In a series of letters, a veteran high school English teacher advises a student teacher to tell students the "big reasons" for learning; control her workload by increasing students' learning responsibility; plan lessons based on weekly schedules and meaningful writing assignments; and avoid exhaustion by streamlining classroom rules,…

Researchers surveyed secondary student teachers to identify changes in their thinking about teaching and learning and their postgraduate preservice education course. Knowledge of teaching gained from earlier experience significantly influenced students' thinking. Differences between individuals and curriculum groups suggested that the course of…

Describes one college teacher's renegotiation of traditional classroom values and expectations so that activities of research become a more productive part of the instructional experience. The author suggests similar kinds of tensions may be inherent to any inquiry-oriented teaching and that these challenges create opportunities to contemplate…

A narration of teaching experiences in an inner-city school in California is the basis for a proposed democratic educational platform that suggests ways to move beyond the despair and frustration of inner-city teaching without losing sight of the painful realities. Implications for teacher education are discussed. (SLD)

Paper reviews a collection of essays on the experiences of beginning teachers. The essays were written mainly by English and elementary school teachers after many years of successful teaching. All of the authors became effective career teachers. The authors write about the rewards of affecting and changing lives. (SM)

Describes a successful mentoring program for beginning teachers developed at a Baptist (K-12) school with 700 students and 11 new faculty members. Program mentors were experienced, but not lead teachers. The most frequently discussed problems between mentor and protege were discipline, classroom management, and the frustration of never having…

Uses a diary format to describe the author's development as a teacher between May 1982 and Spring 1993, focusing on personal experiences affecting her delivery of composition and literature courses. Describes the author's shift from a text-centered to a student-centered curriculum and efforts to include women writers in the curriculum. Includes…

Reviews "Jesse Stuart on Education," edited by J. R. LeMaster, an anthology that presents a loosely chronological record of the student and teaching experiences of Jesse Stuart, eastern Kentucky writer and progressive educator. Contains an unpublished manuscript chapter from Stuart's "The Thread That Runs So True." (SV)

Discusses the role of teacher experience in modifying curricula and maintaining skill level. Uses three case studies to demonstrate that teachers possess the skills to create pragmatic curricula and enhance their own skills. Suggests that teachers who transform themselves from deskilled technicians to reskilled practitioners question the…

In light of elimination of mandatory retirement and prevalence of preretirement career changes, this study evaluated a model of faculty satisfaction based in which length of time until reported voluntary retirement from academe might predict a faculty member's job satisfaction. Three faculty groups were studied: novices, midcareerers, and…

A former teacher reminisces about her teaching experiences during the 1920s in a rural school along the Aroostook River in Wade, Maine. Each year, when the boat carrying the cook for loggers upriver arrived, she and her students went aboard and received a special treat of warm molasses cake. (LP)

Autobiographical sketches of 67 retired male Oklahoma teachers, written in 1975, depict the historical variation of male dominance in education profession, male teachers' career patterns and social expectations of them as role models for boys and "fathers" to their communities during 1910s-30s. Included are tables of male teacher…

A resource room teacher of elementary students with mild disabilities and behavior disorders describes student successes in running the school store, telling Appalachian folk tales to primary classes, and carrying out other Foxfire-inspired projects. Student comments are included. (SV)

Interviews with 160 experienced and less-experienced teachers in northern England at a time of upheaval in the British school system documented (1) the destruction of experienced teachers' career timetables, their disillusionment, and motivational crises; and (2) the highly motivated career building of beginning teachers. (SK)

Study examined relationships between the amounts and types of teacher behavior directed toward individual students. Researchers observed six experienced elementary physical education teachers. Teachers interacted differently with students who displayed different characteristics. Results suggest teachers unconsciously react to student…