Running Head: Teacher Preparation—Beyond the Textbook
Teacher Preparation—Beyond the Textbook
Bobbie W. Berry, Ed.D.
Kutztown University
Kutztown, PA
and
Mary Ann O’Neil, Ed.D.
Kutztown University
Kutztown, PA
Presented at
The National Center for Education Information Conference
New Orleans, Louisiana
February 6, 2008
Abstract
Teachers of today and tomorrow must view teaching as both an art and a science.
They must be knowledgeable of content and possess the skills needed to effectively
deliver it in the form of instruction in the classroom. The delivery of instruction must be
done using appropriate strategies to ensure learning by and for all children—each child
performing at his/her maximum potential.
The task of properly preparing teachers for the classroom and assuring their
retention rest, to a large degree, with teacher preparation programs in schools of
education. These programs must do a better job of screening for dispositions necessary
for teaching a culturally diverse student population while aligning instruction with state
and federal government mandated standards in a manner that makes learning challenging,
fun, and rewarding, both intrinsically and extrinsically.
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Teacher Education—Beyond the Textbook
Introduction
How to effectively prepare future teachers for educating a diverse student
population in today’s global society is a critical issue facing teacher educators. On
investigation of teacher preparation programs across the nation, and the resulting teacher
retention rate, it appears evident that teacher preparation programs in schools of
education must prepare preservice teachers for the ―real‖ classroom—one that is diverse
in many ways—ethnically, culturally, socioeconomically, as well as other forms of
diversity. This raises concerns about who will teach our children and the quality of
education they will receive.
There is growing concern regarding teacher preparation and its impact on today’s
classroom; so too is concern growing for teacher retention. The recognized teacher
shortage fuels this concern. Existing teachers are leaving the profession at a rate
equivalent to new teachers entering (Ingersoll, 2001). The turnover rates are even higher
in urban districts. Attempts to remedy the teacher shortage have resulted in alternative
teacher education programs for adults seeking career changes, but the retention rate for
teachers completing these programs is lower than those who complete traditional
programs, (Earley, Goldberg, & Huie, 2005). Nationally, 60% of participants in
alternative teacher education programs left teaching before the end of their third year
(Darling-Hammond, Berry, 2000). Problems leading to attrition included confusion about
their roles as teachers, unfamiliarity with the school environment, a need for a cohort
support system to help in becoming a teacher practitioner, the impact of stress, tiredness
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and financial sacrifices on the teachers’ personal lives. Such statistics might well effect a
new teacher’s perception of self-worth. The paradox of professionalism (Blackwell,
Futrell, Imig, 2003) is a situation in which teachers view themselves as professionals,
having graduated from a degree program and a clinical experience, yet they work in a
system that does not reward or recognize them with the status or respect of other
professionals. Perhaps the greatest factor influencing teacher attrition is that of
preparation. Darling-Hammond (1997) says that the better prepared teachers are, the
more likely they will enter the profession, and the longer they are likely to remain in it.
The National Center for Education Statistics (1999) reports that ―Growing
concern that a number of the nation’s teachers are underqualified to teach our children
has focused attention on the quality of their preservice learning and especially on the
institutions that prepare prospective teachers.‖
According to Darling-Hammond (1997) Preservice education makes a large
difference in teacher effectiveness. Referring to the National Board of Professional
Teaching Standards, Darling-Hammond (1997) says that ―the standards articulate and
embody in assessments what good teachers really believe good teaching is all about and
that the standards recognize the complexity of teaching and make very prominent the
relationship between teaching and student learning. So, if what she says is to be
accepted, along with Fullan’s statement of the purpose of schooling (1991), the
preservice stage of teacher preparation is not only critical to teacher quality and
longevity, but to students success as well.
