International Portal of Teacher Education
The online resource of academic content on teacher training and teacher education
Search results for: Wales
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8 items
1
For nearly 40 years the quality and value of the contribution of universities to initial teacher education has been brought into question.
This is particularly so in England where the ongoing ‘discourse of derision’ has resulted in universities no longer being seen as necessary partners in the process.
More recently, similar challenges have taken place in other countries such as USA and Australia.
However in 2013, when the Welsh Government turned its attention to the apparent low quality of its current provision, rather than challenging the role of universities, it chose to strengthen their contribution.
There were however to be important changes that insisted that universities put the student teacher learning at the heart of course planning, that universities clarify their own distinctive contribution and that they work in close collaboration with schools.
While this approach to initial teacher education is not new, this is the first time that such a model has been implemented on a national scale.
This paper outlines the nature, rationale and underlying research for the reforms in Wales.
It concludes by speculating on their likely impact in raising the quality of provision and securing the future contribution of universities to teachers’ learning. More
Published: 2019
Updated: Aug. 18, 2020
2
Troops to Teachers (TtT) is a UK governmental scheme introduced in 2013 to facilitate ex-military service personnel to re-train as teachers.
This narrative study explores the accounts of a sample of new TtT trainees at the onset of their training and considers their motivations for career changing, potential transferable attributes and skills, aspirational teacher identities and anticipated challenges.
Emerging from these rich narratives is a strong, shared commitment to the trainees’ chosen new career.
Self-discipline is identified as a professional quality to take into teaching from military service, whilst maintaining discipline in the classroom is more commonly regarded as an area of concern and challenge, rather than as a transferable skill set, challenging core governmental expectations of the Troops to Teachers initiative.
However, the importance of and a desire and commitment to continue to ‘serve’, is widely held, reflecting a particular narrative refraction of the TtT trainees.
This provides potential for further, perhaps longitudinal study, as the troops become teachers.
The study affirms the potential for further investment in a wider recruitment strategy for career-change teachers more generally, as providing an experienced and motivated professional workforce for schools. More
Published: 2019
Updated: Jan. 05, 2020
3
This study examined relationships between the recruitment practice and contexts for recruitment to initial teacher education (ITE). The authors found that policy makers in England have recently shifted the balance of responsibility for recruitment from higher education institutes (HEIs) to schools. The policy makers in Wales are considering a similar change, but at present their recruitment is firmly in the control of HEIs. The authors found that the recruitment to ITE in Northern Ireland remains firmly in the control of HEIs whilst policymakers in Scotland remain committed to its partnership of HEIs and local authorities in recruiting to ITE. More
Published: 2016
Updated: Nov. 15, 2018
4
This study explores trainers’ approaches to organisation and delivery; levels of confidence in delivery; and wider views on the place of spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) in primary schools and in initial teacher training (ITT). The authors conclude that this survey has provided new evidence about the practices and challenges facing those who are training primary teachers in universities and in School-Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT). The authors argue that the promotion of strands relating to children’s personal, social and emotional well-being is essential if children are to fully flourish as human beings. More
Published: 2015
Updated: Feb. 11, 2018
5
This article presents a radical critique of the competence-driven initial teacher education (ITE) paradigm. The critique focuses on the official standards for qualified teacher status in England and Wales. The developing perspective here is that based on critical pedagogy (CP), as presented and proposed by Paulo Freire and others. More
Published: 2010
Updated: Sep. 27, 2010
6
After a description of home education, Lave and Wenger's (1991) theory of legitimate peripheral participation (LPP) is applied to the situation of home educators who join a neighbourhood home education group, a community of practice. This paper is based on an empirical study undertaken in aid of understanding the learning process of parents as they strive to become ‘home educators’. Data comes from thirty-four in-depth interviews of home educating parents who had been home educating for more than three years. More
Published: 2010
Updated: Jan. 12, 2010
7
This article provides an analytical account of one research group of teacher-educators funded by The Welsh Education Research Network (WERN). The case study describes the research activity of the group and the views of its members on its impact for their professional practice. Finally an analysis of the findings concludes that engagement with research has resulted in positive changes to the knowledge, skills and critical awareness of the teacher-educators which has in turn brought benefits to the learning of their students. More
Published: 2009
Updated: Nov. 10, 2009
8
This article presents a theoretical critique of citizenship education in England and Wales, as a means of raising pedagogical considerations for teachers, and policy issues for curriculum makers and planners. Drawing on a range of recent empirical studies, the authors construct an analysis of practice and suggest that differences between dominant models of citizenship in England and Wales owe much to their histories. More
Published: 2008
Updated: Feb. 17, 2009