Becoming a Teacher – Student Teachers’ Learning Patterns in Teacher Education

Jou nal o Educa ion and T aining S udies Vol. 3, No. 5; Sep embe 2015 ISSN 2324-805X E-ISSN 2324-8068 Published by Red ame Publishing URL: h p://je s. ed ame.com 89 Becoming a Teache - S uden Teache s’ Lea ning Pa e ns in Teache Educa ion Elsi Ahonen1, Ki si Pyhäl ö 2,3, Janne Pie a inen4, Tiina Soini5 1Ins i u e o Beha iou al Sciences, Uni e si y o Helsinki, Finland 2Facul y o Educa ional Sciences, Uni e si y o Oulu, Finland 3Facul y o Beha iou al Sciences, Uni e si y o Helsinki, Finland 4School o Applied Educa ional Science and Teache Educa ion, Uni e si y o Eas e n Finland 5School o Educa ion, Uni e si y o Tampe e, Finland Co espondence: Elsi Ahonen, Ins i u e o Beha iou al Sciences, Uni e si y o Helsinki, Finland Recei ed: May 21, 2015 Accep ed: June 8, 2015 Online Published: July 8, 2015 doi:10.11114/je s. 3i5.835 URL: h p://dx.doi.o g/10.11114/je s. 3i5.835 Abs ac S uden eache lea ning is a key issue o u he p o essional de elopmen . Li e a u e on s uden eache lea ning sugges s ha s uden s lea n abou eaching and unde go p o essional ans o ma ion du ing hei educa ion. Howe e , s udies o en ocus on a ce ain ime pe iod and on how s uden s should lea n ins ead o how hey ac ually do lea n. In his s udy, 19 in e iews wi h s uden eache s a e used o analyse hei lea ning pa e ns du ing eache educa ion. Fou quali a i ely di e en kinds o pa e ns o s uden eache lea ning we e iden i ied. The pa e ns a ied in e ms o s uden s’ mo i a ion o lea n, concep ual cohe ency, app oach o lea ning, and ac ion s a egy used. The pa e ns also held some in e nal inconsis encies be ween he di e en componen s obse ed. This may indica e a lack o unde s anding, willingness o skills conce ning ac i e lea ning. The esul s imply ha mo e a en ion should be paid o p omo ing s uden eache s’ ac i e lea ning du ing educa ion. Keywo ds: s uden eache s, Finnish eache educa ion, lea ning pa e ns 1. In oduc ion I has been sugges ed ha s uden eache lea ning is a key issue, no only o con inuing p o essional de elopmen , bu also o p o iding meaning ul lea ning en i onmen s o school pupils (Edwa ds & P o he oe, 2003). P io s udies on s uden eache lea ning ha e ad anced ou unde s anding o a ious aspec s o eache lea ning, such as he de elopmen o e lec i e hinking (Lee, 2005), p o essional iden i y (Özmen, 2011; Tang, 2003) and eaching skills (Calde head & Sho ock, 1997). Sho ages in s uden eache lea ning ha e also been iden i ied. S uden eache s ha e, o ins ance, shown an abili y o o m lesson plans and ollow he cu iculum, bu ha e some imes had di icul ies in aking pupils’ needs in o accoun in he pedagogical si ua ion (Edwa ds & D’A cy, 2004; Edwa ds & P o he oe, 2003). Mo eo e , in he li e a u e on eache lea ning, a ious ideal models on s uden eache lea ning ha e been p esen ed. Howe e , he empi ical e idence on s uden eache lea ning is s ill su p isingly sca ce (Ve mun & Endedijk, 2011). Acco dingly, he gap in he li e a u e on s uden eache lea ning has mean a ela i e lack o s udies which explo e complemen a y aspec s o s uden eache lea ning (see e.g. an Eekelen, Ve mun & Boshuizen, 2006; K eme -Hayon & Tillema, 1999); ela i ely ew s udies on dissonan lea ning pa e ns among s uden eache s (Ve mun & Endedijk, 2011), and a lack o s udies which explo e s uden eache lea ning h oughou he whole educa ional pa h and in a a ie y o con ex s p o ided by eache educa ion (see e.g. Edwa ds & P o he oe, 2003; Tang, 2003. See also Op e & Pedde , 2011; Pu nam & Bo ko, 2000). The pu pose o ou s udy is o examine and achie e a be e unde s anding o s uden eache s’ lea ning pa hs du ing eache educa ion. Ou s udy ocuses on explo ing s uden lea ning as i appea s acco ding o s uden eache s’ e ospec i e desc ip ions o hei whole eache educa ion. This is done by obse ing s uden eache s’ lea ning a a mac o-le el and pe son-cen ed way. Di e en aspec s o each s uden eache ’s lea ning pa e ns, i.e. he lea ning ac i i ies s uden s usually employ, hei belie s and mo i a ion and he in e nal consis ency o he eme ging pa e ns, a e also examined. Acco dingly, he p esen s udy will a emp o add o ea lie esea ch in o eache lea ning by examining he wholeness o hese pa e ns Jou nal o Educa ion and T aining S udies Vol. 3, No. 5; 2015 90 o e a p olonged pe iod o ime, he cha ac e is ics o hese mul idimensional pa e ns, and he in e nal consis ency o elemen s cons i u ing he pa e ns. 1.1 Elemen s o S uden Teache Lea ning Resea ch has shown ha people ha e a mix u e o mo i es o becoming school eache s (Ky iacou & Benmansou , 1999; Junge , Alm & Tho nbe g, 2014). Mo eo e , he e is a g owing in e es wo ldwide in explo ing hese easons, since many coun ies expe ience di icul ies in ge ing enough people o make his ca ee choice, esul ing in a sho age o high quali y applican s o eache educa ion (e.g. Ky iacou, Hul g en & S ephens, 1999). This is no howe e he case in Finland, whe e he eaching p o ession is highly alued and app ecia ed in socie y. Fo example, in p ima y school eache educa ion, only abou 4-6% o applican s (depending on he ins i u ion) a e admi ed o cou ses each yea (VAKAVA, 2012). Howe e , he ele ance o asking why a s uden would wan o become a eache in Finland is in he assump ion ha ha ing in e nal easons, such