PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE IN INITIAL TEACHER TRAINING: PERSPECTIVES OF TUTORS IN PARAGUAYAN APPLICATION SCHOOLS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.56067/xgtzzb50Keywords:
Professional practice , practice tutor , initial teacher training , teacher perception , ParaguayAbstract
The professional teaching practicum is one of the most impactful components of initial teacher training. In Paraguay, within the framework of the New Teacher Training Program, the Ministry of Education and Sciences approved a new model that integrates the practicum from the second semester onward, in five progressive stages, totaling 552 hours. In this context, the tutors in the practice schools emerge as strategic actors whose perceptions have been scarcely studied in Latin America. The objective of this study was to analyze the perceptions of tutors in Paraguayan practice schools regarding the professional teaching practicum component of initial teacher training. A quantitative, descriptive, and cross-sectional design was adopted. Participants included 197 tutors from practice schools affiliated with 22 teacher training institutions, selected through purposive sampling to ensure national representation. A questionnaire validated through expert judgment (Aiken's V > .80) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFI = .94, RMSEA = .051) was administered. It consisted of 17 items grouped into three dimensions: formative impact, collaboration and tutor conditions, and available resources. The response scale was a six-point Likert scale (0-5). The component reliability was alpha = .91. The main results indicate that tutors positively value the formative impact of the practicum and exhibit high self-efficacy in their role. Collaboration with the tutor from the training institution and communication among stakeholders also received high scores. However, satisfaction with institutional incentives and the availability of material and technological resources showed the lowest and most dispersed ratings. It is concluded that the tutors of the application schools perceive the Professional Practice component as a relevant formative experience, strongly supported by their own vocational commitment and by a positive collaboration with the institute, but conditioned by limitations in material, technological and institutional resources, as well as by the need for more specific training for tutoring and a better articulation between theory and practice.
Downloads
References
Ávalos, B. (2022). Teacher education in Latin America: Policies, problems and prospects. Comparative Education Review, 66(1), 1–25. https://doi.org/10.1086/717822
Becerra-Sepúlveda, C., Ibáñez-Muñoz, R., & Valenzuela-Giovanetti, E. (2023). Formación inicial docente basada en el practicum: la academia reflexiva como praxis fundamental para la formación de profesores. Revista Colombiana de Educación, (87), 111–138. https://doi.org/10.17227/rce.num87-13011
Bisquerra, R. (2019). Metodología de la investigación educativa (5.ª ed.). La Muralla.
Brandsford, J., Darling-Hammond, L., & LePage, P. (2022). Introduction: Preparing teachers for a changing world. En L. Darling-Hammond & J. Brandsford (Eds.), Preparing teachers for a changing world: What teachers should learn and be able to do (2.ª ed., pp. 1–39). Jossey-Bass.
Castillo Vega, J. M. (2024). Evaluación del nuevo modelo de Formación Docente Inicial de Paraguay: un estudio comparativo y de caso [Tesis doctoral]. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid.
Castillo-Vega, J. M., Ortiz-Ayala, L. I., Ferreira-Delgado, R. D., & Villalba-Benítez, S. M. (2023). Política de Formación Docente Inicial en Paraguay: avances y principales retos en el marco de la Transformación Educativa. INNOVA Research Journal, 8(3), 174-188. https://doi.org/10.33890/innova.v8.n3.2023.2268
Castillo-Vega, J. M., Donaire, C., Manso, J., & Lagunes-Domínguez, A. (2022). Formación docente inicial desde una perspectiva comparada entre España, Chile y Paraguay. RECIE. Revista Caribeña de Investigación Educativa, 6(2), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.32541/recie.2022.v6i2.pp1-14
Clarke, A., Triggs, V., & Nielsen, W. (2023). Cooperating teacher participation in teacher education: A review of the literature. Review of Educational Research, 93(2), 196–228. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543221141694
Cortés, P., González, A., & Leiva, J. (2022). Partnerships between universities and schools in initial teacher education: Conditions and challenges. Teachers and Teaching: Theory and Practice, 28(3), 234–251. https://doi.org/10.1080/13540602.2022.2055795
Creswell, J. W., & Creswell, J. D. (2018). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches (5.ª ed.). SAGE.
Cuenca, R., & Stojnic, L. (2021). La formación docente inicial en América Latina: dilemas y tensiones en tiempos de cambio. UNESCO-IIEP.
Darling-Hammond, L. (2021). Defining teaching quality around the world. European Journal of Teacher Education, 44(3), 295–308. https://doi.org/10.1080/02619768.2021.1919080
Darling-Hammond, L., & Oakes, J. (2019). Preparing teachers for deeper learning. Harvard Education Press.
