ö Routledge
Taylors.Francis Group
Journal of Education for Teaching
International research and pedagogy
ISSN: (Print) (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/cjet20
Promises and challenges of differentiated
instruction as pre-service teachers learn to
address pupil diversity
Jana Obrovská, Petr Svojanovský, Jana Kratochvílová, Kateřina Lojdová,
František Tůma & Kateřina Vlčková
To cite this article: Jana Obrovská, Petr Svojanovský, Jana Kratochvílová, Kateřina Lojdová,
František Tůma & Kateřina Vlčková (18 Aug 2023): Promises and challenges of differentiated
instruction as pre-service teachers learn to address pupil diversity, Journal of Education for
Teaching, DOI: 10.1080/02607476.2023.2247356
To link to this article: https://doi.Org/10.1080/02607476.2023.2247356
© 2023 Faculty of Education, Masaryk
University, Brno. Published by Informa UK
Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
ffifl Published online: 18 Aug 2023.
or Submit your article to this journal G?
[JH. Article views: 894
5j View related articles G7
CrossMark
View Crossmark data G?
Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at
https://www.tandfonline.com/action/journallnformation?journalCode=cjet20
JOURNAL OF EDUCATION FOR TEACHING
https://doi.org/10.1080/02607476.2023.2247356 I A Taylor & Francis Group
O Routledge
Taylor & Francis Groi
9 OPEN ACCESS I** Check for updates
Promises and challenges of differentiated instruction as
pre-service teachers learn to address pupil diversity
Jana Obrovská a
, Petr Svojanovský a
, Jana Kratochvílová a
, Kateřina Lojdová©3
,
František Tůma a b
and Kateřina Vlčková©3
a
Faculty of Education, Department of Education, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic;b
Department of
Foreign Language Business Communication, Institute for Slavic Languages
ABSTRACT
This multi-sited ethnographic study explores how pre-service teachers
(PSTs) address pupil diversity during their practicum at lower
secondary schools and how this is facilitated by their participation
in university courses. This investigation's focus on diversity is
grounded in the concept of differentiated instruction. We found
out that university teaching contributes to PSTs having a positive
approach towards pupil diversity and that in their practicum PSTs
succeed in taking the needs of certain groups of pupils into account
in the classroom. However, PSTs take the needs of pupils into
account unevenly and tend to homogenise their teaching on their
practicum, to which the university curriculum also contributes by
not being sufficiently experience-based and not providing
a systematic framework for addressing the needs of all pupils in
the classroom.
ARTICLE HISTORY
Received 1 June 2022
Accepted 19 June 2023
KEYWORDS
Pupil diversity; pre-service
teacher education;
differentiated instruction;
ethnography
The topic of pupil diversity is an important part of teacher education, because for each
pupil to experience success at school and develop their full potential, it is necessary to
address their individual educational needs. It is a difficult task, because the needs of pupils
are very diverse, whether with regard to different learning preferences, academic
strengths, socio-cultural background or e.g. health condition (Tomlinson 2022). This
complex pupil diversity represents a significant professional challenge especially for preservice
teachers (PSTs) (Cochran-Smith et al. 2016), who need considerable guidance in
order to learn how to recognise and address the individual needs of diverse learners
(Darling-Hammond et al. 2019). To fulfil this goal PSTs need practical teaching experience
in authentic contexts as well as quality university courses that develop foundational
understandings about differentiation (Dack 2019a; Sherman 2009). When researching
how differentiation is addressed in initial teacher education, PSTs' voices should be
involved more often (Ruys et al. 2013), but triangulation of different data sources to
overcome the limits of self-reported surveys is also needed (Griful-Freixenet, Struyven,
and Vantieghem 2021). Thus, the goal of this ethnographic study is to explore how PSTs
CONTACT Jana Obrovská @ obr@mail.muni.cz
© 2023 Faculty of Education, Masaryk University, Brno. Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/
licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly
cited. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or
with their consent.
2 (Q) J. OBROVSKA ET AL.
address pupil diversity during their practicum and how this is facilitated by their participation
in university courses.
Conceptualisation of pupil diversity
Although according to statistics, pupil diversity in the Czech educational system has been
growing since the Velvet Revolution, there is no dominant characteristic of pupil diversity
in the Czech context resulting from the available measured indicators. Altogether, on
average in a classroom in a mainstream school about 10% of pupils have special educational
needs and disabilities (SEND), socio-culturally disadvantaged backgrounds or parents
from other countries (Czech Statistical Office 2019). Pupil diversity, however, results
not only from different socio-cultural backgrounds, language skills or health conditions of
pupils, but also from other diverse individual educational needs based on academic
strengths, instructional pace, learning preferences, motivations etc. Therefore, we
approach pupil diversity through the concept of Differentiated Instruction (Dl,
Tomlinson 2017), which represents a framework for understanding diversity by going
beyond narrow conceptualisations arising from socio-cultural categories, such as race,
ethnicity or gender (e.g. Banks and Banks 2019), or from SEND, such as autism or learning
disabilities (Swanson, Harris, and Graham 2013).
Pupil diversity at the lower secondary schools and university researched is not
addressed through Dl, nor through any other specific unified approach; neither mentor
teachers nor teacher educators are trained in such an approach and consequently, PSTs
do not have any courses in their university preparation in which they learn specifically
about Dl. However, we based our research on the Dl concept, which we work with as
a 'sensitising concept', giving us a general sense of reference and guidance in approaching
empirical instances (Blumer 1954). The Dl concept enables an analytical understanding
of the complexity of pupil diversity in the researched environments (see section 'Data
Analysis').
Dl defines the principles of quality differentiation with regard to the individual specifics
of each pupil in a diverse class and at the same time reflects on how to take the frequently
appearing types of identified learning needs into account, defined e.g. through performance
level or disabilities (Tomlinson 2022). Dl is an approach to teaching in which the
teacher proactively modifies the content (what pupils learn), process (how pupils learn)
and product of their teaching (how pupils demonstrate what they have learned) to
address the diverse needs of pupils, which are shaped by their readiness (entry point
relative to a particular understanding or skill), interest (curiosity, or passion for a particular
topic) and learning profile (formed through learning preferences, gender, culture etc.)
(Tomlinson 2017). The basic components of Dl include teachers' positive attitudes; an
environment that supports learning; the diagnosis of pupil progress through ongoing
assessment; usage of flexible grouping; and adapting teaching to the level of individual
pupils.
Previous research has shown that PSTs experience difficulties in implementing Dl
(de Jager 2013), lack of confidence (Brevik, Gunnulfsen, and Renzulli 2018) and
internal struggles (Wan 2016). According to PSTs, it is difficult to implement Dl, for
example, due to problems with classroom management, difficulties with fair assessment
of pupils (Wan 2016), learners' socio-emotional responses or time required to
JOURNAL OF EDUCATION FOR TEACHING @ 3
plan differentiated lessons (Dack 2019b; Goodnough 2010). On the other hand,
PSTs' self-efficacy (Wertheim and Leyser 2002), usage of ongoing assessment, as
well as self-regulation and motivation are important predictors of successful Dl
implementation (Griful-Freixenet, Struyven, and Vantieghem 2021). Moreover, teacher
education can change PSTs' beliefs in a positive way (Wan 2016) or can lead
to their acquiring knowledge of Dl (Goodnough 2010). Nonetheless, positive beliefs
about Dl may not in themselves be sufficient for PSTs to implement Dl on their
practicum. Although PSTs perceive Dl as important, they lack the strategies needed
to translate those beliefs into practice (Wertheim and Leyser 2002). However, if
teacher educators focus solely on differentiation's practical tools without presenting
the foundational understandings, PSTs can appropriate only surface features
(Dack 2019a; Sherman 2009) or 'narrow' understandings (Nepal, Walker, and DillonWallace
2021) of Dl. Related to this, the fact that PSTs often leave preparation
programmes unable to apply Dl effectively may be due to the lack of coherence in
how differentiation is addressed across different teacher education programme
components (Dack 2019a). To translate a university curriculum concerning differentiation
into PSTs' practice, teacher educators should model beliefs and practices
effectively (Dack 2018; Ruys et al. 2013).
Methodology
In this paper we asked the research questions: 1) How do PSTs reflect on and work
with pupil diversity during their practicum at lower secondary schools? and 2) How
is dealing with pupil diversity supported by PSTs' participation in university
courses? Pupil diversity refers to the fact that each pupil has individual educational
needs, which are shaped by many influencing factors, such as learning preferences,
socio-cultural background or health condition of the pupil. Addressing individual
educational needs is thus the central subject of our analysis.
To answer the research questions, we used an ethnographic methodology, which is
characterised by studying what people do and say in everyday contexts, while combining
various techniques of data collection and putting emphasis on long-term
participant observation (Hammersley and Atkinson 2007). In exploring the ways in
which the management of pupil diversity among PSTs is facilitated during their
practicum by their participation in university courses, we were inspired by multisited
ethnography. Its main principle is a focus on 'chains, paths, threads, conjunctions,
or juxtapositions of locations' (Marcus 1995, 105), and its strategy is about connecting
sites that are fruitful from the perspective of the researched phenomenon, which is
produced in several locations. Moreover, the COVID-19 pandemic led us to respect
even more the imperative of multi-sited ethnography - following people in their
physical as well virtual environments, because the PSTs did some of their teaching
on their practicum online and at the university some of the seminars also took place
online. The partial shift of the undertaken research from the physical to the virtual
research field, where we collected about one third of our data, enabled us to observe
how the participants addressed the researched phenomenon in another environment
(Bagga-Gupta, Dahlberg, and Gynne 2019).
4 (Q) J. OBROVSKÁ ET AL.
Table 1. Pre-service teachers' characteristics.
Grade
Pseudonym in which PSTs' practicum took
(gender/age) Field specialisation place School where PSTs' practicum took place
Karolína (F/24) EFL 7/8/9 Kaštanová School
Helena (F/23) EFL 8/9 Kaštanová School
Klára (F/23) Civics 8/9 Kaštanová School
Adam (M/24) Civics 7/8 Kaštanová School
Pavla (F/25) Civics 7/8 Javorová School and Kaštanová School
Petr (M/25) EFL 8/9 Javorová School
Daniel (M/27) EFL 7/8 Dubová School
Natálie (F/23) Civics 9/8 Dubová School
Participants and data collection
The main participants in the research were PSTs (n = 8) enrolled as students in a two-year
master's programme, the completion of which entitles them to become teachers. Data were
collected at three lower secondary schools located in a large city in Czechia where PSTs taught
and at the selected university where they completed their studies. Observations of the PSTs'
teaching were conducted within the subjects English as a Foreign Language (EFL) and Civics
(Table 1) and collected via fieldnotes. PSTs' practicums last for three semesters, and each
semester they have to complete 120 hours, of which they teach for approximately 40 lessons.
The data collection took place at a university where PSTs were taking four general
educational courses (pseudonymised as Course 1, 2, 3 and 4) as part of their master's
studies, in which the topic of pupil diversity is typically reflected on cross-sectionally.
Providing 'content-infused' courses is one of the ways in which the issue of pupil diversity
is incorporated into the curriculum of teacher education programmes (GuSjonsdottir and
Oskarsdottir 2019). The courses are conducted in the form of interactive seminars with
groups of about 20 students. Students can pass the courses through active participation
in class and the completion of ongoing tasks, often linked to the practicum.
In order to comprehend the investigated phenomena fully, we collected various data
sources (Figure 1). All the data was collected in Czech. The data excerpts included in the
manuscript were translated into English and discussed by researchers for meaning consistency
and accuracy. During the interviews with the research participants, we asked
thematic questions (e.g. What comes to your mind when thinking of pupil diversity? or
How did you respond to the individual educational needs of the pupils in the classes?).
The data collection at the lower secondary schools and the university took place over
three semesters for a period of 10 months in total, during the academic years 2019/2020
and 2020/2021, with varying intensity depending on the individual situation of PSTs, and
the limitations related to anti-pandemic COVID-19 measures.
All participants in the research, including parents of pupils from the examined classes,
signed consent forms which were approved by the Research Ethics Committee. All data
has been anonymised using pseudonyms.
Data analysis
Data analysis in ethnography is not a distinct stage of the research process; subsequent
data collection is strategically guided by the findings emerging from ongoing data
analysis; and analysis needs to become gradually more focused. Data sources were
JOURNAL OF EDUCATION FOR TEACHING @ 5
DATA COLLECTED AT LOWER SECONDARY SCHOOLS
715/336 pages of fieldnotes of firstly,
,'40 lessons taught by PSTs by
themselves or in tandem with their
mentors; secondly, post-lesson
interviews; and thirdly, PSTs' other
activities at school during their
practicum (e.g., recounted 'corridor
conversations' by PSTs with their
mentors).
1
I
Fieldnotes
(pages; one page equals 250 words)
TOTAL; 1281
175/55 pages of fieldnotes collected in
32/12 lessons of four general
educational courses taught at the
faculty
Video-
recordings
TOTAL; 123
.../4 video-
recordings
of general
educational
courses taught
at the faculty
_/34 video- 55/15 audiorecordings
recordings
of lessons taught of post-lesson
by PSTs by interviews
themselves or in 1
between PSTs
tandem with and their
their mentors mentors
Data collected during the time when
the practicum took place in person
Data collected during the time when
the practicum took place virtually
69/37 lesson
plans used in the
lessons by PSTs
Audio-
recordings
TOTAL; 70
Lesson
preparations
TOTAL: 106
semi-
structured
interviews with
the mentors
Semi-structured
interviews
TOTAL: 22
78 semi-
structured
interviews with
the PSTs
undertaken at
the beginning
and the end of
the practicum
Assignments
within courses
TOTAL: 55
/31
assignments
within general
educational
courses (e.g.
reflective diaries)
DATA COLLECTED AT UNIVERSITY
Figure 1. General overview of collected data.
analysed in line with the 'grounded theorising' principles (Hammersley and Atkinson
2007), specifically via close reading, coding, categorising and memoing. This systematic
approach to analysis was useful for comprehending large and diverse data sets and thus
ethnographic analysis is often inspired by grounded theory (Charmaz and Mitchell 2007).
For more information on data analysis, see Figure 2.
We enhanced the validity of the data by explicating the unique meanings and
perspectives constructed by individuals acting and thinking in a particular context
as well as by prolonged engagement of researchers in the field (Cho and Trent
2006). More specifically, we followed several analytical strategies to enhance the
validity of our findings. Firstly, the coding was accompanied by researcher synchronisation
so that the data snippets could be coded as unanimously as possible.
This was ensured by: 1) formulation of clear definitions of all codes after they had
been inductively created; 2) joint meetings, where researchers compared the
degree of agreement in the application of codes on different data sources and
came to a mutual understanding. Secondly, by respecting the idea that coding is
a recurrent process, researchers repeatedly read and coded the data in several
analytical phases to ensure the groundedness of the findings. Thirdly, we used
triangulation, i. e. developing analysis and interpretation by contrasting different
data sources (see Figure 1) from various environments (lower secondary schools
and university environments as well as physical and virtual environments) as well
as by using different data collection techniques. While triangulation of data sources
is based on the comparison of data relating to the same phenomenon but deriving
from different participants or phases of the fieldwork, triangulation of different
methods is based on comparing data produced by different data collection techniques
(Hammersley and Atkinson 2007). Triangulation was facilitated by the Atlas.
6 (Q) J. OBROVSKA ET AL.
The first segment of data was first analysed by researchers using general 33 codes
(saturated by 8207 quotations) such as 'PSTstalkingaboutdiversity' (phase 1),
which they then divided into thematically specific sub-codes, such as
'PSTstalkingaboutdiversity/Strategies' (phase 2). A total of 260 sub-codes were
created. By eliminating quotes that did not saturate the individual sub-codes, the
original number of coded quotes was reduced from 8207 to 3768. Subsequently,
the researchers analysed the relationships between the individual sub-codes, which
resulted in the grouping of sub-codes into thematically coherent categories (e.g.
'Grouping'). The sub-codes whose excerpts did not saturate the resulting
overarching categories were excluded from further analysis (end of phase 2). From
the remaining 68 sub-codes containing 1613 excerpts, the researchers finally
summarised the preliminary findings, e.g. 'PSTs have a well-thought-out system of
differentiation strategies, especially for 'conspicuous' pupils' (phase 3).
Based on the preliminary findings from the analysis of the first data segment, the
researchers modified the specific sub-codes to analyse the second data segment
(phase 4). A total of 47 modified sub-codes saturated by 1441 data quotes were
created. Subsequently, the researchers summarised the preliminary findings
resulting from the analysis of the content of the modified specific sub-codes, e.g.
'PSTs take the needs of 'high-performing' pupils into account through homogeneous
grouping' (phase 5).
The conical background color expresses
the gradual focus in the data analysis.
Finally, based on the analysis of the relationships between the preliminary findings,
which resulted from the analysis of both data segments (i.e. from phases 3 and 5),
the researchers formulated the final findings (phase 6}. The final findings, e.g. 'PSTs
reflect o n and take the individual educational needs of pupils into account
unevenly', are based on 115 sub-codes saturated by 3054 quotations.
ti program where different data sources were coded simultaneously and thus
contrasted constantly, with the exception of videorecordings, which were analysed
selectively if other coded data sources were not sufficiently detailed. Finally, the
findings are based on a cross-case analysis of all participants and are grounded in
richly saturated codes and categories.
Throughout the analysis, we respected the strongly inductive nature of ethnography,
while we also used the theory of Dl as a 'sensitising concept' (Bowen 2006). We balanced
between two analytical positions, where important categories of Dl served as background
ideas which informed our inductively driven data collection and analysis. This means that
although our analysis was shaped by the concept of Dl, it was not translated into a preconceived
coding scheme. We explicitly dealt with the Dl categories in findings and their
interpretation.
An important part of our research process was researchers' reflexivity focused on
our different positionalities. Therefore, we reflected on the impact of our presence on
the field relations as well as the analytical process in the fieldnotes during data
collection and analysis (Lichterman 2017). For example, the researchers sought to
put their expertise to one side in interactions with research participants in data
collection and then reflected in the data analysis on how their expertise as perceived
by participants could influence them in the way they interpret the data. As a result,
reflection on researchers' positionalities enhanced the quality of the collected data and
guided us when interpreting the data.
FIRST PART OF ANALYSIS
Analysis of the first data segment
1s t
phase: coding with general codes
2n d
phase: coding with specific sub-codes
3r d
phase: summary of preliminary findings
J
SECOND PART OF ANALYSIS
Analysis of the second data segment
4t h
phase: coding with modified specific sub-codes
5t h
phase: summary of preliminary findings
i
THIRD PART OF ANALYSIS
Analysis of the relationships between the
results of the analysis of the first and second
data segments
6t h
phase: formulation of final findings
Figure 2. Phases of data analysis.
JOURNAL OF EDUCATION FOR TEACHING @ 7
Findings
We present the outcomes of the analysis in the following two sections in line with our
research questions. Illustrative data excerpts are listed directly in the text, but also in
Appendix A.
How pre-service teachers addressed pupil diversity during their practicum
Our findings demonstrate that PSTs took the needs of pupils into account unevenly. While
they successfully took the individual educational needs of 'conspicuous' pupils into
account, they failed to address the needs of 'other' pupils, who, however, made up the
majority in the class.
The dominant patterns in our data show that PSTs managed to thoughtfully take the
individual educational needs of the 'conspicuous' pupils into account. These were typically
pupils with SEND but also pupils without formalised support measures who were
conspicuous in terms of their degree of disruption, pace, motivation etc. This was not
a group of pupils with the same type of needs, but nonetheless we classified pupils in this
analytical category if their needs were urgent.
When differentiating for 'conspicuous' pupils, most PSTs typically used a well-thoughtout
set of strategies, similarly to those proposed by Dl, which they sometimes applied
within one-on-one instruction, but especially within a whole class work. This finding can
be illustrated in situations where PST Daniel took the educational needs of Eda, a pupil
with Asperger's Syndrome, into account. For example, Daniel described a situation where
he helped Eda recall the meaning of a word in English because Eda has trouble remembering
words.
PST Daniel: I would sit with Eda once in a while, and we would tackle some of the
vocabulary. (...) It might have been jingle bells. And I would try to lead him towards it,
saying, it is golden, and it can clink (...) 'Well, this is the word in Czech' and 'Do you know
the English expression?' (...) And he would squeal with pleasure when he remembered it
and looked very happy that he was able to decipher it. (Semi-structured interview with
Daniel)
PST Daniel demonstrated one of the strategies he used to help Eda recall vocabulary in
English. Daniel differentiated for Eda's individual needs at the level of the teaching
process and in response to his learning profile in other situations too, e.g. by recognising
the social need to let Eda work repeatedly in a group with the same people during group
work (fieldnotes from Daniel's teaching) or by working sensitively with situations where
Eda could be called on and there was a risk he would not know the correct answer (postlesson
interview with Daniel).
Similarly, the following excerpt demonstrates how PST Pavla considered strategies for
taking the individual educational needs of a 'conspicuous' pupil into account.
PST Pavla: The teacher told me that the young lady actually had ADHD (...) How I worked
with her, it really worked for me to give her that attention, to call on her and (...) you can
8 @ J. OBROVSKÁ ET AL.
see a lot from her that she has low self-esteem, so when I praised her a lot, she was very
calm, eh, tactical ignoring also worked on her. (Semi-structured interview with Pavla)
The quote from the interview reveals how Pavla reflected on various successful
strategies for supporting her pupil Zora. Although Pavla was aware of Zora's challenging
behaviour (e.g. emotional volatility, rage, vulgarity), she expressed strong empathy for
Zora despite a number of teachers having already given up on her. She considered her
first experience with an ADHD pupil an excellent opportunity to gain experience in this
area (Pavla's reflective journal).
The needs of 'other' pupils in the classroom did not manifest themselves as
significantly as in the case of 'conspicuous' pupils and the PSTs almost never took
them into account. From the PSTs' perspective, these pupils did not figure as individuals
with unique educational needs, but rather as a group of average pupils to whom
it was possible to teach the syllabus homogeneously. PSTs' differentiation for the
needs of these pupils took place exclusively within the whole class work, and these
procedures were unplanned: PSTs responded to a situation in teaching, without
previously reflecting on the specifics of the pupil. This reactive way of differentiation,
referred to within the Dl framework as 'micro-differentiation' (Tomlinson 2017), can be
illustrated in an excerpt depicting PST Adam's discussion with pupils in an online civics
class. Pupil Slávek inserted a funny inscription into the task performed in an online
application instead of his opinion.
The slide shows a picture of an apple, which is golden on the surface but rotten inside. Adam
asked the pupils to think about what this could symbolise. They submit their definitions
through the application. Slávek is leading in terms of'likes', because he submitted an image
with the text: 'I know that I know nothing'. Adam comments that Slávek must have prepared
himself very well for online classes because he has a folder with funny pictures. (Fieldnotes
from Adam's teaching)
Adam responded with humour to Slavek's activity and added an ironic comment that
Slávek was well prepared. However, Adam's response was essentially just a reactive
confirmation of Slavek's needs for a funny performance in front of the class as well as
for a relaxed environment for learning based on his learning profile.
Another example of reactive differentiation was evidenced by a situation from a civic
education lesson, when PST Natálie was dealing with her pupil Leona's reluctance to
participate in group work.
Leona sits alone, she is not involved in a group. Natálie asks her about her opinion on conflicts
and tells her to join someone in a group. Leona says that she does not like to be with others,
that she prefers to work alone. Natálie says that she understands, but that it is important to
overcome it, 'you should try to overcome it, it will be useful to you in the future'. (Fieldnotes
from Natalie's teaching)
In this case, Natálie responded reactively to Leona's need to work independently by
patiently explaining to her the benefits of group work for the development of her social
competences. The pattern of reactive differentiation for the 'other' pupils was occasionally
disrupted only by PSTs somewhat proactively addressing the needs of 'high-performing'
pupils, who were advanced, faster or more active. This can be illustrated by a situation
with PST Petr. 'Petr checks the pupils' work, and if someone has finished, he assigns them
JOURNAL OF EDUCATION FOR TEACHING @ 9
exercise 3' (fieldnotes from Petr's teaching). In a research interview, Petr reflected on this
differentiation strategy:
PST Petr: (...) thinking about the fact that some pupils would finish earlier, so what will
they do so that they don't start to get bored and disturb others in some way, I found it
very useful. (Semi-structured interview with Petr)
PST Karolina also considered the involvement of high-performing pupils:'(...) when it
is something more complicated, (...) I normally call on the better ones' (semi-structured
interview with Karolina). These procedures typical of most PSTs, i.e. assigning another
exercise or a more demanding task to 'high-performing' pupils, were PSTs' differentiation
strategies related to content and pupils' readiness. In post-lesson interviews, PSTs sometimes
reflected on the needs of 'high-performing' pupils, which indicates they planned
their actions to a certain degree. Nevertheless, the primary purpose of these reflections
was often to address the needs of the class as a whole rather than to devise a strategy to
take the needs of'high-performing' pupils into account.
The presented excerpts show that PSTs differentiated unevenly in their teaching and
illustrate the differences in PSTs' differentiation regarding 'conspicuous' pupils and pupils
forming the rest of the class. Figure 3 demonstrates that while the needs of a minority of
pupils in the class were taken into account the most, the needs of the majority of pupils
were taken into account the least.
LEVEL OF PSTs'
ATTENTION
Regular —
Occasional —
Minimal
• LEVEL OF PSTs'
DIFFERENTIATION
'Conspicious'
pupils'
'High-
performing'
pupils
Reactive Partially proactive Proactive
LEVEL OF PSTs'
PROACTIVENESS
Figure 3. The extent to which pre-service teachers address pupils diversity in their practicum. Note:
The findings presented in Figure 3 are based on 39 sub-codes saturated by a total of 1240 excerpts.
10 @ J. OBROVSKA ET AL.
We determined the extent to which PSTs differentiated for pupils on the basis of
the two criteria: 1) the degree of attention that PSTs paid to individual pupils, i.e.
the frequency of differentiating interactions, which was regular for 'conspicuous'
pupils, occasional for 'high-performing' pupils, and minimal for 'other' pupils,
and 2) the extent of pro/re-activity, i.e. how thoughtful and planned the strategies
applied by PSTs were. PSTs' differentiation for pupils' educational needs was: a)
completely spontaneous (reactive), which was typical for PSTs' interaction with the
vast majority of pupils in the classroom, b) to some extent pre-thought out (partly
proactive), concerning the interactions of PSTs with 'high-performing' pupils, or c)
thought-out (proactive), which the PSTs performed in relation to 'conspicuous'
pupils.
When PSTs proactively differentiated for 'conspicuous' pupils they typically focused on
their needs based on a learning profile. On the other hand, when they addressed the
needs of 'high-performing' pupils, it was typically partially proactive and based on their
readiness (cf. Tomlinson 2017).
