Describes a study in which 53 effective teachers of developmental English in two-year colleges were asked to rate the importance of 42 rhetorical, pedagogical, and human interaction teaching competencies and indicate how or if they had acquired them. (JM)

Two feature articles on the development of expertise in teaching physical education and in coaching are introduced by Paul Schempp. The first article (Steven Tan) describes eight critical characteristics of expertise. The second article (Martie Bell) focuses on acquiring and developing expertise, explaining the characteristics of each stage of…

A national mail survey of 276 preschool teachers employed in programs accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children found that more than half of respondents currently had a child with disabilities in their classroom and most were not working with a special educator. (Author/CR)

Assessment practices of 143 elementary and secondary school teachers were studied. Results indicated that assessment practices were highly variable and unpredictable from teacher characteristics such as practice setting, gender, experience, grade level, or familiarity with school district practices. Practices of many teachers reflected their own…

Sweden's preservice teacher education programs for preschool, elementary, and secondary educators all require practical teaching experience. University preservice programs differ due to decentralization of regulation as of 1993. At Uppsala University 50 "practice areas" work with the university teacher education program. Each practice…

This study compared experienced physical educators' observation skills in teaching situations to those of first- and final-year student teachers. Participants viewed slides from gymnastic lessons and reported what they saw. There were significant differences between groups in several areas. Final- year and experienced teachers were similar in…

A teacher describes her experience applying the Foxfire approach to a particularly unruly fourth-grade class. A trip to an old-growth forest caught their attention and became their learning laboratory for the year. Practically every project they did focused around the forest, and they became a productive, hard working class. (TD)

Discusses the academic research productivity of faculty members and constructs hypotheses based on the life-cycle model of academic research and previous studies. Reports results of a national survey of information systems (IS) faculty that investigated time allocated to research activity, doctoral programs, faculty experience, teaching load,…

Discusses internship programs in teacher education, highlighting how the University of California San Diego's secondary internship credential program contributes to development and retention of secondary teachers. The internship provides an intense relationship among novices, skilled professionals, and research faculty. