Few people would disagree that the world is rapidly changing with many societies moving from industrial to knowledge economies, predicated by the enormous advancement of the information and communication technologies. As Sachs and Groundwater-Smith (1999) argue, Australia has been one of these societies which has experienced significant economic and structural reform embedded in human capital development. These reforms have been driven by global economic rationalism that focuses on outcomes which emphasize the need to be to be efficient, effective and economic. As a result, people are urged to achieve at high levels if they are to function successfully in the current global environment.

These economic marketing principles have also shaped the practices of schools and teachers by demanding greater levels of accountability against a framework of assessment and standards. Coupled with this movement, societal expectations and demands of schools and teachers are burgeoning. Teachers are not only expected to maximize the learning potential of all pupils but to attend to the increasing demands of society. Retallick and Groundwater-Smith (1999) maintain that teachers' work is changing as school systems themselves change to become more self managing centres of teaching and learning within a context of centralized curriculum decision making. Furthermore, the Ramsey Review of Teacher Education in NSW (2000) has clearly identified that the roles of teachers in educational settings, along with the knowledge and skills needed to undertake these roles professionally, are changing dramatically. A cursory glance at recent policies and curriculum documents reveals that teachers are now dealing with a wider range of academic abilities, literacy and numeracy learnings, cultural backgrounds, behavioural problems and information and communication technologies than ever before, The way children learn and teachers teach has been subject to close research and pedagogical debate.

Universities as the main providers of teacher education in Australia also have not escaped the global trends to provide an educated workforce for a strong, economic society. The challenges for university teacher education programs, Sachs and Groundwater-Smith (1999) argue, are:

Ramsey, in the early release of Issues of Significance Canvassed in Submissions to the NSW Review of Teacher Education, has noted the view that continued reduction of the funding base for teacher education has reached crisis point, where "university staff now have workloads which preclude spending appreciable amounts of time in schools...[and] the relevance and currency of university teacher educator's experience of the work of schools and other educational settings is compromised" (2000, p.4).

The earlier report of the Senate Inquiry into the Status of the Teaching Profession "A Class Act" (Crowley, 1998) found that student teachers were inadequately prepared for the complex and demanding task ahead of them. The report noted :

There was a general belief that the amount and quality of hands on experience and training in schools and classrooms was inadequate. The report recommended new models of teacher education were urgently needed for high quality and appropriate pre-service training that produced better educated, more reflective and responsive practitioners.

Hence the current situation demands it is time to reconceptualise teacher education which can no longer be the sole responsibility of the universities. "Partnerships need to be developed involving all the sectors which have a stake in teacher education," Ramsey (2000, p.10). As Hill (1998) previously suggested, the direction for reform should begin with the redefining of the role of preservice training so that it acknowledges people as life long learners who develop professionally throughout their teaching careers. This learning needs to embrace an integration of theory and practice where research can form the basis on which teachers, both preservice and credentialled, can reflect on their practice and inform future action. This means a stronger emphasis must be placed on learning in the field, within differing contexts, which aims to broaden and enrich the learning process for all. This will allow various stakeholders in the teacher education process to participate through new forms of partnership as advocated by Howard and Butcher (1999) which requires collaboration between universities, school systems and teachers.

Whilst research has investigated the academic staff and student teachers' perceptions of the adequacy of teacher preparation, the picture from the co-operating teachers in the field has been missing. Furthermore, as Veal and Rikard (1998) attest, little evidence exists of co-operating teachers and academics working together to enhance the learning outcomes for students, teachers and others. This study seeks to address this gap by giving teachers a voice to state how they perceive teaching, teacher education and their roles in the professional development of student teachers.

The schools were chosen in collaboration with Parramatta CEO to ensure that no school was overloaded by involvement in the research project. All teachers in the six schools were surveyed. The initial data gathering took place in Term 1, 2000.

Data were collected using an open ended questionnaire. The questionnaires were anonymous, identifying only the school where the respondents taught. It contained three questions for which only a Yes/No answer was required and four broad questions about the teachers' perceptions of: recent changes in teaching; possible changes in teacher education; their role within teacher education; and the possible benefits of involvement in teacher education for themselves, their class and their school. The questions asked are presented in Table 1.

