Evaluated the effects on student teachers of a preservice program that grouped them into cohorts and emphasized community- building. Interview, observation, and questionnaire data highlighted positive effects (high participation levels in group activities, greater awareness of the value of collaboration, and greater willingness to take risks in…

This study examines the benefits and challenges of using distributed learning methods for teaching field practice seminars. Over a 3-year period (2000 through 2002), both in-class and online sections were evaluated in terms of meeting learning objectives and student satisfaction with the learning environment. Due to the small number of students…

The social work academic community is currently considering and critiquing the idea of evidence-based practice (EBP). Given the vital part that practicum education plays in the social work profession, understanding the views of field instructors on this subject is essential. The George Warren Brown School of Social Work at Washington University…

Pre-licensure, graduate intervention specialist majors participated in an introductory assignment, reporting their reactions to ten hours with an individual who had a moderate to intense disability. Research questions included: 1) How do pre-licensure, graduate students connect theory to practice? 2) What was it about the pre-licensure, graduate…

This article investigates the impact of supervisors' racial and ethnic origins on the exploration of multicultural competencies in clinical supervision. Data were collected from 102 practicum and internship students in three different counsellor education programs. Supervision conversations centring on multicultural awareness, skills, and…

General classroom teachers are being called upon to meet the needs of an increasingly diverse population of students. Although abundant research documents the specific needs of gifted students, too little is being done at the preservice teacher level to prepare our teachers to recognize and meet these needs (e.g., Feldhusen & Kolloff, 1986;…

Mentoring is often portrayed as an unqualified good. Teacher educators claim that mentoring holds promise for beginning teacher development, increased retention of novice teachers, and mentor-teacher improvement. Drawing on positioning theory, this study describes negotiation of power and position in a failed triad composed of a public school…

College campuses create small communities where mutually beneficial partnerships can be used to create practical work experiences for students. The procedure outlined in this article outlines how to create a partnership between the campus health and recreation center and an academic department to evaluate the implementation of a new smoking…

The juvenile offender population presents a significant challenge to residential group workers. One strategy to address this challenge is structured psychoeducational group work. The Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice, in collaboration with Western Kentucky University, has established the Group Work Training Certification Program for…

This paper reports the use of a research-based, web-delivered, technology-and-science education context (the Generative Virtual Classroom) in which student-teachers can develop their ability to recognize, describe, analyse and theorize learning. Addressing well-recognized concerns about narrowly conceived, anachronistic and ineffective…

This paper draws on major research findings in international literature in order to provide a critical review of a number of key issues and trends in the initial education of high school teachers. Firstly, this paper contextualizes the prevalent discourse surrounding the field of initial teacher education (ITE) and explores the effect that this…

Providing a teaching practicum where university students preparing to be teachers can interact with children from different cultures has been widely praised as an effective means to improve teachers' cross-cultural sensitivity and teaching effectiveness. However, some research suggests that direct experience with minority children may in fact…

The question of student teachers connecting what is learned at university and within school sites has always been considered problematic. At the University of New England (UNE), in New South Wales, Australia, this issue is addressed through an action research project undertaken by fourth year Bachelor of Education (BEd) primary students during…

This study examined 49 student teachers' actions and perspectives when implementing a curricular innovation (the tactical games approach). Data were collected via videotaped lessons, interviews, and follow-up questionnaires. Questions for interviews and questionnaires were pilot tested and data were analyzed using the constant comparison method.…

Background: A paradigm shift in educational policy to create problem solvers and critical thinkers produced the games concept approach (GCA) in Singapore's Revised Syllabus for Physical Education (1999). A pilot study (2001) conducted on 11 primary school student teachers (STs) using this approach identified time management and questioning as two…