Exposure to nature can improve mental health and cognitive abilities, while creating enhanced engagement with biological course material through interactions with organisms and ecosystems. Remote biology education was suddenly implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic at many universities, and such distance education continues to provide broadened…

Reflective practice serves as a powerful pedagogical strategy for teachers--especially those in low-resource, rural areas. This qualitative case study looked at secondary education pre-service teachers in their first education course. Analysis of focus observation essays data indicated that pre-service teachers were incorporating reflective…

The purpose of this photovoice study was to investigate what and how pre-service teachers conceive and make meaning of exploration observations of early field experiences (EFEs). EFEs are vital components of the teacher preparation program and include all activities that occur in pre-service teacher education prior to student teaching, including…

Field experience makes a strong contribution to the learning of students. However, the procedure for conducting training sessions based on experiential teaching methods is relatively unclear, and the contents and aspects of students' reflections during such training are not well known. This study applied experiential teaching methods in a college…

This study investigated the aspects of learning and teaching that pre-service teachers examined at distinct time periods while taking on different roles. Participants reported on what they noticed from their past learning experiences as students, as well as their current field experiences as student teachers. Their reflective critique was created…

Fresh from teaching his first full school year the author reflects on his traditional teacher preparation path into the classroom and finds he was instilled with a common sense of ethics, compassion, a demand for reflective practice, and a robust guiding philosophy. As a college student, he learned theory and was able to augment that with…

Family math night can easily be implemented into mathematics methodology courses providing an opportunity for field-based learning. Preservice teachers were asked to develop and implement an inquiry-based activity at a family math night event held at a local school with personnel, elementary children and their parents in attendance. This action…

This paper reports on a study of 22 preservice teachers enrolled in a first-semester mathematics teaching methods course. Course activities included participation in two separate field experiences in neighboring school districts. The methods class placed considerable emphasis on the use of advanced digital technologies in the teaching and learning…

Describes "mini-lab" as one of the requirements for a university undergraduate course in child psychology. Students observe and record the activities of children in a child care center. (KC)

This study investigates the value of early field experience students' observations of both peers and cooperating teachers in elementary classrooms where they had daily instructional duties. The participants in this study were 34 elementary education students enrolled in their last semester of coursework before the final student teaching…

Describes a comparative psychology course in which advanced college students learn by observing animals in their natural habitats in Kenya. The author tells how the objectives of master of observation, taxa adaptive behavior, echo systems, conservation, and field methods are satisfied. (RM)

Education majors need an updated field experience aimed at studying adolescents from diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds. Visiting a local shopping mall on a Friday night to observe teens in their natural habitat is entertaining and enlightening. By surveying kids, college students can find out what teens value and examine their own…

Describes a program in which college agricultural education majors between their junior and senior years are placed with vocational agriculture teachers to gain experience in conducting a summer vocational agriculture program. (HD)

Describes an elementary school classroom project in which university student artists are invited to participate in the classroom prior to their student teaching experience. Discusses the mechanics for developing such a project. Points out ways in which this is beneficial for all concerned. (KO)