A two-part study examined the use of communication strategies by two types of international teaching assistants (ITA) in the classroom, and cultural perceptions of teaching and teachers. Two representative kinds of ITAs were hypothesized to exist: (1) a type "X" ITA who has tight control of discussion in class, calls on students instead…

Learning styles are the mental processes and instructional settings a student uses most effectively while learning. Five dimensions of learning style related to cognitive processes are global-analytic, verbal-imaginal, concrete-abstract, trial and error plus feedback versus reflective, and modality (preferred sense for input). In addition, there…

Originally designed as a vehicle for presenting all arguments regarding the creation of a community college system in Utah, "Focus" currently seeks to promote originality, innovation, and needed changes in the state's two-year colleges. The 1991 issue of this annual journal includes the following articles: (1) "Access, Quality and…

Research on teacher education has been shifting from the emphasis on changing teachers' behaviors to investigating how teachers' mental thinking influences their teaching behaviors. Teachers' beliefs and planning are two important components among teacher thinking research. The purposes of this study are to uncover preservice secondary science…

A model of the influences on teacher practice and student learning is formulated and illustrated by analyzing the practice of 12 high school history teachers in 6 schools. Since the data base contains both observations of 228 lessons, as well as extensive interviews with teachers and department chairs, it is possible to assess the opportunity for…

A summary is presented of research on learning and teaching styles in English as a Second Language, and of results of learning and teaching style preference surveys conducted at a Mexican university in 1989. The students surveyed demonstrated much more cognitive flexibility or willingness to learn through different cognitive modes than was…

A study determined how direct instruction is being used and why it is being used the way that it is. Data were collected through observations and interviews from teachers and principals in 12 elementary schools involved in a school improvement project based, in part, on direct instruction. Results show that, in general, the elements of direct…

Strategies are delineated for solving elementary school classroom problems. After an introductory chapter, chapter 2 reviews problems cited by 24 kindergarten, Grade 1, and Grade 2 teachers and the strategies chosen as likely solutions to the problems. Strategies later found to be unsuccessful are discussed if they illustrate the nature of the…

In many classrooms, there are a few students who become bored and indulge in reverie. They tend to be apathetic or indifferent to course activities, and attempts to get them interested via invitational approaches are often not successful. Some of these students are not aware of how their instructors view them or that there is a problem, and the…

It is often both possible and valuable for a teacher to be a researcher in his or her own classroom. This paper describes the nature of cognitive research and focuses on two areas of research that may be of special interest to classroom physics teachers. The first area refers to misconceptions that students bring with them to their physics…

A followup study was made of a previous investigation of the learning and teaching style of preservice elementary school teachers. In the original study, 20 female education majors were given the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) test to determine individual dominant personality types. The portable Rod and Frame Test, the Group Embedded Figures…

The attitudes and expectations of five cooperating teacher-student teacher dyads toward students in two predominantly Mexican American schools were investigated. Data were obtained from participant journals, interviews, conferences, and classroom observations. This paper presents profiles of the dyads, with summaries of teachers' attitudes and…

This report describes the research setting for the Schools, Computers, and Learning Project, an ongoing longitudinal and multidimensional study of the mutual adaptation of classroom practice and computer technology. Following a brief discussion of the research intentions and an overview of the research methodology, the report is divided into five…

A study was conducted to determine what distinguishes the practice of competent educators from that of untrained persons or colleagues who are less skilled. The population for the study was cooperative extension educators. Five individuals identified by district and state leaders as being exemplary in their practice were followed for three days…

A study explored the relationship between social/cultural control and the way knowledge is structured and presented in schools. "Critical literacy" was defined as the perception of meaning within the total context of the relevant experiences of the reader. The "dilemmas of schooling" language developed by A. Berlak and H. Berlak was used to…