Education Commons^™

Teacher-Based Scaffolding As A Teacher Professional Development Program In Indonesia, Bujang Rahman, Abdurrahman Abdurrahman, Budi Kadaryanto, Nurlaksana Eko Rusminto

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Improvement of teachers’ content knowledge has long been regarded as a priority in Indonesian school systems, and has been the goal for many teacher professional development programs. In this paper we report the evaluation of a professional development program to improve content knowledge for 147 Indonesian teachers. The teachers were divided into three experimental groups, and each group was treated to one of the three professional development models frequently used in developing countries. The results showed that all three models led to improvement in the teachers’ content knowledge; however, the teacher-based scaffolding model proved to be the most effective. In …

Feedback, Iterative Processing And Academic Trust - Teacher Education Students' Perceptions Of Assessment Feedback, Susan E. Davis, Joanne M. Dargusch

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Abstract: Feedback and reflective processes play an important role in learning with both teachers and students required to play active roles. The importance of feedback processes and practices takes on an added dimension in the field of teacher education as the assessment and feedback processes are also professional practices that students themselves will be enacting in their professional roles. To this end, feedback provides opportunities for students to develop their own professional assessment literacy but also draws attention to the role of the teacher-education lecturer or assessor and the roles and relationships involved. This article reports on a research study …

Early Childhood Pre-Service Students’ Transitioning Into Discourses Of Professional Practice, Gloria Quinones, Avis Ridgway

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The focus of this study is to investigate early childhood students’ discourses of play – based curriculum. In this paper we focus on how students made implicit and explicit links to the Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (VEYLDF). Twenty-six early childhood students had volunteered their de-identified play and pedagogy assignments. We analysed their assignments and selected quotes that focused on their role as educators and related to the VEYLDF. We theorized the concept of conceptual reciprocity as students’ understanding of their role in being sensitive and reciprocal with children and families. Our findings indicated that early childhood pre-service …

Promoting Online Students’ Engagement And Learning In Science And Sustainability Preservice Teacher Education, Louisa Tomas, Michelle Lasen, Ellen Field, Keith Skamp

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

At James Cook University, a core first-year subject within the Bachelor of Education, Foundations of Sustainability in Education (FSE), sees students investigate the underlying science and complexity of socioecological challenges through inquiry, place-based learning, experimentation and consideration of classroom practice. Given that this subject is delivered across modes, a blended learning approach that encompasses an innovative use of learning technologies and careful consideration of pedagogy provides opportunity for both on-campus and online students to engage in active, learner-centred, collaborative, experiential and praxis-oriented learning experiences (Wals & Jickling, 2002). In this paper, we draw upon Pittaway’s (2012) engagement framework and Herrington, …

A Study On Preferred Learning Styles Of Turkish Efl Teacher Trainees, Sevim Inal, Oya Büyükyavuz, Mustafa Tekin

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Since people have different ways of perception, levels of motivation, and attitudes towards teaching and learning they consistently differ from each other in their preferences of learning and acquiring knowledge. Therefore, the more instructors understand the differences, the better chance they have of understanding and meeting the diverse learning needs of their students. The present study has been conducted to investigate the Turkish ELT students’ learning style preferences in relation to gender and age to see if there is any relationship between achievement and learning style preferences. To perform the aim of the study Wintergerst and DeCapua’s (1999) learning style …

Beginning Teachers’ Perception Of Their Induction Into The Teaching Profession, Lynda Kidd, Natalie Brown, Noleine Fitzallen

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Abstract: Beginning teachers’ induction into the teaching profession needs to be personally and professionally fulfilling, which is often not the case. The main objective of this mixed method study was to gain a deeper understanding of beginning teachers’ experiences and the perceptions of their induction into the teaching profession and the support they received. A key finding was that many beginning teachers entered the profession through casual or contract positions. Although the beginning teachers reported receiving satisfactory support, the support received varied among schools. Beginning teachers’ perceptions of their induction are that the mentor and induction programs are limited. La …

A Healthy Dose Of Race? White Students’ And Teachers’ Unintentional Brushes With Whiteness, Samantha Schulz, Jennifer Fane

