Education Commons^™

Early Career Teachers’ Perceptions Of Their Preparedness To Teach “Diverse Learners”: Insights From An Australian Research Project, Leonie Rowan, Jodie Kline, Diane Mayer

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In 2012, early career teachers in Queensland and Victoria (Australia) were invited to complete the Studying the Effectiveness of Teacher Education graduate survey. The survey included a “Preparation for Teaching Scale” that provided opportunities to self-report on how well their teacher education program prepared them for 46 areas of work. Ten items addressed preparation for teaching students from diverse linguistic, cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds, students from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families, students with a wide range of abilities, and students with a disability. 971 teachers completed the Scale. On a 5 point likert scale the overall mean for the …

Raising The Curtain: Investigating The Practicum Experiences Of Pre-Service Drama Teachers, Christina C. Gray, Peter R. Wright, Robin Pascoe

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The practicum is internationally recognised as a valuable component of teacher education. It is an opportunity for pre-service teachers to develop teaching skills in authentic ways and pursue professional inquiry into practice. While extensive research has been conducted into the practicum generally, little research focuses on the practicum experience for pre-service drama teachers. This article, investigates the preparation of drama teachers for the profession with a particular focus on the practicum component of pre-service education. Drawing on the experiences of 19 pre-service drama teachers from a Western Australian university, focus-groups were conducted in order to scope the key components of …

Illness As Teacher: Learning From Illness, Joanne Yoo

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This article is a conceptual exploration into the value of illness, bodies and embodied practice in teacher education. It draws on my reflections and practitioner accounts of poor health to investigate the potential to learn from illness. I position myself in this discussion as a non-tenured academic who experiences the challenges of her uncertain work environment through her body. I examine the functionalist approaches that devalues the body and explain how the disruptions triggered by illness can enable individuals to create more authentic professional narratives. This paper explores the author’s growing awareness of illness, its impact and learning opportunities. Finally, …

A Simulation Pedagogical Approach To Engaging Generalist Pre-Service Teachers In Physical Education Online: The Gopro Trial 1.0, Brendon P. Hyndman

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

There has been a continuous increase in enrolments within teacher education programs in recent years delivered via online and external modes. Such levels of enrolment have raised discussion around the theory-practice nexus and whether pre-service teachers (PSTs) can optimally engage with practical learning components via online platforms. This paper provides insight into the potential and feasibility of using GoPro video technology as an innovation in online teacher education delivery of practical physical education (PE) classes. Upon completion of the university semester, qualitative data was collected detailing the generalist PSTs’ perceptions relating to the potential of using GoPro video footage to …

Pre-Service Teachers’ Reflections: The Influence Of School 1:1 Laptop Programs On Their Developing Teaching Practice., Susan Blackley, Rebecca Walker

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Throughout Australia, many government and non-government schools have implemented a one-laptop-per-student (1:1) policy. Whilst there was initial interest in the implementation of these programs, little has been done to track the uptake of digital learning technologies afforded by access to the laptops. This study examined pre-service teachers’ reflections on their experiences with 1:1 laptop programs in their secondary schooling. The lens for this reflection was their consideration of their aspirational teaching practice. Qualitative data were collected from two successive cohorts (2014 and 2015) of the first year of a Bachelor of Education course. The objectives of the research presented in …

Primary Pre-Service Teachers’ Perceptions Of Course Related Factors That Enhance Instructional Self-Efficacy, Beverly J. Christian

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Pre-service teachers’ instructional self-efficacy, that is, their belief in their own ability to foster learning with instructional tactics, is one predictor of classroom effectiveness. This qualitative investigation used focus groups to gather data from fifty-one pre-service teachers enrolled in one Bachelor of Education (Primary) degree in Australia. Pre-service teachers were asked their perceptions of course related factors that increased their instructional self-efficacy. Focus group transcripts were themed and triangulated with prioritised lists developed by each of the focus groups. Pre-service teachers identified vicarious and enactive modelling, accompanied by professional conversations and a supportive learning culture as contributors to instructional self-efficacy. …

