This paper demonstrates the use of the autobiographical method for understanding the complex personal perspectives of teachers as they reflect upon their lives as teachers and individuals. The perspective includes the intellectual, ethical, and emotional stance of the teacher who is engaged in, and reflecting upon teaching. The subjective…

This paper describes the process of investigating a teacher's knowledge and pedagogical philosophy through using a biographical rendition of a teacher's knowledge grounded in a construction of present teaching practice, based on ethnographic data. A case study is presented demonstrating how a major component of one teacher's present knowledge of…

Drawing parallels between designing and teaching, this paper reviews current thought about teaching and teacher thinking, illustrates possibilities for research on studio teaching, proposes recommendations for design instruction improvement, and analyzes reasons for teachers' selective adoption of new ideas about teaching using the Portsmouth…

This ongoing project, which involves the videotaping of classroom events, is being conducted in order to: (1) build a collection of videotape records of excellent instruction in selected classrooms and in various curriculum areas while maintaining the natural flow of classroom activities; (2) enable teachers and student teachers to collect…

Numerous studies suggest that field experiences focus student attention on short-term survival strategies; they do not provide a systematic investigation of alternative theories of learning and instruction. Students attend to management techniques but do not develop a more reflective approach to instruction. If this is so, students at different…

This series of case studies profiles six teachers thought by colleagues, students, and the rural Alaska communities they serve to be good teachers. The case studies reported here describe the techniques that make these teachers responsive and perceptive in their interactions with Alaska Native students. The names of the teachers and the villages…

This paper describes a special elementary teacher education program developed at the University of Victoria, British Columbia (Canada). Designed to prepare students for rural teaching positions, this program consists of two years of university level education and two years of practice in a rural community. The educational system in the Province of…

This paper presents the rationale for the development of an elementary teacher training program designed to prepare students to teach in rural areas. The Province of British Columbia (Canada) is a vast geographic region populated by only two and a quarter million people. Most reside in rural communities ranging in population from a few hundred to…

Numerous reports calling for reform in education have resulted in trends showing greater emphasis toward practical preparation experiences in teacher education. Many teacher education programs now stress more hours of teacher preparation devoted to professional education curriculum, strengthened and longer clinical experiences, stronger guidelines…

The personal frustrations and difficulties of an American political science professor who spent a year as a Fulbright lecturer at the Middle East Technical University (METU) in Ankara are described. Keeping busy helped. He spent much time merely surviving; for example, shopping for enough food became a daily affair because of the lack of…

This paper presents two propositions: (1) that extensive knowledge of subject matter is a necessary but not sufficient condition for effective teaching; and (2) that teacher education is a legitimate professional preparation which should be improved rather than circumvented. Six rationales for the validity of the above propositions, based on…

Previous research on class size has serious limitations because factors such as the abilities of pupils or the experience and teaching style of teachers were not controlled, and because of inconsistent criteria for large and small classes and for criteria of success. A major two-year study was mounted with four class sizes, random assignment of…

This is an examination of beginning teachers' acquisition of the structures of classroom discourse. Teachers were compared at the beginning and at the end of their first teaching year using a discourse analysis system. Thirty-three hours of audiotapes from 11 teachers were transcribed an coded. Teacher initiations during informing, eliciting, and…

A survey was taken to determine the amount of speech activity in Kentucky secondary schools. Of 455 junior and senior high schools in Kentucky, 266 schools completed and returned the questionnaires. The results of the survey indicate the relative newness of speech communication as an academic discipline in Kentucky and point to some concerns for…

From "Sovetskaia Pedagogika, 1968, No. 4.