Pre-service Teachers’ Reflective Writing and Learning in Early Field Experiences

As cultural and linguistic diversity (CLD) in schools increases so does the demand for more qualified teachers. Enrollment declines in teacher preparation programs and national teacher shortages, particularly teachers prepared to work with CLD students, further exacerbate the situation. As teacher preparation programs seek to meet the demands for teachers, this study addresses a gap in research and practice that examines pre-service teacher (PST) reflections conducted as part of a non-credit very early field experience (EFE). The study addresses two questions:1) How does participation in EFE shape PST learning and professional identities as expressed in written reflections? 2) In what ways does participation in EFE impact PST beliefs, attitudes, and learning about cultural and linguistic diversity? Participants in this exploratory mixed methods study were six first year pre-service teachers, engaged in early field experiences at a public university. Data in the form of written reflections was collected twice during the first semester. A qualitative content analysis coded levels of reflections as descriptive, empathic, analytic, and metacognitive (Chabon & Lee-Wilkerson, 2006), and for evidence of 4Cs P21 professional skills: creativity, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration. A quantitative analysis explored differences in the frequency, examined relationships across reflection types and skills, and compared first and second journals. The most frequent strategies were analytic, critical thinking, and descriptive. PSTs documented creating supportive classrooms, promoting academic and linguistic success, and relationship building as relevant to their professional identities. Implications include a need to increase EFE and promote student learning through non-credit bearing opportunities and reflective writing in teacher preparation

The Effect of Gameplay on the Creative Self-Efficacy of Educators in Hypothetical Classroom Management Situations

In an ever-changing emotional, psychological, and physically developing world of education, it is important for educators to adapt creative skills to meet learners\u27 needs. It is paramount for educators to develop creative skills to meet the needs of their learners and demonstrate effective classroom management. There is a gap between preservice teacher preparation and the reality of the day-to-day demands of educators. Game-based learning can provide a measure to fill that gap by providing a simulated experience for preservice teachers to encounter possible challenging scenarios. This concept of educational gameplay uses interactive learning that can improve the classroom response to behavioral issues (Bada & Olusegun, 2015). Learning during play is a far superior form of training in that it stimulates multiple learning resources and can create connections that will last longer for most (Resnick, 2017). Educational games can spark creativity (Dyson et al., 2016) and enhance the preservice teacher learning experience (Johnson & Kim, 2021). This research asked how gameplay may affect the creative self-efficacy of educators in hypothetical classroom management situations. In this experimental design, a randomized cluster block was used to explore the impact on a self-report measure of creative self-efficacy before and after participants played a card game simulating challenging student behavior