Developing Mutually Beneficial Partnerships Through Purposeful Field-Based Experiences: Lessons Learned From Professional Development

Abstract

In this chapter, two teacher educators share lessons learned when they adapted professional development structures for use with teacher candidates during the clinical practicum experience. Highlighted in this chapter are two field-based teacher education approaches that support the development of mutually beneficial partnerships. Teacher candidates and their cooperating teachers collaboratively used lesson study to examine mathematical discourse in an elementary setting, while teacher candidates used instructional rounds as a way for teacher candidates to observe more experienced teachers in secondary classrooms. Both structures attempted to bridge the persistent divide between university learning and clinical practice to the benefit of K-12 students, teachers, and teacher candidates. The chapter concludes with recommendations for increasing the number of teacher candidates and partnership schools involved in this field-based learning in ways beneficial to all those involved.