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The Adequacies and Inadequacies of Three Current Strategies to Recruit, Prepare, and Retain the Best Teachers for All Students
Abstract
This paper analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of three of the major approaches to teacher education reform in the United States: the professionalization agenda, the deregulation agenda, and the social justice agenda. Although each of these approaches to reform has contributed in positive ways to improving teacher education in a manner that would lessen the achievement gap in U.S. public schools, they each have certain weaknesses that undermine this goal. There are also important issues of inequality in U.S. society that are not addressed by any of the reform agendas. In this article I discuss the research base on recruiting, preparing, and retaining good teachers for all of our children in relation to the different reform agendas that are currently being implemented in U.S. teacher education. Currently, there are three major agendas for the reform of teacher education being played out in teacher education programs across the country: the well-publicized professionalization agenda, propelled by the NCTAF Report, NCATE, TEAC, the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, and other groups; the deregulation agenda, supported by the work of the Fordham Foundation and other conservative think tanks and foundations like the Abell Foundation, the Pacific Research Institute, and the Progressive Policy Institute; and the less-visible but widespread social justice agenda being implemented by individual teacher education practitioners in their teacher education classrooms and supported by groups like the National Association for Multicultural Education, policy centers like Tomas Rivera Center and Center for the Future of Teaching and Learning, and by grassroots organizations like Rethinking Schools in Milwaukee. There is a fourth agenda that Cochran-Smith (2001) has referred to as the overregulation agenda, which consists of efforts in some states to micromanage teacher education programs and the punitive Title II
... Para se conseguir tal licença, o candidato deve possuir o certificado de conclusão de um programa de formação de professores aprovado e reconhecido dentro de um dos estados americanos. [...] De acordo com Zeichner (2003), existem três "agendas" atualmente na reforma da formação docente nos EUA: a agenda desregulamentadora, a agenda regulamentadora e a assim chamada "agenda pela justiça social". Tanto a agenda desregulamentadora como a regulamentadora partem de um mesmo pressuposto: as escolas públicas norte-americanas não estão produzindo resultados satisfatórios. ...
... Todavia, a maneira como preparar esses "excelentes professores" gera tensões e conflitos entre pessoas e instituições identificadas com essas duas agendas. (PEREIRA, 2007, p. 91) Os partidários da agenda desregulamentadora adotam como principal objetivo resolver o problema da escassez de professores nos EUA, tanto numericamente como qualitativamente (ZEICHNER, 2003), já que existem estudos que mostram que são necessários aproximadamente dois milhões de novos professores para lecionarem em escolas desse país na atualidade. ...
... Para isso, "[...] defendem a simplificação e a flexibilização do ingresso na profissão docente e dos processos de contratação dos professores, bem como a avaliação sistemática" (estatística), pois admitem que "o melhor lugar para se aprender boas práticas de ensino é no próprio trabalho, na companhia de 'bons professores'" (PEREIRA, 2007, p. 92 A terceira e última agenda da reforma da formação docente nos Estados Unidos é a que Zeichner (2003) chama de agenda pela justiça social, a qual enfatiza a transformação da sociedade também a partir da sala de aula na qual se cultiva valores coletivos e de solidariedade. ...
O objetivo desse trabalho é mapear o debate estabelecido em teses e dissertações sobre a figura do bom professor, nos últimos onze anos no Brasil. Foram analisadas 26 dissertações e quatro teses que continham em seus títulos a expressão “bom professor”. Os resultados apontam que a região sudeste detém a metade das produções. Quanto ao nível de ensino, estão quantitativamente equilibradas as pesquisas na educação básica e na educação superior. A abordagem metodológica é hegemonicamente qualitativa. A maioria dos trabalhos tinha como sujeitos apenas os alunos ou apenas os professores e os teóricos mais citados são: Paulo Freire, Foucault, Vygotsky, Moscovici, Jodelet e Larrosa. Foi possível concluir que as lacunas de investigação se concentram sobre as regiões centro-oeste e norte, sobre as abordagens metodológicas mista e quantitativa e sobre a ampliação de novos olhares epistemológicos que possam contribuir para o debate do bom professor no Brasil.
... Although the shortage of teachers is a problem that affects the entire United States, research shows that the effects of teacher shortages and the provision of qualified teachers are not equally spread. They have disproportionately affected students who are in low-achieving schools, schools with high numbers of students of color and students with high numbers of children who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch (NCTAF, 2003;Zeichner, 2003). As Zeichner (2003) remarks, an important gap exists "between the rhetoric about providing all students with fully qualified and effective teachers and the reality of only some students having access to these teachers." ...
... They have disproportionately affected students who are in low-achieving schools, schools with high numbers of students of color and students with high numbers of children who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch (NCTAF, 2003;Zeichner, 2003). As Zeichner (2003) remarks, an important gap exists "between the rhetoric about providing all students with fully qualified and effective teachers and the reality of only some students having access to these teachers." (p. ...
... This specialized toolkit must also support them in bridging the cultural gap between themselves and urban children (Bouillion & Gomez, 2001;Calabrese Barton, 2001;Varelas, 2002;Vora & Calabrese Barton, 2005). Yet, researchers have also shown that student teaching and other extended forms of preservice teacher preparation fall short in developing the specialized tools that teachers need to succeed in the demanding environment of urban schooling in ways that afford all children meaningful opportunities to learn (Haberman, 1995;Zeichner, 2003). Hybrid spaces, therefore, became sites that supported Ben in developing trust and understanding towards his students in ways that enabled him to develop new visions and tools for his future practice. ...
... During the 1990s and early 2000s, the discourse about teacher preparation regulation was constructed as primarily a tug-of-war between deregulation and professionalization (Cochran-Smith & Fries, 2001;Zeichner, 2003). Deregulation proponents argued that university teacher preparation was a substandard area of collegiate study and that certification requirements served merely as "hoops and hurdles" that kept talented people out of teaching (Hess, 2001;Kanstoroom & Finn, 1999;U.S. ...
... Deregulation proponents argued that university teacher preparation was a substandard area of collegiate study and that certification requirements served merely as "hoops and hurdles" that kept talented people out of teaching (Hess, 2001;Kanstoroom & Finn, 1999;U.S. Department of Education, 2002, 2003. Proponents of deregulation also asserted that no definitive research had shown that university preparation significantly impacted either teacher or student performance (Abell Foundation, 2001;Ballou & Podgursky, 2000). ...
... Although colleges and universities continue to prepare the majority of the nation's teachers, by the early 2000s, 48 of the 50 states allowed (and sometimes privileged) alternate pathways that streamlined or sidestepped collegiate pro-grams (National Association for Alternative Certification, 2010;U.S. Department of Education, 2002, 2003. Emerging during the 2000s as a subset of the loose category of "alternate" pathways, teacher preparation at nGSEs is thus partly the result of deregulation. ...
A controversial innovation within the rapidly expanding field of teacher education is the relocation of teacher preparation to new graduate schools of education (nGSEs), which are not university-based, but are state-authorized and approved as institutions of higher education to prepare teachers, endorse them for initial teacher certification, and grant master's degrees. Despite media attention and both public and private funding, however, there is little empirical research about the phenomenon of teacher preparation at nGSEs based on access to actual programs, participants, materials, and institutional records. This article is the first in a planned series that draws on a Spencer Foundation-funded study of teacher preparation at nGSEs to introduce the phenomenon. It has three purposes: to situate the emergence of teacher preparation at nGSEs within larger professional, policy, and political contexts; to define and clarify the characteristics of teacher preparation at nGSEs and identify its institutional domain; and to present a field-and theory-informed analytic framework for studying teacher preparation at nGSEs.
... Hence, scholars consistently call for teachers and educators to develop culturally relevant pedagogy and integrate multicultural content into teacher education programmes (Banks, 2015;Carjuzaa & Ruff, 2010). Several studies have acknowledged the significant impact of teachers' cultural diversity awareness on the academic attainment of culturally diverse learners (Carjuzaa & Ruff, 2010;Raisinghani, 2021;Walker-Dalhouse & Dalhouse, 2006;Zeichner, 2003). In the classroom and school environment, each student, their mother tongue, family structure, learning style and key attributes that make them unique in a context of diversity (personalities) are important (Abada et al., 2008). ...
