Roger Brindley

Writing Instruction or Destruction Lessons to be Learned from Fourth-Grade Teachers’ Perspectives on Teaching Writing

The purpose of this study was to examine fourth-grade teachers’ self-assessments of their perceptions about writing development and writing instruction. The authors surveyed fourth-grade teachers within one large school district in the Southeastern United States. Utilizing quantitative and qualitative methodologies, they analyzed the teachers’ self-assessments of their instructional practices with regard to writing. They found that the teachers revealed a wide range of statements about writing instruction with fluctuating perspectives about how writing develops. In addition, there was evidence that the state curriculum and the writing test dictated the teachers’instructional practice. As a result, many teachers revealed discrepancies between their perspectives about writing development and their instructional practices. The authors suggest there are lessons to be learned for all teacher educators from this scenario.

The Need To Do More: Promoting Multiple Perspectives in Preservice Teacher Education through Children's Literature.

Abstract Many preservice teachers come into teacher preparation programs with culturally insular perspectives and do not experience the cognitive dissonance necessary to reexamine their cultural beliefs. This study describes how we created a context within which 115 undergraduate students participated in literature studies, drama, and reflective writing in order to view critical textual incidents and contexts from multiple perspectives. This study (a) describes in-role simulations used in a literature study to encourage preservice teachers to reexamine cultural beliefs, and (b) analyzes the themes of the internal reflections preservice teachers have made as a result of this experience.

Transitioning to the classroom: reflections of second‐career teachers during the induction year

In recent years teacher educators have witnessed an increase in the number of alternative pathways to university‐based teacher education for prospective teachers. One option is for second‐career teachers to enter post‐baccalaureate programs in education; however, the experiences of second‐career teachers are largely unexplored in the international literature. The purpose of this study was to investigate the teaching beliefs that post‐baccalaureate students brought into a graduate level teacher certification program, and the extent to which those beliefs persevered or changed during their first year of teaching. Written philosophy statements and semi‐structured interviews from the three participants were analyzed to identify emerging themes. Outcomes, presented in the form of vignettes, suggested that second‐career teachers experienced many of the same contextual pressures as baccalaureate teachers and struggled adapting to the teaching profession and implementing their stated teaching beliefs. Implications include continued research on second‐career teachers as they represent a distinct population entering the teaching profession.

Betrayal and Redemption: Lessons to Be Learned from the Diary of an Intern

Abstract This article shares the personal diaries of a preservice teacher who during her two senior-year internships experienced the challenges and benefits inherent in a school internship. The intern, through her own words, tells of one thoroughly discouraging placement and a second excellent experience. The quality of this interns field experiences, ranging from feelings of abandonment and isolation to gratitude and relief, dramatically influenced her perceptions of the program and the university. These findings reinforce the need for university-school partnerships and are followed by a brief overview of the Professional Development School model.

Preparation never ends: Sustaining a mentorship model in early childhood teacher education

Abstract This paper documents the development of a mentorship project for both inservice and preservice early childhood teachers. This mentorship model was conceived by university faculty who were concerned that developmentally appropriate practice was fast becoming a casualty of the present accountability reform in education, and distressed by the disconnect between the university and the prek‐grade three classroom. The first two years of the model are described with particular emphasis placed on the second year efforts to increase the interaction of preservice and inservice teachers. Central to these efforts has been the two‐way communication resulting from video mentorship, and this paper documents the reactions of the stakeholders to this initiative. The paper closes by discussing the challenges that lie ahead as the mentorship model continues to evolve.

A Friend in Need: Mentorship and Community.

T o paraphrase Charles Dickens, these are the best of times; these are the worst of times. Certainly, the future of education is open to myriad possibilities and boundless opportunities. There is little doubt that, as we progress through the 21st century, technology and other changes will redefine how we interpret and deliver curriculum. At the same time, however, this is an extraordinarily difficult time to be entering the profession. Teaching is politically and socially undervalued, and schools are summarily blamed for society’s ills; in essence, educators are under siege. As teacher educators, it is our professional responsibility to provide those entering the field with the tools to be successful. Yet, many preservice teachers feel that once they graduate, support from the university ceases and lines of communication are broken. Graduates often lookelsewhere, then, for the support to negotiate all of their professional challenges. This article focuses on a university mentorship model being developed as a source of such needed support.