Simulated apprenticeship for pre-service Filipino teachers

Abstract

The delivery of teacher education courses often for the most part deal with the visible parts of knowledge, the "know-what", which is often disconnected from the tacit knowledge, the "know-how", required in authentic teaching environments. It could be argued that would-be teachers do undergo practice teaching as part of their preparations and before becoming licensed professionals but said experience could be very brief. Said transitory period of practice-teaching may not be enough to internalize the range of skills and strategies that the new teachers need in facing the rigors of the real classroom setting. The purpose of this empirical study is to explore the impact of simSchool, a computer-based classroom simulator to the pedagogical style and expertise of pre-service Filipino teachers. The study utilized a quasi-experimental design. Purposefully, the study involved thirty (30) randomly selected practicum teacher education senior students. Two Likert-type survey instruments were used in the study and qualitative data were as well collected through teaching reflections and focus group discussions to supplement the quantitative data. For the statistical analyses, descriptive statistics were determined, Paired-Samples t Tests was used to determine pre-post differences within groups and Cohen’s d was used to determine effect sizes across measurement indices.  Findings of the study revealed that simschool enhanced the pedagogical style and proficiency of the pre-service teachers and interestingly could complement effectually the in-placed practicum course. These suggest the promising progressive impact of simSchool, if adapted, to the existing teacher education program.