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14. The Role of the Classroom Teacher in Teacher Education
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CHAPTER 14 The Role of the Classroom Teacher in Teacher Education MARK BRUBACHER the classroom teacher is a critical link between the coursework and practical field experience of the preservice teacher. As many authors in this volume have explained, unless the preservice teacher has the opportunity to work with a classroom teacher who is a model and who provides guided experience in cooperative learning, it is very difficult for the novice to adopt this strategy for instruction in her/his own classroom. The difficulty of finding such mentor teachers within the typical organizational arrangements of universities and public school districts is one that a number of authors have described. Although mentor teachers are highly valued by the authors, with the exception of Mary Murray [one of the co-authors of chapter 6, on Niagara University], we do not hear directly from the classroom teacher in this volume. The contributors to this book report on the continuing difficulty of locating well-prepared mentors who can model, coach, and supervise the student teacher’s learning effectively. In the area of cooperative learning it is especially challenging at the secondary level to find teachers who share the same educational philosophy and practice as the college faculty. At the secondary level, potential mentor teachers in cooperative learning may be isolated within the practice of their own schools. However, finding mentoring teachers is also a problem for the elementary level. For example, although Anserson College faculty (chapter 4) prefer to place teacher candidates in sites that use cooperative learning, they often meet the implementation problem of a true difference in teaching philosophies between the teacher candidate and the cooperating teacher in the public school classroom. 211 In this commentary, I would like to examine the possibility of a new and more equal partnership of university educators and classroom teachers in the process of teacher education. There are several chapters where such new and different arrangements are suggested. I would like to bring these ideas together in these pages along with some suggestions for how such a reform could work to the advantage of all three parties: the university-based teacher educator, the preservice teacher, and the classroom teacher. MOVING TOWARDS A COEQUAL RELATIONSHIP There is a growing realization that institutions of teacher education must work more closely with school boards and schools. Rolheiser and Anderson (chapter 1) at IOSE/UT have created a program where classroom teachers and university faculty become partners in the instruction and supervision of student teachers. Cohen et al. (chapter 9) is encouraged by one example at CSU Fresno of a “tight relationship with a professional development school where teachers from that school have a presence on campus and are co-instructors of the pre-service teachers.” The Lewis & Clark College program (chapter 2) provides a year-long seminar for their mentors to support their learning and to invite their expertise in the design and execution of the internship. West Chester University faculty (chapter 8) in the boutique approach work closely with teachers from selected school districts who understand the philosophy of the particular program and become cooperating colleagues in the teacher preparation. It is not at all unusual for the university to hire a classroom teacher to teach a methods course in a particular content area. This step, in itself, does not constitute an equal partnership, nor does it lead automatically to a solution to the problems of field placement in preparing teachers in cooperative learning. In the case of Lewis & Clark College and Niagara University (chapter 6), we have examples of close collaborations between the teacher who is working at the university and a team of faculty members—a collaboration with cooperative learning as a central goal. At Lewis & Clark, the faculty actively recruit practitioners —teachers recently retired, on leave of absence or teaching simultaneously in the two organizations—as clinical experts who supervise the field experiences and teach courses. At Niagara University, Mary Murray is a current public school teacher and also an adjunct professor teaching the social studies methods course with a central emphasis on cooperative learning. By selecting “master” adjuncts, the faculty feel they are sending a signal to the schools that they view these individuals as outstanding teachers and want their practices to be held up as models. This should help to reduce the isolation of the secondary school teacher who is expert in cooperative learning. 212 Mark Brubacher [3.83.87.94] Project MUSE (2024-03-29 03:26 GMT) When classroom teachers have an important role...