The connection between educational technology and critical pedagogy has not been greatly explored. This yearlong research study was conducted with pre-service teachers as they progressed through a teacher licensure program. Data collection included the use of focus groups, individual interviews and participant journals. In addition, this study explored the personal and technology identity of the participants. The results led to a greater understanding of how pre-service teachers view the connection between educational technology and critical pedagogy. / 10000-01-01

The problem of this study was to analyze the effects of a human relations component in an introduction to education course on the self-concept and interpersonal relations of secondary education pre-service teachers. The purposes of this study were (1) to develop a human relations component to be used in an introduction to education course; (2) to utilize the component in an actual teaching situation; and (3) to examine the effects of the course on the self-concept and interpersonal relations of secondary education pre-service teachers. The results of the statistical analyses revealed that the differences between the experimental and control groups on measures of the self-concept and interpersonal relations were not statistically significant. No significant gains were made by the experimental group on both criterion measures. Findings derived from personal observations indicated that the experimental group became aware of the affective dimension of the teaching-learning process. It was also evident that factors in addition to increased scores should be considered in research concerning enhancement of the self-concept and interpersonal relations.

Initial teacher education is an area of weakness within the Chilean education system. Yet it is highlighted as a crucial aspect of educational success. Success in educational improvement depends mainly on the teachers (because they enact a reform by putting it into practice), and teacher thinking is likely to influence teacher decision-making. How teacher conceptions and practice change, and how to facilitate this change, was the focus of this study. It explored to what extent peer assessment could facilitate change in pre-service science teachers’ conceptions and practices regarding conceptual explanations in science teaching.In a quasi-experimental design, a ten-session peer assessment intervention was carried out with thirty seven pre-service science teachers in three Chilean universities, each with an experimental and control group. The intervention sought to develop changes in teachers’ conceptions about the quality of explanations and in their skill of explaining scientific concepts. Teachers' thoughts were obtained through a peer assessment questionnaire, feedback sessions, focus groups and interviews. The quality of their explanations was measured at pre, post and follow-up in their eventual first job via video-recorded microteaching episodes using observational analysis. Inter-rater reliability was calculated on 5% of all qualitative data and all the videos were rated by two researchers in a blind process. Qualitative analysis indicated how teachers transformed their conceptions about the quality of explanations from general pedagogical knowledge into pedagogical content knowledge. A quantitative instrument was created to evaluate student teachers’ explanations in practice. Its reliability enables the assessment the skill of explaining based on ten elements (Cronbach’s alpha=.77). Results showed pre-service teachers significantly improved their explanations of scientific concepts in some practical aspects, although not all of them were transferred into real teaching contexts. The changes in student teachers’ conceptions and practice were analysed to indicate how the process occurred, to what extent peer assessment had a role on it, and which elements facilitated or made difficult the transference of the skill of explaining into real teaching. These results indicated that peer assessment can play a noteworthy role in teacher education to develop skills. There are implications for policy and practice in this study, not only for teacher education but also for in-service teacher professional development, not only for Chile but also for other countries.

The demands placed upon stakeholders of the public education system have become more and more compelling with each passing year. With the success of schools and students at stake, it is imperative to examine multiple facets of the public education structure. One of the most important aspects of this process is the development of preservice teachers entering the classroom. This study initially chronicled the history of teacher education and state licensure. Subsequently, standards enforced by the Tennessee Department of Education and National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education were also explored to gain information about the guidelines and criteria required for accrediting teacher education and licensure programs. Further information in regard to teacher education was examined through current trends and issues that affect classroom teachers. The teacher education program criteria from 6 Tennessee higher education institutions were also reviewed. The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine the perceptions of classroom teachers about effective higher education programs. Twelve K-6 classroom teachers with 5 or fewer years of teaching experience were interviewed to gain insight about the opinions of effective components of teacher education programs. This information was examined to explore specific program requirements. The analysis of the data collected in this study introduced several themes and common patterns. Most commonly, participants expressed the importance of a substantial field experience within the teacher education program. The value of relating content and theoretical approach to the practical application of the classroom was also noted as a priority. Participants reported the most effective teacher education programs as those that formulated a realistic portrayal of the classroom setting. These responses illustrated the significance of a hands-on approach to teacher education training and development.