Teaching As A Career Choice: Triggers And Drivers, Ee Ling Low, Pak Tee Ng, Chenri Hui, Li Cai

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Why people are drawn to teaching has been a focal research area. However, previous studies seem to centre on the traditional conceptualisations of intrinsic, altruistic, and extrinsic motivations as well as some other similar categorisations. This study attempts to discuss the issue from a different conceptual stance, proposing a distinction between the “triggers” and the “drivers”. The influences on the motivation for joining teaching were explored through in-depth interviews with 26 student teachers. Results show that student teachers’ motivations for joining teaching in Singapore may differ in important ways from that of their counterparts in other places. More importantly, the …

The Congruity/Incongruity Of Efl Teachers’ Beliefs About Listening Instruction And Their Listening Instructional Practices, Mohammad Nabi Karimi, Mostafa Nazari

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

While research on EFL teachers’ beliefs and the realization of these beliefs in their classroom practices has recently gained momentum in the field of applied linguistics, the study of teachers’ beliefs as they relate to listening has received insufficient attention in the literature. This study was conducted to investigate Iranian EFL teachers’ beliefs about listening and their beliefs-driven instructional practices. To this end, a listening beliefs questionnaire was administered to a total of 85 teachers (BA= 49, MA= 36), followed by classroom observation of 12 teachers (6 teachers per group) who were given an audio to teach. The results revealed …

Children With Speech Sound Disorders At School: Challenges For Children, Parents And Teachers, Graham R. Daniel, Sharynne Mcleod

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Teachers play a major role in supporting children’s educational, social, and emotional development although may be unprepared for supporting children with speech sound disorders. Interviews with 34 participants including six focus children, their parents, siblings, friends, teachers and other significant adults in their lives highlighted challenges for these children in school, and challenges for their parents and teachers in meeting these children’s developmental and educational needs. These challenges were centred on the need for specific expertise in the school setting, and access to additional classroom and professional services to support these students’ engagement in the learning and social environments of …

Makerspace And Reflective Practice: Advancing Pre-Service Teachers In Stem Education, Susan Blackley, Rachel Sheffield, Nicoleta Maynard, Rekha Koul, Rebecca Walker

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The Makerspace phenomenon has morphed into three readily identifiable types characterised by accessibility: dedicated, distributed, and mobile. The research presented in this paper describes a type of Makerspace that is defined by its purpose: to improve the confidence and ability of primary education students in STEM education. This approach is innovative and timely given the renewed interest and investment of the federal and state governments into STEM education. A new model of professional learning that is currently being validated in an extended, funded project framed this research that involved 9 female teacher education students and 71 schoolgirls in Years 5 …

Teacher Emotion And Learning As Praxis: Professional Development That Matters, Joanne Yoo, Don Carter

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This ethnographic study analyses the diverse emotions emerging within one teacher professional development workshop that engaged teachers as creative writers. Participating teachers revealed a vibrant range of positive and negative emotions as they worked within institutional discourses that conflicted with their intrinsic beliefs about effective teaching. They revealed their emotional investment in their roles and their desires for meaningful practice in spite of pressures to abide by managerial practices. Researchers documented high levels of vulnerability, engagement and hope as participants engaged in writing as ‘praxis’ to experience their beliefs about effective pedagogy firsthand. These findings suggest that since teaching and …

Designing For Diverse Learning: Case Study Of Place-Based Learning In Design And Technologies Pre-Service Teacher Education, Marnie Best, Denise Macgregor, Deborah Price

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Place-based learning experiences in Design and Technologies education connect people and place with design processes and products. Drawing on place-based learning, this case study shares the experiences of eight final year pre-service Design and Technologies education students from the University of South Australia as they collaborated with in-service teachers and learners within a secondary special education setting. This study reports on the design and development processes that pre-service teachers adopted to produce a sensory teaching resource to stimulate interaction, coordination and fine motor skills for students with diverse learning needs. Qualitative data, incorporating a survey and group design folio, were …

School Leaders’ Perspectives On Educating Teachers To Work In Vulnerable Communities: New Insights From The Coal Face, Lynette Longaretti, Dianne Toe

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Classroom teacher quality can significantly impact student learning outcomes. Increased access to skilled teachers in low socioeconomic status (SES) schools could substantially improve the learning outcomes and engagement levels of young people.

