Describes an action research project designed to rethink student teaching practicums by infusing critical inquiry, team teaching, curriculum change, and changing roles. The project combined student teacher preparation with inservice opportunities for cooperating teachers. The paper reflects on the important professional impact the collaboration…

Describes a mentoring project involving a university teacher educator and three elementary teachers. Examines what they learned about the power of focused observation, writing, and practice-centered talk to promote teacher learning. Journal excerpts show the project's progress and reflect concerns participants had as they determined how to work…

One of four articles in the third section, "Reflection: What We Have Learned," this article describes one university's journey from a traditional teacher education program to one that included professional development schools (PDS). Presents six key elements that helped make the journey successful. (SM)

This article reports on a team effort by faculty from a public school district and an urban university to create an observation tool to be used to evaluate and mentor preservice and inservice teachers' abilities to address issues of classroom diversity. The observation tool is provided, along with implementation suggestions. (Contains references.)…

This article focuses on the role of the special educator in an inclusive school. It reviews the development of a special education knowledge base and specific schools' change to an inclusive service delivery model. The information indicates special educators' roles include instruction, assessment, curriculum, leadership, and record keeping.…

Examined the relationship between Latino paraeducators and the teachers with whom they worked within two elementary schools with predominantly low-income, Hispanic students. Observation and interview data indicated that paraprofessionals engaged almost entirely in low level activities and had access to only a narrow set of the practices in which…

Describes a collaborative action research project at the University of Glasgow (Scotland) which utilized class debates in an international management class to develop students' ability to assess their own and each other's learning. Evaluation suggests the debates enabled students to develop a critical view of the topics and acquire…

Examines computer-mediated communication (CMC) in preservice teacher education, documenting emerging problems and arising needs. After describing CMC and categorizing its utilization in preservice teacher education, the paper calls for creation of new CMC technologies that nurture preservice teachers' learning and discusses a Web-based classroom…

Describes how a "tech prep" junior English class at a vocational-technical high school collaborated with a class of third graders, as the juniors wrote short stories based on topics generated by the third graders who then illustrated the stories. Discusses how both classes prepared and got started, and how all participants benefited. Offers tips…

Describes a project within a postgraduate course for inservice South African teachers. Small student groups create collaborative dramatic performances based on their literacy histories and utilizing their diverse cultural and representational resources. The project involves teachers at multiple levels. It creates comparative perspectives that…

Evaluated an urban university-school collaborative that prepared teachers for urban schools, examining how significantly inequities between university and school personnel mitigated the attainment of intended outcomes. While some positive changed occurred (e.g., professors and teachers learning to speak the same language on instructional teams),…

Widespread dissatisfaction caused a Nevada district to reexamine and revamp its teacher-evaluation process. The new system, which assumes teacher participation in goal setting helps teachers become self-reflective practitioners capable of adjusting their practices, has four domains: planning and preparation, classroom environment, instruction, and…

Strategies are presented to effectively motivate students with disabilities and encourage general and special education teacher collaboration. The five steps in "enrichment remediation" include collaboratively assessing reading skills; assessing students' interests; gathering materials for students' choices; integrating curriculum materials; and…

An inclusive kindergarten class of students with and without hearing impairments is described. The "Education Together" program used total communication, a combination of whole language and basal instruction, behavior management techniques, and extensive teacher collaboration. Issues such as communication problems, discipline,…

This article describes the development, implementation, and evaluation of a technology-enhanced staff development program. The program utilized video tele-conferences and training videos to train five elementary schools in the creation of collaborative partnerships (i.e., team teaching and family centers). A discussion of procedures, outcomes, and…