EVALUATING A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR TEACHER EDUCATION QUALITY

It is critical for teacher educators and scholars of teacher education to think carefully about the conceptual framework that they use to evaluate teacher education programs. Without a strong conceptual framework, it may be difficult for teacher educators to evaluate whether or not they are operating within a strong program. Thus, we frame this article as an opportunity to present one particular pre-existing framework in the research literature that can be used to conceptualize teacher education quality. We then present some evidence that supports and challenges this framework. In other words, the purpose of this study is to evaluate the conceptual framework for teacher education quality proposed by Hsieh, Law, Shy, Wang, Hsieh, and Tang (2011). In our attempt to create a supplementary evaluation of this conceptual framework, we test a statistical model using a different large international database – Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) 2013 (OECD, 2014). Specifically, we examine the effects of preparedness for content knowledge (CK), pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), and field-based practice on teachers’ later performance satisfaction using multiple linear regression analysis. Our findings suggest that teachers who are more prepared for PCK and classroom practice (through field/clinical experience) during their teacher education program tend to be more satisfied with their teaching performance. However, our findings also suggest that becoming prepared in one’s CK during teacher preparation does not, according to the respondents, have a significant impact on their satisfaction with their teaching performance. Findings of this study have implications for practice and future research.