Teacher education in America : reform agendas for the twenty-first century / Christopher J. Lucas.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Lucas, Christopher J.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Teachers--Training of--United States.

Teachers.

Teachers--Training of.

United States.

Educational change--United States.

Educational change.

Physical Description:

xv, 336 pages ; 22 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York : St. Martin's Press, 1997.

Summary:

Teacher preparation has always furnished a target for lively criticism. From the days of the first teachers' "normal" schools in the late 1830s to the elaborate preparatory programs offered in contemporary schools and universities, the question of how best to train classroom teachers for the nation's schools has been a topic of continuing controversy. Including an illuminating account of the history of teacher education in the United States, Teacher Education in America is a thought-provoking analysis of the major issues and problems surrounding teacher preparation. Christopher Lucas reveals the traditional four-year undergraduate programs--as well as the short-term "alternative" teacher certification routes--to be largely insufficient to the needs of teachers entering the nation's schools. In addition, he studies and critiques the so-called field-based models that have been touted as the wave of the future. Concluding with a thoughtful assessment of what may lie ahead, Lucas offers a challenging and provocative new direction for teacher education reform for the twenty-first century.

Contents:

Part I. A Historical Perspective

1. Origins and Development of Teacher Education in America 3

Colonial Schoolmasters

Early Teacher Licensure

Antebellum Teachers

The Common-School Crusade

Feminization of the Teaching Force

Advocacy for Formal Teacher Preparation

Teachers' Institutes

Normal Schools

Controversy and Conflict

University Teacher Training

2. Teacher Preparation in the Twentieth Century 49

Teacher Certification

From Normal Schools to State Teachers' Colleges

Teacher Preparation in the Universities

The Continuing Quest for Academic Legitimacy

Postwar Critics

The Miseducation of American Teachers

The Conant Report

Fads and Fashions: The Rhetoric of Teacher-Education Reform

Deja Vu

Part II. The Contemporary Context

3. Issues Old and New 95

Market Constraints on Teacher Education

Historical Traditions of Thought and Practice in Teacher Preparation

Criteria Governing Entry into Teaching

General Learning for Teachers

The Teaching Major

The Professional Component in Teacher Education: Methods Courses

The Teacher Effectiveness Question

Alternative Views

Student Teaching and School Culture

Changing the Teacher Workplace

Teaching as a Profession

4. Structural Alternatives 139

Calls for Extended Preservice Teacher Education

Arguments Pro and Con

The Carnegie and Holmes Group Initiatives

Reactions and Responses

Further Criticism

Professional Development Partnerships

Alternative and Site-Based Programs

The Goodlad Project

Assessing Options

5. Accreditation and Certification Standards 183

State Influence and Control over Teacher Preparation

State Standards for Teacher Licensure and Certification

Testing Teacher Candidates

Criticism of State Regulations

National Accreditation Standards

National Teacher Licensure and Certification Standards

Dissenting Views

Misconceived Standards

Part III. Future Possibilities

6. What Experienced Teachers Recommend: A Survey and Analysis 225

Introduction: Teachers as Program Evaluators

Possible Implications

7. Some Proposals 249

Disagreements in Review

General Liberal Studies

Preservice Practica

Initial Teacher Certification

Field-Based Teacher Preparation

Academic Sponsorship of Initial Teacher Licensure

Clinical Preparation

Possible Criticisms and Responses.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [293]-329) and index.

ISBN:

0312164440

OCLC:

35223142