Examining the invisible loop: Tutors in large scale teacher development programmes

Abstract

The recent curriculum changes in the South African education system have necessitated the development of large scale in-service training programmes for teachers. For some teacher training providers this has resulted in utilizing the services of tutors or facilitators from the various regions to deliver the programme. This article examines the role of the part-time tutors in one such programme (designed to upgrade and retrain Mathematical Literacy (ML) teachers in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN)). The purpose of this qualitative case study was to elicit the tutors' perceptions of the learning offer in the various modules and their reflections about the ways in which their participation in the programme enhanced their professional development. The sample comprised 10 out of a total of 25 tutors. Data was generated from the tutors' detailed reflections as documented in response to questions in an open form questionnaire. The participants reported on specific areas of growth in their professional development, including a deepening of their mathematics content knowledge and pedagogic content knowledge. They were also able to provide detailed recommendations for improving the learning offer. The article concludes by calling for increased involvement by tutors in the development and implementation of these large scale teacher development programmes.     

Enhancing part-time in-service teacher training programmes to facilitate rural teacher development in China

Despite the frequent criticisms directed toward them, in-service teacher training (INSET) programmes remain one of the most commonly used approaches for enhancing teachers’ professional development. This article reports on a study that examined the effects of a part-time masters of education INSET programme based in Central China. The main source of data was reflective papers written by 38 teacher participants; classroom observations and informal interviews also helped reveal the teachers’ perspectives on the programme. Whilst the programme was very popular, and had a variety of positive impacts on the teachers’ professional development, the programme paradigm involved several drawbacks. The results suggest that part-time INSET programmes for rural teachers should be supplemented by various other forms of teacher development activities to meet the dual goals of developing such programmes and providing professional development for teachers.     

Korean EFL teachers’ perceptions of the impact of EFL teacher education upon their classroom teaching practices

This study employed qualitative data collection and analysis methods to investigate the influence of English as a foreign language teacher education programme on Korean teachers’ classroom teaching practices. Six in-service secondary-school teachers participated in semi-structured interviews. Thematic analysis was applied to the data collected from these interviews. Findings from the analysis included that: a) most of the teachers were dissatisfied with the largely theory-oriented pre-service teacher education programmes that they attended; b) a major source of influence on their teaching was their experience of in-service teacher training programmes with practical curricula; c) observation of other fellow teachers’ teaching had the strongest impact upon the teachers’ teaching practices; and d) the teachers’ low English proficiency and the washback effect of the Korea Scholastic Aptitude Test hindered the maintenance of the changes brought about by in-service teacher education programmes. This study ends with a discussion of the implications of these findings.     

Reframing Teacher In-Service Training in Kenya: Recommendations from the Literature

Following the rapid expansion of Kenya's education system from 2003, raising education standards has emerged as the country's next major nation-building challenge. There is acknowledgement within Kenya that high education standards are dependent upon the quality of its teachers, which is in turn dependent upon the quality of their pre-service training, and subsequent in-service training. However, amidst accusations that educational standards are declining, in-service training programmes in particular have been singled out as being overly bureaucratic, under resourced, poorly delivered and ineffective in helping to raise teaching standards. Further, the literature suggests that current in-service training programmes are failing to address more fundamental issues surrounding Kenyan teaching professionalism as a whole. This article examines the literature surrounding teacher in-service training in Kenya, as identified by Kenyan researchers, with the aim of synthesising and clarifying the major issues surrounding quality and delivery, and then presents policy recommendations for reframing and building effective in-service provision for the future.     

Teacher professional development and ICT: an investigation of teachers studying a postgraduate award in ICT in education

The Schools IT2000 initiative, launched in 1997, was the first large-scale attempt to integrate information and communications technology (ICT) into teaching and learning in the Irish education system. As part of this initiative a training continuum was developed with the objective of enabling teachers to progress from novice to expert users of ICT. Short-term in-service courses were offered to all post-primary teachers in the state. Third-level institutions were invited to develop professional development programmes in the area of ICT in education to advance the training continuum. This article reports on the findings of a survey of teachers who had progressed along this training continuum and had opted to study for a postgraduate award in ICT in Education. The research aimed to determine the general profile of teachers electing to study on the programme, their current use of ICT and the types of in-service education and training in ICT they had previously been exposed to.     

