LANGUAGE IN INDIA

Strength for Today and Bright Hope for Tomorrow

Volume 10 : 11 November 2010
ISSN 1930-2940

Managing Editor: M. S. Thirumalai, Ph.D.
Editors: B. Mallikarjun, Ph.D.
         Sam Mohanlal, Ph.D.
         B. A. Sharada, Ph.D.
         A. R. Fatihi, Ph.D.
         Lakhan Gusain, Ph.D.
         K. Karunakaran, Ph.D.
         Jennifer Marie Bayer, Ph.D.
         S. M. Ravichandran, Ph.D.
         G. Baskaran, Ph.D.

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An Appraisal of the Practicum -
Finding the Gaps between Theory and Practice in
Teacher Training Institutions in Pakistan

Aijaz Ahmed Gujjar, M.A., Ph.D. Scholar
Hafiz Muhammad Arshad, M.Sc., Ph.D. Scholar
Muhammad Ramzan, Ph.D.


Abstract

A successful teacher training programme aims at harmonising the theoretical and the practical facets of training so that what is willed is materialised in order to gain the desired objectives. The present study was undertaken with a view to observe the gaps, if any, between the theory and practice pre-service teacher training being imparted in Pakistani teacher training institutions. The sample for the study consisted of 120 student teachers of twelve different teacher training institutions of Pakistan.

The students had completed the theoretical part of the training and were now engaged in practice teaching. The sample was divided into male-female. It represented all the four provinces of Pakistan. Observation was used as a technique to collect data. The researcher visited all the classes personally to achieve the said end during. Data was collected through 35 sets of observation. The observation checklist was prepared keeping in mind the objectives of teacher training in general and of practice teaching in particular, as espoused in the curriculum.

It was found that there was a great gap between theory and practice in terms of novel methods and techniques, the use of computer applications for teaching, experimentation, finding relations of the topic with the real life situations and the use of diagnosis evaluation techniques. However, the trainees made use of the evaluation techniques and invited questions in order to engage the students. It is concluded that novelty and innovation are completely missing and the trainees feel satisfied with the same hackneyed techniques and methods through which they were taught. It is recommended that the teacher trainers routinely visit the classes during the practice teaching. Increasing the duration of the practice teaching will also do a world of good to the success of the programme.

Introduction

The importance of practicum in any course of studies is a given thing and teacher education is no exception in this regard (McIntyre, Byrd, & Fox, 1996). The world of practicum comes to us as an amalgamation of thought and action. Whereas the theory is a systematic way of thinking into a subject, practice involves the putting into practice of something. A theory might ignite the practice but it might never see the light of the day. Blunden (2000) puts it in these words.

"Theory involves the development of understanding and insight and it is what universities often do well. Of course, both of these worlds, practice and theory, are communities of practice, but they are nonetheless very different worlds" (p.8).

However, it is a universally acknowledged fact that a theory dies without practice and the aim of a programme should always be to harmonise theory and practice. The ideal may never be fully realised. However, such an exercise cannot be termed futile because it enables the practitioner as well as the researcher in filling the gaps between theory and practice. An insight into the nature of theory, being followed, and an appraisal of the practice help us in finding these gaps. The present study is an attempt in the same direction.

Theory of the Practicum

Ideally, the practicum should involve a combination of a range of different factors that might include, but would not be limited to, the performance of the student teachers, the teacher educators, the school and the availability of resources. However, it is more important to have a relationship of all these factors (Ellsworth and Albers, 1995).

The theory of the practice teaching dictates the following:

  • The duration of the practicum is appropriate i.e. it is neither too long nor too short.
  • There is an opportunity for the student teachers to exhibit their potential at the optimum level
  • There is an availability of resources
  • The environment is realistic to an extent that it duplicates the teaching learning situation so the student teachers anticipate the teaching profession.
  • An effective system of monitoring and evaluation is put in place.
  • During the final assessment, the weight given to the practicum should be proportionate to the theoretical exams.

This is only the beginning part of the article. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ THE ARTICLE IN PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION.


Implementing Explicit Grammatical Instruction in Thailand Schools | Nature of Sentence Intonation in Kannada, Tulu and Konkani | Language and Gender - Linguistic Analysis of Intermediate English Textbooks in Pakistan | Development of Punjabi-Hindi Aligned Parallel Corpus from Web Using Machine Translation | Paralinguistic and Non-Verbal Props in Second-Language Use: A Study of Icheoku and Masquerade in Nigeria | Economic Perspectives and Life-style Characteristics of the Aged Population in Tamil Nadu, India | Redefining Secularism - An Analysis of John Updike's Terrorist and Mohsin Hamid's The Reluctant Fundamentalist as Post-9/11 Novels | Reduplication in Bengali Language | Development of Time-Compressed Speech Test for Children between 8 - 12 Years of Age in Telugu | Bridging the Gap - The Potential of Contrastive Rhetoric in Teaching L2 Writing | ELT in Yemen and India - The Need for Remedial Measures | Relationship between Multiple Intelligence Categories and Learning Styles of Students in Pakistan | Internet as an Educational Resource in Vocabulary Instruction | The Effectiveness of Technology in Teaching Study Skills | A Study of the Comparative Elements in the Poetry of Keats and Ghani Khan | Sentence Pattern Method - A New Approach for Teaching Spoken English for Tamil/Indian/EFL Learners | Enhancing Language Skills Using Learn to Speak English Software in Engineering Students of Andhra Pradesh | Problems in Teaching of English Language at the Primary Level in District Kohat, NWFP, Pakistan | An Appraisal of the Practicum - Finding the Gaps between Theory and Practice in Teacher Training Institutions in Pakistan | A Study of B.Ed. Students' Attitude Towards Using Internet in Vellore District, Tamilnadu, India, Masters Dissertation | Politics of Sambalpuri or Kosali as a Dialect of Oriya in Orissa | A Six-Step Approach to Teaching Poetry Incorporating the Four Skills | Lexis of a Suicidal | A Case Review of Tamil Diglossia | Comparison of Markedness of Lexical Semantic Abilities in Normal Children and Children with Hearing Impairment | Social Effects and Other Impediments in Teaching Literature | Aligning the Connotations of Love and Freedom in the Novels of Iris Murdoch | Spiritual Communication and Managerial Effectiveness | A PRINT VERSION OF ALL THE PAPERS OF NOVEMBER, 2010 ISSUE IN BOOK FORMAT. | HOME PAGE of November 2010 Issue | HOME PAGE | CONTACT EDITOR languageinindiaUSA@gmail.com


Aijaz Ahmed Gujjar M.A., Ph.D. Scholar
Department of Education
Federal College of Education
H-9, Islamabad
Pakistan
seek_to_learn@yahoo.com

Hafiz Muhammad Arshad M.Sc, Ph.D. Scholar
Bureau of Statistics
Government of Pakistan
Islamabad
Pakistan

Muhammad Ramzan, Ph.D.
Department of Education
Krakram University
Gilgit
Pakistan

 
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