General education classrooms provide a common milieu for understanding and appropriating results of classroom research projects, which are typically viewed as having little application outside their original contexts. Here, results of an investigation into the "sophomore slump," where grades and class attendance rates typically suffer, are…

This paper presents a brief review of the literature on instructional theory and a brief rationale for the development of such theory, then discusses an ongoing project in developing such theory from basic postulates of learning. An overview of a comprehensive, integrated learning model, based on information processing theory and necessary for…

An opinion survey was mailed to former education graduate students in order to assess the effectiveness of an introductory educational research course given at Memphis State University (Tennessee). The purposes of the study were to determine the extent to which the course was helpful to students: (1) in subsequent graduate courses; (2) in their…

Recent college graduates (N=162), teaching in schools of 600 or fewer students, rated the importance--to success in teaching--of 45 areas of college studies. Only two areas were rated below the mid-point on the scale of importance. Oral communications, discipline, classroom management, teaching major specialty, and motivating students were rated…

This paper presents the results of a survey that examined elementary school teachers' attitudes about social studies (particularly geography) instruction. The responses of newly-hired elementary teachers were compared to those of experienced elementary teachers. The survey included questions such as: Have you ever taken a social studies methods…

Only nine of 306 public, four-year colleges/universities reported teacher training course(s) devoted solely to study of rural/small schools. Most of the 87 including rural education as part of curriculum did so only as special topic of general course. Only 93 of 306 institutions reported faculty pursuing rural education interests. (NEC)

This paper presents a descriptive analysis of preservice secondary social studies teachers' perspectives toward teaching in general and social studies education in particular. Twenty-five students majoring in social studies education at a large midwestern university during 1984-85, representing four major phases of the teacher education program…

To investigate the extent to which graduate level education students found a required educational research course helpful, a questionnaire elicited occupation information about the student and about when the course was taken, the degree pursued, and degree attained. Additionally, the questionnaire asked the extent to which the course was…

This study assesses the attitudes of preservice teachers toward the teaching of social studies/history in the elementary school. The study was conducted at a state university in southeastern Pennsylvania. Eighty-two participants in the study were enrolled in three sections of a junior block social studies methods course in the spring of 1995. All…

Practicing school principals were surveyed to determine their opinions regarding the most effective preparation curriculum for principals. A total of 100 Louisiana principals, drawn equally from elementary, middle or junior high, and high school, were given a survey instrument containing 52 course titles and asked to rank order the 12 courses they…

Reports on a survey of 122 elementary art education methods instructors in the United States and Canada. Finds that methods courses focus on one of three general areas: (1) those that focus on art itself; (2) those that focus on pedagogical issues; or (3) those that focus on the non-art major preservice teacher. (CFR)

A study sought to determine if there were significant relationships among preservice teachers' learning style, attitude toward reading, composite score on the American College Test (ACT), declared major, high school grade point average, vocabulary score, and reading comprehension score in predicting performance in a basic skills course in reading…

In 1990, the Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) conducted a study to determine ways in which the community college system could increase its participation in the preparation of elementary and secondary teachers. Drawing information from ICCB course files and unit cost data, as well as a survey of the colleges, the study investigated the…

Results of a national survey of state certification standards for cross-training of regular and special education teachers (n=51, including the District of Columbia) are analyzed relative to implementation of the Regular Education Initiative, a proposal that stresses increased responsibility by regular teachers in the education of handicapped…

A rating scale was designed to measure college classroom climate in Primary Teacher Training Colleges in Spain, as well as to describe and compare college classroom environments. Data were gathered from 33 classes of students training to be public or private primary school teachers at colleges in Sevilla and Huelva. Participant observation and…