Opportunities to Enact Practice in Teacher Education: Taking an International Perspective

• In Event: 34.096 - MTCC Roundtable Session 12
  In Roundtable Session: 34.096-1 - Conceptualizing and Measuring Opportunity to Learn in Teacher Education

Abstract

Objective. This study reports on using OTL as an approach to study the role of opportunities to enact classroom practices during campus courses in five secondary teacher training programs in Chile, Cuba, Finland, Norway and the U.S. We use OTL to operationalize and examine critical features of candidates’ opportunities to study and practice teaching during their campus coursework with an emphasis on planning for teaching and discussing field experiences.

Theory. Our study combines two theoretical approaches, First, we focus on the role of vision and coherence in teacher education (Darling-Hammond & Bransford, 2005), underscoring how well-designed courses and fieldwork can collectively promote a clear vision of good teaching, as well as help candidates understand the theoretical grounding of that vision. Second, we draw on research on enactment (Kennedy, 1999) and pedagogies of practice (Author, 2009), focusing on candidates’ opportunities to rehearse, simulate, and approximate specific practices. Building on these theories, we developed a conceptual framework with 15 dimensions and supporting instruments (student survey and observation rubrics). The student survey captures perceived frequency and extensiveness of opportunities to enact specific classroom practices. Observation rubrics provide information about the quality and duration of these opportunities.

Methods and Data Sources. We created a survey suitable for different contexts that might capture variation across programs in terms of vision, coherence, and opportunities to enact practice. Our sample included five programs, all offering preparation for secondary-level teaching. 487 candidates completed the survey, with a response rate varying from 23% to 100%. Observations in the form of field notes were conducted in methods courses (mathematics and language arts) for a period of three weeks in each program (n=104 hours). Analyses of the observation data focused on the eight dimensions that measured candidates’ opportunities to practice and study teaching. This included opportunities to plan for teaching, analyze teaching materials, or observe a teacher educator modeling a practice.

Findings. Survey data across the five programs reveal strong similarities in opportunities to study and practice teaching. Across all programs, candidates report extensive opportunities to plan for teaching, analyze teaching materials, talk about field placement and examine national curricula. Candidates across all programs, however, report fewer opportunities to analyze student learning, watch classroom videos or witness teacher educators modeling practices. Observation data reveal quite similar findings. Deeper analyses of the observation data reveal that the duration (length of time) and the degree of specificity of these opportunities, and their explicit linkage to theory are critical to further enhancing learning.

Significance: OTL is a useful, but perhaps indirect measure of teacher candidates’ learning during teacher preparation. It rests on the assumption that degree of exposure equals actual learning. In this paper, we illustrate that OTL allowed us to examine established practices when it comes to ‘pedagogies of enactment’ - all practices rather distant from the pupils - and provided important data on their extensiveness. Yet our findings also reveal that even with extensive opportunities to practice, the quality of such opportunities must also be carefully scrutinized and addressed.

Authors

• Kirsti Klette, University of Oslo

• Karen M. Hammerness, American Museum of Natural History

• Inga Staal Jenset, University of Oslo