Examination-oriented or quality-oriented? A question for fellows of an alternative teacher preparation program in China

Alternative teacher preparation programs have triggered global debates. This study analysed 16 fellows of an alternative teacher preparation program who entered rural schools located in China—a high-stakes testing context—with a strong disposition toward quality-oriented education. Drawing on Bourdieu’s sociology, we revealed four forms of fellows’ responses to the tensions between quality- and examination-oriented education: (1) Resistance to examination-oriented education; (2) “Betrayal” of quality-oriented education; (3) Reconciliation of the two educational orientations; and (4) Confusion about both. Pursuant to these findings, we suggest that program recruitment and training keep some distance from the “star fellow” narrative and develop localised materials to prepare fellows for the real-world challenges. Our paper situates EGRT fellows in coexisting and competing educational orientations, calls for more studies to construct global alternative teacher preparation as a space of contestation, and ignites more discussion regarding what educational quality is.