La formation des enseignants du secondaire: la formule belge

The author, drawing upon 37 years’ experience of the training of Secondary teachers in Belgium, offers a critical view of the present situation. His remarks bear upon training for the lower‐Secondary cycle, the system for which—though apparently simple— is in fact complex.

A 1981 reform extended the period of training to three years, but lower‐ and upper‐Secondary training, at University level, are still separate. A greater unity is desirable.

Three principles which should underpin all training are: a planned continuation into in‐service training, the development of practice‐oriented research, and (to allow of flexibility) a unit‐based approach. The length of study is important, since it has implications for maturation.

Finally, the author examines in turn each element in the range of skills, aptitudes and attitudes needed by the student teacher.     

Sustaining teachers’ stories to live by: implications for teacher education

ABSTRACT

In this paper, we focus on questions around who we are as teacher educators as well as our responsibilities in helping pre-service teachers compose forward-looking stories as they prepare to begin teaching. We draw on the results of two studies in this paper: one a semi-structured interview study with 55 second- and third-year teachers in two Canadian provinces and one narrative inquiry into the experiences of early career teacher leavers. These studies showed how early career teachers’ stories to live by fuel their desires to become teachers. Teaching was a way to try to live out and sustain their stories to live by, that is, participants continued to live out their stories to live by shaped in early personal knowledge landscapes and embodied in their personal practical knowledge. We also learned that when teachers could not sustain their stories in the professional knowledge landscapes, their stories to live by shifted to stories to leave by, and they left teaching.     

Les materiels didactiques pour l'education en matiere de population

Résumé Le matériel développé pour promouvoir l'Education en matière de Population (EmP) est indispensable car les enseignants n'ont pu être préparés à délivrer cet enseignement d'un type nouveau, interdisciplinaire, mettant en oeuvre des méthodes actives, privilégiant l'adoption d'attidudes plutôt que de connaissances. Les premiers matériels didactiques ont donné à l'EmP une image doctrinaire, centrée sur l'éducation sexuelle. On constate plus récemment que la cible prioritaire des matériels devient mieux définie: plutôt que de convaincre les enseignants, on tente de mieux connaître leurs besoins pour mettre au point des outils pour leur venir en appui.Un rapide survol des matériels didactiques pour l'EmP, prennant appui sur cinq exemples représentatifs, illustre l'évolution des documents. La quête d'un corpus scientifique indiscutable de l'EmP se retrouve dans les exemples de leçons proposées en Asie par le Programme Régional, auquel participent 25 Etats. En plus, l'EmP n'est plus centrée sur la seule connaissance démographique: la dynamique de la population a des incidences sur la qualité de la vie dans de nombreux domaines. Dans la décennie 1980, la recherche initiée par le CRESALC a réalisé des documents prototypes d'une grande originalité, basées sur la discussion, la simulation, les médias, le jeu, l'enquête ... qui stimulent la participation active de l'élève. Mais dans la grande majorité des cas, les contenus et les objectifs de l'EmP restent intégrés dans les différentes disciplines du programme.

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The materials developed to promote Population Education are indispensable since teachers have not been prepared to deliver this new type of teaching, using active methods and stressing the acquisition of attitudes rather than knowledge. Early teaching materials gave Population Education a doctrinaire image, focusing on sexual education. More recently, the priority target for the materials has become better defined: rather than trying to convince teachers, attempts are made to discover their needs in order to develop tools that will help them.A rapid survey of Population Education teaching materials, using five representative examples, illustrates their evolution. The quest for an unassailable scientific corpus of Population Education is found in the examples of lessons put forward by the Regional Programme in Asia, in which 25 States are participating. Moreover, Population Education no longer focuses only on demographic knowledge: the dynamics of population change have effects on numerous aspects of the quality of life. In the 1980s, research started by CRESALC resulted in pilot materials of great originality, using discussion, simulation, the media, games, enquiry, etc., which stimulate the active participation of pupils. But in the vast majority of cases, the contents and objectives of Population Education remain integrated into the various subjects of the curriculum.

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Zusammenfassung Die zur Förderung der Bevölkerungslehre entwickelten Lernmaterialien sind unentbehrlich, da Lehrer nicht auf diese neue Art des Unterrichtens mit aktiven Methoden und der Hervorhebung des Erwerbs von Geisteshaltungen an Stelle von Wissen vorbereitet sind. Früher angewandte Lernmaterialien verliehen der Bevölkerungslehre ein doktrinäres Image und konzentrierten sich auf Sexual-kundeunterricht. In letzter Zeit wurde das Hauptziel dieser Materialien besser definiert: an Stelle des Versuchs, Lehrer zu überzeugen, treten nunmehr Bemühungen um die Aufdeckung ihrer Bedürfnisse, um Möglichkeiten zur Hilfestellung zu finden.Ein rascher Überblick über die Lernmaterialien zur Bevölkerungslehre unter Zuhilfenahme von fünf repräsentativen Beispielen verdeutlicht ihre Evolution. Die Suche nach einem unanfechtbaren wissenschaftlichen Korpus der Bevölkerungslehre erscheint in den Unterrichtsbeispielen des Regionalprogrammes in Asien, an dem 25 Länder teilnehmen. Die Bevölkerungslehre konzentriert sich nicht länger auf nur demographisches Wissen: die Dynamik einer Veränderung der Bevölkerung wirkt sich auf zahlreiche Aspekte der Lebensqualität aus. In den 80er Jahren ergaben von CRESALC durchgeführte Forschungen Pilotmaterial von großer Originalität, in das Diskussionen, Simulationen, die Medien, Umfragen usw. integriert wurden. Damit bewirkte man eine erhöhte aktive Beteiligung der Schüler. Aber in der großen Mehrzahl der Fälle bleiben Inhalte und Ziele der Bevölkerungslehre Bestandteil der zahlreichen Fächer des Curriculums.

