Notes on Zeichner's Rethinking the connections between campus courses and field experiences in colle

Zeichner, K. (2010). Rethinking the connections between campus courses and field experiences in college- and university-based teacher education. Journal of Teacher Education. 61(1-2), 89-99.

Notes:

In this article, Zeichner discusses the recent shift in epistemology for teacher education. Historically, the university has been considered the “authoritative source of knowledge” (p. 89). However, recent calls for reform in teacher education encourage interaction between academia, practioners, and communities. (Isn’t this what Dewey called for? 1904, 1965) Zeichner uses the article to discuss the gap between theory and practice and shares the concepts of hybridity and “third space,” and examines new ways to shift the authoritative paradigm towards one that is less hierarchical.

He addresses the following as challenges in teacher education:

1) The lack of tenure-track faculty involvement.

2) The role of graduate students who lack knowledge and training about supervision, and don’t view themselves as teacher educators..

3) Graduate students who are not familiar with local schools.

4) Lack of continuity for supervisors with pre-service teachers.

5) Disconnect between university coursework and opportunities for enactment.

6) Lack of access to “thinking and decision-making processes of their experienced mentors” (p. 91).

“Application of theory” model – preservice teachers learn theory at college and apply/practice theory in the schools (Korthagen & Kessels, 1999; Tom, 1997).

Cites research by Darling-Hammond (2006) and Tatto (1996) indicating that field experiences and coursework that are closely connected are “more influential and effective” (p. 91) than those that are disconnected.

Third Space – boundary crossings – synergistic strategy

Hybridity theory (Bhabba, 1990): Reject binaries-either or mentality-opposing/competing discourses

Various third space roles:

• Teacher in residence programs

• Integrating K-12 teachers’ practices into coursework – videos, etc.

• Hosting coursework in K-12 settings;

• Hybrid educations (clinical-non-tenure track faculty; faculty liaisons)

Zeichner suggests research on the impact of various configurations of bridges from theory to practice is limited (Clift & Brady, 2005; Floden, 2005). He concludes with some concerns if teacher education is continue this epistemological shift:

• Need involvement of tenure-track faculty.

• Need financial commitment

• Need resources.

• Need patience, perseverance, and commitment to the shift.

Quotes:

“…there is much disagreement about the conditions for teacher learning that must exist for this learning in and from practice to be educative and enduring” (p. 91).

“Student teachers frequently do not have opportunities to observe, try out, and receive focused feedback about their teaching of methods learned about in their campus courses” (p. 91).

“Third space is ‘a transformative space where the potential for an expanded form of learning and the development of new knowledge are heightened’” (Gutierrez, 2008, p. 152, as cited in Zeichner, p. 92).

“…where field experiences are carefully coordinated with coursework and carefully mentored, teacher educators are better able to accomplish their goals in preparing teachers to successfully enact complex teaching practices” (p. 95).

“Staffed with graduate students, temporary and part-time faculty and with few resources to develop field placements, U.S. teacher certification programs are the Cinderellas of the American university. Ideas and money are rarely spent on coordinating what is learned on campus with what goes on in schools” (Featherstone, 2007, p. 210).

“Often, the clinical side of teacher education has been fairly haphazard, depending on the idiosyncrasies of loosely selected placements with little guidance about what happens in them and little connection to university work” (Darling-Hammond, 2009, p. 11).

Additional References:

Clift, R., & Brady, P. (2005). Research on methods courses and field experiences. In Cochran-Smith & K. Zeichner (Eds.), Studying teacher education (pp. 309-424). New York: Routledge.

Darling-Hammond, L. (2009, February). Teacher education and the American future. Charles W. Hunt Lecture. Presented at the annual meeting of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, Chicago.

Dewey, J. (1965). The relation of theory to practice in education. In M. Borrowman (Ed.), Teacher education in America: A docu- mentary history (pp. 140-171). New York: Teachers College Press. (Original work published in 1904)

Featherstone, J. (2007). Values and the big university education school. In D. Carroll, H. Featherstone, J. Featherstone, S. Feiman-Nemser, & D. Roosevelt (Eds.), Transforming teacher education: Reflections from the field (pp. 203-220). Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.

Guitierrez, K. (2008). Developing sociocultural literacy in the third space. Reading Research Quarterly, 43, 148-164.