Evaluating intake variables for a teacher education programme: Improving student success and process efficiency

This paper reports on the effectiveness of intake variables used by a Canadian post-degree teacher education programme over the period of three years to select candidates for entry into the programme. Using a mixed-methods approach, comparisons were made between intake variables (GPA, written response, work experience, reference letters, academic preparation, and interviews), and post-practicum ratings completed by faculty mentors. Post-practicum ratings were gathered on 14 programme goals (e.g., classroom management, communication, professionalism, etc.). In addition, qualitative analyses of the scoring tools and focus group interviews with involved faculty were completed. Results over three years revealed variation that led to changes in variables and scoring tools. Implications for altering future intake procedures, especially in relation to procedural efficiency, are examined.     

Student-focused approaches to teaching in relation to context and teacher characteristics

The purpose of this paper is to gain more insight into the relationship between teachers’ approaches to teaching on the one hand, and the characteristics of context and teacher demographics on the other. Data were collected from 50 teaching staff at the University of Antwerp and from three sources: a Dutch translation of the Approaches to Teaching Inventory (ATI), information given by the participants, and information obtained through the personnel department of the university. Only the conceptual change/student-focused scale of the ATI had good reliability and was used for further analysis. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed no relationship between teachers’ approaches to teaching and the context variables of expert level of students, teaching discipline and the number of students in the classroom. Neither was a relationship found between the teachers’ conceptual change/student-focused approach and the teacher characteristics of gender, academic status, teaching experience, age and intention to participate in teacher training. Several interpretations of these data and perspectives for further research are discussed.     

General,collective, and domain-specific teacher self-efficacy among Chinese prospective and in-service teachers in Hong Kong

This study assessed two global (general and collective) and seven domain-specific sets of teacher self-efficacy beliefs among 273 Chinese prospective and in-service teachers in Hong Kong. While teachers generally reported having the highest confidence in teaching highly able learners and the least confidence in classroom management, there were significant teacher group differences. Among four groups of teachers, the experienced teachers reported the highest level of global and domain-specific teacher self-efficacy, suggesting that there could be a trend of rising teacher self-efficacy as a teacher went through preparation and teaching practice to becoming a novice and then a more experienced teacher.     

Educating the teacher educator—A Ugandan case study

Who educates teacher educators? How are teacher educators educated and prepared for their roles and tasks? This article uses a review of a two-year full-time Diploma in Teacher Education (DTE) for teacher educators in Uganda to engage with these questions. The article begins with a presentation of the Ugandan teacher education context and a literature review, focusing mainly on teacher educator knowledge, preparation, roles and tasks. It then presents the review process and discusses the main findings that emerged, exploring their implications for the education of teacher educators in Uganda and internationally. The main implications concern the critical role of teacher education pedagogy, context, teacher educator knowledge, tasks and roles, reflective practice, practitioner research, and the background, capacities and education of the educator of teacher educators.     

Teacher commitment trends: Cases of Hong Kong teachers from 1997 to 2007

This article examines the commitment of Hong Kong teachers in the decade after the political transition in 1997, when large-scale education reforms were launched. The life history method was employed to investigate teachers’ self-appraisal of their commitment levels in their career course and factors contributing to such trends. Findings not only affirm the previous view that teacher commitment involves the interplay of personal, workplace and education systemic factors but also illuminate how these factors interplay differently to effect sustained/increased or decreased commitment. ‘Love for students’ is argued to be a crucial personal factor which counteracts unfavorable external conditions to sustain teacher commitment.     

Elaborating a model of teacher professional growth

This paper details a model of teacher professional growth and relates the model to the research data on which the model is empirically founded. A key feature of the model is its inclusion of four analytic domains in close correspondence to those employed by Guskey (Educational Researcher 15(5), 1986) and others, but the model proposed in this paper identifies the specific mechanisms by which change in one domain is associated with change in another. The interconnected, non-linear structure of the model enabled the identification of particular “change sequences” and “growth networks”, giving recognition to the idiosyncratic and individual nature of teacher professional growth. One major value of a change model grounded in empirical data lies in its capacity to stimulate speculation, research and development regarding possible change mechanisms as yet unexplored and unexploited. In its current form, this model offers a powerful framework to support the analyses of those studying teacher change (or growth) and the planning of those responsible for teacher professional development.     

