Abstract

Reflection is a prospective alternative in exploring student teachers’ thinking during practicum. The data gained from student teachers’ reflection are significant in informing teacher education programs on how to equip pre-service teachers to become quality teachers. It is also crucial in addressing issues and conflicts highlighted by student teachers when they interact with the real context. This study is conducted with six semester seven student teachers undergoing their Bachelor in Education with honors Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) program. The student teachers were asked to write reflective journal entries throughout the 14 weeks of their teaching practicum experience. The aim of the study is to identify the focus of the student teachers’ reflection and the challenges faced by them during practicum. Data were gathered using the reflective journal entries and semi-structured interviews with all the participants. The data were analyzed according to emerging themes. The findings indicated that the student teachers focus on three main themes in their reflections, which are managing learning, pedagogy and teacher attributes. While the challenges highlighted were difficulty in socializing with members of the institution, lack of professional support and lack of ability to manage a classroom.

Highlights

  • Introduction1.1 BackgroundPracticum has been described as a crucial component in teacher education as the experience has been reported to have an impact on student teachers’ personal and professional development and it supports the development of quality beginning teacher (Crookes, 2003; Darling-Hammond, 2006; Starkey & Rawlins, 2012; Wong et al, 2015; Zhu & Zhang, 2014)

  • Practicum has been described as a crucial component in teacher education as the experience has been reported to have an impact on student teachers’ personal and professional development and it supports the development of quality beginning teacher (Crookes, 2003; Darling-Hammond, 2006; Starkey & Rawlins, 2012; Wong et al, 2015; Zhu & Zhang, 2014)

  • Practicum is regarded as the peak of the teacher education program (Barry & King, 1998; Cameron & Wilson, 1993; Darling-Hammond, 2006) as it provides the platform for student teachers to utilize their knowledge and skills about teaching and learning bridging theory and practice in the real context (Starkey & Rawlins, 2012; Wong et al, 2015; Yaacob et al, 2014; Zhu & Zhang, 2014)

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Summary

Introduction

1.1 BackgroundPracticum has been described as a crucial component in teacher education as the experience has been reported to have an impact on student teachers’ personal and professional development and it supports the development of quality beginning teacher (Crookes, 2003; Darling-Hammond, 2006; Starkey & Rawlins, 2012; Wong et al, 2015; Zhu & Zhang, 2014). Practicum is regarded as the peak of the teacher education program (Barry & King, 1998; Cameron & Wilson, 1993; Darling-Hammond, 2006) as it provides the platform for student teachers to utilize their knowledge and skills about teaching and learning bridging theory and practice in the real context (Starkey & Rawlins, 2012; Wong et al, 2015; Yaacob et al, 2014; Zhu & Zhang, 2014).

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