as becoming a good eache , a e mo e a ou able o lea ning han ex e nal easons, such as ge ing he academic g ade. As a esul , hey may e lec mo e p o ound mo i a ional aspec s (Deci & Ryan, 1985; Ryan & Deci, 2000). The na u e and quali y o mo i a ion among eache s uden s is c ucial in e ms o wha kind o p o essionals hey a e going o be, o example wha kind o s uden - eache ela ionships he e a e pu suing in hei eaching (Junge , Alm & Tho nbe g, 2014). Ano he basic elemen in he ana omy o s uden eache s’ lea ning is he way hey app oach lea ning (Ma on, 1985). In he li e a u e on lea ning app oaches in highe educa ion, he e is a s ong consensus on he co e di ision in app oaches, ha is, he wo le els o p ocessing: deep- and su ace-le el. In deep-le el p ocessing, he s uden ’s ocus is on unde s anding by making in e ences and inqui ies, ela ing ideas and concep s, and e lec ing on wha she o he al eady knows; whe eas in su ace-le el p ocessing, he ocus is mo e on memo ising and ‘passing es s’ (Biggs, 1999; Ma on, Hounsell & En wis le, 1997; Gijbels, Donche, Richa dson & Ve mun , 2013). I is also assumed ha some aspec s o lea ning a e mo e o en ela ed. In insic mo i a ion, o example, is connec ed wi h he applica ion o deep-le el p ocessing s a egies (e.g. Schie ele, 1991). Hence, hese dimensions a e likely o occu oge he . Mo eo e , le els o p ocessing a e shown o be ela ed o ou comes o lea ning. In o he wo ds, s uden s lea n di e en hings om aking a deep- and a su ace-le el app oach (see e.g. T igwell, Ellis & Han, 2012). The use o a deep lea ning app oach is gene ally associa ed wi h highe quali y lea ning. Howe e , esea ch in o he ela ionship be ween s uden s’ app oaches o lea ning and lea ning ou comes seem o be inconsis en (e.g. Gijbels, an de Wa e ing, Dochy & an de Bossche, 2005; Dise h & Ma insen, 2003). Al hough he e a e some longi udinal s udies on app oaches o lea ning (e.g. Zeege s, 2001), he lea ning ou comes a e o en assessed wi h some a he es ic ed lea ning asks o es s (Ve mun & Endedijk, 2011). Consequen ly, he le el o p ocessing and p o essional knowledge cons uc ion in longe educa ional acks is no e y well known (Ve mun & Endedijk, 2011. See also Donche & an Pe egem, 2009). The esea ch on s uden eache lea ning (Benne & Ca e, 1993; Halliday, 1996) demons a es ha s uden eache s’ pe sonal concep ions o eaching and hei oles as u u e eache s can exe a powe ul in luence on lea ning and p o essional knowledge cons uc ion (Kaga i, 1992). The e is also e idence ha eache educa ion lacks adequa e oppo uni ies o cons uc ing a meaning ul and cohe en p o essional knowledge and belie sys em (Blombe g, 2008). Teache s uden s adop di e en and some imes con adic o y belie s om a ying lea ning con ex s in eache educa ion (e.g. di e en cou ses). These belie s may no be connec ed wi h hei p io belie s (e.g. hei p io belie s a e no changed, see e.g. Vosniadou, 1994) and he e o e he s uden ’s concep ual ounda ion abou he wo k o a eache is agmen ed. Consequen ly, in eal li e si ua ions hey may be likely o go by implici lay heo ies. Concep ions o lea ning in pa icula end o be agmen ed, and he cohe ence o lack o i in e ms o concep ions o pupils’ and hei own lea ning a e p o en o ha e a s ong in luence on eache s’ pedagogical p ac ices (Bolhuis & Voe en, 2004). S uden eache lea ning and lea ning ou comes s ongly depend on he pedagogical p ac ices o eache educa ion, and i seems ha pa s o he educa ion is el o be mo e e icien han o he s. Fo example, he e is some e idence ha eaching p ac ice p o ides a bene icial g ounding o he de elopmen o p o essional skills (e.g. Ben-Pe e z, 1995; Lee, 2005) and he de elopmen o one’s belie s abou he sel as a pedagogical p o essional, i.e. p o essional iden i y, i hey a e p ope ly supe ised (Tang, 2003) and hei e lec ion on hese expe iences is guided (Toom, Husu & Pa ikainen, 2013). Mo eo e , di e en encoun e s wi hin di e en pedagogical con ex s and c i ical inciden s ha hese con ex s p o ide may p omo e o hinde he s uden ’s ac i e, pa icipa o y ole as lea ne s. On he o he hand, his has an e ec on he s uden eache ’s lea ning pa hs i hese a ying cou se and p ac ice en i onmen s shape he s uden ’s belie s and ac ions and poin hem in di e en di ec ions. The e o e, inciden s may esul in ic ion in s uden eache s’ lea ning pa e ns. The na u e o his ic ion may be cons uc i e o des uc i e (see e.g. Ve mun & Ve loop, 1999; Pyhäl ö, S ubb & Lonka, 2009), depending on he i be ween he s uden ’s aims and he en i onmen ’s equi emen s and oppo uni ies. Mo eo e , s uden s may use di e en ac ion s a egies o cope wi h (Gus ems-Ca nice & Calde ón, 2013) o cons uc a i wi h he lea ning en i onmen . Two basic se s o coping s a egies – di ec ac ion and pallia i e – a e o en dis inguished in he li e a u e. Coping s a egies a e used o mas e o ole a e challenges such as s ess ul Jou nal o Educa ion and T aining S udies Vol. 3, No. 5; 2015 91 si ua ions o ci cums ances whe e change and lea ning is needed. The e is e idence o ac i e, social and op imis ic s a egies being mo e bene icial o lea ning (e.g. Gus ems-Ca nice & Calde ón, 2013; Mu ay-Ha ey, Slee, Lawson, Silins, Ban ield & Russell, 2000), and ha using he social esou ces a hand is ela ed o highe achie emen sco es among s uden s (Leana, 2011). 