The relationship between teacher stress and burnout in Hong Kong: positive humour and gender as moderators

In this study, we report on the relationship between positive humour and burnout among 379 secondary school teachers in Hong Kong, and explore whether the relationship varies according to gender. The moderating effects of both affiliative and self-enhancing humour on each burnout component were then examined. High affiliative and self-enhancing humour were found to be associated with lower emotional exhaustion and depersonalisation but higher personal accomplishment. Further, the results indicated that low levels of affiliative and self-enhancing humour were related to more depersonalisation among females than among males. The results also partially supported the stress-moderating hypothesis, as affiliative humour was found to buffer the stress–depersonalisation relationship in this sample. These findings suggest that schools can design continuing education programmes based on the use of positive humour in helping teachers to cope with burnout.     

Building a framework for determining the authenticity of instructional tasks within teacher education programs

We propose a framework for evaluating the degree of authenticity of instructional tasks used within a teacher education program. First, we provide a defense for authenticity as an exemplary aspect of education. Second, we synthesize the theoretical literature on authenticity into conceptual codes. Using these codes, we build our authenticity framework around five criteria: the instructional task (1) is routinely performed by teachers, (2) involves students in a classroom, (3) promotes knowledge of practice, (4) involves self-reflection, and (5) serves formative purposes. We then discuss potential applications of our framework for the individual teacher educator and for program evaluation.     

Building the expert teacher prototype: A metasummary of teacher expertise studies in primary and secondary education

While expert teachers remain a frequent focus of research in education, to date there have been very few attempts to conduct systematic reviews of this literature. This paper presents the findings of the first systematic metasummary of research on teacher expertise in K12 education (primary/elementary and secondary levels), based on analysis of 106 empirical studies from 16 countries involving 1124 teachers identified as experts. The inductively-developed coding framework was applied independently by both authors to the dataset to generate agreement counts for specific coding themes, firstly for specific domains of teacher expertise, and then stratified to compare primary and secondary studies. We present 73 specific features organised into six domains in our expert teacher prototype. Salient findings indicate that, with regard to professional practice, expert teachers reflect extensively and often critically on their practice, help their colleagues frequently, and are continuous learners throughout their careers. Concerning knowledge, we find that expert teachers have well-developed pedagogical content knowledge and knowledge about their learners. In the domain of pedagogic practice, we observe that expert teachers display flexibility in the classroom, build strong interpersonal relationships with their learners, whom they engage through their choice of activities and content, and frequently make use of strategies typically emphasised in both constructivist and learner-centred education literatures. We offer our prototype as a useful initial sketch of family resemblance among expert teachers rather than a checklist of necessary or expected features of expertise, also cautioning that the prototype remains far from complete.     

Building caring relationships between a teacher and students in a teacher preparation program word-by-word, moment-by-moment

Our purpose was to illustrate the process by which caring relationships between students and their teacher educator developed in the context of preservice reading preparation that made use of online communication as one class activity. Describing the development of caring relationships between three students and their teacher, we showed that caring could not be considered a one-way characteristic of what teachers do and are, but rather that it depended on students’ reciprocal responses. Findings indicated that the trajectories of caring relationships developed differently, each influenced by differences in entering expectations, critical events, and a negotiation of what the relationship meant.     

Local responses to school‐based management in Hong Kong

This paper adopts a qualitative approach to study the perceptions of six secondary teachers from two schools with a similar background and history of school‐based management (SBM). The study aims to explore the views of the teachers in the following areas: changes in school administration and the structure of the school under SBM; changes in the role of teachers and the activities of the Parent–Teacher Associations; the challenges facing principals; and teachers' worries and concerns under SBM. The study is significant as it supplements the limited number of researches on the roles of teachers and principals under SBM in Hong Kong. As serving teachers now play increasingly important roles in schools and work closely with their principals in administrative and educational matters, they can provide invaluable insights into the new era of change.     

From isolation to symphonic harmony: Building a professional development community among teacher educators

Professional development among teacher educators requires a framework in which collaborative learning can support growth and change. This study describes a professional development project modeled on a professional development community focused on thinking education in a teachers college. Qualitative measures revealed a multilayered process consisting of breaking personal and professional isolation through interdisciplinary collaboration, talk about student learning, improvement of teaching through skill acquisition, and professional development with the adaptation of new teaching dispositions and a sense of efficacy. The community was characterized by a safe environment which encouraged risk taking and mutual support, enabling significant change in college courses.     