How university teaching facilitated PSTs' learning to address pupil diversity
We identified three dominant teaching strategies of all university teachers involved in this
research, through which they conveyed the topic of pupil diversity:
(1) modelling their approach to pupil diversity - e.g. the teacher, when explaining how
to conduct a diagnostic interview, emphasises acceptance of shy pupils and respect
for their responses (Fieldnotes from Course 4); the teacher made sure that for PSTs
in the back rows of the classroom, the font in the PowerPoint presentation was
large enough to read (Fieldnotes from Course 3);
(2) providing specific advice and lessons, often linked to a practical example from the
teacher's experience, e.g. the teacher advised how to use an alpha pupil to
integrate a pupil with SEND (Fieldnotes from Course 4); the teacher advised that
pupils with attention deficit disorder needed to be calmed down, not kept busy
and overloaded (Fieldnotes from Course 3);
(3) providing general and/or theoretical advice and instruction - e.g. teacher educators
expressed their rather negative views on the application of a social norm in
assessment, while they underlined the importance of formative assessment
(Fieldnotes from Course 1); the teacher recommended a respectful approach to
pupils to break the teacher-pupil barrier (Fieldnotes from Course 4).
Teacher educators typically modelled a positive relationship to pupil diversity, which is in
line with the Dl concept where positive attitudes of teachers are considered to be
important for creating an invitational learning environment (Tomlinson 2017). We can
illustrate this with an example of a teaching situation in which the teacher emphasised
the importance of PSTs' knowledge about the pupils in the classroom, which she presented
positively, even emotionally.
In response to other examples, the teacher says, 'You have different pupils, but you must
show them and their parents that you have a heart for everybody', stressing that a teacher's
JOURNAL OF EDUCATION FOR TEACHING @ 11
task in each subject is to 'work not only with the content but also who we have in a class'.
(Fieldnotes from Course 1)
The analysis also showed a positive approach towards pupil diversity modelled by
teacher educators shaped PSTs, as illustrated by Pavla's statement about one of her
courses.
PST Pavla: We really must approach our pupils individually, with a certain tolerance, with
respect, yes. And this is what the course can inspire in us most of all, in my opinion (...)
that there should be some understanding towards the children from us as teachers. (Semistructured
interview with Pavla)
Teachers thus contributed to the fact that PSTs considered pupil diversity to be
something natural, something that was 'okay', as evidenced, for example, by Daniel's
statement: 'I started to be aware that it [pupil diversity] exists (...) that diversity is not
something undesirable' (Semi-structured interview with Daniel).
In addition, all the university teachers managed to address the topic of pupil
diversity with PSTs by indicating many ways and possible perspectives on the
different needs of pupils, even with examples from their own teaching experience.
In the university courses observed, teacher educators demonstrated a very wide
range of specific topics and advice related to working with pupil diversity. The
educators addressed e.g. working with pace; taking the different 'starting points'
and performance of pupils into account; formative assessment; personalisation of
teaching; and involvement of pupils in group work. In line with the Dl perspective
(Tomlinson 2017), teacher educators paid attention to all dimensions of pupil variance
(readiness, interest, learning profile) as well as to the importance of formative
assessment and flexible usage of different interaction patterns when being responsive
to pupil diversity.
On the other hand, in the data we did not find indications showing that general or
specific advice on working with pupil diversity significantly shaped PSTs. All the PSTs
usually found it difficult to recall general educational courses from the university curriculum;
they confused them and talked about them in general terms. According to them,
these courses have a rather theoretical character, as illustrated by the following quotes:
PST Natálie: I don't remember much about what we did (...) I guess I don't remember
anything specific. (Semi-structured interview with Natálie)
PST Adam: It seemed to me that it was more on a theoretical level, but in my practicum
I didn't really use it much. (Semi-structured interview with Adam)
Our data showed that no matter whether teacher educators' advice or instructions
were theoretical or entirely specific, in the end they became 'theory' for PSTs. However,
when PSTs were able to connect the subject matter related to the topic of pupil diversity
discussed at the university to their own practical experience, they reflected more deeply
on it.
12 @ J. OBROVSKA ET AL.
PST Karolina: It's nice to learn about it theoretically from some of those lessons but (...)
What actually happens in your practicum and you actually experience it (...) yourself it
really influences you and a lot of it stays in your memory. I can then identify with it more in
those specific examples [from university courses]. You're not just hearing that someone
has experienced it, but you experience it yourself. Well, you can identify with it and think
more deeply about it. (Semi-structured interview with Karolina)
PSTs tended to integrate mainly information connected with their own practicum
experiences into their mental structures. The complexity of the curriculum provided by
teacher educators contributed to the information from seminars being inscribed into
PSTs' knowledge and practices to only a limited extent. It follows that due to a lack of
connection of university teaching with PSTs' personal experiences and the absence of
a comprehensive systematic framework for addressing pupil diversity in higher education,
PSTs were not able to differentiate their teaching to address the needs of all pupils in the
classroom.
It turns out that once PSTs found themselves on their practicum, they were confronted
with a number of new situations and challenges, which was clearly evident in Course 2,
the aim of which was to give PSTs space to reflect on their own practical experience. In
this course, PSTs addressed themes such as cooperation with a mentor or behaviour
management, but the topic of pupil diversity was addressed by all the PSTs attending the
seminars rather rarely because it recedes into the background in favour of more pressing
issues (fieldnotes from Course 2).
However, we also identified potentially productive connections between university
courses and PSTs' practicum, typically within the tasks that PSTs performed on their
practicum and then reflected on in seminars. For example, Pavla reflected on the task
given in Course 4, in which the PSTs had to diagnose the individual educational needs of
the selected pupil during their practice:
PST Pavla: I have to admit that this was one of the best assignments we had to work on
during my entire studies, because for the first time I felt like a real teacher in every way.
(...) I consider creating proposals for measures to be a great experience, because I had the
opportunity to really think about everything I saw in the school environment around the
selected pupil, and to find out and obtain a lot of new information that will be useful to
me in the future. (Task assigned within Course 4)
These tasks eliminated the perceived theorising of the curriculum by PSTs as they
increased the practical relevance of university courses for PSTs.
Discussion
Our research showed the promises and challenges regarding how PSTs addressed pupil
diversity during their practicum at lower secondary schools as well as regarding how
university teachers facilitated PSTs' learning to take the diverse needs of pupils into
account. To conceptualise pupil diversity we used the Dl framework. We found that
PSTs differentiated unevenly in their teaching during their practicum. We understand
JOURNAL OF EDUCATION FOR TEACHING @ 13
the thoughtful and proactive differentiation of 'conspicuous' pupils by PSTs as well as the
partial differentiation of'high-performing' pupils as a promising step away from typically
undifferentiated teaching. Similarly, previous research has shown that differentiation is
focused especially on low- and high-achieving pupils, because these groups of pupils are
challenging for PSTs (Brevik, Gunnulfsen, and Renzulli 2018; Tomlinson et al. 1997). PSTs'
narrow understanding of addressing pupil diversity (Nepal, Walker, and Dillon-Wallace
2021) corresponds with public discourse in Czech (Stech 2021) as well as international
contexts (GuSjonsdottir and Oskarsdottir 2019; Woodcock et al. 2022), where a short line
is drawn between inclusion and challenging pupils, typically those with SEND, and
consequently diversity is viewed predominantly as a special needs concept.
