Reaching the Bar: Cooperating Teachers' Expectations for Student Teachers
Creators: Sharek, Jonathan P
Publisher: name: University of Alberta Library
Year: 2023

<p>The education and preparation of pre-service teachers for K-12 classrooms remains a <br>
widely discussed area of education literature. Expectations are high for new teachers to be <br>
capable to manage contemporary classrooms as they replenish the profession. The practicum is <br>
widely acknowledged to be key to teacher preparation as each graduate must complete at least <br>
one practicum round of classroom-based student teaching. Previous research has reported a large <br>
divide between universities and schools, role ambiguity among practicum partners, and <br>
inconsistent approaches across university programs as longstanding issues in teacher education. <br>
Cooperating teachers, classroom mentors of student teachers, are crucial partners in the <br>
practicum. A review of education literature suggests that cooperating teachers’ voices are often <br>
not heard in research and their expectations for student teachers are understudied. <br>
This qualitative interview study examined ways in which classroom teachers view their <br>
roles as mentors for student teachers. The following research question guided this study: What <br>
do cooperating teachers expect from student teachers? Three sub-questions that further guided <br>
the study are (1) How do cooperating teachers describe their expectations for student teachers? <br>
(2) What do cooperating teachers communicate to student teachers about expectations for the <br>
teaching practicum? (3) In what ways are cooperating teachers’ expectations for student teachers <br>
shaped and formed? <br>
Data was collected through 10 semi-structured interviews in select K-12 urban schools in <br>
Alberta, Canada. This interpretive study was guided by a pragmatic approach and the <br>
researcher’s practitioner positionality. This study identified emergent themes from participants’ <br>
descriptions of their experiences with mentoring student teachers. The themes were discussed within larger categories: Insider and Outsider Positionality, Cooperating Teachers’ Professional Commitment and Mentoring, and Recognizing Idiosyncratic Nature of Cooperating Teachers. <br>
This study suggests that while cooperating teachers often approach mentoring with enthusiasm <br>
and can experience benefits, longstanding challenges inhibiting the potential of a practicum can <br>
remain: a theory/practice divide with universities, the practical demands of content and pacing, <br>
and cooperating teachers’ experiences of classroom isolation and limited professional <br>
collaboration. <br>
This practitioner research has implications for the partners in student teaching such as <br>
universities, school divisions, and cooperating teachers. It may help to build awareness in <br>
university programs of cooperating teachers’ expectations of pre-service teachers. This study <br>
may help school divisions and cooperating teachers emerge from silos to explore conversations <br>
about how closely their attitudes, perspectives, and choices surrounding student teachers align.</p>