Process vs. Product

2016 ◽  
pp. 328-336
Author(s):  
Christina Janise McIntyre ◽  
Angela M. Cartwright ◽  
Stacia C. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Action Research ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Undergraduate Education ◽  
Teacher Candidates ◽  
Classroom Practice ◽  
Classroom Research ◽  
Education Programs ◽  
The Common

The purpose of this case study was to determine if the common practice of Impact on Student Learning (ISL) projects, such as those found in the edTPA and TK20 systems, is adequately preparing preservice teachers to engage in the kinds of action research that are necessary for continuously improving classroom practice. In these projects, teacher candidates administer pre- and post-tests, then determine the efficacy of the lessons between by comparing the scores. While ISL projects provide exposure to assessment for planning, it leaves preservice teachers underprepared for the types of action research that are required for continuously improving classroom practice. Preservice teachers would benefit from additional experiences with research during their undergraduate education programs in order to increase their efficacy, and interest, in classroom research practices.

From salvation to inquiry: Preservice teachers’ conceptions of race

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 368-384
Author(s):  
Lucinda Grace Heimer
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
Critical Race Theory ◽  
Classroom Practice ◽  
Future Teacher ◽  
Teacher Education Programs ◽  
Education Programs ◽  
The Impact

Race is a marker hiding more complex narratives. Children identify the social cues that continue to segregate based on race, yet too often teachers fail to provide support for making sense of these worlds. Current critical scholarship highlights the importance of addressing issues of race, culture, and social justice with future teachers. The timing of this work is urgent as health, social and civil unrest due to systemic racism in the U.S. raise critiques and also open possibilities to reimagine early childhood education. Classroom teachers feel pressure to standardize pedagogy and outcomes yet meet myriad student needs and talents in complex settings. This study builds on the current literature as it uses one case study to explore institutional messages and student perceptions in a future teacher education program that centers race, culture, identity, and social justice. Teaching as a caring profession is explored to illuminate the impact authentic, aesthetic, and rhetorical care may have in classrooms. Using key tenets of Critical Race Theory as an analytical tool enhanced the case study process by focusing the inquiry on identity within a racist society. Four themes are highlighted related to institutional values, rigorous coursework, white privilege, and connecting individual racial and cultural understanding with classroom practice. With consideration of ethical relationality, teacher education programs begin to address the impact of racist histories. This work calls for individualized critical inquiry regarding future teacher understanding of “self” in new contexts as well as an investigation of how teacher education programs fit into larger institutional philosophies.

scholarly journals What Is the Place of the Play Between the Essential Needs of Preschool Children According to Preservice Teachers?

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 148
Author(s):  
Hatice Uysal Bayrak
Keyword(s):  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Preschool Children ◽  
Nutrition Education ◽  
Teacher Candidates ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
State University ◽  
Department Of State ◽  
Analysis Technique ◽  
Group A

This research aims to reveal the perceptions of the preservice teachers on the play which are among the essential needs of the preschool children. In this descriptive study, a case study which is one of the qualitative research designs was used. 79 preservice teachers attending the third grade in the Classroom Teaching Department of state university in Nigde province in Turkey. Convenience sampling method was used in the selection of the study group. A semi-structured interview form was prepared in order to reveal the perceptions of preservice teachers about the play. Content analysis technique was used for data analysis. At the end of the research, it was determined that the preschool teacher candidates expressed the essential needs of preschool children as nutrition, education and love respectively. The play was ranked as the number four among these needs.

Teaching Diversity to Preservice Teachers: Encouraging Self-Reflection and Awareness to Develop Successful Teaching Practices

2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marla S. Sanders ◽  
Kathryn Haselden ◽  
Randi M. Moss
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
Professional Education ◽  
Teacher Candidates ◽  
Culturally Diverse ◽  
Teacher Education Programs ◽  
Education Programs ◽  
Preparation Programs ◽  
Diverse Schools

AbstractThe purpose of this article is to promote discussion of how teacher education programs can better prepare teacher candidates to teach for social justice in ethnically and culturally diverse schools. The authors suggest that teacher education programs must develop teacher candidates’ capacity to teach for social justice through preparation programs that encourage critical reflection and awareness of one’s beliefs, perceptions, and professional practice. The authors ask the following questions: How can teacher educators provide structures in professional preparation programs that will produce reflective practitioners? How might we prepare teacher candidates who are constantly thinking about how they perceive their students and their families and how those perceptions affect the way they relate to students? Through a discussion of five case scenarios, the authors discuss prior research on preparing teachers for culturally diverse schools and offer suggestions for improving professional education programs.

