The aims of this study were to investigate the impact of parental divorce on adolescents, and the expectations of teacher trainees with regard to children of divorce. The literature related to children of divorce is reviewed and the results of interviews with a sample of recently divorced custodial parents and their adolescent children, using a structured interview schedule, are described. The semantic differential technique was used to obtain ratings of a sample of teacher trainees' expectations of children of divorce as compared with their ratings of several other categories of children. The results of the interviews with parents and their adolescent children suggested that parental divorce does not necessarily interfere with adolescent development and that for some adolescents the reduction of conflict in the home might enhance normal development. They also suggest that adolescents would prefer to live in a one parent home rather than a two parent home which is fraught with conflict, and that it is preferable for parents who are unable to resolve such conflict in any other way to separate rather than allow it to persist. The ratings of children of divorce by teacher trainees suggest that they hold more negative expectations of such children than of other groups • such as adopted children. The contrast between this finding and the results of the interviews with adolescents and their parents lends some support to the existence of the divorce myth; that is, the cultural belief that divorce has the inherent power to make people unhappy. The implications for policy, practice and further research are discussed.

No description available.

Professional identity is a socially constructed concept, one we cannot physically measure, point to, see, touch or hear; yet we sense it in ourselves, even if it is not always clear what the identity is. Interwoven with professional identity, notions of ‘professionalism’, ‘re-professionalising’, ‘professionalisation’ and ‘raising professional standards’ have been common topics of debate surrounding teachers in the Further Education and Skills sector for many years. Whilst ninety percent of teachers in the Further Education (FE) sector undertake Initial Teacher Education (ITE) on a part-time basis whilst in-service, little is written about their experiences and the role these experiences play in shaping their professional identity. Primarily concerned with exploring the relationship between praxis and the professional identity of in-service, undergraduate trainee teachers, my research was designed to give voice to their experiences as they navigated their way through a part-time teacher education programme while working as full-time contracted teachers. Often these experiences are not articulated, and to a degree remain hidden. However, as a teacher educator I have been in the privileged position where trainee teachers have shared their stories with me. In keeping with the interpretive methodology and the bricolage method of the research, to give voice to the participants’ experiences I have used the structure of vignettes to create layered stories that are rich in detail and characterisation, and allow for the juxtaposing of their individual and shared experiences to reveal the implicit significance of their stories. The layered stories and discussion of findings in the thesis provide unique insight into the lived experiences of teachers in the hitherto largely neglected phase of in-service, undergraduate teachers in post-compulsory ITE.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Columbia University, 1930. / Vita. Published also as Teachers College, Columbia University, Contributions to education, no. 402. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record.

This study arose out of a research project on teacher education in England and Wales which was funded by the Department of Education and Science and which was based at the University of Leicester School of Education from 1979 to 1982. The study aimed to explore the ambivalence and ambiguity which, the literature suggested, were inherent in the enterprise of training teachers in universities. Empirical data on university teachers of education were collected by questionnaire and interview and the findings are considered within a number ofS contexts. In university departments of education university teachers train students to become school teachers. The first context examined in the study is the sociology of occupations which is used as a framework within which to compare and contrast the two occupations of university teaching and school teaching. University teachers and school teachers are thus established as reference groups for university teachers of education. Next the study considers the role of these reference groups within the context of the history of teacher education in the universities. In the central part of the study data on the social, educational and occupational backgrounds of university teachers of education are considered in relation to the two reference groups of school teachers and university teachers. Data on the nature of the work undertaken by university teachers of education are also examined in this context. The study then explores the context of occupational constraint and control, comparing and contrasting teacher education in the universities with university teaching in other subjects and with school teaching. The role of ideology in teacher education is then analysed as a context within which to view the nature of ideology in teacher education in the universities, again drawing on empirical data from questionnaires and interviews. In the final chapter additional data are presented to bring together the findings and interpretations presented in the body of the study.

