Abstract
This paper reports on a small-scale practitioner-led initiative that responds to some of the problems that have been linked to the task of microteaching and the use of video in university-led Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programmes at a university in the north west of England.
Though there have been many studies about the use of video for teacher development, few have been conducted in the context of ITE for vocational, further education sector (14+) in the UK. This study addresses this gap.
The focus of the study is on the viewing of a specifically designed in-house developed video of microteaching, as a resource to support trainee teachers for their micro-teach task in the initial stages of the course. It investigates how and to what extent the video supports trainees in their understanding of the task as a whole. It also examines reasons for trainees' reluctance to have their micro-teach filmed and to use the footage to analyse and reflect on it. It also explores trainees’ attitudes and beliefs about the use of video analysis of their teaching in practice.
A mixed methods research design is adopted, consisting of an online questionnaire for trainee teachers (n=82); an online questionnaire for teacher educators (n=8); and three focus groups of trainees.
The data indicates that viewing a specifically edited video resource enhanced trainees’ levels of confidence in their preparedness for microteaching and many trainees would appreciate the incorporation of video analysis into their course. Some trainees, however, expressed strong reservations against being videoed.