ABSTRACT
The practice teacher has a central role in the student's experience of practice learning. There is strong evidence within social work (Walker et al. 1995; Fernandez 1998) and nursing (Macleod Clarke et al. 1996) that students are already particularly appreciative of this role. The growing literature on mentoring (Wilkin 1992; Fish 1995; Brooks and Sikes 1997) suggests that the movement towards more school-based learning is also enhancing that role in initial teacher education. Most of the professional regulatory bodies clearly recognise the practice teacher's importance (see Chapter 1), although, significantly, whereas the Central Council for Education and Training in Social Work (CCETSW 1995) and the English National Board (ENB 1997) make clear requirements of the practice teacher, no such requirements are made in teacher education at the time of writing (DfEE 1997).
