Abstracts
Abstract
Experience may influence beliefs and beliefs may influence practices. Following these premises, we investigated teacher candidates’ post experience reflections nine months after an international practicum where they taught for three weeks in rural Kenya. Teacher candidates were placed in non-governmental organization (NGO) sponsored schools on the Maasi Mara southwest of Nairobi. They taught in both elementary (Standard) and secondary (Form) classrooms. Eleven of these candidates responded to a questionnaire with open-ended prompts requiring reflective responses about the perceived impact of their experiences both personally and professionally. Responses were analyzed using qualitative methods to identify common themes and recurring ideas. Examining participants’ responses allowed us to consider how teacher candidates perceived their personal beliefs to impact their personal and professional practices. The significance of the international practica on personal and professional beliefs and practices was evident in responses. Concerns and advantages about the impact of the international experience are explored and directions for further research are identified.
Résumé
Des expériences peuvent exercer une influence sur les croyances et ces croyances peuvent à leur tour influer les pratiques. Partant de ces hypothèses, nous avons analysé les réflexions de futurs enseignants neuf mois après une expérience pratique internationale d’enseignement de trois semaines dans une région rurale du Kenya. Pour les fins de ce stage, les futurs maîtres enseignaient dans des écoles subventionnées primaires (Standard) et secondaires (Form) d’une organisation non gouvernementale (ONG) de la région Maasi Mara, située au sud-ouest de Nairobi. Onze de ces candidats ont répondu à un questionnaire composé de questions ouvertes les invitant à réfléchir sur leurs perceptions de cette expérience sur les plans personnels et professionnels. Les réponses ont été analysées qualitativement afin d’identifier les thèmes communs et les idées récurrentes. Cet examen des réponses fournies par les participants nous a permis d’analyser comment les futurs enseignants perçoivent l’impact de leurs croyances personnelles sur leurs pratiques personnelles et professionnelles. La portée d’une expérience internationale sur les croyances et les pratiques personnelles et professionnelles est clairement ressortie dans les réponses. Les préoccupations et les avantages relatifs à l’impact d’une expérience internationale sont examinés et des indications pour des recherches futures sont formulées.
Appendices
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