Teacher Role Models Research Articles

A Platform for Partnership: Preparing Student Teachers for Parent-Teacher Participation

If student teachers are not made aware of and are not given an opportunity to experience the fundamental connection between teachers and parents, their professional development during the training years is actually incomplete. Preparing student teachers for parent-teacher participation is, however, not a straightforward process. Getting student teachers involved in this unique relationship is challenging and can even be stressful for them. Student teachers should be equipped with the necessary skills, knowledge and strategies during their training years to be able to recognise and encourage the benefits of home-school participation (Van Wyk &Lemmer, 2009:14). Student teachers do not only need opportunities to prepare and present lessons during their teaching practice periods at schools. They also need learning experiences that would help them to encourage, promote and show consideration for parent involvement. Therefore, the specific aim of the research under review focuses on identifying possible learning opportunities for student teachers during their teaching practice at schools that will enable them to acquire the ability to respect, value and admire parent participation. This paper addresses the following research question: What challenges with regard to engaging student teachers in parent involvement do mentor teachers experience and what learning opportunities can be provided to student teachers to enable them to manage parent-teacher partnerships? In order to answer this question a qualitative research approach was used. Both the socio-constructivist learning and Lave and Wenger’s situated learning theory were used as theoretical frameworks. A maximum variation sampling technique was used to purposefully select 10 mentor teachers from functional urban schools as participants who viewed themselves as role models for student teachers. The findings suggest that practice should be viewed as activity embedded in theory. Findings also indicate that the preparation of student teachers for parent-teacher partnership demands systematic action and thoughtful, coordinated planning. The research concludes with suggestions for ways to provide learning opportunities for student teachers that could play a significant role in guiding and preparing them to respect and promote home-school partnership. DOI: 10.5901/jesr.2013.v3n7p419

Teacher Role Model and Students' Physical Activity

Abstract Introduction. Physical activity is an important factor in health risk prevention, which improves the quality of life, as well as promotes both physical and mental health preservation [1, 2]. Each year, the lack of physical activity causes death of 600,000 people in Europe - approximately 6% of the total population [3]. Despite the significant number of studies that have been conducted on students' physical activity, it is also being claimed that studies on the teenage group are essential yet scarce, and the results are ambiguous [4]. This confirms the need for more such studies in order to better determine the significant factors in the promotion of students' physical activity. Material and methods. 339 students aged 11 to 19 participated in the collection of data base: 147 boys and 192 girls. Average age of participants was: 14.6 years. 75 students aged 14-19 years (33 girls and 42 boys) were involved in the pedagogical experiment. The average age of the participants was 16-19 years in School 1 (11 girls and 18 boys), and 14-17 years in School 2 (19 girls and 27 boys). Average age of participants was: 16.3 years. Three sports teachers participated in the pedagogical experiment as well. During the course of the experiment, teachers developed a model of pedagogical interaction in physical education classes. At each school the experiment lasted for 14 weeks. In both schools physical education classes were held twice a week. Results. Based on factor analysis, a model of pedagogical interactions promoting physical activity of students was developed. According to the results of the physical activity habits test (inventory) we can conclude that students have experienced positive and statistically significant changes in their physical activity. The boys were considerably more active during classes where the teacher was present as a participant of physical activities. Conclusions. Teachers and students remark that the applied contents of the pedagogical interaction model have positive effects on the interaction between students and teachers and stimulate physical activity of students.

Age Stereotypes of Older Primary Teachers in Taiwan

Elder respect in East Asia has a long history that could be derived from Confucian philosophy. However, with the rapid development of westernization, younger people have gradually depreciated the value of elder respect and seek a reciprocal relationship with the elderly. A literature search revealed that age stereotypes would be both negative and positive. This study employs the qualitative approach, mainly through interviews, to collect college students' attitudes towards older primary teachers. The research findings illustrate three characteristics: (a) the value of elder respect from college students seems to have gradually declined, particularly under the impact of westernization and industrialization, although some students did still believe in elder respect influenced by Confucian philosophy; (b) some students' negative stereotypes of older primary teachers include that older primary teachers are resistant to change, unwilling to accept new ideas, and less motivated to learn; (c) some students' positive stereotypes towards older primary teachers are that they are experienced in teaching and classroom management and role models for younger teachers. This study raises several issues and questions that may contribute to further research. In addition, the study proposes some implications for educational authorities.

