INTRODUCING SCHOOL INTERNSHIP PROGRAMME FOR C.T.E., TEZPUR, ASSAM Author: Mrs.

Manmayuri Goswami
[Link], Assam

State/Group: Assam INTRODUCTION:

ABOUT THE REFORM: This is a small scale reform project intended to improve the quality and the effectiveness of teacher education programme in the Govt. College of Teacher Education, Tezpur, Assam. This proposed project, in particular, will try to implement as well as evaluate a modified approach to conducting practice teaching programme in the schools for teacher candidates in which they will be required to possess knowledge of the intricacies of their profession. It is intended to introduce a school internship programme for the teacher candidates of the College of Teacher Education, Tezpur, Assam. The [Link]. curriculum of our state has no school internship programme. There are only practice teaching classes numbering about forty. As a result, the teacher trainees do not get an opportunity to be familiar with the working environment as well as the demands of their profession before they enter into it. This weakens the entry level of the aspiring teachers and they seem to lose their confidence as they try to grapple with the unfamiliar situation. As a result of this, their teaching suffers and they fail to engage their students in learning. Therefore, many educationists have voiced their opinions in favor of a school internship programme for teacher candidates.

CONCEPT OF SCHOOL INTERNSHIP:

Internship is a method of on-the-job training for professional career. School internship refers to a teacher candidate undergoing supervised practical training in a school. The potential value of such an educational experience is great. It serves a number of purposes for the teacher candidates. They provide a process through which candidates develop a new relationship and a new perspective towards the classroom. They expose them to the widest possible variety of students, teachers, schools and communities. Through it students gain on-hands training skills that will prepare them before they make their foray into the job sector.

CONTEXT and RATIONALE:

THE GOVT. COLLEGE OF TEACHER EDUCATION (CTE), TEZPUR, ASSAM

ABOUT THE INSTITUTION: The Govt. College of Teacher Education, Tezpur, is a purely government institution, situated within Tezpur town itself. Tezpur is one of the cultural hubs of Assam with a population of a little more than one lakh approximately. It is a historical place with many ancient monuments and buildings. This makes it a significant tourist destination. The college is situated towards the edge of the town. It was established in the year 1977. It has its own campus with an area of about 43,[Link]. The college building has two classrooms, a psychological laboratory, a library, one office room and a Principals room and a teachers common room. It has one common room for students. The college is understaffed with only a Principal (attached) and three regular lecturers and three part - time lecturers. The office is also understaffed with one UDA cum accountant, one LDA cum typist, one peon and one chowkidar. The college, further, has a temporary librarian. The C.T.E., Tezpur, also lacks infrastructure, particularly in terms of technology which is in high demand now. Till now it does not have a website, although we are working on it. Moreover, it has only two computers with one of them having internet facility.

THE [Link]. COURSE: The College of Teacher Education, Tezpur, runs a one year [Link]. course for prospective teachers with an intake capacity of 60 students. It is for both pre-service and in- service teachers who are sent by the

government on deputation for training. The session starts in August and ends in July of the following year. The course consists of mainly theory classes which starts from August till December and then from January generally we start our workshops on Micro-Teaching skills, hold demonstration classes on planned lessons and other related activities. By March the students go to the schools for practice teaching. By midApril the students come back and we continue with the classes and assignments till the end of the session.

MY ROLE:

I have been serving in this institute as a lecturer since 1997. My job is to prepare teachers for the secondary level. Besides engaging in regular classes, we organize practice teaching programmes as a part of the course. Moreover, organizing short term training programmes for inservice teachers is also a part of our duties.

REASONS FOR THE REFORM: Some of our past teacher candidates have provided the feedback that only the planned classes that they practice in the schools as part of their course do not completely enable them to be competent enough in the real classroom set up. This is because they have absolutely no idea as to what actually the teaching profession is all about. All that they are aware of is that they have to take classes according to a certain plan using certain methods and techniques. This does not help them much