The National Exceptional Teaching for Disadvantaged Schools (NETDS) programme is a university based Teacher Education programme that has been implemented by Deakin University in the Geelong/Werribee area. It seeks to prepare high achieving pre-service teachers (PSTs) to teach in low SES school settings.

This project investigated the views of school leadership teams in low SES schools including their views of an exemplary teacher, and the understandings and skills …

The Politics Of Quality Teacher Discourses: Implications For Pre-Service Teachers In High Poverty Schools, Laura Scholes, Jo Lampert, Bruce Burnett, Barbara M. Comber, Lutz Hoff, Angela Ferguson

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Improving the quality of education for young people growing up in high poverty and culturally diverse communities is an escalating problem in affluent nations with increasing gaps between the wealthy and the poor. Improving the quality of teachers and improving the quality of teaching are amongst the prominent solutions offered to redress the differences between student academic performances related to socio-economic family circumstances. This article examines the different discourses of ‘quality’ in relation to the preparation of pre-service teachers to work in high poverty schools such as graduates of the National Exceptional Teaching for Disadvantaged Schoolspre-service teacher education program. Key …

Becoming Exceptional: Exploring Selves And Assemblages In The National Exceptional Teaching In Disadvantaged Schools Program, Jo Ailwood, Margot Ford

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper explores the work of ‘becoming exceptional’ amongst a group of preservice teachers taking part in the National Exceptional Teaching for Disadvantaged Schools program (NETDS). The NETDS program is directed towards mentoring and supporting outstanding preservice teachers to transition into the schools where they can make a significant difference. For us, as teacher educators leading the teaching of our University’s NETDS program, the most important questions became ones of self and transformation for the participating preservice teachers. To begin these explorations we make use of concepts provided by Deleuze and Guattari, and expanded upon by Braidotti; the …

The Western Sydney Rustbelt: Recognizing And Building On Strengths In Pre-Service Teacher Education, Loshini Naidoo, Jacqueline Ann D'Warte

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Preparing pre-service teachers to address the disparities in educational attainment that occur in settings with complex demographics such as high poverty and super diversity (Vertovec, 2007) require a theoretically driven contextual and spacial (Soja, 1996) understanding of disadvantage. This understanding highlights the structural and systemic inequalities that exist between the rich and the poor and limit social and economic mobility for disadvantaged students in schools. This paper uses a conceptual and spacial understanding to focus on the strategies implemented by a primary and secondary pre-service teacher program to support and improve pre-service teacher learning of disadvantaged schools. We detail approaches …

Thinking With/Through The Contradictions Of Social Justice In Teacher Education: Self-Reflection On Netds Experience, Keita Takayama, Tiffany Jones, Rose Amazan

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Improving teacher quality has become the hallmark of Australian education reform with a plethora of measures introduced in teacher education to improve future teachers’ instructional competencies. This policy focus has also changed the discussion of strategies for addressing disadvantages in schools; improving teacher quality, as opposed to addressing structural inequalities in the system and larger society, has become the “solution.” This paper looks at the National Exceptional Teaching for Disadvantaged Schools (NETDS), which aims to channel high performing teacher education students to disadvantaged schools. Using the taxonomy of conservative, liberal and critical approaches to education reform, the …

Teaching For ‘Historical Understanding’: What Knowledge(S) Do Teachers Need To Teach History?, Mallihai M. Tambyah

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Recent curriculum reform in history in Australia promotes ‘historical understanding’ through discipline-based teaching practice. However, many middle school teachers are new to the scope of historical knowledge and skills required. This paper reports on a case study of five Queensland teachers in one secondary school who undertook a school-based trial of the Year 8 Australian Curriculum: History in 2012 - 2013. Drawing on notions of historical consciousness and frameworks for curriculum alignment, the case study indicates that the intent of the stated curriculum to develop concepts of ‘historical understanding’ is undermined by two factors – first, teachers' inadequate knowledge of …

