The focus in my doctoral research is on how the gap between theory and practice in teacher education can be bridged. I follow 8 student teachers through their first one and a half year of their initial teacher training, considering how student teachers’ practical teaching theory is manifested and how it can be developed. The main research question is: How can writing function as a tool for developing student teachers’ practical teaching theories?

When student teachers evaluate their education programmes school experience scores highest. They want more and longer periods of practice. But what do we know about the learning outcome from school experience? Are student teachers able to grasp ‘the wisdom of practice’ (Shulman, 2004) and to develop their professional voice? Student teachers tend to talk about college and school as two quite different, poorly connected worlds. Motivation for learning is connected to the reality ‘out there’, and they find it difficult to convert what is learned in theory into practice.

The problem the gap between theory and practice constitutes has been met in various ways. In some countries, political dissatisfaction with existing teacher education has resulted in a considerable portion of teacher education being transferred from university colleges to schools. Novices are supposed to learn from skilled practitioners. In other countries the shift has not been implemented by any significant increase in field practice but has mainly been expressed in the approach to practice (Schön, 1983; Zeichner & Gore, 1990). Instead of focusing on developing professionalism by applying scientific theory and techniques, Norwegian teacher education programmes focus on the socialisation process and how to develop autonomous professionals by exposure to individual choices and strategies. Each student teacher develops a personal ‘practical teaching theory’(Handal & Lauvås, 1987).

Giving greater prominence to school reality is an important starting point for teacher education. But student teachers must also introduce new research-based knowledge into their teaching as well as reflecting on the wisdom they encounter through their mentors. There is still a need to bridge the gap between theory and practice in other ways. Writing is thought to play an important role in this bridging. Traditionally, students have documented their understanding of connections between theory and practice in essays and exams. In later years Norwegian teacher education has paid more attention to tools such as interactive logs.

The Norwegian tradition of writing logs in primary and secondary school and in teacher education is inspired by Vygotsky’s work where the basic idea is that putting thoughts into words helps develop understanding. Hoel and Gudmundsdottir (1998:84) develop Vygotsky’s understanding by arguing that the student writes in dialogue with herself to explore and clarify her own thinking. Although both oral and written language clarify thought and create awareness, Hoel (2002) sees writing as the most important facilitator for reflection. Consequently, all writing can be understood as writing to learn. Although a compulsory part of the teacher education programme, we have only limited research based knowledge about how writing logs contribute to teacher students’ professional development.

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