when they actually enter the profession because teaching is something beyond mere classroom instruction. They, therefore, should be given the opportunity to gain experiences in the real set up prior to their joining the profession. Moreover, the present [Link]. curriculum has been criticized as being too theoretical in aspect. There is no linkage between theory and practice. We know that the teachers of today have great responsibilities and are faced with tough challenges. They are not mere transmitters of knowledge. They, therefore, need a hands on experience of their profession before they actually join it. This is not possible with only certain planned number of teaching classes, i.e., practice teaching classes. For it, a kind of school internship programme is necessary, which would provide the interns an opportunity to know the school, observe children, practice teaching, manage the classroom, evaluate the learners as well as learn to work with colleagues. The NCFTE, 2009, has also recommended school internship programme for prospective teachers. It has stated that practice teaching has suffered severe neglect and dilution in quality. There is no opportunity for teachers to reflect upon their own experiences. Hence, a kind of programme that provide appropriate learning experiences for the student teacher is critical to the education of teachers. But to introduce such a programme would involve much time and resources. With the limited time that I have, I propose to bring about some changes in our practice teaching programme and give our present teacher trainees an opportunity to develop the right attitudes and the necessary skills and abilities to deal with the complexities of their profession. Various studies in the past have been undertaken on school internship and they have all established that the best way to learn teaching is through teaching in a professional setting. In India also, way back in 1980, Bhatnagar had observed that practicum is the most important element in teacher education. A comprehensive network of

school activities need to be included in student teaching programmes. Besides, people like Kanwal, Prof. [Link], etc. have always voiced their opinions in favor of an internship programmes for teacher candidates. In the international level also, we have Beard (1998) who stated that internship programme contributes significantly and positively towards enhancing the knowledge base and motivational level of students. Furco (1996) and Lam and Ching (2007) have pointed out that internships assisst the internee to bridge the gap between the academic learning process and the practical reality. All these strengthen the belief that inorder to enhance the effectiveness of the teacher education programme, it is necessary to introduce school internship programmes in the [Link]. curriculum through which the teacher candidates would have an in-depth knowledge of the intricacies of their profession and also gain the confidence to face it.

TOPIC:
My reform project topic is to modify the existing practice teaching programme of our institute by introducing a kind of school internship programme that would help the teacher candidates to develop into an effective teacher who will be able to handle all sorts of needs and challenges of a real classroom.

GOAL:

To introduce school internship programme among the teacher trainees of the College of Teacher Education (CTE), Tezpur, Assam, since they have no experience of the real classroom set up apart from a few practice teaching classes. Through this kind of programme the teacher candidates will be aware of the ground realities before they actually join the profession.

PROGRAMME OBJECTIVES:
(a) To enable the teacher candidates to be able to choose, design and conduct activities as per the unit of instruction that would engage the students and enhance learning on their parts.

(b) To enable the teacher candidates to gain knowledge about real classroom setup.

(c) To enable them to express ideas coherently and clearly.

(d) To help them acquire knowledge about the rules, policies and procedures established by the school.

(e) To help them to develop collaborative and co-operative relations with colleagues.

(f) To communicate clearly, promptly and in a respectable manner with students, parents and colleagues.

(g) To enable them to accept feedback and make attempts to improve performance based on feedback.

(h) To be able to assess students and deliver feedback as desired.

BARRIERS:
The following are a few limitations of this reform project: (a) The college suffers from shortage of staff and so only a few student teachers, fifteen in number, could be chosen for this project.

(b) This is an absolutely new concept for our curriculum and so lots of apprehensions are bound to occur.

(c) Due to shortage of faculty, I myself have to facilitate the change process as well as be the mentor.

(d) Orienting the Principal as well as the regular teachers of the targeted school would involve a lot of effort.

(e) Orienting the target group towards my project would also involve time and effort. (f) Time is also short and it would be crucial for implementing and evaluating the reform.

(g) Funds, if not received timely, will be a huge problem as the government institutions, like ours, always suffers from financial crisis.

ACTION PLAN:
With a view to bringing about changes in the existing system of practice teaching of our institution, I propose to enable the teacher candidates of my institute to develop the abilities necessary for teaching as well as to reflect on their own practices. With this frame of mind, I propose the following steps as part of the action:

ACTION PLAN TEMPLATE

IMPLEMENTATION STEPS OBJECTIVES INDIVIDUALS RESPONSIBLE TIME

(a) To tell them about ASU visit

1. Discussion and and about new sharing the vision strategies learnt in ASU. (b) To explain the objectives, rationale as well as the potential benefits of the reform To make him aware of my 2. Arrange a proposal and meeting with the about the Inspector of schools modification in the practice teaching schedule of one school 3. Choosing of the To conduct a target group pilot study of my reform proposal (a) To share my ideas with them about my reform proposal and make them aware of it. 4. Orientation of the target group (b) To assess their prior