Teachers’ Perceptions Of Financial Literacy And The Implications For Professional Learning, Carly M. Sawatzki, Peter A. Sullivan

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Consumer, economic and financial literacy education at school is central to active and informed citizenship. Over the past decade, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission has led various policy initiatives and influenced curriculum and resource development in this area. However, there remains a paucity of research exploring how Australian teachers make sense of and approach their work as financial literacy educators or their professional learning needs and interests in this interdisciplinary field. This article reports research exploring practising teachers’ perceptions of the opportunities for financial literacy teaching and learning. Data were collected from 35 teachers in 16 Victorian primary schools. …

“I Learned Quite A Lot Of The Maths Stuff Now That I Think Of It”: Māori Medium Students Reflecting On Their Initial Teacher Education, Ngārewa Hāwera, Merilyn Taylor

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Research involving preservice or initial teacher education (ITE) indicates that mathematics education is a vital component of study. Little is known however, of indigenous student views of their compulsory mathematics education courses for a teaching degree. This research contributes to that knowledge space as it explores Māori medium ITE students’ perceptions of mathematics education in Aotearoa New Zealand. A thematic and qualitative analysis of a focused group discussion provides insights into key factors that students reported as significant links between their university and practicum experiences (teaching practice in schools). Some suggestions for strengthening that programme were also expressed. Findings indicate …

Narrative Inquiry: A Dynamic Relationship Between Culture, Language And Education, Esther Yim Mei Chan

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Human development is a cultural process, and language serves as a cultural tool is closely related to virtually all the cognitive changes. The author addresses issues of language in education, and suggests that changing the medium of instruction should not be understood as purely a pedagogical decision. The connection between culture and language is examined for understanding why Hong Kong Chinese learners are stereotyped as passive learners. Through exploring personal experience with a student teacher, the author exemplifies how narrative inquiry is found to be a pragmatic approach to support teachers to become reflective thinkers. This study argues that narrative …

Co-Operating Teachers, School Placement And The Implications For Quality, Carmel G. Roofe, Loraine D. Cook

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

It is widely understood by teacher educators and administrators responsible for the practicum of student teachers that co-operating teachers play a critical role in student teacher development. This research sought to examine student teachers perception of their co-operating teachers during practicum and ascertain the extent to which subject specialisation, gender and school placement influenced their perception. Through the use of a questionnaire, data were collected from 195 student teachers during the final week of their practicum. The results indicated that student teachers had a positive perception of their co-operating teachers and perceived their co-operating teachers to be providing developmental and …

Any Time, Any Place, Flexible Pace: Technology-Enhanced Language Learning In A Teacher Education Programme, Jocelyn M. Howard, Adèle Scott

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Ongoing developments in e-learning, improved internet accessibility and increased digital citizenry provide exciting opportunities to integrate effective classroom pedagogies with online educational technologies, creating mixed-mode courses to enhance student engagement and facilitate greater autonomous learning. This research examines pre-service teacher education students’ perceptions of the effectiveness of experiential and digitally-mediated tools which take them beyond the constraints of traditional lecture-type delivery. Quantitative and qualitative results from distance and face-to-face cohorts show the value the students ascribe to tools employed in a modified language course. These are discussed in relation to reported changes in students’ proficiency in the target language and …

Exploring The Value Of Service-Learning On Pre-Service Teachers, Amanda Mergler, Suzanne B. Carrington, Peter Boman, Megan P. Kimber, Derek Bland

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Service-learning as a transformative pedagogy within university education is becoming increasingly popular in Australia. Advocates of service-learning indicate that the practice of combining community based voluntary work with theoretical in-class academic knowledge leads to a greater awareness about diversity and difference in students. While such claims are enticing, particularly in pre-service teacher education where there is a need for teachers to understand and embrace diversity, it is important to determine the veracity of such claims. The current study used a repeated measures design to explore whether engaging in service-learning as part of an inclusive education unit resulted in changes in …