Race, Sexual Orientation, Culture and Male Teacher Role Models: “Will Any Teacher Do as Long as They are Good?”

There is a perceived shortage of males in education provincially and nationally in Canada, particularly at the elementary level. My theoretical framework derives from queer theory, questioning the fluidity of discourse and identities, and troubling accepted, commonplace beliefs, knowledge, and practices. To this end, I interpret data from an online survey of 223 male primary/junior schoolteachers in Ontario. In this paper, I address male primary-junior teachers as role models in relation to race, sexual orientation, and culture, regarding two popular ideologies. The first is that of good teachers who can supposedly teach all pupils regardless of their own identity markers and sense of agency, or those of their pupils and larger communities. The second reflects notions of diversity to offset hegemonic male gender expectations, and to better reflect diversity in the broader school and social populations, while counterbalancing the overwhelming numbers of female role models in school, and at home, for children.

A multi-institution exploration of secondary socialization and occupational identity among undergraduate music majors

Researchers are increasingly interested in the psychological and sociological processes by which college students develop competence and confidence as musicians. We surveyed 454 undergraduate music majors enrolled in one of three NASM-accredited music schools in the US. Participants completed a questionnaire that addressed beliefs about influential people and experiences, occupational roles within music, and music career commitment. Studio teachers were viewed as the strongest musician and teacher role models, studio teachers and parents had the most positive influence on pursuit of a music degree, and most performance-related activities were considered extremely important. People and experiences merged to exert influence through multiple contexts (both within and outside the music school environment), and occupational identity was multi-dimensional in nature (corresponding to different musical roles/occupations). Social influences, as well as teacher and musician identity, contributed to music career commitment prediction. We found evidence of some institutional differences and strong degree program effects, implying that decisions about which music school to attend and degree program(s) to pursue may have important consequences for socialization and occupational identity construction. We concluded that the presence of diverse but mutually supportive socialization structures may facilitate the integration of music, teacher and scholar identities among undergraduate music majors.

Getting Up to Speed on Nanotech Training, Outreach and Informal Education Programs

You may have said the same thing to yourself or a colleague at some point. I have. The response that I received was, “I don’t know. Google it.” After an eighth of a second, my monitor screen is filled with four million query results. Oh, never mind. To gain an answer to the above questions and others, I recommend Judith Light Feather and Miguel Aznar’s Nanoscience Education, Workforce Training, and K-12 Resources for your bookshelf. Some chapters are worth reading in their entirety but about half of the book is devoted to synopses of current nanotechnology programs focusing on informal education and outreach, curricula for students in kindergarten through high school and training programs at community and technical colleges. Programs within the United States receive the most attention but the book does describe programs in other countries. The authors provide ample citations and a detailed table of contents, listing the title of each program synopsis. It is up to date, easy to read and reasonably priced ($49.95 retail). Brief biographies of the authors describe their extensive experiences in national and international education efforts focusing on nanotechnology. Ten other scientists and educators contribute to various chapters. The book is divided into five sections. The first section, Foundations, begins with a typical introduction describing nanotechnology with a justification of why young students should learn about it. This material will be familiar to most nanotechnology educators. The second chapter was perhaps the most interesting to me because it focuses not just on nanotechnology education but the policy of U.S. education in general. The chapter’s first subheading describes the situation succinctly: “The complexity of our education system is not easily penetrated.” It describes the roles of different federal, state and local government agencies at the K-12 and university levels and education funding sources. The authors clearly express the frustration that many educators feel when trying to introduce new ideas into the educational system. The third chapter, “Students are Shifting the Paradigm,” is a mix of pedagogical studies involving today’s generation of students and a few summaries of existing K-12 programs around the world. The programs included in chapter 3 are noteworthy because students initiated them “from the bottom up,” so to speak. Faculty looking for ideas of nanotech education programs should look here as well as in later chapters. The final part of the Foundations section was a trio of biographies of Richard Feynman, Richard Smalley and Leon Lederman, each a Nobel Prize winner in physics, chemistry, and physics, respectively. The authors highlight how the Nobel Laureates can serve as role models for students and teachers. The excerpts from speeches and biographies illustrate that the scientists were very interested in sharing their knowledge and experiences to promote learning. The biographies are informative and provide details that were new to me. While all the information in the Foundations section is worth reading, its central theme was not clearly presented. Section II, Teaching Nanotechnology, introduces the reader to a series of questions about technology know as ICE-9 (Identity, Change and Evaluation). These are questions to ask students. Answering these questions requires knowledge of nanotechnology and encourages students to draw from their own experiences using all types of technology. In addition, students must think critically to arrive at their answers. To make chapters more interesting and

