Using university–school partnerships to facilitate preservice teachers' reading and responding to student writing

Preparing future teachers to read and respond to student writing is an important part of learning to teach writing. However, preservice teachers (PSTs) often do not have authentic opportunities to read and respond to student writing in methods courses. To create and provide more opportunities for reading and responding to student writing, I partnered with a local high school teacher and her student writers. In this article, I share why it is important for PSTs to have opportunities to read and respond to student writing, a university–school partnership designed to foster these opportunities, and observations from year one of implementation of the partnership. I end the article with important considerations for creating a partnership to foster opportunities to read and respond to student writing. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Using Digital Learning Platforms to Enhance the Instructional Design Competencies and Learning Engagement of Preservice Teachers

Given the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the associated radical changes to the teaching landscape, employing digital learning platforms in the professional training of teachers has become imperative. The instructional design competencies are among the most important competencies for today's teachers. Therefore, it is necessary to test the effectiveness of digital learning platforms to provide teachers with the required competencies, both cognitive and practical, and to help them improve these competencies. Accordingly, in this study, we aimed to measure the effects of using the Google Classroom platform to develop instructional design competences and learning engagement among preservice teachers in Saudi Arabia. We used a quasi-experimental approach, with a one-group design (pre- and posttest) in this study, which included 61 female student teachers. Three measurement instruments were utilised, namely, the achievement test, the product evaluation card, and the learning engagement scale. The results of our study showed that using Google Classroom as a digital learning platform was effective in helping the preservice teachers acquire and develop their cognitive and practical competencies in instructional design. Our results further revealed high levels of learning engagement at cognitive, behavioural, and social levels among the preservice teachers who participated in learning instructional design through the Google Classroom platform. Our findings emphasise the need for greater investment in digital learning platforms to support preservice teachers' professional training, as these students can benefit from the potential these platforms offer in developing their instructional design competencies.

Online Involvement for Georgia Student Teachers During Covid-19.

As concerns about Covid-19 rapidly escalated in March 2020 in the United States, all levels of education were impacted. A unique population (student teachers) faced challenges from two perspectives: as students and as teachers forced to teach and learn from a distance. Student Teachers, or preservice teachers (PST), are university students finishing a degree and/or teacher certification program by serving as an intern in a school setting. As schools were closed, these PSTs may not have been given access to the online learning platforms of their cooperating teachers (CT) and were no longer included in classroom instruction. The purpose of this study was to examine how the sudden shift away from traditional face-to-face instruction, co-teaching, and mentorship affected the involvement of music PSTs and their CT mentors in one region of the United States. Specifically, the research questions were: (1) How and in what ways were PSTs involved in planning, instruction, and/or assessment synchronously and asynchronously after school closures? (2) In what subdomains (performance, music theory/ear-training, etc.) were PSTs engaged in instruction and learning activities? (3) What challenges and solutions did PSTs report related to Covid-19 closures? A survey was sent, via email, to PSTs attending teacher preparation programs at universities in the state of Georgia at the end of the spring semester. Thirty-seven participants responded to the survey questions representing about 32% of all PSTs in Georgia in Spring 2020. Twenty-one were not given access to the online teaching platform of their placement school. A thematic analysis of the open-ended questions identified common themes including whether experiences were perceived as negative or positive. Of the PSTs given access, the majority of their responsibilities and experiences were creating assignments, additional help videos, participating in Zoom meetings, and assessing student assignment submissions. Of these experiences, interestingly, most were classified as positive by the PSTs. However, the importance of face-to-face interactions for both PST and the P-12 students was mentioned throughout survey responses. Approximately 10 PSTs mentioned their CT relationship/interaction and four of the respondents noted that their CT never reached out for help; however, six noted collaborative meetings or teaching with their CT. Importantly, some PSTs reported a lack of knowledge related to the planning and implementation of music instruction in the online modality. Therefore, teacher preparation programs should consider incorporating technology including online solutions into the music curriculum so that future music educators may more flexibly incorporate both in-person and distance learning.

