Pedagogical Reasoning in Teacher Education: The Unexplored Route to Intellectual Development – A Study of the Practicum in Kenya

Abstract

In this paper, I argue that when teacher education (TE) only aims at student teachers’ mastery of procedural knowledge, the envisaged intellectual development that teachers need so that they can, in turn, facilitate similar development in their learners cannot be realised. My argument is based on a study I conducted in Kenya, in which I investigated what English language student teachers learn during the practicum and the issues that influence their learning. Generally, the data showed that they mainly acquired procedural knowledge but failed to develop pedagogical reasoning, which - arguably - ought to be the main goal of TE.

Keywords: Reasoning, education, learning, practicum, development