The graduate teacher workforce : shaping teacher quality in Australia

Studying the Effectiveness of Teacher Education (SETE) is a four-year, mixed-method, longitudinal study investigating graduate teachers’ perceptions on the effectiveness of teacher education. The main target population were new teacher education graduates (those who graduated in 2010/2011) registered as teachers in Victoria and Queensland. The secondary target population were the school principals in those schools where the graduate teacher was employed. Identification of the main target population is drawn from Teacher Registration Authority databases. The quantitative component of the SETE project involves tracking teacher education graduates through a series of four surveys, collecting data on the influence of initial teacher education on graduate teachers’ perceptions of their preparation and effectiveness across key areas and in diverse school settings.

The graduate teacher workforce: shaping teacher quality

This paper presents findings from an Australian large-scale longitudinal study designed to generate an evidentiary basis for policy decisions regarding teacher education and beginning teaching. The Studying the Effectiveness of Teacher Education (SETE) study investigated the career progression of graduate teachers from teacher education into teaching employment, tracking their perceptions over time on the relevance and effectiveness of their teacher education programs and their experience of beginning teaching. This paper examines notions of ‘preparedness’ and ‘effectiveness’ during the first years of teaching. We think of preparedness and effectiveness in terms of the graduate teachers’ attitudes and beliefs (Löfström & Poom-Valickis, 2013) about their own preparedness and effectiveness in relation to context (Alton-Lee, 2003) and personal qualities and variables (Beijaard, Verloop, & Vermunt, 2000). The findings support the established view that learning to teach is a continuum involving initial teacher education, induction into the profession and then ongoing professional learning and development (e.g. Conway, Murphy, Rath, & Hall, 2009; Putnam & Borko, 2000). But SETE data shows that this is not linear and that preparedness and effectiveness are not related in ways commonly reflected in the storylines of teacher education entrenched in the schooling and educational policy discourses in Australia. The longitudinal components of the quantitative and qualitative data highlight graduate teachers’ changing perspectives on the effectiveness of their teacher education in preparing them for the diverse contexts in which they begin teaching and their sense of effectiveness as beginning teachers. In respect to thinking about ‘being prepared’ and ‘being effective’, this study furthers the international debate on what matters in the field of teacher education and teacher education research.

Teacher researchers - sustaining professional learning

In this paper we argue for an approach to professional development which supports teachers to engage in sustained intellectual inquiry and to investigate the conditions in their classrooms that might make a difference for students at risk of not succeeding at school. We focus on the work of one primary school teacher involved in the research project Teachers investigate unequal outcomes in literacy: Cross generational perspectives and explore the effects that redesigning her literacy curriculum had on her professional identity and the literacy outcomes for one of the children in her class. We suggest that the principles of building theory and practice, positioning teachers as agentive, and making a space for teachers to bring new – and renewed – professional knowledge to their work are principles of practice that energise and sustain teachers and their day-to-day classroom work. Such principles deserve attention, particularly at a time when teacher quality and professional standards are in the minds of policy makers.

Investigating the effectiveness of teacher education for early career teachers in diverse settings: analysis of large-scale survey data

‘As researchers and practitioners in the field of teacher education, we seem ill prepared to respond to critics who question the value of professional education for teachers with evidence of our effectiveness’ (Grossman, 2008, p.13). While there are many small-scale, nuanced case studies that speak about the particularities of specific teacher education practices, large scale, systematic, longitudinal studies that can provide rich and comprehensive data about the effectiveness of teacher education are limited (Cochran-Smith & Zeichner, 2005). In Australia, the Studying the Effectiveness of Teacher Education (SETE) project is addressing this gap by investigating the effectiveness of teacher education programs in preparing teachers for the variety of school settings in which they begin their careers. This three-year study utilises large-scale surveys and case studies to construct a deeper understanding of early career teachers’ experiences. It tracks all 2010/2011 teacher education graduates in Queensland and Victoria to investigate the effectiveness of particular characteristics of their teacher education programs in equipping them with the capacity to meet the learning needs of young people in a diverse range of Australian school settings.

