info – implications for teacher prep

Cradler, J., Freeman, M., Cradler, R., & McNabb, M. (2002).

p. 51-52 - implications of tech. integration research for teacher prep….

  • …ref…preservice teaches best learn to use technology by watching and working with existing teachers who integrate tech. into their teaching
  • …ref…the more that the preservice teachers see technology being used in K-12 classrooms the more they will integrate technology into their own teaching
  • …ref…preservice teachers should be placed…for their field work…with existing teaches who effectively incorporate technology into their own teaching
  • …ref…opt. for teachers to “…develop their own computer skills correlates with enhanced student achievement.”
  • …ref…preservice and existing teachers benefit by working with mentors who demonstrate the effective use of technology
  • …ref…”Considerable time for collaborative learning and practice is required for teachers to gain confidence in using technology.”
  • …ref…”Home computer use builds teachers motivation and confidence for infusing technology into their classrooms.”
  • …ref…”The frequency, breadth and depth of collaboration with colleagues influences the instructional context and the quality of technology use.”

NCATE (2001).

p. 7 – “Future teachers take their cues from the practices that they observe in classrooms during teaching practica and internships…if they do not see effective technology practices in the schools, they are unlikely to incorporate technology use into their own teaching.”

p. 7 – new roles now req. of teachers…

  • become advisors to students inquires…helping them form questions for productive investigations
  • direct students to appropriate informational resources and to effectively interpret the information from those resources
  • coaching students concerning effective ways of presenting/sharing their findings with others

p. 8 – faculty have an insufficient understanding of K-12 classroom teaching to be effective technology guides for preservice teachers…they are isolated from the K-12 realities

p. 11 – key factors for enhancing teacher prep.

  • appropriate infrastructure
  • incentives for faculty
  • technical support
  • sufficient access
  • better linkages to K-12
  • cont. relationships with corporations and foundations

Hasselbring, T.S., Smith., L., Rakestraw, J., & Campbell, M. (2000).

p. 15 – re. teacher prep…unless preservice teachers have the opt to…:

  • see tech used in their courses
  • make the connection tech and the content and grade they will teach
  • see the effective use of tech modeled by existing teachers
  • use tech themselves w/in their pratica/internships

…they are likely to graduate with limited technological proficiencies

p. 21-22 – key areas in which prospective teachers must achieve competency:

  • core technology skills
  • curriculum, learning and assessment
  • professional and collegial practices
  • classroom management

Wilson, S.M., Floden, R.E., & Ferrini-Mundy, J. (2001).

p. ii – teachers lack of in depth content knowledge can impede good teaching

p. ii – “Experienced and newly certified teachers alike see clinical experiences as a powerful – sometimes the single most powerful – element of teacher preparation.”

p. ii – “Research shows that field experiences too often are disconnected from, or not well coordinated with the university based components of teacher education.”

p. ii – …difficulty encountered in finding good field placements for preservice teachers

p. ii – …the fact that preservice teachers “conceptions” of teaching and learning can be “…transformed through their observations of what goes on in real classrooms.”

p. ii – …the fact that cooperating teachers have a powerful influence upon preservice teachers during the student teaching placement

p. ii – …the fact that the content preparation of preservice teachers needs to be both examined and enhanced

Blanton, L., Sindelar, P.T., Correa, V., Hardman, M., McDonnel., J., & Kuhel, K. (2003).

p. 3 – changes in teacher prep. standards…NCATE…from a focus on input (courses taken), to one on output, i.e., “…data to show that their teacher candidates can do what the intuitions claim they can do…”

Brownell, M., Ross, D.R., Colon, E.P., & MaCallum, C.L. (2003).

p. 3 – teachers with both content + instructional strategies (vs. content alone, or instructional strategies alone) are able to:

  • engage students in the learning process
  • attribute how they teach to how they were prepared to teach
  • match content knowledge with content specific instructional strategies

p. 4 – seven features common to effective teacher education in general education:

  • coherent program vision
  • conscious blending of:
  • theory
  • disciplinary knowledge
  • content specific knowledge & content specific inst. strategies
  • practice
  • carefully crafted, high quality, field experiences
  • standards for ensuring quality teaching
  • faculty instructional delivery that employs modeling and reflection
  • focus on meeting the needs of a diverse student population
  • collaboration as a vehicle for building professional community

p. 4 – research is not available concerning effective teacher preparation in special education

p. 4 – “Well crafted, extensive, carefully supervised field experiences seem to be an important marker of teacher preparation within special education.”

p. 4 – “…creating links between theory and practice also seemed to be a high priority for faculty.”

p. 5 – collaboration is valued within special education teacher preparation programs:

  • knowledge of collaborative skills
  • faculty-to-faculty collaboration
  • school-to-faculty collaboration
  • use of student cohorts

p. 5 – common strategies used within special education teacher preparation programs are:

  • belief inventories
  • case studies
  • weekly seminars
  • tracking portfolios
  • coaching
  • various assessment projects

these strategies are designed to help students to:

  • examine beliefs re. instruction
  • integrate knowledge
  • acquire new knowledge
  • reflect upon practice

p. 7 – “…two defining features of exemplary teacher education programs…”

  • strong programmatic vision
  • heavy emphasis upon subject/content specific instructional strategies

Bransford, J.D., Brown, A.L., & Cocking, R.R. (Eds.) (1999). [Chapter 8]

p. 14 – cites work of Goodlad, 1990 - …disjointed, uncoordinated, unlinked nature of college teacher prep. pro. courses with one another and with K-12 practices

p. 15-16 – sites ’96 study of the National Commission on Teaching…found several problems concerning teacher prep. pro…..

  • inadequate time to learn content + inst. strategies
  • fragmentation of the various parts of the programs
  • uninspired teaching by faculty
  • superficial curriculum….too little of too much
  • too theoretical…vs applied
  • courses are time consuming…often with little intellectual merit or depth of info
  • did not enable preservice teachers to become content experts
  • preservice teachers did not see any relationship between research and practice

p. 16 – when the graduates of teacher prep. pro. began teaching, they find that schools…favor “covering the curriculum” and “testing for isolated” information and “solo teaching” with limited use/understanding of new technologies

p. 17 – some realities about what new teachers face when they began teaching…

  • there is a huge dissonance between the theories of the universities and the practices of K-12 schools…faced with this dissonance, new teachers learn to conform to the local expectations, beliefs and patterns of behavior
  • new teachers are often given the most challenging assignments where they have to “sink or swim” with little administrative or collegial support

p. 17 – “Much of what constitutes the typical approach to formal teacher professional development are antithetical to what research findings indicate as promoting effective learning.”