scholarly journals Celebrating 20 Years of Outdoor Environmental Education for Preservice Teachers at Stephen F. Austin State University

2019 ◽  
Vol 117 (4) ◽  
pp. 365-369
Author(s):  
Paula Griffin
Keyword(s):  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Environmental Education ◽  
Teacher Identity ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Teacher Education Program ◽  
State University ◽  
Science Content ◽  
School Students ◽  
Community Stakeholders ◽  
Project Learning Tree

Abstract Preservice teachers at Stephen F. Austin State University have been involved in a 20-year environmental education initiative as a part of the teacher education program. Since 1998, teacher educators and community stakeholders have collaborated with Texas Project Learning Tree to train preservice teachers in environmental education activities to be implemented in the yearly outdoor science education event, Bugs, Bees, Butterflies, and Blossoms. Held on the Stephen F. Austin State University campus, area elementary school students participate in learning stations designed to facilitate investigative inquiry led by preservice teachers. A mixed methods study was implemented to evaluate the overall effectiveness. Data were collected from pre- and post-tests from traditional face-to-face and online preservice teachers. Results showed significant gains in science content knowledge and science teaching efficacy. Open-ended responses submitted by participants in the study addressed self-reflection about personal teacher identity and the overall impact of the initiative.

Music Teacher Education Program Practices: Preparing Teachers to Work With Diverse Learners

2021 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 51-64
Author(s):  
Mara E. Culp ◽  
Karen Salvador
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Music Education ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Teacher Education Program ◽  
Music Educators ◽  
Diverse Learners ◽  
Music Teacher ◽  
Music Teacher Education ◽  
Education Programs

Music educators must meet the needs of students with diverse characteristics, including but not limited to cultural backgrounds, musical abilities and interests, and physical, behavioral, social, and cognitive functioning. Music education programs may not systematically prepare preservice teachers or potential music teacher educators for this reality. The purpose of this study was to examine how music teacher education programs prepare undergraduate and graduate students to structure inclusive and responsive experiences for diverse learners. We replicated and expanded Salvador’s study by including graduate student preparation, incorporating additional facets of human diversity, and contacting all institutions accredited by National Association of Schools of Music to prepare music educators. According to our respondents, integrated instruction focused on diverse learners was more commonly part of undergraduate coursework than graduate coursework. We used quantitative and qualitative analysis to describe course offerings and content integration.

scholarly journals Assessing pre-service teachers’ professional identity construction in a three-phase teacher education program in Iran

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fariba Haghighi Irani ◽  
Azizeh Chalak ◽  
Hossein Heidari Tabrizi
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Professional Identity ◽  
Identity Construction ◽  
Education Program ◽  
Teacher Identity ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Teacher Education Program ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Assessment Tools ◽  
Problem Solving Skills

Abstract The critical role of teachers suggests that assessing teacher identity construction helps teacher educators understand the changes in teachers and design materials in harmony with their needs in teacher education programs. However, only a few studies have focused on assessing pre-service teachers’ identity in the long term in Iran. To address this gap, the contribution of a pre-service teacher education program consisting of three phases, namely engage, study, and activate to the professional identity construction of eight pre-service teachers in an institute in Tehran was assessed. Pre-course and post-course interviews, two reflective essays, ten observation notes, and two teaching performances were gathered over a year and analyzed as guided by grounded theory and discourse analysis. Findings revealed two significant changes in the participants’ identities when they transitioned from engage to study and from study to activate phases that yielded study phase as the peak of the changes. Overall, three major shifts were identified in the participants’ identities: from a commitment to evaluation towards a commitment to modality, from one-dimensional to multi-dimensional perceptions, and from problem analysis to problem-solving skills. Current findings may facilitate teacher identity construction by designing local programs matching the needs of pre-service teachers. It may also assist teacher educators by assessing the quality of teachers’ performance and developing teacher assessment tools.

