Teacher Preparation Programs Research Articles

Remixing Special Education Practices with Artificial Intelligence: UDL, EBP, and HLPs

This article presents engaging and practical methods of helping educators to “remix” the evidence-based and high-leverage practices they are already familiar with to include the new capabilities of artificial intelligence (AI). Transformational modern technologies can be powerful and disruptive, possessing the potential to impact multiple areas of society, including education. One of the best ways for educators to implement AI in their teaching is using it to help support and extend their current practices (Mishra et al., 2023). Similar to how a new remix on the radio can make an old favorite song fresh again, educators can use AI to uphold and enhance their existing instructional strategies and skills. However, adapting to the new paradigm of AI in education may be challenging for teacher preparation programs in special education. The authors of this article apply some of the strategies from “Leveraging Emerging Technology to Design an Inclusive Future with Universal Design for Learning” (McMahon & Walker, 2019) to effectively implement AI in education. Rather than needing to start fresh or relearn how to teach while incorporating AI, teachers can view this article as a foundation for how to apply AI tools to support current practice. The recommendations are based on Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and strategies for adapting AI tools to support high-leverage practices and established evidence-based practices. The authors aim to inspire special educators to start using AI to help “remix” and innovate the implementation of their existing instructional strategies.

Public opinion and the teaching profession

Negative public perception of schools nationally impacts the teaching profession in direct and indirect ways. This perception has depressed the number of students in teacher preparation programs at universities. Indirectly, public perception affects teacher working conditions, compensation, and morale. Education advocates and researchers talk about the historical roots of perception of teachers, how and why negative perceptions persist, and how teachers can change the narrative.

Innovative Technology Integration in Teaching Practicum: Pre-Service Teachers' Mastery of the TPACK Framework at Universitas Widya Gama Mahakam Samarinda

Consider how Technology has been used in the teaching and learning process. This study aimed to explore PSTs' final practice in practicum integrated into Technology and how they solve the problem if they have it. This research was conducted at Widya Gama Mahakam University. This study focused on PSTs' competence when designing and using Technology in teaching final practice in practicum programs through the TPACK framework. The design of this study was a qualitative study that illustrates the PSTs' competence in integrating Technology in the final practice teaching in the practicum program through TPACK Framework. There were 22 PSTs of seven semesters as the participants. There were three items of instruments. Documents, interviews, Observation, and three PSTs were willing to be interviewees. The study result showed they plan the lesson well before teaching using Technology even though there are slight differences in their performance. The Technology they used, combined with pedagogy and content, varied depending on the state of equipment, facilities, PSTs' abilities, and student levels. PSTs also stated the involvement of supervising teachers was beneficial when they faced difficulties in teaching practice. The Researcher suggested that PSTs design their lesson plan effectively. The teacher preparation program prepares PSTs with technological education skills, and the school provides nondigital or digital technology support, student-centered software, and collaboration media tools.

Rating writing: Comparison of holistic and analytic grading approaches in pre-service teachers

BackgroundIn a typical instructional setting, teachers are responsible for making ongoing decisions that involve judgments of students’ capabilities, knowledge, learning needs, and progress toward a certain pre-specified goal. However, there is a significant within-teacher as well as a great between-teacher variability in the actual determination of grades. Grades appear to be an amalgam of characteristics of a student, filtered through a range of teacher personality variables. AimsThe purpose of this study was to investigate the extent to which pre-service teachers agreed on students’ grades in writing task between holistic and analytic grading approaches and how their individual characteristics and beliefs about features of assessment explained the variability in grading practices. SampleTeacher candidates (N = 231, 65% female) enrolled in a training program in 2020 and 2021 cohorts at the University of València, Spain, were asked to read two essays, identified by experts as being of low and high quality, and assign holistic and analytic grades. Resultsalthough teacher candidates provided grades consistently across the two approaches (intra-individual differences), there was a high variability in the distribution among participants (inter-individual differences). We found that, gender, area of specialization, attitudes toward feedback, and extraversion were significant predictors of grading variability. ConclusionThis study highlights the considerable variation in grading practices among pre-service teachers, indicating the influence of individual factors such as gender, specialization, feedback receptivity, and extraversion. Despite consistent grading within specific approaches, the inter-individual differences in scores were substantial. Due to the consequential nature of teacher grades, our findings offer important insights and have critical implications for teacher preparation and professional development programs.