Donaire Gallardo, C. A., Castillo Vega, J. M., & Manso Ayuso, J. (2022). La profesión docente en los discursos de la UNESCO, la OCDE y la Unión Europea. Revista Iberoamericana de Educación, 90(1), 17–37. https://doi.org/10.35362/rie9015350
Flores Lueg, C. (2024). Procesos reflexivos promovidos en el futuro profesorado, en perspectiva de docentes que ejercen la acción tutorial en el practicum. Perspectiva Educacional, 63(3), 164–187. https://doi.org/10.4151/07189729-Vol.63-Iss.3-Art.1485
Flores-Gómez, C., Pérez Quintero, J. F., & Villalobos Vergara, P. (2023). Rol del profesor colaborador en contextos de Práctica Profesional, desde la voz de sus protagonistas. Sophia Austral, 29(1). https://doi.org/10.22352/SAUSTRAL20232901
García-Lázaro, I., Conde-Jiménez, J., & Colás-Bravo, M. P. (2022). El desarrollo profesional a través de las prácticas externas desde la visión del profesorado en formación inicial. Revista Fuentes, 24(2), 149–161. https://doi.org/10.12795/revistafuentes.2022.19665
González-Weil, C., Cortez, M., Bravo, P., & Ibaceta, Y. (2022). El tutor cooperante en la formación docente inicial chilena: percepciones, demandas y desafíos. Perspectiva Educacional, 61(1), 48–72. https://doi.org/10.4151/07189729-Vol.61-Iss.1-Art.1191
Hughes, J., Gulosino, C., & Sherrod, M. (2021). Recognition and reward in teacher mentoring: Systemic barriers to cooperating teacher engagement. Journal of Teacher Education, 72(4), 422–435. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487120948689
Izadinia, M. (2016). Preservice teachers' professional identity development and the role of mentor teachers. International Journal of Mentoring and Coaching in Education, 5(2), 127–143. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJMCE-01-2016-0004
Jarauta, B., Pérez, M. J., & Bozu, Z. (2021). La construcción de la identidad profesional docente en la formación inicial: un estudio en el contexto iberoamericano. Profesorado: Revista de Currículum y Formación del Profesorado, 25(2), 187–206. https://doi.org/10.30827/profesorado.v25i2.8990
Lave, J., & Wenger, E. (1991). Situated learning: Legitimate peripheral participation. Cambridge University Press.
Lizana-Verdugo, A., & Burgos-García, A. (2022). El estudio de la práctica reflexiva y la labor tutorial en el proceso de formación docente. Revista Electrónica Interuniversitaria de Formación del Profesorado, 25(2), 93–112. https://doi.org/10.6018/reifop.515491
Manso, J., & Thoilliez, B. (2015). La competencia emprendedora como tendencia en la formación docente europea. Profesorado: Revista de Currículum y Formación del Profesorado, 19(3), 17–33. https://recyt.fecyt.es/index.php/BORDON/article/view/Bordon.2015.67106
Martín-Cuadrado, A. M., González-Fernández, R., Méndez Zaballos, L., & Malik Liévano, B. (2020). Competencias tutoriales de los/as responsables de prácticas profesionales en contextos de enseñanza a distancia. Revista Prisma Social, (28), 176–200. https://revistaprismasocial.es/ps/article/view/3385
Martín-Cuadrado, A. M., Méndez-Zaballos, L., & Haas Prieto, V. (2023). Estudio comparativo sobre percepciones de tutores de prácticas españoles y chilenos ante su tarea. Revista Fuentes, 25(3), 318–331. https://doi.org/10.12795/revistafuentes.2023.23099
Ministerio de Educación y Ciencias. (2019). Nueva Formación Docente en Paraguay. Tareas para la mejora de la calidad. MEC.
Ministerio de Educación y Ciencias. (2020). Diseño Curricular Profesorado de Educación Escolar Básica para 1º y 2º ciclo. MEC.
Nguyen, H. T. M., Chestnutt, M., & Buckwalter, J. (2023). Digital tools in the practicum: Cooperating teachers' perspectives on technology-mediated mentoring. Teaching and Teacher Education, 125, 104032. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2023.104032
Nunnally, J. C., & Bernstein, I. H. (1994). Psychometric theory (3.ª ed.). McGraw-Hill.
Pérez Gracia, E., Serrano Rodríguez, R., & Pontes Pedrajas, A. (2022). Construcción de la identidad profesional docente: una revisión de la literatura. Profesorado. Revista de Currículum y Formación del Profesorado, 26(1), 371–393. https://doi.org/10.30827/profesorado.v26i1.13211
Pérez-Ferra, M., Quijano-López, R., & Ocaña-Moral, M. T. (2021). El practicum universitario: calidad, implicación de los tutores y aprendizaje profesional. REDU: Revista de Docencia Universitaria, 19(1), 99–115. https://doi.org/10.4995/redu.2021.13369
Rodríguez-Loera, R. E., & Onrubia, J. (2019). El tutor universitario en el practicum: rol, actividad y concepciones. Revista de Educación, 384, 11–33. https://doi.org/10.4438/1988-592X-RE-2019-384-411
Ruffinelli, A., Morales, A., Montoya, S., Fuenzalida, C., Rodríguez, C., López, P., & González, C. (2020). Tutorías de prácticas: representaciones acerca del rol del tutor y las estrategias pedagógicas. Perspectiva Educacional, 59(1), 30–51. https://doi.org/10.4151/07189729-Vol.59-Iss.1-Art.1004
Schon, D. A. (1987). Educating the reflective practitioner. Jossey-Bass.
Vaillant, D., & Marcelo, C. (2021). Formación inicial del profesorado en América Latina: dilemas y tendencias. Revista Española de Pedagogía, 79(278), 93–109. https://doi.org/10.22550/REP79-1-2021-08
Zeichner, K. (2010). Rethinking the connections between campus courses and field experiences in college- and university-based teacher education. Journal of Teacher Education, 61(1–2), 89–99. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487109347671
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 JOSÉ MARÍA CASTILLO VEGA
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
-
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication, with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
-
Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
How to Cite