The questionnaires were presented to the staff at a staff meeting at which time had been allocated for staff to complete the questionnaire during the meeting. This procedure was designed to maximise the response rate. While it was explained that completion of the questionnaire was optional, all teachers present completed the questionnaires. The response rate in five of the schools was 98%. In one school it was not possible to organise such a meeting * and the questionnaires were left by one of the researchers who briefly explained the purpose of the study. Again the optional nature of the responses was indicated and a return envelope was left with the principal. In this case the response rate was much lower at only 23%.

The comments of all respondents were read to gain an overall impression of the perceptions of individual respondents and of each respondent group. Following this, each respondent's comments were categorised, using the constant comparative method (Glaser & Strauss, 1967). Each new point mentioned by a respondent was categorised separately to ensure that no comment was lost. These comments formed the content units for subsequent catagorisation. If the same point was repeated within one teacher's answer then only the initial content was categorised and recorded. All three researchers read the survey responses and individually determined the content units within every respondent's answer. Individual content units were then categorised by each researcher. Finally, the researchers met as a group and the content units and categories were discussed and finally determined.

The results were fed back to the schools at staff meetings later in the year. The feedback sessions were seen as an essential step in establishing credibility with teachers and giving them a greater sense of ownership of any subsequent plans for field based learning involving their schools. In addition, the meetings provided an opportunity for staff to ask further questions, as well as an opportunity for the researchers to check the validity of their analysis of the teachers' responses.

In total there were 107 teachers who responded to the questionnaire. Not all respondents answered each question. Therefore, in the tables presented below the number of teachers answering in a particular manner is shown along with this number expressed as a percentage of those teachers who responded to the question. Themes that were mentioned by more than 10% of teachers are discussed below.

Teaching practices, curriculum, accountability, role diversification and increased workload were the chief changes within the school context noted by teachers. The major categories of responses to question 2 are presented in Table 2.

Of the 107 teachers who commented on changes over the past 10 years, 71% referred to some form of change in teaching practices. The four main types of changes to teaching practices that were noted, involved: catering for individuals and groups; technology; parental involvement in the classroom and changes in assessment practices.

Of the comments written about specific teaching practices, the largest group (26%) indicated that one of the major changes in teaching over the past 10 years had been an increase in focus on the needs of individual students and the task of catering for individual learning styles:

Some teachers indicated that this focus on the individual learner produced more work for teachers:

Other teachers, however, wrote about how the emphasis of technology has impacted upon aspects of teaching practice:

Increased parental involvement in classrooms was a change noted by teachers. These comments were positive with some teachers referring to the partnership of parents and teachers. A greater emphasis on the assessment of individual students was also noted by the teachers surveyed. While 19 other teachers made reference to teaching practices these were of a very general nature such as "wide variety of methods" (308).

Changes in teaching practices are often driven by changes in the curriculum. This link was clearly seen by many of the teachers surveyed with 67% of teachers commenting on changes in the curriculum over the past 10 years. The increasingly broad scope of the curriculum was mentioned by 35% of the teachers while the constancy of curriculum change was mentioned by 10% of the teachers surveyed.. Some examples follow:

Extra 'subjects' like child protection, sun-safe, IT. (122)

A number of remarks were also made about the change in the curriculum due to outcomes and reflected on the emphasis now given to this term within the curriculum. The remaining 11% of teachers remarked generally about curriculum and covered a range of aspects relating to particular syllabus documents and the way in which curriculum drives the learning in the classroom. Changes to the curriculum have been classified here as changes in practices within the school but there is also a sense in which teachers see these changes, which are usually made by curriculum developers in head offices and universities, as a major external influence on changes in their role as a teacher.

The aspect of accountability was identified by 31% of teachers as a meaningful change in the last 10 years. Teachers commented on the legal aspects of child protection for which they are accountable as well as the increase in routine administrative tasks that they see as outside their core teaching role.

Closely related to accountability were comments by 22% of the teachers who referred to increases in the number of roles teachers are now expected to undertake and also to the diversification of these roles.

The final category in internal factors of change was the increase in workload with 20% of teachers remarking on this element. Quite often the comments were tied to other statements made about previously discussed factors, for example, curriculum, catering for individuals and accountability but these comments were grouped together due to their consistency in highlighting the increase of workload.

As well as commenting upon changes in their day to day practices within the school, teachers also noted a number of changes in the wider society which have an impact upon the schools. These factors included: the type of children entering the education system; family issues which affected the children; the image of teachers as perceived by society and the expectations placed upon teaching staff by parents, the government, the system and community. These responses are presented in Table 3.

