Education in the Age of the Information Superhighway - An Investigation into Initial Teacher Training in Canada

Oct 15, 2026

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The article examines current Canadian initial teacher training practices through the perspective of an experienced UK school teacher. It focuses on Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at the University of Toronto and highlights approaches believed to support deep learning for beginning teachers. Emphasis is placed on helping trainees develop a personal understanding of education’s purposes and on enabling them to act as agents of change within evolving educational and political contexts.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages14

Reading Time35 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Purpose and need for change in education

Information access, schooling, and learning processes

Implications for curriculum and teacher training

Education in the Age of the Information Superhighway: An Investigation into Initial Teacher Training in Canada Martin Illingworth Author Note Martin works at The University of Nottingham, UK and at Allestree Woodlands School, Derby, UK and is a consultant teacher with The National Association of the Teaching of English (NATE, UK) . Abstract This article discusses particular aspects of current Canadian teacher training that seem healthy practice to an experienced school-teacher from the United Kingdom. With the UK government increasingly interested, some would say determined, in moving the funding of initial teacher training away from universities and to schools, my visit to Canada, and specifically to Ontario Institute for Studies in Education at The University of Toronto, focuses on those practices that appear supportive of deep learning for beginning teachers in helping them to develop their own sense of the purposes of education and ways in which they might become agents of change. Keywords : comparative initial teacher training programmes, social justice, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, United Kingdom and Canada Résumé Cet article traite certains aspects de la formation actuelle des enseignants au Canada qui semblent être une pratique salutaire selon un enseignant expérimenté du Royaume-Uni. Avec legouvernement britannique de plus en plus intéressé, certains diraient déterminé, en déplaçant le financement de la formation initiale des enseignants loin des universités et des écoles, ma visiteau Canada, et plus particulièrement à l'OISE de l'université de Toronto, se concentre sur les pratiques qui semblent favorables à un apprentissage en profondeur pour les enseignants débutants, afin de les aider à développer leur propre sens des objectifs de l'éducation et les façons dont ils pourraient devenir des agents du changement. Mots-clés: comparaison des programmes de formation initiale des enseignants, justice sociale, Centre de recherche en éducation de l'université de Toronto (OISE : Ontario Institute for Studies in Education), Royaume-Uni et Canada CANADIAN JOURNAL OF EDUCATION 35, 3 (2012): 180-193 ©2012 Canadian Society for the Study of Education/ Société canadienne pour l’étude de l’éducation Education in the Age of the Information Superhighway: An Investigation into Initial Teacher Training in Canada My intention here is simple. I believe that the purpose of education should be changing right now. Politicians, administrators, and those in the teaching profession more widely need to think through the challenge of providing a valuable educational experience in our times. I believe that there is potential in the very notion of change. Change must always be apart of success. There is a need for change even in the highest performing schools. School leaders must always be looking for ways in which they can develop the collective understanding within their school as to what the purposes of that school are. Ethos needs to be built around the immediate needs of the local environment and also upon the consideration of recent theoretical development; a fixed idea of what is right will soon become dated and restrictive. The successful Head of Department realises when the high-performing team that has been established and developed needs to be pulled apart and the process of developing a new team needs to begin. Our children are reliant upon the education system to help them understand the world in which they live. That world is changing at a fast rate. Is the UK education system adapting to meet the needs of these children? We do not need to look for some notional state of excellence that is fixed and‘right.’The challenges we face are not fixed. The ideologies and political standpoints around the world are not fixed. Successful educational systems, if they are to approach new sets of developing circumstances, must be about change and the ability to keep moving forward. If children want in

FAQs

What is the article’s main purpose regarding education and teacher training?

It discusses Canadian initial teacher training practices and how they support deep learning for beginning teachers. The focus is on helping trainees understand the purposes of education and become agents of change.

Why does the author argue that education’s purpose should change now?

The author links educational needs to rapid societal and information-driven change. Political and ideological circumstances are also described as not fixed, requiring education to adapt.

How does the article contrast information access with the role of schools and teachers?

It argues that students can access information easily online and that schools no longer hold exclusive keys to information. This shifts attention from imparting knowledge to teaching processes of learning and developing hopeful attitudes.

Oct 15, 2026

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