University teacher education programs often struggle to attract cooperating teachers. Given this situation, it is obviously of interest to determine what factors may attract teachers to, or repel them from, the cooperating role. It is also of interest to determine, in general terms at least, what characteristics cooperating teachers share. This…

The purpose of this case study was to examine a teacher education system relative to the degree of performance support for the use of technology to support learning. Performance support was measured by the presence of factors such as clear expectations, feedback, tools, rewards, incentives, motivation, capacity, skills, and knowledge within the…

Student teaching often provides prospective music educators with a guided teaching experience that they can refer to throughout their professional careers. In the words of one teacher, the author often thinks back to her student teaching experience for strategies in her current teaching and classroom. She had a great cooperating teacher who…

Preservice teachers generally are confident and enthusiastic about their abilities to teach effectively. These desirable qualities are based, for the most part, on the preservice teachers' previous experiences as students in the classroom, not as teachers. While the personal experience a preservice teacher brings to his or her teacher-preparation…

This article presents a story of how a principal devised a way for an experienced teacher to spend time as a teaching resource for her colleagues. Doug McEnery, a principal of Aviano High School, encouraged Pam Hillestad, an experienced teacher at Aviano, to become a leader and resource for her colleagues. They have created a model for…

This paper describes the early childhood teacher training program and the role of the Project Approach in the final practicum for student teachers in the Lisbon School of Education, Portugal. Student teachers, cooperating teachers, university supervisors, and instructors of teaching methods worked together to involve young children in interesting…

In the vein of action research, the author examines his practice of matching lesbian and gay student teachers with a lesbian or gay cooperating teacher for field placement. This article addresses several questions. In what ways, if any, do lesbian and gay teachers help new teachers cope with and interrupt homophobia? How do they help student…

This study examined perspectives of field experiences among preservice teachers and their cooperating teachers because of debate in the politically charged atmosphere of No Child Left Behind regarding teacher preparation programs. Nine pairs of preservice and cooperating teachers were observed and interviewed over the course of a semester to…

Preparing college supervisors/cooperating teachers to support teacher candidates' performance using standards is a challenge for teacher preparation programs. This paper will describe a professional development program collaboratively developed by representatives of the state department of education, institutions of higher education, and K-12…

Currently in the United States, an estimated 30% of new teachers leave the profession within three years. One way to increase the retention rate is to train constituents involved in the student teaching experience, a crucial experience wherein a cooperating teacher mentors the intern who ostensibly learns to navigate all facets of the teaching…

To adequately prepare preservice teachers to implement inclusive classrooms, teacher preparation programs must encourage professional interaction, collaboration, and knowledge about inclusion. Although some of these skills can be presented in coursework, prospective teachers must be provided with opportunities to practice these skills in classroom…

This preliminary study reviews the journals of two teachers working side-by-side, a supervising teacher/mentor and a student teacher. The student teacher, a certification student, had a business degree, had worked in the business world for three years, and wanted to become an elementary classroom teacher. The supervising teacher, an experienced…

Teachers and administrators can help simplify the adjustment of student teachers to the classroom by being aware of student teacher concerns and problem areas. Asked to voice concerns and suggestions for future students, two groups of students at a Texas university and an Oklahoma university cited discipline, stress and fatigue, and relations with…

The traditional role of the university supervisor traveling from school to school plying his/her professional expertise may be likened to the early circuit riders of pioneer America plying their skills in the professions of law and religion. Exercising supervisory practices in this fashion may not be as effective as needed or as desired. The…

This study sought to identify the specific behaviors that enable performance assessment of cooperating teachers and to determine the degree of importance of each behavior as perceived by teacher educators and student teachers. During the 1982-83 academic year, data used in constructing the assessment instrument were gathered from…