Through our research, interactions, and experiences as teacher educators with young children and their families, various types of family support are provided in the teaching and learning processes in rural communities. A common theme reported within the landscape of rural communities is to connect families and their children with schools that use effective community partnerships and collaborations. Cheatham and Santos (2011) claims that, “a critical component in increasing parental involvement is effective collaboration between teacher and family” (p. 76). Across the nation, usual requests for parental and collaborative support in most school environments takes on a variety of forms – from parent teacher conferences, school governance actions, school program events, volunteering, and an endless number of other engaging activities. In remote and underserved areas, “Rural schools can provide an important social and cultural function for the area’s residents as well, drawing community members together from a wide geographic area” (Corrigan, 2013, p.49). On the other end of the spectrum, schools in rural communities often have inadequate technology usage, lack instructional resources, and the inability to disseminate information in a timely manner on issues concerning education, healthcare, economic development and sustainability, and limited professional development for teachers and parents. In 2017, the College of Education at North Carolina Agriculture and Technical State University, partnered with “North Carolina State Employees’ Credit Union Foundation” to financially support 10 pre-service teacher candidates as summer interns. The interns completed 10 weeks of service learning experiences in rural and underserved communities. The overarching goals for the interns was to develop service learning immersion experiences and produce authentic artifacts for children and families with support from various community agencies in rural and underserved counties across North Carolina. The conceptual framework for this collaborative service learning internship program consisted of three methodology phases: Phase I. Orientation and Leadership for the Future. A leadership team provided orientation sessions for all participants and selected the interns and different educational partners from various rural environments. Phase II. Service Learning Immersion Experiences with Blended Research Activities. Interns developed service learning immersion plans and implemented a series of intentional service and research experiences based on the needs of schools serving families, children and community agencies. The interns utilized technology and evidence-base activities to meet the project’s goals. Each intern had a mentor that supervised the diverse service immersion and research-blended experiences. Phase III. Leadership Reflections and Next Steps. Interns and community partners assessed and evaluated the program effectiveness by means of surveys, questionnaires’ and follow-up discussions. Finally, qualitative and quantitative data was disseminated and the interns engaged in reflective presentations in their field of study. This presentation provides alternative strategies which focus on a teacher education internship program using service learning immersion experiences with established community partnerships specifically with schools and educational organizations in rural communities. This presentation also illustrates interns producing high quality service learning artifacts including technology-based products relative to student attendance, parents’ professional development, food pantries, summer backpacks and wellness initiatives to support the family and children needs in the community.

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abstract: This mixed methods study explores the work of five small writing communities formed within a university-based preservice English language arts writing methods course. Fifteen preservice English language arts teachers took part in the study and participated across five peer writing groups. The study shares the instructional design of the course as well as the writing activities and practices that took place within the groups over the course of one 15-week semester. The study draws on Wenger’s (1998, 2009) theory of communities of practice as well as activity theory (Engeström,1999, 2001; Russell, 1997) to understand the social supports, practices, and learning activities that assisted these preservice teachers as writers and as teachers of writing. The qualitative data included writing surveys, writing samples, and participant interviews as well as pre and post writing self-efficacy surveys as quantitative data. This study documents the affordances and constraints of peer writing groups in methods courses for preservice English language arts teachers and how these groups may influence their identities and practices as writers and as teachers of writing. These findings provide insight into ways we might strengthen the preparation of English language arts preservice teachers as teachers of writing and build communities of practice within preservice training courses and programs. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation English 2019

Previous research indicates that pre- and in-service teachers are not receiving adequate training to implement data-informed instructional decision making. This is problematic given the promise this decision making process holds for improving instruction and student learning. At the same time, many educators do not see the value of different types of assessment data (e.g. accountability data), and lack the knowledge, skills, and confidence to use available data to guide instructional decisions. The purpose of this study was to conduct a formative evaluation of an online training designed to improve Iowa pre- and in-service teachers’ perceptions about data, data knowledge, skills and confidence working with data. The training along with a data literacy test was administered online to 29 pre-service teachers from two Iowa universities. A pre-post design was used to assess changes in these data constructs. Results indicated that participants’ perceptions about external accountability data improved significantly after completing the training, as did their confidence working with data. However, most participants’ data performance were relatively stable pre-post training. A content analysis of responses pre-post revealed qualitative changes in some participants’ thinking about data. Participants rated the value, effectiveness and quality of the training and complementary materials. Ratings were mostly positive, with participants signifying the training and materials as valuable and effective for enhancing their understanding of data as well as their confidence working with data. Participants also identified opportunities for improving the training. The author concludes with a discussion of the results, implications for future research, and how the study adds to the existing literature and informs practice.

Over the last five years, there has been an increased number of computers in schools and teachers' colleges in Jamaica. In addition, recently revised national policy documents have indicated the need to infuse technology into the curricula of all schools. Despite these investments in computers, however, there has been little corresponding development in training teachers to use computers and emerging technologies as teaching learning tools. The purposes of the study were three-fold: (a) to describe the current state of technology integration in Jamaica's teacher training programs (b) assess the extent to which teachers' college faculty and pre-service teachers perceived themselves as prepared to teach with computers, as well as their perceived computer proficiency; and (c) to use data gathered in the study to inform an action plan for integrating technology into Jamaica's teacher training programs. To gather required data, a survey design was employed because the study required collection of data from a large number of persons located in diverse sections of the island. Data were collected from three distinct groups of participants in three teachers' colleges in Jamaica. These included six teachers' college administrators--two principals and four vice-principals, 121 teachers' college faculty, and 268 final-year pre-service teachers. Data were gathered through interviews with college administrators and IT faculty, questionnaires administered to college faculty and pre-service teachers, and focus group discussions with pre-service teachers. The results indicate that, in general, teacher training programs in Jamaica have not systematically incorporated technology in the college curricula. In addition, to a large extent, teachers' college faculty and pre-service teachers did not perceive themselves as prepared to teach with computers. These respondents also reported low levels of proficiency with various computer tools. In response to the urgent need to integrate technology into Jamaica's teachers' college curricula, the author proposes a new VIBES conceptual framework as an action plan specifically designed to facilitate technology integration into this setting. VIBES is comprised of five components: Vision, Infrastructure, Behaviour, Experience, and Support, hence the acronym. Each component of VIBES is required in teacher training programs if technology is to be systematically incorporated into the college curricula.