Pre-service Education Courses Research Articles

An autoethnographic exploration of ABCD within a rural pre-service education course

ABSTRACT Studies of community engagement in preservice teacher education include quality field experiences and the development of cultural competencies. However, fewer scholarly conversations focus on rural preservice teacher education programs, and even fewer tackle the issue of quality field experiences that help develop preservice teachers’ cultural competencies. Utilizing autoethnographic research methods, this study highlights how the tenets of asset based community development (ABCD) were integrated into an education course. Findings highlight the limitations of ABCD, students’ responses to the tenets, and the community’s responses to diversity efforts. In addition, this study highlights assets and networks that supported students’ learning of diverse literature within the rural community. Implications for preservice teacher education, problematizing the limits of ABCD, and continued studies of ABCD using autoethnographic methods.

Beyond Student Ratings of Teacher: Continuous Improvement Cycles Using Student Feedback

This study documented the use of PDSA cycles in a co-taught pre-service education course in higher education. The study includes data in the form of student feedback which was collected and analyzed at the end of each semester for three years. Data were used to inform an iterative process for course refinement to improve student outcomes. Results examined the benefits and challenges of collaboration and co-teaching for both students and faculty. Implications for future research and practices are explored.

Shifting preservice teachers’ beliefs: toward critical connected learning

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore how preservice teacher’s beliefs change over time in a literacy methods elementary licensure course that encourages critical literacy and connects learning. The authors were interested in the interplay among identity, agency and structure within this process and how this connected with other literature on teacher beliefs and technology use.Design/methodology/approachUtilizing data from a larger ethnographic study and mediated discourse analysis (Scollon and Scollon, 2004), this paper follows preservice teacher’s use of digital tools and beliefs about using digital tools in the classroom over a semester-long hybrid course.FindingsFindings show changes in preservice teacher’s beliefs about technology use, interest-driven learning and her own agency. These changes were influenced by the framework of the course and course practices.Research limitations/implicationsThis research study offers practical ways to support preservice teachers’ implementation of digital tools with an emphasis on equity. Ultimately, preservice teachers’ experience shapes the opportunities students have with digital tools in schools.Practical implicationsRecognizing the competing discourses and pressures preservice teachers’ experience, the results of this study offer tools to support preservice teachers’ agency through the implementation of connected learning principles and critical literacy theories in preservice education courses, leading to the potential to expand equity in school settings.Originality/valueWhile there is research around connected learning in classrooms, there is limited research on a connected learning framework in preservice education programs. Additionally, this paper brings a new perspective on how pairing an emphasis of equity to a connected learning framework supports teachers’ implementation of digital tools.

Adaptability: An important capacity to cultivate among pre-service teachers in teacher education programmes

Teaching is characterised by constant change and occurs in a dynamic and unpredictable environment. Being able to adapt to meet the novel and changing situations that occur in these everchanging environments is an important capacity for thriving and effective teachers. This is known as adaptability, or the capacity of individuals to adjust their thoughts, feelings, and behaviours in response to new, changing, or uncertain situations (Martin et al., 2012). Although a growing body of research has demonstrated the benefits of adaptability for teachers and students (e.g. Collie & Martin, 2017; Parsons & Vaughn, 2016), limited work has considered the role of adaptability among beginning teachers, and how this capacity can be fostered in pre-service education courses. The present article thus examines the nature of adaptability and proposes a range of strategies that can be employed to foster this capacity in the context of pre-service educational psychology courses.

Challenging constraints or constraining challenges: Preservice primary music education across the Tasman

Tertiary music educators are faced with challenges associated with the enactment of curricula in pre-service education courses within time constraints. As a result, considered choices need to be made regarding content and pedagogical approaches based on what they deem to be valuable, memorable and transferrable. Using narrative methodology, two tertiary educators across the Tasman share their views about what they prioritise in their music education courses and how these choices are informed. Both authors face similar challenges, and share the view that the teaching of music goes far beyond entertainment. They uphold that music education provides a rich context to develop not only knowledge, skills and understandings about music itself, but also to address social, cultural, linguistic, cognitive and affective domains of learning, to name a few. This article looks at some of the ways the authors effectively support beginner teachers to address the music components of their respective national curriculum statements. While constraints of time in teacher education programmes is not a new phenomenon, the intention of this article is to highlight the benefits of music education, and encourage other educators to critically reflect on choices made in their own teaching contexts under challenging constraints.

MOOCifying Courses: Delivery of a MOOC to Enhance University Course Activities

Since 2012 MOOCs have been heralded as a new way of learning outside of formal university programs of study and there has been much speculation regarding their impact. While MOOCs have provided millions of global learners with access to courses, they failed to deliver the types of learning experiences and completion requirements that were hoped for. One potential iteration of MOOCs might be to blend them with existing courses offered in universities supporting links and connections between study and the outside world. This MOOCification of full-fee courses may provide another next step in the delivery of real and authentic learning. Using an empirical case study design, this project explored the MOOCification of an undergraduate preservice education course at an Australian university. The study presents evidence that blending MOOCs with classroom-based or online learning does provide higher education learners with personalized active learning opportunities. Further research on scaffolded support enabling learners to capitalize on additional aspects of networked learning in MOOCs is needed.

