Studies have shown that preservice teachers come to their science methods courses with perceptions about science teaching and learning that can impact their levels of self-efficacy when it comes to teaching science (Bulunuz & Jarrett, 2010; Jarrett, 1999; Kazempour, 2014). Multiple students have been conducted to document the effects of…

Teacher candidates (TCs) use clinical experiences to enact concepts taught in their university courses; therefore field experiences may be the most important component of teacher preparation (Hammerness et al., 2005). TCs require support and guidance as they learn to adapt curriculum materials for effective use in the classroom (Davis, 2006). They…

Thirty preservice teachers enrolled in a field-based science methods course were placed at a public elementary school for coursework and for teaching practice with elementary students. Candidates focused on building conceptual understanding of science content and pedagogical methods through innovative curriculum development and other course…

In 2009, the National Council for the Social Studies released a position statement calling for the implementation of media literacy in social studies education. If today's students are to become engaged citizens as adults, they must acquire the skills and knowledge associated with media literacy. Using this position statement as foundation, I…

Over the last 50 years, there has been ample research dedicated to mathematics anxiety in contexts of teaching and learning. However, there has been less attention focused on pre-service teachers' anxieties about teaching mathematics in classroom settings. This study analyzed pre-service teachers' reflections at the conclusion of an elementary…

This article chronicles the perspectives of two teacher candidates who displayed comfort with cultural issues and teaching for social justice, in contrast with many of their peers in the program who were uncomfortable with diversity. Their field experiences in a piloted urban reading practicum are documented, as part of a partnership with a…

I investigated eight preservice teachers' understandings about culturally responsive pedagogy as they participated in a writing methods course in which they tutored children from different ethnic, socioeconomic, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds in an afterschool program at a local community center. I also investigated how these preservice…

The study reported here investigated the relationship between early field experiences and the concerns of students preparing to become teachers. (CS)

This 9-month intrinsic case study followed 2 preservice teachers as they learned to teach literacy in 2 consecutive, field-based methods courses. Analysis of data from surveys, dialogue journals, observations, conversations, e-mail notes, and telephone conversations showed a recursive yet distinct hierarchical progression in the preservice…

Examined preservice teachers' beliefs about elementary physical education (PE) and the impact of a field-based elementary PE methods course on their beliefs. Participant surveys indicated that preservice teachers held similar beliefs about the values and purposes of elementary PE to those of PE professionals. The methods course positively impacted…

Experience with materials developed by the Mathematics Teacher Education Project has shown that these resources of teaching methods and suggestions can be used to assist student teachers in their first field experience and in the final term as a means to coalesce and focus on specific teaching strategies. (FG)

Using Alice's experience in "Through the Looking Glass" as inspiration, this paper recounts how preservice teachers journey through their field-based experiences and gain increasing insights into the teaching profession. The paper illustrates their progression with notes from several reflective logs which will eventually become papers…

The Multiple Perspectives Teacher Education Emphasis Area at Michigan State University was designed to integrate teacher candidates' field experiences with the instruction from the methods courses. Field instructors were informed about the specific methods, content, and procedures. Some methods courses were taught within the field setting and…

Investigated were the effects of an elementary methods course on preservice teachers. The preservice teacher's perception and performance of role expectations in the teaching of science, the preservice teacher's attitude toward science in the elementary classroom, and the preservice teacher's knowledge and performance in inquiry skills were the…

This study examined the use of written reflection to investigate student teachers' active instructional knowledge during mathematics mentoring. Participants were 30 preservice teachers in a Science/Math Integration methods course. They participated in Community Mathematics project field experiences, which occurred prior to the full student…