An exploratory study of pre-service middle school teachers’ knowledge of algebraic thinking

Using algebraic habits of mind as a framework, and focusing on thinking about functions and how they work, we examined the relationship between 18 pre-service middle school teachers’ ability to use the features of the algebraic thinking (AT) habit of mind “Building Rules to Represent Functions” and their ability to recognize and interpret the features of the same AT habit of mind in middle school students. We assessed the pre-service teachers’ own ability to use the AT habit of mind Building Rules to Represent Functions by examining their solutions to algebra-based tasks in a semester-long mathematics content course. We assessed the pre-service teachers’ ability to recognize and interpret students’ facility with the AT habit of mind Building Rules to Represent Functions by analyzing their interpretations of students’ written solutions to algebra-based tasks and their ability to plan and analyze AT interviews of middle school students during a concurrent field-based education course. The data revealed that the pre-service teachers had a limited ability to recognize the full richness of algebra-based tasks’ potential to elicit the features of Building Rules to Represent Functions in students. The pre-service teachers’ own overall AT ability to Build Rules to Represent Functions was related to their ability to recognize the overall ability of students to Build Rules to Represent Functions, as exhibited during one-on-one interviews, but not to their ability to recognize the overall ability to Build Rules to Represent Functions exhibited exclusively in students’ written work. Implications for mathematics teacher education are discussed.     

Do they learn differently? An investigation of the pre-service teachers from US and China

Based on the hypothesis that learning preferences tend to vary over cultures, this study compared and contrasted the learning approaches and learning styles between Chinese and American pre-service teachers in an attempt to know more about the learning/teaching landscapes in these two countries as “teachers teach the way they learned” [Dunn, R., & Dunn, K. (1979). Learning styles/teaching styles: Should they...can they...be matched? Educational Leadership, 36, 243, 238–244]. The results showed significant differences between the two groups in deep and surface-learning approaches as well as kinesthetic and visual learning styles. The underlying cultural backgrounds and social–economic factors accounting for the differences were discussed and the implications for teaching and learning enhancement in teacher education were explored.     

Is the world their oyster? The global imagination of pre-service teachers

This paper reports on a qualitative interview study with eleven pre-service primary teachers in Queensland about their career plans, exploring whether, and how, a global imagination motivates this next generation of teachers. The study is framed within sociological theory of globalisation, with regard to the growing possibilities for international mobility for work purposes, and the new life circumstances that make this imaginable. Teaching as a profession has changed and teachers are no longer as entangled with specific systems or geographical locations anymore. International recruitment campaigns are shown to pursue pre-service teachers during their university preparation. The analysis of the interview data reveals the kind of impact these possibilities make on how pre-service teachers imagine their career, and what other considerations enhance or limit their global imagination. The findings are used to reflect on the highly localised governance of pre-service teacher preparation and the limited State-bound imaginaries to which these pre-service teachers are unnecessarily confined in their preparation.     

Course quality in higher education teacher training: What matters for pre-service physics teachers’ content knowledge development?

This study examines the impact of course quality on pre-service physics teachers’ content knowledge (CK) development. Teachers’ CK is one prerequisite to effective teaching. To support teachers in developing CK, the quality of higher education content courses plays a major role. Yet, models of course quality for higher education vary in their dimensions and it is hence not clear how course quality is best conceptualized. To address this issue, we analyzed data from N = 107 pre-service physics teachers’ CK over one year. We used confirmatory factor analysis to determine the number and nature of dimensions for course quality. Next, we used path models to investigate the impact on CK development. Our results show that a four-dimensional model described CK course quality best and that the cognitive support dimension in particular supports CK development. This highlights the importance of focusing on cognitive support for improving pre-service physics teachers’ CK development.     

How emotionally intelligent are pre-service teachers?

