This article offers a conversation with Dr. Jane Piirto, author, and professor at Ashland University, where she teaches in the Department of Inclusive Services & Exceptional Learners and the Doctoral Program in Leadership Studies. Here she discusses what she is currently working on, how the five dimensions of overexcitability relate to ADHD,…

Attitudes of teachers regarding inservice and staff development focused on gifted/talented students range from negative to hostile. Research and programs which encourage the development of effective inservice and staff development and which motivate teachers to be receptive and positive about developing skills to identify and teach gifted students…

Discussions of ways that teachers should change emphasize the need for a better curriculum, instructional method, or organization for learning that will improve student outcomes. However, models of teacher change recognize that teachers must "buy into" the change or school improvement process. (MW)

Future teachers need ongoing professional development that is systematic and focused on the problems of racism. They need additional means beyond college classes to examine their values, beliefs, and prejudices. Without this continued systematic examination, we could be condemning another generation of urban children to the purview of teachers who…

Differences between novice teachers and experienced newcomers are explored, and objectives are presented for staff development programs in which principals facilitate the induction of experienced newcomers. (Author)

Problems encountered in mainstreaming are described in this paper, with a focus on ways to avert them. Mainstreaming refers to the placement of selected special needs students in the regular classroom. Negative teacher attitudes toward mainstreaming present a major obstacle. Because teachers have a significant effect on program effectiveness, the…

Staff development programs that use models and simulated practice, as well as feedback and coaching, can motivate English teachers to implement methods that research indicates are effective in teaching the various aspects of English. (HOD)

Discusses the various roles reading specialists are expected to play in the school. (FL)

The author catalogs her criticisms of inservice practices that provide no meaningful help to the individual teacher, such as general system-wide events, sessions planned and taught by those outside the classroom, programs with inadequate funding or rewards for participation, and programs that offer no follow-up classroom assistance. (SJL)

This monograph was prepared by a group having many years' experience with the Teacher Corps and the effective establishment of partnerships between K-12 schools and postsecondary schools, colleges, and departments of education. An evaluation is presented of circumstances that help or hinder collaboration between colleges of education and schools…

Attempts to improve urban school systems have been many and varied. Still there has been little appreciable improvement in the quality and/or results of urban education. One primary reason why the "innovations" have failed is that most of them have been introduced into an ongoing social system with little or no attempt to assess their effects on…

The issue of specialized teacher education and certification for the middle school grades is discussed. The general background on teacher preparation for the middle school grades is covered, and findings of studies concerning teacher education and certification for the middle school are presented. The history of the growth of the middle school is…

Teacher expectations are a powerful factor in the attainment of basic skills. If teachers expect their students to attain basic skills, they are more likely to do so. If teachers do not expect students to do well, that expectation is often fulfilled. (Author/CM)

Explores the essence of whole language and the change process in moving toward a whole-language orientation. Discusses oversimplifying complexities, moving beyond a focus on practice, whole-language staff development, and concerns for the future in the context of a school district's move toward whole language. (SR)

Educational consultants charged by a school district with instituting and overseeing an ongoing experimental program in writing across the curriculum can expect that veteran faculty members will be unwilling to change their teaching styles. A "soft sell" is necessary with reluctant faculty. Senior faculty members who are properly…