Future Teachers Research Articles

Developing intercultural sensitivity in prospective teachers: the potential role of Roma culture immersion field experience

ABSTRACT Teacher preparation programmes through cultural immersion field experiences in Schools as Learning Communities have the potential to increase the intercultural sensitivity of future teachers to provide an effective response to the needs of Roma children. This research evaluated the impact of an intercultural training programme for prospective teachers that included instruction on the situation of the Roma community in the educational system and the transformative potential of the Schools as Learning Communities project, as well as a cultural immersion field experience in a school as a learning community in a vulnerable context. An experimental research design was used that involved collecting pre and post intervention data on a total sample of 321 undergraduate students who were assigned to either a control or experimental group. Results showed that the community-based immersion experience increased the intercultural sensitivity of prospective teachers. Specifically, the intervention, which took place in Spain, had an effect on the dimensions of Respect for Cultural Differences and Interaction Confidence between the control and experimental groups, with greater initial intercultural sensitivity shown by women in the dimensions Respect for Cultural Differences, Interaction Enjoyment and Interaction Engagement. The role of schools as learning communities in contextualised training through direct interaction with culturally diverse individuals is discussed.

Chronicle of the scientific life of the Ivano-Frankivsk Academy Ivana Zolotoustoho in 2023-2024

In the difficult circumstances of modern life, due to the conditions of martial law in Ukraine, the staff of the Ivano-Frankivsk Academy of St. John Chrysostom continued to combine scientific and educational work, practical activities and liturgical life at the beginning of the 2023/2024 academic year, aimed at forming a young generation of theological specialists, primarily future priests and teachers of spiritual and moral disciplines, as well as nurturing the scientific and cultural heritage of the Ukrainian nation.

Value-Semantic Approach in Training Future Teachers to Implement the Main Directions of the Federal Work Program of Education

Introduction. The article is devoted to the problem of using a value-semantic approach in the process of preparing future teachers for the implementation of the main directions of the Federal Work program of education. The purpose of the study is to analyze the degree of understanding by future primary school teachers of the essence of education as a process of value-semantic interaction with children, to identify their knowledge about the methods and forms of such interaction and to determine the necessary adjustments to the content of pedagogical education. Methodology. To achieve the purpose of the study, the following methods were chosen: ranking, questioning, the method of unfinished sentences, which allowed us to assess the readiness of students of the Faculty of primary school teacher training to implement the main directions of the Federal Work program of education. Results. The personal value orientations of future teachers are family and family traditions, care and help, life and the meaning of life; the value orientations for students are care and help, patriotism, family values. Future teachers see the essence of the education process in creating conditions for personal development, and not in organizing value-semantic interaction with students. Most future teachers are aware of the goals and objectives of the Federal Educational Work Program, but do not know how to organize the educational process at school. Conclusions. The article concludes that it is necessary to prepare future teachers for the implementation of the main directions of the Federal Work program of education based on a value-semantic approach and provides recommendations for its implementation in the educational practice of the university.

Spanish validation perceived ease of ICT among future early childhood education and primary school teachers

AbstractThe use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) has been increasing in education. Despite its benefits, not everyone perceives its use with the same ease. This raises the need to observe the perceived ease of use (PEOU) of ICT among future teachers, which requires a valid and reliable instrument to measure this variable for the Spanish population. The aim of this study is to validate PEOU among trainee early childhood education and primary education teachers studying at Spanish universities and observe the factorial invariance across gender. Two studies were conducted: the first study consisted of an Exploratory Factor Analysis with 474 students (Mage = 21.17; SD = 4.03), while the second study tested the scale based on 796 students (Mage = 21.25; SD = 3.99). The results found that PEOU is a valid and reliable measurement scale consisting of two factors (FI. Difficulty [α = 0.89] and FII. Ease [α = 0.81], and that there are no gender differences. In conclusion, it provides a scale to assess PEOU of ICT among the Spanish adult population.

Organization of the Work of the School Physics Room within the Framework of the Research Practice of Future Physics Teachers

Introduction. The authors investigate the problem of professional training of a future physics teacher. The organization of scientific and research training of a future physics teacher requires taking into account the peculiarities of methodological work in the school physics classroom. Methodology. This study reflects the methodological and technological foundations of the scientific and research training of future physics teachers within the framework of the organization and functioning of the school physics room in an educational organization. The article presents the essential characteristics of the scientific and research training of future physics teachers (directions 44.04.01 Pedagogical education, program “Physics. Mathematics”) within the framework of the discipline “School physics room”. Results. A series of research tasks for students performed while working with the school physics classroom in the course of their research activities is described. The criteria for evaluating the physics classroom and the difficulties faced by student trainees are highlighted. Conclusions. The developed set of didactic materials and the proven organization of the course on the discipline “School Physics room” contribute to the formation of professional competencies of future physics teachers.