... Por tanto, los investigadores hacen un llamamiento constante a profesores y educadores para que desarrollen una pedagogía culturalmente relevante y traten de integrar contenidos multiculturales en los programas de formación del profesorado (Banks, 2015;Carjuzaa & Ruff, 2010). Diversos estudios corroboran el impacto significativo que reconocimiento por parte del profesorado de la diversidad cultural ejerce en el rendimiento académico de un estudiantado culturalmente diverso (Carjuzaa & Ruff, 2010;Raisinghani, 2021;Walker-Dalhouse & Dalhouse, 2006;Zeichner, 2003). En el aula y en el entorno escolar son importantes cada estudiante, su lengua materna, estructura familiar, estilo de aprendizaje y los atributos clave que los hace únicos en un contexto de diversidad (personalidades). ...
The study explored teachers’ awareness of classroom cultural diversity using a cross-sectional survey and thematic content document analysis of Ghana’s inclusive education policy and tea-cher professional development manuals to explore teachers’ cul-tural diversity awareness. 219 K-12 teachers completed the survey. The study found that teachers are culturally sensitive to working with culturally diverse families and the use of non-standard English. However, most of the teachers have limited general cul-tural diversity awareness of their classrooms. Consequently, tea-chers are less culturally sensitive to using multicultural teaching methods and creating a multicultural classroom environment. Further, teachers are less culturally responsive in their assessment practices. Our study also revealed that although teachers were introduced to multicultural education during their initial teacher training programme, within their schools, there was limited ongoing teacher professional development on multicultural edu-cation. Results from the thematic content document analysis of the inclusion policy showed that within Ghanaian schools, there are no practical guidelines on how in-service teachers and pre- service teachers can be supported to address cultural diversities in the classroom and schooling contexts.
... Taken together, the recommendations in these reports aimed to professionalize the field of teacher education by "mak[ing] the education of teachers more intellectually solid" (Fraser, 2007, p. 224), restructuring schools to be more professional environments for teaching, synchronizing teacher salaries to be more in line with other professions, and developing Professional Development Schools (PDS) to connect universities and schools in more meaningful and "mutually beneficial" ways (Goodlad, 1994). This movement to deepen the integrity of teaching and teacher education has evolved into what Zeichner (2003) calls the "professionalization agenda" which includes things like accreditation, performance-based assessment, and core teacher knowledge.In the last 15 years, debates around what it means to be a professional teacher and, more broadly, what it means to professionalize the work of teaching and teacher education, have intensified as the market-based and entrepreneurial approaches to teacher education--what Zeichner (2003) calls the "deregulation agenda"-continue to proliferate. ...
... Taken together, the recommendations in these reports aimed to professionalize the field of teacher education by "mak[ing] the education of teachers more intellectually solid" (Fraser, 2007, p. 224), restructuring schools to be more professional environments for teaching, synchronizing teacher salaries to be more in line with other professions, and developing Professional Development Schools (PDS) to connect universities and schools in more meaningful and "mutually beneficial" ways (Goodlad, 1994). This movement to deepen the integrity of teaching and teacher education has evolved into what Zeichner (2003) calls the "professionalization agenda" which includes things like accreditation, performance-based assessment, and core teacher knowledge.In the last 15 years, debates around what it means to be a professional teacher and, more broadly, what it means to professionalize the work of teaching and teacher education, have intensified as the market-based and entrepreneurial approaches to teacher education--what Zeichner (2003) calls the "deregulation agenda"-continue to proliferate. ...
... R. Brown, 2007;Brown-Jeffy & Cooper, 2011;Y. Choi, 2013;Esposito & Swain, 2009;Morrison et al., 2008;Siwatu, 2007;Sleeter, 2012;Vavrus, 2008;Zeichner, 2003) to refer to multiculturally appropriate interventions designed as an equity strategy to empower students with diverse backgrounds through building multicultural bridges between their diverse background knowledge and their academic and social integration. Gay (2002) defines CRT as ''using the cultural characteristics, experiences, and perspectives of ethnically diverse students as conduits for teaching them more effectively'' (p. ...
The study aims to develop and validate an affordable and generalizable survey design tool to measure pre-service EFL teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs about cultural and linguistic diversity. It is significant as there are relatively low number of studies aiming to measure such beliefs in today’s changing demographic conditions which are beyond its limits especially in some countries due to the massive flow of migrants. Most of these studies are qualitative which are not cost-effective and flexible. In this study, exploratory sequential mixed method was conducted. Initially, qualitative research design was employed. Findings were used to develop a valid and reliable survey design tool in a second quantitative phase in which data was gathered quantitatively to reduce the number of the variables to a few values representing self-efficacy beliefs and determine the latent components in the scale. Final version of the scale included 20 items across five factors after Exploratory Factor Analysis through principal axis factoring and Confirmatory Factor Analysis through maximum likelihood analysis. Findings supported that a set of 20 items in the final scale form was statistically valid and reliable in measuring pre-service EFL teachers’ self-efficacy beliefs about teaching in culturally and linguistically diverse student groups.
... This understanding is consistent with a large body of educational literature that uses equity as synonymous with social justice (e.g. Cho, 2017;Sleeter, 2009;Zeichner, 2003). Equity recognises that individual students come to school with different access to resources, a situation that requires unequal distribution of resources to provide opportunities to achieve equal outcomes. ...
... This theme aligns with the recommendations from various studies, emphasizing the importance of providing teacher educators with the necessary knowledge and skills to support pre-service and in-service teachers in their journey toward culturally responsive practice (Durante, 2022). Teacher educators play a crucial role in equipping teachers with the pedagogical strategies, cultural competence, and critical reflection skills necessary for the successful implementation of culturally responsive pedagogy (Zeichner, 2003). By providing comprehensive and ongoing professional development opportunities, institutions can help teachers deepen their understanding of cultural diversity, develop culturally responsive instructional practices, and effectively navigate the complexities of diverse classrooms (Hollins & Guzman, 2009). ...
Culturally responsive pedagogy is crucial in education, valuing diverse backgrounds to create inclusive learning environments. This paper synthesizes 32 literature sources systematically highlighting the importance of recognizing cultural backgrounds, building relationships, adapting instruction, and promoting critical consciousness. Recognition of students' backgrounds enhances academic achievement and engagement, while positive relationships foster belonging and well-being. Adapting instruction meets diverse needs and improves outcomes. Promoting critical consciousness empowers students to challenge stereotypes and address social injustices. Ongoing professional development and support are essential for effective implementation. By addressing these areas, educational institutions can create equitable and inclusive environments. Further research is needed to explore effective strategies for recognizing cultural backgrounds, investigate the impact of inclusive communities, study strategies for diverse learning needs, and examine the outcomes of promoting critical consciousness. Addressing these gaps enhances understanding and informs evidence-based practices in culturally responsive teaching.
... This theme aligns with the recommendations from various studies, emphasizing the importance of providing teacher educators with the necessary knowledge and skills to support pre-service and in-service teachers in their journey toward culturally responsive practice (Durante, 2022). Teacher educators play a crucial role in equipping teachers with the pedagogical strategies, cultural competence, and critical reflection skills necessary for the successful implementation of culturally responsive pedagogy (Zeichner, 2003). By providing comprehensive and ongoing professional development opportunities, institutions can help teachers deepen their understanding of cultural diversity, develop culturally responsive instructional practices, and effectively navigate the complexities of diverse classrooms (Hollins & Guzman, 2009). ...
Culturally responsive pedagogy is crucial in education, valuing diverse backgrounds to create inclusive learning environments. This paper synthesizes 32 literature sources systematically highlighting the importance of recognizing cultural backgrounds, building relationships, adapting instruction, and promoting critical consciousness. Recognition of students' backgrounds enhances academic achievement and engagement, while positive relationships foster belonging and well-being. Adapting instruction meets diverse needs and improves outcomes. Promoting critical consciousness empowers students to challenge stereotypes and address social injustices. Ongoing professional development and support are essential for effective implementation. By addressing these areas, educational institutions can create equitable and inclusive environments. Further research is needed to explore effective strategies for recognizing cultural backgrounds, investigate the impact of inclusive communities, study strategies for diverse learning needs, and examine the outcomes of promoting critical consciousness. Addressing these gaps enhances understanding and informs evidence-based practices in culturally responsive teaching.
... Urban teachers work with children and parents from different cultures, with different backgrounds and values many of whom may and who speak a language other than the teacher's native language (Gaikhorst et al., 2019). Zeichner (2003) points at the increasing gap between the backgrounds of students and teachers, which makes it difficult to teach at urban schools. Groulx (2001) argues that teachers need to develop the cultural competence to address the difficulties of cultural diversity. ...