A Collaboration-Mediated Exploration Of Nonnative L2 Teachers’ Cognition Of Language Teaching Methodology, Zia Tajeddin, Nafeeseh Aryaeian

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The present study sought to investigate nonnative L2 teachers’ cognition of teaching methodology based on their collaborative talks. Participants were 12 nonnative EFL teachers categorized into three collaborative discussion groups by their teaching experience. Collaborative discussions were aimed at exploring the participants’ cognition of language teaching methodology, including the criteria for the evaluation of teaching methodology, classroom activities, teaching language skills and sub-skills, teachers’ roles, and learners’ roles in general and communicative language teaching (CLT) in particular. Analysis of the data indicated that the teachers participating in each discussion group held largely similar cognition about most of the issues in …

Project Evidence: Responding To The Changing Professional Learning Needs Of Mentors In Initial Teacher Education, Jeanne Maree Allen, Simone White, Cheryl Sim

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This positioning paper seeks to contribute to the knowledge base of the changing professional learning needs of supervising or mentor teachers in initial teacher education. To do so, we draw from the work of Project Evidence, an Australian Office of Learning and Teaching funded project, designed to support teacher education through the development of a professional learning website. Our focus in this paper is our growing understanding of the complex work of teachers as they navigate new supervisory and mentoring roles in the current education context of high stakes standardisation. We examine the implications for their changing work practices within …

Perceived Social-Ecological Barriers Of Generalist Pre-Service Teachers Towards Teaching Physical Education: Findings From The Get-Pe Study, Brendon P. Hyndman

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Identifying and understanding the perceptions of pre-service teachers (PSTs) is vital to informing teaching practices. The purpose of the ‘Generalist Entry into Teaching Physical Education’ (GET-PE) study was to investigate Australian generalist PSTs' perceptions of the barriers to teaching physical education (PE) classes. A social-ecological model framework (SEM) was uniquely applied as the conceptual framework for the GET-PE study to analyse, explore and understand the multiple levels of barriers perceived by the generalist PSTs. A myriad of SEM level barriers were perceived by the generalist PSTs (n=71) at the intrapersonal level (knowledge gaps, physical abilities, reduced confidence), interpersonal level (community …

Transforming Pre-Service Teachers’ Beliefs And Understandings About Design And Technologies, Marnie Best

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Design and Technologies challenges students to think differently: to think critically and creatively. Yet, how, when and why students are exposed to Design and Technologies curriculum in school classrooms is at the prerogative of their teacher. For this reason, it is imperative that pre-service teachers are inspired by and engaged through relevant, rigorous and responsive courses throughout their undergraduate teaching program. Situated within the Bachelor of Education (Primary and Middle) degree at the University of South Australia, Australia, this study captures pre-service teachers’ emerging beliefs, attitudes and understandings of Design and Technologies. Drawing on the comparative responses of pre-service teachers …

Criticality In Physical Education Teacher Education: Do Graduating Standards Constrain And Or Inhibit Curriculum Implementation, Ian Culpan

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Over the last decade and a half, physical education curricula in New Zealand and Australia have had a strong socio-cultural-critical orientation, providing in depth opportunities for critical inquiry. This article suggests that trying to achieve a criticality maybe impeded and or constrained by present graduating teacher standards. In the discussion, it is highlighted that neither New Zealand nor Australia graduating teacher standards overtly suggest critical inquiry as a part of beginning teachers’ required knowledge, skills or dispositions. This could be a significant constraint on maximising the intent of the New Zealand and Australia physical education curricula. As a result, this …

Preservice Teachers’ Identity Development During The Teaching Internship, Tran Le Huu Nghia, Huynh Ngoc Tai

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This article reports the analysis of two preservice teachers’ narratives to highlight the process of teacher identity development during their teaching internship. The analysis showed that their teacher identities had been shaped before they entered the teacher education program where it continued to be shaped by educational experts. In that way, they formed expectations or imaginations of their professional roles and responsibilities prior to the teaching internships. When entering the teaching internships, these pre-existing expectations or imaginations were challenged by the reality they faced. Their engagement with the internship, resilience and negotiations of professional practices were found to be significant …