Selecting Students for a Program for Excellent Student-Teachers in Israel — Another Perspective

摘要

This qualitative case study elicits personal attributes of applicants who wish to enroll in the Program for Excellent Student-Teachers in colleges of education in Israel. As a democracy, which bases its education system on democratic values, Israel considers itself as part of the Western world. A set of qualitative tools and methodology were used to elicit each individual's personal attributes and to determine their strength. Tools that are currently in use, which are based on the existing standardized tools that focus mainly on cognitive competencies, do not supply a sufficiently detailed foundation to differentiate between applicants. When tools are interesting, meaningful, and taken from real life, tacit knowledge is easily revealed. Applicants in this study document their reflection and their academic, vocational, or personal growth as a major part of the raw data for analysis. The study included 68 participants aged 20−25. The model presenting detailed differentiation between individuals is the major theoretical contribution of this study. The practical contribution of this study is the positive impact that these students had on the climate of teaching and learning in the college and the absorption of excellent teachers to enhance the teaching force. These procedures can easily be applied by teacher education faculty members.