... The notion of teaching for justice and equity is well-established in the contemporary K-12 teaching literature (e.g., Dover, 2009;Kumashiro, 2015;Nieto, 2000), the teacher education literature (e.g., Cochran-Smith, 2004;Valenzuela, 2016;Villegas, 2007;Wiedeman, 2002;Zeichner, 2003) and the higher and adult education literature (e.g., Crowther, 2013;Hurtado, 2007;Ross, 2014), which often intersects with teacher preparation (e.g., Applebaum, 2009;Ayers, Hunt, & Quinn, 1998;Ayers, Quinn, & Stovall, 2009). Indeed, there exists a preponderance of frameworks that detail essential components for teaching for social justice (e.g., Hackman, 2005;Kumashiro, 2015), some of which are discipline-specific. ...
In this manuscript, we work to define and unpack what teaching for social justice means for us as instructors of an introductory qualitative methods course at an ultraconservative institution. We focus on our intentionality in curating readings, designing specific fieldwork assignments, and prompting reflective work for adult graduate students in the course. This intentionality provides various inroads to develop and support student learning around qualitative methods, to reveal meta narratives and dominant ideologies, to critically think and “trouble” those narratives, and opportunities to name lived experiences and observations in systems of oppression and privilege.
... First, one way to bridge the gap between theory/research and practice, is to engage student teachers in research through inquiry-based working (Baan et al., 2019). Teachers are increasingly expected to be able to use and conduct research to evaluate and improve their own teaching practices (Zeichner, 2003). These new expectations call for the incorporation of a research orientation in teacher education programmes. ...
In crisis situations, during armed conflicts or after natural disasters, education systems often fail to provide access to the quality of education that is arguably crucial for conflict stabilisation, peacemaking, and development, particularly in countries recovering from war. Challenges to educational provision in (post-)crisis situations and the demands of curriculum change are well discussed and thoroughly documented in the literature. However, the critical role of teachers is often discussed in general terms but not well understood. Furthermore, little is known about the challenges with initial teacher education in post-crisis contexts, or about the quality of teaching in such contexts.
This study aims to identify the challenges with providing quality teaching and teacher education in crisis situations by studying the case of Mosul University in Iraq. Focusing on developments after the demise of the Islamic State, the study looks at expert interviews as a means of exploring the perspectives of teacher educators at different faculties of Mosul University. It also analyses the teacher education curriculum and its development and implementation. Our findings provide an insight into teacher education structures in Iraq and the broader challenges presented by crisis contexts. A core challenge appears to be the centralised curriculum, which focuses on subject specific knowledge rather than other types of knowledge that are of key importance for prospective teachers in areas affected by conflict. Finally, the article provides suggestions for improving the teacher education curriculum at Mosul University and for addressing the challenges presented by crisis contexts.
... First, one way to bridge the gap between theory/research and practice, is to engage student teachers in research through inquirybased working (Baan et al., 2019). Teachers are increasingly expected to be able to use and conduct research to evaluate and improve their own teaching practices (Zeichner, 2003). These new expectations call for the incorporation of a research orientation in teacher education programs. ...
Numerous studies have shown how pre-service teachers struggle with a research-practice or theory-practice gap: they find it difficult to implement insights from educational theory within their real-world classroom practices. As a result, student teachers rapidly return to deeply and often traditional rooted beliefs and attitudes. Teacher education institutes, therefore, are challenged to prepare student teachers for seeing the value of educational theory and research for teachers' classroom practices. In this chapter, we focus on bridging the theory-to-practice gap within initial teacher training, by educating student teachers about research through research. More specifically, we evaluated the implementation of a research-training module in the final year of teacher training. This module was characterized as a collaborative research partnership (between student teachers, in-service teachers, teacher educators, and researchers) and focused on developing and evaluating teaching scenarios. Data collection combined focus groups (N=23 primary school student teachers) with the analysis of student teachers' teaching portfolios. The study findings illustrate how participation in a collaborative research project contributed to student teachers' research conceptions and reflexivity skills. Moreover, collaborative research partnerships enabled to bridge the world of practitioners and researchers, leading them to work together on questions that both consider as being relevant. Our study contributes to the reflection on how to strengthen the quality of teaching and teacher training, by showing how collaborative research can be seen as a valuable professional learning activity. Keywords Theory-practice gap-Initial teacher education-Primary education-Research participation-Collaborative research-Qualitative research Colognesi, S., & März, V. (2023). Educating about and through research. The role of research in pre-service teachers' classroom
... With in this focus, a holistic and multidimensional design approach was tried to be developed with dynamics such as 5E, STEM, nature of science, scientific reasoning, web 2.0 tools, scientific inquiry and science laborotary. Zeichner (2003) states that teaching is a clinical practice profession, just like clinical psychology and medicine. This view, which sees teaching as a clinical practice profession, attaches more importance to practical activities than theoretical knowledge. ...
This study aims to improve the skills of pre-service primary and science teachers in structuring science lessons based on Context-Based Science Teaching according to the 5E Model and increasing their knowledge and awareness of the current and basic science education paradigm. In this study, the action research type of qualitative research method was adopted. 13 pre-service primary and science teachers participated in the research. The data of the study were obtained from pre-post measurements, lesson plans developed by the pre-service teachers and observations made by the researchers as participant observers. The data were analyzed with descriptive and content analysis methods. The preliminary results show that pre-service teachers could not use basic dynamics such as the real-life contextual approach, nature of science, scientific reasoning, STEM activities, Web 2.0 tools, laboratory applications. At the end of the trainings, pre-service teachers’ competencies in preparing a science lesson plan based on context-based science teaching and in accordance with the current and basic science education paradigm increased significantly. This study supported the pre-service teachers’ science self-efficacy for introducing current practices related to science teaching during their undergraduate education to become classroom and science teachers and for gaining skills on how to reflect these practices in lesson plans. The findings indicate that there is a need for practical training in teacher training due to field studies in Turkey and that prospective teachers should adopt the 21st century science teaching approach.
... Along these lines, the Obama administration's "blueprint" for teacher education reform, which built on the policies of the two previous Bush terms, emphasized the value of market competition in a deregulated environment (Cochran-Smith, et al., 2013). Today, although the majority of the nation's teachers continue to be 1 This does not mean there were no other teacher education-related reform agendas or social movements during this time (Cochran-Smith & Fries, 2001Zeichner, 2003). For example, there was strong advocacy for culturally responsive, social justice, and/or equity agendas in teacher preparation (e.g., Cochran-Smith et al, 2009;Cochran-Smith, 2010;Gay, 2000;Irvine & Fraser, 1998;Ladson-Billings, 1998, 1999McDonald & Zeichner, 2009;Milner, 2003;Sleeter, 2001Sleeter, , 2009Villegas & Lucas, 2001;Zeichner, 2017). ...
This article explores how teacher education operates within market-organized environments. We argue that the forces of the market have acted against institutional isomorphism in teacher education, as evidenced by the emergence of new graduate schools of education (nGSEs), which are a new population of teacher preparation providers. We suggest that nGSEs are animated by logics based on highly-specialized missions, alternative funding models, and membership in powerful networks that set this population apart from others within the organizational field of teacher education. We also argue that there is remarkable variation and diversification among nGSEs, which has resulted in highly specialized teacher preparation niches that distinguish each nGSE from other members within the same population through mission-specific branding, publicity, and funding, which in turn prompts increased demand for specialized programs. Finally, we suggest that although nGSEs have been shaped in many ways by the forces of the market, most of them are not completely dominated by market logics. Rather, most combine elements of the logic of markets with elements of other powerful logics, forming hybrids that create tensions, some of which are highly productive, prompting rapid organizational evolution, including name changes, reorganizations, and new partnerships.
... Cochran-Smith et al., (2009) argue that 'good' teaching is 'just' teaching. Teacher educators who teach for and with social justice desire preservice teachers to recognize and challenge structural inequities that exists in schools and communities, which will ultimately enhance the lives of students impacted by educational injustices (Darling-Hammond, Chung, & Frelow, 2002;Zeichner, 2003;Michelli & Keiser, 2005). That is 'good' teaching. ...
... Despite the importance of representation for underserved as well as other student populations (Grissom, Kern, & Rodriguez, 2015;Irvine, 1989;Quicho & Rios, 2000;Villegas & Irvine, 2010;Zeichner, 2003), teaching remains a predominantly White and female profession (Guarino, Santibañez, & Daley, 2006). In the 2011-2012 school year, 82.7% of teachers identified as White but only 51% of students identified as White (Ingersoll & Merill, 2017). ...