The Impact of COVID-19 on Digital Competence A Case Study of Preservice Teacher Education Students in the Sultanate of Oman

The study looked into how COVID-19 affected the digital competence of a group of preservice teacher education students at a higher education institution in the Sultanate of Oman. The paper examined students' digital profile in five areas namely information and data literacy, communication and collaboration, digital content creation, safety and problem solving. Data from 32 undergraduate students was collected by utilizing DigComp, a European Commission digital skills self-assessment tool and findings from a survey. The digital competence framework measures the set of skills, knowledge and attitudes that describes what it means to be digitally competent. These skills are important for students to be effective global citizens in the 21st century. The results of the study revealed that the majority of the students scored Level 3 (Intermediate) in their self-assessment competency test score. The majority of the students perceived that their digital competence improved significantly as the result of online learning which was accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The rationale of this investigation is that it helps educators understand the students' level of digital competence and the students' perspectives on ICT skills. In turn, it informs us the ways to monitor the students' digital progress and the next steps in developing their digital competency © 2023, International Journal of Advanced Computer Science and Applications.All Rights Reserved.

Investigating the teaching practicum during COVID-19 through the lens of preservice teachers

Purpose: This paper aims to explore the perceptions of preservice teachers regarding their learning during the teaching practicum (TP) period in the context of the pandemic. Specifically, the objectives of this study are to analyze the difficulties and the learning consequences perceived by student teachers and also to identify proposals with which to improve the initial teacher education (ITE) during the TP period in times of uncertainty and crisis. Design/methodology/approach: This study used a mixed-methods approach. The participants consisted of 89 preservice teachers (student teachers). An online questionnaire was used to collect data during January 2022 in two rounds. The data analysis was carried out from an integrative perspective and used both a descriptive approach and the content analysis of the participants' narratives. Findings: The results show the differences, adjustments and adaptations that have had to be implemented in schools as a whole. The findings also highlight the difficulties that the pandemic context has caused for the TP period in schools and the relevant implications that it has had on ITE during these past two academic years. Originality/value: This research is relevant for a better understanding of the challenges faced during the pandemic in the field of early childhood and primary education. More specifically, this paper gives important clues to higher education institutions on how to carry out TP, especially in times of uncertainty and crisis. © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.

Preservice Teachers Engage Parents in At-Home Learning: "We Are in This Together!"

During pandemic school closures, preservice teachers designed activity plans to support the at-home learning of children in early elementary grades and recognized parents as vital to supporting their children's learning. This article uses data from a multiple case study of preservice teachers' planning during an alternate practicum. Drawing on models of family vibrancy and parent engagement that arise from funds of knowledge and parent knowledge theories, we highlight how preservice teachers included parents in reciprocal and democratic ways that honoured diverse family's contexts and their knowledge of their children. Results illustrate the importance of asset-oriented, flexible pedagogies that include meaningful parent partnerships both during and beyond the pandemic.

Distance Learning: Rethinking Learning Design in Higher Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic

During the second semester of the 2019/2020 academic year, due to the regulatory restrictions arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, Bologna University, like many others, was compelled to stop delivering its face-to-face offering and to switch, in a very short time, to the creation of a technological architecture that would enable students to continue their education through teaching via Distance Learning. After illustrating the active teaching model adopted in two courses offered by the University of Bologna Department of Education Studies, this paper addresses future educators by focusing on the main findings from a semi-structured online questionnaire completed by 84 students. The first part of the paper considers a rethinking of educational planning at the time of COVID-19, while the second and final part analyses student perceptions (using the questionnaire's open questions) of their Distance Learning experience in the initial phases of the pandemic scenario.

Learning at a Distance: Can At-Home Activities Measure Up?

