Louise Tracey

Student teachers’ experiences of initial teacher preparation in England: core themes and variation

Drawing on data generated via large‐scale survey and in‐depth interview methods, this article reports findings which show that being a student teacher in early‐twenty‐first‐century England is a demanding personal experience which requires considerable engagement and commitment in the face of built‐in challenges and risks, and which engenders, for many, highly charged affective responses. Student teachers are centrally concerned during this time with their (changing) identities, their relationships with others and the relevance of course provision. Findings also indicate that, in some respects, student teachers’ accounts of their experiences are systematically differentiated according to a number of factors, notably the initial teacher preparation route being followed, their age, and their prior conceptions and expectations of teaching and of learning to teach. These findings are situated in the broader literature on teacher development and some implications for teacher educators are discussed.

‘Teaching could be a fantastic job but …’: three stories of student teacher withdrawal from initial teacher preparation programmes in England

Retention in initial teacher preparation (ITP) and the teaching profession, in England and elsewhere, has been the subject of numerous articles in academic and professional journals. Whilst a number of common findings are beginning to emerge from research on this subject, notably on the causes of student teacher withdrawal, studies have tended to neglect the difficulties experienced by the individuals who have lived through the process of embarking upon and withdrawing from ITP programmes. Having conducted in‐depth interviews, the authors attempt in this paper to understand the experiences, emotions and decisions of three people who committed themselves to ITP, invested much energy and time, but in the end withdrew. The reasons for their decision are numerous and complex. The impact on each individual was considerable. The experience was painful.

Success for All in England: Results From the Third Year of a National Evaluation

This article reports the third-year findings of a longitudinal evaluation in England of Success for All (SFA), a comprehensive literacy program. Eighteen SFA schools across England and 18 control schools, matched on prior achievement and demographics, were included in this quasi-experimental study. The results of hierarchical linear modeling analysis reveal a statistically significant positive school-level effect for SFA schools compared with control schools on standardized reading measures of word-level and decoding skills, and there were directionally positive but nonsignificant school-level effects on measures of comprehension and fluency. Practical and policy implications of these findings are discussed, particularly as they relate to recent English government policies encouraging schools to implement research-proven approaches.

Effects of co‐operative learning on the mathematics achievement of Years 4 and 5 pupils in Britain: a randomized control trial

International comparisons of achievements in mathematics suggest that children in England are under‐achieving in this key subject. Many studies have suggested that co‐operative learning techniques have particular promise in mathematics and may therefore offer a solution to this problem. This article presents the findings of a large‐scale randomized control trial designed to evaluate a co‐operative learning mathematics intervention (based on the Student Teams–Achievement Divisions programme), involving Year 4 and Year 5 pupils in 34 primary schools in England. In contrast to studies conducted elsewhere, this evaluation found no significant improvements in children’s mathematics achievement as a result of the introduction of the co‐operative learning programme. The authors argue that this may be due to limitations of the programme as adapted to the English context but suggest that the study itself demonstrates a willingness by head teachers and schools to participate in adopting innovative interventions.

Teachers' experiences of initial teacher preparation, induction and early professional development in England—does route matter?

The last 10–15 years in England have witnessed a number of government-driven changes to initial teacher preparation (ITP) and the early professional development of teachers. One important development is that potential entrants to the teaching profession are now offered a wide range of routes for achieving Qualified Teacher Status. In addition, other initiatives, such as the introduction of the Career Entry and Development Profile, have sought to encourage closer integration between initial teacher preparation and the school-based induction of newly qualified teachers. Given this, there is a need for research that explores how the experiences of teachers following different routes into the profession compare, and how integrated their ITP, new teacher induction and early professional development programmes appear to be in practice. The ‘Becoming a teacher’ project (2003–2009), funded by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES), the General Teaching Council for England (GTCE) and the Teacher Training Agency (TTA), and carried out by researchers at the University of Nottingham, the University of Leeds and MORI Social Research Institute, addresses this need.

Working Mothers: A Review

Books reviewed in this article: Elizabeth Bortalaia Silva (eds), Good Enough Mothering? Feminist Perspectives on Lone Motherhood Simon Duncan and Rosalind Edwards (eds), Single Mothers in an International Context: Mothers or Workers? Kim England, Who Will Mind the Baby? Geographies of Child Care and Working Mothers

Making a difference in education. What the evidence says. Edited By Robert Cassen, Sandra McNally and Anna Vignoles

The ‘evidence-base’ is commonly raised in any discussion of the way we address challenges within our education system. What the evidence is, however, can frequently be lost in such debates. This bo...