Constructing a framework for linking course content and the learning process for teacher education students.

The purpose of this, our first article as the new editors of the Teaching Strategies column, is to help college and university teacher educators think about and plan for linking course content and the learning process. We want to encourage readers to critically examine their own conceptual frameworks, teaching methods, strategies, and techniques, and to dialogue with colleagues in order to make more thoughtful decisions about their teaching practices. - S.G. & J.W.

Traditionally, undergraduate teacher education students in the United States learn the basic concepts and principles of human development, including the notion of developmental stages. Students acquire a deep understanding of subject content, as well as a broad set of teaching strategies to help them connect with children from diverse populations (Kennedy, 1991). They read textbooks and articles, view films and videos, and observe and interact with children in a variety of classroom settings. They participate in college class discussions and activities that demonstrate how subject matter is taught and learned, and that help them understand and appreciate the various stages of child and adolescent development.

This is the way we learned "best practices." We learned both developmental and behavioral theories, and became eclectic in our approach to both delivering the curriculum and handling children's inappropriate classroom behaviors. We interacted with children in many undergraduate field practica, and believed these to be a major determining factor in our teaching success. The most important component for us in those field experiences was the mentoring teacher. Dialogues with our supervising teachers helped us understand children and teaching. Reflecting on those rich dialogues in our undergraduate days moved us to reflect on our current practices in our university classes (Lubeck, 1998).

Making Connections

Today, our dialogues explore several different types of connections, such as those between concepts learned in various courses, those between theory and practice, those between students' learning and experiences, and those among faculty as they plan for students' learning. Our dialogues also include one of the most fundamental concepts in teacher education - how students will use theory, research, and information in school classrooms with real children. We believe a framework can be helpful for presenting these connections and concepts to students and colleagues, and for maximizing their understanding of the complexities of the learning process.

The two courses we discuss in this article are "The Developing Professional," taken by students entering the early childhood program, and "Implementing the Curriculum in Early Childhood Education," taken by students at the intermediate stage of their program. Each course has . . .

* a co-requisite with another course and cannot be taken out of sequence

* a weekly 1 1/2-hour recitation class, with additional hours of weekly guided experiences with children in the campus child care center, the Children's Institute

* its own content, although it shares concepts and strategies with the other in a developmental plan.

In "The Developing Professional" course (1 1/2 hours per week), students learn and practice communication skills, learn how to interpret child and adult behaviors, and learn how to build relationships with children, peers, and teachers. "Implementing the Curriculum" (1 1/2 hours per week) teaches students how to implement and evaluate curriculum, how to plan safe and creative environments, and how to effectively interact with peers, teachers, and parents.

Getting Started

Within the first year of working together as colleagues in 1995, we began discussing and comparing philosophies about children, university students, and teaching. We examined each other's course content and teaching methods, focusing on what concepts we really taught; how we helped students learn to reflect on practices; and how we helped students with writing problems, speaking skills, listening skills, and observing skills. We identified concepts we both teach, such as child guidance and professionalism, and methods we use, such as small group discussion, role-playing, and written assignments. Soon, a framework emerged that helped us organize these ideas into three components: professionalism, reflective thinking, and appropriate teaching practices [ILLUSTRATION FOR FIGURE 2 OMITTED].

Conceptual Framework

We were able to organize the content in our courses under these components very quickly, while giving thought to the hierarchy of concepts within the content. After further deliberation, we concurred that students' comprehension of these concepts moves along two continua in the direction of higher level thinking, deeper understanding, improved communication skills, and more reflective practice. The two continua we labeled personal development and professional development. Not surprisingly, these continua provide our early childhood program with coherence, our students with a socialization process, and us with a sense of mission [ILLUSTRATION FOR FIGURE 3 OMITTED].

We now have a framework that includes the major components, concepts, and continua to guide our instruction in two courses. It includes the pedagogy we believe pre-professionals must know before they can be effective practitioners (Duff, Brown, & Van Scoy, 1995; National Association for the Education of Young Children, 1996), as well as a sense that this information must be taught and practiced developmentally.

