An important issue for academic teacher education (as well as other academic and non-academic vocational education) is the development of practical wisdom among students as a way to support their capability to deal with conflicts and engage in communication in ways that promote flourishing. These and similar issues have seen a recent rise in interest under the umbrella of educating for vocational excellence and there is a general need for more case studies describing practice in the field as well as evaluative studies (cf. Tyson 2018).
This presentation focuses on how such development has been supported at an after-school care teacher program and a class teacher program, both at the Waldorf University College. Aspects of the programs that deal with conflict resolution, communication and more general topics of Bildung are considered and discussed. Central to this is the contrast between practice-oriented, often narrative, knowledge and the more common theoretically driven, discursive knowledge that often predominates in academic settings. The conclusion is that we need more systematic case-studies of educational practice in higher academic settings where practical wisdom, Bildung and similar matters are promoted.