PRE-SERVICE STUDENT TEACHER PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: RESEARCH AND SERVICE-LEARNING

Pre-service Biology student teachers completed a module/course on Research and Service-Learning as part of their professional development. This module expected of student teachers to take new actions in that they were to work with the lecturer and a manager from a community organization to conduct a Research and Service-Learning project. This paper reports on two student teacher groups experiences of the project. The research questions that drove this paper are: What were the pre-service student teachers' experiences of their Research and Service-Learning project? An interpretive and qualitative approach was used. An action research case study methodology with document analysis, reflective journals and class discussions was used. The data collected was analysed using a descriptive case study, providing narrative accounts for each of the student teacher groups. The data reveal the emotional, cognitive and social dynamics that the student teachers experienced. The conclusion reached is that this project is an essential component for the professional development of any Biology pre-service student teacher, especially in the South African. It is essential in that the pre-service student teachers can address poverty, hunger, impact of HIV/AIDS and develop an understanding of the learners that they teach.