Scheduled for Pedagogy II Posters, Friday, April 4, 2003, 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM, Convention Center: Exhibit Hall A


The Concerns of Physical Education Student Teachers

Joanne Margaret Hynes-Dusel, Towson University, Towson, MD

The purpose of this study was to (a) identify the concerns expressed by student teachers of physical education; (b) assess the extent to which physical education student teachers express concerns that reflect Fuller's Developmental Theory Of Student Teacher Concerns (1969); (c) determine whether the concerns expressed by student teachers of physical education change between the start and completion of their student teaching assignment; (d) discover the extent cooperating teachers are aware of student teacher concerns and the techniques used to ameliorate student teacher concerns; and (e) understand how the teacher preparation programs, the supervisor/cooperating teacher, the school setting, and other factors influence student teaching concerns. The data were collected using both quantitative and qualitative procedures during the first student teaching placement. Twenty-five physical education student teachers from two different Universities located in the NorthEast (N = 14 for University "A"; N = 11 University "B") were administered the Teaching Concerns Questionnaire-Physical Education (TCQ-PE) on three occasions during their student teaching experience. The findings did not support Fuller's concern model. Data revealed that student teachers at the beginning of the semester were mostly concerned for SELF related items, less concerned for IMPACT, and least concerned for TASK. At the midpoint of the semester, student teachers were mostly concerned for IMPACT items, less concerned for SELF, and least concerned for TASK. By the end of the student teaching experience, neophyte teachers reverted to the pattern seen at the beginning of the student teaching experience, that is mostly concerned for SELF, less concerned for IMPACT, and least concerned for TASK. In an attempt to explain the results of the questionnaire, two physical education student teachers from each university (N = 4) were interviewed at three intervals. The student teacher's cooperating teachers (N = 4) were interviewed at the conclusion of the student teaching experience. Findings suggest that teaching concerns were heavily influenced by (1) what the cooperating teacher said and did; (2) the educational level at which the neophyte teachers were assigned to student teach; (3) personal factors; and (4) the type of teacher training the student teachers received. Furthermore, it was found that most of the cooperating teachers were not aware of their student teacher's concerns. Recommendations for those involved in the supervision and in the training of physical education student teachers, as well as proposals for future research on physical education student teacher concerns, are discussed.

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