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The beliefs and classroom practices of pre-service history teachers
Author
Lee, Lay Hong
Supervisor
Goh, Chor Boon
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to describe and analyse pre-service teachers' beliefs and practices about secondary school history. The study examines first, the beliefs and their origins held by five pre-service history teachers on the subject-matter and the way they perceived how it ought to be taught in Singapore schools. Second, it looks into the influence of these beliefs on their pedagogical decisions in the planning and teaching of their history lessons during the teaching practicum attachment.
Using the qualitative case-study approach, data collection included interviews, on site observations and documentary sources. Data were analysed using content analysis of field notes gathered from the multiple interviewing and observation session, and characterised under (a) teachers' beliefs and (b) their practices. Patterns and themes which emerged were compared across the five teacher participants. Finally, the data were searched for confirming evidence of congruency between beliefs and practices.
Findings demonstrated that despite encountering constraints during their teaching practice, the teachers still managed to put their beliefs into practice, into practice, and feel that (at the end of the school attachment) their beliefs still hold. The extent of conformity and level of frustration during their practice also depends on the degree of correlation between their beliefs and the demands of the school curriculum. Other observations showed that teachers' beliefs were well formed even before they enter into the methods course at NIE, and that the methods course does not have an impact on their beliefs about history teaching. Finally, it is noted that prior teaching experience helped the teachers to develop a clearer vision of their role, hence a more 'informed' view of teaching. As a result , the beliefs of these teachers tend to more congruent with schools expectations and curriculum demands.
These findings imply the importance of understanding pre-service teachers' beliefs about the subjects that they would be teaching. This has implications not only on teachers' practice in the classroom, but perhaps also the successful implementation of the methods course.
Using the qualitative case-study approach, data collection included interviews, on site observations and documentary sources. Data were analysed using content analysis of field notes gathered from the multiple interviewing and observation session, and characterised under (a) teachers' beliefs and (b) their practices. Patterns and themes which emerged were compared across the five teacher participants. Finally, the data were searched for confirming evidence of congruency between beliefs and practices.
Findings demonstrated that despite encountering constraints during their teaching practice, the teachers still managed to put their beliefs into practice, into practice, and feel that (at the end of the school attachment) their beliefs still hold. The extent of conformity and level of frustration during their practice also depends on the degree of correlation between their beliefs and the demands of the school curriculum. Other observations showed that teachers' beliefs were well formed even before they enter into the methods course at NIE, and that the methods course does not have an impact on their beliefs about history teaching. Finally, it is noted that prior teaching experience helped the teachers to develop a clearer vision of their role, hence a more 'informed' view of teaching. As a result , the beliefs of these teachers tend to more congruent with schools expectations and curriculum demands.
These findings imply the importance of understanding pre-service teachers' beliefs about the subjects that they would be teaching. This has implications not only on teachers' practice in the classroom, but perhaps also the successful implementation of the methods course.
Date Issued
2000
Call Number
D16.4.S55 Lee
Date Submitted
2000