The Resources Boom : Cash Cow or Crisis for Preservice Teacher Education in Western Australia?

Jenny Lane
2008 Australian Journal of Teacher Education  
This is a research paper describing the impact of globalisation on the provision of preservice teacher education in Western Australia. The author utilises a range of research methodologies to gather and analyse current data, finally a range of possible futuristic scenarios are presented. The paper has significance for those concerned with future policy and planning in the area of preservice teacher education yet has a broader impact for all educational planners. It is written from the
more » ... e of a concerned tertiary educator with over twenty-five years experience in education. The author currently co-ordinates a post-graduate course in preservice teacher education at a university in Western Australia. We need to understand the nature of growth processes and how to catalyse them. But we also need to understand the forces and challenges that impede progress, and to develop workable strategies for dealing with these challenges. We need to understand the dance of change, the inevitable interplay between growth processes and limiting processes (Senge,2001.pp.11.). In this paper I make connections between the current resources boom in Western Australia and preservice teacher education. I begin by portraying the Resources boom as a direct consequence of globalisation, and then proceed to notice how this economic boom is impacting on preservice teacher education. Following this, problems and dilemmas in preservice teacher education will be presented and the roles played by state and federal government in encouraging enrolments and providing resources for teacher education courses will be critiqued. Finally, forecasting models will be used to create a range of scenarios for the future provision of preservice teacher education in WA.
doi:10.14221/ajte.2008v33n1.5 fatcat:ls4emntp4zbwvb3lcuzszkocpy