Working with others

This is the age of globalization with offshore campuses, international schools, a growing number of international students, and multinational companies. Often colleagues are collaborating halfway across the globe and across time zones to meet deadlines and targets which would be unimaginable a couple of decades ago. Teacher educators of the twenty first century have to be well prepared to live and work in a world that is constantly changing and evolving. They are expected to adapt to these changes and learn as they go as well as prepare their student teachers for this dynamic world. Consequently, student teachers and teacher educators have to be prepared to work effectively with others and these ‘others’ are not always limited to their immediate colleagues. In this chapter we look at various levels at which people may be required to work together in today’s educational scene, including teacher educators and student teachers. A key role for a teacher educator is to demonstrate a range of partnership working. This chapter will consider the benefits to you and your students as a result of you working effectively in partnership with others.