This piece is an academic reflection on personal experiences of the education system through the critical lens of anti-oppressive and multicultural education. The author divides the page into academic discourse and personal experience, reflecting the boundaries between anecdotal evidence and academic discourse. Suggestions and observations are…

Recent reforms of initial teacher education (ITE) in the learning and skills sector (LSS) in England are standards based and emphasise subject specialism. The reforms are underpinned by objectivist epistemological assumptions which are incompatible with socio-cultural theories of professional knowledge, and ignore the diverse teaching roles and…

There is increasing concern over disengagement of teacher candidates during on-campus periods of pre-service programs due to the perceived disconnect between educational theory and practice. In response, teacher education has been called to engage candidates in praxis through authentic learning. In this paper, we bring together the fields of…

The new literacy studies (NLS) is a tradition of research that includes ethnographic work on literacy that has many applications for classroom teachers. The NLS include explorations of local literacies and critical literacy as well as the notion of literacy itself. When teachers draw on the NLS, students are able to draw on their practices in…

This paper examines the ways that one group of US pre-service teachers, enrolled in an alternate route teacher education class, expressed and challenged each other's contradictory discourses about teaching for social justice. Particularly significant are the many ways that this group of students enacted subject positions around race and sexuality…

This paper describes a study into the implementation within two Spanish primary schools of an inquiry-based curricular project entitled "Exploring Our World" (ages 6-12). Taking the form of two case studies, it offers a description of the two participating schools and the development of the project within them. Particular attention is given to the…

This case study explored the educational experiences of Canadian preservice teachers in a course designed to teach about online teaching. Students gained experience in course design and delivery, and safe and ethical behavior related to technology. Findings indicated that projects in which students actively applied their knowledge were more…

In this paper we describe the creation of an eclectic case pedagogy based on case-based methods, sociocultural learning theory and visual studies successfully used in a university teacher education course designed to help students acquire sociocultural knowledge about schooling and teaching. Using qualitative data collected across three semesters…

Research on peer placements suggests that partnering two preservice teachers with a mentor provides a better, more supportive context for learning to teach. As extant research has focused more on student teachers' development, less is known about mentors' perceptions and experiences. This qualitative study focuses on seven mentor teachers who have…

What is the relationship between preservice teachers' teaching knowledge and self-rating of competencies and their practicum experience? The participants of this study are fourth year students in the Department of English Language Education of the Faculty of Education, Mugla University, Turkey. Three data collection instruments were used: the…

This article addresses the lack of attention universities have given to adjusting liberal education, the undergraduate major for teachers in California, to the increase of multi-ethnic, multi-racial, and social class heterogeneity in state universities. This article argues for a revised pedagogy for undergraduate liberal arts education for teacher…

The increase in the number of English language learners (ELLs) in US public schools has been well documented. In just a 10 year period between 1990 and 2000, the enrollment of students with limited proficiency in English increased by 105%, compared to a 12% overall enrollment gain. This places increased pressure on teacher educators to prepare…

Recent debates regarding same-sex marriage and gay and lesbian adoption highlight the role of schools as sociopolitical institutions. Accordingly, teachers operating within social norms have considerable influence through their interactions with students and their families. Previous research points to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT)…

Parents can provide interaction that is crucial to student learning. Helping teachers connect students' home and school lives and assisting parents in understanding possible roles in student learning can contribute to student achievement. A one-year funded project focused on: (1) helping teachers involve parents in the literacy achievement of…

Teacher candidates train in an educational world that has changed dramatically. The tensions and challenges that preservice teachers experience are a reality for teacher education programs and must be planned for. The authors from a teacher preparation program describe the steps they have taken to support more authentic and integrated work with…