<p> In recent years, there has been increased attention on teacher quality and on teacher candidate development (Cochran-Smith & Zeichner, 2005; Schuster, 2012). Demands on teachers are growing (Darling-Hammond & Bransford, 2005) with an expanding diversity and needs of students (Villegas & Lucas, 2002; Walsh, 2012). Now, more than ever, it is important to understand how candidates are prepared for the teaching profession (Ladson-Billings, 2001). This study examined one vital aspect of teacher education: the role of teacher educators in preparing candidates to partner with families. In spite of substantial evidence of a positive correlation to students’ academic success with increased partnerships between the home and school (Dearing, Kreider, Simpkins, & Weiss, 2006; Epstein & Sheldon, 2002; Henderson & Mapp, 2002; Hoover-Dempsey, Battiato, Walker, Reed, DeJong, & Jones, 2001; Jeynes, 2007), teacher candidates still lack the necessary skills to work with families (Caspe, Lopez, Chu, & Weiss, 2011). This study used critical pedagogy as a theoretical framework to investigate how teacher educators applied family-school partnership (FSP) modules into their courses. Through a qualitative phenomenological research design, interview and survey data were collected and analyzed on 11 teacher educators and 200 candidates over a two-year period of time. The constant comparative method (Merriam, 2009) was conducted to analyze multiple interviews of the teacher educators, which was triangulated (Stake, 2004) with surveys of teacher candidates. Findings indicated that (a) teacher educators’ FSP beliefs were positively influenced by piloting of FSP modules, (b) teacher educators’ locus of control affected their ability to apply FSP content into their courses, and (c) teacher candidates’ one-sided views of family-school relationships could be changed to one of “partnerships.” The implications of this research affirm the need to support teacher educators in preparing their candidates to work with families.</p>
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:PROQUEST/oai:pqdtoai.proquest.com:10295853 |
| Date | 02 December 2016 |
| Creators | Traynor, Kevin M. |
| Publisher | University of Hawai'i at Manoa |
| Source Sets | ProQuest.com |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | thesis |
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