This study seeks to explore the rationale for Masters level study as part of teacher training in England, the reality as experienced by those students and their perceptions of the value of Masters level to their personal and professional development as early career teachers. Teacher education has ‘consistently been a significant site of social and political struggle’ (Menter, 2010) including the aspiration to become a postgraduate teaching profession, of Masters level in initial teacher education and top-up programmes for qualified teachers. Yet, development of postgraduate provision has been haphazard and reactionary, leaving the University provider in the sector with the burden of promoting its importance and defending its relevance. In a sector where training of teachers has moved from higher education to schools led, there has become a palpable separation between theory and practice (Hargreaves and Fullen, 2012). This research pursues the value of the Masters level elements in teacher education and also to the development of a teacher’s own personal and professional attributes. This qualitative study uses a constructivist grounded theory (CGT) methodology from a practitioner researcher perspective, in order to explore the student teachers perception and experience to develop a substantive theory outlining the value and use they make of their Masters level study. An early literature review, conducted to sensitise and inform the interview schedule was used within semi-structured interviews, undertaken with fifteen participants. Participants were purposively and then theoretically sampled to support the emerging theory until saturation of categories was achieved. Data was analysed using the CGT process outlined by Charmaz (2014). Core categories emerged describing qualities and characteristics that students earned, achieved and received while studying at Masters level that included professional capital (combined human, social and decisional capital) and personal capital. In addition, participants described the optimal educational environment for the promotion of these capitals; that of constructivist forms of teaching, learning and assessment (TLA). Furthermore, participants stated that the value and qualities of a challenging learning journey were enhanced when provided by an overall structure of transformative programme design. In the final theoretical rendering of the data, a conceptual model of programme design was formed, demonstrating the importance of transformative programme design, delivered through constructivist modes of TLA. Approaches found to provide a robust start to a teacher’s career, offer longevity in the field, promote effective and reflective teaching and critical but co-operative teachers.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Columbia University, 1929. / Vita. Published also as Teachers college, Columbia university, Contributions to education, no. 339. "This investigation was sponsored by the Society of directors of physical education in colleges."--P. 1.

Thesis--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1955. / Vita. Typescript. eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 319-320).

Despite a number of reforms to education, concern over teachers’ knowledge and confidence to teach physical education persists. This thesis examines the process of becoming a primary physical educator at the initial stage of a teacher’s career. The aim of which is to consider the ways beginning teachers source their professional knowledge and the implications this has on their confidence to teach. The study argues for a clear articulation of the subject’s knowledge-base and proposes a framework for the development of knowledge in primary physical education initial teacher education. Participants were drawn from a range of providers in England and were in the final year of their programme. The research adopted a mixed method approach using an online survey to obtain quantitative data and interviews to elicit constructs about beliefs from four case-study participants. The study identified that beginning teachers had perceived high levels of confidence across the subject’s knowledge-base, but areas of most and least confidence were varied and personal to the individual. The sourcing of knowledge was mainly drawn from school and university settings, but in many cases personal interests and prior experiences formed a central role in sourcing content knowledge when no opportunity was presented. Despite the varying routes that exist to become a primary physical educator, this research argues that all beginning teachers require a breadth of knowledge during initial teacher preparation, with university and school partnerships offering explicit roles in developing professional knowledge to a secure level. It further argues that it is through a focus on individual teacher transformation, not merely reflection that will ensure inherent challenges faced by primary physical education will be addressed.

In Initial Teacher Training (ITT), one of the technologies rapidly being adopted to support the development of trainee teachers is the e-portfolio. Research into successful use of e-portfolios beyond their function as a repository has been scanty to date. The purpose of the current study was to extend the boundaries of understanding of e-portfolios beyond this function. This was undertaken through two in-depth case studies where e-portfolios were used as a pedagogical tool intended to support the development of reflective practice on a one year postgraduate ITT course, during two years of investigation in one university A mixed-methods approach was adopted to capture the richness of participants’ self reports of their experiences, statistical data regarding interactions on the e-portfolios and analysis of reflective writing. Data were collected and analysed from questionnaires, student and tutor interviews and interactions with the e-portfolio together with analysis of the content of reflective e-journals, with a special emphasis on the place and depth of reflection. What emerged was a rich contextual understanding of e-portfolio use by trainee teachers and tutors and the problematic nature of conceptualising and assessing reflective thinking, together with the extent to which the development and depth of their reflective thinking had been supported by e-portfolio use. The results confirm previous concerns related to the training requirements of users and also the time needed for students and tutors to engage in interactions. Further they imply that the prerequisites of successful use of e-portfolios, as a pedagogical tool, to support the development of reflective thinking include common agreement about what constitutes reflection and reflective thinking embedded within a strong, rigorous and well theorised conceptualisation of course structure and content. Implied also is the need for a well understood and transparent framework to assess the depth of reflective thinking that should complement the competencies that underpin Standards, and support the professional development of teachers.