Popular music is pervasive in our culture and in the lives of our students. Its inclusion in music education curricula requires authentic approaches through collaborative informal learning processes. It has been our experience that college students may be notation dependent and while they may recognize and utilize informal processes outside the…

Beliefs about teaching mathematics and urban students' ability to learn mathematics are often overlooked in the discourse on highly qualified teachers. Altering teacher experiences has the potential to change their beliefs. It was found in this qualitative case study that preservice teachers' beliefs about teaching mathematics to urban students…

This paper details the outcomes of a qualitative in-depth investigation into teacher education mathematics preparation. This research is grounded in the notion that mathematics teacher education students (as "degree seeking candidates") need to develop strong foundations of mathematical practice as defined by the Common Core State…

We describe the Science Semester, a semester-long course block that integrates three science courses and a science education methods course for elementary teacher education majors, and examine prospective elementary teachers' developing conceptions about inquiry, science teaching efficacy, and reflections on learning through inquiry. The…

Several pressing issues call for institutions charged with the responsibility to educate prospective teachers to rethink their model of teacher preparation to better address the educational needs of English Language Learners (ELLs). It is projected that by 2025 one in four students in the U.S. will be from homes where a language other than English…

In this analysis of promising practice, we demonstrate how social studies methods instructors can incorporate data analysis of the 2010 United States History National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP-USH) to facilitate pedagogical aims, engage teacher candidates in critical discourse, and investigate the contexts of teaching and learning.…

The number of candidates seeking and completing online courses and programs in teacher education continues to increase in order to meet the licensing flexibility demands of adults pursuing teacher certification. Using the theoretical constructs of learner-centered instruction and zones of proximal development, this paper provides an overview of…

Although the importance of field experience is supported and attended to by teacher education programs across the United States, there have been numerous national reports and research findings stressing the need for major improvements in the preparation of teachers with an emphasis on more authentic experiences. Quality field experiences have the…

This article uses a narrative approach to start a dialogue about the challenges of teaching blended methods classes that contain traditional and alternative licensure students. Many alternative licensure students enter their methods classes as lateral-entry teachers who must balance their licensure requirements with the demands associated with…

The aim of this study was to explore a group of prospective primary teachers' conceptual understanding of diffusion and osmosis as they implemented a 5E constructivist model and related materials in a science methods course. Fifty prospective primary teachers' ideas were elicited using a pre- and post-test and delayed post-test survey consisting…

There were two primary goals of the research conducted for this dissertation study. Firstly, to fill a gap in the research literature and begin a discussion around secondary pre-service teachers Mathematical Knowledge for Teaching (MKT) as it pertains to geometry. Although a multitude of studies exist for elementary teachers' MKT, few exist at the…

Drawing on Lave and Wenger (1991) this study explores how preservice elementary teachers develop themselves as teachers of mathematics, in particular, from the time of their teacher education courses to their field experiences. This study also researches the critical experiences that contributed to the construction of their identities and their…

This qualitative study examines what early childhood preservice teachers enrolled in a field-based literacy methods course deemed relevant regarding teaching, literacy, and learning. This study is based on postcourse interviews with 7 early childhood preservice teachers. Findings suggest that "contextualized field experiences" facilitate…

The science methods course is a requirement for the Bachelor of Science degree in elementary education licensure program in a mid-west state university in the U.S.A. In one semester, the author decided to evaluate the effectiveness of the science methods course in pedagogical content knowledge areas such as theory, planning and implementation.…

Research about K-6 generalists, elementary, preservice majors in teacher education programs often emphasizes students who are resistant to art methods courses, although Galbraith (1991) and Gibson (2003) found some elementary majors held positive views about art methods courses. In addition, instructors who are frustrated by students who respond…