Exploring Fieldwork Experiences: Telling Our Unique and Collective Stories

• In Event: 41.083 - Roundtable Session 15
  In Roundtable Session: 41.083-11 - Considering Various Methodologies in Developing Supervision and Evaluation Skills

Abstract

The final fieldwork experience is the closing activity and the lasting image of teacher preparation (Parker-Katz & Bay, 2008) and yet we know very little about what happens in the fieldwork classroom (Guyton & McIntyre, 1990, Selland, 2016). To illuminate the stories of those working in teacher education fieldwork experiences, I have engaged in a multi-case study (Stake, 2006) with three novices and their mentors. Using individual and group interviews, shared artifacts, and observations, I have gathered their stories. This paper tells those stories, highlighting the similar issues faced during fieldwork collaborations and the way those issues are manifested differently depending upon the experiences and perspectives of the individuals involved.

Author

• Melody Elrod, University of South Florida