Education for Sustainability for the K-6 Curriculum: A Unit of Work for Pre-Service Primary Teachers in NSW

2007 ◽  
Vol 23 ◽  
pp. 3-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie Kennelly ◽  
Neil Taylor
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Teaching Methods ◽  
Primary Teachers ◽  
Education For Sustainability ◽  
University Courses ◽  
Pre Service Teacher Education ◽  
Unit Of Work ◽  
Future Work ◽  
Pre Service Teacher

AbstractAlthough the need for education for sustainability in pre-service teacher education is well recognised, little has been published to indicate how this might be incorporated into university courses in Australia. This paper describes one attempt to encourage pre-service primary teachers to include education for sustainability in their future work. It includes a discussion about some of the choices made regarding teaching methods and content. The overall purpose of the article is to encourage others to contribute their ideas to the discussion over how best to incorporate education for sustainability in pre-service teacher education in Australia.

scholarly journals Educating Student Teachers to Become High Quality Professionals – A Finnish Case

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 43-66
Author(s):  
Hannele Niemi
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Student Teachers ◽  
Teaching Methods ◽  
High Standard ◽  
Working Life ◽  
Professional Culture ◽  
Web Based ◽  
In The Beginning ◽  
Future Work ◽  
Pre Service Teacher

For decades, the Finnish orientation toward teacher education has committed itself to the development of an inquiry oriented and research-based professional culture. The aims of teacher education are to train students to find and analyse problems they may expect to face in their future work. This study consists of a survey of student teachers (n=545) in two universities in Finland. Web-based surveys with quantitative and qualitative questions were sent to all student teachers in the beginning of May 2010. Students assessed how teacher education had provided them with the competences they need in a high standard profession, what kinds of active learning experiences they had in their TE studies, and how research studies of teacher education had contributed to their professional development. Theparticipants of the study assessed that they had achieved good skills in planning teaching and curricula. They were capable of using different teaching methods. They were aware of their own teaching philosophy and their responsibilities as professionals and life-long learners. They consider the research component of TE valuable to their independent and critical thinking. They were very engaged in studies. Finnish pre-service teacher educationseems to function very well and to be effective in providing the skills teachers need to work as independent professionals. The results of the study show, however, that students also need more supervision and guidance on how to collaborate with parents and other stakeholders outside school, such as representatives of working life as well as partners in business lifeand culture. 

scholarly journals Developing Knowledge and Leadership in Pre-Service Teacher Education Systems

2015 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 194-207 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jo-Anne Ferreira ◽  
Lisa Ryan ◽  
Julie Davis
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Education For Sustainability ◽  
Change Strategies ◽  
Education Systems ◽  
Pre Service Teacher Education ◽  
Teacher Education Institutions ◽  
Pre Service Teacher ◽  
Academic Area ◽  
Change Efforts

AbstractPre-service teacher education institutions are large and complex organisations that are notoriously difficult to change. One factor is that many change efforts focus largely on individual pre-service teacher educators altering their practice. We report here on our experience using a model for effecting change, which views pre-service teacher education institutions and educators as a part of a much broader system. We identified numerous possibilities for, and constraints on, embedding change, but focus only on two in this article: participants’ knowledge of change strategies and their leadership capacities. As a result of our study findings and researcher reflections, we argue that being a leader in an academic area within pre-service teacher education does not equate to leadership knowledge or skills to initiate and enact systems-wide change. Furthermore, such leadership capacities must be explicitly developed if education for sustainability is to become embedded in pre-service teacher education.

Education for Sustainability and Pre-Service Teacher Education

2012 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-58 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie Kennelly ◽  
Neil Taylor ◽  
Tom Maxwell ◽  
Pep Serow
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Beginning Teachers ◽  
Primary School ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Teaching Experience ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Education For Sustainability ◽  
Positive Contribution ◽  
Pre Service Teacher Education ◽  
Pre Service Teacher

AbstractAspects of environment are common topics in Australian primary schools. However Education for Sustainability (EfS), where students actively investigate the underlying causes of unsustainable practices and actively plan for and instigate change, is less well understood and less commonly practised. It cannot be assumed that pre-service teachers have the knowledge, skills and desire to incorporate EfS, as advocated in Australian policies, into their repertoires of practice, or, that they will acquire those skills as they gain teaching experience. Therefore for EfS to become an integral component of the primary school experience, carefully planned rather than ad hoc preparation for EfS is necessary in pre-service teacher education.This essentially qualitative study describes how a one-semester, final year pre-service primary teacher unit in EfS was shaped, and reports on how a cohort of pre-service teachers responded, particularly in terms of how well prepared they felt to engage with EfS in future teaching. Although motivation and confidence to engage with EfS varied across the cohort, pre-service teacher education appeared to make a positive contribution to both. In a longitudinal design, five teachers who had participated in the EfS unit became the focus of individual case studies early in their teaching careers. Each case study investigated ways in which the beginning teacher engaged with EfS, linking teaching decisions to pre-service teacher education. The constructivist approach adopted by the tutors was particularly valued by the early career teachers. They appreciated various modes of experiential learning including engagement with the kinds of teaching strategies advocated in EfS and a strong orientation to the curriculum requirements of primary school.However, the extent to which each early career teacher implemented EfS was tempered not only by personal skill and motivation, but also by work situations which did not necessarily support EfS endeavours. While pre-service teacher education has a vital role in the promulgation of EfS in schools, and this study shows that it can be effective in advancing the desires of beginning teachers to do something for the environment, there are broad implications for the institutions that so heavily impact on the capacity of school systems and university systems to act in EfS.

A Student Teacher's Personal Pathway to Education for Sustainability

2008 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 23-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julie Kennelly ◽  
Neil Taylor ◽  
Tom Maxwell
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Teacher Education Program ◽  
School Teacher ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Education For Sustainability ◽  
Primary School Teacher ◽  
Pedagogical Content ◽  
Pre Service Teacher Education ◽  
Personal Reflections ◽  
Pre Service Teacher

AbstractIncreasing attention is being given to the inclusion of Education for Sustainability in pre-service teacher education. However, there is little research to explain why and how early-career teachers include Education for Sustainability in their work, or how teacher education providers can encourage and support them to do this. Through analysis of two interviews this paper examines the way in which a pre-service primary school teacher interprets her role in Education for Sustainability. Her personal reflections on the manner in which her life experiences, including her own schooling, have influenced her intentions as teacher are explored. Her university teacher education program in Education for Sustainability and her teaching internship experience also appear to have influenced her teaching goals. The profile presented in this paper outlines her intentions and sense of identity as teacher and how that has developed and is expressed. Conclusions centre on the relevance of her reflections for education for sustainability in pre-service teacher education. In particular, her example demonstrates how the development of pedagogical content knowledge relevant to Education for Sustainability during the pre-service years can play an integral part in an individual's decision-making when teaching.

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