Sources of Conflict During the School Experience of Pre-Service Physical Education Teachers

Abstract

The context for the present study is the one-year initial teacher education course for postgraduates specialising in physical education at the secondary level. The research focus is on the conflicts which pre service teachers experience during the school practice element of a University- School Partnership Scheme based on the new government criteria and procedures introduced in the DFE Circular No. 9/92 for England and Wales. Fifty-three postgraduate students completed report forms about their teaching concerns at the end of each week of a six-week and an eleven-week block practice, and, of the 1510 concerns reported, 257 (17.02%) were classed as conflicts. A content analysis of the 'conflict' concerns revealed four general categories of conflict, and these were related to school staff and peers, the school and university working procedures, the demands from the school and the university, and beliefs and values about the teaching profession. The paper argues that such conflicts are viewed with much apprehension by pre-service teachers because of the additional responsibilities and powers placed on school subject mentors and the more limited time available in the university to prepare for the practical activities. Therefore, it is suggested that University-School Partnership Schemes should build in arrangements that give pre service teachers the opportunity to resolve deep-seated problems by being able to approach neutral staff from either the university or the school.