A University and School Working in Partnership to Develop Professional Practice Knowledge for Teaching

Abstract

The article reports on the University of Johannesburg's (UJ) efforts at offering a practice-based teacher education program in partnership with a university-affiliated school (a "teaching school") with a view to developing inquiry-oriented novice teachers. The research aimed at exploring what it takes to develop a "learningplace" (Conway et al., 2014) conducive to student teachers' development of professional practice knowledge and the role of mentoring in this regard. A two-phase process of generating data was used. In the first phase, the published research on the university-affiliated school was analyzed, using qualitative content analysis to look for patterns across the historical unfolding of the findings of these papers. In phase two a questionnaire was administered involving final year student teachers in the teacher education program. The research shows that a teaching school, if integrated into the program design and delivery, provides a rich practice learning site for student teachers. In addition, mentoring in cognitive apprenticeship mode could indeed be a powerful contributor to student teachers' professional development. However, the overall programme design is decisive. The preparation of teachers with strong professional practice knowledge requires attention to four interrelated aspects of program design, namely program identity, organizational structures, curriculum, and teacher education pedagogy. Addressing these aspects in an integrated manner would be difficult without working closely with one or more partnership schools.

Newly Qualified Female Teachers’ Perception of Teaching Practicum as a Component of Initial Teacher Education in South Africa

“…By the same token, it is also required of mentors to be able to use mentoring as a channel of communication that is thought-provoking but helpful, and to discover ways of providing fruitful feedback (Gravett, Petersen & Ramsaroop 2019). Generally, mentors have the tendency to provide the type of feedback that is "narrow, particularistic, and technical" (Clarke, Triggs & Nielsen, 2014:175) when they should essentially give feedback that fosters "deep and substantive reflection on practice" (Clarke et al, 2014:175).…”

Work-integrated learning and teaching schools: The University of Johannesburg teaching school experience

“…The role of the UJ TS is conceptualised as a teaching laboratory (DBE & DHET 2011) for student teachers in which they can move seamlessly between the university classroom and the school setting, observe children's learning and development closely for a period of four years, practice micro-teaching in a peer group and see the enactment of their university coursework. This enables student teachers to experience congruence between coursework and fieldwork (Gravett, Petersen & Ramsaroop 2019). From the onset, the teacher education programme was designed to enable student teachers to develop first-hand knowledge of how children learn by observing individual learners in and outside the classroom, paying attention to recording specific details such as the learners' strengths, needs, interests and experiences.…”

Preservice Teachers' Community-Based Field Experiences

“…According to Conway et al (2014), clinical field experiences should connect "workplace learning" research with teacher education, so that clinical experiences and settings become "learningplaces" that directly support preservice teacher learning. Building on research connected to "learningplaces, " Gravett et al (2019) note that although it can be complicated, developing relationships and partnerships with PK-12 schools serves to support field-based preservice teacher learning, particularly if such partnerships position PK-12 schools as "learningplaces" where preservice teachers' professional practice and knowledge is integrated, supported, and mentored. In doing so, "learningplace" settings support preservice teacher learning in the field through "communities of networked expertise" (as cited in Hakkarainen et al, 2004).…”