The purpose of this study was to examine the "learning-to-teach" process in an alternative teacher education program. Three research questions were addressed to probe the "learning-to-teach" process: (1) To what sources do the interns attribute learning and use of specific teaching behaviors and skills? (2) What are the professional concerns of interns, and are there changes in concerns as they progress through the field experience? (3) How do interns assess themselves as they progress through the field experience, and what is the rationale of the assessment? Qualitative research allows the study of subjects in the natural setting, and enables emergent findings to be utilized in directing the focus of the study. Integrating qualitative and quantitative data strengthened the description of "learning-to-teach" in this study. Research methods included use of multiple collections of data from observations, interviews, and questionnaires with the intensive subjects, and questionnaires with the general sample of subjects. A descriptive analysis approach was utilized to present and discuss the findings. The intensive sample of subjects included six interns enrolled in the Cooperative Teacher Education Program (CPEP) at Portland State University, with a general sample of twenty-two CPEP interns providing additional data. Interns reported multiple sources of influence on their teaching behavior. Exposure to multiple "models" of teaching in conjunction with application during the field experience provided interns with the opportunity to analyze, synthesize, and integrate these ideas into their personal teaching. Professional concerns of CPEP interns followed the pattern of concerns reported by student teachers in traditional programs. Concerns-with-self must be addressed and resolved before preservice teachers can move to concerns-with-students. Interns reported the self-assessment process enabled them to evaluate and improve their teaching. Teaching preservice teachers to assess their instruction enhances professional growth. These conclusions lead to the recommendation of incorporating reflection of "models" of teaching, professional concerns, and self-assessment of teaching in teacher education curriculum. Preparing "reflective" teachers facilitates professional movement beyond "survival" and "imitation" and toward creation of personal "models" of teaching.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:pdx.edu/oai:pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu:open_access_etds-1853 |
| Date | 01 January 1987 |
| Creators | Nagel, Nancy Terry |
| Publisher | PDXScholar |
| Source Sets | Portland State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | Dissertations and Theses |
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