Comparison of Teacher Training Internship in Farhangian University (Iran) with Harvard University and Missouri Southeast University (USA)

The purpose of study was to compare teacher training internship at Farhangian University of Iran with Southeast Missouri University and Harvard University in USA. The research method was comparative-analytical and data was collected and analyzed through documentary method and Bereday method respectively. The research population included all teacher training universities with internship courses in the world and the method of selecting universities was targeted sampling. Curricula of selected universities were extracted using checklists as well as executive documents of teacher training and internship courses. Comparison of the internship period in these three universities according to dimensions such as characteristics of teacher training and the internship program were carried out. The findings show that in terms of characteristics, length of teacher training course and educational content, Farhangian University is similar to Missouri University and different from Harvard University. Also, in terms of the length of internship period (hours and semester), the three universities differ from each other. There are similarities among three universities in terms of the characteristics of the professors and mentors and the evaluation method, but in terms of the topics of the internship, fundamental differences are evident. According to the findings, it is suggested to the decision-makers and planners of Iran's teacher education system, while increasing the supervision of the implementation of internship courses in Farhangian University provide the opportunity to hold teacher training courses in other universities of the country.