Teaching and Learning to Communicate

2013 ◽  
pp. 579-599
Author(s):  
Cynthia J. Benton ◽  
Kathleen A. Lawrence
Keyword(s):  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Communication Competence ◽  
College Level ◽  
Education Programs ◽  
Professional Success ◽  
Evaluating Methods ◽  
K 12

Effective presentation skills and communication competence are important developmental qualities for teachers’ professional success and K-12 students’ learning. Yet identifying the definitive qualities and methods to practice and evaluate those skills has had minimal emphasis in current education programs. In addition to traditional abilities such as making clear presentations, speaking well, and articulating an argument, K-20 learners are faced with an explosion of options for accessing, organizing, and presenting information using technology. This study documents methods for college-level instruction and assessment of presentation skills, which serve as evidence of preservice teachers' readiness to demonstrate effective communication skills for K-12 student learning. The report summarized in this chapter tracks two years of creating and evaluating methods for promoting professional presentation and communication skills, and includes rubrics focused on the development and evaluation of those skills.

Using the Children's Literature Course to Promote Teacher Candidates' Cultural Competence

2021 ◽  
pp. 460-481
Author(s):  
Erin Hogan Rapp ◽  
Melissa Landa
Keyword(s):  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Children's Literature ◽  
Cultural Competence ◽  
Teacher Candidates ◽  
Children’S Literature ◽  
Cultural Knowledge ◽  
Culturally Competent ◽  
Collective Case Study ◽  
Asking Questions

This chapter presents the results from a collective case study of 23 undergraduate preservice teachers enrolled in a Children's Literature course at a large Mid-Atlantic university. It explores how course instruction in and around high-quality, culturally diverse children's literature facilitated both displays of culturally competent dispositions and cultural knowledge of self and others. The chapter also describes how the preservice teachers under study applied their culturally competent dispositions as they rehearsed selecting texts, planning activities, and asking questions to their future students. The Cultural Competence for Teaching Framework provided a useful metric to evaluate participants' displays of cultural competence across the course of the semester. Within this chapter, the authors describe how they embedded cultural competence education inside the course including a description of the activities, texts, and pedagogy used.

Appreciative Inquiry: An Experiential Exercise and Course Feedback Tool

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 141-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
Terri A. Scandura
Keyword(s):  
Action Research ◽  
Learning Styles ◽  
Student Learning ◽  
Appreciative Inquiry ◽  
Research Method ◽  
Master's Degree ◽  
Teaching Tool ◽  
Master’S Degree

The action research method of appreciative inquiry (AI) was employed to develop a teaching tool. This exercise involves students’ reflections on a course, noting when they learned the most. The AI process of appreciating, envisioning, dialoging, and innovating is used to help students reflect on how they learn. Instructors of all types of courses at both the undergraduate and master’s degree levels gain understanding of student learning and ideas on how to improve courses. The exercise and sample responses from students are provided to demonstrate how the exercise works. Three variations are presented: mapping the exercise onto Kolb’s learning styles, running the exercise at the midpoint of a course, and a case study of an AI implementation in an organization.

scholarly journals Examining Current and Future Ecuadorian Educators’ Experiences Using Action Research in the English as a Second Language Classroom

2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-55
Author(s):  
Ximena D. Burgin ◽  
Mayra C. Daniel
Keyword(s):  
Action Research ◽  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Private School ◽  
Teacher Candidates ◽  
Linguistic Diversity ◽  
Cultural And Linguistic Diversity ◽  
Study Approach ◽  
Language Classroom ◽  
Analyze Data

This paper reports on Ecuadorian pre-service and in-service teachers’ ability to conduct action research in the classroom as well as their skills to efficiently adjust instruction to address students’ cultural and linguistic diversity. A qualitative case study approach was implemented to collect information from teacher candidates in 2015, in-service teachers from a public school in 2017, and in-service teachers from a private school in 2019. Data were collected through focus groups and interviews conducted in Spanish. Findings suggest that training teachers to conduct action research will improve their ability to analyze data and improve students’ learning outcomes.