Although there is evidence that teacher emotional intelligence is important for pupil adjustment and learning and for teachers in managing the emotional demands of their work, little is known about the levels of emotional skill of teachers and beginning teachers. Using Mayer and Salovey's emotional intelligence (EI) model and the MSCEIT test of EI, this study investigates how emotionally skilled student teachers are (N = 352). Results show lower than average levels of EI among student teachers, but with important differences between students and across emotional skill areas. The implications of the findings for pre-service teacher education are explored.     

Assessing pre-service teachers’ skills for analyzing teaching

This study investigated the learning-from-practice skills that pre-service teachers possess when they enter teacher preparation programs in the United States. Two subskills were hypothesized to represent, at least in part, what is required to learn from practice: (1) the ability to collect evidence about students’ learning in order to analyze the effects of instruction, and (2) the ability to use the analysis to revise the instruction. Because it seems likely that different teaching situations and contexts reveal these learning-from-practice skills in different ways and to different degrees, this study examined the skills that pre-service teachers exhibited under two experimental conditions. Thirty pre-service teachers were asked to analyze the effects of a videotaped mathematics lesson on student learning, to support their analysis with evidence, and to use their analysis to revise the lesson. Based on the results, it appears that many entry level pre-service teachers can carry out a cause-effect type of analysis of the relationships between specific instructional strategies and students’ learning, and can use this analysis to make productive revisions to the instruction. However, prospective teachers’ ability to collect evidence that supports their analysis appears to be less developed. In addition, the type of analysis that prospective teachers carried out about the effects of instruction on students’ learning differed dramatically across the two experimental task conditions.Preparation of this article was supported by the National Science Foundation (Grant #0083429 to the Mid-Atlantic Center for Teaching and Learning Mathematics). The opinions expressed in the article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the Foundation. Thanks to James Hiebert for his comments on earlier drafts of the paper.     

Predicting pre-service teachers’ preparedness for inclusive education: Bangladeshi pre-service teachers’ attitudes and perceived teaching-efficacy for inclusive education

This study reports on the second phase of a larger study, which investigated the preparedness of pre-service teachers to teach in inclusive classrooms in Bangladesh. Phase 1 employed two standardised scales that were used with 1623 pre-service teachers from 16 teacher education institutions to measure their attitudes and perceived teaching-efficacy for inclusive education. The findings of Phase 1 indicated that the level and length of training, along with gender, influenced both teacher attitudes and teaching-efficacy. In Phase 2, semi-structured interviews with six administrative heads of the pre-service teacher education institutions were conducted in order to better understand these findings. Outcomes of Phase 2 indicated that curriculum, teacher-related and a number of contextual variables may explain the differences in the findings of this study that were in sharp contrast to those from previous international research. Recommendations for policy and curriculum reform for pre-service teacher education are also made.     

Which difficulties and resources do vocational teachers perceive? An exploratory study setting the stage for investigating teachers’ resilience in Switzerland

ABSTRACT

Based on an ecological view of teacher resilience, the paper investigates perceived difficulties and resources among vocational education and training (VET) teachers as a first step for investigating teachers’ resilience. Given the substantial shortage of theoretical and empirical studies on this population, more research on resilience among VET teachers is necessary and relevant. In this exploratory qualitative study, interviews with VET teachers in Switzerland (n = 37) sought to identify the specific challenges faced by teachers, the resources to be addressed. As well as confirming the different critical challenges and protective factors emerging from the literature review, the results identify difficulties and resources specific to VET teachers in Switzerland. In terms of critical challenges at a macro-contextual level, teachers’ low social recognition is emphasised. Moreover, exposure to curricular reforms generates stress and pressure related to the required standardisation of content and subject changes. At a micro-system level, we detected teachers’ frustration in relation to students’ low vocational motivation and maturity and specific emerging instructional challenges in vocational subject teaching. In terms of resources, teachers perceived the possibility of diversifying their professional role by alternating school and extracurricular activities as a supportive factor. The results provide a basis for more extensive quantitative study investigating relationship among adversities and resources and resilient strategies.     