Due to the global pandemic, many traditionally face-to-face courses had to transfer to online teaching. We, like many others, were faced with the challenge of replicating online our purposefully-designed mathematics content courses for elementary teacher candidates (TCs). In doing so, our aim was to preserve our pedagogical commitments of collaborative learning and equitable participation. In this paper, we describe a measurement activity that we redesigned in the rapid transition to online teaching. This activity exemplifies how the constraints of remote teaching opened new opportunities for maintaining our pedagogical commitments in different and richer ways. We also highlight two takeaways from this work: (1) creating space for students to explore introductory activities at home can lead to richer class discussions and more equitable participation, and (2) allowing for students to share their work in an online environment can lead to more creative approaches and presentations, as well as opportunities for students to share in-progress thinking before whole class discussions.

The Motivation and Teaching Strategies in Pre-Service Physical Education Teachers

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemics significantly affect teaching and learning. Especially physical education teaching that emphasizes practice in the field or large space. On the other hand, physical education classes must do online teaching, which leads to students not being interested in learning. This reason affects the teacher's motivation, making most teachers bored to teach without motivation. Specifically, in the preservice physical educators who have low experience in teaching and leads to unenjoyed in their class. Consequently, pre-service physical educators need to find new strategies to teach students to be of greater interest. Thus, this study examined the relationship between teachers' motivation (intrinsic and external motivation) towards teaching strategies among pre-service physical educators. The instruments were regarding teachers' motivation in terms of intrinsic and external motivation and teaching strategies. The respondents were 157 pre-service physical educators in five universities in the border provinces of Southern Thailand. The result showed that there is a relationship between intrinsic and external motivation towards teaching strategies among the participants. These results provide guidelines for preservice physical educators to improve their teaching and enhance students' achievement in the future through online physical education classes.

Pre-Service Teachers' Levels of Adaptations to Remote Teaching and Learning at a University in a Developing Country in the Context of COVID-19

The outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic has not only caused fear and uncertainty in the education systems across the globe, but it brought about a fundamental paradigm shift in the mode of teaching and learning. Higher education drastically transitioned to remote/online delivery even for the students who had enrolled for face-to-face mode of teaching and learning. The paper is premised in the context of a developing country that such a drastic change could have widened the digital divide between students from privileged homes and those from disadvantaged families as students did not receive adequate technological training and to even acquire the necessary electronic devices. Consequently, the study sought to establish the levels of adaptation to remote teaching and learning by university students herein referred to as pre-service teachers. Following a quantitative research design, an online questionnaire survey was administered to 157 pre-service teachers enrolled in a Life Sciences Methodology module at a South African university. Data was analysed using SPSS version 26 and descriptive statistics, exploratory analysis of the questionnaire constructs and One-Way ANOVA tests were conducted to compare pre-service teachers' perceptions, experiences and preparedness. The results showed that the disparities and inequalities that exist in different South African contexts in which pre-service teachers hail from, dictated their levels of adaptations to remote teaching and learning. Those from disadvantaged backgrounds were less adapted as they struggled more when it comes to acquisition of electronic gadgets and connectivity to facilitate remote learning compared to those from advantaged backgrounds. This study affirms the call for education institutions and governments to rethink ways of closing the gap between the poor and the rich in education in terms of resource and other support mechanisms.

Language Teacher Preparation in a Pandemic: An International Comparison of Responses to COVID-19

The unprecedented challenges posed by the global COVID-19 pandemic risked seriously disrupting the continuous supply and preparation of new teachers that are desperately needed to fill world language teacher vacancies. To better understand how world language teacher preparation programs around the globe supported aspiring teachers in the successful completion of their teacher training, the researchers conducted a case study that investigated how world language teacher preparation programs on three different continents responded to the global pandemic. Results suggested that the programs were not equally prepared to navigate the pandemic and had similar, yet different responses to it. Contextual factors, such as national wealth, the prevalence of online instruction pre-pandemic, and the shortage of world language teachers influenced both program preparedness and the accommodations offered to teacher candidates. The results of the study should be considered when developing contingency plans to address future disruptions to program delivery and speak to the need for additional research investigating the impact of COVID-19 on teacher candidate performance and the performance of their future K-12 students.

