Out of our Comfort Zone: Student perspectives on Effective Teacher Education Programming

This paper emerges out of a multiphase, pan-Canadian, multiple perspective inquiry into teacher preparation for international contexts. Our goal was to conduct a study that identifies capacities necessary for successful international teaching and to support the development of those capacities in teacher education programs (TEPs). In an early phase of the study we examined students’ retrospective perspectives on their teacher education programming from two distinct international geographical and curriculum locations: the United Kingdom and East Asia. In this paper, we elaborate on those findings through a comparison with student perspectives from a more recent data set, including students currently enrolled in TEPS across Canada and recent alumni currently working in a wide range of geographical locations. Participants identified experiences that take them “out of their comfort zone” as key in their preparation for teaching in Canada or elsewhere. While international practicum placements were one opportunity for students to gain these skills, we will offer session attendees additional findings for ITE programs looking to support students’ intercultural learning and help take them “out of their comfort zone” without having to leave their local contexts.