Supervising lecturers' support for pre-service teacher education students during teaching practice in Fiji

Kusum Prakash, Ashvin Praneet Chand and Poonam Singh
The University of the South Pacific, Suva, Fiji

his article reports on a University of the South Pacific (USP) study of supervising lecturers (SLs) and pre-service teacher education students' (PSTs) experiences and reflections on their involvement in the practice teaching component in the degree program for secondary school teachers. Two sets of rich data have emerged from this study. Firstly, there are critical reflections from PSTs themselves about teaching and learning; professional development opportunities; and what seemed lacking in terms of continuous nurturing, care, concern, and constant supervision by the SLs, in comparison to the same provided by their associate teachers (ATs) in their practice teaching schools. The relationship between PSTs and SLs appeared weak right from the initial stages of teaching practice, in contrast to what PSTs shared with their ATs. Statements have emerged from PSTs that the relationship between SL and ATs was not as powerful and effective as it should have been. Critical reflection upon our practices as teacher educators and the voices of PSTs are particularly valuable as we seek to reshape a teaching degree at USP and also help to shape teacher education across the South Pacific region.
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Authors: Kusum Prakash is a lecturer in Education discipline at the University of the South Pacific whose research focuses on teaching practice, mentoring, the practicum and teacher reflection. Email: kusum.prakash@usp.ac.fj Ashvin Praneet Chand is a postgraduate student at the University of the South Pacific who helped in data collection and analysis. Email: ashvinpchand@gmail.com Dr Poonam Singh (corresponding author) is a lecturer in Education discipline at the University of the South Pacific. Her teaching and research interests include upper secondary education, health and nutrition, and TVET. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-3296-8003 Email: p.singh@usp.ac.fj Please cite as: Prakash, K., Chand, A. P. & Singh, P. (2024). Supervising lecturers' support for pre-service teacher education students during teaching practice in Fiji. Issues in Educational Research, 34(1), 203-218. http://www.iier.org.au/iier34/prakash.pdf