Field-Based Experience: A Solution for the Theory-Practice Divide in Teacher Education?

The theory-practice divide has been a long-standing concern in the field of teacher education. This concern has not been addressed in Taiwan since the promulgation of the Teacher Education Act in 1995. An international comparison study reported that the degree of the theory-practice divide in Taiwanese teacher education was the largest of the 15 participating countries. To narrow the divide and enhance student teachers' practical abilities, the Taiwanese Ministry of Education has recently launched a policy of promoting field-based experience. The present paper argues that the theory-practice divide originated from the transplantation of Western theories and the teacher-training model of technical rationality. If field-based experience cannot address these causes, it is not a solution for bridging the theory-practice divide. This paper proposes establishing Confucian-culture-inclusive theory and implementing more realistic teacher education practices to narrow the divide between theory and practice. These actions are proposed to promote discussion about the solutions to this long-standing problem.