ABSTRACT
In seeking to penetrate the complexities of this subject the chapter will examine definitions, conceptualizations, meanings and metaphors of the good or ideal teacher constructed through art, craft or science designations. It will be suggested that these ways of thinking about teaching were interrelated, and whilst emphases on the art, craft and science constructions changed over time, the flow of ideas between them reflected an important set of understandings about the essence of teaching-‘power to teach’. The chapter is in four parts. First, the description of teaching as art will be examined. Secondly, the construction of teaching as craft will be analysed and it will be suggested that art and craft designations were difficult to distinguish. Thirdly, the influence of the movement to elevate the study of education onto the level of a rational, scientific basis will be traced. How this movement, which in itself was highly complex and contradictory, shaped a science of teaching based upon rational principles, will then be considered. Finally, the concept of ‘power to teach’ as representing the interface of art, craft and science designations will be introduced.