A section devoted to profiles of renowned teachers and to the recognition and accomplishments of physiology teachers within the society

A section devoted to profiles of renowned teachers and to the recognition and accomplishments of physiology teachers within the society

Preparing for educare: student perspectives on early years training in Northern Ireland

Preschool provision in Northern Ireland is government funded and quality assured in all statutory sector settings (nursery schools and units) and in many voluntary/private sector settings (playgroups and daycare facilities). However, three unresolved policy issues continue to divide the sectors: the choices between a teacher or pedagogue role model, graduate or vocational level training, and a competency or reflective model of training. This paper aims to explore the reflections of a sample of students from both graduate and vocational early years training courses on the content and effectiveness of their training in order to inform the broader early years professionalism debate. The design of the research combines quantitative and qualitative approaches, with the data collection methods consisting of questionnaire survey (n = 282) and semi‐structured interviews (n = 22). Findings reveal broad agreement on the part of students, literature and government policy on the essential elements of early years training content; however, weaknesses in all training courses are detected in regard to preparation for significant areas of professional practice.

‘They do not relate to Black people like us’: Black teachers as role models for Black pupils

Growing concerns about the experience and achievement of Black pupils (especially Black males) underpin calls for more Black people to serve as teacher and lay mentor role models in schools. Calls for increased numbers of Black teacher role models assume firstly, that Black teachers regard themselves as role models and want to perform such a role in school. Secondly, that Black pupils will automatically see Black teachers as role models for Black pupils and make a connection between the behaviour modelled by Black teachers and their own behaviour, aspirations or achievement. Thirdly, that Black teachers are the most appropriate role models for Black pupils. This article draws on empirical data to explore these assumptions and to illustrate the ways in which they are flawed.

Health-related characteristics of selected school principals.

This survey identified and described health characteristics of selected school principals-leaders and role models for teachers and students. A questionnaire assessing multiple areas of well-being collected data on principals' health in seven areas including attitudes, behavior, illnesses, and life experiences. Results indicated a higher-than-average group well-being score and a range of healthful behaviors practiced over the seven areas. Principals reported little involvement with drugs, relative comfort in their employment, and healthful patterns of coping behaviors. Changes that might contribute to increased well-being were indicated in physical exercise, diet, and stress and time management. Implications for these results include using the principal's interest in health and role modeling behaviors to promote the school health program.

Technology for Girls in Sweden

SUMMARY Sweden is placing much greater emphasis on the technical education and training of young people. Since 1982/83, technology has become a required area of study throughout the compulsory school system. This provides an excellent opportunity for girls to learn much more about science and technology at a young age and to become confident in these fields. However, school teachers of young children themselves lack confidence and expertise in technology and are inclined to approach the teaching of the subject in a diffident, somewhat abstract manner A range of very practical activities are outlined which can be introduced into the training of compulsory school and indeed nursery school teachers, so that they have a much better approach to the organisation of technology classes. The author has direct experience of all the work she describes and has been very active in developing curriculum content for technology classes at nursery and compulsory school level. She has arranged for a number of her engineering students at LinkÖping Institute of Technology, mainly women, to become involved as instructors of trainee nursery school teachers. Other students have worked on special technology projects with compulsory level school teachers. The women engineering students act as powerful role models for young trainee teachers and for school girls alike The author stresses that quite simple, often home made and inexpensive materials can be used in imaginative ways to intrigue and involve children and especially girls, in technical activities and studies.