It is widely recognised that technology, including social media, has many positive benefits in education although online technologies, particularly imprudent use of social networking sites, may also present problems for those seeking employment as a newly qualified teacher (NQT). To counter this, trainee teachers are provided with guidance on the use of social media however, it could be argued that the perceptions surrounding appropriate use of technology and social media are subjective and different stakeholders may hold a range of views regarding what is and what is not acceptable. This study aims to investigate differences in the values and attitudes of trainee teachers at the point of seeking employment in relation to those of head teachers as employers. The potential for a mismatch between these views and the subsequent negative outcomes for trainees is clear and an improved understanding of these differences could help teacher educators support trainees in specific aspects of their online presence. A survey of trainee teachers and head teachers was conducted and the data was analysed to identify key variations in values and attitudes in relation to social media posts.
In this position paper, we explore the potential of social networks for teacher professional development. Networking is a crucial skill in professional careers, supporting the individual’s personal and professional learning. Collective teacher interactions online can facilitate collaborative professional development and support collective epistemic engagement. Social networks can be considered as ‘third spaces’ between formal and informal learning to support professional development, also integrating international and intercultural aspects. Research questions addressed here include implications of online engagement on teachers’ initial and in-service training and impact of social networks on innovations in professional practices and local communities.
Following a decade of shift towards more school-led or school-centred initial teacher training it is time to assess the impact of this change on the roles of mentors and tutors in university based initial teacher education (ITE) partnerships. This paper therefore elicited the perceptions of school-based mentors’ contributions to the education of training teachers when working with a higher education institution (HEI) ITE partnership. During 2018/19, school-based secondary history mentors working with three university providers offering Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) and School Direct (SD) with Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) qualifications, were asked how they perceived the expertise brought to the role of teacher-educator when working in partnership with a university subject-tutor. Many school-based mentors involved in the study worked with a variety of training providers and routes, and university subject-tutors and school-based mentors were understood to have purposeful roles to play, bringing distinct and complementary expertise to a collaborative ITE partnership. The study identifies advantages in HEI ITE partnerships that could be lost if an understanding of the distinct contributions of the school-based mentor and university subject-tutor are not recognised. It offers suggestions as to how these advantages might be maximised to strengthen the quality of subject-specific mentoring in these partnership contexts.
This research explored influences on self-efficacy and confidence for ITE students when teaching children with autism. Self-efficacy, defined by Bandura (1997), is a person’s perception of their capacity to carry out a course of action which will enable their attainment. The language of confidence was adopted when considering how ITE students experience self-efficacy. Qualitative data from interviews and a focus group discussion were analysed adopting an interpretative approach. Initial thematic analysis revealed the perceived importance of first-hand experience to develop knowledge and confidence, echoing Bandura’s (2006) argument that self-efficacy is developed through mastery experiences. The transversal influence of emotional competency was also identified as pervading the discourse (Bunaiasu, 2018). Interpretative analysis of the group discussion identified an increase in the perceived confidence of participants. Findings therefore support Bandura’s claim that talking develops self-efficacy and confidence through vicarious and persuasive experiences (Bandura, 1997). The vicarious experience enabled through the focus group appears to have supported emotional competence. Consequently, confidence and self-efficacy appear to have increased, when reflecting on teaching children with autism. Further research is needed to explore whether such experiences in focus group discussion can potentially inform pedagogical approaches to develop self-efficacy, confidence and emotional competence.
Teacher education for primary and lower secondary school has received harsh criticism in many countries, also in Denmark. Teacher education programmes experience high dropout rates and has low appeal to potential students. The purpose of this study is to explore how preservice teachers’ perceptions of campus experiences and field experiences are related to their prospective commitment to become a teacher as well as to their turnover intention. This focus is important because research indicates that prospective commitment to a profession is an important factor in sustaining good professional practices among preservice teachers as well as in preventing early exit from the programme. Structural equation modelling was used for the data analysis in this study. A survey was carried out with 1,435 participating Danish preservice teachers at four different campuses. The preservice teachers were asked to voluntarily complete a paper-based questionnaire after they had completed at least one teacher practice period. The analysis indicated that perceived relevance of subject didactics teaching and theory–practice interactions in the school-based section of teacher training are the most important elements in explaining both the prospective commitment of preservice teachers to their future profession as teachers and their turnover intention.
