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Student teaching as a significant part of the professional development of physical education teachers is implicated in the general failure of teacher education to adequately prepare teachers who can envision a world of schooling that is any different from the present one. This paper argues that the dominant pedagogy of student teaching is inherently conservative, is characterized by technical rationality, and embraces an outmoded view of professional knowledge. The adoption of a critical-inquiry perspective in student teaching is offered as a possible alternative.

This is an extension of a 1977 study on the effectiveness, in terms of success in student teaching, of a process for screening students for a physical education teacher preparation program. Preentry data including interview ratings, secondary school GPAs, and skill and fitness scores, as well as postentry data including university GPAs, were correlated with student teaching ratings (STRs) on a total of402 graduates between 1967 and 1983 at the University of Victoria. In the 1986 study, in addition to the correlations, ANOVAs were computed. The correlation matrix revealed significant but low positive correlations between secondary GPAs and university GPAs generally, and between STR and 3rd-, 4th-, and 5th-year GPA, respectively. ANOVAs revealed no significant differences in achieved STRs between interview categories, teaching attitude categories, or the four levels of entering GPAs. The only predictive power of preentry data was exhibited by entering GPA in presaging academic attainment in the 5-year program. In general, no preentry data were helpful in predicting teaching success.

This study was conducted to assess the level of stress and efficacy at the entry and exit of a traditional student-teaching experience in physical education. Significant positive changes during student teaching were illustrated on these stress variables: role ambiguity, role overload, role preparedness, and illness symptoms. No significant changes were made in personal teacher efficacy (PTE) and general teacher efficacy (GTE) during the course of the study. No significant relationships were found between the other dependent variables (gender, teaching level, prior field experiences) and stress/efficacy scores. Correlations were also reported between the majority of stress variables with personal teacher efficacy. Implications of the findings for student teachers and induction teachers are discussed.

This article describes a systematic approach (an Effective Supervision Guide) for organizing data generated during student teaching. The Effective Supervision Guide (ESG) allows supervisors and student teachers to identify and/or trace changes in teaching performance. The ESG involves (a) establishing a baseline of teaching performance, (b) selecting behaviors that need remediation or maintenance, (c) specifying strategies for remediation and maintenance of targeted behaviors, (d) establishing performance criteria for targeted behaviors, and (e) indicating beginning and ending dates for targeted behaviors.

An analysis of student teaching was made to determine how student teachers defined becoming a better teacher based on their actual teaching experiences in the gymnasium. Specifically, two definitions were derived from experiences the subjects identified as indicative of either progress or no progress in becoming a better teacher. A critical incident technique was employed to collect and analyze data from 20 student teachers. Data were collected in the second, sixth, and ninth weeks of a 10-week experience. Reliability of data was established by comparing exact agreements between the investigator and five impartial judges. The results of this study suggested the student teachers defined a better teacher through experiences in which a teacher-planned lesson activity was felt to have worked due to the entire class responding to the teacher’s efforts with appropriate social behavior. Incidents not indicative of a better teacher were those whereby the student teachers felt an activity they tried did not work, resulting in wasted time and inappropriate social behavior by the entire class. Further, it was found these definitions did not change throughout the student teaching experience.

This study examined cooperating teacher (CT) experiences in and perceptions of the student teaching practicum, and the impact of the practicum on their beliefs about teaching in physical education and on their perceptions of the practicum. Constructivism, particularly social constructivism, provided the theoretical framework. The participants were 7 elementary physical education teachers serving as CTs. The primary data sources were standardized, open-ended interviews with the CTs and journals kept by the CTs throughout the practicum. The results showed that these CTs saw the practicum as a positive experience that caused them to increase reflection on and revitalize their teaching. Few changes were noted from pre- to postpracticum in the CTs’ beliefs about teaching physical education or their perceptions of the practicum. CTs with positive practicum perspectives have in common certain contextual factors and social interactions that differ from CTs with negative perspectives; these are discussed.