What do you think of this: replace a four year integrated bachelor of education programme for 5 year teacher training programme.
As an educationist I am concerned about recent plans to scrape 47 years bachelor of education degree in my country with a two tier programme. Students to complete a four year bachelor's degree in science or arts then enrol for one year post graduate diploma in education.
Will this policy improve quality or worsen the situation?
I can believe that in many countries, there are similar concerns.
As far as I know, the program you say is suggested is implemented in some countries (UK), where students probably need to attend the PCGE (Post Graduate Certificate in Education), a teacher training program. They enroll after gettin a Bachelors' Degree.
Hi Joseph,
The BA/BSc. +Teaching Diploma or PGCE is used in many countries around the world ( Anglophone, Francophone and others) and in itself should not affect quality of teacher training. What it does is ensure that students get good subject knowledge in their academic degree followed by professional knowledge, skills and values development in their teacher training one year programme.
The quality of teacher training is a affected by many factors: the trainers, the curriculum, embedding innovative practices, use of IT, combining the theoretical/pedagocical with practical school placements, monitoring, good assessment and feedback, etc.
I think these are more important than the actual shape of the programme. Having said that, in some Scandinavian countries, teachers need an MA to practice. In the UK, the route into teaching is mixed: it can either be a PGCE as Konstantinos mentioned, or going straight into teaching from university and doing a couple of years on the job training through a graduate teaching programme (GTP) of some sort or another. In some others, graduates just finish a university degree, sit a selection exam, gain an ICDL certificate for computer proficiency and just become teachers with no training. This last model is the worst in my opinion.
On the same note, at what time should a student decide to be a teacher?
I suppose the decision is made before one joins college. and therefore education should be part of the entire teacher training process. Any shortcoming in the education process can be reshaped in the content taught but not training teachers on nothing for four years and then use one year to train them to be teachers.
Yes. Doing the three+one model allows young people time to decide whether to be teachers or not. Having a discrete teacher training component also allows for people to come and train for teaching after graduating from uni and working in industry for a few years for example, something that many do in the UK either for professional change of career or family reasons.
That's a tough question to answer! We know what we have, but we don't know how the 'new' program could be imagined and its potential efficacy... If I were the person making the decision, I would strongly recommend looking at the available peer review research on the issue. Reading some of those papers myself over the last few years, a common thread for 'new teacher' issues seems to be classroom management / 'hanging on for dear life' until the new teacher 'learns' to get control of the classroom. So, whatever the new program is to be, I would certainly suggest that the creators look into what actually happens with these 'new teachers' and how those specific issues can be avoided. or managed better with either more specialized teacher education or more 'supervised' training. The whole idea of 'sink or swim' with the individuals we charge our future generations to seems a bit 'loose' to me. If classroom management is a major issue and some of the new teachers are UNfavorably changed for life, or walk away from the professions where they would have done the most good... then maybe an organized 'boot camp' for new teachers is a reasonable thought. Let the new teachers face the worse case scenarios in a 'laboratory' where we can say STOP!! at any moment, review the circumstances and what went wrong, model and role play with the new teacher.. bring back the actors and re-run the sequence again with a better prepared 'nebbie'. That sort of training could be done in the Summers... kids who are out of school who want some extra money.. under their parents guidance.. a 'required' course for new teachers... pass / fail.. must be repeated until a classroom is 'managed' productively... Possibly, when these sorts of teachers head out into the field they truly can 'hit the ground running'... they manage the classroom like a mature pro and they begin doing good from their semester. Better retention, less stress.
Hi Les Harris,
I have been doing teacher's training and currently doing classroom observations for research purposes. I do admit that being a trainer we really miss on part training new teachers for classroom management effectively, which is actually a real problem for a new teacher and ongoing practices within classroom. Now sitting in classroom as just an observer this issue has been highlighted on much larger scale than I thought though other issues inclusive like effective use of IT. It is the second big issue that needs much training in real environment. Teachers do miss on the points where to stop and raise critical questions and induce critical reasoning.
Hi , Joseph Malechwanzi and others
I in our country (Iran) The Ministry of Education , have many schools that named Teacher Training .
Many of volunteers must be passed an exam and then enrolling in school of teacher training .They are studying in 4 years , one science (Physic, Chemistry, Art ,...) and then with integrated method, study method of teaching that related with science that she or he has selected.
In this method she/ he is knowing that in future ,she /he must be a good teacher.4 years is sufficient.
Should university lecturers especially those in fields outside education also go for a post graduate diploma in education so that they learn the art of teaching.
Higher education forms specialists in all economic and social fields. The skills acquired through the license refer to the production of technologies, goods and services, to nature protection, etc. Education has as object of study personality modeling, having specific sciences: pedagogy, psychology, sociology, economics and law theory. Each of these sciences is necessary for this new profession, educator, to train future specialists to understand not only the profession in which they will work but also the purpose of this profession for the sustainable development of mankind and the values of truth to be respected in education. Therefore, continuing to train graduates to become teachers is absolutely necessary to ensure the sustainable development of the country, the ultimate goal of education. Here is an overview of the current vision of education and what future educators should understand: https://www.academia.edu/38067783/Presentation_The_Systemic_Pedagogy_and_the_Performance_of_the_Future_Education
Hi Joseph Malechwanzi
Your concern is most relevant through out the world. there lots of practicals are carried out with the education system especially teacher education. Such irrelevant practicals should not be followed. In the field of education for a teacher the development of skills, professionalism and attitude is much more important than of content knowledge. as the society is developing the facts are easily available to all by different ICTs. there is more requisite of the skills how to use these information, facts etc in a proper manner. in this context the graduation degree provides basic content knowledge while the teacher education degree provides the opportunity to develop Professionalism in Education, which is the need of the hour.
For pre service elementary teachers it might be valuable to look at the way you approach science during their undergraduate education. The Next Generation Science Standards approach to science education is something that future teachers would benefit from having modeled for them in undergraduate years.
Its depends on the preparation of the personnel who is going to implement but 4 years is sufficient. Further its may be leave open on the choice of the students.
In my opinion.. based on my own experience of NOT having a related undergraduate degree to then earn a masters level degree in Special Education, it is more difficult for a graduate of one program... especially at the bachelor / first level of higher education to shift easily to a program of becoming a professional educator, especially in one year, without (it wasn't mentioned) some time 'practice / student' teaching time, under supervision. Perhaps it is the thinking that a graduate of a Science or Arts program will learn to become a professional educator 'on the fly', but that can be detrimental to the first year or two of the students they educate... I don't think the swap is a viable idea.
Some opine that the two tier 5 years teacher training program is more appropriate considering that graduates who do possess the skills in their chosen industry go on to get a job in that particular industry while those who don’t possess a decent level of skills go on to become teachers in those fields (second tier training).