Discusses interdisciplinary instruction at the high school level, examines the imperatives of statewide reform in Kentucky, and outlines how and when interdisciplinary instruction improves learning. Describes an interdisciplinary learning project taught in secondary methods classes at Eastern Kentucky University in which students experience…

Studied the effectiveness of having science methods students design their own multimedia programs and then use those programs during a field-based teaching experience. Findings suggested that multimedia can be used effectively in preservice teacher education as a vehicle in content and methodology instruction. (Author/MKR)

Compared pre-service elementary teachers' beliefs about mathematics and science teaching before and after immersion in an integrated, spiral-based, inquiry approach within a mathematics and science methods course. Results highlighted: the importance of the teacher's role; use of methods, strategies, and styles; use of manipulatives and materials;…

This study focused on my use of first grade literacy cases to scaffold a diverse constructivist perspective in my literacy methods course for preservice teachers. The cases depicted my concurrent work in a local school with three underachieving readers, two having diverse backgrounds with respect to home languages and socioeconomic status. I…

Foreign language (FL) teachers have long been leaders in the use of technology in the classroom, from short wave radio and newspapers, to film strips, to tape recorders, to records, 16 mm films, video, and now computers, as a means of bringing authentic language and culture to their students. Computer and Internet technologies require…

The study examined the integration of science and mathematics methods courses and preservice teachers' understanding of constructivism. The participants were 50 preservice teachers who were enrolled in early childhood education mathematics and science methods courses, and an early childhood practicum. The two methods courses were integrated and…

This article describes how a three-week module was inserted into an elementary mathematics methods course in order to demonstrate coteaching models for preservice teachers and to provide preservice teachers with instructional strategies for special needs students.

This report presents findings from a 2006 national survey of all Title IV degree-granting 4- year postsecondary institutions on how teacher candidates within teacher education programs for initial licensure are being prepared to use educational technology once they enter the field. The "Educational Technology in Teacher Education Programs…

This article presents the results of a research study that examined the benefits and limitations of a professional development school program designed to assimilate experienced high school teachers into the fabric of preservice educator preparation at an institution accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education.…

This article presents a portrait of practice of one social studies methods professor engaged in teaching his course and analyzes the choices the professor makes during the semester. These choices are linked to his philosophy of social studies education with particular attention paid to his passionate belief in the American story as the core of…

While other research has begun to contribute to our understanding of how pre-college students reason about variation, little has been published regarding pre-service teachers' statistical conceptions. This paper summarizes a framework useful in examining elementary pre-service teachers' conceptions of variation, and investigates the question of…

This paper describes a secondary social science methods course with a lab component that was planned collaboratively by representatives of Nebraska Wesleyan University (Lincoln, Nebraska) and a local high school. The lab component meant that a university instructor taught a high school social studies course for a semester. The advantages of the…

European American educators can no longer ignore or presume to "serve" other sociocultural groups simply by changing those groups. Within a democratic and pluralistic society, individuals must be equally willing to modify their own beliefs and actions in light of the experiences and concerns of others. In doing so, "mainstream…

A methods course teacher, as part of a newly developed 12-hour integrated block that combines reading, social studies and science methods courses with clinical field experience, used student-negotiated assessment in one section and teacher-directed assignments and assessment in another section. In the portfolio section, the instructor could see…

This project was designed to develop a model for teaching general music methods for elementary/early childhood education majors using musics of diverse cultures as discrete and infused entities, integrated across the curriculum. The proposed model's primary goal was to develop student awareness of sources of culturally diverse music and related…