Increased demand on classroom teacher (610)

More demanding pupils, parents, society (523)

On the other hand, more respondents (27%) chose to comment about who they considered to be placing these pressures upon them. Teachers who spoke about parental expectations (13%) while others referred to the government (7%) and of the community (7%).

With respect to teaching, teachers have spoken with a clear voice. Teaching has changed over the past ten years. This clear message and the many faceted picture it presents provides an excellent backdrop to the remaining questions asked in this survey.

Teachers showed an equal interest in changes in both field-based and university-based aspects of teacher education.

While the call for more time in schools was clear, many other comments focused on the structure of field-based experience as it presently exists for student teachers and for schools. Some teachers spoke about the need to have students within the school more regularly for a longer period of time.

Other examples about literacy, programming and technology were:

The teachers who indicated that they would provide an opportunity for student teachers to be part of the school environment (17%) did not explain further the type of support or guidance that they hoped to give. These teachers indicated a desire to offer students experiences that would provide them with an understanding about classroom life. Some simply stated:

whilst others expanded this a little further:

However, 43% of the teachers who saw themselves as having a role in preservice teacher education talked about passing on the necessary 'craft' and modeling to students how to do the job.

The remaining group of teacher comments explored the relationship between student teacher and the teacher of the class. The role anticipated here was one of mentoring instead of merely modeling good practice. It must not be inferred, at this point, that mentoring does include modeling for it is implicit in the role but it's important to note that mentoring is also so much more. As a mentor, the teacher shares with the student teacher in a more equal partnership. Both participants contribute to the learning experience and both listen to each other. The assumption is not that the teacher gives and the trainee teacher takes but that they both share and grow professionally from the time they experience together. The language used by these particular teachers was distinctly different from the previous group as they desired to express that their responsibility in teacher education was a 'two-way street'.

It was hoped that by designing the question in this way teachers would be able to distinguish the different benefits for each of the stakeholders within the school. In turn, this would inform the research more clearly. Overall, there were nine groups of benefits that emerged and many of these benefits were remarked upon for two and often three of the named stakeholders. For example, the strongest benefit identified was keeping in touch with new ideas. This benefit was named for all three school stakeholders. Whereas, the class was seen as the major beneficiary of a variety of teaching practices.. The results from Question 7 are seen in Table 6 below.

From these results it is evident that teachers consider the major benefit to them and the school from involvement with a university in teacher education is keeping in touch with new ideas. The major benefit to the class is seen as the variety of teachers and teaching practices they will experience.

Another benefit mentioned with relatively high frequency referred to the extra help that a student teacher gave to the children and teacher in the classroom.

Teachers also spoke about the need for a link between universities and schools and some teachers believed that a benefit which they hoped would emerge would be the exchange of ideas and for them knowing what was being taught on campus.

According to some teachers their involvement in teacher education resulted in the reflection upon their own teaching practice. This, they considered to be an advantage to themselves, but also to their class and the school.

Clearly teaching has changed over the past ten years. Teachers' responses to the survey fell into two categories. Those that indicated changes in teachers roles and responsibilities and those that referred to factors that have influenced such changes. In the first category teachers noted the changes in teaching practices, in the curriculum content to be covered in the need for accountability and more generally in increased workloads. These changes must be seen in a context where the pressure of and the nature of social expectations on schools has increased. These increased expectations have come from parents, governments, as well as system administrators and society in general. They can also be related to changes in the family background and behaviour of children entering schools.

It follows that teacher education should change to take account of the changes in teaching practice. This will mean changes in the curriculum of teacher education as well as an increase in the amount of time teacher education students spend in schools which are seen as the primary location for learning about the practical tasks of teaching.

Teachers perceptions of their role in teacher education vary from a simple acceptance of the need for student teachers to be given experience in classrooms, through a desire to pass on what they know, to a concern that student teachers be helped to understand and appreciate the importance of and the joys of the teachers' role in the education of children.

The vast majority of teachers see benefits for themselves, their class and their schools through being involved in teacher education. Teachers valued the opportunity to "keep in touch" while they saw the opportunity to have another "teacher" in their class as providing essential variety for their students.

It is of interest that teachers who saw the school as the primary site for learning the practicalities of teaching also valued the contact with student teachers and the university as a means of keeping in touch with what was happening in teaching. The subtleties of this distinction will be the focus of one of the detailed follow-up studies that will flow from this initial survey.

