A Systematic Review of Rehearsal Use in Literacy Methods Courses

Abstract

ABSTRACT This systematic review provides an examination of the current literature on rehearsals in literacy-based methods courses for teacher preparation. We conceptualized a rehearsal as a teacher candidate teaching to a peer or group of peers, a teacher educator or mentor, live actors, or through a technology-based teaching simulation. Studies in this review met the following inclusion criteria: (1) included participants in K-12 teacher preparation programs, (2) focused on literacy instruction, (3) incorporated rehearsal opportunities for teacher candidates, and (4) were published in English. Fifteen total studies were identified for inclusion after conducting a search across multiple databases. We coded each study for general, participant, context, and rehearsal characteristics, and summarized overall study findings. Results indicated the majority of studies were qualitative (73%), conducted with pre-service teachers (60%), and occurred in undergraduate and/or graduate-level preparation programs (33% undergraduate, 33% graduate, 27% both). Rehearsals in the included studies were focused on the elementary grade levels (60%) and were primarily role play-based (80%) as opposed to simulation-based rehearsal types. Results provide insight on how rehearsals are currently being used in a variety of teacher preparation contexts. From these results, avenues of possible future research are presented.