This dissertation was an exploratory investigation of four institutions STEM endorsement programs. The investigation was done in three separate qualitative studies that explored each institution's staff and faculty views on developing and implementing their STEM endorsement programs, the views of faculty who developed and taught a STEM methods…

Twelve leading Social Foundations of Education (SFE) scholars describe their professional work in the field. The research question within this oral history study is: In what ways do SFE scholars express the importance of the Liberal Arts (LA) framework for the community of educational stakeholders in a democracy? The respondents explain the degree…

Intended for teacher educators in reading, this paper provides criteria for evaluating texts for reading methods courses. The first part of the paper discusses some considerations in choosing a text, including course format, how frequently the text will be used, and whether the text will be a supplemental, companion, or principal resource. The…

This investigation was conducted to determine changes in the levels of teaching efficacy as a function of the clinical experience in six public elementary schools, among pre-student-teaching novices in four subject areas: science, social studies, language arts, and mathematics. The sample included 58 novices who participated in the semester block…

This study assessed the reactions of 39 teacher candidates toward the following components of a general methods course, "Micro-Teaching: Practice in Teaching Techniques": (1) instruction in methods; (2) pre-teaching conferences; (3) laboratory teaching; and (4) post-teaching conferences. The subjects, who were enrolled in two sections of the…

This paper establishes a use for digital video in developing preservice teacher metacognition about the teaching process using a lesson plan-rating sheet as a guide. A lesson plan was developed to meet the specific needs of the methods instructors in a professional development program at a large public institution. The categories listed on the…

The results of questionnaires given designed to provide information on the effect of student teaching on the attitudes and career interests of secondary mathematics preservice teachers are presented. The recommendations/suggestions obtained from the questionnaires concerning the secondary mathematics and middle school methods courses and a copy of…

A study tested the usefulness of the Theoretical Orientation to Reading Profile (TORP) in terms of its accuracy in measuring preservice teachers' change in theoretical orientation to reading as a result of having taken a reading methods course. Subjects, 27 upper division elementary education majors (the experimental group) and 15 upper division…

Future teachers were surveyed on their perceptions of the impact of their teacher preparation program upon their success in student teaching. Forty-one undergraduate elementary education majors were surveyed before and after the student teaching experience. Preliminary results suggest that prior to student teaching, these prospective teachers…

The questions for this research were: (1) what did preservice teachers know about the nature of science; (2) what were their religious beliefs that had implications for how they viewed science; and (3) what effect did instruction on the nature of science have in changing their knowledge level? A 25-item questionnaire was given to secondary science…

This chapter reports on a study--referred to as the reflection study--took place within the department of foreign languages at the University of Toledo. The study sought to engage in a collaborative action research project with volunteer graduate teaching assistants. The students were to select an aspect of their teaching, determine goals in…

This practicum was designed to lessen the computer anxiety of early childhood education majors enrolled in General Curriculum or General Methods courses, to assist them in learning more about computer applications, and to increase the amount of time spent using computers. Weekly guidelines were given to the students, and a hands-on approach was…

College-level students' achievements may be negatively impacted because college-level instructors, though well educated and informed in their particular subject area, may not be effective classroom teachers. A study was conducted to examine the preparation of postsecondary educators to determine if methodology training is considered to be of any…

Open discussion and a Likert-type scale (Characteristics of Effective Teaching) were used with 38 graduate students enrolled in an advanced methods class in secondary school subjects, to determine their perceptions of the characteristics of effective teaching and whether teaching is an art or a science. A survey completed at the beginning of the…

The purpose of this study was to investigate certification requirements for elementary teachers in educational institutions to determine their preparation in science. The amount and types of science content, the science processes and skills, science teaching techniques, and general preparation as an elementary teacher who will need to teach…