Unlike many European countries, in Portugalteacher surplus and unemployment amongst new teachers are two intertwined realities with implications for the recruitment of student teachers in higher education institutions and for new teachers’ job expectations. Along with these, more recently, a profound financial and economic crisis has been affecting Portuguese society at various levels (leading to salary cuts and higher taxes), including the teaching profession and initial teacher education, with higher rates of unemployment. Thus, the teaching profession and teacher education have been facing complex challenges over the last few years with implications for student teacher recruitment.

Initial teacher educationhas been investigated from a variety of perspectives, including its curriculum organization, its rationale and key components, and its impact on the education and professional learning of pre-service teachers (Darling-Hammond et al, 2010; Flores, 2011).

Much has been written about the organizational features ofinitial teacher educationand the role of universities and schools in the process of learning to teach. Diversity in its form and content (including different modes of government intervention) and concerns about its quality and outcomes have been major issues in the debates regardinginitial teacher educationin Europe and elsewhere (Flores, 2011). Despite this, the idea that teacher education can make a difference in quality teachers and quality teaching in schools is advocated in existing literature. Zeichner and Conklin (2008) argue for the complexity ofinitial teacher educationprograms and their various components, and for the need to discuss their meaning in both their content and structural characteristics.

In general, practicum has been seen as a key element ininitial teacher educationcurricula and as a place in which the theory and practice divide may be overcome. The connection between two sites of professional learning (schools and universities), the collaboration between university supervisors and co-operating teachers and pre-service teachers, and the possibility to link and to put into practice knowledge and competencies acquired at university have been identified as its major contributions (Flores, 2000; Dawson and Norris, 2000; Al-Hassan, et al, 2012). Workplace learning is perceived as the most important part ofinitial teacher education(Wilson, et al, 2001; Flores, 2005), but, at the same time, diversity in its form, content, duration and focus reveals the lack of consensus in its regard (Wilson et al, 2001).

In Portugal, the Decree-Law nº 43/2007 stipulates the professional qualifications for teaching. Higher professional qualification (at a second cycle level, i.e., master’s degree); curriculum based upon leaning outcomes in the light of teacher performance; research-based qualification; the importance of practicum school-university partnerships; and quality assurance of teachers’ qualification and of initial teacher education are key assumptions of this new policy (ME, 2007). In order to become a teacher, a three-year degree (licenciatura) is needed, plus a master’s degree in teaching (usually a two-year program, varying from 90 to 120 credits).This new configuration of professional training results in a reduced time and space for practicum (which occurs only at master’s level), with implications for the pedagogical activities that student teachers are able to do.

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