Fullan (1991) states that the two main purposes of schooling are: 1) to prepare
children with the cognitive skills, and 2) to prepare children with the social skills to
participate as adults in the social, political, and economic activities of society. The role
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of the teacher in educating children, then, is key and teacher preparation programs must
do a thorough job of preparing preservice teachers for longevity in the profession which
will go a long way to ensure the preparedness of children and young people for
participating in societal activities—political, economic, and social—which promote the
well-being of this nation. Therefore, in addition to content knowledge, teachers must be
knowledgeable of how students learn (students’ learning styles); they must be
knowledgeable of the varied cultures of the students in their classrooms and the impact
culture has on students’ learning; they must be knowledgeable of observational learning,
as defined by Bandura (1971), and model behaviors that are expected in the classroom
that will promote a learning environment where all children can reach their maximum
potential in the acquisition of knowledge and skills posited by Fullan (1991).
Teachers in the 21st Century must be prepared for the classroom in ways beyond
what is presented in textbooks. In an ever-increasing diverse society, the acquisition of
content knowledge and limited field experience by preservice teachers fall short of
preparing them for teacher effectiveness in the diverse classroom. They must be
equipped with knowledge and skills that are not articulated in textbooks. Teaching and
learning strategies, classroom management skills, and diversity sensitivity ought to be
integral parts of any and all preservice teacher training programs. An early, substantial,
and varied field experience, then, is a critical component of any teacher preparation
program to ensure successful transitioning from preservice teacher to teacher practitioner.
There is only so much a textbook can teach. Field experience is especially
important because it gives students (preservice teachers) a concrete sense of real
problems and situations in the classroom and allows them to see how expert teachers
handle these problems and situations.
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In order for preservice teachers to become sustainable, effective teachers in the
classroom who will teach all children, teacher education programs must focus on aspects
of the program which include coursework, early and varied field experiences, and student
teaching where the teacher candidates gradually takes on more responsibility—eventually
taking over the classroom for a period of time until all aspects of classroom teaching has
been experienced.
Coursework in teacher preparation programs should be rich and grounded in
research, and should include the following:
content which integrates components on multiculturism;
technology
diversity; and
assessing teacher dispositions – a weeding-out process.
Beyond the textbook
The importance of coursework is not to be negated; it is the foundation of any
teacher education program. New teachers entering the profession must be well grounded
in content knowledge which they will impart to their students. However, there are
activities beyond coursework in which preservice teachers must, of necessity, be
engaged. Such activities include, but are not limited to
reflection;
reading research and professional journals of education;
attending professional conferences;
joining and participating in professional organizations of education;
community involvement;
action research;
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community service learning; and
multiple field experiences in culturally diverse settings.
Schools of education speak the language of change while holding close to models
of the past. There is movement to return to a style of teacher education focusing on
teaching through reflection, constructivism, and carefully supervised classroom
experience. Scientific research continues to be a focus, but debate continues over the
knowledge base required of new teachers. Are we still teaching to the test?
In the old model, teachers got a very thin knowledge base in preservice education.
Master degrees were organized to give teachers specialized knowledge enroute to leaving
the classroom. As a result, a tremendous amount of the course work at the graduate level
is focused on skills that enable teachers to leave the classroom. There are very few
intense courses offered on pedagogy (Darling-Hammond, 1997).
Schools of education face issues of social justice, culture, diversity, and
exceptionalities. Diversity, often used interchangeably with multiculturism, is of a greater
scope; it encompasses the many facets of diversity, e.g. race, gender, culture, disabilities
in its many forms, as well as geographical regions.
School populations have changed over the past century. The 21st century faces a
lager number of immigrants and a greater diversity with one third of the population
African American, Hispanic, Asian, or Native American (Blackwell, Futrell, & Imig,
2003). The curriculum for teacher candidates must include courses related to diversity to
help these teacher candidates recognize and work against situations that perpetuate
inequality. These courses need to be relevant to the world the teacher candidates will
face. A superficial curriculum that just gleans the basics about diversity using an
umbrella approach to cultures, skims over motivation and how children learn, and avoids
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real problems that are faced within today’s classrooms, will not prepare our future
teachers.
