A Study of Teacher Training in the United States and Europe.

Abstract

1. IntroductionThe influence of teachers in student achievement is unequivocal, so much that they are considered the most important within school factor for student learning (Hannaway, & Mittleman, 2011). In consequence, education policy in the United States places a great deal of attention on the issue of teacher training. In this regard, the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001 linked teacher competence to content knowledge, verbal skills and student performance (Hill, & Barth, 2004). The first two of these elements are directly linked to teacher preparation, an area that has been transformed as a result of this landmark legislative piece (Brown, 2010). Although calls have been made to dismantle teacher education systems and redefine teacher qualifications (Darling- Hammon & Youngs, 2002), many states follow similar pathways in the accreditation of teachers. Teaching certificates are issued by the states? education agencies for specific academic subjects and grade levels (elementary, middle and high school). Prior to requesting a teaching certificate, teacher candidates need to have obtained a bachelor?s degree with coursework in the subject they will be teaching as well as pedagogy and teaching methods. A practicum or student teaching is also required as is passing a series of examinations in pedagogy and content knowledge (Ingersoll, 2007).On the other hand, the European Union (EU) launched the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) in 2010 in the context of the Bologna Process "to ensure more comparable, compatible and coherent systems of higher education in Europe" (European Higher Education Area, 2014). As a consequence of this supra-national initiative, a total of 47 countries committed to reform their national qualifications frameworks for higher education, including the degree permitting access to the teaching profession. The EHEA initiative has resulted in significant changes in the way countries in the EU train their teachers (McKenzie, Santiago, Sliwka, & Hiroyuki, 2005; Enders et al., 2006; Zgaga, 2006). Whether the effects will be positive or negative and what tendencies these reforms have raised in terms of teacher education is still unclear as the empirical evidence is still small (Witte, Huisman, & Purser, 2009; Bauer, & Prenzel, 2012). Recent international comparative studies on teacher education (Witte, Huisman, & Purser, 2009; Schmidt, Houang, & Cogan, 2011; Tatto, & Senk, 2011) deliver no direct evidence of consequences. Almost 90 percent of EU member countries and 70 percent of higher education institutions have implemented the Bachelor's-Master's degree system in teacher education according to the requirements of the Bologna Process (Witte et al., 2009; Sursock, & Smidt, 2010). Teacher training at all levels is provided mostly in universities, and countries like Spain and Luxembourg have updated teacher education to university level (Bauer et al., 2011). Other countries like Iceland are still in the process of upgrading compulsory and upper-secondary teacher education, and since 2012 it is necessary to complete a Master's degree to become a qualified teacher (EURYDICE, 2011).The current discussion on teachers revolves around the quality of the initial teacher training, teaching and learning in schools and, as a result, the effectiveness of teachers (OECD, 2010). The results of the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) (OECD, 2009) reflected the teachers' development needs for various important aspects of their work, thus giving some hints on what to take into account when designing teacher education (Ostinelli, 2009). This paper promotes the idea that these principles must be translated into specific programs and strategies within the current teacher training framework, so as to bridge the gap between the initial training and the teacher profession, the teacher's routines, and the professional cultures (Novoa, 2009).The most cited areas of need in the aforementioned survey were the following: teaching students with special learning needs, integrated co-teaching skills, classroom management, instructional practices, subject knowledge, student counselling, content and performance standards, student assessment practices, teaching in multicultural settings, and school management and administration (OECD, 2009). …