Examining the formation and evolution of university and school partnerships across four case studies

Troy Heffernan, Claire Manton, Terri Seddon, Alexander Kostogriz, Joanna Barbousas

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer-review

Abstract

Current research suggests partnerships between universities and schools create learning advantages for pre-service and beginning teachers while opening new research avenues and school relationships for academics and universities. This paper argues that these findings are often based on a business-orientated definition of ‘partnership’ and originate from studies that examine partnerships which are frequently based in North America and Europe. Thus, the existing studies often focus on partnerships that create learning advantages, but only in profitable or scalable ways that might lead to formal or enhanced collaborations. This paper critically examines the literature and problematises their findings amongst four case studies of partnerships of various sizes and levels of bureaucracy to determine if the literature’s broader conclusions remain true when applied to less business-driven views of partnerships that consider ‘partnership’ in a broader definition. The paper makes a scholarly contribution by informing the audience of what benefits can come to those involved in school and university partnerships of different sizes, and when not preoccupied with creating partnerships for immediate or potential profit.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)682-694
Number of pages13
JournalJournal of Education for Teaching
Volume47
Issue number5
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2021

Keywords

  • beginning teachers
  • Education
  • initial teacher education
  • Partnerships in education
  • placement
  • schools
  • universities

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