This paper will discuss findings from the first of a series of online surveys completed by teacher education graduates in Queensland and Victoria (March-April 2012). Survey data includes teacher demographic information which form independent variables to inform inferential statistical analysis. Beginning teacher responses are mapped against key characteristics of participants' pre-service programs and framed in relation to the key themes of curriculum, pedagogy, assessment, behaviour management, and engagement with school stakeholders and local community. The findings will assist teacher educators design teacher education programs for effective beginning teaching in diverse settings and will also provide an evidentiary basis for policy decisions regarding teacher education and beginning teaching.

TESOL professional standards in the "Asian century": dilemmas facing Australian TESOL teacher education

Australian teacher education programmes that prepare teachers of English to speakers of other languages (TESOL) are confronting the nexus of two facets of globalization: transformations in the Asian region, captured in the notion of the "Asian century", and shifting conceptions of professionalism in TESOL in non-compulsory education. In booming Asian economies, English language learning is integral to the demand for high-quality education. This has produced increases in TESOL Teacher Education Programme (TTEP) enrolments of both domestic Australian students and international students from Asia. Growth in demand for TTEPs has necessitated that they cater to student diversity, and the intended contexts of practice. This demand has coincided with a concurrent movement towards professional standards for TESOL that, we argue, confronts complexities around quality, accountability, and professional identity and achieving conceptual and contextual coherence. Drawing on discourses of managerialism and performativity, this paper explores tensions between increased student demands for TTEPs, professional standards discourses which are part of the global policy discourses on teacher quality, and the achievement of programmatic conceptual and contextual coherence from the perspective of Australian TTEPs.

Towards providing quality secondary education : training and retaining quality teachers in Malaysia

With the gradual attainment of universal primary education, governments are shifting their attention to secondary education. Responding to the increasing demand for secondary education presents serious challenges and major opportunities in the quest for Education For All (EFA), and countries are striving to find policy responses to address these emergingissues. It is clear that teachers play a fundamental role in addressing challenges faced by secondary education. Ensuring the presence of competent secondary teachers in urban and rural areas is a major concern in both quantitative and qualitative terms. Existing studies on teacherrelated issues and analyses of teacher policy in developing countries tend to focus on primary education, probably due to the special emphasis given to primary education in the EFA process. In order to fill the gaps and respond to the increasing demand for quality secondaryeducation, the Education Policy and Reform (EPR) unit of the UNESCO Asia and Pacific Regional Bureau for Education (UNESCO Bangkok) coordinated a regional research study on secondary teacher policy and management in 2007 and 2008. This series includes a regional synthesis paper on comparative assessment of issues and policies affecting secondary teachers in East and South-East Asia, and five case studies: Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, People’s Republic of China, Republic of Korea, and Thailand. Three major areas related to secondary teachers are discussed in the case studies: quantitative analysis of demand and supply of secondary teachers, quality of secondaryteachers, and compensation. Each study is presented as a summary of the original study, and gives an overview of the status and issues of the country’s secondary education system. Researchers and officials from several universities and education ministries collaborated in thepreparation of the study. UNESCO Bangkok would like to sincerely thank all those individuals and institutions who provided their expertise and professional experience to this research. The findings presented in the series are intended to help governments gain insight into policyfor secondary teachers across a diverse range of countries, and draw lessons for possible policy responses to challenges and problems in the expansion of secondary education.

Initial teacher education and assessment of graduates in Australia

In this chapter we discuss the impact of recent standards-based legislation and implementation in Australia designed to improve the quality of teacher education and examine the ways in which teacher educators are assessing graduates in relation to beginning teacher standards, the evidence they are using within the context of accreditation of their programs, and the impact this is having on the teacher education curriculum. We report on research into the implementation and evaluation of an authentic teacher assessment approach being used in one Australian university and argue that such an approach not only empowers pre-service teachers but also teacher educators.

Conceptualising a voluntary certification system for highly accomplished teachers

In this paper I argue that a voluntary certification system for highly accomplished teachers must be part of a coherent system of professional accountability which is developed, implemented and managed by the profession. This would be a system that engages professional judgement of evidence provided by teachers in relation to their professional knowledge and practice, and professional standards for teaching would provide the organising framework for that judgment. It would be a system incorporating and aligning all forms of professional licensure, including entry into the profession and subsequent professional milestones. It would be a system that all partners in the profession across Australia—employers, professional associations, and registration authorities—endorse, participate in and align with.