Creating School–University Partnerships in Urban Schools to Address Teacher Shortages

Partnerships among professionals within collegiate teacher preparation programs and school districts are needed to address current teacher shortages, especially critical in urban, high-needs schools. This research study showcases a collaborative model of teacher recruitment, preparation, and support that envisions and co-constructs reconceptualized roles, opportunities, and responsibilities for university faculties, supervising teachers, and teacher candidates. The concept is supported through a continuum of professional learning and reflection. The enhanced partnership model (EPM) for internship requires a partnership between faculties in teacher preparation programs and school districts to develop, engage, and evaluate an EPM for urban-school teacher preparation in multiple urban school sites in the southeastern United States. The goals of this innovative EPM revolve around recruiting diverse teacher candidates, collaboratively preparing them to focus on rigorous academic coursework as well as practical, classroom-based experiences, and retaining the new teachers. Employment data were accessed via administrative sources. A chi-square test of association was used to examine the relationship between participation in the EPM and employment (n = 158). The findings highlight that pre-service teachers participating in the EPM are 4.5 times as likely to be employed in a high-needs school, and 75% of those employed are still employed three years later. The implications of these results are shared.

Job Satisfaction and Teaching Effectiveness in Emergency Remote Teaching among Higher Education Faculty

In the rapidly evolving landscape of 21st century education, teacher preparation programs play a significant role in shaping the educators of tomorrow. This qualitative study aims to reveal both the opportunities and limitations of incorporating action research into experiential learning courses within teacher education programs. The researcher conducted a comprehensive thematic analysis to examine and categorize the participants' responses. Through in-depth interviews with 30 senior education students at Batangas State University, The National Engineering University, JPLPC Malvar, Batangas, Philippines, during the academic year 2021-2022, it was revealed that the opportunities arising from action research include enhanced teaching skills and pedagogy, problem-solving and reflective practice, collaborative learning and peer interaction, as well as professional growth and ethical awareness. Moreover, participants also encounter limitations, such as time constraints, resource accessibility, and ethical dilemmas. To address these challenges and capitalize on the opportunities, the study recommends strategies for improved time management, equitable resource access, and ethical training and support within teacher education programs. The study also suggests future research avenues, including longitudinal studies and comparative analyses, to further enhance action research's role in shaping the educators of the future.

If You Choose Not to Decide: A Survey of Online Field Experiences for Canadian Teacher Preparation Programs

Despite the rapid growth in online and distance learning in Canada, there does not appear to be much interest on the part of teacher education programs to evolve to meet the needs of future generations of teacher candidates. While understanding the notion that systemic change in tertiary education takes time, the steady growth of online and blended learning in Canada–and globally–combined with raised awareness of distance learning stoked by the COVID-19 pandemic should make educators and policymakers worry about failing to respond to a rapidly changing educational landscape. This paper highlights the status of distance and online field experiences provided by Canadian teacher education programs. In addition, we review program offerings to support in-service teachers, such as graduate certificate, degree, and diploma programs, as well as MOOCs offering free professional development. This study, a replication of a mixed-method study originally conducted in the United States and published as a technical report by Archibald et al. (2020)[1], found that a minority of teacher education programs offered online or blended field experiences. Further, we found that programs were slow to change these deficiencies due to institutional lack of resources, limited knowledge base, perceived lack of usefulness for their teachers’ future careers, and regulatory bodies discouraging online field experiences. This study highlights the dramatic need for programming in distance and online education. [1] This article is original, with some exceptions in the “Results” section.

Negotiations and reconciliations in the first year of teaching

This study investigates the lived experiences and developing identities of three secondary first-year teachers, exploring the practices each employed to reconcile expectations of teaching with their realities. Authors present distinct narratives synthesized from weekly reflections and interviews, identifying factors that supported new teacher reconciliation including a strong connection to community, healthy social emotional skills, and the recalibration of the role of curriculum. This study advocates for teacher preparation programs to recognize areas of misaligned expectations and provide support for new teachers in the construction of realistic views of teaching as essential to developing teacher identity and impacting retention.

