| The focus of this research was to examine the effects of a free choice learning environment (FCLE) course on prospective teachers' conceptions of teaching and learning. The treatment was a one-semester course on teaching and learning in FCLEs, which include settings such as museums, zoos, galleries, parks, gardens, and historic sites. I outline seven sets of Principles of Teaching and Learning that FCLEs may be particularly well-suited to use for preparing prospective teachers who will think broadly about the nature of learning and teaching. Qualitative and quantitative methods and multiple sources of data were used to explore the work of prospective teachers enrolled in the treatment course and compare their conceptions of teaching and learning to peers who did not take the treatment course. Prospective teachers in the treatment group and their peers were studied throughout the semester of the treatment. Surveys were also administered in the following semester while prospective teachers were student teaching. Four claims were made about the effects of learning about FCLEs on the conceptions of prospective teachers, based on the findings. First, these future teachers were better equipped to consider the importance of individual life experiences in understanding their students and potential connections between content and students' life experiences. Second, they were better able to create and modify curricula based on what they know about their students. Third, they were more inclined to consider opportunities for their students to make choices in the content and form of their own learning. Fourth, they perceived more options in the purposes and methods of field trip experiences. Finally, five literature-driven elements are proposed that may help explain why changes in knowledge, beliefs, and practices were more successful in some areas than others. Questions of programmatic coherence are raised and addressed within the discussion of trends. |