... The first approach is action research, which has already been discussed above. Researchers (e.g., Hopkins, 1993;Zeichner, 2003) stated that action research could help teachers be self-directive and have more control over their professional practices. Ahmad (excerpt 12) indicated that psychological elements of teacher education programs can be developed "with tools to enhance their autonomy" since "autonomy is a psychological element." ...
Addressing social and psychological elements of teachers' professional identities is crucially important to develop teachers' knowledge and practice concerning social and psychological issues in their classes. Thus, this study was an attempt to investigate how Iranian EFL teacher educators addressed social and psychological elements in teacher education programs to develop teachers' professional identities. To that end, a series of phenomenological interviews were conducted with four EFL teacher educators to delve into their past, current, and future practices. Moreover, the syllabi covered by the EFL teacher educators were analyzed as a verification of the data obtained through phenomenological interviews. Explicitation of data was done through using Moustakas's (1994) systematic approach to analyze the interviews. The thematic analysis of phenomenological interviews indicated that EFL teacher educators addressed the social elements in teacher education programs by introducing sociolinguistics, collaborative activities, social negotiation, social awareness-raising, and social and cultural engagement. Moreover, the findings indicated that teacher educators addressed EFL teachers' psychological elements through action research, critical thinking, autonomy-enhancing aids, and helping teachers understand emotional work values. It can be concluded that Iranian EFL teacher educators address social and psychological elements of EFL teachers' professional identities through various approaches which have been discussed in the current study. Using approaches that can affect psychological and social elements of professional identity simultaneously is the implication of the current study that should be followed by the EFL teacher educators.
... These competences manifest on cognitive, emotional and relational levels, enabling teachers to operate in socially, culturally and linguistically complex contexts and understand the specific needs and challenges of the children they are working with. Despite the attempts to update university programmes to prepare teachers to serve in linguistically and culturally pluralistic classrooms, it is unclear how successful these are (Sleeter, 2001), or how substantively they address the needs (Zeichner, 2003). It must also be noted https://doi.org/10.36315/2022v2end038 ...
"Culturally inclusive education continues to be a challenge in many countries: while teachers attempt to create responsive learning environments and teaching strategies, students from migrant backgrounds still face disadvantages in education. Only 35% of teachers in OECD countries feel prepared for teaching in a multicultural setting. Teachers may lack the necessary sensitivity, knowledge and/or skills, feeling insecure about how to respond to cultural diversity in the classroom. Even if there are theoretical courses in pre-service teacher training programmes, practical training opportunities in actual diverse classrooms are lacking. Also, schools are lacking experienced mentor teachers competent in culturally responsive teaching, as in many countries the demographic situation has undergone major changes in the last decades and continues to evolve. These issues need to be better addressed. The overall aim of our study is improved intercultural preparedness of teachers, through rich and authentic learning experiences. Based on in-depth analysis of current best practices, we will create an evidence-based teacher training program. This will feature video clips of the most common challenging pedagogical situations that may arise in a culturally diverse classroom. We expect the teachers who pass this program to have better intercultural competences so that they can practice culturally responsive and inclusive teaching. In order to assess the impact of the program, we have developed an instrument to measure the teachers’ self-reported intercultural competences (knowledge, attitudes and skills) prior to and after the completion of the program. The structure of the questionnaire and differences in the domains of teachers’ intercultural competence according to their teaching experience is introduced in the paper."
... Therefore, phenomena such as teacher education programs and teacher competencies had to be organized according to new principles, namely neoliberal principles. The changes made in the education system first and then teacher education reforms based on the global neoliberal discourse (Popkewitz, 2000;Zeichner, 2003Zeichner, , 2014Cochran-Smith et al., 2018;Cochran-Smith et al., 2016;Ellis & McNicholl, 2015;Cochran-Smith, Piazza & Power, 2013;Furlong, 2013;Slater & Griggs, 2015;Guven, 2008). As a part of this global wave of educational reforms, some countries changed their educational system totally, and the organization of teacher education (Law, 2004). ...
This article examines the impact of neoliberalism on teacher education in Turkey in terms of the specific teacher education reforms made in 1997. First, the article analyzes how neoliberalism influenced teacher preparation and teacher education institutions. Second, it examines the changes made to content knowledge in teacher education. Third, the article elicits how the teaching professions changed under the patronage of neoliberalism in Turkey. To make the system more efficient and competitive, neoliberals introduced a market approach into teacher education and, as a result, teacher education became a means of preparing teacher candidates for the global market system. Neoliberalism restructured educational policies , teacher education curriculum, and the schooling and education practices, working conditions of teachers, the quality of educational facilities, and the teaching profession in general. Neoliberal education changed the nature of teacher education and teacher education has evolved from an academic discipline to a technical one. Riassunto Questo articolo esamina l'impatto del neoliberismo sulla formazione degli insegnanti in Turchia in termini di specifiche riforme della formazione degli insegnanti attuate nel 1997. In primo luogo, l'articolo analizza come il neoliberismo abbia influenzato la preparazione degli insegnanti e gli istituti di formazione degli in-segnanti. In secondo luogo, esamina le modifiche apportate alla conoscenza dei contenuti nella formazione degli insegnanti. Terzo, l'articolo spiega come le professioni di insegnamento siano cambiate sotto il patro-cinio del neoliberismo in Turchia. Per rendere il sistema più efficiente e competitivo, i neoliberisti hanno introdotto un approccio di mercato nella formazione degli insegnanti e, di conseguenza, la formazione degli insegnanti è diventata un mezzo per preparare i candidati insegnanti per il sistema di mercato globale. Il neoliberismo ha ristrutturato le politiche educative, il curriculum di formazione degli insegnanti e le pra-tiche scolastiche e educative, le condizioni di lavoro degli insegnanti, la qualità delle strutture educative e la professione di insegnante in generale. L'educazione neoliberista ha cambiato la natura della formazione degli insegnanti e la formazione degli insegnanti si è evoluta da una disciplina accademica a una tecnica.
... There were also excoriating critiques of racial injustice within teacher education itself and of its general failure to acknowledge and respond to its own history of White supremacy (e.g., Anderson, 2019;Brown, 2013;Daniels & Varghese, 2020;Milner et al., 2013;Philip et al., 2018;Salazar, 2013;Sleeter, 2017). These criticisms built on a long history of critique by scholars who had advocated over many years for teacher education to address head-on issues of culture, race, social justice, equity, and the values of minoritized groups in curriculum, fieldwork, policy, and practice (e.g., Cochran-Smith, 1995Grant, 2008;King, 2008;Ladson-Billings, 1999;Nieto, 2010;Sleeter, 2001Sleeter, , 2009Villegas & Lucas, 2004;Zeichner, 2003Zeichner, , 2009. Despite historical and contemporary critiques, however, as we elaborate in later sections of this article, during teacher education's "era of accountability" from roughly 1998-2018(Cochran-Smith et al., 2018, there was little explicit attention to equity as a goal of major evaluation systems. ...
Over the last decade, there have been multiple recommendations for evaluating, assessing, or holding teacher preparation accountable. This article analyzes recent policy proposals regarding “best practices for evaluating teacher preparation programs” by critiquing 19 major reports explicitly focused on evaluation. The analysis revealed that the reports’ primary goal was identifying preferred evaluation metrics using rigorous criteria for accuracy and utility. The majority of reports did not position equity as a central goal of evaluation and actually said little about equity explicitly, although some assumed equity was a by-product of rigorous evaluation systems. Building on previous efforts to focus on equity in teacher education, the article advocates an equity-centered approach to teacher preparation evaluation that acknowledges long-standing inequities in educational opportunity and attainment in the United States. Rejecting the idea of “best practices,” which are by definition decontextualized and inattentive to local contexts, the article offers 11 guiding principles for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners, to make strong equity the center of evaluation. These recommendations include: making equity an explicit goal during the entire process of evaluation and working at a systems/structural level; utilizing assessment models and tools that focus on equity; including all stakeholders, especially those from the minoritized communities served by programs, in decisions about evaluation criteria; and, supporting internal professional accountability.
... Such barriers to literacy development are found in many school districts across the country, particularly those that -like the five schools in the Detroit lawsuit -almost exclusively serve low-income children of color. Such (re)segregated schools are far more likely to struggle with inadequate resources, decaying facilities, high teacher turnover, large numbers of uncertified teachers, and low test scores in reading and other subjects (Kozol, 2005;Reardon, 2016;Zeichner, 2002). In contrast, schools serving predominantly affluent and white students tend to have highly qualified teachers, low turnover, facilities in good repair, and high test scores (Carver-Thomas & Darling-Hammond, 2017;Owens, 2018;Quillian, 2014). ...
