Are Media Needs Being Met for the Beginning Teacher?

Abstract

Dual surveys were conducted in the Spring of 1989 to aid in answering the title question. Elementary school teachers in Kansas were surveyed to learn of the use they make of media in the classroom. The Kansas teacher education institutions were surveyed at the same time to learn of the media instruction provided for the pre-service teacher. A comparison of the two sets of data suggested the content of the instructional media component of the undergraduate degree in education matches the use the practicing teacher makes of the various media formats. What is taught about instructional media in the teacher education program is what is used by the classroom teacher is essentially a correct assessment. The only modifications necessary to align the media curriculum to better meet the needs of the beginning teacher seem to be 1) to enhance the instruction regarding the use of video-tape and maps as instructional media and 2) to discontinue instruction regarding the use of 35 mm slides because only 13.2 percent of the teachers use them even though the teachers that do judge them to be an effective instructional medium. The use of video tape and computers by the classroom teacher is rapidly increasing. Their use is being restrained only by the volume of equipment available to the teacher.