The Challenge to Change: International Perspectives on Teacher Education Professor Tony Townsend University of Glasgow

Perception Our view of the world is a product of what we are looking at, where we are standing when we are looking at it and how we feel about ourselves and the thing we are looking at.

FABULOUS FILES ARE FREQUENTLY THE RESULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTIFIC STUDY FOLLOWED BY THE KEEPING OF FULL FINDINGS.

FABULOUS FILES ARE FREQUENTLY THE RESULT OF YEARS OF SCIENTIFIC STUDY FOLLOWED BY THE KEEPING OF FULL FINDINGS.

Perception Our view of the world is a product of what we are looking at, where we are standing when we are looking at it and how we feel about ourselves and the thing we are looking at. We can, however, change people’s perceptions of the world by providing them with new information, by educating them.

 Does it mean that teacher educators are being challenged to change what they do? …  Or does it mean that teacher educators are challenging (resisting) the need to change? So what do we mean by the ‘challenge to change’?

Every few hundred years in western history there occurs a sharp transformation. We cross... a divide. Within a few short decades society rearranges itself, its world view; its basic values; its social and political structure; its arts; its key institutions. Fifty years later, there appears a new world...we are currently living through such a transformation. Drucker, 1993: p 1

A B C D E A - when an innovation is first introduced, it takes time for it to be accepted by people B - once it starts to be accepted it is easier for others to start using it too C - most people are now using the innovation, and it has changed how we see the world D - eventually all thing start to decline. We get bored with them, or do other things…OR E - we start using a new innovation that replaces the one we had, and the cycle starts again How change happens (Handy 2004)

How different people respond to change

Toffler, 1971: 12 I coined the term ‘future shock’ to describe the shattering stress and disorientation that we induce in individuals by subjecting them to too much change in too short a time.

How quickly things change How many things as you can think of in the next 2 minutes that a 18 year old teacher education student can do or experience today that you could not do or experience when you were 18.

 Technology Categories of change

Thomas Watson, Chairman, IBM I think there is a world market for maybe 5 computers 1943

Popular Mechanics, 1954

Hans Rosling

 Technology  Environment  Health  Wealth  Employment  Society/Population  Culture  Relationships  Values  Education Categories of change

The Surgeon and the Teacher...the impact of change

“In times of change learners inherit the earth; while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.” Eric Hoffer, 1995

So what does this mean?  The students we are teaching today see the world differently to the way in which we see it. They learn new things in entirely different ways than we did. We might even say they are a completely different species to us.  If we teach them the way in which we were taught ourselves there will be a mismatch between our teaching and their learning.  Implementing a new curriculum by teaching it in the same way we taught the old curriculum will lessen its chance of being successful.

Question for today… Where is the ONE PLACE where learning happens? Not one of the places, or even the most important place, but the one place?

Research Evidence Prof John Hattie (Uni Auckland): Meta-analysis of over 50,000 studies What are the effect sizes of various aspects of student learning? What are the most important things we can do to change student learning?  Reference: Hattie, J. (2003). ‘Teachers Make a Difference: What is the Research Evidence?’ make-a-difference.php make-a-difference.php

~5-10% ~50% ~5-10% > 30% John Hattie ( 2003, 2007) What makes the difference in student achievement?

Hattie (2003) It is what teachers know, do, and care about which is very powerful in this learning equation.

The RelationaLearning Model (Otero and Sparks, 2000) Isolated Learners Engaged Learners Interactive/Introspective Learners Global Self-regulated Learners RECOGNISING Awareness Facts for Forgetting UNDERSTANDING Adaptability Concepts for Analyzing VALUING Interaction Ethics for Discussion RELATING Interdependence Options for Positive Action

 Emphasis on academics  Emphasis on content  Emphasis on memory  Emphasis on constancy  Emphasis on the past  Emphasis on oneself  Emphasis on simplicity The 7 Sins of Educational Reform No emphasis on real life No emphasis on process No emphasis on thinking No emphasis on change No emphasis on the future No emphasis on society No emphasis on excellence Kai-Ming Cheng, (2013)

 Teachers need to be aware of and able to work within a climate of increasing complexity  Teachers need to be able to understand data and be able to make decisions based on it (in other words, teachers need to be researchers)  Teachers now need to move from a culture of teaching (transmitting what I know) to a culture of learning (working out how my students learn best and structuring my teaching so it fits their learning).  Teachers need to see themselves as leaders of learning, for their students, their schools and for themselves The Challenges for Teachers

 If Teachers need to be aware of and able to work within a climate of increasing complexity… then…  Teacher Education will need to move towards making teaching a graduate profession, but one where developing a culture of lifelong learning is a key indicator of the quality of the program The Issues for Teacher Education

 There are politicians in many parts of the world that judge teaching as a craft rather than as a profession. For instance in Florida, here are the various ways one can become a teacher:  initial degree college courses in traditional teacher preparation programme  after degree – full reciprocity (for out of state)  after degree – district alternative certification competency-based programme  after degree – a valid ABCTE passport certificate in the subject area  after degree – professional preparation college courses per Rule 6A  initial and after degree approved college professional training option-content major & college education courses per Rule 6A  after degree – educator preparation institute competency-based programme  after degree – two semesters of successful college full-time teaching experience  after degree – a valid NBPTS certificate in the subject area. Major challenge to face

 If Teachers need to be able to understand data and be able to make decisions based on it (in other words, teachers need to be researchers)… then…  Teacher Education will need to become a research- oriented profession, where those in the teacher education field are expected to conduct and publish research that will enhance the understanding of learning, teaching and leadership within school and other learning contexts The Issues for Teacher Education