Recent stories raising the alarm about students’ poor reading skills and calling for greater attention to the “science of reading” represent the latest round in the ongoing “reading wars.” Going back at least as far as the 1950s, scholars, pundits and policy makers have debated which teaching strategies are most successful at helping students become proficient readers. However, Leah Durán and Michiko Hikida argue that these debates fail to get at the root issues behind students’ poor reading performance. Even when schools with the lowest reading scores implement science-backed pedagogical approaches, these shifts do not make up for structural inequalities in facilities, resources, and teacher quality. Reading scores reflect problems rooted in class and race inequalities that cannot be resolved through pedagogy alone.
... Consequently, I believe that, in addition to the necessary mastery of technical skills and content areas, ESL/SE teachers need to acquire the critical skills that will enable them to deconstruct the so-called natural and commonsense perceptions they may have of low-SES immigrant, refugee, and other linguistic-minority students. In fact, as discussed below, the limited research on teachers' ideological orientations suggests that these orientations typically reflect the dominant culture's deficit assimilationist and racist views of these students and the communities from which they come (Sleeter, 1993(Sleeter, , 1994Tatum, 1992Tatum, , 1997Zeichner, 2003 Although no research definitively links teachers' ideological stances with particular instructional practices, many scholars have suggested that teachers' ideological orientations are often reflected in their beliefs and attitudes and in the way they interact with, treat, and teach students in the classroom (Cochran-Smith, 2004;Marx, 2006;Marx & Pennington, 2003;Sleeter, 1993Sleeter, , 1994. Interestingly, although there is a profusion of writing that examines educators' beliefs and attitudes, there have been few systematic attempts to examine the political and ideological dimensions of these beliefs and attitudes or how educators' worldviews reflect particular ideological orientations. ...
... First, one way to bridge the gap between theory/research and practice, is to engage student teachers in research through inquirybased working (Baan et al., 2019). Teachers are increasingly expected to be able to use and conduct research to evaluate and improve their own teaching practices (Zeichner, 2003). These new expectations call for the incorporation of a research orientation in teacher education programs. ...
Numerous studies have shown how pre-service teachers struggle with a research-practice or theory-practice gap: they find it difficult to implement insights from educational theory within their real-world classroom practices. As a result, student teachers rapidly return to deeply and often traditional rooted beliefs and attitudes. Teacher education institutes, therefore, are challenged to prepare student teachers for seeing the value of educational theory and research for teachers' classroom practices. In this chapter, we focus on bridging the theory-to-practice gap within initial teacher training, by educating student teachers about research through research. More specifically, we evaluated the implementation of a research-training module in the final year of teacher training. This module was characterized as a collaborative research partnership (between student teachers, in-service teachers, teacher educators, and researchers) and focused on developing and evaluating teaching scenarios. Data collection combined focus groups (N=23 primary school student teachers) with the analysis of student teachers' teaching portfolios. The study findings illustrate how participation in a collaborative research project contributed to student teachers' research conceptions and reflexivity skills. Moreover, collaborative research partnerships enabled to bridge the world of practitioners and researchers, leading them to work together on questions that both consider as being relevant. Our study contributes to the reflection on how to strengthen the quality of teaching and teacher training, by showing how collaborative research can be seen as a valuable professional learning activity.
... While some programs utilize what O'Grady (2000) called the Human Relations approach to multicultural education with an emphasis on "reducing prejudice and getting along with others" (p. 11), other programs drive things further and seek to foster a social justice orientation in their students (Zeichner, 2003). O'Grady (2000) has labeled this social justice approach as So- ...
This interpretive study explores the experiences of a group of preservice teachers (n=37) participating in a service-learning project as a course requirement for a foundations of education course. As part of the course, the preservice teachers partnered with students at a local Job Corps Center. This experience required the predominantly white, middle-class preservice teachers to interact one-on-one with a diverse group of students primarily from urban areas. The purpose of this study was to determine the impact that this experience had on the preservice teachers’ perceptions of and receptiveness to diversity. When viewing the data through the lens of imperatives, the analysis identifies three stages: 1) the self as other, 2) the imperative of the other, and 3) the move toward social justice.
... By definition, culturally responsive (or culturally inclusive) education entails that learners from all ethnic, linguistic and cultural backgrounds are welcomed and viewed as valuable and as capable of benefiting from instruction. The roots of culturally inclusive instruction can be found in the United States, where Zeichner (2003) explains that there is often a "substantial cultural divide" (p. 493) between the predominantly white teachers in urban areas and their racially and culturally diverse minority students. ...
... Teacher education curriculum has seen a multitude of changes and attempts at reform for over a century. Historically, the first reform effort attempt saw men leaving the classrooms and younger women entering through the Normal School programming in the late 19 th century (Goldstein, 2014 Zeichner, 1983Zeichner, , 2003Zeichner & Bier, 2015;Zeichner & Pena-Sandoval, 2015). Nor is the problem in what teachers need to know; but rather, the problem seems to be that these changes are isolated for a time and then drop off the radar and teacher educators return to traditional curriculum, though still misaligned between university's and schools and leaving teacher candidates feeling disconnected (Fuller 1969;Izadania, 2015;Korthagen, 2004;Murray, 2013;Shkedi & Laron, 2004;Valencia e. al., 2009;Zeichner, 2006. ...
The purpose of this study is to examine the relationships between and among two universities within US Prep, and to explain how relational ties are impacting the spread of curricular change through the lens of social network analysis. The problem this study addresses is that teacher education curriculum has seen many short-lived change initiatives over the last century, without many of the changes ‘sticking’. Examining the phenomenon of change through the lens of relationships offers new insight into the spread of curriculum reform efforts. This study implements a sequential explanatory mixed method design to measure the strength of weak ties in the spread of curricular change. Guiding questions include identifying the relational ties between selected stakeholders in the change effort, exploring the exchange of social capital, and exploring stakeholders’ perceptions of integral roles. Additionally, this study tests the assumption that the site coordinator role is the linchpin of the reform effort. The social network modeling places site coordinators in positions on the periphery rather than in positions of centrality. Analysis indicates that the network consists of weak relational ties, aligning to Granovetter’s theory that change spreads via loosely-tied networks. Results indicate that respondents are in regular communication with their contacts, have known their contacts since the transformation began, and reach out to these contacts for general information and advice seeking. The resulting network analysis appears intimate yet widespread, thus allowing many points of exchange to promote the spread that is currently evidenced in the program growth.
Keywords: social network analysis, teacher education reform, weak relational ties
... By definition, culturally responsive (or culturally inclusive) education entails that learners from all ethnic, linguistic and cultural backgrounds are welcomed and viewed as valuable and as capable of benefiting from instruction. The roots of culturally inclusive instruction can be found in the United States, where Zeichner (2003) explains that there is often a "substantial cultural divide" (p. 493) between the predominantly white teachers in urban areas and their racially and culturally diverse minority students. ...
Given urban school and district administrators’ historical challenges with recruiting and retaining a high-quality, racially diverse teacher workforce, there is a need to better understand the factors shaping why graduates return to teach in their home district. This descriptive study examines the high school students who returned to teach in their home district—a large urban district in the southeastern United States. White female, economically privileged, and higher achieving graduates returned to teach at the highest rates, although notable differences by race/ethnicity were observed. Implications for urban teacher recruitment are discussed.
This study measures the magnitude of the gap between students’ probability to access qualified teachers and its evolution over 15 years in Brazil. Results show that teachers with bachelor’s degree became more equally distributed. The inequality did not change, however, regarding access to teachers with graduate studies and more experience. Less affluent students have a consistently lower probability compared to their more affluent peers, particularly in rural schools and/or those in the Amazon region. This discussion emphasizes the policymakers’ role to overcome this challenge through the implementation of public policies.
