An investigation on teacher candidates, practicum teachers, and academicians' perspectives on teaching practicum

The aims of this study are to obtain the opinions of teacher candidates, mentor teachers, and practicum instructors regarding the teaching practicum course and to make recommendations for the program based on the gathered opinions. A sequential explanatory design from mixed-method research designs was used in this study. The study group consisted of 249 teacher candidates, 51 practicum instructors, and 62 mentor teachers who were enrolled in a state university in Sakarya during the 2022-2023 academic year. The data collection tools used in the study were the Teacher Practicum Evaluation Questionnaire and a semi-structured individual interview form developed by the researcher The data obtained from the questionnaire were analyzed by descriptive statistics, while content analysis was used for the qualitative findings. According to the findings obtained from the research, it was determined that stakeholders identified certain problems and made recommendations regarding the planning, implementation, and evaluation processes of the teaching practicum course. The results of this study are expected to contribute to future research on teaching practicum and curriculum development process.