1.2 Pa e ns in S uden Teache Lea ning S uden lea ning has long been s udied by obse ing some speci ic aspec o lea ning, as a s uden ’s o ien a ion o lea n o as a pe sonal ‘lea ning s yle’. A lea ning pa e n, howe e , e e s o all he lea ning ac i i ies ha lea ne s usually employ (how hey app oach lea ning, wha s a egies hey use in hese si ua ions), hei belie s, and hei lea ning mo i a ion ha cha ac e ise hei lea ning in a ce ain pe iod o ime (Ve mun & Endedijk, 2011). I has been sugges ed ha a lea ning pa e n should en ail mo i a ional, beha iou al and concep ual aspec s o s uden eache lea ning and ha lea ning pa e ns a e no always consis en . This means ha he mo i a ional, concep ual and beha iou al aspec s o eache lea ning a e no necessa ily aligned wi h each o he (Ve mun & Endedjik, 2011). Consequen ly, in lea ning pa e ns he di e en aspec s o lea ning may be connec ed in mo e complex and unexpec ed ways. P e ious esea ch on academic lea ning has ound quali a i ely di e en kinds o ways o lea ning. Fo example, Ve mun and Ve me en (2004) ha e iden i ied ou dis inc pa e ns in s udies conce ning s uden lea ning. The pa e ns a ied in e ms o he goal o lea ning and he skills equi ed in lea ning he subjec ma e . Rep oduc ion-di ec ed s uden s ied o emembe he subjec ma e and ep oduce i in an exam, while meaning-di ec ed lea ne s used a deep app oach o lea ning. Applica ion-di ec ed lea ne s, on he o he hand, ocused on he use ulness o he subjec ma e and emphasised how hey could use he acqui ed knowledge in p ac ice. Besides hese, undi ec ed lea ne s, who did no know how o lea n he subjec ma e in an app op ia e way, we e iden i ied. Though p e ious s udies on s uden lea ning ha e conside ed and combined di e en aspec s o lea ning, esea ch on s uden eache s’ lea ning pa e ns and he consis ency o hese pa e ns is s ill sca ce. Fo example, Oos e hee and Ve mun (2001) ha e iden i ied ou quali a i ely a ying lea ning pa e ns among s uden eache s ha ha e simila i ies wi h hose ound in esea ch on academic lea ning s yles. These pa e ns, namely su i al, closed ep oduc ion, open ep oduc ion, closed meaning and open meaning o ien a ion, a ied in e ms o in e nal knowledge componen s, and egula i e, a ec i e and mo i a ional app oaches. The s udy, howe e , was conduc ed o e a sho ime pe iod, conside ing eache s uden s’ whole educa ional jou ney. The e o e, he e is a need o a mo e p o ound unde s anding o eache s uden s’ ac ual, holis ic and endu ing lea ning pa e ns, as well as he in e nal consis ency o hese pa e ns (Ve mun & Endedjik, 2011). 1.3 The Aim o he S udy This s udy aims o gain a be e unde s anding o s uden eache s’ ac ual lea ning p ocesses du ing eache educa ion. This is done by employing a mac o-le el analysis o each pa icipan ’s complemen a y lea ning pa e ns. The aim is o explo e s uden s’ whole lea ning p ocesses, om he beginning o nea o he end. This will be done by concen a ing on complemen a y aspec s o s uden lea ning ins ead o analysing some speci ic aspec o lea ning o only in some es ic ed ime pe iod, as emphasised in he p e ious esea ch. The ollowing esea ch ques ions a e add essed: 1) Wha kinds o lea ning pa e ns can be iden i ied among s uden eache s? 2) A e hese pa e ns consis en o is he e ic ion be ween di e en aspec s o he pa e n? 2. Me hod 2.1 Finnish Teache Educa ion In Finland, all comp ehensi e school eache s mus ha e a mas e ’s deg ee. Elemen a y school eache s ha e an MA in educa ional science o educa ional psychology, and hey each in yea s 1-6, wi h pupils who a e be ween 7 and 12 yea s old. The a ge ime o g adua ion in elemen a y school eache educa ion is i e yea s, bu o many s uden s he s udies ake longe . Though he e a e some di e ences be ween di e en uni e si y eache educa ion p og ammes, he s udies (300 c edi s) ypically include o ien a ion s udies such as ICT and language s udies (25 c edi s), main subjec s udies in educa ion/educa ional psychology (140 c edi s, including 2-3 eaching p ac ice cou ses in he eache aining schools, 20 c edi s), wo mino subjec s udies (mul idisciplina y s udies in subjec s and c oss-cu icula issues augh in comp ehensi e school, 60 c edi s), and op ional mino subjec and op ional s udies (75 c edi s). Elemen a y school eache s may also ha e one o wo subjec s which hey each in yea s 7-9 i hey ha e included hese op ional subjec s udies in hei educa ion. The case s udy p esen ed in his a icle was conduc ed in one la ge esea ch-in ensi e uni e si y in Finland. Jou nal o Educa ion and T aining S udies Vol. 3, No. 5; 2015 92 2.2 Pa icipan s This s udy includes da a ga he ed om 19 elemen a y school s uden eache s ( emale: 14, male: 5, age: min/max: 23/51 yea s, mean: 31 yea s) who a e comple ing hei eache s udies. The sample was ep esen a i e o s uden eache s as a whole in his con ex in e ms o hei gende , age and he du a ion o hei educa ion. The c i e ia o selec ing he pa icipan s we e: s uden s’ sel -es ima ed ime o g adua ion (wi hin one yea ), p o essional o ien a ion (in e es in wo king in a comp ehensi e school a e g adua ion), and educa ion as a majo subjec in he eache educa ion p og amme. The c i e ia was se his way o engage wi h hose pa icipan s who we e mos likely o be a he end o hei s udies and who ep esen ed he majo i y o Finnish eache s uden s in e ms o hei