Currently, a number of young people are attending schools in developing countries where there is substantial ethnic, religious, and political conflict and a striving towards social justice aims in education via the development project. There is an ongoing debate about the role of teachers in such contexts, particularly as it relates to ‘outcomes’ and success for young people as well as their capacity for realising aspirations, educational choices, and positive social futures. I engage in this thesis not only with this debate on the role of teachers, but also the larger concern with epistemic justice as it relates to the project of development (Escobar, 2011) and the modern (Bhambra, 2021). I argue that work on quality teachers and on school equity lacks several major elements: understanding the dynamic space of a classroom and the historic, local, and global forces that inform the ecological ‘field’ in which the teacher exists. I define the classroom as a ‘claimed/created space’ (Gaventa, 2006) where, willingly or unwillingly, teachers and students both wrestle with power centers and perform organic political and affective roles. Multiple definitions of the ontology of teaching exist, informed by national, local, global, and historic forces, but my work hypothesises that each teacher carries a fragmented habitus formed from the symbols and codes contained in the ‘field’ around them. In working with exclusively female teachers, I also add elements of feminist post-colonial theory including a historical debt of ‘honour/izzat,’ women as ‘borderings,’ and elements of constraint because of limited agency in the masculine nation-state (McClintock, 1995). In an urban conurbation of Karachi, Pakistan – Orangi-town – I conducted an ethnography to ‘map’ how teachers conceptualise their political role in the classroom, how the community, national, and historical influence this role, and how students perceive and respond to teachers’ authorial roles, particularly with regards to citizenship, belonging, and violence in an autocratic and militarised nation state. Methods included visual renderings, photo journals, spatial ethnography, archival research for post-colonial remnants, observations, field notes, and ethnographic interviews and focus groups with groups of children, teachers, and community members. Using the work of Ricœur (1970), Arendt (1958; 1968; 1970), and Mbembe (& Corcoran, 2019), I use hermeneutic phenomenology to interpret and understand the narrative imaginaries of community members, students, and teachers. To access the national mythos as it appears in the visual, the dialogic, and the spatial, I also turn towards a historical contextualisation which includes major themes in my findings: a state of emergence (Honig, 2009), a sacred state which is justified by borderings and ‘Others,’ glorification of the military, populist politics, and static time. In my findings, I highlight conceptions of entrapment in coloniality, what my participants call majboori, in Orangi due to historical debt (Sutoris, 2019), impoverishment, political violence, bureaucratisation, and what Mbembe refers to as ‘deathscapes’ (2019). Teachers and children illustrate their desire for self-sacrifice in service of the state, noting that while schooling and quality are significant as a moral regime, they have little impact on their aspirations. These dreams are to show their loyalty to Pakistan, where they are azaad/free. I explore the ideological closure of this state narrative as it further constricts the lives of young people on the periphery and facilitates the increased regulation, militarisation, and autocratic nature of the state. Schooling and teaching, on this periphery, are relegated to instruments of state control, with teachers functioning as (unknowing) bureaucrats and children identifying futures which are saturated with violence. I conclude this work with an examination of the political imaginaries of children, which yield potential avenues for hope, and questions surrounding the ‘colonial constitution’ (Bhambra, 2021) of modernity as it leads to ‘violent instrumentality’ and logics of the neoliberal and autocratic (Arendt, 1968).
Rural schools face unique challenges in recruiting well-trained STEM teachers for grades 6-12. Working with teacher education institutions, rural school districts can inform pathways to teacher licensure and therefore assist in crafting ones that better align to rural contexts. This chapter explores synergistic relationships among various STEM teacher pathways including graduate certificates in STEM education, the Robert Noyce scholarship program, licensure-only and lateral entry programs, and online vs. face-to-face teacher pathways. Institutional barriers to change in teacher education and ways of overcoming these challenges are also described.
In this article, you will read about three early childhood justice-oriented teachers and the ways in which they develop pedagogy and curriculum that is deeply invested in the histories of their students as well as inclusive of their voices and lived experiences. The goal of this article is to contribute to a growing body of scholarship on social justice in early childhood education by highlighting the intricate and complex ways teachers create practices and pedagogies to encourage young children toward developing critical perspectives and thinking critically about the world around them.
Researchers have documented that being an LGBTQ+-identifying teacher can present particular challenges and marginalizing experiences. This longitudinal, qualitative study is a follow-up to a year-long endeavor documenting the experiences of one gay and one lesbian-identifying preservice teachers as they navigated school and a professional job search. In this study, we followed these same two teachers as they entered their first year of professional teaching in academic year 2015–2016, and we present the experiences, difficulties, challenges, and navigation of these two LGTBQ+-identifying elementary teachers. The two participants also recently (2020) reflected back on their first year of professional teaching some four years prior, and we used their insights to chronicle another layer of reflection on their professional experiences. With these elementary teachers’ experiences at the center, this study offers implications for school systems about how to recognize, support, and advocate for LGBTQ+-identifying teachers, particularly those new to the profession.
The concept of culturally responsive teaching is utilized here to expand the knowledge base of scholars, leaders, and practitioners in higher education settings who are committed to cultivating a learning environment where relevant and inclusive curriculum equals real-world opportunities for all students. Emerging from a pedagogical lens, this chapter will expound upon the implications for the application of culturally responsive teaching in ethnically diverse higher education classrooms.
This chapter reviews contemporary theory pertaining to culturally responsive assessment and discusses the multiple academic challenges encountered by minority students upon entering higher education. The call to address culturally diverse student populations’ unique learning needs by advancing culturally responsive assessment tools and methods is expounded. The chapter further presents an overview of the culturally responsive assessment method which will be discussed in later chapters.
Scholars have long assumed that institutional and cultural forces act on the work of teaching. Environmental factors such as local control, resource allocation, professional training and licensure are frequently investigated for their effects on practice. Other scholarship, however, has reversed this causal sequence by claiming that practice, not environments, is the primary independent variable. This dissertation builds on this practice-centered approach by developing a frame in which instructional practice is seen as the independent variable that acts on environments. Three dimensions of practice are particularly salient: (1) the conceptualization of problems and goals; (2) the degree of effectiveness in solving client problems; and (3) the degree of consistency in clinical method and reasoning across contexts. The resulting framework is applied to the comprehensive school reform program, America's Choice, and evaluated for its utility as an instrument of analysis. The practice-centered approach is then compared with more traditional frameworks that see the educational environment as the independent variable and practice as the dependent one. The application of the practice-centered analytic frame highlights a number of salient issues that have not appeared in past analyses. One issue is the importance of a plan for practice, or design, that structures and guides clinical work. Second, the architecture of the design for work is consequential in how it defines the nature of teaching and learning, structures the tasks of teaching, and bears on the knowledge demands of practice. Third, the knowledge demands placed on practitioners is consequential for practice and the profession as a whole, and may bear on various indicators of professionalism (e.g. state protection). The main finding of this dissertation is that while viewing practice as the chief independent variable compensates for a weakness in past research, it is still important to understand how environments affect practice. In the analysis of America's Choice, environmental factors such as local control, policy, and resource allocation were found to be integral to understanding the functioning of America's Choice. This suggests that a more complete view of the education profession must account for the way in which practice acts on environments and how environments shape practice.
The concept of culturally responsive teaching is utilized here to expand the knowledge base of scholars, leaders, and practitioners in higher education settings who are committed to cultivating a learning environment where relevant and inclusive curriculum equals real-world opportunities for all students. Emerging from a pedagogical lens, this chapter will expound upon the implications for the application of culturally responsive teaching in ethnically diverse higher education classrooms.
The concept of culturally responsive teaching is utilized here to expand the knowledge base of scholars, leaders, and practitioners in higher education settings who are committed to cultivating a learning environment where relevant and inclusive curriculum equals real-world opportunities for all students. Emerging from a pedagogical lens, this chapter will expound upon the implications for the application of culturally responsive teaching in ethnically diverse higher education classrooms.
This study was undertaken to examine how parental literacy experiences were reflected in the literacy tendencies and experiences of preservice teachers. It is known that in order to offer an effective teacher education, it is necessary to know preservice teachers by analyzing their literacy practices originating from their parents and take into account their tendencies about how to develop reading skills of primary school children. The research presented here was a phenomenological study implemented with six senior preservice teachers of elementary education and their parents. The data of the study were collected through interviews with the preservice teachers and their parents and through observation notes. According to the results of the study, the preservice teachers' literacy experiences reflected their parents' characteristics, including parental literacy perceptions, literacy approaches developed by the parents for the preservice teachers, personal literacy experiences, general past experiences, number of literate people in the family, parental professional experiences, parental worldviews, and verbal communication within the family.
The education systems of Inuit Nunangat (the four regions of the Canadian Arctic that are the traditional homes of Inuit) have undergone significant change and continue to experience transitions in terms of purpose, curriculum, administration, and control. A key part of this transition is ensuring that the assessment of student learning is culturally responsive. Hence, the purpose of this study was to explore Inuit educators’ culturally responsive assessment practices. Five case studies were conducted in four regions of Inuit Nunangat (Nunatsiavut, Nunavik, Nunavut, and Inuvialuit) which resulted in a sample of 180 participants. In-depth interviews and focus groups were held with teachers, students, administrators, and Elders. Data were synthesized and resulted in themes related to the challenges and achievements in developing assessment practices that were grounded in Inuit culture, values, and worldview. We conclude recommending that more support and attention are needed to focus on developing culturally responsive assessment tools and understanding the impact of such tools on student success and engagement.
