To address shortfalls in the preparation and achievement of U.S. students in STEM fields (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), instruction in these areas must begin in the elementary grades, as early as kindergarten (American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, 2007; Natural Academy of Sciences, 2007; National Research…

The purpose of this project was to investigate stakeholders' perspectives on coursework and the role of mentors within a unique teacher education program for prospective teachers of mathematics in an alternative-route-to-licensure program. The alternative route reflects a partnership between an institution of higher education, a state office of…

Given federal mandates, public school districts have adopted inclusive practices with the expectation that general education teachers can accommodate students with disabilities. For teacher preparation programs to prepare future teachers for this reality, it is important to understand the composition of a "typical" general education…

Teacher educators have an obligation to prepare pre-service teachers to understand and work with the diversity represented by students across K-12 schools. However, diversity is much broader than the categories of race or ethnicity. Because of current legislative mandates' emphasis on providing access to the general education curriculum for…

The purpose of this research was to examine what preservice teachers learned about their intentions to provide equitable instruction in comparison to their actual teaching acts. Preservice teachers in a K-6 mathematics methods course analyzed their verbal interactions from their teaching of a mathematics lesson and used guided reflection to…

This qualitative study examines the transition of eight elementary preservice teachers into student teaching after participating in a science methods course that included a significant amount of teaching after-school science to elementary grade students. These eight participants had a chance to practice teaching inquiry-based science and to reform…

This article uses the blog entries of student teachers to examine what they learn during their internships. Data reveal how novice teachers, for better or worse, are socialized to conform to the status quo, thereby calling the current model for student teaching into question. The article argues that a better model for student teaching would…

Mentoring and support of beginning teachers is a key element of reducing teacher attrition. Most schools have implemented an induction program with assigned mentors for inexperienced teachers. However, the problem of attrition begins before the induction year of teaching, given that many certified teachers never enter a classroom. This…

In an effort to improve science and social studies instruction, preservice teachers developed original science, technology, and society units to teach in elementary and middle school classrooms during their clinical field experience. Data revealed that the preservice teachers fell into categories of being skeptics, open-minded instructors, or…

Cooperating teachers (n = 684) from 40 accredited programs rated the adequacy of their student teachers' competence and some features of the institution's student-teaching program. Their ratings were at the high end of a 5-point scale (4.0+) and showed that the teachers said that both their students and the program were more than…

A descriptive study was employed to investigate beginning teachers' experiences with reading instruction in their teacher preparation programs and to determine what areas of need have emerged now that they are practicing teachers. Data collection instruments included a reflective survey and telephone interviews. Beginning teachers perceived…

The goal of this 4-year study was to investigate the implementation of a secondary science professional development school at a midsized, publicly funded 4-year institution with a large college of education. The study focuses on the preparation of secondary science teachers because improving STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math)…

Central to schools of education are the professional preparation and development of future educators, who will be responsible for preparing citizens to function and live in a global community. Globalization and schooling have the potential to successfully or unsuccessfully affect the skills that students need to succeed in an increasingly global…

This study examined to whom 43 elementary and secondary teacher education students at a large Southwestern university turned for help regarding problems during their student-teaching internship. Participants were asked to complete a survey related to student teaching. In addition, 5 students were interviewed as a follow-up to the survey. Of the…

This case study explored a process of team-based curriculum deliberation, design, and delivery, used to teach a classroom management course in the context of a school university partnership. A team of university and school-based teacher educators negotiated how best to prepare preservice teachers with effective classroom management knowledge and…