Pre-service Teachers: Reflections on Observed Practice

Reflective practice serves as a powerful pedagogical strategy for teachers—especially those in low-resource, rural areas. This qualitative case study looked at secondary education pre-service teachers in their first education course. Analysis of focus observation essays data indicated that pre-service teachers were incorporating reflective practice in their field observations, but were not addressing issues of diversity – specifically race and socio-economic status. This study is significant for understanding how pre-service teachers engage in reflective practices with respect to diversity

Community Engagement through Interactive Field-Based Activities

This qualitative case study consisted of social justice interactive field-based experiential learning activities designed to understand community partnerships between a university and local public school. The research question was: How can interactive field-based activities build closer community ties? The theoretical foundation incorporated Ken Zeichner’s “hybrid spaces” with the premise of field-based interactive experiences. The findings indicated the need for further activities that create partnerships between teacher education programs and neighboring public schools

Community Engagement through Interactive Field-Based Activities

This qualitative case study consisted of social justice interactive field-based experiential learning activities designed to understand community partnerships between a university and local public school. The research question was: How can interactive field-based activities build closer community ties? The theoretical foundation incorporated Ken Zeichner’s “hybrid spaces” with the premise of field-based interactive experiences. The findings indicated the need for further activities that create partnerships between teacher education programs and neighboring public schools

Community Partnerships

An egalitarian model of university-school partnerships starts with a theoretical frame of equity and social justice. This qualitative research study sought to understand high school students’ perception of community service through an intergenerational university-high school-elementary school partnership. Data analysis consisted of detailed notes collected from university faculty who oversaw the focus group discussions and two graduate assistants who took observational notes.  These notes were analyzed and thematically organized.  The findings indicate that the students enjoyed the experience and were highly motivated to complete and read their community themed book for the younger children in their community.  This research contributes new knowledge to the field of community engagement and to the field of informal and formal education through its analysis of discussions on meaningful community service pertaining to university-school collaborative partnerships.