As a teacher educator specialising in special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) in a large further education college in North-East England, a key concern of the student teachers is how to work with those other practitioners who provide support to learners in the classroom. A review of the literature, combined with my own experiences as both a teacher and teacher educator, led to three categories of inquiry: (i) students’ understanding of how to work with learning support staff, (ii) students’ experiences of and attitudes towards working with learning support staff and (iii) how well they believed they were prepared to work with learning support staff whilst studying for their teaching qualification. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with student teachers; these were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. The research found participants felt a lack of guidance to work with Learning Support Assistants (LSAs), a lack of time to collaborate with LSAs, and variability in role expectations across different settings impacted on inclusive practice. This study raises pertinent questions about how to support student teachers to prepare for inclusive practice through collaborative working with LSAs. By examining the importance and complexities of the issues, teacher educators can explore ideas to prepare student teachers for collaborative working.
A mixed-method of questionnaires and analysis of audio-visual recordings are used to contextualise one’s use of lecture capture technology on a Foundation Year provision at a higher education institute. The researcher’s use of lecture capture technology appears to mirror many aspects of its use amongst colleagues, including the method used and the frequency it is employed. The researcher’s existing lectured captured content is analysed against common Bloom taxonomy verbs to gain quantitative insight into how questioning is used in lecture sessions. Several assumptions and preconceptions surrounding the number of questions, the cognitive difficulty, and the distribution of verbs in questions posed to students are found to be unsubstantiated. Such reflections lead to several practical changes to improve engagement and cognitive demand for students in lectures, ultimately, aiding student transitions to further levels of study. This work provides an impetus and scaffold for reflecting on one’s practice using lecture capture technology and a clear case is made for the value of data contained in existing lecture captured content.
Over the past 30 years, the teaching profession has embraced the notion of the teacher as a reflective practitioner, which has led to an increased emphasis on teacher education programmes offering learning experiences that model and encourage reflective practice. This qualitative instrumental case study research explored the usefulness, benefits, and challenge of an innovative approach to teaching practicum debriefing—namely, an exercise called the reflective approach to teaching practicum debriefing (RATPD). Examples of the usefulness and benefits of the approach are (1) it encouraged student teachers to not only focus on observing the techniques and methods of teaching and the daily issues that teachers face in their practice, but to also consider self as a teacher and (2) it encouraged critical thinking, self-directed critical thinking, and self-awareness. The main challenge of the RATPD is that students are sometimes reluctant to share their perception and what they truly believe and feel about a particular issue or situation. Implications for teacher educators and education are discussed.
There is broad agreement that the choice of mathematical examples is central to the teaching of mathematics and that a teacher’s choice of examples may either facilitate or impede learners’ understanding. From this starting point it can be deduced that programmes of instruction for teachers should include the study of mathematical examples. However, there is much to learn about the kind of professional development that might support beginner teachers in the careful choice of examples. This paper presents a case study of a group of sixteen students on a one-year Primary PGCE (5-11) programme who met each month over the first six months of their course to consider example sets. The research events explored how student responses to examples presented in textbooks changed over time. The outcomes of this study suggest that over time students noticed more about opportunities for generalisation and progression in the mathematical constructs explored in the example sets. Students also noted many of the pedagogical concerns associated with textbook use. The outcomes of this study lead to the recommendation that programmes of instruction include explicit opportunities for beginner teachers to generate, explore and reflect upon examples for real or hypothetical classroom situations.
The draft film Broken (Rimmer, 2020) is an artistic impression that aims to articulate dysfluency from an autistic viewpoint. This paper reports on a pilot study to evaluate the effectiveness of the film as a tool to support trainee teachers’ understanding of fluency issues in autistic pupils in the mainstream classroom. The study positions what is a personal perspective as articulated in the film within the wider autism literature, and reports and discusses trainees’ responses to the film. Implications for future Initial Teacher Education in this area – including resultant adaptations of the film – are discussed.
This study explores the role that social networking sites play in the learning of post-graduate trainee teachers. It is part of a larger study that explored the role that technologies played in student learning via a Networked Learning framework. It draws upon the content posted to closed groups on social network sites, such as Facebook and WhatsApp, to explore two aspects of the impact these groups have. Firstly, the impact on social cohesion; in other words, how the social network site groups support interaction online and subsequently, face-to-face interactions. Secondly, the impact on learning that interactions in these groups has. It uses a threefold analysis strategy: the temporal distribution of usage, the context for interactions and the topic of interactions. It finds that there is a strong social element to student interactions which includes interactions relating to social activities but also interactions which provide moral support and encouragement as well as elements of humour. In addition to this are learning related interactions. These are widespread and cover both academic and professional learning. However, this is largely limited to interactions related to details, support, help and guidance rather than profound theoretical discussions. The survey combines the analysis of the content and context of interactions with a temporal analysis of interactions to explore how the use of these interactions changes in relation to key events in the course such as assignment submissions or school placements. It finds that the participants are discerning users who adopt a functional approach to social network interactions. They make extensive use of such sites prior to assignment submissions or the release of assignment feedback. But, on the other hand, at times of high workload, such as school placements, they will prioritise activity with the greatest potential impact on their success. In other words, they do not allow themselves to be overly distracted by social networking. It concludes that the social network site groups play an important role in supporting students to succeed on a busy and stressful course. Also, that students draw on social media in equal measure for social cohesion and learning related interactions. However, it must be noted that the learning interactions are typically around-task interactions rather than interactions at the heart of their learning.