Exploring the Actual and Potential Rhetoric-reality Gaps in Environmental Education and their Implications for Pre-service Teacher Training

The mismatch between the advocated views of theorists and the teaching realities in school environmental education is widely recognised. There is relatively little research examining the advocated practices of teachers themselves, other than already environmentally active teachers, to indicate the nature of the 'potential' rhetoric-reality gap that might exist if all constraints were removed, and teachers had a completely free choice in designing their own environmental education programmes. This article identifies such gaps by exploring current practices and teachers' views on selected components of environmental education, across a complete teacher training partnership. This information has been used to help prioritise the content and approaches used by pre-service teachers when conducting school-based environmental activities. The investigation reveals that although most schools lack a written policy on environmental education, most have a positive attitude towards the large majority of selected components and these are usually addressed in school. Teachers are not generally compelled to deliver aspects of environmental education that they deem inappropriate. Of the 10 components not currently addressed by most of these schools, the findings suggest that five would be added if constraining factors were removed, but a further five would remain absent. The overall potential rhetoric-reality differences in this case study are thus smaller than the actual existing differences, but still fall short of some theorists' goals. Within the pre-service training programme, efforts have been concentrated on components that are: (i) currently practised in most schools; and (ii) receive a positive response from most teachers, and this has resulted in markedly improved feedback from schools and trainees alike.     

Characteristics of primary teacher training programmes on inclusion: a literature focus

Background: The implementation of inclusive education creates challenges for classroom teachers who have to meet the learning needs of students with and without special educational needs (SEN). Research has revealed that teachers’ readiness and willingness to accommodate the learning needs of students with SEN was determined by their training. Though much research on teacher training and inclusive education has been conducted over two decades, less is known about the adequacy of such training in terms of components and effectiveness.

Purpose: The purpose of this review is to present a focused analysis of: (1) studies that examined, in detail, the components of teacher training programmes for pre-service or in-service teachers in regular primary schools in terms of content, length, etc., and (2) consideration of the effectiveness of these training programmes.

Design and methods: The literature review was restricted to empirical studies published in international peer-reviewed journals after 1994 (i.e. since the Salamanca statement was signed) by using the electronic browser ‘EBSCO host Complete’. After applying the keywords ‘teacher’ and ‘educator’, they were combined with the following terms: training, disabilities, inclusion, inclusive education, impairment, special educational needs, children with special needs and disorder. The search was deliberately restricted to papers where study participants were pre-service or in-service teachers in regular primary schools, and ultimately yielded a small core of 13 studies for detailed review. The first research question was analysed in terms of the training programme’s structure and content, covering aspects such as type of disability, topic, length, medium of course delivery and learning activities. For the second research question, the effectiveness of the quantitative studies was evaluated based on the Cohen’s d effect size, whereas the qualitative studies were considered as effective based on the calculation of percentage of non-overlapping data (PND).

Conclusions: Analysis indicated that the majority of training programmes focused on attitude, knowledge and skills. The training programmes were also centred on what might be considered short-term practice and supplemented with field experiences. Although the training programmes appeared to have positive effects on teachers’ attitudes, knowledge and skills, follow-up sessions and students’ outcomes measures may increase training effectiveness.     

Changing inquiry practices and beliefs: The impact of an inquiry-based professional development programme on beginning and experienced secondary science teachers

This study explores how an inquiry-based demonstration classroom in-service programme impacted the beliefs and practices of 14 secondary science teachers. Both structured and semistructured interviews captured in-service programme participants' beliefs, while in-class observations of participants documented their instructional practices. An analysis of the data revealed that the in-service programme had an impact on the participants, but the impact varied among the six induction and eight experienced teachers: the induction teachers changed their beliefs more than their practices, whereas the experienced teachers demonstrated more change in their practices than their beliefs. Ultimately, the changing belief systems of beginning teachers may have resulted in the limited use of student-centred practices, whereas the established belief systems of experienced participants may have been conducive to studentcentred practices. On the basis of the findings of this study, implications for professional development programmes are discussed.     