Emotional factors and self-efficacy in the psychological well-being of trainee teachers.

The relationship among emotional intelligence, stress, and self-efficacy is a crucial factor in shaping psychological well-being. It has a significant impact on important areas such as health, academic and professional performance, and overall quality of life. Using a hierarchical approach, this study aimed to identify, the specific predictors of psychological well-being, including emotional intelligence, stress, resilience, burnout, and self-efficacy, among higher education students pursuing a bachelor's degree in education. We also examined gender differences among these predictors. This study involved 338 higher education students pursuing a primary education teaching degree. The results obtained using the hierarchical regression analysis technique, indicated that the resilience measure, the burnout measure, and the factor of the teacher self-efficacy measure related to self-efficacy in coping with challenges and effectiveness in dealing with change in the educational context, significantly contributed to explaining psychological well-being in the total sample. Furthermore, the predictors of psychological well-being differed between male and female samples. Finally, these findings are discussed in terms of their theoretical and practical implications for improving the training process of future teachers.

A mixed methods analysis of a yearlong intercultural competence curriculum strand

ABSTRACT Background: In a published 2016 report, it was estimated that approximately 80% of public-school teachers identified as White (United States Department of Education 2016). The duality of the issue is that the diversity of the teacher workforce has improved since 1990 but lags in comparison to the increasing diversity of the student population [Gumber, C., and J. Beckhusen. 2022. “U.S. Teachers More Diverse but Still Lag Student Racial, Ethnic Makeup”. United States Census Bureau, January 5. Accessed August 12, 2022. https://www.census.gov/library/stories/2022/01/nations-teachers-more-diverse-but-still-lag-racial-ethnic-makeup-of-students.html.]. The discrepancy that exists in racial or ethnic diversity between teachers and students has been termed a cultural gap [Muschell, L. H., and H. M. Roberts. 2011. “Bridging the Cultural Gap: One Teacher Education Program’s Response to Preparing Culturally Responsive Teachers.” Childhood Education 87 (5): 337–340. https://doi.org/10.1080/00094056.2011.10523209]. The value proposition for a teacher workforce that mirrors society is hard to dispute. In the broadest sense, members of the education sector must coordinate efforts to recruit and retain culturally diverse teachers. While these efforts are critical, progress will likely be carried out over a longer period of time. Thus, adequately preparing current and future teachers to bridge the cultural gap is essential. Purpose: Intercultural competence (ICC) is an increasingly relevant topic for teacher preparation programs. To date, there remains a relative dearth of research on strategies that physical education teacher education (PETE) programs can use to promote ICC among teacher candidates (TCs). This study aimed to explore a yearlong curriculum strand’s impact on promoting ICC development in TCs. Methods: A mixed methods research design involving quantitative and qualitative data collection was employed. The quantitative measure was the Intercultural Development Inventory®. Qualitative measures consisted of journal entries and semi-structured interviews. Datasets were then merged to generate mixed-data narratives. Participants included 29 TCs enrolled at a mid-Atlantic University. Findings: Analyses revealed that the curriculum strand did not promote significant change in teacher candidates’ ICC levels quantitatively. Researchers used the constant comparison method to interpret the mixed data narratives. Analyses of the mixed data narratives revealed four emergent themes: (a) experience with cultural diversity; (b) confidence to teach culturally diverse students; (c) making sense of ICC; and (d) reflection on action. Conclusions: Participant data suggests that ICC is a topic that TCs value but may be lacking in their practical, applied understanding of working across cultural differences. Implications and future research on promoting ICC among physical education TCs are discussed. To our knowledge, this study will be the first application of the IDI® to explore change following physical education TCs’ participation in a yearlong curriculum strand focused on promoting ICC.

Empowering Educators: The Impact of Reverse Mentoring on Developing Scientific Mindset and Research Skills

The integration of educational research into teaching practice is an important component in fostering the professional development of educators. Recognizing mentoring activities as an effective method for fostering such research-driven teaching practice, this study set out to explore the effectiveness of reverse mentoring in cultivating a scientific mindset and enhancing research skills among school-based teacher educators. The defining feature of reverse mentoring is the reversal of the mentor and mentee roles, with student teachers mentoring school-based teacher educators. These school-based teacher educators here represent in-service teachers who teach in schools on a daily basis while simultaneously supporting the training of future teachers. Through a semi-structured interview study, nine reverse mentoring projects implemented in Austria and Greece were analyzed. The findings highlight the importance of the thematic focus of the reverse mentoring projects, motivations for participation, insights into collaboration dynamics, learning outcomes, and suggestions for process improvement. Learning outcomes are reported in new teaching methods, content knowledge, and improved collaboration capabilities. A framework categorizing reverse mentoring collaboration into basic, guided, and deep levels is discussed. Suggestions for further research are provided to validate and expand upon the findings of this study.