If teacher educators are to adequately prepare student teachers for the reality of the field, then the messages heard from these teachers' voices need to be listened to and acted upon.

To accommodate the changes in teaching practices student teachers need experience and instruction on how to cater for individuals and groups with particular attention given to identifying the needs of pupils and their various learning styles. Furthermore, student teachers need to be skilled in the use of technology to assist the learning of children and to enhance daily teaching practices. Student teachers should further demonstrate competence in the use of technology to facilitate the daily administrative demands that are placed on teachers.

Teachers' reports of increased collaboration with parents in a variety of contexts to enhance the development of the child, suggests the need for student teachers to develop these important skills during initial teacher education. Knowledge of a broad range of curriculum and how it impacts upon teaching and learning practices was also perceived to be important for teacher education programs. The continuing change in curriculum identified by teachers suggests that student teachers should acquire a thorough understanding of the principles and process of change. Furthermore, the school and the law should be viewed as an important feature of teacher education as teachers identified that teacher accountability, especially in relation to child protection issues, is now a concern for many practitioners.

However, teachers clearly perceived that these types of learnings could not occur in universities alone. For student teachers to gain understanding and knowledge of these areas they needed to be immersed in the field where first hand experience could be gained. It is interesting to note that this experience was not focused upon delivery of content in key learning areas, but on how to work within broader contexts such as facilitating parental involvement in the teaching/learning process, individualised instruction and working effectively across a variety of roles. To experience these various roles, the teachers in the field believed that student teachers should be placed in a mentoring experience where opportunities for shared learning could be fostered. This is a move away from the traditional hallmarks of the practicum which places the student teacher in a subservient role of stand and deliver for assessment purposes.

Therefore, the integration of theory and practice must become the focus of all teacher education programs. It may be, that teacher educators have for too many years left it up to the students to make this link rather than exemplifying it in their own teaching and course structures. Universities, teachers and student teachers must embrace partnerships which can address relevant content for effective practice that is firmly embedded in the school context. As found by Howard and Butcher (1999), benefits need to be evident for all stakeholders in order for partnerships to effectively exist and progress. From our study, teachers in the field reported that their contact and involvement with universities brought personal and professional benefits, particularly in the sense of "keeping in touch with new ideas." However, these same teachers in their call for teacher education to be more firmly based in the 'practical reality' of the school clearly imply that universities and their teacher education staff are out of touch. We know that this doesn't apply to us! But teachers won't believe this unless we are prepared to work more closely with them in the practical and real situations that the schools provide.

Hence, the message for universities is clear. If academics are willing to get involved through partnerships with teachers in practical projects which are of benefit to teachers, pupils and student teachers then mutual benefits can be experienced for all concerned. The practice of crammed lecture auditoriums to hear about the nature of teaching is finished. The arrival of learning in the field with particular projects identified by the school in personalised and meaningful contexts such as classrooms, is now the place for learning.

Churchill, R., Williamson, J., & Grady, N. (1997). Educational change and the new realities of teachers' work lives. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education, 25(2), 141-158.

Crowley. R. (Chair) (1998) Senate Inquiry into the Status of the Teaching Profession A Class Act. Senate Employment, Education and Training. Canberra; Australia.

Fullan, M. (1993). Change forces: Probing the depths of educational reform. London: Falmer Press.

Glaser, B.G. & Strauss, A.L. (1967). The discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. New York, Adline Publishing Company.

Hill, P. (1998) Ready for the classroom? EQ Australia. 8-10.

Howard, P. and Butcher, J. (1999) Teacher Education: The times they are a changing. Paper presented at the AARE-NZARE Conference, Melbourne.

Ramsey, G. (Chair) (2000) Issues of Significance Canvassed in Submissions to the NSW Review of Teacher Education. The Government of NSW; Sydney.

Retallick, J. and Groundwater-Smith, S. (1999) Teachers' Workplace Learning and the Learning Portfolio. Asia-Pacific Journal of Teacher Education. 27, 1, 47- 59.

Sachs, J. and Groundwater-Smith, S. (1999) The changing landscape of teacher education in Australia. Teaching and Teacher Education. 15, 215-227.

Veal, M. and Rikard, L. (1998) Cooperating Teachers' Perspectives on the Student Teaching Triad. Journal of Teacher Education. 49, 2, 108- 119.