Myself, the Principal and 1st week my colleagues of January 2014

2nd week Myself and the Principal of January 2014

Myself and the Principal 3rd week of January 2014

4th week Myself and the target of January group 2014

knowledge and perceptions about the existing practice teaching programme through a presurvey form. (c) To enable them to know about their activities during the internship like class observation, understanding student behavior, designing and conducting classroom activities, collaborating with regular teachers, developing communication skills, etc. To discuss with them a few

5. Continuation of target groups orientation

6. Orientation of the Principal and the regular teachers of the concerned schools

7. Discussion about undertaking case studies

8. School Visits

components of McREL like setting and personalizing objectives, providing reinforcement and feedback as well as a few indicators of TAP based on which they have to observe classroom transactions. To enable them to be aware of my proposal and their roles and responsibilities during the internship To explain to the target group about how to carry out case studies on three children To acquaint the target group

Myself and the target 1st week group of February 2014

Myself and the Principal 2nd week of February 2014

Myself and one of my 3rd week colleague of February 2014

Myself and the target 4th group of

week

with the school and the regular teachers prior to their internship period.

February 2014

By the beginning of the first week of March the teacher candidates would be sent to the schools for practice teaching and the target group would go to a particular school for school internship. The target group would be required to go to the school for four days continuously in a week and on the fifth and the sixth days they would come to the college to discuss their problems and experiences, receive feedback and guidance and prepare for the next week. They would be required to reflect on their observations which they would be maintaining in their diaries (maintaining a diary is a regular feature of the teacher candidates of our institution when they go for practice teaching classes). This process would be carried on for forty days.

EVALUATION:
At the end of the forty days when both the target group and the other group of teacher candidates return from their practice teaching classes, the following activities would be undertaken as part of the evaluation :

 A discussion will be held with both the target group and the other group to know about their experiences and reflections. This will be recorded and it will help me in comparing their viewpoints. A post-survey form will be given to the target group to note down their perceptions after completion of their internship period. This will be compared with their earlier perceptions taken on a presurvey form before leaving for internship programme. They will be asked critically to reflect on their observations and experiences from their reflective diaries as well as their observation schedules.

The reflective diaries, the observation schedules, the pre and post-survey forms as well as their feedback would provide me with the required data necessary for assessment of my project. After analyzing the findings I would be able to compare the perceptions and feedback of both the groups. This would enable me to know whether the reform project is a successful endeavor. It will help me in understanding whether school internship is really beneficial for the teacher candidates and gives them the required knowledge and skills in a practical setup, or is it the same as practice teaching only. It will also help me in determining whether I can extend it to all of my sixty students in the next session. The findings would be documented and this entire process would be completed within June 2014.

BUDGET:

1) Cost of documentation -------------------------- Rs.12,000.00

2) Cost of stationeries ------------------------------- Rs. 3000.00 (for all of the orientation programmes)

3) Cost of TA/DA and other ----------------------- Rs. 3000.00 Transportation charges 4) Miscellaneous ------------------------------------- Rs. 2000.00

Total ---------------------------------------Rs. 20,000.00

POTENTIAL BENEFITS:
If all goes well as anticipated, this reform project is expected to benefit our teacher preparation programme in the following ways: (a) The teacher candidates would be able to understand the learning environment as well as the needs of students in a better way.

(b) The teacher candidates would be able to apply appropriate methods and techniques based on the specific needs of the learners.

(c) They would gain confidence in classroom management.

(d) They would be able to reflect on their own practices.

(e) The school would also benefit from the innovative practices of the teacher candidates.

(f) The teacher candidates would be able to link theoretical knowledge with the practical experience. (g) They would also increase their communicating abilities and develop the necessary skills.

REFERENCES: a) [Link]/FileUpload/ks63027/File/[Link], on 12/08/13. retrieved

b) NCFTE, 2009

c) [Link] Quality Issues in Teacher Education.

d) [Link]/855855/An-analysis-of-supervisors-, retrieved on 12/08/13

e) [Link]/cee/positions/roleofmethodsinee, retrieved on 12/08/13