Leading change in teacher education: Balancing on the wobbly bridge of school-university partnership
Heinz, Manuela Fleming, Mary
Heinz, Manuela
Fleming, Mary
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Publication Date
2019-10-15
Type
Article
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Citation
Heinz, M., & Fleming, M. (2019). Leading Change in Teacher Education: Balancing on the Wobbly Bridge of School-University Partnership. European Journal of Educational Research, 8(4), 1295-1306. doi:10.12973/eu-jer.8.4.1295
Abstract
Initial teacher education (ITE) programmes have been critiqued widely for failing to connect educational theory with everyday practices in schools. More meaningful collaborations between schools and teacher education providers have featured prominently among key recommendations addressing the traditional theory-practice divide. This paper traces and critically analyses one simplex story of initiating and leading a large-scale school-university partnership (SUP) network in the Republic of Ireland. Using a narrative approach, the protagonists and researchers of this SUP story bring their simplex journey of doing and shaping SUP to life. Analysis of the Irish case study emphasizes the authentic transformation of teacher educators institutional identities as a powerful enabler of meaningful collaboration while also highlighting ethical dilemmas that arose for university tutors in the context of deeper relational engagement in the school-university cross-boundary space. Constrained in their ITE praxis by power relations and a disequilibrium of responsibilities, tutors doubts, discomfort and, at times, disillusionment led them to readjust their expectations with regard to SUP while also refocusing their energy and hopes in student teachers as collaborative future change agents.
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Publisher
Eurasian Society of Educational Research
Publisher DOI
10.12973/eu-jer.8.4.1295
Rights
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Ireland