Teacher education for inclusive education in the Arab world: The case of Jordan

This article examines teacher education programmes in the Arab region and the extent to which teachers are prepared to work in inclusive education settings. In the Arab world, the emerging area of inclusive education faces various challenges, among them a teaching force that is not adequately prepared to teach all children. This challenge arises partly because, without content on inclusive education, current pre-service and in-service programmes produce teachers who lack the skills to work with children with special needs in mainstream classrooms. This article focuses on teacher education in Jordan, where the problems and challenges surrounding teacher education programmes for inclusive education mirror those in other Arab countries. In Jordan, training for inclusive education is very limited at both pre-service and in-service levels, both because the idea has only recently been introduced and because of limited financial resources in the country. Still, the growing interest in adopting an inclusive education system has raised awareness about the importance of providing teachers with education that enables them to work with children with special needs in inclusive settings.     

Community-based teacher professional development in remote areas in Indonesia

The Indonesian government has been struggling to improve the quality of teachers in its public and private schools. Several programmes of teacher education and teacher certification have been designed to enhance teacher quality. However, the programmes do not yet develop effective teachers. Supporting the government programmes, the Tanoto Foundation has facilitated teacher professional development programme since 2010, specifically in elementary schools in the provinces of Riau, Jambi, and North Sumatra. This paper first describes how the Tanoto Foundation has designed and implemented its teacher quality improvement programme for in-service teachers in remote schools in Indonesia and then uses this context to examine to what extent teachers benefited from these programmes. Reported findings broaden our understanding of how teachers can improve their quality via privately sponsored programmes.     

Provision of in-service training of mathematics and science teachers in Botswana: teachers’ perspectives

Teaching is a field that is dynamic, with innovations necessitating upgrading of skills and education of teachers for the successful implementation of reforms. The behaviour and attitudes of teachers towards teaching and learning and their knowledge banks are the result of the impact of in-service training. This study investigated the perceptions of mathematics and science teachers in Botswana towards in-service provision by the Department of Mathematics and Science Education In-service Training unit (DMSE-INSET), whose mandate is to improve the quality of teaching by supporting teachers through training programmes that enable them to take ownership of their professional development. Data were collected from a sample of 42 senior Mathematics and Science secondary school teachers, using structured interviews with open-ended questions, which were analyzed qualitatively. The findings show that teachers’ concerns included the lack of impact of current in-service training programmes on the education system, no regular follow-up activities to support the one-off workshops and insufficient skills acquired to sustain the implementation of the strategies solicited by the workshops.     

Changes in Primary Teachers' Science Knowledge and Understanding During a Two Year In-service Programme

A test to assess teachers' science knowledge and understanding was developed to monitor change over two years of a primary science in-service programme in 31 schools. Two cohorts took a six-month core course on 'Developing and Assessing Investigations'. The 70 teachers' science understanding was measured by multi-choice and open-ended questions on electricity; melting, dissolving and evaporation; forces; and investigations. Three sub-scales were developed that provide good discrimination. Despite the moves to improve primary teachers' subject knowledge, many still have the typical misconceptions that have been identified in the past. Teachers also had a poor understanding of variables and their control. The analysis of the results has enabled a pattern of development to be identified. While the in-service programme enabled the majority of teachers to progress through these stages, this progress did not always take the teachers to the scientific stage. It was clear that teachers need a thorough understanding of interrelated concepts beyond the requirements of the children's National Curriculum, as without it they may develop misconceptions that might interfere with children's understanding. This indicates that in-service education needs to be sustained over a considerable length of time.     

