Roles, Goals, and Practices of University Supervisors

• In Event: Behind Closed Doors: Student Teaching, Supervision, and Curricular Goals

Abstract

Objectives or purposes: The purpose of this research is to explore 1) the perceived roles of the University Supervisor, 2) the articulated goals of the supervisory experiences, and 3) the methods of practice within a traditional teacher preparation program.

Perspectives/Theoretical Framework: Researchers and practitioners alike regard field experience as one of the most valuable experiences in the professional development of pre-service teachers. Much research has been produced regarding the qualities, characteristics, and best practices for classroom teachers who supervise candidates during their student teaching. However, little research has been conducted regarding the roles, goals, and practices utilized by University Supervisors. This study focuses on that aspect of the clinical experience.

Methods, Techniques, or modes of inquiry: Fourteen supervisors, who oversee the practice of approximately 139 student teachers, are participating in this study. Supervisor surveys address supervisory understanding of their role and responsibilities and how they tie their understanding back to the curricular goals of the teacher preparation program. Additional archival data includes travel documents that allow tracking of the number of school visits made during the 2010-2011 academic year, supervisory observation records outlining the ways in which supervisors respond to student teachers’ performance, and student teachers’ evaluations of the supervisors. The presentation of student teaching curriculum is thereby triangulated across survey self-report of specific curricular elements as illustrated by emphases placed in observation records and responses by student teachers in their evaluation reports.

Results and/or substantive conclusions: Initial results suggest that supervisors focus on concrete aspects of practice with little curricular through-line. That is, supervisors are unlikely to bring a holistic view of teacher preparation to the student teaching practice, thereby minimizing the overall influence of their supervisory practice. Student teachers are left to believe that teaching is a series of independent acts, rather than a cohesive entity involving lessons, practices, and pedagogies that work as symbiotic whole.

Significance: This work suggests that the work of supervisors requires specific training and preparation to ensure that supervisors bring not only their individual experiences but a clear theoretical framework to their supervisory practice.

Author

• Judi H. Wilson, Augusta State University