Opinions of Music Teacher Candidates on Determining the Suitability of the Distance Education Model for the Voice Education Course

The human voice, which is a natural and unique instrument, has a fundamental importance in expressing ourselves in life, both in communication, in the arts of oral and the art of singing. Therefore, using a person's vocal potential in its best, using the voice in its natural state and preserving vocal health are extremely sensitive and important issues. Therefore, the best realization of the objectives determined in voice training depends on the quality of the trainer and the training process. In the Voice Education course under the Music Teaching Undergraduate Program, one of the goals is to teach the music teacher candidate to use their voice, which is their most basic and natural instrument, in the best ways of speaking and singing, while also teaching about the protection of vocal health and preserving and improving the voice in its natural state. A music teacher candidate who receives such qualified voice education is able to apply what their learning in their practical life as knowledge and behavior, while using their own voice correctly and setting a good example for their students, they will also train their students well to protect their vocal health. Therefore, adequate and qualified education should be given to music teacher candidates at the level of knowledge and practice in the field of voice education. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, voice education lessons in the Music Teaching Undergraduate Program have been taught with the distance education model for a while. Unfortunately, it is concluded that voice training lessons based on practice are not suitable for online lessons with distance education. In the light of this view, the purpose of this research is to determine the suitability of the distance education model for the voice education course in the context of the opinions of the music teacher candidates. The results of this research, in which the scanning model and qualitative research method were used, indicate that the distance education model is not suitable for the voice education course, being an applied course.

A Collaborative Model for University and K-12 Partnerships: Using Distance Learning Technology for Pre-Service Teacher Clinical Experiences

Classrooms are operating differently during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in lab-based courses. Virtual classrooms utilizing Zoom, Google Meet, or other conferencing software can create challenges for hands-on, lab-based classes. These virtual methods also pose problems for pre-service teacher education students attempting to gain much needed classroom experience through clinical hours in local school districts along with K-12 schools restricting access to classroom visitors. This article explores a unique partnership between one middle school and a pre-service technology and engineering education program that created a valuable teaching and learning experience for all participants, which can easily be adapted to other settings. In this article the authors explore the goals of pre-service clinical experiences, important considerations when collaborating via distance technology, and provide a step-by-step guide to assist in developing and implementing a partnership.

A Scoping Review of Teacher Training during COVID-19 Pandemic

In comparison with other sectors, the education sector was most visibly impacted by the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, necessitating the adoption of effective strategies by teachers and teacher educators in order to minimize the negative effects of school closure on student learning within in a short period of time. This paper attempts to review the literature on the training of in-service and pre-service teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic in order to help guide relevant researchers in conducting more in-depth academic research, and to remind educational institutions and individuals of the need to take the most recent social issues into account when designing teacher training programs.

Transfer, Adaptation, and Loss in Practice-Based Teacher Education amidst COVID-19

The consequences and affordances of online teacher education remain understudied, even as it promises greater accessibility. The COVID-19-related pivot to emergency remote teaching offered a novel opportunity to study how practice-based teacher educators transitioned courses online. This multiple case study of six graduate student instructors examines the effects of transition on four pedagogies of practice-based teacher education. We discovered that: (1) representations, (2) approximations of practice could be adapted with minimal disruption. However: (3) enactments could be transitioned only with loss and cascading effects that impacted, (4) reflections on practice. These findings can promote teacher educators' awareness of how to create intentionally designed online practice-based teacher education courses. [This is the online version of an article published in "The New Educator."]

Teaching Practicum during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Comparison of the Practices in Different Countries

Today, many countries ensure that student teachers get into the real classrooms, practice in there, spend more time and translate theoretical knowledge into practice in schools during Initial Teacher Education. So that they can receive stronger support in the practicum process, and they can develop themselves. However, schools have been closed in so many countries due to the COVID-19 pandemic preventions. Therefore, countries have rearranged the teaching practicum process. The aim of this study, which was carried out with a systematic review, is to comparatively examine the teaching practicum processes of different countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. With a systematic review made according to certain criteria, teaching practicum in the COVID-19 in the countries of Australia, Canada (Ontario State), England, Greece, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Portugal, South Africa, Turkey, the United States of America (New York State) and Zimbabwe were examined. According to the findings, it has been seen that some countries have removed or stretched the teaching practicum requirement during the COVID-19, while some countries have carried out online teaching practicum (i) in K-12 schools, (ii) with peer learning, or (iii) using VR technology, and one country re-opened the schools after a short closure.