Instances: Incorporating Computational Scientific Thinking Advances into Education & Science Courses

Teaching computation and science in the context of scientific inquiry and problem solving promotes interest in STEM and increases appreciation for computation in science. The work presented here is the result of multi-institutional and multi-disciplinary collaboration among Computational Physics educator, Science & Math educator, Computational Science Education foundation, Computational Biologist, two community college science teachers, and CS usability expert. We have created a collection of modules that have been piloted in a pre-service education course and are currently being modified for use in an online course for pre- and in- service teachers. The Computational Scientific Thinking & Modeling course will provide practical computation integrated into the scientific problem-solving paradigm. We assume that the students have varied knowledge of physics, biology, algebra, and Calculus1 at a high school level. The following module topics have been selected for the online course: Exponential Decay and Growth, Logistic Growth, Computer Precision, Predator Prey Models, Projectile Motion with Drag, Random Numbers, Random Walk. Students learn to create models and perform computations using Excel, Python language or Vensim simulation software. Our modules start with a scientific problem and then lead the students through its solution via a computational science approach. A typical module includes: Learning Objectives/Skills/Activities, Scientific problem, Concept map and system statements, Computational model, Background information on the computational model, Simulating the model, and Assessment. We found that the module topics are easily described in the context of physical examples. Yet biological examples are less obvious. The pilot of the Exponential Decay and Growth and Logistic Growth revealed that the science was masked in the process of learning the software and the students desired a greater understanding of computation in science. In this poster we present the modules that have been piloted.

Developing Reflective Practitioners in Zimbabwe Teachers' Colleges

Scholars have advocated the importance of developing reflective teaching skills in teachers so as to produce critical thinking pupils from our schools. This study examined how pre-service teachers and the course instructor perceived reflective thinking at the start of a required literacy course in a pre-service teacher education program. Teacher educators in Zimbabwe need to consider carefully the impact of the work they do in training and developing critical thinkers in the education of the country. The intention of teaching is to bring about learning. In what way does teaching lead to the concept of learning? How does a teacher trainer develop critical thinking skills in a student teacher so that he/she can in turn develop these skills in the pupils? This study examined how student teachers in pre-service Teachers’ colleges are taught, the structure of the course and the manner in which the practical teaching practice is organized. The study examined how the teacher educator contributed to the development of reflective thinking throughout the course and the study looked at how pre-service teachers applied ideas learned through reflection at school. Data collection included individual interviews, focus group discussions, observations of the visual data workshop with students, and analysis of written assignments. Visits to the schools where student teachers practiced were also done. The data was collected over the period of two semesters using a purposeful sample of 60 students and 10 teacher educators. The findings included the following (a) the mentors who are experienced teachers provide technical assistance to the student teachers. (b) The mentor can also provide personal support for the student teacher. (c) The mentor can also provide support for curriculum development. (d) Written assignments and dialogue taken from the visual data analysis workshop indicated pre- service teacher characteristics that are consistent with characteristics of reflective thinkers. This study may have implications for curricular design and implementation in future pre-service education courses. The visual data project provided a context within which the participants acted, allowing the researcher to understand what assignments, activities, and experiences demonstrated characteristics consistent with those of reflective thinkers.

Surfacing the Assumptions: Pursuing Critical Literacy and Social Justice in Preservice Teacher Education

This paper outlines a four-year study of a preservice education course based on a socioconstructivist research framework. The preservice English Language Arts course focuses on critical literacy and teaching for social justice while employing digital technologies.The research study examines two concepts across all aspects of the course: 1) new literacies and multiliteracies; and 2) technology-supported transformative pedagogy for social and educational change. While the authors originally undertook the study to evaluate separate assignments of the course, the lens of the two themes has provided an opportunity for a scholarly review of their teaching practices. Research data include three course assignments over a 2-year period; an open-ended survey; and focus group and individual interviews with pre-service teachers. The authors discuss some of the affordances, challenges, and learnings associated with preparing teachers to teach critical literacy in a digital age. They also consider the development of critical literacy skills which encourage preservice teachers to bring their literacy histories and assumptions to the surface, examine them critically, and consider social justice alternatives.

Positioning people with intellectual disabilities as the experts: enhancing pre-service teachers’ competencies in teaching for diversity

The need for graduate teachers to own their professional responsibilities to engage successfully with students with special educational needs (SENs) in mainstream classrooms has been recognised in educational policies and programmes in many countries for well over two decades. Despite wide-ranging research, questions remain as to how pre-service education courses can help beginning teachers to develop the required commitment, knowledge and pedagogies to feel confident in teaching students with disabilities. Challenges to find new ways to enhance pre-service teachers’ familiarity with special needs children, overcome resistance from some towards including SEN students in mainstream classrooms and develop a sense of efficacy in teaching are common to many programmes. In this paper, we report on a pilot study where adults with intellectual disabilities, as members of a community theatre, were positioned as the experts and explored their schooling experiences and personal biographies with soon-to-be graduate teachers in a 3 h workshop. Taking the lead and working collaboratively with the workshop participants, members of Fusion Theatre used drama activities to develop understandings of strategies that helped them to learn. By challenging the traditional power relationships between those labelled as ‘disabled’ and those who would be teachers, the workshop helped the participants to engage on many levels. Here, we report on the data, analyse the findings and discuss implications for other pre-service programmes.

