The expectations of the Catholic Church and the demands of the state are a precarious balancing act that have been apparent throughout the history of Catholic education. It is a relationship that is under scrutiny, even in the contemporary context.  Drawing on the works and lives of key figures in the history of teacher preparation in Catholic education internationally, this important text illuminates the contributions they made and the challenges they faced. In providing this rich historical synthesis, the authors invite further reflection on the most appropriate methods of teacher preparation for contemporary Catholic schools and on possible contributions to wider teacher preparation from cogitating the history of the Catholic tradition.  This book addresses teacher preparation for Catholic schools at both the 'pre-service' and 'in-service' levels by looking at the Church and its relationship with the state. The former will allow opportunities for a deep study of the role of 'faith' in Teacher Preparation, while the latter focuses on how a distinctive faith-based model of education can be in dialogue with the expectations of civil society. By using this multi-layered framework, the book offers exciting and innovative opportunities to inform contemporary practice from international examples, proving an invaluable text for researchers in the fields of comparative education, theology and the sociology of religion.

This book examines the preparation of teachers in Catholic schools. It discusses the concept of Catholic education, its principal theological themes, and the work of the Congregation for Catholic Education; teacher preparation in the context of historical themes and thinkers (St. Augustine of Hippo, St. Benedict of Nursia, St. Thomas Aquinas, and Erasmus of Rotterdam); the rise of teaching congregations; how the Catholic Church refreshed its educational mission in the years during and after the Second Vatican Council; the teacher preparation process in Australia, Scotland, Canada, and New Zealand; parental choice in education and what this means for Catholic schools; content knowledge for teachers, particularly in religious education; and vignettes of young teachers in Catholic schools, as well as research on their issues and challenges. -- Annotation ©2019 * (protoview.com) *

Richard Rymarz is Head of Religious Education and Director of Research at the Broken Bay Institute - The Australian Institute of Theological Education. His general area of interest is religious education as part of a wider framework on how groups pass on religious beliefs and values. Leonardo Franchi lectures in Religious Education at the School of Education at the University of Glasgow, UK. He is a member of the Executive of the Association for Catholic Colleges and Institutes of Education (ACISE), the sectorial branch of the International Federation of Catholic Universities (IFCU).