The Technical University of Munich sees teacher training as one of its core tasks. At the end of 2009 it therefore founded the TUM School of Education, Germany’ s first university Department for Teacher Training in scientific and technical subjects.
New paths in teacher training: with the newly founded TUM School of Education, the Technical University of Munich has realized an innovative concept for integrating teacher training, school practice and educational research – and hopes to find imitators.
Where is the training?
Teacher training at many Germany universities is given scant attention. The commission “Teacher Training” already called for reforms in this area at the end of the 1990s. The commission had been appointed by the Conference of Ministers of Cultural Affairs and was headed by education researcher Ewald Terhart.
At the recommendation of the Terhart Commission, several universities established teacher training centers at the beginning of the millennium. They belong either to the organization of the university administration or are central academic institutions, but they do not have department status. The departments, for their part, where those studying to become teachers receive their specialist training, often feel they are not really responsible for the pedagogic-didactic part of the preparation.
Odd man out
For about 45 years, the Munich TU has been training teachers for high school and vocational school. In 2003, it established the Central Institute for Teacher Training and Advanced Training in order to improve teacher education and foster contacts to schools in the surrounding area.
Five years later, the University Council of the TU decided to found a separate department for teacher training. “We cannot continue to allow teacher training to be remain the odd man out among the disciplines. It must rather be developed into the core task of the university”, commented TUM President Wolfgang A. Herrmann at the time of the founding. “In the interests of our society and the international competitiveness of our economy, teacher training and the teaching profession need a long-overdue upgrading.”
Substantial foundation funds – about 16 million euros – were raised, renowned scholars appointed: at the end of 2009, the School of Education was ready to commence.
Separate department for teacher training
“The TUM School is a unique construction”, explains its first Dean, PISA researcher Manfred Prenzel. “As a university department, it is responsible for the quality of a modern teacher training program and has control over all the resources that the TUM provides for teaching training”. These include staff and financial resources for specialist training in the other departments. In this way, according to Prenzel, the individual contributions to teacher training can be “better coordinated ands systematically developed”.
For Prenzel, the department status of the TUM School of Education also stresses the commitment to research and teaching. The Department wants to study “empirically the conditions for successful teaching at schools and universities” and “test and implement new avenues of teaching and learning”. This research will feed directly into teacher training – for instance, on the basis of results gathered from the analysis of videos, longitudinal studies or other scientific monitoring of school projects.
Exchange is important
It pays that the Munich TU has for years been building up a network of partner and reference schools. This network guarantees a close relationship to practice. “As a professional field of study, teacher training presupposes that professors are very well acquainted with its current practical demands and problems”, explains Prenzel. “The exchange with schools is therefore very important.”
This exchange works, for Prenzel, in two directions: “The more than 50 reference schools enjoy a privileged access to the scholarly and scientific resources of the TUM – for instance, advanced training, school laboratories and teaching projects. In exchange, the schools agree to accept our teacher trainees for intensively supervised internships”.
Especially in mathematics, computer science, the natural sciences and technology, disseminators are important in order to arouse young people’s enthusiasm. Prenzel’s credo is: “To ensure an excellent next generation at our universities and in the economy, we need excellent teachers”. And so the PISA researcher’s wish for the future is that the TUM School of Education become a role model throughout Germany – and encourage other universities to make their teaching training programs the center of attention.