Enhancing Environmental Experiences through Effective Partnerships among Teacher Educators, Field Study Centers, and Schools

1995 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 133-137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Ferry
Keyword(s):  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Environmental Education ◽  
Field Study ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
New South ◽  
Learning Activities ◽  
Education For All ◽  
Natural Environments ◽  
Tertiary Institutions ◽  
South Wales

Few teacher educators would dispute that preservice teachers benefit from active participation in planning, implementing, and evaluating experiential learning activities in natural environments. Such experiences help them to understand how environmental education can be successfully woven into a teaching program rather than just an added “frill” presented in isolation. However, it is difficult to find efficient ways of organising these experiences in tertiary institutions. This paper discusses a partnership formed among teacher educators, schools, and field study centers in New South Wales, Australia. It was devised to enhance the experiences in environmental education for all participants, and at the same time make efficient use of human resources.

scholarly journals ELT Student Teacher Identity Construction: Exploring Teacher Roles and Domains of Expertise

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 113
Author(s):  
Nafiye Cigdem Aktekin ◽  
Hatice Celebi
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Student Teachers ◽  
Identity Construction ◽  
Subject Matter ◽  
Teacher Identity ◽  
English Language ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Teacher Education Program ◽  
English Language Teaching ◽  
Teacher Roles

In this study, we direct our focus to identity construction in an English language teaching (ELT) teacher education program. We explore the teacher roles in which student teachers are struggling to position themselves comfortably and the teacher expertise domains (subject matter, didactics, and pedagogy) that they are dedicating themselves to improving. To address our research focus, we have collected reflections and survey responses from 18 student teachers in an ELT education department. Our findings indicate that ELT student teachers find it difficult to position themselves as experts in and about the English language and that they feel a need to be equipped with expertise first and foremost in the subject matter, and then in didactics, followed by pedagogy. These results imply that in ELT teacher education, certain language ideologies are still prevalent and need to be dealt with by teacher educators for transformative outcomes in education.

scholarly journals Implementing Narrative-Pedagogical Approaches in a Teacher Education Classroom

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pauline Goh
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Teaching Method ◽  
Teacher Education Program ◽  
Narrative Pedagogy ◽  
Educational Stakeholders ◽  
Conventional Teaching ◽  
Teachers Experiences ◽  
The Rich

Preservice teachers can no longer be prepared using conventional teaching approaches as these are inadequate to equip them with the necessary knowledge and skills they require to perform the tasks of teaching effectively. Teacher educators need to use new pedagogies, and narrative pedagogy is seen as a teaching method which can better prepare preservice teachers for the challenging classrooms of today. My study explored nine preservice teachers’ experiences after the enactment of a narrative pedagogical approach in one of their courses within their teacher education program. I used Ricoeur’s framework of the prefigured and configured arena of education to analyse the rich interview and reflective data which emerged. Three themes for the prefigured arena emerged: (a) feeling the sense of responsibility, (b) feeling anxious, and (c) feeling the lack of experience and confidence. Similarly, three themes were found for the configured arena: (a) learning through emotions, (b) learning through insights, and (c) learning through discussion. The preservice teachers have interpreted and discussed “lived” stories and this has shifted the way they think about teaching. The results do offer teacher educators and educational stakeholders a stepping-stone to further pedagogical insight into using narrative pedagogy in teacher education.

scholarly journals Using Embodied Practices with Preservice Teachers: Teaching and Reflecting Through the Body to Re-think Teacher Education

2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily Klein ◽  
Monica Taylor ◽  
Rachel Forgasz
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Education ◽  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Teacher Education Program ◽  
Ways Of Knowing ◽  
The Body ◽  
Embodied Learning ◽  
New Meanings ◽  
Pre Service Teacher ◽  
Embodied Pedagogy

This action research describes how three teacher educators invited preservice teachers to be in their bodies, or learn through “embodied pedagogy.” We wanted see how this pedagogy helped preservice teachers learn to reflect through their bodies, confront their own bias to cognitive ways of knowing, and ultimately begin to consider the use of embodied instructional strategies. We describe our questions, the activities we designed to help us answer them, and data collected from the first course in a pre-service teacher education program. Finally, we analyze these data and identify themes related to embodied learning and reflection and describe some potential implications for teacher educators. Although at times uncomfortable, we found the body became a tool for reflection whether through experiencing or accessing emotions or for uncovering new meanings and deep insights about themselves.

scholarly journals Connections and Capacity: An Exploration of Preservice Teachers’ Sense of Belonging, Social Networks, and Self-Efficacy in Three Teacher Education Programs

AERA Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 233285842090149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter Bjorklund ◽  
Alan J. Daly ◽  
Rebecca Ambrose ◽  
Elizabeth A. van Es
Keyword(s):  
Social Networks ◽  
Teacher Education ◽  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
Sense Of Belonging ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Teacher Education Program ◽  
Teacher Education Programs ◽  
Network Centrality ◽  
Education Programs

Learning to teach is rife with challenges. Preservice teachers’ self-efficacy can potentially mitigate the stress of these challenges, and teacher education programs are fundamental in helping them build this important resource. As such, understanding the foundations of self-efficacy is important for researchers and teacher educators alike. Grounding our study in social network theory, we explored the relationship between sense of belonging to a teacher education program, network centrality, and self-efficacy. Our sample included 245 preservice teachers in three university teacher education programs. We found that sense of belonging to the program and network centrality (in-degree and out-degree) were significantly and positively related to preservice teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs. This study builds on a growing literature that explores the relationships between preservice teachers’ social networks and their beliefs and practices.

