“I Think That’s My Job”: What Motivates Teachers to Partner with Teacher Educators in ITE?

Policymakers and researchers internationally have advocated school–university partnerships as an innovative means of strengthening initial teacher education (ITE) through the integration of theory and practice. These partnerships provide valuable learning opportunities for the pre-service teachers, in-service teachers, university teacher educators, and school students involved. While there has been ample literature discussing the implementation and benefits of school–university partnerships, there is currently a paucity of research investigating what motivates teachers’ involvement in these collaborations. This chapter provides a local response to this research gap by presenting an Australian-based case study. Informed by the Reasoned Action Approach (Fishbein & Ajzen, 2010), this study revealed that participants’ involvement was grounded in their commitment to the teaching profession, coupled with the strong professional learning culture of their school. This chapter explores why teachers choose to become involved in a school–university partnership, and how it can contribute to a transformative global approach to ITE.