Exploring the Role of Cooperating Teacher in Relationship to Personal Career Development.

Abstract

This study, based on a survey of 302 cooperating teachers, investigated what cooperating teachers learn about themselves when working with student teachers, the impact of serving as a cooperating teacher on one's personal career path, satisfying or problematic features of the role of cooperating teacher, and contributions that cooperating teachers make to their profession. Cooperating teachers recognized their importance and influence over student teachers. They saw themselves as adequately prepared to serve as cooperating teachers, found serving as a cooperating teacher to be personally satisfying, and felt it to be 1 positive professional development experience. They were a little less inclined to view teacher education students as being prepared to benefit from their experience and they were less inclined to report adequate support by university supervisors in their work. Cooperating teachers viewed their role as mainly one of directing student teachers and facilitating growth. More cooperating teachers looked forward to receiving ideas and information from the student teachers than to giving ideas and information. Some cooperating teachers expressed uncertainty about their role and, to a lesser extent, the role of the university. The survey form is appended. (Contains 40 references.) (JDD) ********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. ***********************************************************************