Teacher preparation programs (TPP) rely on school-based mentor teachers and university mentors to assist their teacher candidates with bridging the information presented in courses to the "real world" of teaching. Given the important role that the clinical components of teacher preparation provide in terms of candidate development, the…

Due to the rising concern for the improvement of field experiences on the national level and also to the concern raised within the College of Education and Human Services at Clarion University of Pennsylvania, a model was developed and is now being implemented that incorporates a wide variety of innovative ideas on field experiences, research, and…

A need has evolved for the design and implementation of a new system of teacher education that emphasizes laboratory experiences. (JD)

This article describes how St. Cloud State University solved a number of its growth problems, related to increased teacher education program enrollment, by utilizing a district/university partnership model that springs from an active field experience program. (IAH)

This paper describes a model of a field based or clinical experience program for prospective teachers. An overview of issues and concerns regarding field experiences and student teaching describes the traditional approach to supervised practice teaching. In a discussion of contemporary perspectives on student teaching programs, it is noted that…

A detailed description is given of the Early Childhood Teacher Education Program at Idaho State University. This program consists of five phases: (1) early field experience; (2) observing and participating in a diversity of early childhood programs as teacher-initiates and teacher-assistants; (3) examining and reflecting upon their teaching and…

This paper describes how Central Missouri State University converted to block scheduling to provide higher quality field experiences for education majors. The university changed its 50-minute Monday/Wednesday/Friday classes to 75-minute Monday/Friday and Tuesday/Thursday classes, with Wednesdays off for field experiences. This paper explains the…

Describes the restructured, extended year Bachelor of Education/Diploma in Education Consecutive program within the Faculty of Education at Queen's University of Kingston, Ontario, Canada, which emphasizes field-based experiences. After examining research supporting experience-based learning, the paper describes program planning and development…

This paper reports on a collaboration between Eastern Michigan University (EMU) College of Education and Farmington High School (FHS), EMU's first consociate school, i.e., a school site that has developed an exceptionally strong working relationship with a college of education. Leaders of both institutions identified a number of creative ways they…

The Mentor Teacher Project, initiated in 1985, involved the development and implementation of a new field component into the Academic Learning Teacher Education Program at Michigan State University. The field component, piloted with the Academic Learning students in the class of 1987, was subsequently revised and its impact on the class of 1988…

Strategies for implementing changes that will improve the effectiveness of teacher education are discussed. These include: (1) redesigning curriculum by incorporating entrance and exit criteria and a performance-based emphasis, allowing for continuous assessment of the effectiveness of the curriculum and ensuring a more individualized and…

A description is given of a field-based preservice teacher education program which integrates elementary and special education, infusing theories of effective teaching with practical classroom application for working with pupils who have special needs as they are mainstreamed into the regular classroom. The program consists of three phases:…