School Adoption in Teacher Education Erasmus Project

Project Title

School Adoption in Teacher Education

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for higher education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2016

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Quality Improvement Institutions and/or methods (incl. school development); New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; International cooperation, international relations, development cooperation

Project Summary

Background
Teacher educators normally don’t teach children and practicing teachers frequently forget the academic fundamentals of education. This has caused a gap between academic teacher education and the competences needed in education school practice. School adoption is a way to bridge this gap between schools and teacher education institutions by training student teachers for several weeks to adopt a school for one week. This while they are still learning themselves – using theory in practice and using practice experiences in theoretical reflection. School adoption offers win-win initiatives for both student teachers, schools and teacher education institutions.

Also, school teachers and teacher educators need to revise their educational paradigms. They have to consider flexible and innovative learning approaches and methods to improve quality and relevance of the teaching profession. ‘School’ and ‘teacher education’ as systems get much more linked up through the use of school adoption. They form a strong consistency between higher education, research and professional practice in schools which will strengthen the quality of teacher education. Both teacher students and teacher educators (and teachers!) will very probably profit from this new model for cooperation with schools. The project provides strengthened performance skills to students and teacher educators and higher efficiency in teacher education and training.

The presence of student teachers in schools for one week gives school teachers the opportunity to participate in professional development classes/team work outside school meanwhile. This model initiates innovation and new ways of thinking and acting in teacher education. School teachers get the possibility to develop their academic qualification and core competences through better communication between systems and through closer links between theory and practice. Teacher educators thus close the gap between their academic activities and the real needs of school development. School adoption is an efficient way to strengthen and focus on a practice oriented approach to teacher education. The school adoption project SATE is meant to be the beginning of an ongoing and integrated part of the future teacher education, and a strong partnership across countries will help to ensure the exchange of good practices.

Objectives
The aim of the SATE project was to bridge the existing gap between schools and teacher education by the development of an effective and innovative model for internships that strengthens collaboration between practice and the academic world. School adoption has shown to be a win-win situation. Student teachers take over a school for one week and learn by doing. They get the opportunity to test in practice their academic knowledge supported by a mentor and they take care of all tasks of a teacher (teaching, administration, relationships with parents etc) during the week, which is different from traditional internships. School teachers participate in professional development classes during this week in order to strengthen their skills and competences. They learn how to act as co-educators for student teachers in close collaboration with teacher educators.

Participating organisation
Five higher education institutions from DK, N, D, and Ru with a strong tradition for teacher education have been full partners in the project as well as one Danish Elementary School, the latter with the aim to ensure the crucial link to practice in all project activities. Before project start, all partner institutions designated a local stakeholder school to act as a test partner during the project, which means that these elementary schools were fully or partly taken over by teacher students at least once during the project period.

Main activities
All partner or stakeholder schools have been taken over by student teachers from the partner institutions at least once during the project period. In relation to these school takeovers the project group has evaluated the experiences through focus group interviews and video interviews with pupils, student teachers, school teachers and teacher edcators (mentors) (IO2 + IO3). As a result of transational discussions with exchange of good knowledge within the partner institutions, the project group has elaborated a set of generic guidelines for school adoption with the aim to inspire more teacher education institutions and schools to try school adoption (IO1). Also, a report/book has been produced with articles from all partner institutions and their different ways of dealing with school adoption (IO4). Furthermore, a web site is available with all relevant information (except from the videos as pupils cannot be shown publicly) – http://www.school-adoption.com/

Results and impact
Following products have been elaborated:
1. Guidelines for school adoption
2. Video clips as testimonials
3. Evaluation report
4. Book/report with articles from all partners

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 206825 Eur

Project Coordinator

UNIVERSITY COLLEGE SYDDANMARK & Country: DK

Project Partners

• Lyshoejskolen
• PAEDAGOGISCHE HOCHSCHULE WEINGARTEN
• EUROPA-UNIVERSITAT FLENSBURG
• NORGES TEKNISK-NATURVITENSKAPELIGE UNIVERSITET NTNU
• PENZA STATE UNIVERSITY