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper reports on efforts by three Australian academics to develop students’ sociocultural awareness (in particular, their racial literacy) during a time of mounting pressure on teacher educators to narrow and standardise their approaches. The field of health education provides a vehicle for research; however, it is not the paper’s central foci. Of key concern is the development of a critical disposition in students – a disposition geared toward teaching for social equity. Learning of this nature transcends topic domains, and therefore allows for collaboration between academics in different parts of teacher education. Specifically, the paper focuses upon ‘whiteness’ and …

Students’ Attitudes Towards Individual Musical Instrument Courses In Music Education Graduate Programs In Turkey, Gülten Cüceoğlu Önder

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The Individual Musical Instrument course is a compulsory part of the curriculum, in the Music Education Departments of universities in Turkey. The main purpose of the course is to ensure that each student is able to play a musical instrument and, use the instrument once they become music teachers. This study aims to determine the attitudes of students enrolled in the Music Education Department towards the course within the program. Participants included 334 students studying Music Education at four different Universities in Turkey. The study adopted the “Attitudes towards Individual Musical Instrument Course Scale” (Topoğlu & Erden,2012). No statistically significant …

Inquiring Into Pre-Service Content Area Teachers’ Development Of Literacy Practices And Pedagogical Content Knowledge, Jennifer Mitton Kukner, Anne Murray Orr

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The focus of this qualitative multi-year case study is on pre-service teachers’ experiences related to the development of their literacy practices in teaching high school science, math, social studies and other content area courses during their final field placement in a teacher education program. Results indicate tangible indicators of overall growth in participants’ developing pedagogical content knowledge as well differences in the depth of their learning. All participants willingly supported the idea of integrating literacy in content area courses, but their successes were somewhat uneven, and reflective of their evolving pedagogical content knowledge, as they attempted to make literacy practices …

Preparedness Of Pre-Service Teachers For Inclusive Education In The Solomon Islands, Umesh Sharma, Janine Simi, Chris Forlin

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Recent policy changes in the Pacific Islands have seen a strong emphasis on implementing inclusive education. Preparing teachers for this change in education will be essential if they are to have the knowledge, skills and understandings so that they can become inclusive practitioners. Pre-service teacher education will play a critical role in supporting this process. This paper considers the perceptions of pre-service teachers undertaking the first year of the Diploma of Teaching in the one university in the Solomon Islands. This is the only university that prepares teachers to work across the entire archipelago. Data are collected pre and post …

‘We Did The How To Teach It’: Music Teaching And Learning In Higher Education In Australia, Dawn Joseph

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The Australian Government recognizes that the Arts are a critical part of formal school education and it should not be viewed as subordinate or extra. This paper forms part of a wider research project titled “Pre-service teacher attitudes and understandings of Music Education” that started in 2013. The focus of this paper investigates music teaching and learning in a core unit within the Bachelor of Education (Primary) course at Deakin University (Australia). Using questionnaire and interview data gathered in 2014, I employ Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis to analyse and codify the data. Three themes are discussed in relation to: Why it …

International Students’ Experience Of Practicum In Teacher Education: An Exploration Through Internationalisation And Professional Socialisation, Georgina M. Barton, Kay A. Hartwig, Melissa Cain

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This paper explores the practicum experience of international students studying in a teacher education course. Much research has investigated the experience of international students during their degree experience but there is limited research that has addressed the practicum; a key component of teacher education. The research that does exist tends to view international students as analogous rather than individual students with distinct needs and experiences. The current paper will draw evidence from fourteen (14) international students gathered via interviews. The themes of learning and teaching contexts and relationships; curriculum, pedagogy and assessment; and personal attributes were identified and the conceptual …

The Relationship Between University Learning Experiences And English Teaching Self-Efficacy: Perspectives Of Five Final-Year Pre-Service English Teachers, Ksenia Filatov, Shane Pill

