Professional knowledge building in teacher education: some reflections based on Gur-Ze’ev

Abstract

This article critically discusses the topic of professional knowledge in teacher education through the lenses of Ilan Gur-Ze'ev's counter-education. It is based on a study investigating how professional knowledge building evolves through written reflections, examining the development of professional identity in the context of a course in an undergraduate teacher education course in Brazil. The research’s findings demonstrate that students gained an awareness of the potential that teaching and learning activities have for the development of concepts about the teaching profession, leading to the strengthening of their professional identity as future teachers and as what Gur-Ze'ev called 'improviser-teacher'.