Preservice teachers’ evaluation of evidential support in causal arguments about educational topics

Many questions about educational topics—such as the effectiveness of teaching methods—are of causal nature. Yet, reasoning about causality is prone to widespread fallacies, such as mistaking correlation for causation. This study examined preservice teachers’ ability to evaluate how various types of evidence provide adequate support for causal claims, using psychology students as a comparison group. The experiment followed a 2 × 3 mixed design with the within-participant factor evidence type (i.e., anecdotal, correlational, experimental) and the between-participants factor study field (i.e., teacher education, psychology). Participants (N = 135) sequentially read short texts on three different educational topics, each presenting a claim and associated evidence. For each topic, participants indicated their claim agreement, and evaluated the convincingness of the argument and the strength of the evidential support. Results from mixed ANOVAs displayed main effects for evidence type on the convincingness of the argument and strength of evidential support, but not on individual claim agreement. Participants found experimental evidence to be more convincing and to provide stronger support for causal claims compared to anecdotal evidence. This pattern occurred similarly for both student groups and remained stable when controlling for cognitive and motivational covariates. Overall, preservice teachers seem to possess a basic understanding of different kinds of evidence and their differential strength in supporting causal arguments. Teacher education may build upon this foundational knowledge to enhance future teachers’ competencies in critically appraising evidence from educational research and relating it to school-related claims and issues.

Use of micro-computed tomography to monitor olive fruit damage caused by three insect pests

A complete three-dimensional reconstruction of the internal damage (oviposition holes, entry and exit galleries, cavities caused by fungal infection) of three destructive pests of olive fruit was obtained using micro-computed tomography. In the case of the olive fruit fly (Bactrocera oleae), complete reconstruction of the galleries was achieved. The galleries were colour-coded according to the size of the internal lumens produced by larval instars. In the case of the olive moth (Prays oleae), we confirmed that the larvae only consume olive stones, leaving pulp tissue intact. This study revealed the evolutionary defensive adaptation developed by larvae, creating entrance/exit gallery in the form of a zigzag with alternating angles to avoid the action of possible parasitoids. In the case of olive fruit rot, caused by fungal infection transmitted by the midge (Lasioptera berlesiana), microtomography revealed the infection cavity, which was delimited by a protective layer of tissue produced by the plant to isolate the infection zone, which contained fungal hyphae and reproductive organs of the fungus. Two ovoid cavities were observed below a single external orifice in the concave necrotic depression. These results were interpreted as successive ovipositions of B. oleae, followed by the parasitoid L. berlesiana. High-resolution 3D rendered images are included as well as supplementary videos that could be useful tools for future research and teaching aids.

Beyond Memorization: Building Problem-Solving Skills in Sequences for Future Math Teachers

Beyond Memorization: Building Problem-Solving Skills in Sequences for Future Math Teachers

Micro: bit programming effects on elementary STEM teachers’ computational thinking and programming attitudes: a moderated mediation model

Cultivating computational thinking (CT) for K-12 students has become the central issue in the digital age. However, the most significant impediment to the long-lasting development of students’ CT is teachers’ lack of CT and positive programming attitudes (PA). Therefore, this research aimed to explore the effects of Micro: bit programming training activities on STEM teachers’ CT and PA. We conducted a quasi-experimental study with 55 elementary STEM teachers that included 12 Micro: bit programming training activities and measured changes in teacher CT and PA levels using the TCTS and TPAS. The results revealed that Micro: bit programming training activities effectively enhanced STEM teachers’ CT and PA. Further analysis showed that Micro: bit programming training activities mainly improved problem-solving and creativity in CT and cognition and beliefs in PA of STEM teachers. Meanwhile, we found that Micro: bit programming training activities benefited CT and PA enhancement for STEM teachers with high educational level and low teaching years. Furthermore, the findings indicated a partially mediated effect of STEM teachers’ PA in terms of educational level affecting CT, and teachers’ teaching years also significantly moderated the second half of this mediated effect. Generally, this research expands the training approaches of CT and PA for elementary school STEM teachers while clarifying the multifactorial influence mechanisms related to CT and PA, which can provide practical references for future STEM teacher training.

