Characteristics of Preservice Teachers in Multi-Campus Settings - Using Demographics and Epistemological Beliefs to Unpack Stereotypes

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Jasmine

The last two decades have seen rapid expansion of preservice teacher education in Australia alongside critiques of quality. Satellite campuses in growth corridors were intended to support access for populations previously excluded from mainstream routes. This study compares demographics across main and satellite campuses and advances research on first-year preservice teachers’ epistemological beliefs by campus location. Results show demographic diversity in both groups but similar beliefs about knowing and learning, addressing criticisms of entry standards for both cohorts.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages12

Reading Time30 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

The Massification of Teacher Education

Teacher Quality

Australian Journal of Teacher Education | Volume 33 | Issue 6 | Article 1 | | --- | --- | 2008 Characteristics of Preservice Teachers in MultiCampus Settings: Using Demographics and Epistemological Beliefs to Unpack Stereotypes Beryl Exley Queensland University of Technology Sue Walker Queensland University of Technology Joanne Brownlee Queensland University of Technology Recommended Citation Exley, B., Walker, S., & Brownlee, J. (2008). Characteristics of Preservice Teachers in Multi-Campus Settings: Using Demographics and Epistemological Beliefs to Unpack Stereotypes. Australian Journal of Teacher Education, 33 (6). [http://dx.doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2008v33n6.1](http://dx.doi.org/10.14221/ajte.2008v33n6.1) This Journal Article is posted at Research Online. [http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ajte/vol33/iss6/1](http://ro.ecu.edu.au/ajte/vol33/iss6/1) Australian Journal of Teacher Education Characteristics of Preservice Teachers in Multi-Campus Settings: Using Demographics and Epistemological Beliefs to Unpack Stereotypes Beryl Exley Sue Walker Joanne Brownlee Queensland University of Technology Abstract: The last two decades have seen the massification of preservice teacher education and critiques of its quality in Australia and elsewhere. Part of the strategy of massification has been the establishment of satellite campuses in growth corridors. This paper enters the debate on the quality of preservice candidates. The purpose of this research is two-fold: to note comparisons and parallels in demographics across main and satellite campuses, and to advance research on the epistemological beliefs of first year preservice teachers according to campus location. In doing so, we offer an alternative metric for characterising these two groups of students. The results show that the students from both campuses are demographically diverse but are similar in terms of the beliefs they hold about knowing and learning. These findings talk-back to the critique of entry standards for preservice teachers in general and satellite campus students in particular. The Massification of Teacher Education There is no denying the importance of education to any nation-building program, northe correlation of teacher quality and educational productivity. Without high-quality teachers the goal of high achievement for all students will simply not be met. These imperatives, inter alia, have driven the phenomenon known as the ‘massification’ of higher education in many industrial economies, including Germany, France, Japan, Taiwan, the United States (DarlingHammond, Holtzmann, Gatlin & Vasquez Heilig, 2005) and Australia (Bates, 2005) . This process has transformed higher education from institutions that only permitted ‘elite’ entry toa select range of courses, to mass entry to a greater range of courses (Morgan, 1997) including education studies. At the same time, there have been additional policy moves, which involved the establishment of satellite campuses, to improve preservice teacher education of hitherto excluded populations. In Australia in the late 1980s, 75 Colleges of Advanced Education and 19 universities were transformed into 37 universities. However, since this time, like many cosmopolitan cities throughout the world, Australian cities and regional centres have expanded outwards, driven by the ideal of home ownership and/or providing a safe, semi-rural, sub-urban environment for families (see Sunshine state tops population growth, 2005) . This development meant that the target population for university entry was now living ever increasing distances from where most of the 37 university campuses were located. In the last two decades, however, policy redirected these (re)formed universities to setup small satellite campuses in newly identified growth corridors. These policies were a part of the package of reform attempting to redress rising youth unemployment and low education retention

FAQs

What is the purpose of the study on preservice teachers in multi-campus settings?

It compares demographic similarities and differences between main and satellite campuses and examines first-year preservice teachers’ epistemological beliefs by campus location.

How do the findings describe students from main and satellite campuses?

Students from both campus types are demographically diverse, yet they hold similar beliefs about knowing and learning.

How does the paper respond to critiques of entry standards for preservice teachers?

By showing comparable epistemological beliefs between groups, it challenges claims that satellite-campus students differ substantially in their perspectives on learning.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Jasmine