ABSTRACT
What should our priorities be in teacher education? As indicated in the Preface, that is the central question of this book. However, the search for priorities raises the further question: why is it important to have priorities? What is the harm in having teacher educators “cover the waterfront” or, alternatively, follow their particular concerns and passions, leaving it up to teacher candidates themselves to choose their approach to teaching? In this introduction we begin by explaining why we believe the widespread lack of prioritization in teacher education is a serious problem, requiring urgent attention. We then give a sample of new teacher views on the topic, followed by some general principles for addressing priorities in a preservice program.
