Teacher education futures: compliance, critique, or compromise? A UK perspective

Abstract

The construct of the ‘good teacher’ has teacher knowledge as a fundamental component; but teacher knowledge is contested. Policy makers offer one version, articulated through such documents as Teachers’ Standards. However, it might be argued that this version of teacher knowledge, largely defined by national curriculum and assessment demands, does not constitute the whole of what teacher knowledge might encompass. Using a card sort research approach, this article explores what teachers say about teacher knowledge, and the implications this might have for the future of teacher education. How might the development of ‘good teachers’ be impacted in the light of these findings?

Keywords:

• policy and professionalism
• teacher education
• teacher knowledge

Notes

1. Department for Education, Teachers’ Standards, May 2012, effective from September 2012: https://www.education.gov.uk/publications/eOrderingDownload/teachers%20standards.pdf.

2. Department for Education: http://www.education.gov.uk/schools/teachingandlearning/reviewofstandards.

3. https://www.education.gov.uk/publications/eOrderingDownload/teachers%20standards.pdf.

4. http://www.mindmatters.edu.au.