In our research PSTs struggled with addressing the needs of the majority of pupils, as
these did not manifest distinctively and thus PSTs usually approached them as average
pupils (cf. Tomlinson 2022) to whom the syllabus can be taught uniformly. Also, in their
lesson plans PSTs did not reflect on their differentiation strategies, and typically created
the same plan for all pupils within a whole class work, which provides only limited space
for individualisation or working with small groups of pupils. All this testifies to the
tendency for PSTs to homogenise the teaching process, i.e. to plan and implement
teaching with respect to the average level of pupils so that it can take place uniformly
for the whole class. From this perspective, the partially proactive addressing of readiness
of'high-performing' pupils can be understood as an attempt by PSTs to correct deviations
that disrupt the 'teaching in the middle' tendency (Tomlinson 2017), similar to the
proactive addressing of the learning profile of'conspicuous' pupils, without which there
would be a risk that these pupils would be excluded from the homogenised teaching or
might even disrupt the class.
The analysis of our data from university courses showed that pupil diversity was
included in the curriculum from many perspectives and over a diverse range of topics.
Teacher educators succeed in providing PSTs with many opportunities to learn about the
different types of educational needs of pupils and how to address them. Moreover, we
showed that PSTs were shaped by the positive discourse on pupil diversity modelled by
the course teachers. As a result, they had a predominantly positive approach to pupil
diversity (Moon, Callahan, and Tomlinson 1999; Wan 2016); however, the instructions of
university teachers regarding addressing pupil diversity were not inscribed much into
PSTs' practice. Even specific advice from teachers became a kind of 'theory' for them as
soon as it was not linked to PSTs' practical experience (cf. Korthagen, Loughran, and
Russell 2006). Although the university curriculum captured pupil diversity in a complex
way, it did not mediate it systematically to PSTs (cf. Santangelo and Tomlinson 2012), i.e.
as an overarching conceptual framework that would guide the use of pedagogical tools
(Dack 2019b). It follows that incongruities among programme components such as
coursework and fieldwork (Dack 2019a) or between different university courses
(GuSjonsdottir and Oskarsdottir 2019) regarding addressing pupil diversity can cause
confusion among PSTs and negatively affect their appropriation of differentiation.
The fact that PSTs did not remember that much from the university curriculum may
also have been due to the tendency that university educators themselves did not tend
to model differentiated practices much in seminars (cf. Swennen, Lunenberg, and
Korthagen 2008), or that their modelling of differentiation was not explicit (cf.
Santangelo and Tomlinson 2012). The influence of implicit modelling of differentiation
14 @ J. OBROVSKA ET AL.
on PSTs is limited (Dack 2018; Ruys et al. 2013). The absence of a systematic and
experience-based curriculum as well as regularly modelled differentiation practices
could contribute to the needs of most pupils in the classroom being side-lined in
favour of more pressing issues, such as classroom or time management (Moore 2003).
In such a situation a homogenising approach to teaching was a solution for PSTs to
cope with pupil diversity. Relatedly, under the influence of the many demands of their
practicum, PSTs can experience 'reality shock' (Korthagen, Loughran, and Russell 2006)
and tend to conform to traditional ways of teaching, i.e. teaching to the middle
(Tomlinson 2017). Instead of obtaining the information about pupils needed to conduct
differentiated teaching, which is laborious (Goodnough 2010), it may seem more
effective to mostly address the more conspicuous needs of pupils and otherwise to
tailor their teaching to the average classroom level so that it is homogenous for the
whole class.
Based on our research findings we suggest several implications. It has been shown that
PSTs should be taught about differentiation in depth by providing them both with
practical strategies as well as critical theoretical principles before entering the teaching
profession, when early patterns of teaching are forming (Dack 2019b; Griful-Freixenet,
Struyven, and Vantieghem 2021). Importantly, PSTs should comprehend differentiation as
a theory to be applied in a contextually sensitive way, rather than as a set of teaching
strategies (Sherman 2009). The results of our research support incorporating a holistic
approach on addressing pupil diversity in teacher education programmes (GuSjonsdottir
and Oskarsdottir 2019) as well as supporting coherence among different programme
components (Dack 2019a).
Teacher educators should model behaviour in such a way as to ensure it translates into
the thinking and practices of PSTs, e.g. by 'meta-commentary' (Swennen, Lunenberg, and
Korthagen 2008). As providing regular and explicit modelling of differentiation in university
seminars is essential but difficult, teacher educators should expand their own
professional competences, especially with regard to giving meta-commentary (Ruys et al.
2013).
Moreover, our research also points to the importance of directly linking university
teaching with PSTs' personal practical experience, for example, through assignments
(Sherman 2009), or other forms of practice-based artefacts.
Some of the limitations of our research are that due to the nature of the ethnographic
methodology and the narrowing of our observations to EFL and Civics subjects, the
findings from our research are not generalisable to the entire population of PSTs with
their diverse teaching specialisations. This means that our results are limited by the
selected subjects, which are specific in that, for example, a greater emphasis on interactivity
can be assumed within them compared to other subjects, in which the addressing
of pupil diversity may have other specificities. Further research should look at the use of
various differentiation strategies in other subjects taught at lower secondary school.
Although we analysed an extensive as well as complex ethnographic data set, our findings
are limited because we captured individual pupils' perspectives on how they view PSTs'
provision for their educational needs only indirectly via fieldnotes. We suggest future
research should include pupils' perspectives directly through formal interviews with
pupils to comprehend the ways PSTs address the needs of diverse pupils in greater
complexity.
JOURNAL OF EDUCATION FOR TEACHING @ 15
Conclusion
The main purpose of this ethnographic study was to explore how PSTs address
pupil diversity during their practicum and how this is facilitated by their participation
in university courses. We contribute to the current research in the field of
professional training of PSTs in addressing pupil diversity by providing robust
findings based on a rich and extensive data corpus characterised by simultaneous
emphasis on the thinking and behaviour of PSTs related to pupil diversity in two
related settings, i.e. lower secondary schools and university. The most important
contribution of our study lies in recognising the different levels of pro- and reactivity
of PSTs' differentiation strategies related to different types of pupils.
Furthermore, we demonstrated that university teaching contributed to PSTs having
a positive approach towards pupil diversity, but this was not inscribed sufficiently
into PSTs' knowledge and practices regarding addressing pupil diversity. We
believe that enriching knowledge in the field with the results of our research will
contribute to improving the quality of pre-service teacher education regarding
addressing pupil diversity.
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the Czech Science Foundation [grant number GA19-06763S,
Ethnography of Diversity in Pre-Service Teacher Education]. We thank all the participants for their
participation in the research.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Funding
This work was supported by the Czech Science Foundation [GA19-06763S].
ORCID
Jana Obrovská http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8705-341X
Petr Svojanovský http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2520-4838
Jana Kratochvílová http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4483-0404
Kateřina Lojdová © http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5671-9047
František Tůma © http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9391-1353
Kateřina Vlčková © http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6053-6040
References
Bagga-Gupta, S., M. G. Dahlberg, and A. Gynne. 2019. "Handling Languaging During Empirical
Research: Ethnography as Action in and Across Time and Physical-Virtual Sites." In Virtual Sites
as Learning Spaces, edited by S. Bagga-Gupta, M. G. Dahlberg, and Y. Lindberg, 331-382. Cham,
Switzerland: Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-26929-6_12.
