The Acquisition of Error Competence and the Value of (learning from) Errors in Teacher Education from the Perspectives of Teachers in Finland and Germany

Anotace: Teachers' everyday error management in the classroom is one important aspect of their professional competence. This comprises conceptual knowledge about (the learning potential of) misconceptions and student errors, adaptive attitudes and orientations about errors as learning opportunities, and adaptive classroom management in error situations. The purpose of this study was to explore whether teacher education prepares teachers to meet these expectations and where teachers gain these facets of error competence. We analyzed 27 problem-centered interviews with Finnish and German teachers of different subjects and different school forms. Using MAXQDA, the data were coded into six categories, ranging from informal learning experiences to formal learning situations during teacher training. We identified various experiences and attitudes in the teachers' narratives. Our findings indicate that from the teachers' points of view and recollections of experiences, teacher education in both countries provides few intentional learning opportunities for developing professional error competence.