Future Teachers' Concerns in Undergraduate Studies: "What If I Can't Teach It?"

• In Event: 25.028 - Innovative Teacher Education Program Designs

Abstract

Undergraduate programs for teachers often don’t satisfy future teacher needs. The goal of this project was to improve the undergraduate experiences of future teachers at a California State University in two areas: the quality of pedagogy in content courses and creating cohorts for better scheduling and on-time graduation. Students participated in 11 focus groups to explore the impact of changes on their experiences in courses, their own pedagogical beliefs, and their connections within cohorts. Themes centered on growth in awareness of the importance of pedagogy, feelings that practical needs of future teachers were better addressed, and newly formed cohorts benefited from a stronger sense of community and improved scheduling.

Authors

• Susan M. Tracz, California State University - Fresno

• Christian Wandeler, California State University - Fresno

• Lisa H. Bennett, California State University - Fresno

• Cathy Yun, California State University - Fresno

• Frederick Peinado Nelson, California State University - Fresno

• Steven Hart, California State University - Fresno