As a part of the teacher licensure program at the graduate level at The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC), the M.Ed. licensure candidate is required to complete an action research project during a 3-semester-hour course that coincides with the 9-semester-hour student teaching experience or with school employment. This course, Education…

Grounded in a belief in the transformative possibilities of social studies teacher education, I present an argument for considering the development of purpose as both content and pedagogy of social studies teacher education. As part of developing a coherent pedagogy of rationale-based social studies teacher education, I begin by exploring the…

Issues of diversity and social justice are critical for teacher education as the student population in the United States becomes increasingly diverse ethnically, racially, socially, and linguistically. It has been traditionally assumed that social studies, more than other curricular areas, should deal with these issues, especially in raising good…

The author shares the challenges faced in her social studies methods class due to the constraints of NCLB. By incorporating the jackdaw kit project within her social studies methods course, her candidates were able to connect what they were talking about in methods and apply it to their students teaching situations where there was little time for…

This study examined perspectives and practices of two secondary social studies teachers who participated in multiple technology integration efforts during their pre-service teacher education program. The study presents similarities and differences of the teachers' technology use during three distinct phases of their development: methods…

When an instructor reframed the social studies methods course to include a service-learning project, both education certification students and a museum's outreach program benefited. University students gained practical teaching experience leading a children's summer class about local prairie dogs, and the museum gained quality teachers.…

This study sought to assess the influence of an intensive social studies teacher preparation program on the belief of a cohort of graduate preservice teachers. In particular, it sought to determine whether the participants' methods courses, field experiences and student teaching led to changes in their beliefs about teaching and learning social…

The author describes a social studies methods course offered the semester prior to the practicum and the student teacher program at Brockport State College, New York. (Author/RM)

This study compared two approaches of teaching an undergraduate social studies methods course for prospective elementary teachers. Experimental Group I, consisting of 20 elementary education majors, participated in the planning and teaching of the current social studies program in their student teaching situation. Experimental Group II, consisting…

An experiment was conducted to test the feasibility of offering education courses concomitantly with directed observations and student teaching experiences in a public school setting. The conclusion is that this course of action is likely to result in a more relevant and productive teacher education program. (Author/KC)

Describes the development of the Teacher Technology Portfolio Program at Elmhurst College in Chicago, Illinois, that integrates instruction on technology and modeling of instruction in technology into the teacher training programs. Discusses the evaluation and revision of the program and its current status. (CMK)

The focus of this study was to analyze the learning benefits accrued by the experienced teacher from supervising a secondary social studies student teacher. Teachers in the Puget Sound region of the state of Washington were surveyed. They were asked to respond to questions to determine how well participating in the supervision of the student…

This study attempted to extend previous research in teacher education by examining the development of preservice elementary teachers' perspectives and practice of social studies from the beginning of the methods instruction through the clinical experience, specifically examining the roles of the methods instruction and the cooperating teacher. (SM)

A longitudinal study examined the content and goals of an undergraduate social studies methods course and compared course perspectives to a teacher's perspectives as she progressed through the course, through student teaching, and into beginning teaching. Results highlight many issues related to methods courses and teacher induction. (SM)