In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

Of far more value than a collection of how-to’s is the ability to study a situation, notice what students care about, what is important to them, and invent appropriate practices. . . . The goal of the program is to foster deliberative practice. —Lin Goodwin and Alexandria Lawrence, on the elementary preservice program at Teachers College, Columbia University, “A Professional Development School for Preparing Teachers for Urban Schools” Inquiry by student teachers is central to social constructivist teacher education . Students critically assess prevailing educational ideas and practices (including their own) and construct a distinctive approach to teaching in dialogue with instructors and peers. Rather than passively receiving “expert” wisdom, they take ownership of their development. Because teaching and learning relate to one’s whole way of life, their development as teachers has a major personal dimension, including self-discovery and selfassessment . The goal is for the student teachers to become lifelong learners , constantly inquiring into their beliefs and practices with respect to teaching and learning. THREE EXAMPLES OF INQUIRY-ORIENTED PROGRAMS In this chapter, we discuss the nature of an inquiry-oriented preservice program and describe ways of implementing such a program. In doing so, we provide concrete examples from three programs that are social constructivist in nature and have an inquiry emphasis. As in the previous chapter, we wish to stress that the three programs we present here have many features in addition to the one highlighted: our account of them is not exhaustive. In particular, like other programs featured in this book they embody integration and community to a high degree, as well as inquiry. We begin with a brief overview of the programs and then go on to systematic consideration of the components of an inquiry approach to teacher education. 53 CHAPTER 3 Fostering Inquiry in the Program The University of Sydney’s Master of Teaching (MTeach) The University of Sydney’s MTeach is a 2-year, full-time program with both elementary and secondary streams. It is relatively large for a community-oriented , social constructivist program, having 250 student teachers in each year. A more intimate cohort experience is achieved in two main ways. First, the student body is divided into “Study One” groups of about 25 each, which meet weekly to study general pedagogy. These groups are normally team taught by 2 faculty facilitators, and as far as possible the same 2 instructors remain with the group over the 2 years. Second, another set of groups meet regularly to study a specific secondary teaching subject or, in the case of elementary candidates , a range of teaching subjects such as language arts and mathematics. The MTeach program has been inquiry-oriented since its inception, having been established as part of a general movement at the University of Sydney toward case-based, problem-oriented professional programs (Ewing & Smith, 2002). According to David Smith, a key figure in establishing the program and director of the program from 2001 to 2003, there was growing recognition of the increased diversity and rapid change in society that required a new approach to teacher education. A societal perspective was lacking: “In my own teacher education, we never talked about parents or the community.” Teaching had to become “as much a learning profession as a teaching profession ,” with a focus on one’s own learning as well as student learning, and with greater attention to social justice issues. Teachers College’s M.A. in Elementary Education The Master of Arts in elementary education at Teachers College, Columbia University may take up to 5 years to complete, including part-time study (although most complete it in 2 years). However, about 80 student teachers enroll annually in the field-experience year, which must be done full-time and is the heart of the program. During this year, the student teachers are in schools 3 1/2 days a week in two successive placements. They take a CORE course (so-called because it is seen as the core of the program) and a Models of Teaching course, which connect theory strongly to the practicum, and a Teaching Reading course that has close connections to CORE and Models and also to the practicum. The students are divided into 3 groups of about 25 for CORE, and each CORE group is again split into 2 smaller groups for an intensive weekly Student Teaching Seminar. Emphasis on inquiry is one of the three “stances” of the program (and of teacher education generally at Teachers College). The others are social justice and...

Share