Abstract
This study investigated the attitudes and perceptions of student teachers towards assessment as they completed their teacher education training programme in a government teacher training college. Data were collected from 52 final year (end-of-course) student teachers using semi-structured questionnaires designed with the assumption that assessment and learning intersect during training. The results revealed that student teachers perceived learning experiences and assessments as opportunities to construct and reconstruct some of their core images about teaching. Various elements of teacher education assessment were valued by student teachers as helping them ‘feel like’ or ‘perform as’ teachers. To student teachers, assessment is seen as a means to validate their identity as future certified teachers. As demand for teacher quality is getting higher, there is also need to improve and enhance the pedagogic role of assessment in initial teacher education programmes. DOI: 10.5901/jesr.2015.v5n1p11
Highlights
1.1 A Brief Historical Context of Teacher Education in CameroonTeacher education in Cameroon traces its roots by the late 19th century when Alfred Saker (1885) and the Roman Catholic Mission (1907) opened schools to train catechists and teachers for evangelization, as they were taught the basic skills in the 3Rs areas of reading, writing, and arithmetic
Further expansion of teacher education saw the institution of the Grade II course in Cameroon in 1945 at the Government Teacher Training College (GTTC) Kumba and thereafter, many more teacher training colleges were opened by both state and private initiatives for the training of Grade III, Grade II, and Grade I teachers all over the country (Tchombe, 2000; Tchombe 2000; Fonkeng, 2007)
More respondents mentioned that their performances in examinations do not tell whether they will be “good teachers” in the future, neglecting the aspect of teacher quality in the assessment process during teacher education
Summary
1.1 A Brief Historical Context of Teacher Education in CameroonTeacher education in Cameroon traces its roots by the late 19th century when Alfred Saker (1885) and the Roman Catholic Mission (1907) opened schools to train catechists and teachers for evangelization, as they were taught the basic skills in the 3Rs areas of reading, writing, and arithmetic. The rapid expansion in primary and secondary schools after independence did not fail to put pressure on teacher training colleges for the need of more trained and certificated teachers. The Buea Normal College trained teachers for teaching in lower primary classes for a two year course between 1927 and 1931, whereas in 1932, student teachers who had completed the first year course in Normal College were transferred to Kake in Kumba for further training. Further expansion of teacher education saw the institution of the Grade II course in Cameroon in 1945 at the Government Teacher Training College (GTTC) Kumba and thereafter, many more teacher training colleges were opened by both state and private initiatives for the training of Grade III, Grade II, and Grade I teachers all over the country (Tchombe, 2000; Tchombe 2000; Fonkeng, 2007)
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