Abstract Concern for coherence in European teacher education is fueled by changes in political organisation and teacher mobility. 'Coherence' is a value‐laden concept, yet its meaning is unclear. In the USA, advocates of coherence assume that a tightly connected set of experiences is needed to give teacher education programmes sufficient power. Both 'coherence' and 'programme' have positive associations with harmony and wholeness. The difficulties with 'programme' and 'coherence' in the North‐American context are suggested by the terms' historical associations with behaviourism and the pursuit of efficiency. Single‐minded planning for particular programme effects may crowd out other goals and compromise the idea of educational progress. Rather than adopting the metaphors of force historically associated with programme coherence, this paper suggests that teacher educators should consider metaphors of light, especially the metaphor of a sparkling diamond.
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Buchmann et al. (1991) studied this question.
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