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Navigating teacher education: mapping the terrain, surveying the landscape

conference contribution
posted on 2012-01-01, 00:00 authored by Diane Mayer, Jodie Kline, Bernadette Walker-Gibbs
While there are many small-scale case studies that investigate specific teacher education practices, large scale longitudinal studies designed to provide rich and comprehensive data about the effectiveness of teacher education, are limited (Cochran-Smith & Zeichner, 2005). The Studying the Effectiveness of Teacher Education (SETE) project aims to address this gap by investigating the effectiveness of teacher education programs in preparing teachers for the variety of school settings in which they begin their careers. This three-year study utilises large-scale surveys and case studies, and includes a comprehensive mapping of teacher education programs across Australia. It tracks all 2010/2011 teacher education graduates in Queensland and Victoria to investigate the effectiveness of particular characteristics of their teacher education programs in equipping them with the capacity to meet the learning needs of young people in a diverse range of Australian school settings.

This paper presents the findings from the mapping exercise and the surveys of teachers and principals, and the problematics and possibilities of reading across the data sets. The SETE mapping exercise used publicly available online information to examine the characteristics of initial teacher education programs accredited by the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT) and the Queensland College of Teachers (QCT). Preliminary results address, inter alia, the length, content and delivery of programs and critical issues of the development of pedagogical and assessment expertise and preparation to teach in diverse contexts. The paper also presents findings from the first of a series of online surveys completed by teacher education graduates in Queensland and Victoria. Beginning teachers’ responses are mapped against key characteristics of participants' pre-service programs and framed in relation to the key themes of curriculum, pedagogy, assessment, behaviour management, and engagement with school stakeholders and local community.

History

Event

Australian Association for Research in Education & Asia-Pacific Education Research Association conference (2012 : Sydney, NSW)

Publisher

AARE

Location

Sydney, NSW

Place of publication

Deakin, ACT

Start date

2012-12-02

End date

2012-12-06

Language

eng

Notes

Presented at the conference's A113: Symposium: The Efficacy of Pre-Service Teachers, Teachers, and Academics across Contexts

Publication classification

EN.1 Other conference paper

Title of proceedings

AARE-APERA 2012 : Proceedings of the AARE-APERA conference 2012

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