When do we do the Macerena?: Habitus and arts learning in primary pre-service education courses

AbstractArts education is an area that has undergone enormous change over the last two decades. The renewed understanding of the area declares that the arts is an academic area of study that requires learners to use creative and complex thinking, active investigation and reflective skills to engage in the creation, presentation and evaluation of the arts. However, pre-service teachers’ perceptions of the arts frequently misrepresent the area, often as a result of societal values or their own school experiences. In this paper lecturers facilitating primary arts education units reflect on pre-service teachers’ perceptions of the arts, and the ways in which the facilitation of learning experiences may address those perceptions. The research also examines the various strategies used by participants to address the existing habitus in relation to arts education and the ways in which the participants themselves are affected.

Prospective Teachers’ Reflections: Responding to a Call for LGBT-inclusive Classrooms

Sixty-seven pre-service teachers wrote critical self-reflections following a lecture on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people and schools. Most students were receptive to the lecture content. Many worked to reconcile religious beliefs with their desire to create a safe environment for all students. Two students remained strongly resistant. Students reflected on future teaching, personal reactions, and prior experiences with lesbian and gay people. They also made links to other forms of oppression. This study adds to the growing consensus that LGBT issues can and should be included in pre-service education courses to foster cultural competency and social justice.

PARTNERING PROSPECTIVE AND PRACTICING TEACHERS TO CREATE TECHNOLOGY-SUPPORTED LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES FOR STUDENTS

In this article, we argue that it is possible to design pre-service education courses to enhance both pre- and in-service teachers' understanding of technology and emerging of e-pedagogy. Specifically, we examine a field-based technology course that provides teacher candidates with classroom-based teaching opportunities with technology. We focus on how this type of professional development partnering might be of benefit to the participating teacher candidates and mentor teachers.

RESEARCH REPORT

In an investigation of the learning of science content knowledge in a postgraduate preservice education course, it was found that the ‘failure of further learning’ effect can be overcome, at least in part, in well‐designed courses. Nevertheless the persistence of certain misconceptions among some students did indicate the partial salience of the effect in Postgraduate Certificate in Education science courses. Although the students' confidence in their knowledge of various topics, as indicated in self‐audits, was positively related to their actual knowledge as displayed in their test answers, the relationship between confidence and knowledge was not strong, particularly for the biology topics.

Constructing meaning about literacy difficulties: Preservice teachers beginning to think about pedagogy

The purpose of this study was to explore the meanings preservice teachers constructed about students with reading difficulties. Qualitative techniques were employed to develop six case studies to understand better how preservice teachers framed their meanings. Cross-case analysis revealed that each preservice teacher's stance on meaning, while idiosyncratically based on experience, was tied to pedagogy in two distinct ways: (a) most of the participants placed an increasingly important role on the supervising teacher when considering reading difficulties and (b) they situated themselves as a teacher within that context. The findings suggest the importance of designing preservice education course work that is inquiry-oriented and offers opportunities for students to explore systematically their developing stances and self-constructed meanings about reading.

Listening to Country Voices: Preparing Attracting and Retaining Teachers for Rural and Remote Areas

In recent years there has been concern about the equitable provision of education services across metropolitan and rural areas in Australia (Lunn 1997). In particular, much of the debate has revolved around the allocation and distribution of educational and community based resources and the extent to which they hnpact on the lives of teachers living aud working in geographicaliy isolated in areas. Recent political and social debate has highlighted a perceived disenfranchisement and marginalisation of rural and remote community which may be reflected in students learning outcomes in these areas. In this paper we examine two aspects of this debate. Firstly, what issues do local community members highlight as needing to be addressed, in terms of preparing, attracting and retaining teachers for teaching positions in rural and remote areas. Secondly, how can pre-service education courses incorporate the perceived needs of the local community into current programs. In particular, we examine the trial of a mentor/internship program underway at Queensland University of Technology. The program aims to develop partnerships between schools, university, education departments and local communities to better prepare beginning teachers for the particular needs of the rural community.

USING REFLECTIVE PORTFOLIOS AS A TOOL TO TEACH WRITING TO STUDENTS WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES: A PROJECT FOR PRESERVICE TEACHERS

Teacher education faculties are beginning to examine assessment choices that are more reflective in nature. An alternative some are experimenting with is the student portfolio, which is gaining in popularity at elementary, middle‐, and high‐school levels. This article advocates the use of portfolios as an alternative assessment at the collegiate level in teacher education classes. A preservice methods class special project designed to engage teacher‐trainees in reflections related to the teaching of writing in a mainstreamed classroom provides an overview of how this process can be incorporated into a preservice education course.

Innovation in a Pre-Service Education Course

Innovation in a Pre-Service Education Course