     

A nuanced critical realist approach to educational policy and practice development: Redefining the nature of practitioners’ agency

In an age of nationalisation of international educational (leadership) policy, or vice versa, the politics and conflicts behind such policies often take centre stage to the detriment of (research-based) professional expertise. In response, this article develops a nuanced critical realism to propose a practice-based development and implementation of educational (leadership) policy reforms. Based on empirical reports of head teachers’ subversive practice, the article concludes by highlighting that professional expertise is a central component, dubbed ‘formless capability’ (potency), that all stakeholders use to turn policy intentions into policy actions (Actuality). Actuality consists of the three traditional domains of critical realism – the real, the actual and the empirical – whose importance is derived from whether it is a means to (incomplete action) or an end in itself (complete action). It is argued here that empirical experiences of leading schools are the stage of actuality that is directly linked to the complete action of students’ learning and, therefore, stands the most chance of being faithfully and successfully embedded and implemented. Policy mechanisms, therefore, need to reflect such research-based knowledge.     

FRAGMENTS OF AN OLD AND CURRENT HISTORY OF LITERACY

The title of this article is faithful both to the contents and to the organization of the text. It uncovers aspects of the history of literacy which are strikingly current: the different ways used to estimate the extent of illiteracy, the roots of the current literacy movement and its division into two networks, and the ideological changes it has survived. The article briefly describes the provincial organization of literacy programmes in order to identify trends and to ask questions concerning organizational practices which may result in the mortgaging of the future of the movement The conclusion sets. forth the following paradox: “the new Canadian Education Act, in principle, allows universal access to literacy programmes, but by forcing these programmes to fit the school system, it risks excluding most of its target population”.     

Publications of economists in relation to journals,schools, and dissertations

Many regional and state universities now regard research and scholarship as well as teaching as a focal activity of their faculty. However, as yet, their doctoral degree recipients have not displayed the research prowess of graduates of the major national universities. This longitudinal study of a random sample of 512 Ph.D. economists found that 34% have published at least one article in the 260 journals referenced in theJournal of Economic Literature. Those economists writing their dissertations in the field of general economics had a higher tendency to publish than those in other fields. Graduates of the 10 highest-ranked schools published 38.8% of all journal articles between 1969 and 1986, while graduates of the top 20 schools published 65.2% of the articles. Graduates of the top 20 schools published at least 20% more than other graduates. In addition, graduates of the top 20 schools published an average of 2.28 articles, which is at least 38% more than the average for graduates of lower-ranked schools. It is probable that the much better publication record of top-school graduates in academic careers is explained by a host of factors, including level of training, old school ties and contacts, as well as employment in top-ranked research-supporting schools.     

Comment devient‐on enseignant?

Sommaire Il y existe en Europe une grande diversité de conceptions de la fonction enseignante—et, par consequent, une diversité des voies de la formation. Mais l'important, c'est l'image que se fait le formé de sa future fonction, et la compatibilité de cette image avec la realité et avec l'attente des élèves.

Telles sont les grandes lignes des conclusions d'une enquête menée, dés 1978, par le premier groupe de travail de l'ATEE. L'auteur donne compte‐rendu de celte enquête, et trouve un certain écart entre les textes et la realité, même dans un même pays.     

Mother-Child Relationships as Sources of Support or Stress: A Comparison of Competent, Average, Aggressive, and Anxious Dyads

We tested the proposition that mother-child relationships can be sources of support or stress, by comparing patterns of mother-child interactions in a problem-solving task that children completed with their own and with an unfamiliar mother. 4 groups of preschoolers (n = 30 in each group)—identified on the basis of teacher ratings as socially competent, average, aggressive, or anxious—participated. Mothers of competent and average children were highly positive and reciprocal toward their own and unfamiliar children. Mothers of aggressive and anxious children were only positive and reciprocal toward unfamiliar children but generally indiscriminate (aggressive group) or aversive and negatively reciprocal (anxious group) toward their own. Children in all 4 groups tended to be reciprocal toward their own mothers, but only competent and average children were reciprocal toward unfamiliar mothers also. Aggressive and anxious children generally responded to unfamiliar mothers by ignoring or actively rejecting their overtures. Results (1) indicate that the relationship with the primary caregiver may serve as a major source of support or stress in the preschool years; (2) focus attention on the dynamic organization of interactions rather than on the presence or frequency of particular behaviors, indicating that a dynamic of reciprocity enables children and mothers to adapt positively to the ever changing demands of new social situations; (3) point to the need to develop new means of assessing relationships to better understand how they influence development; and (4) highlight the importance of incorporating transactional models in the diagnosis and treatment of childhood dysfunctions rather than accounting for them solely in terms of limited skills in parents or children.     

Testosterone during Pregnancy and Gender Role Behavior of Preschool Children: A Longitudinal, Population Study

Levels of testosterone (T) and sex hormone–binding globulin (SHBG) were measured in blood samples from pregnant women and related to gender role behavior in 342 male and 337 female offspring at the age of 3.5 years. Gender role behavior was assessed using the Pre–School Activities Inventory, a standardized measure on which a parent indicates the child's involvement with sex–typical toys, games, and activities. Levels of T, but not SHBG, related linearly to gender role behavior in preschool girls. Neither hormone related to gender role behavior in boys. Other factors, including the presence of older brothers or sisters in the home, parental adherence to traditional sex roles, the presence of a male partner in the home, and maternal education, did not relate to gender role behavior in this sample and did not account for the relation observed between T and behavior. Although other, unmeasured factors may explain the relation, the results suggest that normal variability in T levels prenatally may contribute to the development of individual differences in the gender role behavior of preschool girls.