| Under the context of No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB, 2001) and teacher education accreditation that came the following year, this descriptive case-based study investigated a missing perception in teacher education reform initiatives and studies. This missing perception is the cooperating teacher views regarding the readiness of preservice teachers. Using effective teacher research, Stronge's Teacher Checklist (Stronge, 2002; 2007), and the INTASC principles (1992), this study gathered data from journals, evaluations, and interviews to discover the perceptions of cooperating teachers. Participants included cooperating teachers, preservice teachers, school administrators, and a university supervisor. This study helps to acknowledge the cooperating teachers' perceptions of the preservice teachers who share their classrooms in an age of rigor and high-stakes accountability. Seven key findings reveal understands about the preservice teachers' knowledge, skills, attitudes, and dispositions. With this information, stakeholders can begin to determine changes needed in teacher education programming to better prepare teacher candidates. |
