In an attempt to bridge the gap between general and vocational education, the Postgraduate School of Education at Agder College in Norway launched a trial teacher education program in 1996 that called for prospective vocational and academic/general teachers to attend the same course. The course, which was designed to encourage students to accept a major part of the responsibility for their personal and professional growth and development, emphasized working in small groups with strong interaction between theory and practice. In addition to including general pedagogical theory and practice, the new program serves as a meeting place and arena for cooperation between the two groups of students. The following program elements are considered crucial to the new program's effectiveness: counseling of teaching practice by colleagues; linkage of theory and practice through dialogue and real-life experiences; and cooperation in interdisciplinary projects. Participants' satisfaction with the approach of working in core groups has been mixed. According to student evaluations, working in core groups has proved time consuming, conflict producing, and frustrating but also professionally enriching. To date, the new program has been most effective as a means for giving and receiving colleague counseling from both academic and vocational teachers. (MN)