This paper inhabits the increasingly popular space of autoethnographic study. The piece is designed to critique and contextualise the process and usefulness of autoethnography as a way of making meaning. The study centres on how one highly experienced teacher and newly appointed teacher educator is using narrative writing to unpick and locate their skillset in a period of swift change and marked transition. One of the reasons for this choice is the freedom that autoethnography allows. Autoethnography is frequently dismissed as vague and self-indulgent as a method of social research. This paper will propose that autoethnography is a rigorous and powerful research method. It deploys some innovative methods of data collection, analysis and dissemination. The paper's discussion of the literature will naturally help interrogate debates around where autoethnography sits in the intellectual landscape related to qualitative research. The study found that using grounded theory as a research methodology helped arrive at potentially illuminating theories and self-knowledge. These were limited, however, by the underlying risk of indulgence, subjective autobiographical writing and participant bias. The paper also has potential value as a way of helping early career teachers explore critical incidents.
The retention of teachers is one of the key challenges currently facing schools today. The imperative to bring more teachers into the profession and keep them there has never been more urgent. With Government interventions in England mainly concentrated on the recruitment of teachers into the state sector, little consideration has been given to the scale of teachers leaving or their reasons for doing so. National data masks significant local variations and the overall extent of the attrition problem. Impact from the Retention and Recruitment strategy as a strategic Government driver has yet to be determined. The teacher supply crisis cannot be solved by recruitment drives alone. Reducing teacher attrition could well be the key lever to overcoming the acute recruitment shortage now faced in England. By examining a number of school-related factors, this paper argues that reducing attrition is vital for the sustainability of the teacher workforce, pupil performance and school improvement and the paper concludes by making recommendations for policy makers.
Internationally, schools with small numbers of children and constrained funding are not able to group the children in classes based on their age. Rather, the children are combined into larger ‘mixed-age’ classes. Schools and teachers manage this situation in different ways, for example by teaching the class as two or more separate age-based groups within the classroom, or by ‘mixed-age’ teaching of the whole class together. All teachers face the challenge of diversity within their class of learners but arguably this is exacerbated for teachers of mixed age classes. In England, this issue of mixed age teaching has been foregrounded during current efforts to reform the teaching of mathematics, where a national policy is focused on developing ‘teaching for mastery’. The characteristics of mastery approaches to teaching mathematics are contested and there is considerable variation between schemes and schools. Mastery approaches developed in England have been influenced to different degrees by practice in East Asian nations including Singapore, Shanghai, and Japan, which have all, with their varied contexts and approaches, seen success in international comparative tests. This paper provides a selective review of international research into mixed-age teaching, judging the current evidence to be of some use but insufficient, and positions the findings in relation to key characteristics of mastery approaches to teaching mathematics. Three generally agreed characteristics of mastery approaches to teaching mathematics, expectations of success for all pupils, in-depth sustained study of topics, and whole class teaching, appear to offer opportunities as well as additional challenges for teachers of mixed-age classes.
Spending time in the outdoors has been shown to have a number of benefits, including those related to academic, health and well-being, and social factors. Teachers are in an ideal position to deliver outdoor experiences to the children they work with, therefore it is important that trainee teachers develop their knowledge and understanding of how to provide outdoor learning experiences and make use of outdoor settings in their teaching. In order to support trainees in making effective pedagogical decisions, it is important to establish their opinions of teaching and learning, including their views of outdoor learning. This article presents the findings from a small-scale research study exploring the perceptions of outdoor learning held by trainee teachers at the start of their Initial Teacher Training (ITT) primary education degree programme. Findings show that at this early stage of training, trainees held mixed views on outdoor learning; they were generally positive but also appeared to be apprehensive and cautious about specific elements related to outdoor learning. Trainees were also asked to make suggestions as to how they felt their degree programme could support them further in this area. The article also offers suggestions as to how ITT may support trainees in developing understanding and knowledge of outdoor learning to inform their practice as both a trainee and future primary school teacher.