Design of Self-Educational Activity of the Future Teacher as Leading Factor in the Formation its Innovative Competence (Methodological Aspects)

Education is the basis for the economic and spiritual development of any society. Modern education system places demand on the teacher, such as professionalism, soft skills, mobility, and the ability to process creatively an ever-increasing flow of information and apply it competently in practice; thus, the preparation of a future teacher is a social order in relation to higher pedagogical education. Nowadays the development of the concept of lifelong education is being strengthened, and university training turns into an extremely important stage with the main goal when the student must be prepared not only for practical activities, but also for further systematic improvement of their professional qualifications. Consequently, preparing a future specialist for self-education is a requirement of the modern education system of the country. It is obvious that the objective need of society is determined by the competitive ability of specialists in the world market, their adaptation to changing socio-economic conditions. The paper is devoted to the methodological approaches of the future teacher’s formation of the innovative competence.

Impact of LGBTIQA+ teachers’ life stories: a mixed study on pre-service teachers’ perceptions

ABSTRACT This study analyses the impact of an intervention, based on four LGBTIQA+ teachers’ life stories. A pretest–posttest quasi-experimental design was used, with no control group. A total of 75 students participated in the pretest and 52 in the posttest. The quantitative results showed statistically significant differences between the pretest and the posttest (t = 2.86, p < .01). The effect size of the intervention was moderate, with a Hedges’ g value of 0.51. The qualitative results showed the perceptions of the students of the Master’s Degree in Secondary Education Teacher Training regarding the facilitators (empowerment processes) and barriers faced by LGBTIQA+ teachers in the educational setting. As well as the mark that the four life stories told by the LGBTIQA+ teachers have left on the students. The main conclusion is that LGBTIQA+ teachers’ life stories may have an important impact on future teachers’ perceptions.

Unleashing creativity in STEM teacher education through scripting task pedagogy

AbstractThis paper proposes a creative pedagogical approach that aims to foster authentic STEM teacher education through incorporating scriptwriting tasks in science and mathematics courses for future secondary STEM teachers. These tasks invite teachers to create imaginary dialogues addressing specific pedagogical challenges, such as conceptual difficulties, misconceptions, or unexpected questions arising during instruction. We assert that traditional approaches to lesson planning in STEM methods courses do not provide sufficient opportunity for exploring both content and pedagogy and fostering student engagement. Hence, we propose scriptwriting‐based pedagogy as an innovative and creative way of cultivating future STEM teachers' pedagogical content knowledge. This paper showcases three examples of scriptwriting tasks implemented in secondary STEM teacher education. We elucidate the pedagogical opportunities afforded by scriptwriting and underscore its pedagogical potential for STEM teacher education.

Are Future Teachers Involved in Contributing to and Promoting the Reduction of Massive Waste Generation?

Massive waste generation linked to overconsumption is considered one of the most significant socio-ecological issues today, becoming a challenge for health and well-being and a barrier to achieving sustainability. Education is key to raising awareness and involving citizens in the adoption of responsible consumption habits, facilitating the recognition of the relationship between our daily activities and the production of waste. The aim of this exploratory study is to analyse the perceptions and commitments of future secondary school teachers (FTs) toward this issue and to explore the educational approaches they propose to address it in the classroom (n = 138). In this work, a mixed-methods approach was used based on quantitative and qualitative data collected through a questionnaire. The results show that FTs have difficulties in recognising the different factors involved in the problem of massive waste generation. However, they incorporate the health and ecological vision, which is close to the holistic vision of the One Health approach. The majority of them take personal responsibility for the problem, although they opt for low-effort options. Regarding the educational proposals they design, only a minority can do it following a commitment-oriented approach.

A Study on the Integration of Hainan Culture into College English Teaching Strategies

This study aims to explore the teaching strategies for integrating Hainan culture into college English courses and their impact on students’ learning outcomes. Drawing on relevant statements on cultural confidence, the research employs multiple methods, including questionnaires, in-depth interviews, classroom observations, and performance analysis, to systematically analyze the application effects of Hainan cultural elements in English teaching and student feedback. A survey of 200 students from a university in Hainan revealed that 90% of the students support the integration of Hainan culture into English teaching, 85% believe that this teaching method enhances their learning interest, and 80% think it helps improve cultural awareness. In-depth interview results show that both students and teachers agree that integrating culture into teaching not only improves English proficiency but also enhances cultural pride. Classroom observations indicate that students in the experimental class have significantly higher participation and interaction frequencies compared to the control class. Performance analysis shows that the English scores of students in the experimental class increased by 15%, significantly higher than the 5% increase in the control class. Comprehensive analysis results demonstrate the effectiveness of integrating Hainan culture into college English teaching. It is suggested that future teaching further enrich cultural content, innovate teaching methods, strengthen teacher training, improve evaluation mechanisms, promote interdisciplinary cooperation, and utilize external cultural resources to enhance students’ cross-cultural communication skills and overall competence.

