Accountability In Teacher Education Research Articles

Kids Say the Darndest Things: PETE Program Assessment through the Eyes of Students

An ever-increasing focus on accountability in teacher education has augmented the importance of physical education teacher education (PETE) programs to develop procedures for assessing their candidates and completers—the student teachers (STs). Finding out what students think, know, and feel about STs’ teaching ability is yet another valuable source of data that can assist in the assessment process. The purpose of this study was twofold: (a) to examine students’ perspectives of STs’ effectiveness as a window into the effectiveness of a PETE program, and (b) to identify students’ ability to provide valuable feedback to PETE programs on how well STs meet the NASPE National Standards for Beginning Physical Education Teachers (NSBPET). Using the NASPE/NCATE standards as a framework, a set of interview questions was developed to elicit students’ perspectives of the STs’ performance. Findings were inductively analyzed and indicated that STs were able to meet some of the NASPE/NCATE standards and that students can be valuable data sources regarding STs’ competence in Content Knowledge, Diverse Learners, Communication, Management and Motivation, Planning and Instruction, Student Assessment, and Reflection. Students were less able to provide insight into STs’ performance in Growth and Development, Technology, and Collaboration. Overall, these findings suggest that students can be counted on as a source of evidence to complement a thorough and fruitful program assessment.

Teacher Preparation for Culturally Diverse Classrooms: Performance-Based Assessment of Beginning Teachers

To respond to an increasingly diverse student population, educators need to evaluate how well teacher education programs prepare graduates in culturally responsive teaching (CRT). In this study, we used a performance-based assessment to determine whether (a) different levels of preservicepreparation in CRT and (b) preparation in special versus general education affected foundational CRT skills of 68 beginning teacher graduates of 4 traditional university programs. Preparation was designated as high or low according to participants' recollections of preservice coursework and internship experiences. Scores on nine performance criteria selected for their relevance to CRT were analyzed using a 2 $$ 2 multivariate analysis of variance. We found no differences due to level of preparation in CRT, but special and general education teachers differed on three criteria: knowledge of students' backgrounds, fairness, and extending students' thinking. We discuss implications for future research, measurement, and accountability in teacher education.

Social justice and the reconstruction of teaching

In this paper we argue that conceptions of what constitutes the ‘effective teacher’ and what counts as career progression are being reshaped by the Teacher Training Agency. One initiative which is central to this is the National Professional Qualification framework. We argue that the framework neglects teachers’ responsibilities in relation to social justice and that the teaching profession is being increasingly differentiated in ways which may disadvantage particular groups of children and teachers. Issues of governance, representation and accountability in teacher education cannot be ignored and connect with wider debates in the public sector both in the UK and elsewhere.

Quality Assurance and Accountability in Teacher Education: the Australian agenda?

Abstract The restructuring of formal education in Australia continues apace. Driven by economic rationalism and reflecting the language, practices and strategies of management in business and industry, this restructuring, we are assured, is going to result in high‐quality education and teacher accountability. In our view, this rhetoric of quality assurance and accountability is being used to mask a deep and fundamental shift in both the focus of education to be provided in Australia and the roles of teachers and teacher educators. To lift this mask and expose the nature of this shift requires an examination of the context in which this restructuring is occurring, the use of the term ‘quality assurance’ and education in relation to government actions.

The ecology of health care in Greece: Hopes and resignations

In a context of high-stakes accountability in teacher education, concerns are emerging about challenges to the already tenuous position of elementary social studies teacher education. In this case study, the author administered a survey to elementary social studies teacher educators in Georgia and conducted follow-up interviews focusing on the impact of edTPA on elementary social studies teacher education and the ways in which they are navigating the new context of teaching elementary social studies methods. The findings reveal the possibility of further decline of social studies in elementary teacher education programs due to elementary edTPA׳s singular focus on literacy and math content pedagogy along with the high-stakes nature of edTPA process. Implications for future research on edTPA and elementary social studies education are discussed.

Accountability in Teacher Education

Accountability in Teacher Education

Accountability in Teacher Education

Accountability in Teacher Education

Accountability in Teacher Education: Reflections on the 1977 Conference

Accountability in Teacher Education: Reflections on the 1977 Conference

Accountability in Teacher Education

The human factor, the authors say, makes the product of schools of education hard to eval uate. They describe, however, a successful teacher-training program that provides more actual classroom teaching activities much earlier than do most teacher education programs. The program has had remarkable and measurable results because it has held itself accountable for the end product: good teachers.

Accountability in teacher education: Positioning pre-service teachers as evaluators of their performance

In the United States and elsewhere, the term ‘accountability’ is a buzzword in the discourses on initial teacher preparation. Various accountability measures which are believed to reinforce the integrity and effectiveness of initial teacher education programmes and to serve as evidence of the pre-service teachers’ competences are in place in teacher preparatory programmes. They include state-regulated initial certification for new teachers, high stakes state-required teacher testing for initial licensing and voluntary professional accreditation of teacher preparatory programmes and institutions. However, in countries such as South Africa, the concept of accountability in initial teacher preparation is seldom used. This action research study analyses the growth and development of pre-service teachers who, through the use of a debriefing form, underwent reflection and praxis which facilitated their growth and development. The debriefing form, which the pre-service teachers used to score their performance, became the instrument of data collection. The scores that the pre-service teachers assigned themselves were analysed quantitatively. In this article, it is argued that by scoring themselves, pre-service teachers were taking accountability for the outcomes of their performance. The findings suggest that with proper training on the objectives and use of the debriefing form, pre-service teachers can grow and develop as responsible individuals who can account for their actions and for the outcomes of their actions.