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

No literature exists on English teaching efficacy or self-efficacy or on pre-service teachers’ English teaching self-efficacy and its relationship to pre-service teacher education. This project addressed this conceptual and methodological gap in current teacher efficacy research literature. Five pre-service English teachers in their final year of double degree Bachelor of Education/Bachelor of Arts teacher education programmes at an Australian university were interviewed about their self-efficacy for specific English teaching skills. Results suggest that the pre-service teachers see a significant relationship between their self-efficacy to teach English and their degree. The data suggests that the relationship between university learning experiences and …

Flip, Feedback And Fly: Using Loop To Enhance The Professional Experience Of Initial Teacher Education, Shane N. Phillipson, David G. Cooper, Sivanes Phillipson

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The Australian Professional Teaching Standards require pre-service teachers to complete a minimum number of days of professional experience in order to graduate. Problems can arise, however, when the evaluation of their professional experience against the Standards shifts from the providers of teacher education programmes to school-based supervising teachers. The Lesson Observation On-line Platform (LOOP) begins to address these problems by utilising a secure, shared digital platform to facilitate evidence-based evaluation of the performance of pre-service teachers. In this research, we evaluated the potential of LOOP to assess pre-service teachers against the Standards as well as to enhance the professional development …

In Defence Of The Lecture, R. Scott Webster

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

In response to the lecture format coming under ‘attack’ and being replaced by online materials and smaller tutorials, this paper attempts to offer not only a defence but also to assert that the potential value of the lecture is difficult to replicate through other learning formats. In this paper some of the criticisms against lectures will be challenged, in particular that they are monological and promote a banking concept to learning. To make this argument I shall be drawing upon Freire’s ‘banking concept’ and Vygotsky’s notion of ‘inner speech’ and shall claim that listening is a virtue to be encouraged …

Collaborative Teaching And Self-Study: Engaging Student Teachers In Sociological Theory In Teacher Education., Vivienne Hogan, Linda Daniell

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

This article presents some of the findings of a three-year project researching the impact of changes made to teaching and learning in a first-year sociology paper for primary and early childhood education (ece) student teachers. The context of the research is an undergraduate Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programme situated in the School of Education in a New Zealand University. Through self-study, teacher educators sought to gain a deeper understanding of how changes made to the paper influenced their teaching and student learning.

A collaborative teaching relationship was particularly important for the teacher educators to share concerns and present ideas for …

The Importance Of Music In Preschool Education, Anna Ehrlin, Hans-Olof Gustavsson

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

At a few universities in Sweden students can chose a preschool teacher education programme with a music profile. At one of these universities, a study was undertaken that aimed to explore student teachers understanding of self as musician, their future professional role as a preschool teacher and how the education equips for that. Sixteen students participated in focus group interviews, and thirty students answered a questionnaire. The study shows that almost three-quarters of the students did not choose the music profile for the sake of the specific profile in music. Instead, it happened that this was the programme they managed …

Degrees Of Change: Understanding Academics Experiences With A Shift To Flexible Technology-Enhanced Learning In Initial Teacher Education, Benjamin A. Kehrwald, Faye Mccallum

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

The implementation of technology enhanced learning in higher education is often associated with changes to academic work. This article reports on a study of staff experiences with curriculum development and teaching in multiple modes of blended and online learning in a Bachelor of Education degree. The findings indicate that the changes experienced by these teacher educators were significant but not wholesale. More specifically, the findings highlight three particular areas of change that impacted on their role as teacher educators: changed pedagogical practices, particularly in staff-student communication, interaction and relationship building with students; increasing workloads associated with flexible delivery; and changed …

Learning To Teach: What Do Pre-Service Teachers Report., Dawn A. Naylor, Glenda Campbell-Evans, Carmel Maloney

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Abstract: Taking a sociocultural approach to understanding the phenomenon of learning to teach, this study examined the extent to which seven pre-service teachers, in their final year of a Bachelor of Education course in a regional Australian university campus, identified personal, professional and contextual aspects as significant influences on learning to teach. By listening to the voices of the pre-service teachers, this study found three orientations towards learning to teach. While these orientations were specific to the pre-service teachers enrolled in one regional teacher education program, they do offer teacher educators some insight and advice into the phenomenon of learning …