Microteaching, Component Skills and the Training of Teachers: an Evaluation of a Research and Development Project

Summary This paper reviews the work and underlying assumptions of a project concerned with the transfer and redevelopment of a self‐instructional microteaching course originally developed in the United States. The transferred materials were shown to be effective with experienced British teachers, supporting the feasibility of such transfers of teacher training systems. The research and development cycle which was to structure the work, however, was only partially implemented, leaving important questions about the need for such redevelopment work unanswered. Another area needing more careful attention is the model used to organize the instructional technology; though effective in altering teaching behaviour, there is evidence that it may not be the most efficient way to achieve the desired goals. Finally, the ‘component skills’ approach to teaching is criticized as a misconceptualization of the behaviour being studied. Some evidence is presented that this in turn may be distorting subsequent patterns of teaching.