In urban geography courses, knowledge of a local area is especially useful for demonstrating geographic principles. These classroom examples are further enhanced when students conduct their own field observations, with direction from the instructor. This paper describes a field study of the metropolitan Atlanta area that is used in an intermediate…

States have fashioned wildly different ways of judging whether teachers already in the classroom meet the federal standard of "highly qualified," raising the possibility that teachers in some states will not face the high hurdle that Congress intended. However, to be deemed highly qualified under the federal law, teachers must hold a…

This study investigated the interactive effects between students' opportunity to learn (OTL) in the classroom, two language-related testing accommodations, and English language learner (ELL) students and other students of varying language proficiency, and how these variables impact mathematics performance. Hierarchical linear modeling was employed…

This research literature on educational technology has identified important contextual factors that influence how technology is used in educational settings. In May of this year, EDC conducted the 2006 Instructional Practices and Classroom Use of Technology Survey with over a thousand teachers. This report first presents the overall survey…

Guided by Shulman, 1986 and Shulman, 1987 tripartate model of teacher expertise [subject matter knowledge (SMK), pedagogical content knowledge (PCK), and general pedagogical knowledge (GPK)], the present study examined 162 U.S. and Chinese 3rd grade mathematics teachers' expertise in teaching fractions. Results show that U.S. teachers lag…

Senate Bill (SB) 2042, authored by Senator Marion Bergeson, was passed to establish a new system for providing teacher preparation within the state of California. The credentialing reforms introduced in SB 2042 follow a tradition described by Irving Hendrik and stake their own claims regarding the locus of control over teacher quality, the role of…

Many teacher educators model constructivist pedagogy to preservice teachers in the mathematics classes they take. Preservice teachers however, are not necessarily comfortable being a part of such a class. The following qualitative case study examined the expectations and reactions of a group of preservice teachers who were taking their final…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role and characteristics of virtual learning objects in selected classroom cases. Four Finnish cases represented such pedagogical approaches as student-centeredness, process orientation and collaborative inquiry. The case study approach enabled the investigation of concrete practices in using…

This self-study was designed to explore problem-based learning (PBL) as an instructional approach in the context of a pre-service science education methods course. Through the development and implementation of PBL curriculum, the author's goals were to improve her classroom practice and her understanding of that practice, to contribute to the…

According to research studies, one glaring omission from teacher education programs is gender. Tomorrow's teachers receive little instruction or training on the tremendous impact of gender in the classroom. Just how does gender influence teaching, the curriculum, and the lives of teachers and students in the classroom? This unique book has been…

In this volume, highly regarded authors in the field of reading research share what they know about today's hottest topic in education--Response to Intervention (RTI), the key to helping struggling students "before they fall behind." More than 30 expert contributors reveal what the latest research says about RTI's Three-Tier Approach:…

This study reports the development of an instrument to assess classroom environment in universities. Using a sample of 665 students from 11 departments of the University of Seville (Spain), an instrument called the Evaluation of University Teaching Activities Questionnaire (E.U.T.A.Q.) was field-tested. The E.U.T.A.Q. consists of 25 items assigned…

This report summarizes survey results of Austin ISD teachers and campus administrators about their professional development needs for the 2006-2007 school year.

In this article, the author echoes his co-author's and colleague's pleasure (Hill, this issue) at the thoughtfulness and far-ranging nature of the comments to their initial attempts at test validation for the mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT) measures using the validity argument approach. Because of the large number of commentaries they…

Field experiences and clinical practice are considered the most important and most influential component of teacher preparation programs. The National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education Programs (NCATE) has established six standards to measure the effectiveness of teacher education programs; field experiences and clinical practice…