Designing professional experience placements: learning to innovate

Abstract

Limited research in Australia and internationally has explored a range of design features for initial teacher education professional placements, or practicums. The view that universities engage with theory and schools with practice endures in the discourse surrounding teacher education. This paper presents a retrospective analysis of particular elements of an innovative placement design that supports the development of knowledgeable action and contributes to professional growth in shared epistemic spaces. It draws on focus group data from preservice teachers to exemplify the impact of salient features of the design. The paper argues that such design features are translatable across local contexts and should inform placement design to enable more than haphazard learning experiences.