A team of teacher educators conducted a phenomenological study to explore the perceptions of teacher candidates (TCs), their cooperating teachers (CTs), and university supervisors (USs) during and after they participated in a redesigned seven-week practicum that led directly into seven weeks of student teaching. Data were collected via two surveys…

There is a heightened focus within teacher education to centralize clinical experiences and develop strong partnerships between schools and universities. University field supervisors fulfill a critical role within clinical experiences because they are uniquely situated in spaces where they can help preservice teachers and school-based partners…

Investigated the teaching and learning responses of preservice teachers enrolled in a brief language arts field practicum prior to student teaching. Survey, observation, and journal data indicated that despite consistent efforts by university professors to help preservice teachers examine theory into practice during their practica, procedural…

Noting that both the college and the collaborating schools gain from early field placement (prior to student teaching) in education programs, this paper presents a prototype for early placement practicums based on 10 years experience in providing practicums for reading methods courses for Medgar Evers College, City University of New York…

A new educational psychology course that combines mastery oriented content learning with direct participation in an elementary school classroom is described. The integration of theoretical-empirical information from psychology with the applied view of education in the classroom is the most important outcome of the new course. A variety of learning…

The opinions of sophomore practicum students in elementary education at the University of Iowa were solicited with the intent of finding ways to assess and improve the teacher education program. The students answered a series of questions related to their experiences working in local public schools. Some of the most notable outcomes of the data…

Teacher education in the U.S. faces a critical dilemma: preparing white, middle-class preservice teachers to teach increasingly diverse student populations in public schools. Early field experiences (EFEs) show promise for addressing this mismatch, yet little is actually known about what happens to preservice teachers in practicum experiences.…

Describes a practicum that occurred at one of Indiana State University's elementary school professional development sites. The practicum involved 10 site visits over two weeks for participating preservice teachers. The paper examines benefits of the practicum for preservice teachers and the advantages of conducting it at a PDS site. (SM)

The purpose of this study was to identify and compare the teaching concerns of two groups of preservice teachers who were taught language arts methodology through the use of different approaches. A traditional approach (lectures and demonstrations by the professor) was used with one group (n=43) and a field-experience approach (lectures by the…

A program for preservice special education students at William Paterson College (New Jersey) offered participants field experience working with minority and disadvantaged students. Undergraduate students in their sophomore, junior, or senior classes spent one and two hours per week engaged in course assignments with pupils at the school under…

Cognitive apprenticeships have three essential characteristics: (1) they make use of the learner's prior knowledge; (2) they allow that learned procedures for solving problems may be modified in new situations; and (3) they acknowledge that individuals generate their own solution paths, often through a collaborative process. Preservice elementary…

This article describes a teacher education program, "Studies in Educational Alternatives" (S.E.A.), at Mankato State University (Minnesota). The program is committed to personalization and practicum experiences as major components of teacher preparation. The document discusses: (1) program design; (2) admission processes; (3)…

The Bilingual/Bicultural Teacher Training Program at Mississippi State University was developed specifically to train Choctaw preservice teachers, or teacher aides, and other personnel working in Choctaw schools to work effectively in a bilingual/bicultural program. The program is flexible enough, however, so that other language groups can enter…

Presents the experiences of one student teacher who was part of the restructured preservice program at Queen's University of Kingston. He participated in an early field experience, where he was assigned to a school rather than a teacher and was able to witness how an entire school prepared for the beginning of a new school year. (SM)

The preservice teacher education program at the University of Western Sydney (Australia) includes in-school experiences intended to address criticisms of the traditional practicum. This article outlines the principles underlying an innovative final semester school-based experience; describes the experiences in practice; and discusses student,…