for teacher educators because they must often negotiate government initiatives with
their own views.
If, as Furlong ( 2013 ) noted in the opening quote, teachers arethekey to education
then teacher educators have an equally important role. Goodwin and Kosnik ( 2013 )
note“Simply put, it is reasonable to assume that quality teacher preparation depends
on quality teacher educators”(p. 334). The research being reported in this chapter
contributes to the growing understanding of teacher educators because it systemati-
cally examined 28 literacy teacher educators (LTEs) in four countries (Canada, U.S.,
England, and Australia). The overall goal of this multi-year research study is
- to study in depth a group of literacy/English teacher educators (LTEs), with
special attention to their backgrounds, knowledge, research activities, identity,
view of current government initiatives, pedagogy, and course goals.
Three specific questions guided this phase of the research with data drawn from
the three interviews conducted over 3 years: - What are the influences on the LTEs’practices?
- What goals do LTEs have for their literacy courses?
- How are government initiatives affecting LTEs?
9.1 Research on Teacher Educators
Over the last two decades there has been a growing body of research specifically on
teacher educators. One aspect of the research examines the transition from class-
room teacher to teacher educator (Murray and Male 2005 ). New teacher educators
need to repackage and extend their knowledge because preparing student teachers is
quite different from teaching primary or secondary age pupils. New teacher edu-
cators must acquire“a more generalized and scholarly knowledge of education”
(Murray and Male 2005 , p. 73). Murray and Male ( 2005 ) argue that there is no
direct application of the skills used for teaching children to teaching adults.
Teaching in a teacher credential program is quite a different enterprise than
teaching children because there is such a range of content to be addressed: peda-
gogical approaches must be tailored for working with adults; the diverse needs of
the student body must be considered; and student teachers want practical strategies
for immediate application in the classroom. Loughran ( 2006 ) calls for a pedagogy
of teacher education which“involves a knowledge of teaching about teaching and a
knowledge of learning about teaching and how the two influence one another in the
pedagogic episodes that teacher educators create to offer students of teaching
experiences that might inform their developing views of practice”(p. 118). What
should teacher educators try to achieve?
As research on teacher educators becomes more sophisticated, aiming to uncover
the nuances of their work, a clearer picture of this heterogeneous group is emerging.
For example, as they gain experience in higher education both their practice and
136 C. Kosnik et al.