Abstract

Problems with the implementation of Research-Based Teacher Education Reform

Jón Torfi Jónasson, University of Iceland

The point of departure of the paper is the conclusion of Heggen, Karseth and Kyvik (2010, p. 58) asking for a pragmatic stance from those wanting to relate research and practice of teacher education. The present paper argues that there are a number of fundamental problems with the notion of research based teacher education reform, all of which should be addressed by those who want research to make an impact, even if the scope of the problems varies greatly between systems of education. They should be tackled. We will discuss each in turn and we might classify the first four as fragmentation issues but the last two as issues related the nature of educational research.
The first stems from the distance between the researchers and the modulators of teacher education. Teacher education is often formulated by ministries, but also by university authorities, which in many instances are far removed from both those who do the research and those who implement the practice.
The second relates a number of organizational obstacles. Some studies imply that professional training should be conducted in close co-operation with schools, which in turn demands a close relationship between the two, which may not always be easy.  
The third problem stems from the fragmentation of the establishment of teacher education. Teacher education is run by a host of often very different interest groups who have very different views of the nature and essence of teaching and thus teacher education. This makes it especially difficult to introduce anything near a coherent influence of research on teacher education.
The fourth stems from the confinement of the normalized discussion to pre-service education. It will be argued that much of the discussion about research and teacher education is directed at pre-service education, whereas it will be argued, the major impact should be on professional development.
The fifth stems from the many and very different research traditions within the field of education which makes a coherent effort to influence the field of teacher education
The sixth stems from the non-prescriptive nature of educational research, which partly relates to its non-casual character. The nature of research, in particular educational research does not allow much prescriptive influence, even if it can induce reflection and thus constructive influence.

Heggen, K., Karseth, B., & Kyvik, S. (2010). The Relevance of Research for the Improvement of Education and Professional Practice. In S. Kyvik & B. Lepori (Eds.), The Research Mission of Higher Education Institutions outside the University Sector. Striving for Differentiation (pp. 45-60): Springer.