Integrating Video Games and Scholastic Esports Into Preservice Teacher Experiences

2021 ◽  
pp. 50-68
Author(s):  
Miles Harvey ◽  
Jose Lopez ◽  
Marisa Wickham ◽  
Adrianna G. Deuel ◽  
Cameron Savage
Keyword(s):  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Video Games ◽  
Teacher Identity ◽  
Teacher Candidates ◽  
Culturally Responsive ◽  
Teacher Experiences ◽  
School Students ◽  
School Year ◽  
Multiple Case

This four-year study explored a multiple case study about how four preservice teachers spent an entire school year with students, developed their teacher identity, designed lessons, played games, and coached scholastic esports. What started out as a culturally responsive gesture to include video games and competitive esports into the classroom turned out to be what both the middle school students and the teacher candidates needed to push their learning experiences forward in meaningful ways. Teacher candidates gained valuable experiences from the integration of video games and scholastic esports through a wide variety of teaching strategies. Teaching candidates answered five questions about their experiences using video games and esports in the classroom. Five major themes were identified through the reflexive thematic analysis: developing relationships, understanding games and scholastic esports, teaching in new ways, perspectives and attitudes about games and scholastic esports, and the integration of games and scholastic esports.

Visions of the Possible: Using Drawings to Elicit and Support Visions of Teaching Mathematics

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 59-80
Author(s):  
Jennifer Ruef
Keyword(s):  
Preservice Teachers ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Teacher Education Program ◽  
Teaching Mathematics ◽  
Nctm Standards ◽  
Mathematics Teacher Educators ◽  
Teaching And Learning Mathematics ◽  
Learning Mathematics ◽  
One Year

Mathematics Teacher Educators (MTEs) help preservice teachers in transitioning from students to teachers of mathematics. They support PSTs in shifting what they notice and envision to align with the collective vision encoded in the AMTE and NCTM standards. This study analyzes drawings and descriptions completed at the beginning and end of a one-year teacher education program—snapshots depicting optimized visions of teaching and learning mathematics. This study analyzed drawings-and-descriptions by cohort and by participants. The findings suggest that the task can be used as formative assessment to inform supports for specific PSTs such as choosing a cooperating teacher or coursework that challenges problematic beliefs. It can also be used as summative assessment to inform revision of coursework for the next cohort.

Development of the Pre-service Physical Education Teachers' Teacher Identity Scale

2021 ◽  
pp. 1356336X2110288
Author(s):  
Jingwen Liu ◽  
Xiaofen D Keating
Keyword(s):  
Physical Education ◽  
Teacher Identity ◽  
Convergent Validity ◽  
Discriminant Validity ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
Teacher Education Program ◽  
Experimental Studies ◽  
Physical Education Teachers ◽  
Measuring Instruments ◽  
Systems Model

The development of a teacher identity (TI) profoundly impacts teacher education program graduates' career intention and teaching practices. Existing studies on pre-service physical education teachers' teacher identity (PPET-TI) have used qualitative methods to focus on the dynamic and reflective features of TI. Quantitative studies that help reveal the universal and stable aspects of TI across contexts are scarce, which may be due to a lack of measuring instruments of PPET-TI. This study aimed to develop and examine the psychometric properties of the PPET-TI Scale. Scale items and structure were developed based on the theoretical framework of dynamic systems model of role identity, interviews with 19 pre-service physical education teachers (PPETs), and content validity evaluations by 10 experts. The initial PPET-TI Scale was then validated among 523 PPETs. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed a measurement model including three domains: self-definitions, teaching goals, and professional responsibilities. This model showed an acceptable model fit to the data. Convergent validity, criterion validity, and discriminant validity of the scale scores were also within the acceptable range. The scores of the PPET-TI Scale also showed an acceptable internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.91 for the entire scale). Teacher educators may use the PPET-TI Scale to understand PPETs' current TI and identify areas for intervention. The PPET-TI Scale enables future quasi-experimental studies to identify influencing factors of TI development and examine the effectiveness of TI interventions.

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