Andrea Keck Frei, Mirjam Kocher and Christine Bieri Buschor
The purpose of this study is to examine career-change student teachers’ practice-based learning in teacher training, with a special focus on the support they received.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to examine career-change student teachers’ practice-based learning in teacher training, with a special focus on the support they received.
Design/methodology/approach
This study is based on a qualitative content analysis of 15 group interviews, including 58 career-change student teachers and focuses on their learning at university and the workplace.
Findings
This paper indicates that career-change student teachers’ learning is task-related and based on interactions. It benefits from the support provided by actors at the university and workplace. Their learning is highly self-regulated and built on skills from prior professional and life experience. However, behaviourist learning and trial-and-error learning strategies are more often mentioned than constructionist learning and goal-oriented learning.
Practical implications
The findings underline the fact that universities and schools can enhance career-change student teachers’ learning by providing professional support, helping them to form links between experience from their prior profession, as well as their knowledge acquired at the university and experience from the workplace.
Originality/value
Until now, few studies have addressed workplace learning in teacher education. The present study aims to address this lack. Moreover, the study shows how career-change student teachers deal with the challenge of bridging the gap between theoretical and practical knowledge acquired during practice-based teacher education.
Details
Keywords
Christine Bieri Buschor, Esther Forrer and Katharina Maag Merki
This article presents some of the initial results of the National Young Adult Survey (YAS), which is currently collecting data on the cross‐curriculum competencies of 14,905 18�…
Abstract
This article presents some of the initial results of the National Young Adult Survey (YAS), which is currently collecting data on the cross‐curriculum competencies of 14,905 18‐ to 22‐year‐olds in Switzerland. Young adults show a willingness to continue their education during the first five years after school. Using a regression model, it was found that the willingness of these young people to continue their education and training is dependent on achievement motivation, contingency beliefs, self‐efficacy, cooperation, independence and level of education.