Developing a Virtual Oral Inquiry Community for Teacher Educator Professional Learning: A Case Analysis

ABSTRACT Amid an international turn toward clinically based initial teacher preparation, the field of teacher education needs promising mechanisms to drive the professional learning of the teacher educators enacting the turn. This article introduces an example of one such mechanism by presenting and analyzing the case of a virtual oral inquiry community that supported the professional learning of three clinically based teacher educators affiliated with separate teacher preparation programs. Informed by the principles of andragogy, the inquiry community reformulated practitioner inquiry (the systematic, intentional study by educators of their own professional practices) into a new cycle of oral inquiry that teacher educators used to learn together across contexts. Practices associated with the teacher educators’ inquiry cycle (selecting common texts, returning to local practice, reconnecting, sharing problems of practice, and analyzing common texts in relation to local problems) generated both personal and collective impacts significant to their learning. The teacher educators developed a strong sense of interpersonal trust that made it possible for them to become vulnerable about their practices. Together, they developed shared understandings of problems of practice affecting clinically based teacher educators, which addressed a shared problem of professional isolation and enhanced their ability to sustain their professional learning over time.

Evaluation Policy Study of the Second Round of the Taiwan Teacher Preparation Program Evaluation.

This study focuses on the second round of Taiwanese teacher preparation program (TPP) evaluation (2012-2017) to analyze how evaluation policy shapes TPPs. In-depth interviews were conducted with 13 stakeholders, which included professors, administrators, researchers, and staff involved in TPP evaluation. First, the findings revealed that neoliberalism influences evaluation policy and restricts the diversity of TPP development. Second, different evaluation approaches may be used to bring more inclusiveness and flexibility to evaluation standards. Third, evaluation plays an important role in TPP development, and a professional organization responsible for evaluation should be established in Taiwan in the future. To conclude, it is significant for TPP evaluation policy to consider policy ideology, evaluation standards, and program diversity to aid in improving the quality of teacher education not only in Taiwan but also internationally.

What does a history teacher do? Knowing, understanding, and enacting the work of teaching history

This study considers the questions, “How do teacher candidates conceptualize the relationship among historians, history teachers, and history students?” and “How is this understanding revealed in candidates’ representation of the work they do in classrooms as history teachers?” Using a case study approach, researchers gathered data from fifteen teacher candidates in a teacher preparation program in the Midwestern United States. The data consisted of participants’ responses to three questions (What do historians do? What do history teachers do? What do history students do?) and their selections of and rationale for including artifacts in a portfolio designed to showcase “who they are” as history teachers as represented by their developing pedagogical content knowledge in history. The researchers’ findings reveal a discrepancy exists between teacher candidates’ emerging beliefs about their responsibilities as teachers and the work that they chose to highlight after having completed clinical experiences. Specifically, the findings suggest a critical disconnect exists between what teacher candidates are taught about teaching history, what they believe about teaching history, and the opportunities that they have in clinical experiences to enact these ideas. This research highlights the central yet often unexamined role of emerging teachers’ epistemic understandings in shaping opportunities for pedagogical reform in history.

Remote teaching and learning for teacher candidates: mentor teacher perspectives

PurposeThis study offers implications for remote mentoring within school university partnerships based on a qualitative study focused on how three experienced mentor teachers within a long-standing Professional Development School (PDS) partnership adapted to remote mentoring during emergency remote teaching in the 2020–2021 school year.Design/methodology/approachData was collected through interviews with three teachers and analyzed following qualitative methods to identify themes. Data is presented in case studies describing their remote mentoring practices.FindingsFindings indicate that in the context of strong school–university partnerships, these mentor teachers were successful in adapting their mentoring of teacher candidates to a remote modality and that the benefits to collaborators within the partnership were like those documented in traditional, in-person mentorship. The challenges these teachers overcame include establishing relationships and providing adequate supervision.Research limitations/implicationsThe results offer rich insights into the experiences of mentor teachers when conditions necessitate a change in instructional modality and create implications for innovation in mentorship of teacher candidates, particularly in remote mentorship settings.Practical implicationsSchool–university partnerships should be maintained during emergencies because of the benefits to all partners, most notably to prek-5 students. We recommend that articulated agreements be revisited and modified to address potential future emergencies. The value of establishing and maintaining strong PDS partnerships should not be undervalued during times of emergency.Social implicationsTeacher preparation programs can sustain the important work of educating teachers through challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic most effectively when they work in partnership with prek-12 schools. Use of technology in innovative ways, such as remote mentoring, can support teacher preparation when in-person clinical experiences are limited.Originality/valueThis study offers initial data on remote mentoring, an innovative mentoring approach which has, to this point, been the subject of limited empirical investigation. Additionally, as remote educational opportunities for prek-5 learners increase, teacher preparation programs may choose to utilize remote mentoring in PDS programming, making this data of particular value.

