Modelling science teaching and bridging the theory practice gap: what's possible?

Professional experience is at the heart of all courses in the Faculty of Education and plays a significant role in the development of all preservice teachers. In an effort to better support the development of high quality science teachers, and attempt to bridge the often referred to “theory practice gap” a partnership has been formed between Faculty of Education and a Secondary School that connects professional experience and university experiences in more significant ways. The focus of the research was the impact of the initial year of the partnership on the development of pre-service science teachers. In this paper, we will outline the partnership, consider the impact of the partnership from multiple perspectives and suggest possibilities for the future. Data was collected from pre-service science teachers during their experience at the school, immediately after their experience at the school and at the end of the university year, through written feedback and focus group interviews. Data was also collected from the secondary school science teacher and the university science teacher educators’ involved. The data was analysed to highlight the value of the partnership for pre-service teacher learning along with the areas in need of improvement and possibilities to grow and sustain this collaborative partnership into the future.