External, internal and collaborative theories of mathematics teacher education

Theories about mathematics teacher education depend critically on how one responds to questions such as: What is the nature of teacher knowledge? And how is such knowledge to be appraised? By the external views of the researcher, by the internal views of the teacher group, or by any other way? The external perspective of the researcher is able to mobilize important theoretical and empirical tools, however, this external perspective is often unable to grasp essential elements of the complexity of teacher knowledge, practice, and identity. Just capturing the views of teachers brings with it the concern that these views are often contradictory, assuming different values, orientations, and agendas from one teacher group to another, depending on grade level, school system, country, world region, and so forth. Another approach is to combine the experiences and perspectives of teachers and researchers. This paper explores the question of relevant theories in mathematics teacher education from all three perspectives

Teacher competence development – a European perspective

This chapter provides an European perspectives on teacher competence development

Reclaiming the Moral in the Dispositions Debate

This article addresses the current debates about the definition and assessment of dispositions in teacher education. Competing perspectives on the definitions and assessment of dispositions in teacher education are examined and critiqued, and a renewed commitment to foregrounding the moral nature of teaching is suggested. Recommendations for understanding and assessing the moral in teacher education, including the development of a code of ethics for the profession, are provided

The Alignment Of Skills And Practice Via Active Reading Methodology

How does the literacy teacher negotiate the tensions between skills and social practice? Negotiation requires engaging with the debate in which literacy is seen as a set of discrete, transferable skills, dependent upon cognitive development, to the notion of literacies which are bound to social practice, and adapting teaching practices which align these two perspectives. Literacy teacher training can facilitate this via modelling literacy pedagogy such as active reading strategies based upon authentic texts. This paper will discuss the skills and practice debate, and then illustrate the alignment of the two perspectives by reference to some specific active reading strategies devised around a restaurant menu

Introduction To Part 2 Of A Symposium On Teachers As Leaders: Teachers Write Now: Collaborating, Writing, And Acting On Teacher Leadership

This introduction to the second part of our Symposium on Teachers as Leaders examines the role of collaboration and writing as part of teacher leadership. The first part of the symposium described teacher leadership as a stance that values professionalism and the intellectual, political, and collaborative work of teaching. This introduction explores how a group of teacher leaders who have met regularly during the past several years have used writing to reflect on practice, to share ideas with one another, and to communicate their perspectives to others

Inquiry, Identity, and Integrity in a Biblical Studies Methods Course

In this study, a university professor, a high school teacher, and two teacher-candidates engage in an inquiry into the identity and integrity of the religious studies teacher. Using Charteris’s (2014) ‘epistemological shudders’ as a framework, the authors explore the experience of learning to teach Bible in Christian schools by paying attention to the ways in which their experience with the unfamiliar intersected with their taken-for-granted beliefs and perspectives. The authors believe such reflections on experience are essential in particular to teachers of the Bible in Christian schools, but also, more generally, for ongoing lifelong teacher growth. This paper offers insights into how inquiry can be used as a method in a teacher education context. It also serves as an example of the importance of the partnership between universities and schools in the education of future teachers

Challenging Pre-Service Students\u27 Teaching Perspectives in an Inquiry-Focused Program

Inquiry teaching based on constructivist learning theory has been an emphasis in pre-service education for over a decade. In general, a developmental teaching perspective supports inquiry-based instruction where teachers view learners as constructors of knowledge and teaching as providing questions, problems, and challenges that form a bridge from the learners\u27 prior knowledge to a new, more sophisticated form of reasoning. Since teaching perspectives influence student learning, teacher effectiveness, and teacher attrition, challenging pre-service teachers to overcome experience-based convictions of a transmission perspective is necessary in teacher education. In this study, we examined the teaching perspectives of secondary, pre-service methods students at the midpoint of an inquiry-focused program. Our findings suggest that, despite being introduced to a variety of teaching perspectives, overcoming preconceptions of good teaching and considering a perspective counter to one\u27s disciplinary major presents a dilemma for pre-service teachers

Enacting a Mission for Change: A University Partnership for Young Adolescents

Abstract As practicing teachers, school personnel, and teacher educators engaged in a school-university partnership, we have worked to co-create a mutually beneficial relationship centered around the learning needs of young adolescents. In this article, we will describe our diverse perspectives on and perceptions of how the partnership enhances the learning experiences of the young adolescents with whom we learn and work. We come to this work with two interrelated goals of preparing a cadre of effective middle grades teachers while improving the educational experiences for 10-14-year-old students at Westport Middle School (WMS)--whether it is through classroom instruction, teacher education, or providing supports within the school

White Pre-Service Teachers’ Perceptions and their Development of Culturally Relevant Literacy Practices

Existent literature purports that providing White teacher candidates with increased exposure to urban schools in order to create culturally competent educators has failed. These findings reflect the notion that teacher ideologies and overall perspectives about working with diverse student groups must be harnessed in a genuine ethic of care and intentionality for students of color. However, few studies have taken the approach of examining the development of culturally relevant pedagogy through context-specific field experiences using content-specific courses. This study examines the perspectives of twenty-five White pre-service teachers from a predominately White, private university regarding their initial perceptions and gained conceptual understanding of culturally relevant pedagogy while teaching reading at an urban middle school. Findings were consistent with previous literature that White pre-service teachers are more interested and comfortable teaching in suburban and private schools and held implicit about teaching in urban schools. However, through the course and urban field experience, pre-service teachers were able to develop teaching behaviors that were deemed culturally relevant(Ladson-Billings, 1995) for teaching reading, and were better prepared to work with students from diverse backgrounds

The Effect of Walkthrough Observations on Teacher Perspectives in Christian Schools

This study investigated the effects on teacher perceptions of frequent, brief classroom observations in Christian schools. Teachers (N=111) responded to 13 belief and value statements prior to and after the term during which administrators conducted weekly, brief, unannounced observations in their classes. Teachers reported significant positive change regarding (a) analyzing reasons for selecting methods to assess learning, (b) being encouraged after class observations, and (c) being encouraged after receiving feedback related to the observations