In teaching about professionalism, we emphasize developing and practicing professional image, understanding and engaging in ethical behavior (Feeney & Kipnis, 1992), and understanding advocacy and acting on behalf of children and families (Goffin & Lombardi, 1988). Reflective thinking is taught as a concept from the perspective of students' development. Students first focus on their own practice while they learn to model their practicum supervisors, then move to a broader reflection on teachers' practices, then re-examine their own practice (Cruickshank, 1985; Hah, 1995; Pugach & Johnson, 1988). Developing self-reflective practices includes learning how to make unbiased observations, accurate recordings, and appropriate interpretations of teachers', children's, and one's own behavior (Hendrick, 1998). In both courses, strategies and techniques have been designed to help pre-professionals deepen their reflections about their skills, abilities, and dispositions (Bowman, 1989; Johnson & McCracken, 1994).

Appropriate teaching practices include knowledge related to child guidance, curriculum planning and evaluation, family-school relationships, classroom management, and evaluation and assessment of children (Hendrick, 1998). These skills and concepts are taught through observations of teachers and children, laboratory experiences with children, small-group interactions, videotapes, readings, and discussions of pre-professionals' own experiences with children (Bredekamp & Coppie, 1997; Crosser, 1992). In their practicum experience in the campus child care center, students are expected to demonstrate professional teaching techniques and strategies appropriate to their own level of development.

For the remainder of the article, we will provide some examples of the concepts and strategies we use to help students begin to think of themselves as professionals.

Developing Professionalism

In the professionalism component, the concepts of imaging, ethics, advocacy, partnerships, and portfolios lend themselves to what we believe are valuable learning outcomes [ILLUSTRATION FOR FIGURE 4 OMITTED].

Imaging at the introductory student level means making the best first impressions. Class discussions center around favorite teacher characteristics, which lead to further discussions of values and observable behaviors. Students are asked to think about "What I look like," "What I sound like," and "What I say." Other techniques for image enhancing are starting and maintaining conversations, topics for conversation, and tips for small talk. These communication skills are a major part of the impression a teacher makes on the public. Also included are exercises in listening and observing, writing, and speaking. We use role-playing, small-group activities, written assignments, and class discussion to teach students the importance of their first impression on people.

At the intermediate level, students become more active as teacher assistants in their practica and start to use more extensively what they have learned from the introductory course about making a good impression. They are expected to behave as professionals in terms of how they dress, act, and interact. In the recitation class, students discuss their ongoing experiences with children, parents, teachers, and other students. They are graded on their speaking and writing skills.

Another concept important in the understanding of professionalism is ethics. In the introductory course, we talk about pre-professional expectations and the fact that students need a strong sense of personal values from which to operate. In discussing professional behaviors we help them develop a sense of high standards, for themselves and for the children they teach. In addition, we stress confidentiality.

In the intermediate class, students are given NAEYC's Code of Ethical Conduct (Feeney & Kipnis, 1992), and then asked to discuss hypothetical ethical dilemmas. Students think about actual situations that involve ethical considerations. At both levels, beginning and intermediate, we clarify our expectations of students in class by using a voluntary contract that addresses in-class behavior.

Learning about advocacy for children and families starts in the introductory course, when students talk about what they can do for children in their teaching placement, what they can do for them beyond their weekly practicum, what they can do in communities now, and what they can do in their first year of teaching. In the intermediate course, students are required to collect all names, addresses, phone and fax numbers, and E-mail addresses of their elected representatives, including local assembly people, city or county commissioners, and state and federal officials. The students are required to write a letter of advocacy to one of these officials on an issue related to early childhood education. They turn in a draft of the letter for approval, then the revised letter is mailed at the end of the semester.