majo and p o essional o ien a ion. Some o he s uden s had comple ed a signi ican numbe o ECTS c edi s be o ehand, o example in he Open Uni e si y, while o he s had jus inished hei uppe seconda y school. The pa icipan s also di e ed om each o he in e ms o hei p io eaching expe ience. Some had li le o no expe ience, while o he s had been wo king as a subs i u e eache o school assis an o se e al yea s. Fu he mo e, o some o he s uden s, eache educa ion was hei second choice, whe eas o he s had applied se e al imes o join he deg ee p og amme. This he e ogenei y o he sample is also cha ac e is ic o he wide Finnish eache s uden popula ion. 2.3 Da a Collec ion The s uden eache in e iews we e conduc ed by using a con ex ually modi ied e sion o he Teache s’ P o essional Landscape In en o y (Au ho s, 2010, see appendix 1). The ins umen was chosen o enable compa ison o he esul s eme ging om di e en con ex s o eache lea ning: lea ning in he school when p ac ising he p o ession (Au ho s, 2014), and du ing educa ion when lea ning he p o ession. The alidi y o he adap ed ins umen was es ed in ou pilo in e iews be o e he da a was collec ed. The i s named au ho isi ed ele en di e en cou ses in which he pa icipan s we e mos likely o be a he end o hei s udies, and ga e a sho in oduc ion o he s udy. The s uden s i ing he c i e ia we e ec ui ed on a olun a y basis and hey ga e hei con ac in o ma ion o he esea che . A e his, he po en ial pa icipan s we e con ac ed ia e-mail o by phone and a ime o an in e iew was a anged. The semi-s uc u ed heme in e iew included ques ions on h ee main hemes: he s uden eache ’s lea ning p ocess du ing eache educa ion, he s uden eache ’s belie s conce ning s udying in he eache educa ion p og amme, and he s uden eache ’s belie s conce ning eache s’ wo k in he school. In he in e iew, s uden s we e asked o c ea e a isual ep esen a ion o hei s udy pa h as hey saw i , and o iden i y and ma k he posi i e, p omo ing c i ical e en s and he nega i e, hinde ing key e en s ha made a di e ence in hei s udies. A e his he s uden s we e in e iewed based on hei isualisa ions (e.g. wha happened? Wha did you lea n in his si ua ion? Wha made you change you way o hinking?) S uden s’ backg ound in o ma ion, including age, eaching expe ience, easons o choosing a ca ee as a eache o doing eache s udies, and he cu en s a e o hei s udies, we e explo ed. In o al, he in e iew con ained ou backg ound ques ions abou he pa icipan s’ pe sonal and p o essional his o y and 16 ques ions abou hei s udies in he eache educa ion p og amme and eache s’ wo k in he school. Each in e iew ook be ween 60 and 210 minu es o comple e. All in e iews we e digi ally audio- eco ded and decoded in o ex iles by he esea che o he ained esea ch assis an . 2.4 Analysis The analysis was ca ied ou using an abduc i e s a egy (e.g. Chambe lain, 2006). In he i s phase o he analysis, he s uden eache s’ desc ip ions conce ning hei lea ning and i s di e en dimensions we e coded using an induc i e s a egy. A e ha , a heo y-d i en app oach was used o o mula e and inalise he ca ego ies and con en s wi hin each ca ego y. The analysis was conduc ed by aking a pe son-cen ed app oach. This mean ha each s uden ’s indi idual lea ning p ocesses du ing hei educa ion we e analysed. The analysis en ailed ou di e en dimensions o lea ning: 1) mo i a ion, 2) app oach o lea ning, 3) ac ion s a egy, and 4) concep ion o eache s’ wo k. In Table 1 he c i e ia o he analyses o each aspec is desc ibed in a mo e de ailed way. Jou nal o Educa ion and T aining S udies Vol. 3, No. 5; 2015 93 Table1. Fou dimensions analysed in s uden eache lea ning pa e ns Mo i a ion: “Wha mo i a es s uden s o do eache s udies?” App oach o Lea ning: “Wha kind o app oach o lea ning ha e s uden s adop ed?” Ac ion S a egy: “Wha kind o ac ion s a egy do s uden s use o cope wi h c i ical inciden s?” Concep ion o Teache ’s Wo k: “Wha kind o concep ion o eache s’ wo k do s uden s hold?” a)INTERNAL: The s uden ’s goal in lea ning is o be a “p o essional” eache . The s uden exp esses engagemen in de eloping pedagogical expe ise a)DEEP: The s uden e lec s wha he o she knows and wha he o she should know and sea ches o a way o lea n. The s uden ’s goal is o deepen unde s anding and o make links be ween heo y and p ac ice. a)ACTIVE AND TRANSFORMATIVE: The s uden ies o a ec he pedagogical si ua ion and ac i ely seeks ou new lea ning expe iences. a)COHERENT: The s uden exp esses an in e nally cohe en and s uc u ed (wide o na ow) iew abou eache ’s wo k. The s uden concep ions conce ning eaching-lea ning p ocess o pe cep ions abou sel as a lea ne and pupil as a lea ne a e cohe en . b)EXTERNAL: The s uden ’s goal in lea ning is ge ing an academic deg ee. The s uden is engaged in academic wo k in gene al. b)SURFACE: The s uden e lec s on his o he accomplishmen s and ies o ind an easy o quick way o accomplish mo e. The s uden ’s goal is o pass he es , ge easy answe s, and ge use ul ips ha will wo k in he ield. b)PASSIVE AND ADAPTIVE: The s uden adop s a s a egy o comply wi h e e y si ua ion (whe he a ou able o un a ou able). The s uden may c i icise he ci cums ances, bu does no ac o change hem, o o change his/he own beha iou / hinking, o accomplish lea ning. b)FRAGMENTED: The s uden exp esses di e en aspec s abou eache ’s wo k ha do no o m a cohe en sys em. S uden ’s belie s conce ning hei own lea ning and pupil’s lea ning show inconsis encies. The s uden ’s belie s may also be uns uc u ed o he s uden has di icul ies explica ing his/he belie s. c)BOTH: The s uden exp esses bo h mo i a ional aspec s c)BOTH: A si ua ionally changing app oach (which depends on he cou se and he phase o s udies). c)SITUATIONALLY CHANGING: The s uden uses bo h s a egies (depending on he si ua ion). 