Exploring Partnerships in teacher education Dr Clare Brooks Director of Initial Teacher Education Head of Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment APTE 2017

What are partnerships for?

What are partnerships in teacher education seeking to achieve?

Changing times …

The view from here …

The business of teacher education Orchard and Winch (2015) Teachers as executive technicians “told prescriptively by others what to do, without needing to understand why they are being told to do it “ Teachers as craft workers “Teaching is a craft and it is best learnt as an apprentice observing a master craftsman or woman. Watching others, and being rigorously observed yourself as you develop, is the best route to acquiring mastery in the classroom (Gove, 2010)” Teachers as professionals

Teachers as professionals “The teacher who is able to engage with theory and the findings of educational research shares with the craft worker teacher a capacity for self-direction. By contrast, though, the professional teacher is able to judge right action in various school and classroom contexts from a more reliable basis for judgment than intuition or common sense. A teacher who is able to make good situational judgments does not rely on hearsay or unreflective prejudice. She draws on a well-thought-through and coherent conceptual framework, on knowledge of well-substantiated empirical research, and on considered ethical principles, to arrive at decisions in the classroom context.” (ibid p14)

Professional Compass

How do you get a professional compass? Friedson (2001) – The Third Logic 3 types of occupation that require training Skilled – apprenticeship, work-placed Technical – specialist training, work and outside school Professions – need university input

The role of Universities (according to Friedson) … legitimise and control knowledge control entry to the profession – by controlling the stem of new recruits Sit outside practice, but contribute – "intellectual authority" and "occupational community" Creates tensions and challenges between practitioners and university

What’s the impact on partnerships?

Thank you! Clare Brooks C.brooks@ucl.ac.uk