Students begin to learn about forming partnerships when we address team-building skills. In small groups we have them practice some of these skills, such as listening actively, speaking clearly, sharing information, pitching in to help others, and learning to value co-workers' opinions and contributions. Small-group strategies consist of Round Table (a question is asked with multiple correct answers; each student writes down one answer as a paper is passed around), Numbered Heads Together (the instructor asks a question; in teams, students talk among themselves; a number is selected, and in each team the student who has that number gives the answers), and Jigsaw (each student is assigned a different part of the question or material; students share information with each of the other team members). Several other techniques are used; for example, "sunshine" moments (talking positively for five minutes about a topic), and "scope the team" (the person who is talking must look at every member of the team).

Intermediate students learn more about partnerships when they work with the introductory students to plan classroom activities. They must plan and execute the activity with this partner; later, each evaluates not only the activity, but also the partnership.

Students begin the creation of a professional portfolio in the introductory course by selecting three assignments that have been self-, peer-, or faculty-evaluated to include in the portfolio at the end of the semester. They continue to add to the portfolio during the intermediate course (Campbell, Cignetti, Melenyzer, Nettles, & Wyman, 1997). They bring to class materials from other university courses they have taken and draw from those in order to compile their final portfolio during student teaching. They also write a draft of their professional resume, and critique one another's efforts.

These are a few strategies we use to help students think about and practice professionalism - long before their final semester of student teaching. The feedback from student teaching supervisors indicates that students are well prepared for the classroom in the areas of professionalism, reflective thinking, and teaching practices.

Through our discussions and collaboration, we believe we have made a re-commitment to the learning process, as well as to ourselves and our students. Our long-term goal is to have our students become leaders in their schools and take ownership for their teaching performance and their education ideals. As Barth (1990) states, "In a collegial school, adults and students are constantly learning because everyone is a staff developer for everyone else" (p. 163).

In a follow-up article, we will share in detail some of the strategies in the reflective thinking and appropriate teaching practices components of our framework.

References

Barth, R. (1990). Improving schools from within. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Bowman, B. (1989). Self-reflection as an element of professionalism. In F. L. Rust & L. R. Williams (Eds.), The care and education of young children: Expanding contexts, sharpening focus. New York: Teachers College.

Bredekamp, S., & Copple, C. (Eds.). (1997). Developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood programs (Rev. ed.). Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children.

Campbell, D., Cignetti, P., Melenyzer, B., Nettles, D., & Wyman, R., Jr. (1997). How to develop a professional portfolio: A manual for teachers. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.

Crosser, S. (1992). Managing the early childhood classroom. Young Children, 47(2), 23-29.

Cruickshank, D. (1985). Uses and benefits of reflective teaching. Kappan, 66(10), 704-706.

Duff, R., Brown, M., & Van Scoy, I. (1995). Reflection and self-evaluation: Keys to professional development. Young Children, 50(4), 81-88.

Feeney, S., & Kipnis, K. (1992). Code of ethical conduct & statement of commitment. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children.

Goffin, S. G., & Lombardi, J. (1988). Speaking out. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children.

National Association for the Education of Young Children. (1996). Guidelines for preparation of early childhood professionals. Washington, DC: Author.

Han, E. P. (1995). Reflection is essential in teacher education. Childhood Education, 71, 228-230.

Hendrick, J. (1998). Total learning: Developmental curriculum for the young child (5th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill.

Johnson, J., & McCracken, J. (Eds.) (1994). The early childhood career lattice: Perspectives on professional development. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children.

Kennedy, M. (1991). Some surprising findings on how teachers learn to teach. Educational Leadership, 49(3), 14-17.

Lubeck, S. (1998). Is developmentally appropriate practice for everyone? Childhood Education, 74, 283-292.

Pugach, M., & Johnson, L. (1988). Promoting teacher reflection through structured dialogue. In H. Waxman, H. Freiberg, J. Vaughan, & M. Weil (Eds.), Images of reflection in teacher education (pp. 30-33). Reston, VA: Association of Teacher Educators.