Three Days in March: Examining the Adaptive Expertise of a Teacher Leader at a Crucial Moment in a School-Embedded Teacher Preparation Program

Using an adaptive expertise lens, the following case study examined a teacher leader's perceptions of three crucial days in his life and practice. From March 13th to 16th, 2020, when his school responded to the COVID-19 virus, David1, a teacher leader, had to move a complex school-university learning partnership from in-person classes to an on-line environment. In the partnership, a graduate-level preservice teacher preparation program was embedded into the daily operation of an innovative project-based middle-school. In this partnership, David wore four hats: he taught 6th grade classes, taught a graduate-level technology course at the middle school in the teacher preparation program, co-directed the school university partnership, and conducted professional development for his school and district. In the midst of a rapidly changing global crisis, David had to coordinate changes to each of these four interconnected institutional levels (of which we study the first three). The following research question guided the study: What were the key factors that facilitated David's leadership for teacher preparation and partnership success? Three key findings emerged from the research as important contextual pieces that enabled David's adaptive expertise as a teacher-leader -- and which allowed the school-university partnership to continue for the full semester: (1) David's deep knowledge of educational technology, (2) his ability to respond to challenges by drawing on foundational beliefs and principles, and (3) the progressive leadership of administrators at multiple levels.

Preparing Middle Grades Candidates for edTPA in Uncertain Times

Teacher candidates in North Carolina must earn a passing score on the edTPA assessment to get certified. The middle grades education program at Western Carolina University integrates aspects of the edTPA assessment throughout pre-student teaching coursework and field experiences to prepare candidates for this high-stakes assessment. Some of the edTPA practice assignments serve as key assessments that help the middle grades program faculty evaluate the program and make decisions about curriculum. The pivot to remote and blended learning formats on campus and in partner middle level schools affected the implementation of the edTPA-related assignments. The authors share some of the challenges of implementing edTPA practice portfolios during the pandemic as well as insights gleaned from their assessment of the data.

Using Case Method to Address Equity-Related Gaps in Principal Aspirants' Learning Experiences

Case method as an andragogical approach connects theory and practice in numerous fields: law, medicine, business, and education. With the recent COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns faced by public schools, higher education institutions faced challenges in how to address learning that had previously occurred within field experiences. The authors, working in the field of educator preparation, were able to shift some learning from field experiences to case method. With this shift, they were able to purposefully address issues of equity that students inconsistently encountered through field experiences. This self-study focuses on the implementation of a case study that had been previously published in a peer-reviewed journal by the authors. This case study became part of the culminating assessment for a course in the principal preparation program. Student responses indicated that case method instruction offered an opportunity to consider decisions involving equity in a low stake environment.

Teacher Education in Novel Times: Designing Comic Strips to Explore Elementary Learners' Experiences during COVID-19

This case study was conducted in Fall 2020 with two Elementary Education pre-service teaching candidates. The goal of the study was to better understand how students in this course developed new insights about teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic through their successful design of comic strip narrative artwork. The students created comic strips depicting the experiences of diverse elementary students during the pandemic, which were displayed in a campus art gallery. Data sources included two focus group interviews, written reflections, participants' final comics from the gallery, and other artifacts. Analysis was framed using Eisner's (1985/2005) concept of 'aesthetic knowing.' Findings regarding the insights the participants developed through this assignment were presented in the following themes: pedagogical perspectives, dialoguing, and audience. Conclusions and implications include a call for greater uptake of and research about arts-based teacher education assignments to better prepare candidates to enter the field as agents of change.