Cooperating teacher participation in teacher education: A review of the literature

Clarke, A., Triggs, V., & Nielsen, Wendy. (2014). Cooperating teacher participation in teacher education: A review of the literature. Review of Educational Research, 84(2), 163-202.


Cooperating teachers participate in teacher education in varied ways. This solid, comprehensive, and clear literature review discusses 11 categories of cooperating teacher participation gleaned from 60 years of literature on the topic. The list of descriptions for each category found on pages 174-186 is definitely the heart of the article, and will resonate with anyone who has ever been a cooperating teacher, a student teacher, or a university supervisor of student teachers. The 11 categories of participation are: 1) Providers of Feedback, 2) Gatekeepers of the Profession, 3) Modelers of Practice, 4) Supporters of Reflection, 5) Gleaners of Knowledge, 6) Purveyors of Context, 7) Conveners of Relation, 8) Agents of Socialization, 9) Advocates of the Practical,10) Abiders of Change, and 11) Teachers of Children.

Those who have experienced field practica as cooperating teachers, student teachers, or university supervisors will recognize and be able to think of real-world cases involving each of the 11 participation categories. In most cases that will come to mind, cooperating teachers participate in teacher education in combinations of the ways that are described here, and the emphasis and particular constellation one might observe in any given cooperating teacher will be unique. In fact, it may differ even for the same cooperating teacher, depending on the contextual factors of each situation, and the unique relationships occurring within each cooperating teacher-student teacher-university supervisor triad.

After the authors carefully describe and ground the 11 categories with research (the review is quite extensive) they are then organized along a theoretical continuum that adds additional dimensions to what the authors here tell us about what research has to say about cooperating teacher participation in teacher education. The continuum ranges from relatively “Closed” kinds of participation on one end of the continuum, to “Invited” participation in the middle (seen by the authors as most desirable), to “Claimed” forms of participation on the other end. The three continuum categories represent the kinds of power structures that exist with the various categories of participation.

All of this makes for fascinating reading if one is interested in teacher education and field experiences within teacher education programs, but what kinds of constructive change might be stimulated by a research review such as this? The ultimate goal, in my view, would be to inform those of us who are part of the endeavor of educating teachers about ways to improve the quality of field experiences for all concerned: student teachers, cooperating teachers, university supervisors, and ultimately and especially, the children and young adults being educated in schools. How do we promote the kinds of cooperating teacher participation that are the most important for teacher learning, especially within the realities of the current situation, where universities must place large numbers of student teachers within schools that are already facing challenges just to get today’s diverse population of schoolchildren educated within today’s constrained and often contentious political and financial climate?

I believe it is possible to move toward better ways of experiencing field practica in teacher education, but making that change a reality will be a challenge that can only be addressed if all stakeholders in the process can collaborate and problem-solve in ways they have not been doing in most cases. Knowing more about the process is a beginning in that direction, and this article provides useful input toward that end.