From rigid dichotomy to measured contingency. Hong Kong preservice teachers' discursive construction of identity

This article reports on a qualitative study into the discursive construction of teacher identities amongst six preservice English language teachers in Hong Kong. While teacher identity construction has been conceptualized as an evolving process of becoming a teacher, some preservice teachers regard their professional identities as rigid, resulting in criticism of teacher education programs that promote a unitary image of ‘good’ teachers and teaching. The results of this study suggest that the participants did hold rigid conceptions about mutually exclusive types of teachers and teaching approaches. These conceptions were challenged as participants reflected on their own enactment of teacher identities.     

International comparative studies in teaching and teacher education

This review of eight papers published in Teaching and Teacher Education over the past twenty years shows how the profession has been impacted by the forces of globalisation. The impact varies in different contexts, according to local factors. The review looks at papers that use explicit international comparisons as a means to bring local contextual characteristics into sharp relief, and discusses the values and pitfalls of this approach. The review concludes by suggesting a possible future agenda for international comparisons, one that seeks answers to the domestic challenges of the Millennium Development Goals and Education for All by looking for solutions overseas. However, international appropriation needs to remain highly sensitive to the cultural context of implementation.     

The teacher educator as a role model

New visions of learning have entered education. This article discusses the consequences for teacher education, and examines modelling by teacher educators as a means of changing the views and practices of future teachers. The results of a literature search and a multiple case study on modelling are discussed. Both the literature search and the case study approach led to the conclusion that we have discovered what is almost a blank spot in both the body of knowledge on teacher education and the actual practices of many teacher educators. The article concludes with a discussion of ways to improve this situation.     

Becoming teacher leaders in Israel: a meaning-making model

Consensus is growing that teacher leadership benefits teaching quality and student performance. Despite the recognition that teacher leadership contributes to teachers’ professional development, little is known about how it is developed and how teachers experience the transition to the teacher-leader role. This study explores the internal mechanisms underlying the transition to and formation of teachers’ professional identity as teacher leaders. It is based on 60 interviews: 41 teachers who were selected to participate in a leadership training programme, 10 principals and 19 teacher-leaders’ colleagues. The findings led to a model with four central components: (1) Overall professional identity; (2) The experience of ‘being chosen;’ (3) An internal meaning-making process; and (4) External forces.     

An analysis of continuous teacher development in Hong Kong

Education in Hong Kong has developed rapidly since the 70s in parallel with the economic boom. To support such development, the government has invested heavily in initial teacher education and will soon impose professional training and graduate qualifications as prerequisites for entering the profession. Continuous teacher education (CTE), generally regarded as equally important as initial teacher education if not more so, is not given comparable emphasis. This paper aims to study CTE in Hong Kong, including its policy, practice and provision at the system level. Some special features of the system are identified and scrutinized, including ad hoc, policy led, and competence based. The centrally provided CTE is also closely examined in terms of its relevance to the profession, impact on schools, and cost‐effectiveness. The paper ends with a close look at its latest developments, obstacles encountered and prospects.     

有效能的香港幼稚园校长与教师的特征

本研究对90位香港幼稚园校长和教师进行了开放性问卷调查。对受访者反馈的分析揭示出有效能的幼稚园校长的5项特征和教师的4项特征。虽然这些结果和国外的同类研究有一些共性,但其差异也体现出香港的幼儿教育发展状况和文化特征。这为幼稚园校长和教师的专业发展带来了启示。     

Using a meta-analysis activity to make critical reflection explicit in teacher education

This paper describes how the development of critical reflection in student teachers has been made an explicit part of a teacher education programme. Using a rubric presented by Ward and McCotter, (2004) and supported by an online discussion forum, the rubric was used in a meta-analysis activity where students identified the quality of critical reflection in their lesson evaluations. The evidence suggests that the activity can result in a qualitative improvement in the nature of critical reflection. The intervention also appeared to generate a growing acknowledgement by students that writing lesson evaluations, is a valuable process which can enhance their practice.