| This multiple case study describes how participating in collaborative action research projects affects the understanding of five preservice teachers and their on-site teacher educator (OSTE) mentors. In addition, the effects of the collaborative action research projects on the relationships of the five mentor/mentee pairs are also described. Individual interviews, audio-taped action research conferences, dialogue journals, written reflections and reports, and researcher fieldnotes were used as data sources for this study. Analysis of these data revealed the understanding of the preservice teachers in the areas of self as teacher, curriculum content, students, teaching/instruction, roles and responsibilities, collaboration, and the action research process. The OSTEs' understanding in the areas of self as teacher, students, teaching/instruction, roles and responsibilities, preservice teacher education, and the action research process is also described. There was strong evidence that both the preservice teachers and the OSTEs' focused on students during their collaborative action research project and gained valuable knowledge about their students' learning, needs, and perspectives. There was also strong evidence that choice of research question and data collection methods were important to what participants learned from their collaborative action research projects. In addition, this study found that engagement in collaborative action research assisted four of the five preservice teacher and OSTE pairs in building collaborative mentor/mentee relationships in the internship setting. Recommendations for engaging preservice teachers and their OSTE mentors in collaborative action research during an internship experience are presented. |
