Exploring Authentic Partnership in Distance Initial Teacher Education: Associate Teachers’ Perspectives from Aotearoa New Zealand

Partnership is widely treated as central to high-quality practicum in Initial Teacher Education, yet most research assumes local, ongoing relationships between Initial Teacher Education providers and schools. This study explores how Associate Teachers understand authentic partnership with a distance Initial Teacher Education provider in Aotearoa New Zealand, where placements are geographically dispersed, and partnerships are often short-term. Guided by an interpretivist qualitative design, the study drew on an online survey (n = 30), online focus groups (n = 7), and a live poll used as an elicitation tool (n = 7). Analysis identified four interrelated themes: communication as the foundation of partnership, clarity of roles and responsibilities, bridging theory and practice, and partnership and perceived support for Māori. The findings show that partnership in distance Initial Teacher Education is not best understood as either wholly relational or purely procedural. Instead, it shifts along a relational–transactional continuum, with communication systems, role clarity, and shared pedagogical understanding shaping whether partnership is experienced as collaborative or fragmented. The study also shows that Te Tiriti-based aspirations for relational, equitable partnership require deliberate structural support in distance contexts. The article contributes a context-sensitive account of authentic partnership and offers practical implications for strengthening partnership design in contemporary teacher education.