise and fall of comparative education in teacher training; should it rise again as comparative pedagogy?

It is argued in this paper that comparative pedagogy has a useful and relevant role to play in initial teacher training in England. The paper illustrates the national decline in the provision of a comparative dimension in both the study of education and in teacher training with a historical review of curricula in institutes in the Bristol area. Reasons for the decline are explored. Arguments are put forward to support the inclusion of comparative pedagogy in initial teacher training. It is held that comparative pedagogy is relevant to teachers whose careers may take them into pluricultural classrooms or across national boundaries, as well as teachers whose careers may be limited to monocultural classrooms. An empirical study is included, which explores the positive impact of comparative pedagogy on a small group of postgraduate primary English teacher trainees with a specialism in French. Their experience suggests that comparative pedagogy can give all trainee teachers a deeper understanding of pedagogy in general.     

How to capture growth? – Video narratives as an instrument for assessment in teacher education

Portfolios are widely used as instruments for assessment in initial teacher education courses. They are claimed to present a comprehensive picture of student teachers' knowledge and performance. But what type of evidence is needed to safely say that an aspiring teacher has not only grasped essential notions and concepts from the teacher education course, but is also able to implement them in real world classroom situations? This paper reports on the design process of one portfolio assignment that has been developed specifically to capture students' classroom performance and development in their portfolio. Data from the portfolio entries of one student from a small-scale pilot conducted with the assignment are analyzed in detail followed by a discussion of the implications of the case study.     

Teacher competencies as a basis for teacher education – Views of Serbian teachers and teacher educators

Around the world reforms in teacher education have been oriented towards making the preparation of teachers more functional for development of competencies they need in practice. At the same time, much criticism has been voiced about such reforms jeopardising the fundamental humanist traditions in teaching, based on beliefs about non-instrumental values of education. In this study we examine teachers' perceptions of importance of competencies and explore their implications for teacher education. The study has been designed to ensure that voices of teachers and teacher educators are heard in identification of areas of expertise that make up a competent teacher. We conducted a principal component analysis of the response of 370 teachers and teacher educators in Serbia to a questionnaire about the importance of a number of aspects of teacher competence. We identified four components underling teachers' perceptions of competencies relating to 1) values and child-rearing; 2) understanding of the education system and contribution to its development; 3) subject knowledge, pedagogy and curriculum; and 4) self-evaluation and professional development. Teachers perceived all but the second area of competence as very important, with the fourth scale perceived as of the highest importance. Implications of each area of competence for teacher education are discussed and conclusions are drawn for the development of teacher education curricula.     

The role of teacher and faculty trust in forming teachers' job satisfaction: Do years of experience make a difference?

This study relates trust at the level of both the teacher and the faculty to teachers' job satisfaction. Teaching experience is explored as a moderator of the trust–satisfaction relationship. Multilevel analyses on data of 2091 teachers across 80 secondary schools in Flanders (Belgium) revealed positive associations between teacher trust in students, parents, colleagues, and the principal and satisfaction. Although faculty trust did not affect job satisfaction and teaching experience did not moderate the trust–satisfaction relationship, our findings highlight the social dimension of teaching. Improving the quality of teachers' social relationships in the workplace should enhance their job satisfaction.     

Who expects to become a teacher? The role of educational accountability policies in international perspective

In this study, I examine between-country differences in students' expectations of becoming teachers. I use data from 365,298 students from 50 countries participating in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2015. The results reveal that high-achieving students in countries that implement test-based educational accountability policies are less likely to expect to work as teachers than students in systems that do not use such policies. This suggests that test-based accountability policies may discourage highly skilled candidates from entering the teaching profession and these policies may act as barriers to attracting high-quality teacher candidates.