Students' and Cooperating Teachers' Perceptions of the Secondary Teacher Education Program.

This study, an evaluation component of the Mathematics English Technology Education Resources (METER) project, examined student teachers' and cooperating teachers' perceptions of the Secondary Teacher Education Program redesign at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. METER was part of the Illinois Professional Learners' Partnership (IPLP) a federally funded 5-year program to improve the quality of teacher education programs. This study examined four of nine key focus areas of IPLP: teaching diverse student populations, content area knowledge, clinical experience, and technology integration. It focused on students' satisfaction with program components, cooperating teachers' perceptions of the program, and how the program responded to students' needs. Data were collected via program feedback forms, and results were organized by content area, student cohort, semester of enrollment, and common themes. Data analysis indicated that students' and cooperating teachers' perceptions of the program were inconsistent across content areas. There was evidence that the program responded to student needs. Students perceived program improvement in some areas but program decline in other areas. An appendix presents data on the percentage of students whose comments were significant themes. (SM)