3. Resul s 3.1 S uden Teache s’ Lea ning Pa e ns The esul s indica ed ha he e was a ia ion be ween s uden eache s in e ms o hei lea ning pa e ns. In o al, ou di e en kinds o lea ning pa e ns we e iden i ied (see Table 2). The pa e ns iden i ied we e: meaning-di ec ed ac o (F=7), undi ec ed-inconsis en (F=6), disengaged passe -by (F=4) and meaning-di ec ed con o mis (F=2). The e we e also some simila i ies be ween he s uden s in e ms o hei pa e ns. When looking a he da a as a whole, i was iden i ied ha a sligh majo i y o he s uden s (F=11/19) held a cohe en concep ion abou wha eaching in ol ed. On he o he hand, many s uden s had a agmen ed concep ion (F=8/19). Al hough he e we e di e ences be ween s uden eache s’ mo i a ion o lea n and hei app oach o lea ning, mos s uden s held a deep o s a egic app oach o lea ning and had in e nal easons o s udying. Su p isingly, howe e , he majo i y o s uden eache s had adop ed a passi e and adap i e ac ion s a egy, meaning ha hey adap ed hei ac ions acco ding o he si ua ion and silen ly accep ed he pedagogy being p ac ised. Only a ew s uden s epo ed using ans o ma i e ac ion s a egies and some epo ed ha hey occasionally in luenced he pedagogical se ings o said ha hey we e able om ime o ime o in luence c i ical inciden s du ing hei educa ional jou ney. Table 2 also shows ha some elemen s o he pa e n we e mo e equen ly ela ed. Fo ins ance, in e nal mo i a ion, ac i e s a egy use and a deep app oach o lea ning we e o en combined wi h a cohe en concep ion o eaching. On he o he hand, ex e nal easons, a su ace app oach o lea ning, and di icul ies in lea ning skills in e ms o app oach o ac ions s a egy we e o en ela ed o a agmen ed concep ion o eaching. Jou nal o Educa ion and T aining S udies Vol. 3, No. 5; 2015 94 Table 2. S uden eache lea ning pa e ns Pa e ns Meaning-di ec ed Ac o (F=7) Undi ec ed-inconsis en (F=6) Disengaged Passe -by (F=4) Meaning-di ec ed Con o mis (F=2) Wha mo i a es he s uden in doing eache s udies? The s uden ’s goal is mos ly o be a p o essional eache and/o he s uden shows engagemen in gaining pedagogical expe ise The s uden ’s goal is mos ly o be a p o essional eache and/o he s uden shows engagemen in gaining pedagogical expe ise The s uden ’s goal is o ge an academic deg ee. The s uden shows li le o no in e es in eaching The s uden ’s goal is o be a p o essional eache and/o he s uden shows engagemen in gaining pedagogical expe ise Wha kind o app oach o lea ning does he s uden use? The s uden uses a a iable o deep app oach o lea ning The s uden uses a a iable o deep app oach o lea ning The s uden uses a a iable o su ace app oach o lea ning The s uden uses a deep app oach o lea ning Wha kind o concep ion abou eaching does he s uden hold? Cohe en F agmen ed Cohe en and F agmen ed Cohe en Wha kind o ac ion s a egy does he s uden use in c i ical inciden s? Si ua ionally changing o ac i e and ans o ma i e Passi e and adap i e. Passi e and adap i e Passi e and adap i e 3.1.1 Meaning-di ec ed Ac o (F=7) The mos ypical pa e n iden i ied was meaning-di ec ed ac o s. I was cha ac e is ic o his pa e n ha s uden s we e mos ly in e nally mo i a ed o s udy. Lea ning mo e abou eaching was ypically desc ibed as a p ima y eason o s udying. The s uden s also held a deep o a iable app oach o lea ning and hey had cons uc ed a cohe en concep ion abou eaching. I al eady had ele an wo k expe ience and I had clea ly seen some hings whe e I was missing a so o heo e ical amewo k, he eason why his wo k is ac ually done and why I am doing i , wha kind o eache I am, how I de elop mysel as a eache . So I ha e kind o been able o ge he answe s o my ques ions om he e. I ha e no come he e o ge a magical bag o icks, o o ge some hing ha would help me each my classes un il I each e i emen age. I’m looking o a way o ge deepe in o eaching so ha I can de elop and main ain i . O somehow o always keep mysel upda ed in wo king as a eache . Wha cha ac e ises hese s uden s’ app oaches o lea ning was ha hey wan ed o unde s and, o make connec ions wi h wha hey had lea ned be o e, and o change hei belie s i needed. Teache s uden s also mo e o en in en ionally chose hei app oach o lea ning a e e lec ing on he si ua ion. … The e a e cou ses whe e you can challenge you sel and you way o hinking and so o pa icipa e in his collabo a i e knowledge cons uc ion and lea n ha he e is no single choice o igh answe , bu ins ead he e a e many ha jus depend on he easoning behind hem. In ha way, you can compa e esponses, see o he people’s easoning and wi h ha be mo e p epa ed o hen go o ha school. S uden eache s’ ac ion s a egies ei he changed om one si ua ion o ano he o we e ans o ma i e in na u e, when hey we e able o make he e o o change hei own beha iou o ci cums ances a leas occasionally. Some o hese s uden s also ac i ely sough ou new lea ning expe iences, o example, by ge ing in o in o mal pedagogical discussions wi h o he membe s in he schola ly communi y. Some s uden s e en epo ed ha hey had made an e o o change hei non- unc ional pedagogical p ac ices ei he by ac ing agains he accep ed ules in he si ua ion, o by pa icipa ing in he depa men adminis a ion p ocess. On many occasions I aised my hand and said (laughs) some hing con o e sial and challenging. Tha is how I became so o ou class spokespe son and why I ha e been included in de eloping ou educa ional p og amme, and so on. I end o jus say di ec ly o he cou se lec u e ‘Hey, excuse me, could we do his as homewo k?’ ... such as i we a e looking a some hing we could de ini ely do a home and e e ybody is jus quie and looking bo ed. I migh be ha eache educa ion is jus ull o good gi ls who jus do no da e o say any hing ... So ha is why I aise my hand and say, ‘Hey could we mo e o wa d, le ’s ead his a home and you should send us a Jou nal o Educa ion and T aining S udies Vol. 3, No. 5; 2015 95 link’ ... This pa e n also iden i ied some mino in e nal cons uc i e ic ion. Howe e , he inconsis encies can be in e p e ed as indica o s o change owa ds mo e ac i e lea ning. Such inconsis encies may also indica e ha hese s uden s we e able o a y hei beha iou mo e easily in di e en si ua ions and could choose i hey wan ed o adap o he si ua ional oles, o do some hing di e en ly o enable meaning ul lea ning o hemsel es o o he whole s uden g oup. 3.1.2 Undi ec ed-inconsis en (F=6) Undi ec ed-inconsis en pa e ns we e iden i ied almos as o en as meaning-di ec ed ac o pa e ns. Cha ac e is ically, undi ec ed-inconsis en pa e ns lack cohe ence be ween he mo i a ional and concep ual aspec s and he app oach and he ac ion s a egy adop ed. S uden eache s wi h his pa e n desc ibed in e nal o a iable easons o s udying and he use o a a iable o deep app oach o lea ning. Mo eo e , hey held a agmen ed concep ion o eaching and p e e ed passi e and adap i e ac ion s a egies in s udying. Undi ec ed-inconsis en s uden eache s also epo ed s uggling o unde s and he meaning o lea ning goals and goal se ing o hei own s udies. A he same ime, hey o en epo ed ha he cu iculum applied a school had se he bounda ies and goals in eaching p ac ice, and ha by ollowing he cu iculum one could jus i y one’s ac ions whe he pupils lea ned any hing o no . S uden s also conside ed ha he e lec ion o one’s own ac ion and lea ning was almos impossible in some si ua ions, al hough as eache s hey wan ed o p omo e pupils’ hinking skills: Bu somehow i eels so ha d in jus a couple o weeks o somehow e lec on you eaching in any dep h. I can’ anyway... somehow i is di icul o deeply e lec and a he same ime se a ge s o you eaching p ac ice. In ou case i came a a hal way s age when I hea d hings like we don’ ha e any a ge s a all. I was eally unclea wha he a ge s ac ually we e. Also we e we o he pupils missing ou a ge s?… i was kind o con using ... o hen I jus did no ha e i in me o plan lec u es… And hen ... (I' e lea ned) ha by using he cu iculum i helps you qui e a lo since hen you ha e some hing o use o jus i y you own eaching ... o example how you should ead i , and i you do some hing you a e able o show ha his is a pu pose ul ac i i y ins ead o ying despe a ely o explain, o example in a pa en s' e ening, wha you we e ying o do o achie e…Bu hen ... i you do wha you a e able o and you can jus i y i , hen e en i someone does no lea n o ead… hen he e is no hing you can do abou i ... a leas you ha e done wha you can and ha e explained he easoning behind i ... ha is somehow why I am able o do his as a p o ession. S uden s also iden i ied dys unc ional pedagogical p ac ices bu did no make an e o o change hem. I is in e es ing ha while you a e s udying o be a eache , he ac ual eaching you ecei e is so o adi ional. Like, o example, a lec u e is pu ely class oom- ype eaching and e en small g oup classes ha e no hing special abou hem. Ou eache s he e don’ use any so o ancy new eaching me hods. I eels ha I’m jus going a ound; nobody knows who I am and I’m jus going along wi h he s uden c owd doing cou ses. I eels like he s uden s suppo each o he , while he acul y is somewhe e else and now and hen hei pa hs c oss. I did no , especially du ing he i s ew yea s, eel ha we we e pa o any kind o schola ly communi y he e in he uni e si y. These s uden s showed a willingness o engage in lea ning, bu hey did no ully succeed in doing so. Hence, hey wan ed o lea n, bu a he same ime hey lacked he unde s anding o ac i e lea ning and how o cons uc meaning ul lea ning en i onmen s o pupils a school. 3.1.3 Disengaged Passe -by (F=4) All o hese s uden s in his ca ego y had p io expe ience as eache s. The e o e, mos o hem p ima ily wan ed o ha e o mal quali ica ion o he p o ession hey we e al eady p ac icing and abou which hey al eady knew a g ea deal. They had ex e nal o a iable s udy mo i a ion, howe e hey we e highly mo i a ed o ge ‘ he hing done’. Some o hem desc ibed expe iencing a so o disappoin men : I’ e done hese a qui e a igh pace bu ac ually his has been easie han I imagined. I’ e done abou a hund ed c edi s al eady and hen he e a e also he addi ional special educa ion c edi s o his e m. So I’ e been a bi ba led, like ‘was his i ?’ as my expec a ions we e so high. I had high expec a ions o his educa ion as ob iously wi hou i I could no ge a pos o pe manen employmen anywhe e. I ’s a big hing and once I ge his done I’m a quali ied eache . S uden eache s did no epo many changes in hei concep ions abou eaching du ing hei aining. Some main ained a cohe en concep ion o eaching, while some s uden s’ concep ions emained agmen ed: Jou nal o Educa ion and T aining S udies Vol. 3, No. 5; 2015 96 I doub ed my own compe ence as a eache (be o e I en e ed eache aining), which is why I always el ha once I go he eaching quali ica ion hen I would be a eal and good eache . Bu he eali y o wo king li e has ac ually augh me so much abou wha being a eache eally is all abou . I kind o eels like he eache s who each he e don’ ha e ha p ac ical eal li e expe ience. I some imes eel ha I, wi h my ela i ely limi ed expe ience, know be e how hese hings eally a e in he ield han he eache who is eaching me he e. Some o hese s uden s also epo ed ha he pedagogical p ac ices du ing eache educa ion we e disengaging o dys unc ional. They epo ed ha hei s udies had no ul illed hei expec a ions and because o his hey had adap ed (in en ionally o unin en ionally) a a iable o su ace app oach o lea ning. Al hough some o hese s uden s we e c i ical and could pinpoin he disengaging p ac ices, hei ac ion s a egy emained passi e and adap i e in he c i ical inciden s. The s uden s did no men ion in any de ail hei need o will o use ac i e lea ning s a egies. They usually p e e ed a p ac ical app oach o he eaching p o ession: I migh in pa ha e o do wi h he ac ha , when I s a ed my s udies, I el ha wha p epa ed a eache o p ac ical wo k was e y impo an . So in ha sense maybe I was unable o see he heo e ical aspec s ha p o ided he amewo k o his job (laughs) o o see hem as impo an . Nowadays I can app ecia e heo y mo e as I hink you need some hing o base you ac ions on o some hing which you ac ions a ise om… be i om heo y o om some hing else, I can’ exac ly say wha . 3.1.4 Meaning-di ec ed Con o mis (F=2) The e we e also a ew s uden s whose lea ning di e en ia ed om ha o o he s. These s uden s we e iden i ied as meaning-di ec ed con o mis s. Wha cha ac e ised hese s uden s’ lea ning was ha hey had in e nal easons o s udying and a deep app oach o lea ning, and had cons uc ed a cohe en concep ion abou eaching. In his sense, hey we e much like meaning-di ec ed ac o s. Howe e , hei ac ion s a egy was passi e and adap i e, meaning ha hey did no see a need o in luence hei pedagogical se ings in educa ion, bu con en edly ook wha he aining had o o e hem whe he i was meaning ul o no . Those i s wo yea s as a s uden , o cou se you did lea n a lo abou some hings, bu I wonde ed why I was being o ced o lea n hese skills o which I see no use. I ha e no eally needed o use hem anywhe e and a imes I did no unde s and why ce ain hings needed o be s udied. O cou se he wo yea s we e un and I made iends in he s udy g oup. In he i s wo yea s you did no e en eally eel like uni e si y s uden s. A imes i el like being in school and messing a ound wi h adul -sized child en. Maybe only now, in his las yea , has i el like being a eal uni e si y s uden and doing academic wo k. These s uden s’ lea ning pa e ns we e nea ly cohe en , bu he sel - egula o y aspec o lea ning was no p esen . 4. Discussion In his s udy, s uden eache s’ heme in e iews, including e ospec i e s o ylines, we e used o analyse s uden eache s’ lea ning du ing hei eache educa ion. Ce ain challenges we e in ol ed in using a e ospec i e app oach (e.g. Cox & Hassa d, 2007). Pa icipan s’ expe iences and hei o e all li e si ua ions a e o en di icul o ecall and sum up in a single in e iew (K ale, 2007). The s uden eache s’ expe iences (as well as hei beha iou ) a e always si ua ed in ime, con ex and hei o e all li e si ua ions, which a e o en challenging o ecollec and summa ise a he end o he s udy pa h. The e o e, e ospec ion is also likely o ha e some memo y e ec s on he da a. Acco dingly, e ospec ion would ha e e y likely a ec ed he da a, including he gene alisa ion o expe iences. Howe e , he e lec i e and p ocess-o ien ed design also ga e he pa icipan s an oppo uni y o e lec on hei s udy pa h and iden i y signi ican expe iences in i . This esul ed in ich da a and ensu ed ha he pa icipan s ecalled and epo ed only signi ican expe iences. Mo eo e , he da a sample demog aphically ep esen ed he s uden eache s in a la ge esea ch-in ensi e uni e si y in e ms o age and gende . The s uden eache s’ desc ip ions also became supe luous in his da a. The da a eached he poin whe e s uden eache s’ desc ip ions did no add any hing new ha could no be a ached o al eady exis ing ca ego ies (see e.g. Onwuegbuzie & Leech, 2007). Howe e , jus as he e a e simila i ies be ween di e en eache educa ion p og ammes in Finland and ab oad, he e a e also di e ences be ween hese lea ning en i onmen s. The e o e, hese indings canno , as such, be gene alised o eache educa ion in gene al. Ne e heless, i is assumed ha simila indings can be ound in o he eache educa ion con ex s. This mus , howe e , be alida ed by empi ical e idence. This s udy con ibu es o an unde s anding o esea ch in o s uden eache lea ning pa e ns by explo ing he quali y and consis ency o eme ging mul idimensional pa e ns. We iden i ied ou quali