Nos enfocaremos en la justicia social en educación como ese
constructo que, en sí mismo, ilustra el camino hacia la búsqueda
de un cambio social; como esa brújula que guía nuestras acciones
también desde la justicia, y que sin duda enriquece tanto el pensamiento
crítico como el quehacer del docente. Perseguir la justicia
social, desde el trabajo desde el aula hacia la comunidad, aporta a
que la escuela se resignifique.
Mr. Williams, a student during segregation and educator who began his career in the years following the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision, sheds light on why Black students succeeded in all-Black schools as well as challenges faced in advancing racial justice. In his context, according to Mr. Williams, Black students succeeded because of the influence of Black teachers and the discipline that was cultivated among teachers and students. However, discipline was conceptualized and practiced in a developmentally supportive manner for students during segregation while it is practiced as a form of exclusion in schools currently. Milner argues that we should change our language of disciplinary practices to punishment practices to more accurately capture current practices. In addition, Milner introduces curriculum punishment as a tool to describe how students are punished when they are not exposed to potentially transformative, racially just learning opportunities that can result in vicarious trauma. Implications for teacher education are discussed.
Consistent with the anniversary theme of this special issue of ATE, this article offers an overview of 40 years of advocacy for social justice- and equity-centered teacher preparation through three extended examples from the author’s own work. Arranged chronologically and shaped by differing policy and political landscapes, the examples represent contrasting genres of scholarship emerging from the author’s involvement in different aspects of the work of teacher education. Each example provides a snapshot of equity-related advocacy work in teacher preparation at a particular point in time and a particular social and political context. Taken together, the three examples also suggest that a number of key questions recur in advocacy (and controversy) related to justice- and equity-oriented teacher preparation, including: What is the meaning of equity in teacher preparation? What is the meaning of practice? What kinds of knowledge are needed to teach well? What does it mean to learn to teach? The article comments on the shifting policy contexts that have shaped efforts to advocate for justice- and equity-oriented teacher education. It concludes by connecting 40 years of advocacy to a major current controversy related to equity and teacher education.
This article examines the peer-reviewed literature on alternative teacher certification programs in the United States to see what can be concluded about who participates in these programs, where participants teach, how long participants stay, how participants’ teaching is evaluated, and how well participants are able to promote student learning.
Thought-provoking, enlightening, discouraging, and encouraging; all of these things can said to be true of this second edition of the Handbook of Research on Teacher Education. It complements but does not completely replace the first edition. The first edition was a synthesis of the knowledge base of teacher education; the second indicates fields that require more extensive exploration and areas in which changes in technology and societal structure indicate the need for additional attention.
The handbook contains 48 chapters in seven sections covering teacher education as a field of study, recruitment and preparation of teachers, influences on teacher education, teacher education curriculum, continuing professional growth and assessment, diversity and equity issues, and emerging new directions in teacher education. Authors have extensive credentials in the areas of teacher education and research. A systematic check of contributors in ERIC indicates that all are widely published in the areas about which they have written.
Issues addressed include the lack of priority placed on teacher education, the bleak prospects for educational reform, the growing trend toward school reform with no connection to the institutions of higher education that train the teachers, the attempts to standardize and individualize teacher education at the same time, and the social ills that undercut efforts to improve education. Overall, the book emphasizes the need for educators to become more proactive in demanding change in educational systems and teacher education. Essays include extensive bibliographies of both current and historical literature. Indexes are extensive and even include the authors listed in the bibliographies.
The strength of this volume is that it highlights the need for further research and discussion about teacher education. Hopefully, this book and a couple of others published this year (The Teacher Educators Handbook: Building a Knowledge Base for the Preparation of Teachers, edited by Frank Murray [Jossey-Bass]; Teacher Learning: New Policies, New Practices, edited by Milbrey McLaughlin and Ida Oberman [Teachers College]; and Rallying the Whole Village: The Comer Process for Reforming Education by James Comer [Teachers College]) will encourage this. Highly recommended as required reading for teachers, administrators, teacher educators, and students of education at all levels as well as others with concern for the quality of education in the U.S.
In the midst of discussions about improving education, teacher education, equity, and diversity, little has been done to make pedagogy a central area of investigation. This article attempts to challenge notions about the intersection of culture and teaching that rely solely on microanalytic or macroanalytic perspectives. Rather, the article attempts to build on the work done in both of these areas and proposes a culturally relevant theory of education. By raising questions about the location of the researcher in pedagogical research, the article attempts to explicate the theoretical framework of the author in the nexus of collaborative and reflexive research. The pedagogical practices of eight exemplary teachers of African-American students serve as the investigative "site." Their practices and reflections on those practices provide a way to define and recognize culturally relevant pedagogy.
This article responds to Dale Ballou and Michael Podgursky's claims that the National) Commission on Teaching and America's Future has misrepresented research data and] findings. After reviewing and responding to each of their charges, the article indicates the ways in which their critique itself has misreported data and misrepresented) the Commission's statements and recommendations. Ballou and Podgursky ignore and misconstrue the research evidence presented by the Commission in support of its key conclusions. Following an analysis of the ways in which the critique misrepresents the findings from research on teacher education to bolster the argument that training for teaching is unnecessary, this reply offers an argument for professional teaching) standards as a key factor in achieving greater equity and excellence in American schools.
In the midst of discussions about improving education, teacher education, equity, and diversity, little has been done to make pedagogy a central area of investigation. This article attempts to challenge notions about the intersection of culture and teaching that rely solely on microanalytic or macroanalytic perspectives. Rather, the article attempts to build on the work done in both of these areas and proposes a culturally relevant theory of education. By raising questions about the location of the researcher in pedagogical research, the article attempts to explicate the theoretical framework of the author in the nexus of collaborative and reflexive research. The pedagogical practices of eight exemplary teachers of African-American students serve as the investigative "site." Their practices and reflections on those practices provide a way to define and recognize culturally relevant pedagogy.
This article summarizes the findings of a complex study of a science teacher education program whose goal was to graduate teachers who held conceptual change conceptions of teaching science and were disposed to put them into practice. The findings are based on the description and analysis of two major course components— methods courses for prospective elementary and secondary teachers, and an action research semi-nar— and on case studies of six prospective elementary and secondary teachers as they progressed through the program. The article identifies several important issues with respect to the development of prospective elementary and secondary teaches that arise from the case studies of individual teachers and discusses the relationship between the professional component of preservice science teacher education— the focus of the study— and other components of teacher preparation. It concludes that there are influences on prospective teachers from their content coursework that have significant implications for how they view science and how they teach. Thus, there need to be large changes in the ways in which these content courses are conceptualized and taught. Finally, the influence of cooperating teachers, curricula, and school environment on prospective teachers is considerable. This suggests the need for much closer cooperation between schools and universities, such that the professional development of both prospective and practicing teachers can be integrated: learning to teach should be a coherent, lifelong experience.
Learn how "star" teachers are set apart from those who fail to reach children in poverty.
"No education topic is more important than how to raise the quality of teaching in America's schools. This book eloquently makes the case for reshaping teacher preparation and professional development to enhance student learning." --Bob Chase, president, National Education Association Leading educational thinkers and researchers deliver an in-depth overview of the issues and challenges facing the teaching profession today. This book is the first in over a decade to synthesize the most important research in the fields of teaching and teacher education. This research is also the basis for recommAndations found in What Matters Most, a landmark report from the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future. The authors explore promising approaches to both policy and practice in teacher learning. They also provide the substance behind policy recommAndations, examining the implications of school reforms for teaching, current knowledge about teacher preparation, and the kinds of learning opportunities teachers will need. Teaching as the Learning Profession includes case studies of innovative approaches to school improvement, principles for better staff development, proposals for the reform of unions, and practical as well as conceptual advice on recruitment, licensing, redefining the teaching career, enhancing diversity, developing leadership, and expanding such innovations as networks and other sustained forms of teacher-to-teacher learning.
In this revision of her best-selling text, author Sonia Nieto explores the meaning, necessity, and benefits of multicultural education for students of all backgrounds. The text looks at how personal, social, political, cultural, and educational factors affect the success or failure of students in today's classroom. Expanding upon the popular case-study approach, the fourth edition examines the lives of 18 real students who are affected by multicultural education, or a lack of it. Social justice is firmly embedded in this view of multicultural education, and teachers are encouraged to work for social change in their classrooms, schools, and communities.
