Teacher Training and Education in the GCC: Unpacking the Complexities and Challenges of Internationalizing Educational Contexts

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Schools of Education are emerging academic units in higher educational institutions in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations. Most of these teacher training programs are in their infancy stages. Modern day educational discourse across teacher training programs globally, including the Middle East and in the GCC, have predominantly focused on student-centered approaches to teaching and learning. This approach to teacher training is infused with critical scholarship and marks a shift away from positivist approaches to educational scholarship. Integrating critical scholarship in GCC teacher training programs brings about a number of challenges, as this approach to education is a departure from traditional cultural and social norms for schooling in the region. This multidisciplinary volume highlights some of the challenges and complexities that inevitably arise from this paradox. Professors, researchers, and specialists working in the GCC have contributed to this volume with the intent of empowering educators with authentic and contextualized research and insights to advance collective understanding of the complexities and challenges of teacher education and training in the GCC. Ultimately, this work will serve as a practical tool and resource that can be employed by schools of education to provide authentic insights, strategies, and research to further develop teacher training in the GCC and globally.

Reviews

The chapters in this volume provide intricate detail on the developing contexts and reforms of teacher education in the GCC. The field is moving fast; these chapters are useful in mapping out the landscape, the trends, and the developments. The GCC is undergoing many changes, and education is inherently a part of the national goals to all GCC countries. Examining reform through teacher education is important to understanding the wider contexts of educational development in the region. This volume is important for this endeavor.

Author Bio

Naved Bakali is assistant professor of Education at the American University in Dubai.

Nadeem A. Memon is a Senior Research Fellow in the Centre for Islamic Thought and Education (CITE) in Education Futures at the University of South Australia (UniSA).