Competence-based teacher education: Illusion or reality? An assessment of the implementation status in Flanders from teachers’ and students’ points of view

Since 1998, the Flanders’ educational government in Belgium has been urging teacher education institutions by decree to implement competences in teacher training programs. Since then, years have gone by, and institutions have acted in order to achieve the competence-based goals. However, have they succeeded in implementing them? This is the research question that is central to the current study. An online survey inquiry was set up in eight elementary teacher education institutions using two questionnaires; one for final year elementary institution pre-service teachers, who were about to graduate at the time of completing the questionnaire (N = 218), the other for teacher trainers throughout the elementary teacher training program (N = 51). Ten years after the decree was issued, results show that competence-based education has become a reality in terms of its implementation. However, the process has not yet come to an end. Whereas some competences are clearly present in the institutions’ policies and practices (e.g. teacher as guide to learning and development, teacher as subject expert), others are poorly represented (e.g. teacher as partner of parents, external parties and as a member of the educational community). Moreover, teacher trainers tend to take four different approaches to the implementation of competences (1) during internship, (2) through the institution’s policy and program planning, (3) by means of their integration in both theoretical and practical components of the curriculum and finally, (4) a lack of implementation because the competences are considered insufficiently applicable by the teacher trainers. In particular, more experienced and subject expert teacher trainers tend to adopt the final approach more often than do younger colleagues and pedagogues. Student teachers’ results, on the other hand, suggest important differences between institutions concerning their understanding of competences and the integration of these competences in the curriculum; suggesting different paces of adaptation between teacher education institutions. Moreover, even within schools, the trajectory towards implementation is not always clear for all members of the teaching team, nor for the students of most teacher education institutions. Consequently, there is still important work to be done in order for successful competence-based change to occur.     

“Evaluation gone Awry”: The teacher experience of the summative evaluation of a school reform initiative

Written as four scenes that span a five-year period, this article examines the summative evaluation of an organized school reform programme in the United States from the teacher perspective. The study provides fine-grained details of how the evaluation of the particular reform effort went “awry” in the view of some teachers who directly participated. The inclusion of two teacher narratives particularly demonstrates how practitioners' intents and desires became overtaken by evaluators' stances and theoretical frames. The international value of the research is that it discusses problems of summative evaluators entering longitudinal reform endeavors too late in the change process, difficulties relating to non-participant observation, issues associated with not negotiating final evaluation reports, and failure of evaluation studies to enter into human subjects agreements with teachers. Lastly, the lack of congruence between formative planning and evaluation and summative evaluation constitutes an overarching theme.     

Student teachers' ways of experiencing the objective of health education as a school subject: A phenomenographic study

The aim of this phenomenographic study was to identify student teachers' (N = 20) ways of experiencing health education as a school subject, using semi-structured interviews and essays. The findings indicated that the target phenomenon was discussed through the general objective of the subject in five ways: health education as 1) a context for delivering theoretical knowledge, 2) a channel for providing pupils with practical knowledge and skills to contribute to health-related choices, 3) a means to promote pupils' self-regulative knowledge and independent thinking, 4) a context for personal growth, and 5) a means for developing responsible behavior in society. The hierarchically-ordered categories arrived at varied along six themes of expanding awareness. The findings can be used as a basis for planning educational settings, with a view to deepening student teachers' understanding.     

Relations between early family risk, children's behavioral regulation, and academic achievement

This study examined relations among early family risk, children's behavioral regulation at 54 months and kindergarten, and academic achievement in first grade using data on 1,298 children from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development. Family risk was indexed by ethnic minority status, low maternal education, low average family income from 1 - 54 months, and high maternal depressive symptoms from 1 - 54 months. Results of structural equation modeling indicated that minority status, low maternal education, and low family income had significant negative effects on reading, math, and vocabulary achievement in first grade. Modest indirect effects were also found from ethnicity, maternal education, and maternal depressive symptoms, through 54-month and kindergarten behavioral regulation to first-grade achievement. Discussion focuses on the importance of behavioral regulation for school success especially for children facing early risk.     

中小学校级干部网络培训模式初探

“十一五”期间是信息技术飞速发展的时期,校级干部培训应有效整合这一资源。在研究中小学校长的成长规律、全面了解区域校级干部的底数及总结“十五”区域中小学校级干部多元化培训模式的基础上,充分利用信息技术及网络资源,构建区域中小学校级干部培训的网上论坛、骨干校长博客团队、网络课程等新模式,以提高校级干部培训的针对性和实效性,缩短校长的成长周期。     

中国近代师范教育专业性特征考略——以直隶省立第二师范学校为例

中国近代师范教育始于十九世纪末,其后经历了从思想认识到实践探索再到独立体系初步建立的过程。在这过程中,近代师范教育形成了诸多方面的专业性特征,其专业性特征对当今师范教育的发展有着重要价值。     

保定师范学校教育实习经验对当今教师教育的借鉴意义

保定师范学校作为"中等师范的光荣代表",在教育实习方面,建立了科学而健全的见习、实习体系。其精于准备、勤于实践、严于管理的实习理念和一系列成功经验为当今教师教育的改革和发展提供了诸多启示:数量众多且关系稳固的实习基地是办好教育实习的保障;见习、实习准备的常态化是办好教育实习的关键;见习、实习指导的全程化促进了教育实习的良性循环和可持续发展。     

范当世研究综述

近年来学界关于范当世的研究大致涉及其生平、思想与性格、诗学主张和文章特色、诗作研究四个方面。了解研究的概貌和现状,不仅对进一步深化和拓展范当世研究有一定意义,而且或能有助于考察目前面目尚显模糊的晚清文坛。     

将终生体育理念融入学校体育教学

学校体育是学生人生体育中的一个阶段,并不是学生人生体育的最后环节,而只是一个起点。人的一生都应该致力于体育活动,致力于体育锻炼,并养成体育锻炼的习惯。我们要认识到体育将贯穿于学生一生的全部时间,也包括他所处的各种场所,体育无处不在;其次,学生在校期间要强调教师给学生必备的体育基础知识与基本技能,形成良好的体育兴趣,养成坚持锻炼的好习惯,教会学生继续学习、锻炼与再提高的能力,重视教学生锻炼的方法和对学生品格的塑造;此外,要注重培养学生的体育意识和独立锻炼身体的能力,真正将"健康第一"贯彻始终,为终生体育奠定良好的基础。     

情钟于民,心系于众——对"新乐府"诗派"向民性"本质特征的思考

“新乐府”诗派以其实用性、功利性的诗歌理论和丰富的创作实践,为后世的诗人开拓了现实主义创作的广阔途径。通过对该诗派的发展渊源、诗歌理论、创作实践及影响等方面的思考,指出该诗派最为本质的特征应该是“向民性”。