It is widely acknowledged in Britain and the US that teacher education has a profound role to play in the move towards a more just and humane society. The authors set out a social reconstructionist agenda for American teacher education which will be of interest to educators world-wide. Teacher Education and the Social Conditions of Schooling begins with an analysis of four traditions of reform, academic, social efficiency, developmentalist, and social reconstructivist. The authors formulate their aims within the latter tradition and present a series of proposals to help prospective teachers examine their educational beliefs, practices and the social context of schooling. The arguments are backed by examples from various teacher education programmes in the United States, Australia, and the United Kingdom.
How do I plan lessons for today’s diverse classrooms? This book helps pre-service teachers answer this question and learn to create and use such lessons in their classrooms. It is the first book to provide well-developed content-specific lesson plans that reflect cultural diversity in the United States. Rather than taking the traditional foundations-oriented, culture and history approach, this text translates that cultural and historical knowledge of specific minority groups into examples for instructional use. The text features entire field-tested units for elementary and middle grades in four content areas, language arts, mathematics, science, and social studies. For example, in the language arts unit, “Stories, Stories, Stories,” students tell, write, and read stories that build on their cultural background and experiences. The math unit explores informal geometry in the patterns of Navajo rugs, African textiles, and Mexican pottery. The science unit connects weather experiences to cultural folk myths and sayings. The social studies unit examines changing requirements for voting in the USA. The text can be used as a supplement for general or elementary methods, student field experience, or multicultural education, or as a main text in practice-oriented multicultural education and multicultural curriculum courses.
This article examines issues involved in teaching culturally diverse students and questions current practice in multicultural teacher education. An alternative approach to preparing teachers for multicultural classrooms, illustrated by the Teachers for Alaska program at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, focuses prospective teachers on (a) attending to multicultural classroom and community contexts, (b) designing instruction to make connections between academic subject matter and diverse students' backgrounds, and (c) learning how to learn from students, communities, and practical experience. The authors argue that radical departures from traditional teacher education are possible and that breaks from standard practice are both desirable and effective in preparing teachers for multicultural classrooms.
This report has a state-by-state analysis of the new 1999-2002 Schools and Staffing Survey data on the percentage of core academic secondary school classes taught by a teacher without major or minor in the subject. The report documents the huge and growing problem of disproportionate numbers of classes in high-poverty and high-minority secondary schools being taught by out-of-field teachers. The report also includes a list of recommendations which states, districts and schools can act on immediately to help reduce out-of-field teaching.
This article, based on Ken Zeichner's 1998 Division K Vice-Presidential address, traces the development of teacher education research in the U.S. over the last 21 years. Five different segments of the new scholarship in teacher education are discussed together with their contributions to policy and practice in teacher education: survey research, case studies of teacher education programs, conceptual and historical research, studies of learning to teach, and examinations of the nature and impact of teacher education activities including self-study research. The development of Division K in AERA and the role and status of teacher education in research universities are discussed in relation to the development of this field of educational research.
In October, 2001, the Baltimore-based Abell Foundation issued a report purporting to prove that there is "no credible research that supports the use of teacher certification as a regulatory barrier to teaching" and urging the discontinuation of certification in Maryland. The report argued that large inequities in access to certified teachers for poor and minority students are not a problem because research linking teacher education to student achievement is flawed. In July, 2002, the U.S. Secretary of Education cited the Abell Foundation paper in his Annual Report on Teacher Quality as the sole source for concluding that teacher education does not contribute to teacher effectiveness. The Secretary's report then recommended that requirements for education coursework be eliminated from certification standards, and attendance at schools of education and student teaching be made optional. This article documents the many inaccuracies in the Abell Foundation paper and describes the actual findings of many of the studies it purports to review, as well as the findings of other studies it ignores. It details misrepresentations of a number of studies, including inaccurate statements about their methods and findings, false claims about their authors' views, and distortions of their data and conclusions. The article addresses methodological issues regarding the validity and interpretation of research. Finally, the article presents data challenging the Abell Foundation's unfounded claims that uncertified teachers are as effective as certified teachers, that teacher education makes no difference to teacher effectiveness, that verbal ability is the most important determinant of teaching effectiveness, that private schools staffed by uncertified teachers are more effective than public schools, and that untrained teachers are more qualified than prepared teachers. It concludes with a discussion of the policy issues that need to be addressed if all students are to be provided with highly qualified teachers.
Using professional self-regulation in medicine as a model, the National Commission for Teaching and America's Future has proposed sweeping changes in the way teachers are trained-and licensed. The commission claims that these reforms are well-grounded in a strong base of research. However, a balanced reading of the literature finds far less support for these reforms than the commission has claimed. In many cases the research is misrepresented. Since the commission's proposals would transfer considerable regulatory power out of the public domain into private education organizations, the burden of proof is on the commission to make a convincing case that such changes promote the welfare of the public and not just the interest of the profession. This burden has not been met.
Racial and ethnic achievement gaps narrowed substantially in the 1970s and 1980s. As some of the gaps widened in the 1990s, there were some setbacks in the progress the nation made toward racial and ethnic equity. This article offers a look below the surface at Black-White and Hispanic-White achievement gap trends over the past 30 years. The literature review and data analysis identify the key factors that seem to have contributed to bifurcated patterns in achievement gaps. The conventional measures of socioeconomic and family conditions, youth culture and student behavior, and schooling conditions and practices might account for some of the achievement gap trends for a limited time period or for a particular racial and ethnic group. However, they do not fully capture the variations. This preliminary analysis of covariations in racial and ethnic gap patterns across several large data sets has implications for future research on the achievement of minority groups.
The authors respond to Dan Goldhaber and Dominic Brewer’s article in the Summer 2000 issue of Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis that claimed from an analysis of NELS teacher and student data that teacher certification has little bearing on student achievement. Goldhaber and Brewer found strong and consistent evidence that, as compared with students whose teachers are uncertified, students achieve at higher levels in mathematics when they have teachers who hold standard certification in mathematics. (The same was true to a somewhat lesser extent in science.) However, they emphasized their finding that, "Contrary to conventional wisdom, mathematics and science [students] who have teachers with emergency credentials do no worse than students whose teachers have standard teaching credentials " and suggested that certification be abandoned. This article critiques the methodological grounding for this finding and presents additional data on the characteristics of the small sub-sample of teachers in NELS data base who held temporary and emergency credentials. It finds that most of these teachers have qualifications resembling those of teachers with standard certification, and that those who have more education training appear to do better in producing student achievement. It also reviews the literature on teacher education and certification as the basis for evaluating Goldhaber and Brewer’s claim that states should eliminate certification requirements and proposes additional research that would illuminate how teacher education and certification operate-and could better operate-to enable teachers to succeed in their work.
We empirically test how 12th-grade students of teachers with probationary certification, emergency certification, private school certification, or no certification in their subject area compare relative to students of teachers who have standard certification in their subject area. We also determine whether specific state-by-state differences in teacher licensure requirements systematically affect student achievement. In mathematics, we find teachers who have a standard certification have a statistically significant positive impact on student test scores relative to teachers who either hold private school certification or are not certified in their subject area. Contrary to conventional wisdom, mathematics and science students who have teachers with emergency credentials do no worse than students whose teachers have standard teaching credentials.
Subject matter and pedagogy have been peculiarly and persistently divided in the conceptualization and curriculum of teacher education and learning to teach. This fragmentation of practice leaves teachers on their own with the challenge of integrating subject matter knowledge and pedagogy in the contexts of their work. Yet, being able to do this is fundamental to engaging in the core tasks of teaching, and it is critical to being able to teach all students well. This article proposes three problems that would have to be solved to bridge this gap and to prepare teachers who not only know content but can make use of it to help all students learn. The first problem concerns identifying the content knowledge that matters for teaching, the second regards understanding how such knowledge needs to be held, and the third centers on what it takes to learn to use such knowledge in practice.
This article responds to Dale Ballou and Michael Podgursky's claims that the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future has misrepresented research data and findings. After reviewing and responding to each of their charges, the article indicates the ways in which their critique itself has misreported data and misrepresented the Commission's statements and recommendations. Ballou and Podgursky ignore and misconstrue the research evidence presented by the Commission in support of its key conclusions. Following an analysis of the ways in which the critique misrepresents the findings from research on teacher education to bolster the argument that training for teaching is unnecessary, this reply offers an argument for professional teaching standards as a key factor in achieving greater equity and excellence in American schools.