In England the recommendation and award of qualified teacher status (QTS) is currently linked to the assessment of trainee teachers’ competencies against performance criteria descriptors. Q-methodology was used to look for subjective differences in attitudes to the assessment of trainee teachers in school. This is a quantitative approach to qualitative research combining the best of both. It statistically compares participants’ perceptions of a wide range of ideas whilst demonstrating clearly the qualitative differences between any groups showing subjectivities in their responses. A small group involved in initial teacher education at an 11-16 school took part. The school was in partnership with a higher education QTS provider. Each respondent independently completed an anonymous on-line sorting exercise using a concourse of 41 statements about the assessment of trainees. This was constructed from appropriate literature, national policy and the partnership’s documentation and guidelines. The group included a visiting tutor, two school mentors and five trainees. Their responses were analysed using standard Q-methodology software. Participants demonstrated a clear consensus about prioritising statements concerning compliance with national requirements and local guidance. However, factor analysis identified one group, one pair and two individuals with subjective differences in their levels of agreement with statements about the assessment of trainees’ teaching competencies. A group of four, that included one mentor and his mentee, prioritised statements linked to fairness, validity and quality assurance processes within and external to the school. The other mentor and her mentee perceived assessment almost solely in terms defined by the Teachers’ Standards in England. This suggested that the different perspectives on assessment were associated with influences other than the respondents’ differing roles within ITE.
The purpose of this grounded approach study is to provide answers to the research question ‘what aspect(s) of schooling could newly qualified teachers contribute to, and why?’ Via emails, 22 newly qualified teachers (NQTs) from 10 countries provided answers to the research question. The analysis of the data revealed that NQTs thought attributional, informational and skill and ability based contributions and associated actions and activities could be made to various aspects of schooling. I define attributional contributions as actions and activities in which NQTs engage which are the results of personal qualities/attributes they possess, informational contributions as facts which NQTs share and gain via experience and/or initial teacher education and training, and skill and ability based contributions as school-based activities in which NQTs engage based on personal skills, abilities and interests. Examples of implications of the findings for policy and practice include schools’ leadership teams re-examining their views on the use of NQTs and the need to reduce negative human dynamics which prevent NQTs from being recognised and used.
This paper evaluates the findings of a small scale research project into how trainee teachers can use technology for educational purposes. The paper is inspired by an apparent disconnect between the availability of educational technology (abbreviated from here to edtech) and the frequency and impact of its use. Furthermore, the paper aims to assess the extent to which trainee teachers are developing the skills and behaviours that are deemed necessary for the digital world. This paper’s focus is on the use of edtech with a cohort of trainee teachers. The first cohort is comprised of Secondary PGDE students, the second of PGCE trainee teachers specialising in Further Education and Training. A complementary element to the research reveals the disparities between individual trainees in their confidence towards using edtech and the barriers that are inhibiting the use of edtech. The work adheres to the principles of action research and was supported by two universities in the north of England. Through online questionnaires using Surveyhero.com, and focus groups, this paper raised some notable issues and areas for further study.
Although reasoning and proof in learning and teaching mathematics is crucial and have gained more presence in school mathematics, both students and their teachers face great difficulties when engaging in proving activities. One potential cause for such difficulties might be due to teachers’ conception of proof. However, to date, there are few, if any, studies that have examined how secondary school in-service mathematics teachers learn justification and proof. This study focuses on secondary school in-service teachers’ engagement in proving activities by providing observational data from a master’s level professional development course that focuses on teaching reasoning and proof. The findings from this work highlight the usefulness of framing proving activities as consisting of three phases: exploration; justification; and evaluation. In addition, we discuss the useful role that generic example-based proofs can play when teachers are proving. We illustrate through a specific vignette of teacher proving activities, and discuss the results in the light of using proof-related tasks to engage learning during proving activities.
This research was conducted in response to the exit survey of a cohort of Primary PGCE trainee teachers at a UK University in a predominantly White area who indicated low confidence in teaching children from Black, Asian and other minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds at the end of their course. The research aimed to find out why trainee teachers felt unconfident in teaching children from BAME groups or backgrounds. Using qualitative methods, findings were analysed using a Critical Race Theory framework. Many of the trainee teachers who participated in this research demonstrated a lack of understanding of their own White privilege and a deficit discourse when discussing children from BAME backgrounds. The study explores how ITE, which is often short and already crammed with content, could embed quality training in race and diversity throughout courses in a way that will both challenge individual perceptions and encourage trainee teachers to examine structural barriers within schools.
