Nabil Assadi Pedagogical Instruction, Sakhnin Academic College for Teacher Education, Israel
Tareq Murad Pedagogical Instruction, Sakhnin Academic College for Teacher Education, Israel
Abstract—this study attempts to examine the effect of a new model in teacher education or training, AcademyClass, on teacher students' professional development according to their point of view. The research examines the influence of the new training model on the pre-service teachers' relations with their, training teachers, pedagogical instructors and the students of the school. The participants of the study were 32 third year students who study at Sakhnin College and do their training at nearby schools `for three days. The instrument of the study was a questionnaire and an interview. The validity and reliability of the study instrument was obtained. The findings of the study were: 1. The student teachers' level of knowledge, skills and qualifications of teaching and learning is higher after the program than before. 2. The teacher students experienced the training more effectively and efficiently after the program. 3. The student teachers are more convinced that they made more professional and correct choice of career after the program than before 4. The student teachers' attitude towards the pedagogical instructor, the training teacher, the school students and the contribution of the training by the program towards strengthening the relationship with the school and its students was higher after the program than before. Index Terms—academy-class, teacher's education, training teacher, pedagogical instructor, PDS I. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE The colleges for teacher education in Israel consider the internship in teachers' education as the basis of their theoretical studies that take place inside them, and attribute a great importance to the preservice teachers' training (Khalil & Asadi, 2005). According to Khalil and Asadi, one objective of the training programs is to give the student teachers the opportunity to practice their teaching at schools under the supervision of professional and veteran training teachers from schools, and expert pedagogical instructors from the academy. Inside the schools, the student teachers are exposed to various factors that are involved in the teaching and school management. They also observe activities that occur training schools and try to discuss and analyze them. In addition, student teachers observe lessons, prepare lesson plans, teach and evaluate their lessons (Khalil & Asadi, 2005). During the practical work at schools, these students will know the education system- teaching facilities, curricula and different populations of school students. They also know textbooks and didactic aids used in teaching different subjects and disciplines, and will experience different teaching methods. Following practical training, student teachers will acquire work habits, learn to prepare balanced and efficient lesson plans and equip themselves with tools to prepare a teaching unit and develop it. Academic colleges for teacher education combine between different models of training: traditional training, PDS and academy-class, the last one is experimental. According to the first model, which is frequently used in teachers' education in Israel, the student teachers are sent to training schools and are accompanied by training teachers from the school for observation and experiencing lessons in the subject matters that the students study at the academy. One drawback of this model is that the students from the college feel lonely because of the disconnection between the theories they study at the college and practice they experience at schools Since eighties, reforms in teacher education took place in England and the United States. These reforms affected other countries of the world in general and Israel in specific. The essence of these reforms is the partnership between the field-the training schools- and the academy where these students study, thus the academy institutes serve as a source of theoretical, disciplinary, and didactic knowledge for the schools, on the other hand, schools serve as a practical field for the student teachers from the academy. Based on these concepts, experts from Israeli ministry of education began to develop different models for teacher training, including the American model: "Professional Development Schools (PDS). While school-university partnerships are a relatively new concept, the community schools ideology dates back over 100 years. It reemerged in the early 1980s in response to concerns about the serious challenges, such as violence, drugs and poverty, facing inner-city school students (Hunzicker,J., Schifeling,J., Sattler, L. & Lathan,J, 2012). Goodlad (1990) states that in PDS model, the academy sends a group of students to a training school together with a pedagogical supervisor from the academy. The school provides a field for practical work and the academy provides the theory, and both the school and the academy work in partnership. Within this PDS framework, the academy members conduct professional development activities for mentor teachers and provide supervision of student teachers. The collaborative nature of the PDS environment allows for continuous evaluation and the growth of pre-service teachers. In this model, the student teachers do not only learn from the individual training teacher, but also from the system, that has organizational and pedagogical restrictions. The experts develop this Model in teachers' training institutes to "expand" the training process of the student teachers (Ariav, 2001; Zelberstein, 1995). In addition to the support and guidance from a training teacher, the preservice students are exposed to authentic situations of teaching and learning or other tasks from the life of the school. A group of students takes part in the various activities that held at the school, these activities related to the school system during the study day, or activities after the school day. The experience that the student teachers tackle during the day at the training schools is of mutual benefit, both for the students and the educating schools. PDS models appeared in Holmes Group Report, Tomorrow teachers, in 1986 for the first time. Although this model combines, elements such as development center (Clark, 1990) and collaborative school (Goodlad, 1990), this model is more than a school lab or a place for clinical development of novice teachers, but it is considered to be new institution (Holmes Group, 1986). Unlike the traditional model, PDS creates partnership between the training school and the Academy where the preservice teachers study (Ariav, 2001; Zelberstein, 1995). This training program gives students the opportunity to experience teaching during the real life at school (Kizel, 2010). In addition, it could help failing schools improve themselves and make positive changes through partnership with the academy (Hill, L., Mellon, L., Goddard, J. & Laker, B., 2016). Ariav (2001) and Cochran-Smith (1990) define the partnership as an opportunity for simultaneous development of preservice teachers, their teachers in the academy and teacher staff of the training school. Cochran-Smith (1990) draws three models for the potential partnership: agreement model, mismatch and cooperative coordination model. Although many research on PDS model were conducted in the recent years, no fully developed instructions for the project appeared. The creators of the program emphasize that their efforts requires not only time to have its merits in teacher training, but also hard work in order to arrive the required level to function according to the plans. PDS model is similar to that of training doctors of medicine in the hospitals (Goodlad, 1990; Holmes Group, 1986; Kenndy, 1990). In PDS model, not only training teachers are involved in training student teachers but also the entire school takes part in educating these teachers (Goodlad, 1990; Clark, 1990). The student's diversity: ethnic, financial and geographical should be taken into account while training in PDS program (Pasch, pugash & Marleen, 1990). On the other hand, PDS model in teachers’ training has some drawbacks such as consuming many resources (Zimpher, 1990), and they lack suitable programs that regulate partnership between teachers’ education institutes and the training schools which receive the pre service teachers. Another weakness for PDS model is that it is very difficult to find a training school that can receive student teachers; therefore, the students should prepare themselves for competition on a place to practice (Zimpher, 1990). Therefore, there is a need for another attractive training program for schools and training teachers. The most current model in teacher education in Israel is 'academy-class'; it was carried out during the year of 2015/16 in teachers' education in Israeli universities and colleges. It is a pilot and experimental program. This program is based on the principles of PDS that consider partnership between training schools and the academy as essential step in teachers' education (Greany & Brown, 2015). There is a growing perception of the need for partnerships to promote learning at all levels, whether they are formally constituted as looser affiliations like those identified by Lieberman (2000). Such a perception derives from the recognition that the collaboration between stakeholders potentially optimizes learning. The recommendations in the Ramsey review (2000) further promoted discussion of the desirability of partnerships. Brady (2002) stated that there is a strong support for a great variety of partnership initiatives between schools and universities in the promotion of student teacher learning, school student learning, and the professional development of lecturers and teachers. Academy class relies on the partnership between university and schools. The literature on school-university partnerships highlights the challenges involved in making such partnerships successful. Differences in language, culture and organizational priorities can be compound by logistical difficulties, meaning that it can be hard to demonstrate impact (Greany & Brown, 2015).
