This book provides a call to action for post-compulsory teacher education professionals, both in the UK and internationally, to unite around key principles and practices. The professional, educational and funding turbulence experienced by post-compulsory teacher education since 2008 has been significant. Austerity financing and increasing government intervention have provided many new and difficult challenges. At the same time evidence is building that the quality of teaching is the most important contributor to the quality of learning and achievement, and teacher education is demonstrably one of the most important influences on that teaching quality. The mainly workplace-based partnership model of teacher education used in the post-compulsory education (PCE) sector resonates well with a number of key current developments in the UK and broader field of teacher education. PCE teacher educators are particularly well placed to tell their story and share their vision of a better future for teachers through their own experiences, values and principles. Written by a range of post-compulsory teacher educators, the text therefore is an informed and passionate argument for: improving the professional recognition of teacher education and teacher educators; demonstrating how teacher education already connects teaching professionals into an engaged and collaborative professional community; providing strategies to enact this vision through connected, democratic professionalism. This title is part of the successful Critical Guides for Teacher Educators series edited by Ian Menter.

Professional Development of Teacher Educators in Further Education critically analyses the specific challenges relating to teacher educators in the English further education (FE), such as the diverse nature of learners and the variety of educational contexts. It focuses on the journeys to becoming teacher educators, their relevant teaching know-how and professional needs. This book combines theoretical frameworks with both qualitative and quantitative data to outline the pathways, professional identities, knowledge, and continuous professional development of teacher educators. This data is used to discuss the four main themes. The first deals with the teacher educators’ initial disciplinary areas, journey-making to be educators, and the current titles/positions. The next one delineates the know-how (knowledge, experiences, capacities and skill sets) to perform as teacher educators. The third one relates to their professional identities and the final topic, their professional requirements as FE teacher educators. Contributing to the field of further and vocational education, this book will be of great interest for researchers, academics, and postgraduate students in the field of education, specifically FE and teacher educators.

This book includes a range of empirical-based international contributions by the global community of teacher educators and related researchers on the Further Education/post-compulsory, vocational/occupational and lifelong learning sector. It offers theoretical frameworks and empirical data to delineate issues relating to teacher educators and training in areas regarding policy, programmes, and pedagogic activities. Some of these areas include the education of teachers in vocational education, the professionalization of teacher educators in a neoliberal education system, and teacher educators' perspectives of a training programme for vocational education and training. Additionally, the areas cover the relevance of coherence in vocational teacher education for teacher educators, the use of questioning strategies for teacher educators, teacher educators and their initial disciplines, journeys and job titles, the relevance of craft and reflectivity of teacher educators, and the importance of teacher education and mentoring scheme. The rationale for this book is that there is a comparative lack of research and related publications on teacher educators and the delivery and design of teacher education facilitation in the sector internationally. Also, the FE sector is viewed as a backwater of educational research compared to the other sectors.

A straightforward guide to help teachers and trainee teachers in FE navigate the complex system of teaching qualifications and learn to teach in an ever-changing sector.

This book seeks to extend perspectives on professional identity in education. Chapters consider the notion of expertise, the impact of managerial approaches, the importance of communities of practice, and the effects of increasingly marketised approaches. By using narratives, the book opens up a ‘conversation’ about this important topic. Educators and leaders from a variety of settings will explore their professional experiences and the impact these have had on forming values in the professional role. By drawing on personal experience, individual authors will consider some of the challenges they have encountered as part of identity formation. The significance of organisational cultures is discussed throughout the book and explores the ways in which individual autonomy is both threatened and claimed. Issues discussed include the frequent changes imposed through government initiatives and the social perception of education professionals when compared to other professional roles. Contributions have been drawn from teachers and leaders in schools, colleges, universities and specialist training. Chapter authors have a variety of experiences offering a multi-perspective approach. This will include strategic leadership, operational management and classroom practice, all of which offer insights of interest to educators at various points on the professional journey. The narrative approach adopted by authors provides the opportunity for readers to engage with others’ experiences, enabling personal reflection on their own professional identity.

This book provides a concise and comprehensive overview of the practice of coteaching, including its benefits and educational and social implications. Coteaching plays an important role in enhancing the experience and effectiveness of pre-service and in-service teachers during school experience at a time when teacher retention rates are a concern both nationally and internationally. Traditional practice in school experience, generally comprising observation followed by complete take-over of classes, has not altered in more than a century, despite significant changes in the role of the teacher, the needs of students, the learning environment and the functioning of schools. Coteaching provides a pedagogy which supports pre-service teachers more actively and promotes teacher professional development, as they work together in co-planning, co-practice and co-evaluating lessons during school-based experience. Co-teaching in Teacher Education is part of the successful Critical Guides for Teacher Educators series edited by Ian Menter.