The profession can take the lead in developing and implementing such a coherent and coordinated national approach by carefully developing a system to recognise and reward highly accomplished teaching. Such a system should aim to recognise and build teacher quality by defining what it is highly accomplished teachers know and are able to do. Moreover, such a system must fi nd ways of making teaching public and acknowledging teaching as intellectual work which involves professional judgment that draws on a recognised professional knowledge base and contextualised knowledge about students and their learning.

The paper is presented in two main sections. First, a proposed conceptual framework for the professional recognition and certification of highly accomplished teachers is outlined. Then, the argument for this proposed conceptual framework is presented drawing on learnings from relevant research and professional activity in both Australia and the USA.

Student attitudes and aspirations towards science

Research on student attitudes and aspirations towards science has been an increasing focus of concern in the past decade. Much of this is driven by a growing concern about students’ lack of interest in the further study of science in advanced societies. Because attitude to science is a multifaceted construct, the chapter first reviews research into attitudes in order to develop principles for its meaningful measurement. We then explore the main features of student responses to science and examine the common assertion that there is a negative downward trend as many have suggested. Recent research clearly shows a negative correlation between a country’s developmental index and student attitudes to science. The effects of gender, teacher quality and pre-adolescent experience on student attitudes and aspirations towards science are examined in some detail, as well as a number of other factors in attempting to understand the complex pathways and choices that students make throughout their schooling about the study of STEM subjects. The construct of identity is used to make sense of the variety of attitudes and aspirations of students towards science, with particular emphasis on gender and youth in post-industrial societies. Finally, the role of enrichment experiences in science is examined, as a real and potential influence on student engagement with science.

Teach for Australia (TFA) : can it overcome educational disadvantage?

This paper considers an alternative teacher certification pathway known as Teach for Australia (TFA) that is currently operating in the Australian state of Victoria. A discursive approach informed by critical theory is used in the paper to critically examine the specific case of TFA as an alternative teacher certification pathway charged with improving student learning outcomes and reducing educational disadvantage. The problematization of educational programmes such as TFA, including specific terms and statements found in TFA documentation, features prominently in the paper alongside the political and economic policy context of public education. The argument and central contention of the paper is that TFA will not overcome educational disadvantage; nor will it over time improve student learning outcomes.

Building an effective school-university partnership : a cluster approach

Deakin University has introduced a new Master of Teaching course incorporating a new form school-university partnership that we refer to as the ‘cluster approach’. In addition to responding to recent state and National reports on teacher education (e.g. House of Representatives Standing Committee on Education and Vocational Training, 2007; Kruger et al., 2009; Parliament of Victoria Education and Training Committee, 2005), this cluster approach aims to respond directly to recommendations from the Australian Teaching and Learning Council funded project into practicum partnerships (Ure, 2009), and focuses specifically on one of the reform agendas of the National Partnership Agreement on Improving Teacher Quality, that of ‘improving the quality and consistency of teacher training in partnership with universities’ (see http://smarterschools.gov.au/nationalpartnerships/Pages/ImprovingTeacherQuality.aspx)
Learning to teach is a continuum whereby teachers create new understandings and build professional knowledge and practice in collaboration with colleagues during their pre-service teacher education and then during their careers as teachers (Fieman-Nemser 2001). Learning to teach is not a sole learning activity; rather teachers learn in communities and in collaboration with colleagues. Moreover, teachers are always balancing ‘being the teacher’ while at the same time ‘becoming a teacher’ (e.g. Britzman, 2003). Thus, they balance the notion of ‘doing teaching’ while at the same time ‘learning teaching’, and this is nowhere more evident than during the professional experience component of teacher education. This cluster approach is based on these premises.
The work of Le Cornu (2004), Le Cornu and Ewing (2008) and Little (2001) also informed aspects of the approach, which is predicated on ‘reciprocal relationships’ amongst pre-service teachers, and between pre-service teachers and experienced teachers both in schools and in universities. It frames teachers as cultural producers of knowledge, pre-service teachers as new resources bringing different ideas and practices into schools and schools as knowledge building communities (Little 2001, Nias 1998, Retallick et al 1999, Veugelers & O’Hair 2005).