Changing Teacher Educators’ Conceptions and Practices Around Literacy Instruction: Lessons from Teacher Educators’ Professional Development Experiences in Ethiopia

• In Event: Cultivating dynamic educators: case studies in teacher behavior change in Africa and Asia

Proposal

This presentation describes a study drawn from the experiences of the Reading for Ethiopia’s Achievement Developed Technical Assistance (READ-TA) project (2012–2017), sponsored by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented by RTI International and partners, including Florida State University. Included are lessons learned about how teacher educators participating in READ-TA reacted to new literacy ideas or practices; and recommendations for best practices in pre-service teacher education. Findings are based on data collected through survey research and interviews that examined the impact of READ-TA’s professional development opportunities on both teacher educators’ conceptions and practices of literacy instruction. Also, student teachers’ understanding and readiness to teach the primary school curriculum were examined. During the program, teacher educators’ conceptions of literacy shifted from a simplistic view of reading as scanning and skimming to reading as an exercise that involves complex cognitive processing. Teacher educators’ practices evolved from lecturing to engaging student teachers through group work, presentations, and questioning. The development of pre-service modules helped both teacher educators and student teachers become well-informed about expected teaching roles and activities in the primary school. Teacher educators came to believe that student teachers enrolled in classes implementing the new modules were prepared to teach in primary schools; student teachers shared this view. Implementation fidelity of the new pre-service program was challenged by student teachers’ limited prior knowledge, some teacher educators’ incomplete content mastery, and changes required in time and resource management. Recommendations include continuous professional support to facilitate teacher educators’ learning and practice of new concepts, and to sustain pedagogical change.

Authors

• Marion Fesmire, Florida State University

• Flavia S. Ramos-Mattoussi, Florida State University

• Adrienne Barnes, Learning Systems Institute at Florida State University