ABSTRACT
Most initial courses for teachers adopt a plan for easing students into teaching by allowing them to observe experienced teachers at work. Colleges vary considerably in the way they organize and prepare for this period of initial observation. Some primary courses direct observation to particular aspects of child development by extensive lecture and seminar sessions, and then control observation periods, gradually building up from half-day sessions to longer periods. In other colleges students may find themselves in a school for periods of several weeks armed only with an initial reading list and a satisfactory X-ray certificate.
