Research on knowledge and affect in teacher education

There has been a concerted effort focused on evaluation of our teacher education programmes. This inquiry contributes to programme evaluation, revision and provides emphasis on content and pre-service teachers experiences of these courses.

The goal of this research is multifold:
1. Entry level knowledge, attitudes and beliefs: We explore various pre-service primary teacher characteristics on entry to teacher education programs.
2. Influence of route of entry: We examine the differences of route of entry (undergraduate versus postgraduate entry routes) on these constructs.
3. Longitudinal examination of entry-level constructs: The collection of data on entry level teacher attitudes towards mathematics has been ongoing in out institution for over a decade. This supports a longitudinal examination of entry-level knowledge, attitudes and beliefs over time.
4. Influence of intervention participation on constructs: We evaluate the effect of participation in a teacher education programmes/interventions on pre-service/in-service teachers’ knowledge, attitudes and beliefs. Our work also examines the impact of the teacher education model on children's thinking and teacher educators.

This research promotes needs-led practice and informs ongoing evaluation and enhancement.