An Empirical Study On A Practical Model Of Pre-Service Teacher Education In College

Pre-service teacher education has been under close study in colleges, old and new, domestic and abroad. Effective models have been set in theoretical regards. Trials have been conducted for practical significance. College students'teaching practice, as the core of"teaching orientation", has existed as a necessary form of pre-service teacher education. The deeper reform and further opening-up of China and its social development as well as the need of reality brought into being the brand new talent education model --- students'internship, which is supposed to drastically improve teachers college students'practical ability and their whole person development."China State Education Commission's suggestions on promoting teachers college students'internship"(To teachers, No. 4, 2007) points out,"Enforcing internship in teachers college is an effective measure of promoting teacher education reform, strengthening students'internship practice and improving teacher education quality. It is a necessary means of reinforcing teacher's sense of social responsibility and sense of commission in leading students into the masses and understanding the society. It is also important in tying up teachers college and primary and secondary education institutions, in propelling the combination of theory and practice, so as to better serve basic education. This will also benefit rural teachers in self development. It will finally lead to all-round implementation of quality-oriented education."The present thesis takes students'internship as an example to probe for an effective model of pre-service teacher education in college. It starts from a hypothesis of the benefit that students'internship does to the improvement of their practical ability and quality. It takes triangulation research methods such as investigation, interview, expert counseling, literature analysis and contrastive analysis. It analyses the feasibility and regularities of students'internship, with the purpose of finding out a practical model of pre-service teacher education in college.The thesis first states that a practical model is historically based and practically needed. Since the beginning of teacher education in its modern sense,"teaching orientation"has been the major feature of teacher education. Education in practice is the main form and a necessary part of it. Historically and globally speaking, teacher education in college has always propagated the combination of theory with practice. Students'internship is considered as a compensational measure in students'growth, which is intended to improve their practical ability and comprehensive quality.The earliest model of practical talent education was proposed by the ancient Greek philosopher Democritus. He valued emphasis in practice, which helped to found later educational schools in foreign countries. In the meantime, Confucius in Spring-and-Autumn Period of China also put forward an idea of practice in trial. That is an important philosophical origin of China's education and modern teacher education. After the birth of modern teacher education, the pragmatic educational theory of the American educationist, Dewey, became a major theoretical basis of talent education in practice. That theory has directed teacher education and its practice abroad. While in China, Tao Xingzhi's idea of"unity of teaching, learning and doing"became the main principle of teacher education in contemporary age. Thereafter, teacher education in practice gradually became an important model of college student education in China and abroad.Social development as well as the reality of modern teacher education casts an urgent need in a practical model. One reason is that such a model originates from the professional features of teaching and social demand of teacher's quality. The other reason is that such a model is the need of modern teacher development. Therefore, the practical model proves itself to be an indispensable form of pre-service teacher education in college.The thesis mainly studies the principles and practice, form and features of students'internship, and analyses its feasibility and necessity. Students'internship is a new model of education in teachers college, which is normally directed by educational administration institutions and coordinated by primary and secondary schools. It centers on promoting teachers college students'development, aiming to foster students'teaching skills and serve basic education in rural areas. Students'internship should take appropriate forms, that is, to organize school-based training and off-service community study among target school teachers by utilizing educational resources of teachers college. A composite way is to provide"pre-service training to student teachers"and"off-service training to target school teachers". The trained students replace those teachers during their internship. To ensure its implementation, important systems should be designed for student management, tutorship, and relevant curriculum for teaching. Only by getting wide support and organically combining teachers college students'internship and local teacher training, by providing sufficient and effective practice opportunities, can students'practical ability and integrative quality be improved. In the process of students'internship, different models are created such as social practice-oriented model, bilateral service model, government-directed model, training model, and so on. The feasibility and effectiveness of this new pre-service teacher education model prove to be an efficient and practical way of student education in teachers college in the aspects of multilateral wins in system designing, students'whole person development, practical ability improvement as well as their moral education.Although effective research of students'internship is insufficient, necessary, integrative and systematic theories are to be discovered, professional management and student teacher instruction are still to be fulfilled, this practical model of pre-service teacher education in college has established a rational system and achieved remarkable significance. Wider social consent and more supportive policies will surely drive such a model to perfection. It will become a main trend in practical student education in teachers college.The thesis is an empirical study, much of which is based on the writer's theoretical thinking in longitudinal practice. Inevitably errors exist. However, it will surely benefit further study in this area.