Teacher Educators' Agency and Student Teachers in Co-Creation in the Context of a Systemic Initiative Developing Teacher Education Through Professional Inquiry

The chapter presents a systemic approach for developing and innovating teacher education through bottom-up professional inquiry projects developed in the Danish LULAB initiative. The empirical research in this context focuses on teacher educators’ agency and the positioning of the student teachers. Based on a condensation of research results, a generic implementation strategy is discussed to enable relevance for a global audience. Data analyses illustrate a positive development in teacher educators’ agency over time and various ways in which student teachers have been positioned in co-creation. A key finding is that the positioning of the teacher educators from the leadership, with agency and a possibility for experimental collaboration with colleagues, is mirrored in their actions, creating space for student teachers to take control over elements in their professional learning. Finally, there are indications that these experiences also make the student teachers reflect on how, in their future practice, they can position pupils in open experimental practices.