Canadian Journal of Educational Administration and Policy, Issue #32, July 1, 2004. © by CJEAP and the author(s). Initial Teacher Education in Canada and the United Kingdom
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Canadian Journal of Educational Administration and Policy, Issue #32, July 1, 2004. © by CJEAP and the author(s).
Initial Teacher Education in Canada and the United Kingdom
Guest Editors:
Jon Young, University of Manitoba and Christine Hall, University of NottinghamAbstract: This special issue consists of nine chapter-length articles discussing teacher education in Canada and the United Kingdom. In Part 1, the authors focus on large, fundamental issues of teacher education, especially as seen in the emerging post-modern international context. In Parts 2 and 3, they discuss how these issues manifest themselves in emerging, innovative practices in the two societies.
Introduction: Oceans Apart? Teaching and Teacher Preparation in Canada and the United Kingdom
Jon Young, University of Manitoba, and Christine Hall, University of Nottingham
To download this article in pdf form, click here.
Part 1: How Is Teachers’ Work Changing?
Christine Hall, University of Nottingham
Abstract: This article discusses recurrent themes in the literature about teaching in developed countries: the intensification of work, increased central control, diminished professional autonomy, and fears about the deskilling of teachers. Labour Process theory is used to consider how we might understand the ways in which teachers' work and professionalism are changing.
2. New Technologies and Teachers’ Work
Tony Fisher, University of Nottingham
Abstract: This article explores the relationship between new technologies and teachers’ work from a ‘reflective critical’ perspective. Using examples from England, it identifies issues and trends of wider relevance. The article uses the context of current social, economic and cultural trends as a background to consider the relationship between the changing use of technologies in schools, and the changing nature of teachers’ work, framing the relationships in terms of postmodernity, the ‘information society’, ‘technological determinism’, and labor process theory.
3. Teachers’ Ethical Responsibilities in a Diverse Society
Nathalie Piquemal, University of Manitoba
Abstract: Recognizing that learning to teach cannot be separated from learning to inquire, I argue that teachers have specific relational and ethical responsibilities to their students, particularly in the context of a diverse society. Using my research experiences with Aboriginal people as examples, I propose an ethical framework based upon four underlying principles: a commitment to difference or to the "relational other" Lévinas (1981); a respect for persons Kant (1956); a commitment to reciprocity Buber (1970); and a sense of care Noddings (1986).
Part 2: How is teacher education changing?
4. Systems of Educating Teachers
Jon Young, University of Manitoba
Abstract: This article analyzes the interplay of government and universities in developing policy about teacher education in England and Canada in the last twenty years. It draws on Gideonse’s (1993) formulation of three distinct modes of governing teacher education: a political mode, in which the state dominates; an institutional mode, in which the university dominates; and a professional mode, where teacher organizations dominate. Using this conceptual framework, I examine three quite different patterns of governance in England, Manitoba (Canada) and British Columbia (Canada). The changes over the last twenty years within these jurisdictions suggest that the ability of universities to exert de facto control over initial teacher preparation with little involvement of the state and little accountability to the profession has changed substantially.
Bernadette Youens and Mary Bailey, University of Nottingham
Abstract: Over the last two decades, reforms to initial teacher education in England have formalised the partnership agreements between universities and partner schools, and increased the emphasis on quality assurance of the system. These changes are discussed within the context the University of Nottingham Partnership and in relation to the role of its school-based mentorship programme in particular. The processes for collecting routine, but formal evaluation data for quality assurance purposes are described. As the partnership has matured, positive relationships between university tutors and mentors have enabled mentors to develop within a less formal framework, and thereby to improve the quality of the course.
6. Redefining Classroom Boundaries: Learning To Teach Using New Technologies
Do Coyle, University of Nottingham
Abstract: This article reports on a longitudinal study that plots the development of a network of Teaching and Learning Observatory (TLO) sites in the United Kingdom. The TLO sites were used to enhance pre- and in-service teacher education. The research explores how classroom boundaries could be redefined through a technological innovation such as the TLO. The TLO linked a network of relatively remote schools with a university education department through video conferencing and interactive internet technology. Two years on, the TLO network emerged as an powerful tool for binding together school learners, student teachers, teachers, mentors, teacher educators and researchers. The technology facilitated interaction in a range of contexts in dynamic learning communities. The potential is illustrated in this article by a research study of student teacher subject knowledge enhancement resulting from use of the TLO.
7. Learning To Teach Collaboratively
Peter Sorensen, University of Nottingham
Abstract: The dominant models of initial teacher preparation have relied primarily on a school-based practicum where a single student is placed with a single ‘cooperating teacher’ or ‘mentor’. This paper reports on a number of research projects of teacher preparation at the secondary level suggesting that placing student teachers in subject pairs can be more conducive to effective professional learning than placing them individually.
Part 3: Developing Teacher Identity
8. Melissa’s Story: Bridging the Theory/Practice Gap
Wayne Serebrin and Melissa Rhz, University of Manitoba
Abstract: This article describes a case study that explored relationships between theory and practice in a teacher candidate's learning to teach. Using a personal, narrative style, it explores one teacher-candidate's reflections about her learning with a Grade 4 student. The study was part of an innovative, inquiry-driven collaboration between school and university, and occurred during a course about teaching language and literacy in the early years (kindergarten to Grade 4) at the University of Manitoba. The student’s comments suggest how the integration of theory and practice can be facilitated when teacher education makes theory explicit, and when a teacher candidate has opportunities to reflect, experiment and dialogue actively about theory in action.
9. Learning To Feel Like a Teacher
Kelvin Seifert, University of Manitoba
Abstract: An important, but neglected psychological issue in teacher education is the difference between identity as felt or experienced, and identity as attributed by others. This article explores the nature of the difference and the limits it places on what teacher educators can hope to accomplish in preservice teacher education programs. Common pedagogical strategies, such as reflective writing and the organization of students in cohorts, have built-in limitations that instructors and administrators need to recognize.