To be effective, schools of education need adequate staffing proportional to the
student enrollment, collaboration with the school communities, and sufficient hours for
observation in the field experiences to establish rapport with cooperative teachers and
come to consensus regarding theory. ―Teachers also need sustained time with their
colleagues to share knowledge, to build practice, to critique ideas, to polish lessons, to
build curriculum, to create assessments, to score students’ work‖ and so on, says Darling-
Hammond (1997). Effective teacher education programs should include weekly seminars
for student teachers and encourage the development of cohort groups that network
beyond seminars. Extending cohorts into the first year of teaching could provide a safety
network for new teachers. Coursework combined with community field work can affect
candidate knowledge, beliefs, and confidence about teaching, especially with culturally
diverse learners. According to the American Educational Research Association, 2005,
case studies and teaching portfolios resulted in better student knowledge and increased
teaching proficiency.
Reflective journals have become a requirement for many teacher education
programs. These journals can take on different forms depending on their purpose and
reading audience. Teacher candidates and cooperative teachers may communicate daily
through journals or the teacher candidate may be required to journal and share reflections
during seminar meetings. This is a conduit for critical thinking about the effectiveness of
the teaching experience and pursuance of self improvement. Themes common in journals
of candidates at the beginning of their student teacher or professional seminar experience
include impatience with self and high levels of stress. By mid term, students reflect more
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confidence, use differentiated instruction, and display a willingness to try new
approaches to meet the needs of all the students. These journals are a valuable research
tool. They provide on-going qualitative data for future research on teacher education
programs.
The implications of technology on the delivery of curriculum in preparing teacher
candidates for the rapidly changing visage of today’s classroom is another area of teacher
education that needs to be addressed. With the rise in the number of multi-media enabled
computers, interactive media games, popularity of multimedia phones and lower costs for
video editing software and equipment, the general populace view of communications is
changing to one that embraces technology. Teachers can use this momentum as an
instructional tool to expand and differentiate instruction in a manner that will actively
engage their students.
Video projects are one of many ways teachers can differentiate instruction. This
multimodal venue meets the needs of visual and auditory learners and by adding captions
English language learners can be addressed. One video project described by Hall and
Hudson (2006) offers a medium of synthesis across content areas to engage teacher
candidates in a deeper understanding of cultural issues. Information from multiple
sources at the College of Education at Washington State University indicated that even
after taking a course that focused on diversity and social issues, students did not feel
prepared to work in schools with diverse populations. But after completing a
multicultural education course, the students engaged in a technology course that
integrated learning across several areas of teacher preparation—social foundations, ESL
methods, special education, and technology education, felt better equipped to face issues
of diversity. Through a digital production project, students engaged in exploration of the
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diversity within the community serviced by the university and explored themes of
diversity and social justice they might not have otherwise experienced. Courses that
would normally be viewed as disconnected were now integrated. Choosing topics
encompassing content from multiple courses required the preservice teachers to formulate
and answer questions about education as it exists in the real world. Processing these
topics allowed the teacher candidates to engage on personal levels with students, parents,
and communities as they researched and created documentaries and footage on topics of
personal interest.
Norton and Spague (2001) suggest creating awareness in candidates of the use of
technology to engage students in their own learning as they actively construct
information through collaborative efforts and work through new knowledge. As teacher
educators, it is important to provide technology instruction that promotes the design of
lessons that incorporate technology use that effectively facilitates a student’s active
learning. Faculty in teacher education facilities can expose teacher candidates to
technology by becoming proficient themselves as new technology is made available on
campus. When teacher candidates experience the effective use of technology and are
exposed to more than just the basics, (Darling-Hammond, 2005), they may be more
inclined to use available technology themselves. Students at many universities are
already familiar with discussions on Blackboard, group email communications within a
class block, and the processes involved in registration and accessing course syllabi
online.