Sustainability in education: Nurturing tomorrow's future teachers through waste separation and recycling intentions

The importance of intentions in determining human environmental behavior is widely recognized; however, their relationship with education, knowledge, and facilities regarding environmental issues is not well understood, especially among pre-service teachers. This study aimed to explore the link between the factors and pathways influencing of pre-service teachers towards separation and recycling behavior on campus in Indonesia. An online structured questionnaire survey was administered to more than 400 students at seven teacher education institutions in six islands in Indonesia. The hypothesised model's links and pathways are tested and analysed using SmartPLS in structural equation models. Environmental knowledge, perceived behavioural control, and environmental knowledge are the three factors that have the most significant relationships with intention of separation and recycling behavior, with environmental education having the most crucial direct impact. In contrast, attitudes and subjective norms fail to convert intention into behavior and do not have a significant direct influence on intention among pre-service teachers. It underscores the importance of environmental education and knowledge in promoting sustainable practices while emphasizing the role of accessible facilities and subjective norms in shaping recycling intentions. Additionally, the study emphasizes the complexity of attitudes and intentions, suggesting that interventions aimed at promoting recycling should consider a diverse range of factors that influence behaviour.

Formation of Future Teachers’ Digital Literacy in the Digital Educational Environment of a Pedagogical College

In the era of digital transformation of education, the roles and functions of the teacher are changing, there is a need to update the skills to adapt to new technologies, integrate digital tools into the educational process, develop digital literacy and digital competencies. In this regard, the article updates the problem of training modern teachers who are digitally literate and are able to effectively use digital resources to enrich the educational experience of students. The authors have developed and presented a structural and functional model for the formation of digital literacy of a future teacher, which includes a digital educational environment based on the introduction and use of digital educational content, various digital technologies, and specialized equipment for the educational process. It has been revealed that for the greatest effect of implementing the presented model, it is necessary to use active and interactive methods and forms of learning when integrating formal, non-formal and informal education within the digital educational environment. The study was conducted with students of the following specialties: Preschool education, Special preschool education, Teaching in primary grades, Pedagogy of additional education. The article presents the experience of developing digital skills, which are part of digital literacy, among future teachers within the framework of the modern digital educational environment of a pedagogical college, where today the learning process is built taking into account the requirements of modern standards and on the basis of PBL of the federal project “Professionalitet”. The results of the study made it possible to highlight the main aspects of the effective implementation of digital technologies in the learning process of students as future teachers in the digital educational environment of a pedagogical college and showed an improvement in the dynamics of the formation of digital literacy levels among future teachers. Keywords: digital literacy, digital educational environment, digital educational content, future teacher, pedagogical college

Development of computational thinking of students – future teachers by means of solving problems on the processing of structured data

The problem and the purpose. Computational thinking is one of the categories that currently assesses the quality of specialist training, including that of a future teacher. The mentor of a digital school needs computational thinking skills for the successful implementation of work functions and for determining the trajectory of his personal development. The purpose of the study is to identify the possibilities of structured data processing tools for the development of computational thinking of future teachers. Research methods. Structured data is information organized in the form of tables and files of other formats. The research was conducted on the basis of Vyatka State University (Russian Federation). The experiment involved 330 students studying in the field of training: 44.03.05 Pedagogical studies (with two specialties). The use of structured data processing tools was purposefully carried out in the classes of the design discipline from the block “Digital technologies in education”. A set of techniques was used to determine the level of computational thinking such as “Geometric figures”, “Quantitative relations”, “Complex analogies”. For statistical processing of data, Pearson's χ2 (chi-square) criterion is used. Results. Interaction in the experimental group was implemented in stages: the study of basic tools; development of skills of graphical interpretation; the use of functions that allow analyzing and protecting the contents of structured data. The features of the proposed information interaction are: students with different educational paths are involved; the technology of reasoned discourse is applied at every stage. Statistically significant differences were revealed in the qualitative changes that occurred in the pedagogical system (χ2 = 7.024; p &lt; 0.05). Conclusion. The tasks on the processing of structured data that maximize the development of computational thinking are formulated: conditional formatting; establishing links between the source data and the result; automatic recalculation of the result; filtering, sorting, etc. The difficulties that complicate the use of the proposed innovations are defined: how to state a task and to adapt it to the specifics of the field of training; how to organize a reasoned discourse.