16 @ J. OBROVSKÁ ET AL.
Banks, J. A., and C. A. M. Banks, Eds. 2019. Multicultural Education. Issues and Perspectives. 10th ed.
Hoboken, N. J: Wiley.
Blumer, H. 1954. "What is Wrong with Social Theory?" American Sociological Review 19 (1): 3-10.
https://doi.Org/10.2307/2088165 .
Bowen, G. A. 2006. "Grounded Theory and Sensitizing Concepts." International Journal of Qualitative
Methods 5 (3): 12-23. https://doi.Org/10.1177/160940690600500304.
Brevik, L. M., A. E. Gunnulfsen, and J. S. Renzulli. 2018. "Student Teachers' Practice and Experience
with Differentiated Instruction for Students with Higher Learning Potential." Teaching and
Teacher Education 71:34-45. https://doi.Org/10.1016/j.tate.2017.12.003.
Charmaz, K., and R. G. Mitchell. 2007. "Grounded Theory in Ethnography." In Handbook of
Ethnography, edited by P. Atkinson, A. Coffey, S. Delamont, J. Lofland, and L. Lofland, 160-174.
London: SAGE Publications Ltd. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781848608337.n11.
Cho, J., and A. Trent. 2006. "Validity in Qualitative Research Revisited." Qualitative Research 6 (3):
319-340. https://doi.Org/10.1177/1468794106065006.
Cochran-Smith, M., A. M. Villegas, L. W. Abrams, L C. Chávez-Moreno, T. Mills, and R. Stern.. 2016.
"Research on Teacher Preparation: Charting the Landscape of a Sprawling Field." In Handbook of
Research on Teaching, edited by D. H. Gitomer and C. A, 439-547. Washington, USA: American
Educational Research Association.
Czech Statistical Office. 2019. Školy a školská zařízení - školní rok 2018/2019. Assessed August 28,
2021. https://www.czso.cz/csu/czso/skoly-a-skolska-zarizeni-skolni-rok-20182019.
Dack, H. 2018. "Structuring Teacher Candidate Learning About Differentiated Instruction Through
Coursework." Teaching and Teacher Education 69:62-74. https://doi.Org/10.1016/j.tate.2017.09.
017.
Dack, H. 2019a. "The Role of Teacher Preparation Program Coherence in Supporting Candidate
Appropriation of the Pedagogical Tools of Differentiated Instruction." Teaching and Teacher
Education 78:125-140. https://doi.Org/10.1016/j.tate.2018.11.011.
Dack, H. 2019b. "Understanding Teacher Candidate Misconceptions and Concerns About
Differentiated Instruction." The Teacher Educator 54 (1): 22-45. https://doi.org/10.1080/
08878730.2018.1485802.
Darling-Hammond, L., J. Oakes, S. Wojcikiewicz, M. E. Hyler, R. Guha, and A. Podolsky. 2019. Preparing
Teachers for Deeper Learning. Cambridge: Harvard Education Press,
de Jager, T. 2013. "Guidelines to Assist the Implementation of Differentiated Learning Activities in
South African Secondary Schools." International Journal of Inclusive Education 17 (1): 80-94.
https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2011.580465.
Goodnough, K. 2010. "Investigating Pre-Service Science Teachers' Developing Professional
Knowledge Through the Lens of Differentiated Instruction." Research in Science Education
40 (2): 239-265. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-009-9120-6.
Griful-Freixenet, J., K. Struyven, and W. Vantieghem. 2021. "Exploring Pre-Service Teachers' Beliefs
and Practices About Two Inclusive Frameworks: Universal Design for Learning and Differentiated
Instruction." Teaching and Teacher Education 107:103503. https://doi.Org/10.1016/j.tate.2021.
103503.
Gu5jónsdóttir, H., and E. Óskarsdóttir. 2019. '"Dealing with diversity': Debating the Focus of Teacher
Education for Inclusion." European Journal of Teacher Education 43 (1): 95-109. https://doi.Org/10.
1080/02619768.2019.1695774.
Hammersley, M., and P. Atkinson. 2007. Ethnography. Principles in Practice. 3rd ed. London:
Routledge.
Korthagen, F. A. J., J. Loughran, and T. Russell. 2006. "Developing Fundamental Principles for Teacher
Education Programs and Practices." Teaching and Teacher Education 22 (8): 1020-1041. https://
doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2006.04.022 .
Lichterman, P. 2017. "Interpretive Reflexivity in Ethnography." Ethnography 18(1): 35-45. https://doi.
org/10.1177/1466138115592418.
Marcus, G. E. 1995. "Ethnography In/Of the World System: The Emergence of Multi-Sited
Ethnography." Annual Review of Anthropology 24:95-117. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.an.
24.100195.000523.
JOURNAL OF EDUCATION FOR TEACHING @ 17
Moon, T. R., M. Callahan, and C. A. Tomlinson. 1999. "The Effects of Mentoring Relationships on
Preservice Teachers' Attitudes Toward Academically Diverse Students." Gifted Child Quarterly
43 (2): 56-62. https://doi.Org/10.1177/001698629904300202.
Moore, R. 2003. "Reexamining the Field Experiences of Preservice Teachers." Journal of Teacher
Education 54 (1): 31-42. https://doi.Org/10.1177/0022487102238656.
Nepal, S., S. Walker, and J. Dillon-Wallace. 2021. "How Do Australian Pre-Service Teachers
Understand Differentiated Instruction and Associated Concepts of Inclusion and Diversity?"
International Journal of Inclusive Education. https://doi.Org/10.1080/13603116.2021.1916111.
Ruys, I., S. Defruyt, I. Rots, and A. Aelterman. 2013. "Differentiated Instruction in Teacher Education:
A Case Study of Congruent Teaching." Teachers & Teaching 19 (1): 93-107. https://doi.org/10.
1080/13540602.2013.744201.
Santangelo, T., and C. A. Tomlinson. 2012. "Teacher Educators' Perceptions and Use of Differentiated
Instruction Practices: An Exploratory Investigation." Action in Teacher Education 34 (4): 309-327.
https://doi.Org/10.1080/01626620.2012.717032.
Sherman, S. C. 2009. "Haven't We Seen This Before? Sustaining a Vision in Teacher Education for
Progressive Teaching Practice." Teacher Education Quarterly 36 (4): 41-60. http://www.jstor.org/
stable/23479283.
Stech, S. 2021. "Výzkum, experti a politici - podivuhodný život ideje inkluzivního vzdělávání v CR."
Pedagogika 71 (3): 403-420. https://doi.org/10.14712/23362189.2021.981.
Swanson, H. L, K. R. Harris, and S. Graham. 2013. Handbook of Learning Disabilities. 2nd ed. New York:
The Guilford Press.
18 @ J. OBROVSKÄ ET AL.
