ABSTRACT
Teacher preparation includes provision for teachers to acquire skills to interpret classroom events, and skills to act on those events. These two kinds of skills require conceptual knowledge to diagnose events, and performance ability to promote appropriate pupil behaviour. Conceptual skills can be acquired in the vicarious learning of teacher training programmes traditionally offered in college classrooms. These skills can be developed further through exposure to classrooms by observing teachers and pupils. Both approaches have commonly been used, but the transition from the theory of the classroom to the application with pupils is difficult. Another approach to supplement this training is through the study of filmed episodes that portray concepts. These films make the theory more understandable without necessitating the inconvenience and uncertainty of actual events in elementary and secondary classrooms. These filmed episodes and their accompanying printed materials of student guides, instructors’ manuals, and research reports are called protocol materials. Protocol materials bridge the gap between theory and practice, and strengthen the diagnostic skills of the teacher. The second kind of skill required for teaching is actual performance to act on classroom events. The theory of methods courses and the application of those methods in classrooms include transitions similar to those faced in conceptual acquisitions. An approach that provides for an effective transition in these skills is called microteaching. Microteaching provides for safe practice under controlled supervision to improve these skills. Both protocol materials and microteaching offer productive approaches to teacher preparation in the area of skill development.
