1. Context and Power: The Subject Conceptions and Practice of Pre- service Geography Teachers in Singapore Tricia Seow GTE Conference 2008 Image of puppets removed for copyright reasons

2. Subject Conceptions Research Implications for teacher practice Importance for teacher education BUT Influences on formation of subject conceptions varied and complex Practice may not always match conceptions

3. The Significance of Context Context affects pre-service teachers practice Context goes beyond the classroom Includes National education structures and policies Geographys social and developmental context School, departmental contexts

4. Context and Power Context is embedded in power relationships which frame the parameters within which we perceive the world and constrain our actions within it Foucaults Discourse

5. Context and Power Pre-service teachers are enmeshed within the power structures of context(s) Effect on subject conceptions? Effect on practice? Image of puppets removed for copyright reasons

6. Contexts: An Analysis Pre-Service Teacher School Geography Context Curriculum offered; Type of teaching exposed to Academic Geography Context Curriculum offered; Modules taken; Type of teaching exposed to Personal Context Personal background; Interests; Travel… Subject conceptions Classroom Practice National Education Context National education policies; Pay and promotion structures; Competitiveness and stratification of schools School Context School culture and mission; Relationships: staff, students, parents, community Subject Context Subject curriculum; Assessment formats; Dominant paradigms in subject During school placement Prior to teacher education course

7. The Singapore Context Highly centralised and uniform Prescribed national Geog syllabus: topics, skills and values, teaching strategies and resources, assessment format, objectives, weightages, time frame One university, one teacher education college, one employer =>implications for the subject conceptions of Singapore pre-service Geography teachers => implications for their practice

8. The Singapore Context Stratified Streaming and differentiation at every level from primary school through to university More innovation in curriculum and teaching context for elite students =>implications for the subject conceptions of Singapore pre-service Geography teachers => implications for their practice

9. The Singapore Context Competitive Annual rankings and intense rivalry Teachers ranking and bonuses Drilling to perform well in exams =>implications for the subject conceptions of Singapore pre-service Geography teachers => implications for their practice

10. Embodied Agents Teachers have bodies! … so what? The body matters!

11. Embodied Teachers Trained in the philosophical context of western metaphysical dualism, many of us have accepted the notion that there is a split between the body and the mind. Believing this, individuals enter the classroom to teach as though only the mind is present, and not the body (bell hooks, 1994:17). Teachers bodies affect the way in which they perceive, are perceived and relate to the world. => What is the effect of pre-service teachers embodiment, and societal regulation of their bodies, on their conceptions of Geography, and on their practice?

12. Contexts and Embodiment EMBODIED Pre-Service Teacher School Geography Context Curriculum offered; Type of teaching exposed to Academic Geography Context Curriculum offered; Modules taken; Type of teaching exposed to Personal Context Personal background; Interests; Travel Embodied characteristics Subject conceptions Classroom Practice National Education Context National education policies; Pay and promotion structures; Competitiveness and stratification of schools School Context School culture and mission; Relationships: staff, students, Parents, community Subject Context Subject curriculum; Assessment formats; Dominant paradigms in subject During school placement Prior to teacher education course Embodied Context Regulation of own body, bodily actions

13. Hmmm… What is the role of the teachers body in the teaching and learning of Geography? Is there a stronger link between Geography and the body, than other subjects?