Developing an Instrument to Examine Preservice Teachers' Pedagogical Development

National and international reform documents have forged blueprints for advancing science education. Coursework for preservice teachers needs to correspond to these documents by providing learning experiences that develop preservice teachers' capabilities to plan and implement reform measures. Using a pretest–posttest design, responses from 59 2nd-year preservice teachers from the same university were compared after involvement in an elementary science pedagogy coursework. The survey, which was linked to the course outcomes (constructs) and multiple indicators, measured the preservice teachers' perceptions of their development towards becoming elementary science teachers. A pretest–posttest survey linked to course outcomes can be employed to assess perceived pedagogical development of preservice teachers, which can inform further teaching practices for implementing science education reform agendas

Preservice Teachers’ Algebraic Reasoning and Symbol Use on a Multistep Fraction Word Problem

Previous research on preservice teachers’ understanding of fractions and algebra has focused on one or the other. To extend this research, we examined 85 undergraduate elementary education majors and middle school mathematics education majors’ solutions and solution paths (i.e., the ways or methods in which preservice teachers solve word problems) when combining fractions with algebra on a multistep word problem. In this article, we identify and describe common strategy clusters and approaches present in the preservice teachers’ written work. Our results indicate that preservice teachers’ understanding of algebra include arithmetic methods, proportions, and is related to their understanding of a whole

Preservice elementary school teachers' knowledge of fractions: a mirror of students' knowledge?

This research analyses preservice teachers' knowledge of fractions. Fractions are notoriously difficult for students to learn and for teachers to teach. Previous studies suggest that student learning of fractions may be limited by teacher understanding of fractions. If so, teacher education has a key role in solving the problem. We first reviewed literature regarding students' knowledge of fractions. We did so because assessments of required content knowledge for teaching require review of the students' understanding to determine the mathematics difficulties encountered by students. The preservice teachers were tested on their conceptual and procedural knowledge of fractions, and on their ability in explaining the rationale for a procedure or the conceptual meaning. The results revealed that preservice teachers' knowledge of fractions indeed is limited and that last-year preservice teachers did not perform better than first-year preservice teachers. This research is situated within the broader domain of mathematical knowledge for teaching and suggests ways to improve instruction and student learning

When Memories Make a Difference: Multimodal Literacy Narratives for Preservice ELA Methods Students

This article examines multimodal literacy narrative projects designed by students in a methods of teaching course for secondary preservice English Language Arts teachers. For the multimodal project, preservice teachers infused written, audio, and visual text using a variety of creative mediums. Through combined theoretical frames, the researcher explores semiotics and preservice teachers’ use of multiliteracies as they shift their conceptions of what it means to compose. Finally, this article explores how the act of reflection through the literacy narrative influences preservice teachers’ notions of teaching composition through a variety of mediums

Preservice Teachers’ Identity-Agency With Progressive Writing Pedagogies

This study explores the relationship between preservice teachers’ perceptions of their professional identities and their progressive primary school writing practices as part of a University-school partnership project. We analyse preservice teachers’ identities using discourse analysis and find a tension between self-perceptions as progressive teachers and the difficulties they experience enacting progressive pedagogies. For the majority, these difficulties are overcome through reflective theorising, but in utilising process drama, their otherwise expansive identity-agency is restricted by their wider apprehension of neoliberalism. We conclude by underlining the importance of specialised and concurrent models of teacher preparation which align preservice teachers’ identities and practice

Preservice Teachers Respond to And Tango Makes Three: Deconstructing Disciplinary Power and the Heteronormative in Teacher Education

This study employs Foucauldian concepts to analyse macro and micro contexts of publicly spoken and silent discourses describing ‘homosexuality,’ ‘education’ and ‘teacher’ in order to identify teacher subject positions available to preservice teachers. The macro context is analysed by tracing heteronormative discourses found in newspaper stories involving teachers and public schools that address conflicting views of homosexuality. The macro context analysis indicates two binary teacher subject positions: martyred (unemployed) teacher/silent (employed) teacher and sophisticated teacher/unsophisticated teacher. The micro context analysis is of preservice teachers\u27 responses to And Tango Makes Three, a picture book by Richardson and Parnell. This analysis demonstrates how preservice teachers take up and negotiate teacher subject positions found in the macro analysis. Combined, the analyses allow the researchers to consider how preservice teachers\u27 performances of teacher subjectivity open up possibilities for re-imagining new teacher subject positions and what this might mean for the practice of teacher educators

Examining Mentors' Practices for Enhancing Preservice Teachers' Pedagogical Development in Mathematics and Science

Mentoring is too important to be left to chance (Ganser, 1996), yet mentoring expertise of teachers varies widely, which may present inequities for developing preservice teachers' practices. Five factors for mentoring have been identified herein: personal attributes, system requirements, pedagogical knowledge, modelling, and feedback, and items associated with each factor have also been justified in context of the literature. An original, literature-based survey instrument gathered 446 preservice teachers' perceptions of their mentoring for primary teaching. Data were analysed within the abovementioned 5 factors with 331 final-year preservice teachers from 9 Australian universities responding to their mentoring for science teaching and 115 final-year preservice teachers from an urban university responding to their mentoring for mathematics teaching. Results indicated similar Cronbach alpha scores on each of the five factors for primary science and mathematics teaching; however percentages and mean scores on attributes and practices aligned with each factor were considerably higher for mentoring mathematics teaching compared with science teaching

Preservice teachers’ observations of their mentors’ teaching strategies for differentiated learning

Tensions exist between teacher-centred and learner-centred approaches with constructivism as being favoured for learning in the 21st Century. There is little evidence of teaching strategies being used in the field for differentiating student learning. In addition, preservice teachers need to learn about teaching strategies for which observations of their mentor teachers can provide practical applications. This study explores 16 preservice teachers’ observations of their mentors’ teaching strategies over a four-week professional experience. They provided a minimum of five written observations during this period. Findings indicated that these preservice teachers observed their mentors’ practices and recorded four key teaching strategies used to differentiate learning, namely: (1) designating facilitators for students’ learning, including teacher, peers, parents, and support staff such as teachers aides, (2) managing student groups, (3) contexts for learning, and (4) using a range of teaching aids (visual, auditory, games) and resources. Preservice teachers’ observations of their mentor teachers indicated that they can commence at early stages for identifying teaching strategies and how they work for differentiating student learning

Reflective Journaling: Fostering Dispositional Development in Preservice Teachers

This study investigated the self-identified dispositions of 183 preservice teachers enrolled in a required philosophy of education course. The researchers coded their reflective journaling for the two essential NCATE (National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education) dispositions of fairness and the belief that all students can learn, as well as for other recurring, self-identified dispositions. These preservice teachers self-identified fairness much more frequently than the belief that all students can learn. The results point to additional recurring dispositional themes for consideration: critical thinking, caring, openness, moral education, and individual freedom. Further examination of the data revealed great variation in the preservice teachers’ interpretation of fairness, categorized as fairness through (1) inclusion of all socioeconomic classes and abilities; (2) culturally responsive teaching; (3) differentiation of instruction; and (4) fostering a safe learning environment

Examining Number Talks with Secondary Preservice Teachers

This paper shares an investigation of the impact of Number Talks on secondary preservice teachers’ number sense. Quantitative data was collected and analyzed regarding preservice teachers’ number sense. Statistical analysis showed a significant increase in the number of strategies preservice teachers used to solve a mental mathematics problem. After experiencing Number Talks, nearly all of the preservice teachers responded that they would consider using Number Talks in their classrooms. Implications of the use of Number Talks with secondary preservice teachers are discussed