Teachers talk back: Educational theory and teacher education

Abstract

This article is about the teacher education experiences of a number of individuals over a number of decades. It begins with a brief exploration of the changing context in which "theory" is taught. Then, drawing on some of our interviewees' experiences as students, teachers and as teacher educators, we share some of their impressions of "theory" in their teacher education programmes. We also explore some examples of teachers, past and present, who developed a passion for theory, trace this to its sources, and speculate on what these have to teach us as we re-shape our courses and programmes in the new political and professional environment. Finally, w e illustrate how our life history approach in our recent book Teachers Talk Teaching provides some theoretical frames for understanding the diversity o f experiences in the domains of teacher education and teaching. We argue that contextualised life-history narratives provide a window of everyday realities that bring "theory" to life in way that is meaningful for students in teacher education, and teachers.