a i ely di e en kinds o lea ning Jou nal o Educa ion and T aining S udies Vol. 3, No. 5; 2015 97 pa e ns ha a e in line wi h p e ious esea ch indings conce ning s uden lea ning (Ve mun & Ve me en, 2004). In ou s udy we also disco e ed ha eache s uden s ha e meaning-o ien ed, ep oduc ion-o ien ed and applica ion-di ec ed endencies. Among eache s uden s, he e we e also hose who we e undi ec ed lea ne s and had inconsis encies in hei lea ning pa e ns. The e o e, ou s udy con i ms he indings ga he ed om among di e en kinds o uni e si y s uden g oups and adds ha s uden eache s a e no an excep ion among s uden s in e ms o hei lea ning (Ve mun & Ve me en, 2004). This also aises a se ious ques ion as o whe he hey should be, as hey a e becoming expe s o pedagogical eaching-lea ning p ocesses. The s uden eache s’ endency o adap and passi ely con o m and hei lack o sel - egula ion o lea ning may esul in challenges o hei gaining o ac i e p o essional agency, and hus leading o di icul ies in acili a ing lea ning agency wi h pupils in he school. A complemen a y way o analysing s uden s’ lea ning pa e ns by concen a ing on di e en aspec s o he pa e ns and he ela ionship be ween he di e en aspec s enabled us o explo e he in e nal consis ency o he pa e ns. A posi i e inding in e ms o meaning ul p o essional lea ning was ha he mos ypical ca ego y in s uden eache s’ pa e ns was meaning-di ec ed ac o . I was also he mos in e nally consis en pa e n, sugges ing ha hese s uden s had adop ed o ien a ion and lea ned s a egies ha will p obably suppo hem in he ansi ion o wo king li e and help hem o con inue p o essional de elopmen du ing hei ca ee . Howe e , some o he s uden eache s’ pa e ns showed s ong in e nal ic ion be ween he di e en aspec s obse ed. Fo example, he undi ec ed-inconsis en pa e n may lead o aliena ion o bu dening in p o essional li e i he s ong mo i a ion o be a ‘good p o essional’ and he c i ical obse a ions o he pedagogical p ac ices a e no accompanied by ac i e e o s o cons uc be e lea ning en i onmen s. Mo eo e , he deep app oach o lea ning wi hou ac i e sel - egula i e ac ion s a egies in a meaning-di ec ed con o mis pa e n may lead o s a ic p o essional o ien a ion which is no unc ional in de eloping he school o in he e ogeneous, and he e o e challenging, school en i onmen s. One eason o he inconsis encies in he pa e ns may be he unwillingness o change one’s beha iou o hough s, o lack o sel - egula i e skills. Howe e , he inconsis encies may also indica e ha s uden s’ lea ning pa e ns a e changing. They may e en p o ide a ui ul g ound o concep ual changes and o he o ma ion o a e lec i e eache iden i y, i hese s uden s a e iden i ied and hei ac i e lea ning is acili a ed. Mo eo e , he esul s sugges ha s uden eache s’ lea ning is a complex en i y and one elemen , such as s ong in e nal mo i a ion o cohe en concep ions o eaching and lea ning, is no enough o build up an e icien pa e n o lea ning. Hence he e is a need o u he analysis as well as longi udinal s udies ocusing on educa ional acks, and beyond in o he wo king li e and ansi ions wi hin and be ween hem. The esul s showed ha he e we e di e ences in s uden s’ egula ion o lea ning, and hey esona e wi h some p e ious esea ch p oclaiming ha eache educa ion does no always p o ide an op imal lea ning en i onmen o ac i e, meaning ul lea ning (Niemi, 2002). One eason o his may be ha gaps occu be ween eache educa o s’ belie s and ac ual pedagogical p ac ices (Lunenbe g & Ko hagen, 2003; Lunenbe g, Ko hagen & Swennen, 2007), as well as he s uden s’ engagemen and how hei expe ience i s wi h he gi en con ex s. To sum up, becoming a eache , in ligh o he p esen indings, is s ill a ocky oad. Fu u e eache s expe ience se e al posi i e and nega i e lea ning episodes du ing hei jou ney, and hey do no ully succeed in sol ing he pedagogical challenges coming up o hei way as becoming a concep ual and p ac ical p o essionals o meaning ul and ac i e eaching-lea ning p ocess. As an example o his, he ac ha ac i e lea ning is a e poses he ques ion o whe he eache educa ion is able o os e s uden s’ ac i e agency du ing hei s udies, and in doing so, cons uc a bene icial ounda ion o eache s o con inue hei p o essional de elopmen and c ea e meaning ul lea ning en i onmen s o hemsel es and hei pupils in school. Acknowledgemen s This esea ch is unded by he Academy o Finland (P ojec : 1259489) and he Finnish Cul u al Founda ion Re e ences Au ho s, (2010). Pedagogical well-being: Re lec ing lea ning and well-being in eache s’ wo k. Teache s and Teaching: Theo y and P ac ice, 16(6), 765-782. h p://dx.doi.o g/10.1080/13540602.2010.517690 Au ho s, (2014). Teache s’ p o essional belie s abou hei oles and he pupils’ oles in he school. Teache De elopmen , 18(2), 177-197. h p://dx.doi.o g/10.1080/13664530.2014.900818 Ben-Pe e z, M. (1995). Cu iculum o eache educa ion p og ammes. L. W. Ande son (Eds.) In e na ional Encyclopedia o Teaching and Teache Educa ion (2nd ed.), 543-547. Ox o d: Pe gamon. Biggs, J. (1999). Teaching o Quali y Lea ning a Uni e si y. SHRE and Open Uni e si y P ess. Blombe g, S. (2008). A No ice Teache a Comp ehensi e School. The au hen ic expe iences o eache s beginning hei i s yea o eaching. h ps://helda.helsinki. i/bi s eam/handle/10138/20025/no iisio.pd ?sequence=1