Research on teacher education points to a need for change, in some areas of the
teacher education programs, to prepare teacher candidates to meet the changing visage of
the classroom. But, according to data collected from teacher candidates, colleges of
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education are preparing teacher candidates well in some areas. Candidates completing the
required Kutztown University seven week professional semester field experience
complete a survey pertaining to their coursework on campus and the field experience.
Data collected from surveys from the spring semester of 2005 to the spring semester of
2007 indicate that 82% of the candidates felt well prepared to present themselves as a
professional in the school setting. Two other areas where candidates felt well prepared
included the ability to teach and accept criticism and adapt their teaching approaches for
future lessons and the ability to infuse the philosophy of ―Teachers as Life-long
Learners‖ into their professional belief schema, at 72 % and 67% respectively. An
average of 70% of the candidates over the three year span also felt well prepared to work
collaboratively in a school environment with other professionals in the school. The data
also indicated that an average of 97% of the teacher candidates from 2005 to 2007 place a
high value on the seven week field experience. Other areas that were held in high regard
were the actual classroom teaching experience in the field at 96%, planning and
executing lesson plans at 87%, feedback from the cooperating teacher at 89%, and
learning and experiencing classroom behavior and management ideas through their
experience in the field at 83%. Participants in the 2007 field experience also indicated a
higher value for morning meetings, 63%, as a valuable part of their learning experience.
The 2005 and 2006 candidates placed morning meetings as a more limited value
experience.
There were several areas where candidates thought they were only adequately
prepared for their field teaching experience. Only 53% of the teacher candidates felt
adequately prepared in subject matter and 45% believe they have only an adequate
understanding of the variety of discipline and class management skills. There was a
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slight increase in awareness of availability of curriculum material from 46% in 2005 to
52% in 2007. Preparation to integrate technology only fell between adequately prepared,
38%, to only somewhat prepared at 32%. With the rapid changes in technology this is an
area that needs to be addressed to prepare students to confidently use technology in their
lessons.
The value placed on reflection alone increased slightly from 2005 to 2007,
however only an average of 36% regarded journaling as high in value. The candidates
placed maintaining a field notebook of assignments, feedback, and reflections higher than
reflections alone at 57%, with 61% of the 2007 candidates rating the field notebook as
highly valuable.
The area of confidence to teach and meet the needs of the Special Learner:
learning disabled, gifted, and culturally diverse, was very low at 35%. The inclusion of
special populations has increased as has the diversity of cultures within the classroom
environment. Teacher candidates are expressing some degree of under-preparedness to
meet the challenges of today’s classrooms where these conditions exist.
There are essentially five dispositions of effective teachers, which are: empathy,
positive view of others, positives view of self, and meaningful purpose, and vision.
Dispositions are primarily learned through personal experiences and are natural
outgrowths of the basic human need for self-adequacy. When candidates are involved in
an atmosphere that is conducive to personal learning, they can transcend from self-
centered focus to a disposition that can minister to the learning needs of future students.
Conclusion
It is clear that teacher education programs in schools of education are under
intense scrutiny relative to the quality of teachers entering the field and the resulting
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impact on student learning. Rethinking how best to prepare preservice teachers for
today’s diverse classrooms must be at the top of the agenda of schools of education.
Teacher quality and culturally relevant pedagogy are central to this process, Ladson-
Billings (1994). ―We don’t really get to see teacher quality until we see someone who
has full responsibility for their classroom . . .‖ (Ladson-Billings, 2005/2006). Therefore,
to slow the teacher attrition rate and place qualified teachers in the classroom, schools of
education must infuse into their teacher preparation programs: 1) rigorous, integrated
curriculum designed to equip preservice teachers with content knowledge, and 2)
technology training. They must teach for diversity—requiring preservice teachers to
assess their own cultural awareness and sensitivity—modifying when and where
necessary. Finally, these programs must assess teacher dispositions at strategic stages of
the preparation program.
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