The European Union (EU) encourages Member States to “foster co-operation with third countries and the competent international organizations in the field of education” (Maastricht Treaty, 1992:29), in order to produce a teacher workforce capable of educating young people to live in a changing, globalised world. Turkey, as an aspirant EU member, is eager to be part of this cooperation, in order to improve the quality of education offered to Turkish young people. There have been major reforms in the Turkish educational system within the framework of the requirements for full membership of the EU. One requirement is that there should be conspicuous development in educational spheres, including teacher education. In this context, Turkey has given particular attention to teacher education and defined a set of Teacher Competencies for use in the training of pre-service teachers. The new Teacher Competencies are largely based on the Teacher Standards of England and Wales, with Britain being considered a model of good practice in teacher education. Throughout, the paper will draw on theoretical frameworks associated with the notion of the reflective practitioner. John Dewey (1933) and Donald Schon (1983, 1987) established the foundation for reflection in teacher development. In order for teachers to become effective educators, Dewey argued that they must reflect critically on their teaching and identify ways of solving problems through their practice (Keogh, 2005: 12). Moreover, Schon (1987) advises that the only way to move toward being a reflective practitioner is through continued coaching and practice. These ideas will help to explore the usefulness of the Teacher Standards and Competencies for pre-service teachers in becoming critically reflective practitioners. In a global world, comparative studies are of vital importance in education, supplying an opportunity to investigate and understand different cultures and systems. This study provides an overview of the similarities and differences between the Teacher Standards and Competencies in the two countries, and presents the views of pre-service teachers with regard to the effectiveness of the Standards/Competencies for developing good practice in beginning teachers. The following questions are investigated: • What are the similarities and differences between the British Teacher Standards and the Turkish Teacher Competencies? • How are the Turkish Competencies adapted to suit the cultural context? • What is the understanding of pre-service teachers in England and Turkey regarding the Standards and Competencies? • How useful are the Standards/Competencies in developing the professional practice of pre-service teachers?

The nature of the research questions indicated that a qualitative approach to data collection would be most appropriate. Participants in this research were one-year pre-service teachers attending institutions in two countries: the first group was based at the University of Nottingham, UK, following the Postgraduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) course; the second group were from the Pamukkale University in Turkey, attending the one-year non-thesis pedagogical formation programs. The research was conducted in the spring semester of 2009, whilst the participants were carrying out their teaching practice. Data are reported from two sources: 1. Analysis and comparison of national policy documentation relating to teacher standards and competencies 2. Focus groups with pre-service secondary teachers from a range of subject disciplines in England and Turkey

The research provides a comparison of teacher Standards and Competencies in England and Turkey, and an understanding of the pre-service teachers’ perceptions. The findings provide insights into the implementation of the new Standards for Qualified Teacher Status (2007) in England and Wales, and the Generic Teacher Competencies which were first introduced in 2005 in Turkey. Recommendations for developing and enhancing pre-service teachers’ use of the Standards/Competencies may be made.