The challenges of universal primary education in Uganda through distance education programmes

Abstract

This article reports on teacher education in Uganda, with specific reference to the role that distance education has played in upgrading the quality of education in general and in supplying more qualified teachers to meet a growing demand, specifically for teachers involved in primary education. The investigation paves the way for the establishment of the Open University of Uganda and illustrates how the Primary Education Policy of Uganda has increased access to 7 million primary school learners to schools in 2002. The article also explains how the qualifications of 10 000 in-service teachers have been upgraded between 1995 and 2000. The successes of two major in-service teacher education programmes are discussed. The article also explains how the Mubende Integrated Teacher Education Project (MITEP) not only contributed to the training of teachers, but also focused the attention of educators on the possibiliities of distance education for Uganda. Furthermore, it also argues that the Northern Integrated Teacher Education Project (NITEP) has on the other hand achieved successes in the field of inservice teacher education. The programmes assisted in the training of academic support staff who work in distance education. The article concludes by addressing the further needs of distance education in Uganda and highlights the challenges facing distance education programmes in Uganda.     

Developing emotional intelligence competence among teachers

A growing body of research has linked emotional intelligence (EI) to different life aspects, including personal well-being, quality of social relationships and professional effectiveness. In the field of education, EI has been linked to different aspects of school life, such as learning, academic achievements and pro-social behaviours among students and more recently, to effective teaching. The paper reports the qualitative findings of a comprehensive research project which followed a two-year emotional intelligence development programme, as part of teacher-targeted professional development training in one school in Israel. Data is based on 26 in-depth interviews with school teachers. The focus of the study was to explore what impacts an EI training programme might have upon the participants. The findings indicate that EI can be developed in teachers and that the EI training programmes may be effective in bringing about positive EI shifts and related behaviours which may positively impact upon teachers' practice, their sense of meaningfulness and their relations with students.     

Teaching profession career ladder programme in Turkey: implementation,outcomes and challenges

Turkey has implemented various programmes to increase the quality of in-service training for K–12 teachers with varying success. One of the most recent state-wide implementations of these programmes is the Teaching Profession Career Ladder Programme (TPCLP) that was put into practice in 2005. This study investigates teachers’ views related to the implementation of the TPCLP. A detailed account of the application process and teachers’ views towards the implementation will generate suggestions to raise the effectiveness of the implementation. Data were collected through semi-structured in-depth interviews. Analysis of data revealed that teachers hold direct intensive criticism towards many criteria of the TPCLP, particularly the examination. Furthermore, they have mixed perspectives as to whether the programme is effective. This study shows that career ladder implementation failed to contribute to continuous professional development of teachers and the quality of the education process in K–12 schools.     

In-service training programmes for mathematics teachers nested in transnational policy discourses

Results in mathematics on international knowledge surveys like Programme for International Student Assessment and Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study have become one of the most important factors for the perceived success or failure of schools and even entire education systems in the policy arena. In this article, we explore the complex recontextualising processes that occur when translating educational policy into actual programmes for teachers’ education. First, the transnational education policy discourse(s) of teachers’ in-service training with a focus on mathematics will be explored. Second, we examine how this transnational discourse is recontextualised in a national policy discourse resulting in a national reform programme for in-service training of mathematics teachers in Sweden. In a third step, concrete teacher training courses in mathematics are examined. The result shows a convergence between the official policy discourse and the pedagogic recontextualising field in terms of a broad teaching repertoire and peer discussions about reflections on certain common objects of learning.     

Evaluating a Special Education Training Programme in Nicaragua

This study examined a two-year special education and inclusive practices in-service training programme with a university in Nicaragua. Participants included 14 teachers from nine schools in Nicaragua. Participants’ knowledge of special education concepts were evaluated as part of assessing the training modules. In addition, programme evaluation information were collected. Results from the knowledge pre-and post-test indicated that participants made significant gains in their special education knowledge and the module evaluation forms indicate participants were highly satisfied with the project. Recommendations for planning and implementing a future training programme are also provided.