Building French-as-a-Second-Language Teacher Candidates’ Linguistic Confidence through Drama-Based Activities

French-as-a-second-language (FSL) teacher candidates’ French proficiency and confidence are key indicators of recruitment and retention of FSL teachers. This paper outlines a pilot project, the Conversation Club, that was used to address linguistic insecurity and proficiency in FSL teacher candidates at one university. The Conversation Club was a drop-in 1-hour session conducted over 5 weeks where participants conversed, played games, and participated in dramatic activities entirely in French. The findings from this pilot project demonstrate how linguistic confidence of FSL teacher candidates can be improved with only a few short sessions in French. Further, participants developed their pedagogical knowledge and skills through experiential learning by participating in activities that they could in turn implement in their FSL classrooms. Last, participants developed a social network of support. Findings support the benefit of implementing low-pressure, game-focused drop-in French-language support group within FSL teacher preparation programs to support FSL teachers’ linguistic confidence and, potentially, FSL teacher retention. An outline of the club and suggestions for implementation are included in the appendices of this article.

ESL Instructional Practices and Teacher Preparation: A Mixed Methods Study at a Chinese International High School

This mixed methods study investigates ESL instructional practices at Shenzhen Experimental High School, a Chinese international secondary institution. The findings will provide data-driven insights into optimal teaching methods for Chinese adolescent ELLs. This holds significant implications for enhancing teacher preparation and professional development programs in international schools striving to meet the needs of diverse linguistic learners at Shenzhen Experimental to identify areas for improved professional development tailored to this context. The goal is informing data-driven reforms to enhance outcomes for the schools adolescent English language learners (ELLs). This research also provides an important foundation and model for future inquiries illuminating the multidimensional competencies that enable ESL teachers to create inclusive, linguistically responsive learning environments.

Competing practice-based mentoring frameworks for student-teachers: between quasi-residency and expedited alternative teacher preparation

ABSTRACT At their best, teacher preparation programmes harness the power of mentoring to provide professional, emotional, and organisational support for novice teachers and student-teachers. While teacher mentoring research provides much information regarding effective practices, little is known about how different preparation tracks structure the mentoring they provide. Based on interviews with student-teachers (n = 24), this paper examines and compares the mentoring experiences of students in two different, highly reputed Israeli teacher preparation tracks; Academia-Classroom and Hotam. The analysis focuses on emerging similarities and differences between the tracks, indicating two structural aspects associated with the intensity of mentoring – the division of mentors’ roles and co-teaching – that hindered or supported the quality of student-teachers’ mentoring experience. It exemplifies that, despite the importance of individual agency and interpretation, structural programmatic features are key factors in shaping teacher preparation processes and outcomes.

Examining Professional Development for Special Education Teachers, General Education Teachers, and Paraeducators Who Support Autistic Elementary Students

ABSTRACT Background Autistic youth primarily receive services in public schools from educators who persistently report variable training and use of evidenced-based practices (EBPs). Educational achievement of individualized goals may be hindered by inconsistent implementation of EBPs. Objective To better understand EBP training practices, this study employs both quantitative and qualitative methods to examine EBP training experiences accessed by educators of different roles. Method Eighty-one participants (special education teachers, general education teachers, and paraeducators) serving autistic children in public schools completed an exhaustive survey on professional development, as well as a complementary semi-structured interview. Results Special education and general education teachers had similar patterns in terms of the types of training and providers they accessed. Compared to paraeducators, general and special educators were more likely to report accessing Teacher Preparation or Educator Certification Programs and School or District In-Service. The type of provider conducting the training also differed by role, with general educators being more likely to receive training from Higher Education Faculty, District Coaches, and Supervisors, and paraeducators more likely to receive training from Teachers. Special education teachers, general education teachers, and paraeducators also reported qualitative differences in their training experiences and needs. Conclusions This study provides valuable EBP training suggestions synthesized from the perspectives of educators working together to support autistic students. One recommendation is the facilitation of opportunities for educators to train and work together across roles, as well as the personalization of these trainings for educators of different roles, fostering a more comprehensive understanding of the needs of autistic students and promoting consistent EBP utilization.

