Abstract
This is a qualitative study of pre-service teachers' experiences in a teaching practicum course which attempted to identify the characteristics of the course that has been recently revised as professional education course. Data were collected from college students who took the professional education courses including the teaching practicum course by using both a survey on the opinions and suggestions of the students on the teaching practicum and a in-depth interview with 12 students of them. The results are as follows. First, pre-service teachers' perception of a teaching practicum course was divided into two sides : functional side and sociocultural side. The formal is that the professional education courses significantly handed to discipline practical jobs related to educational administration. The latter is that the professional education courses significantly handed to deal for teachers like pay step, extra pay, vacation, and leave of absence. Second, the pre-service teachers had suggestions that were divided into the 'curriculum content' and the 'instructional method'. For instance, regarding the 'curriculum content' they suggested such things needed as 'lessening and differentiation of content, sensitive about the scene, and lesson hands-on', and as for the 'instructional method' they suggested such things needed as actively 'doing, participating, assessing, coursework participating'. Based on these results, I have comprehended the pre-service teachers' positive response. Untill now, we have perceived that the professional education courses is excessively theory-oriented one. But a teaching practicum course is different. Meanwhile, It is not identify what the teaching practicum course as teaching refinement education course is. Due to this cause, I have comprehended that 'curriculum content' and the 'instructional method' is plunged in confusion. As pointed out this, I did concrete proposals in response to such a confusion. This proposals have helped decided on a direction of a teaching practicum course.