An exploratory study of school counselling teachers’ motivation changes

This brief report describes an investigation into the motivational changes of two school counselling teachers in two rural schools in the Chinese context. The findings revealed the mixed motivations of the participants in joining school counselling and how their motivations transformed through their professional engagement and social interactions in specific institutional and socio-cultural settings. The study concludes with some implications for teacher development and points out directions for continuing research.     

Small-scale curriculum changes for improving pre-service teachers’ preparation for Family-School Partnerships

Abstract

Family-School Partnerships (FSP) are important for students’ academic achievements and social-emotional development. Therefore, pre-service teachers need to learn how to establish this. However, in teacher education programmes this topic is insufficiently addressed partially attributed to already overloaded programmes. This study reports on a small-scale curriculum change, aiming to foster pre-service teachers’ awareness of the importance of FSP, to broaden their concepts and support them in identifying learning goals for the future. An assignment to interview novice-teachers about FSP was followed by a class on this topic. Afterwards, pre-service teachers reported in written reflections that they had become aware of the importance of FSP, emphasising that FSP is more than just communication. However, their focus for further professionalisation remained on improving their communication skills. Though this small-scale curriculum change seems to be a small step forward to a better preparation on FSP, further improvements are necessary to promote a comprehensive view of FSP.     

Technological and pedagogical support for pre-service teachers’ lesson planning

Successful use of ICT in the classroom requires thoughtful integration of technology and pedagogical processes during lesson preparation. This study investigated whether the information format of technological and pedagogical support affects pre-service teachers’ technology integration in lesson plans. One group of pre-service teachers (n = 37) received support materials that presented technological, pedagogical and content information separately; another group (n = 36) received a version of these materials in which the technological and pedagogical information was integrated. Pre-service teachers used these support materials to create a technology-infused lesson plan. As expected, the pre-service teachers who received integrated support had relatively more design justifications in which technology and pedagogy were combined than their peers from the separate support group. However, this more advanced reasoning did not materialise in higher-quality lesson plans. Future research should investigate whether pre-training in the use of ICT could improve the effects of integrated support.     

Measuring teachers’ momentary affect: An exploratory experience sampling study

As researchers and school leaders increasingly recognize the importance of teachers’ emotions for both teachers and students, it is imperative that researchers document teachers’ affective experiences using ecologically valid methodologies. In this study, we use the experience sampling method to explore the momentary emotions of 238 teachers in two suburban school districts in the Northeast region of the United States. Using 1443 momentary affective reports, we report patterns in affect that emerged across the full sample of teachers, including the types of emotions teachers experienced most frequently and most intensely, as well as variance in momentary affective experiences, both within and across teachers. We consider ways in which professional role, professional activity, and affective appraisals relate to teachers’ momentary affective experiences, and conclude with a discussion of implications for future research and practice.     

Understanding teachers as change agents: An investigation of primary school teachers’ self-perception

This study reports on a large-scale survey on primary school teachers’ perceptions of being change agents and the extent to which these perceptions are related to personality and contextual factors. A principal component analysis and confirmatory factor analysis revealed nine characteristics of teachers as change agents. Personality and contextual factors are related to teachers’ perceptions of being a change agent. Four teacher profiles were distinguished according to the varying degrees of teachers’ perceptions of themselves as change agents. This study adds to the further understanding of teachers as change agents, their characteristics and how these characteristics are related to personality and contextual factors.     

An exploratory study of changes to university EFL teachers’ teaching practices

The brief report describes an exploratory investigation into changes to three university EFL teachers’ teaching practices in a research-intensive university framed by managerialist technologies to improve its visibility and global ranking. The findings revealed that substantial changes have been brought about to their teaching practices in terms of falling into the routine of ‘technification of teaching’, producing a spectacle ‘what is there simply to be seen and judged’ or striving to seek out new spaces for ‘authentic’ English teaching. The study concluded with implications for facilitating the managerial reforms that are congruent with the cognitive and contextual realities of different generations of Chinese university EFL teachers.     

