Mid Sweden University

Recent research emphasises significant interconnections between teacher educators’ normative beliefs, their relations with student teachers and their teaching methods. In an attempt to better understand how teacher educators perceive of their work task, interviews were conducted with twelve Early Childhood teacher educators at a Swedish University. Four dimensions are in focus: (1) What in your work situation are you most satisfied with? (2) Describe your approach to students. (3) Describe any personal or professional dilemmas you may have experienced. (4) How do you think we can best maintain quality in teacher education? Results of the study show that teacher educators’ professional development is largely determined by intrinsic motivation. Positive aspects relate to feelings of self-esteem, nurturing meaningful relationships, and caring for students; negative aspects relate to concerns about a heavy workload, professional ambiguity and a lack of time for scholarly pursuits. Developing a professional identity involves a conscious choice of pedagogical methods (teaching), self-cultivation and sharing of knowledge through research (scholarship), and administrative responsibilities (service). The complexities and challenges involved in being a teacher educator are many.Understanding how teacher educators’ normative beliefs influence their work and relationships is an essential component for future research on teacher education professionalism.

In this article, the significance and consequences of enhancing authentic learning processes within undergraduate teacher education are discussed, inspired by American (liberal arts) contemporary practices. Liberal education can be defined as a higher education that is a cultivation of the whole human being for the functions of citizenship and life in general. In essence, a successful liberal arts programme will be characterized by close student-faculty relationships, small classes, excellent teaching, individual instruction, empathetic advising and personal attention. Nineteen faculty members at a liberal arts college were interviewed about their understanding and experiences of what a liberal arts education entails, how they perceive of the relationship between teaching and research and what in their daily work motivates them. Sentiments expressed included over-commitment and a heavy workload, as well as professional autonomy, meaningful engagement and profound caring and concern for students. Results emphasize the need to reflect on how undergraduate programmes should or need to be constructed and implemented - taking into account the importance of dialogue, feedback and reflection - if the aim is to create competent democratic citizens to be scholars and leaders of the future. 

Current research points towards preschool and qualitative pedagogical relationships as being determined and formed by a close link between care and teaching. An Early Childhood Education should lead not only towards the acquisition of knowledge within specific areas but should also enhance the  personal development of student teachers. New and creative competences need to be developed to cope with increasingly complex, changing and diversified learning environments. The crucial questions are: How well does contemporary Teacher Education prepare student teachers for their future role? Do students feel that their teacher-training programme has sufficiently prepared them for their profession? This study comprises Swedish student teachers’ perceptions and experiences of their Early Childhood Education. Data is based on 181 written evaluations by final year student teachers. Results are discussed using a theoretical framework based on the sociological concept of an “educational contract” comprising three different levels of negotiation: students’ education and their current workforce; students and their teacher training programme; students, teachers and learning in any given educational situation

In this article, Anna’s occupational life history has been chosen to illustrate one woman’s personal and professional struggle for purpose and identity. Subjective construction is an on-going process and roles and identities are in a constant flux of coping with the tensions between continuity and change. By partaking of private as well as professional experiences, strategies used to maintain Anna’s personal integrity in changeable and often demanding contexts become clearer. Based on interviews, reflections, and discussions, Anna’s story provides authentic insights into the ways in which one teacher has learnt to cope with the demands and challenges in her life.

The diversity and complexity of the post-modern era places new and important challenges on teacher education. The crucial role that personal dispositions have for professional learning needs to be better understood and acknowledged. Teacher training programmes need to focus more on objectives such as promoting conflict literacy, self-awareness, empathy, leadership and collaborative skills, i.e. taking into account not only the cognitive but also the social and emotional aspects of human development. In this article, Swedish lecturers’ descriptions of what they consider to be competences and qualities necessary for future teachers constitute the starting point for a wider discussion on the decisive role of beliefs and emotions in being and becoming a teacher. Issues raised here should be able to contribute to a better understanding of what it means to be a teacher and, consequently, result in improvements in the planning of teacher training programmes.

In this article the concept of authenticity is explored within an educational context, using examples from the lives and work of teachers to illustrate the many qualities, dimensions and complexities involved in striving to be true to oneself. In educational settings authenticity has been aligned with personal commitment, meaningful contexts, realistic intentions, respect for students and on-going professional development. In essence, general fulfilment is attained when values pertaining to teachers’ personal and professional selves are in unison; when ‘‘what I am’’ and ‘‘what I do’’ are as true to ones nature as they can possibly be. By recognising and acknowledging authenticity as a personal process of engagement, manifested in teachers’ lives and work, we may acquire a deeper understanding of the kinds of practices and pedagogical encounters that enhance, or even limit, student and teacher development.

DRACON (DRAma for CONflict management) is an interdisciplinary and comparative action research project aimed at improving conflict handling among adolescent schoolchildren through the use of educational drama. The main purpose of our research has been to develop an integrated programme using conflict management as the theory and practice, and drama as the pedagogy, in order to empower students through an integrated, school-based programme to manage their own conflict experiences in all aspects of their lives. In our studies we have used different forms of selfreported data, such as questionnaires, diaries and questions requiring problem solving. Interviews with students and their teachers as well as observations have been used; drama exercises have also been video-recorded for further analysis. While students found it difficult to articulate their understanding of conflicts verbally, their engagement in the reconstruction of conflicts disclosed their grasp of the components of a conflict clearly enough. Peer teaching was found to be an effective method of teaching about conflict management. Results within DRACON have shown promising results with regard to empowering students to manage their own conflicts.