Swennen, A., M. Lunenberg, and F. A. J. Korthagen. 2008. "Preach What You Teach! Teacher
Educators and Congruent Teaching." Teachers & Teaching: Theory & Practice 14 (5-6): 531-542.
https://doi.Org/10.1080/13540600802571387.
Tomlinson, C. A. 2017. How to Differentiate Instruction in Mixed-Ability Classrooms. 3rd ed. Alexandria,
USA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
Tomlinson, C. A. 2022. Everybody's Classroom: Differentiating for the Shared and Unique Needs of
Diverse Students. Washington: Teachers College Press.
Tomlinson, C. A., C. M. Callahan, M. T. Ellen, N. Eiss, M. Imbeau, and M. Landrum. 1997. "Becoming
Architects of Communities of Learning: Addressing Academic Diversity in Contemporary
Classrooms." Exceptional Children 63 (2): 269-282. https://doi.Org/10.1177/001440299706300210.
Wan, S. W. Y. 2016. "Differentiated Instruction: Hong Kong Prospective Teachers' Teaching Efficacy
and Beliefs." Teachers & Teaching 22 (2): 148-176. https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2015.
1055435.
Wertheim, C, and Y. Leyser. 2002. "Efficacy Beliefs, Background Variables, and Differentiated
Instruction of Israeli Prospective Teachers." The Journal of Educational Research 96 (1): 54-63.
https://doi.Org/10.1080/00220670209598791.
Woodcock, S., U. Sharma, P. Subban, and E. Hitches. 2022. "Teacher Self-Efficacy and Inclusive
Education Practices: Rethinking Teachers' Engagement with Inclusive Practices." Teaching and
Teacher Education 117:103802. https://doi.Org/10.1016/j.tate.2022.103802.
Appendix
Appendix A. Additional Examples of Data Excerpts Illustrating Important
Findings
Findings Data excerpts
PSTs manage to thoughtfully take the
individual educational needs of the
'conspicuous' pupils into account.
Sergei fa conspicuous pupil due to his frequent disruption of the lesson with inappropriate comments] announces (during the online lesson} that he needs more time, that he
needs to insert a long definition. PST Daniel; 'Okay Sergei, keep to the topic and don't be inappropriate. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that you'll make it' (..J Sergei snaps at
Daniel, saying something to the effect that he's bored, that he's going to ire down. Daniel responds very patiently that he probably should not speak like this. Sergei
apologizes, [fieldnotes from Daniel's teaching) [In the post-lesson interview, Daniel reflects on his approach to Sergei's inappropriate remarks] PST Daniel: He [Sergei]is like
a typical teenager who is testing how far he can push the boundaries. And it's much more effective than scolding him, so 1 fust calmly explain it to him and then he doesn't do
it (...) 1 think that this is a permanent, long-term and successful solution, (post-lesson interview with Daniel]
PSTs partially proactively address the needs of
'high-performing' pupils, who are advanced,
faster or more active.
Karolina fin English class] adds that if someone has time left over, they can come up with a different time frame, trying to give a slightly more creative and time-consuming
task to smarter and faster pupils. The classroom is quiet, the pupils work hard, [fieldnotes from [Carolina's teaching]
PSTs address the needs of 'other' pupils in the
class typically reactively.
[During the online Civics class, PST Pavla discusses with pupils what stress is and what strategies the pupils use to manage stress. One of the strategies mentioned is playing
the recorder, and several pupils start playing the recorder at their computer in response to the comment. Pavla spontaneously addresses the interests of the musically
oriented pupils and suggests that they play something for others at the end of the lesson.] PST Pavla: 'Everyone seems to be a recorder player! (laughs); we can have a short
concert moment at the end of the lesson'. Pupil Radovan; 'Yes, 1 would do it, 1 would do it', (videorecording of Pavla's teaching)
Teacher educators model a positive approach
to pupil diversity.
In Course 1, the teacher educator explains why reflection is useful; it can happen that you have a hyperactive child in your class who gets on your nerves. You learn to
Tolerate different behaviours, to think about why certain behaviours evoke certain feelings in you, while other behaviours do not (...) There are different types of pupils,
some ! get along with well and some 1 don't. But it's not the pupil's problem, it's mine. Reflection is about me thinking about why I react OK to someone and not to someone
else, [fieldnotesfrom Course 2)
Positive approach towards pupil diversity
modelled by teacher educators shapes P5Ts.
PST Daniel: 1 think the important thing was that (thanks to university classes} 1 became aware that it [pupil diversity} exists and that there are ways to work with it(...) and all
you have to do is to want and to search and you really come up with something. (...)And that diversity is (...) nothing undesirable, because 1 think that there is often quite a
bit of scepticism on the part of the public about this topic, so more like a warning from the teachers that there is no need to look at it so pessimistically, [semi-structured
interview with PST Daniel]
Teacher educators provide specific as well as
general theoretical advice while indicating
many ways and possible- perspectives on pupil
diversity.
'Connect content with life. Put life there, a life situation. We have to consider the composition of the class, Everyone has a different learning style. You will have pupils of
different levels in the class; Then the teacher switches to a summary of the seminar in PowerPoint: 'Prepare tasks in such a way that everyone develops. Think about the
topics of the task so that they come from real life. Use the pupils' experience, what they are currently living in, use active verbs. Explain, draw, compare... so that the activity
is observable' (...) Then she asks about knowledge of multiple Intelligences, but the PSTs do not respond much. She draws attention to the use of functional aids, continuously
summarises and supplements with examnles from practice, (fieldnotes from Course l l
The complexity of curriculum provided by P5T klara: It's something different when information and knowledge just bombards you, than when you actually experience it yourself. It's nice to know that there are pupils
teacher educators contributes to the who need such and such cure, or that you should treat them like this, but in reality it seems to me that it's completely different, it's nice to have an idea of what this and that
information from seminars being inscribed into means, but practice is completely different in my opinion, (semi-structured interview with Klara J
PSTs.' knowledge and practices only to a limited
extent.
The topic of pupil diversity was addressed by
PSTs attending the university seminars rather
rarely because it recedes Into the background
in favour of more pressing issues.
[As part of the course, PSTs are supposed to choose the competences they want to develop during their practice from the Standard of Quality of Student Teacher Professional
Competences]. The teacher groups the topics recorded on strips of paper based on sub-areas of the Standard. She focuses on the most frequently represented topics. One of
them is discipline. 'All beginning teachers have to deal with this topic, some naturally deal with it easier than others, but they all have to deal with it' (...) Other topics from
paper strips are already being discussed, e.g. time management, easing the load, evaluation, (fieldnotes from Course 2}
Potentially productive connections between
university courses and PSTs' practicum picture
typically the tasks that P5Ts perform on their
practicum and then reflect on in seminars.
Researcher: How did Course 4 enrich you in terms of that topic {addressing pupil diversity]? PST Petr: What probably (enriched] me most was the portfolio assignment that 1
have just handed in (...) because 1 did a case study of the behaviour [of the selected pupil], so there you analyse the case in great detail, so that's where it enriched me most.
(semi-structured interview with Petr)