Is content knowledge pre-requisite of pedagogical content knowledge? An empirical investigation

Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education - Given the scarcity of studies explicitly exploring the often tacit assumption that teachers’ content knowledge (CK) is pre-requisite of pedagogical...     

A sociocultural investigation of pre-service teachers’ outdoor experiences and perceived obstacles to outdoor learning

Abstract

This study utilizes a sociocultural approach to explore how pre-service elementary teachers’ experiences in both outdoor and formal school settings have contributed to their intentions for taking their students outdoors and perceived obstacles to doing so. The participants were pre-service elementary teachers (N?=?95) enrolled in an elementary science education methods course at a public university in the Midwestern United States. This study builds on the qualitative research methodology established in a prior research study, whereby after reading Richard Louv’s book entitled Last Child in the Woods, pre-service teachers completed written essay responses to prompts about their past outdoor experiences, their intentions for taking their students outdoors, and additionally in this study, perceived obstacles to doing so once they become teachers. Analysis of the data indicates the importance of participants’ youth experiences in the outdoors and positive intentions for taking students outside. In addition, findings describe major obstacles discussed by pre-service teachers, and we use sociocultural theory to analyse the context of these findings. Implications for teacher educators working to better equip pre-service teachers to overcome these perceived obstacles are discussed.     

Teaching for tomorrow: An exploratory study of prekindergarten teachers’ underlying assumptions about how children learn

This study investigated eight prekindergarten teachers’ underlying assumptions about how children learn, and how these assumptions were used to inform and enact instruction. By contextualizing teachers’ knowledge and understanding as it is used in practice we were able to provide unique insight into the work of teaching. Participants focused on children’s ability to remember information, frequently through engagement and repetition. Teachers also anticipated what children would be learning in the early elementary years and taught that content, yet they did not necessarily expect children to remember the information, or even know if children learned the information. Implications for the design of both preservice and in-service teacher education are discussed. This includes helping teachers develop a strong foundational understanding of how children learn, establishing the pedagogical content knowledge relevant to teaching advanced symbol systems like literacy, and shifting pedagogical reasoning about practice. Given the link between the quality of instructional support and learning in the early years, developing the early childhood teaching force’s capacity to use knowledge to reason skillfully about teaching offers a critical lever for creating robust learning in the early years.     

Can telecollaboration contribute to the TPACK development of pre-service teachers?

This study examines the suitability of telecollaboration practices to enhance ICT integration in Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL)-based units by analysing the number and type of episodes related to students’ technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) produced in a telecollaboration whose aim was the design of a technology-enhanced CLIL unit. Results revealed a high number of episodes focusing on the domains and intersections of the TPACK framework, that pedagogical content knowledge was the main focus of attention and prompted most of the suggestions for change in the unit and that telecollaboration promoted collaboration and made participation more equal. Consequently, telecollaboration showed a great potential for directing students’ attention to their TPACK even though the scarcity of episodes focusing on the TPACK intersection also indicated there is ample room for more teacher training efforts to prepare pre-service teachers for technology integration.     

Educational reform in Japan towards inclusion: are we training teachers for success?

Within a tradition of a dual regular and special education system in Japan, the Government is promoting education reform that encourages an inclusive approach to education. This research investigates whether teachers are being trained for successful inclusion in Japan by reviewing the perceptions of all pre-service teachers in one university regarding their readiness for becoming inclusive practitioners. A move towards an inclusive approach to education in Japan is being promoted through collaboration and support between teachers trained in regular and special education. Thus, different perceptions of pre-service teachers preparing to work either in elementary schools or in special schools are a particular focus of this research. Discussion considers the need for better teacher preparation due to the very low understandings of inclusion and Japanese pre-service teachers’ perceived lack of skills, knowledge, experience, or training for an inclusive approach.