Student teaching offers a potentially rich yet underutilized space for teacher educators to support elementary teacher candidates (TCs) in developing dispositions and practices consistent with culturally responsive teaching (CRT). In this study, we found that a cohort of TCs who engaged in a hands-on anti-bias family/community engagement module…

In this study, researchers conducted an examination of the consequences, both positive and in need of improvement, of a large college of education's student support process (SSP). The SSP was put in place by college of education leaders in order to better support the teacher education students enrolled throughout its teacher education program,…

Guided by an inquiry as stance approach, this study aimed to explore the perspectives of early childhood and elementary pre-service student teachers on the impact of the edTPA (Teacher Performance Assessment) on their student teaching experiences. The analysis of an online open-ended questionnaire revealed that the claims made by the edTPA…

This study utilized cultural historical activity theory to explore the evolution of nine preservice teachers' (PSTs') conceptions of social justice teaching while enrolled in a social justice-oriented teacher education program. From three interviews conducted over one year, findings show that tensions PSTs encountered while student teaching in…

This article examines teacher candidates' perceptions of two performance-based evaluation tools during the student teaching semester (edTPA, Danielson Framework). In particular, I sought to understand how teacher candidates perceived the role of both tools in the teacher education landscape and the extent to which they perceived the tools to be…

Coteaching, a model for learning to teach, places teacher candidates alongside clinical educators in classrooms. Learning occurs through shared practice and on-going explication of thinking and reflection. This cross-case study of six dyads from an undergraduate early childhood inclusive preservice education program examines ways that coteaching…

This qualitative study focuses on elementary teacher candidates (TCs) at two United States university-based teacher preparation programs and their experiences with edTPA, a teacher performance assessment increasing in implementation nationwide. TCs from two public universities, in a state where edTPA bears a high-stakes connection to teaching…

Looking closely at lesson plans as mediating tools, this study examines preservice teacher learning. By using activity theory in our analysis of lesson plans and other data collected in a student-teaching course, we uncovered tensions within/across the contexts of university teacher education program and secondary school field placements. This…

Teacher education involves encountering ethical dilemmas connected to teaching. Student teachers' ethical dilemmas sometimes occur when ideals clash with experiences. The current study focuses on the challenges experienced by student teachers during work placement education. The aim of the study was to investigate ethical dilemmas student teachers…

In many teacher preparation programs at institutions of higher education in the United States, pre-service teachers receive mentoring and constructive feedback during their internship placement from an experienced supervising teacher and a university coordinator. Often the feedback loop is closed by asking interns, 'was this useful?' To better…

This article examines the edTPA, an assessment for teacher candidates in the United States that, in traditional teacher education programs, is completed within a student teaching placement. Exploring literature that highlights the function of the placement and the role of the teacher education program and cooperating teacher in shaping the…

Concern that practical realities in classrooms will "trump" theories has led some universities to design residency teacher education programs that maximize coherence between university coursework and field experiences. Yet, some research suggests that student teachers can learn from dissonance. This qualitative case study of one cohort…

I present a two-year case study of one pre-service teacher (PST), Johnny, as he moved through his education-based coursework at a large, public university in the US Southeast. In his final year of college, Johnny chose to forego the remainder of student teaching and not to receive a teaching certificate. To better understand Johnny's choice to…

Professional identity has emerged as a common theme in teacher development research, and the student-teaching practicum is often identified as foundational to identity development. In the context of the student-teaching practicum, interactions with cooperating teachers and pupils are believed to comprise the press for professional identity…

For the past two decades, scholars have advocated for reforms in teacher education that emphasize relevant connections between theory and practice in university coursework and focus on clinical experiences. This paper is based on our experiences in designing and implementing an integrated literacy methods course in a field-based teacher education…