Teacher preparation programs have been under scrutiny for years. The National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) (2010) identified a gap between the preparation of teachers and the needs of schools and consequently formed a Blue Ribbon Panel to closely examine and generate recommendations on ways institutions could improve their teacher preparation programs. One of the recommendations made was to create school district-university partnerships to better integrate supervised clinical experiences in courses for teacher candidates to apply their learning of theory into practice. While there are multiple aspects of a clinical experience that can impact its effectiveness, one critical issue that exists within the clinical experiences is the preparing of teacher candidates to be reflective thinkers. The purpose of my study was to investigate the nature of teacher candidates' responses to various opportunities provided to engage in reflective thinking, specifically within a clinical experience which focused on literacy acquisition. A total of 15 teacher candidates volunteered to participate in the study. A convenience sample selection was used to select six teacher candidates to be the focus of more intense data collection and analyses. The overarching research question was: How do teacher candidates reflect upon their teaching experiences within a field-based course? Data included pre/post surveys, video recordings of debriefing sessions, weekly lesson plan reflections, and exit slips. Both case-specific and cross-case analyses were conducted. My findings show teacher candidates' responses to opportunities to reflect upon authentic tutoring experiences varied and were used for various purposes such as to problem solve issues, to put together ideas, and to seek advice to improve their teaching performance. Findings suggest frequency, timing, range and specific feedback are all important factors when providing various opportunities for teacher candidates to engage in reflective thinking. From the findings of this study, I propose three-dimensional model of using reflective thinking ("define, demonstrate and deliberate practice") to become a reflective practitioner that can be used within teacher education programs. Further research can include examining children's learning outcome in relation to teacher candidates' use of reflective practice. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]