INNOVATIONSINHIGHEREDUCATION
( 2020b). Our recommendations are based on our research and experiences and the broader literature. While not exhaustive, these suggestions are flexible activities that mentor teachers can tailor to their contexts and the unique needs of the preservice teachers they host in their settings. In turn, these activities prepare preservice teachers to provide developmentally appropriate learning experiences to their future students.
DAP as a Framework for Teacher Preparation
Developmentally appropriate practice helps each child achieve their optimal developmental and educational goals in a positive, joyful, and engaged manner( NAEYC 2020a). Educators cannot provide developmentally appropriate learning experiences for children without considering the unique assets children bring from their families and communities( Howard 2018). For anyone in early childhood education, these ideas most likely sound familiar. What may feel different is to think about DAP as a framework for preparing educators( Katz 1977).
Typically, preservice teachers teach in the ways they were taught as pre-K – 12 students. Unfortunately, these previous learning experiences may not have corresponded with DAP; preservice teachers may have attended schools that emphasized rigid, one-size-fits-all teaching and assessments or passive learning experiences over joyful, playful, and individualized learning( Weisman & Hansen 2008; Brown et al. 2020; Whitaker 2020). But decades ago, Lilian Katz wrote about the ways in which teacher educators must implement teaching methods that are“ congruent”( 1977, 4) with how they want preservice teachers to teach children( when appropriate). That is, the methods used to prepare educators should broadly reflect those used to teach young children. The extant literature shows a path forward: It highlights the significance of considering educators’ developmental, contextual, and experiential assets and needs. It also highlights the contradiction of stressing the application of DAP to children but not to teacher candidates. Compared with children, adults are more independent and possess more life experiences. They apply those experiences to their own learning and growth( Vartuli & Fyfe 1993; Muñoz et al. 2018).
This view of professional learning and growth resonates with a DAP framework( NAEYC 2020a), and in the following sections, we will describe how mentor teachers can begin implementing DAP with preservice teachers they mentor.
How Mentor Teachers Prepare Preservice Teachers in Developmentally Appropriate Ways
Currently, mentor teachers do not have a standardized framework within which to support their mentees, and they often do not receive training in quality practices for use with preservice teachers( Zeichner & Bier 2015; Izadinia 2018; Lafferty 2018; La Paro et al. 2018). Preservice teachers’ experiences with mentor teachers can be inconsistent, and mentor teachers may have unrealistic expectations, resulting in a strained mentor-mentee relationship( MacDonald 1993; Murray-Harvey et al. 2000). We believe that using DAP as a mentoring framework holds promise for the learning outcomes of preservice teachers.
When mentor teachers view mentoring through a DAP lens( NAEYC 2020a), they
› Support“ each [ preservice teacher’ s ] optimal development and learning through a strengths-based... approach to engaged learning”
› Work to“[ recognize ] the multiple assets all [ preservice teachers ] bring... as unique individuals and as members of families and communities”
› Strive to“[ build ] on each [ preservice teacher’ s ] strengths— and taking care to not harm any aspect of [ their ] physical, cognitive, social, or emotional well-being... to help [ them ] achieve their full potential”
76 Young Children
Summer 2026