Abstract:

There is a growing recognition that learning to teach is a complex process. One of the central problems that pre-service teacher encounter during learning to teach process is the disconnection between the theory and practice. Zeichner (2010) states that lack of collaboration between the university instructors and schools while learning to teach in the university phase leads to a lack of preparation for pre-service teachers. Therefore, there is a need for effective ways to minimize the disconnection between school and university. One method of doing this is by engaging pre-service teachers with practitioners in the course topic during the university phase. Introducing pre-service teachers to practitioners can help them acquire teaching skills, and engaging them in the process of learning to teach. Practitioners can provide an authentic learning activity giving the benefits of enhanced pre-service teacher learning and provision of alternative perspectives to course topic.

In recent years, interest in how social network sites can be used in pre-service teachers’ program has increased. Social network site is shifting the ways people communicate, collaborate and learn. Nonetheless, there are obstacles linked with its use in education such as lack of learner engagement. Therefore, there is a need for effective methods to enhance pre-service teachers’ engagement in this online environment. One method of enhancing the pre-service teachers’ engagement is by engaging the pre-service teachers with the online community of practitioners. In fact, little is known about the impact of the presence of practitioners on pre-service teachers’ engagement in social network sites.

Therefore, the aim of this poster is to provide a brief overview of a conceptual framework that can be used to examine the presence of practitioners on pre-service teachers’ behavioural, emotional and cognitive engagement. This poster will explain the conceptual framework that used in the study and how social capital theory and community of practice were incorporated into the research design. In addition, it will describe the procedures and design that were adopted in this study. The poster explains how different methods such as social network analysis (SNA), content analysis and interviews can be used to analyse pre-service teachers’ engagement in social network sites. It also provides insights for those who may be considering designing online activities or analysing social interactions that takes place in social network sites.


Reference
Zeichner, K. (2010). Rethinking the connections between campus courses and field experiences in college and university based teacher education. Journal of Teacher Education, 61, pp.89-99.

Keywords:

Pre-service teacher, Practitioners, Social network site, Online learning community.