Diversity’s (in)visibility at two Hispanic Serving Institutions: how the whiteness of higher education constrains racially diversifying the K-12 teaching force

PurposeMost research about combating the whiteness of teacher education neglects to analyze the whiteness of the higher education institutional contexts housing teacher preparation programs. This gap also holds true within research exploring Minority Serving Institutions’ potential to graduate large numbers of teachers of color. Consequently, this paper aims to argue that without strong institutional commitments to dismantle the whiteness of higher education, Hispanic Serving Institutions (a type of Minority Serving Institution) compromise their potential to robustly prepare and graduate K-12 teachers of color.Design/methodology/approachDrawing on an inductive qualitative analysis of interviews with teacher educators of color and students and a deductive qualitative analysis of publicly available data at two Hispanic Serving Institutions, this paper uses Critical Race Theory tenets of lived experience and intersectionality.FindingsBoth institutions enacted diversity commitments. However, findings demonstrated that institutional support neglected the multiple oppressive systems impacting students of color. Additionally, prioritizing (White) research norms invisibilized faculty of color in higher ranked professorial roles and compromised faculty pedagogy.Originality/valueFindings address lesser known analyses of how the intersections between institutional climate, teacher education programs and the unique Hispanic Serving Institutional context impact student/preservice teacher and faculty/teacher educator racial diversity, demonstrate the necessity of using an intersectional lens when analyzing preservice teacher and teacher educator of color experiences, and demonstrate how racially diverse, multicultural higher education contexts can still invisibilize diversity.

Coaching During Student Teaching: Using Self-Regulated Learning to Improve Questioning Skills for Preservice Science Teachers

ABSTRACT Although student teaching plays a crucial role in teacher preparation programs, limited research has examined the specific features of this experience that positively impact preservice science teachers’ (PSTs) questioning competency. This multi-case study contributes to the existing body of research by presenting findings from an initiative in a teacher preparation program that integrates self-regulated learning (SRL) into professional learning (PL) and coaching to improve PSTs’ questioning skills. Despite variability in their initial SRL skills, all participating PSTs experiened shared learning opportunities related to asking higher-level cognitive questions. The PL and coaching during student teaching appeared to contribute to PSTs’ improvement in different aspects of asking questions. Coaching, in particular, enhanced PSTs’ application of strategies learned in the PL and facilitated learning from the act of teaching. The findings suggest that to help PSTs develop to ask higher-level cognitive questions, teacher preparation programs need to provide detailed, memorable, and theory-grounded descriptions of questioning techniques. In addition, integrating SRL processes into coursework and coaching can significantly enhance PSTs’ learning from teaching experience.

An Instructional Design for Maker Education Courses in Teacher Preparation Programs

Maker-based education holds promise as a method to support students’ development of essential skills and content knowledge across the curriculum. Over a five-year period, the authors developed and iterated on an experiential instructional design specifically designed to afford educators with diverse academic backgrounds and divergent career goals not only the opportunity to learn about maker-based teaching and learning but also to experience a maker-based learning environment. This design case begins by outlining the challenges the designers faced. Then, it describes in detail the instructional design and concludes with reflections on the process, which have informed us as a team of designers.

What you say matters: preservice teacher classroom management initial development

ABSTRACT This qualitative study explores preservice teachers’ (PSTs) beliefs about classroom management advice and support. The authors seek to explore PSTs’ initial classroom management development by identifying what was most salient upon entering preparation, what they remember at completion, and who they are learning from. The authors draw from open-response survey items of over 900 PSTs from an entry/exit survey design in one of the largest teacher preparation programs in Texas. Results indicate that PSTs focus on the use of specific strategies, the classroom environment, and select components of classroom management. Notably, entry responses highlight learning from previous professors, while exit surveys highlight clinical teaching experiences. Implications of this study inform teacher preparation programs to consider addressing misconceptions that PSTs enter with as well as to embed evidence-based practices within coursework that are simultaneously integrated throughout clinical teaching.