 To a certain extent, the role of a lecturer or professor in teacher education depends on one’s perception of the nature of being a teacher (Townsend, 2011, p 494) from  “Teaching is a craft best learnt on an apprenticeship basis in schools” (Michael Gove, UK Secretary of State 2010) to  “Teachers need to be able to do, and education programmes develop skills. But, as mentioned above, there is also an emphasis on teachers needing to be and programmes that enable becoming” (Munthe, Svenson-Malmo, and Rogne 2011, p 449) Major challenge to face

 For those who take the first view, teacher education can be delivered in a variety of ways, through ‘on-the-job’ training, by completing a programme of professional development within a public or private agency, such as a school district or a business, or by attending a dedicated teaching institution…The latter viewpoint accepts that teachers need to go beyond simply repeating what others have shown or told them to do and to incorporate the ability to collect a range of data from appropriate sources, to analyse those data appropriately, and then to make decisions about future learning activities based on that analysis; in other words, to adopt the role of a professional and use appropriate information in the same way that a doctor or an engineer might do. (Townsend, 2011, p 494) Major challenge to face

Minister: How do I show I manage our national research programme? The PM says he wants vigorous leadership. Sir Humphrey: Well, we could try a spot of competition. You know, make each university compete for funds against all the others. We just need a way of funding the universities unequally. That should do the trick! (Sugden 1997: 367) Yes Minister

 Should teacher education institutions be places where few people do research into teacher education and most people are teacher education instructors? OR  Should teacher education institutions be places where most people do research into teacher education and only a few people are teacher education instructors? Challenge for the Research Council

 If Teachers need to move from a culture of teaching to a culture of learning… then…  Teacher Education will need to move from a culture of telling (what we know) to a culture of asking (partnering students to find the answers) The Issues for Teacher Education

Townsend (2009, p. 376) There are three dimensions to human relationships, the way in which we interact, the content of the interaction, and the circumstances in which the interaction occurs.

FOCUS ON FACTS/ TASKS SUPPORTING/ INVOLVING TELLING ASKING FOCUS ON CONCEPTS/ PROCESSES The way we interact The content of our interaction The environment in which we interact OPPOSING/ MANAGING Behaviours and Responses

FOCUS ON FACTS/ TASKS SUPPORTING/ INVOLVING A B C D E FH TELLING ASKING FOCUS ON CONCEPTS/ PROCESSES G OPPOSING/ MANAGING Behaviours and Responses

Professors and Students Management approachEnvironmentContent focusStudent Response Professor askingProfessor supporting Focus on concepts/processes Understanding Professor askingProfessor supportingFocus on facts/tasksKnowledge Professor askingProfessor managing Focus on concepts/processes Self-doubt Professor askingProfessor managingFocus on facts/tasksGuilt Professor tellingProfessor supporting Focus on concepts/processes Self-belief Professor tellingProfessor supportingFocus on facts/tasksClarity Professor tellingProfessor managing Focus on concepts/processes Unquestioned belief Professor tellingProfessor managingFocus on facts/tasksMemorization

 If Teachers need to see themselves as leaders of learning, for their students, their schools and for themselves… then…  Teacher Education will need to move towards the establishment of career long support programs and activities to foster the ongoing development of teachers as learners… to adopt a leadership for learning philosophy The Issues for Teacher Education

Leadership for Learning Five principles  A focus on learning  Conditions for learning  Dialogue  Sharing leadership  A shared sense of accountability

A focus on learning Leadership for learning practice involves maintaining a focus on learning as an activity in which everyone (students, professors, department heads, universities, the system itself) is continuously learning.

Conditions for learning Leadership for learning practice involves creating the conditions favourable to learning in which the culture nurtures learning for everyone, affording opportunities to reflect on the nature, skills and processes of learning and the physical and the social spaces stimulate and celebrate learning.

Dialogue Leadership for learning practice involves creating a dialogue in which LfL practice is made explicit, discussable and transferable. There is active collegial inquiry focusing on the link between learning, teaching and leadership.

Sharing leadership Leadership for learning practice involves the sharing of leadership in which organisational structures and procedures support participation in developing the teacher education programme as a learning community. Shared leadership is symbolised in the day-to-day flow of activities in the institution.

A shared sense of accountability Leadership for learning practice involves a shared sense of accountability in which a systematic approach to self- evaluation is embedded at classroom, department and college levels. There is a focus on evidence and its congruence with the core values of the university.

 All courses within a teacher education program need to reflect an emphasis on teaching FOR learning rather than the delivery of curriculum information  Students should undertake research activities that allow them to investigate issues associated with teaching for learning  Advantage should be taken of new technologies, new ways of delivering knowledge (for example, MOOCs: Massive, online, open courses) as a means of program development  Mentors should be assigned to all students and these should remain for the whole of the student’s course (where possible) Some Strategies: Teacher Preservice Programs

 Graduates should be provided with a smaller workload and ongoing support for at least the first year of teaching  School based mentors should be assigned to support graduates  University based learning programs related to issues of early teaching should be provided to all graduates  Teacher education institutions should play an active role in supporting the ongoing professional learning of teachers  Teacher education institutions should develop a leadership continuum program for those involved in early teaching to those who are experienced school leaders Some Strategies: Induction and Professional Learning

The Research Council as a Leader of Learning? A leader of learning asks really hard questions about substantial issues associated with teacher education and then supports teachers and researchers to find answers to those questions.

Professor Tony Townsend For more information