A dramatic collage: becoming pedagogical through collaborative playbuilding

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 403-414
Author(s):  
Abigail Shabtay ◽  
Mindy R. Carter ◽  
Hala Mreiwed
Keyword(s):  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Teacher Candidates ◽  
Lived Experiences ◽  
Research Process ◽  
Research Experience ◽  
Theatrical Production ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Creation ◽  
And Performance

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore a case study of a group of preservice teachers that took part in a playbuilding process as part of a drama education course at a Canadian University. The paper focusses on ten preservice teachers’ creation in original theatrical production,The Teacher Diaries: a collage of stories based on the preservice teachers’ lived experiences as teacher candidates. Through a discussion of the playbuilding process, the techniques used, and an analysis of three scenes, this paper addresses the question: How can playbuilding and performance help preservice teachers “become pedagogical”?Design/methodology/approachThe paper focusses on ten preservice teachers’ creation in original theatrical production,The Teacher Diaries: a collage of stories based on the preservice teachers’ lived experiences as teacher candidates. Through a discussion of the playbuilding process, the techniques used, and an analysis of three scenes, this paper addresses the question: How can playbuilding and performance help preservice teachers “become pedagogical”?FindingsThe primary understanding that emerged from this research was how playbuilding can be used as a holistic participatory research method in which participants conduct research, analyse, thematise, implement and disseminate data throughout the creative process.Research limitations/implicationsAs researchers of this playbuilding process, the authors have come to realise that when using playbuilding as a method for research and arts creation there is an overlapping of understanding and analysis of the research findings that is a continual part of the research process. Rather than simply collecting data, analysing it and drawing conclusions from the previously identified data, the whole process becomes a research experience. As seen above, participants were continually coming up with insights throughout the process that informed the creation, growth and change of their scenes so that they could create a final product.Practical implicationsDrawing on a case study of ten preservice teachers, and their original performance pieceThe Teacher Diaries, this paper set out to determine how the playbuilding process can be used to help preservice teachers develop pedagogically. Several scholars have already noted that creating collaborative theatre is a reflective, inquiry-based process (Belliveau, 2006; Cahill, 2006; Carteret al., 2011; Conrad, 2004; Goldstein, 2008), and that the creation and performance of live theatre allows participants to interact with audiences in ways that written material cannot (Norris, 2000, 2008).Social implicationsThroughout the playbuilding process, the preservice teachers engaged in storytelling, improvisation, reflection and dialogue. Working collaboratively, the preservice teachers were able to identify similarities in their experiences and develop a supportive community where they could share stories and resources (see Mreiwedet al., 2017 for more discussion of community development through drama).Originality/valueBecause of this, the members of Team Awesome were inspired to create a pamphlet (including tips and links to government and other online resources) to share with their peers following the performance. While this was simply one case study, the results of this study indicate that the playbuilding process has great potential for use in helping educators “become pedagogical” through collaboration, reflection, articulation of needs, community-building and the sharing of resources in preservice teacher education.

Field-Based Learning for Minority Educators

2021 ◽  
pp. 1157-1182
Author(s):  
Rebecca J. Blankenship ◽  
Paige F. Paquette ◽  
Cheron H. Davis
Keyword(s):  
Preservice Teacher ◽  
Teacher Candidates ◽  
Classroom Practice ◽  
Social Construct ◽  
Case Study Methodology ◽  
Inquiry Based Learning ◽  
The Social ◽  
Study Methodology ◽  
The Relationship

While many researchers have emphasized the importance of preservice teacher candidates having the opportunity to engage in analysis, reflection, and critical thinking, a significant gap in the literature exists relevant to how these conversations are translated within the social construct of the field-based placement and experience. Using a qualitative case study methodology, the authors offer a model to explain how situationally responsive field-based learning experiences can be pedagogically transformational for minority preservice teacher candidates and the students they will eventually serve. Using key tasks embedded within the field experiences for this study are specifically designed to implement this situationally inquiry-based learning model to maximize the relationship between educational theory and actual classroom practice.

scholarly journals Beyond Schools: Community-Based Experiences as a Third Space in Teacher Education

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 53
Author(s):  
Melanie D. Janzen ◽  
Christie Petersen
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Teacher Candidates ◽  
Third Space ◽  
Teacher Education Programs ◽  
Education Programs ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Exploratory Case Study

Some teacher education programs have incorporated community-based experiences for teacher candidates. Based on the experiences of developing and implementing a community-based practicum in our teacher education programs, the authors conducted a small exploratory case study, aimed at examining and critically considering community-based experiences as a “third space;” an opportunity through which to challenge teacher candidates’ strongly held understandings of teaching. The purposes of this article are to share our literature review, to provide some key insights from the study findings, and to explore our lingering questions regarding the development and implementation of community-based experiences and to consider the possibilities of community-based experiences as a third space in which to disrupt teacher candidates’ assumptions about teaching.

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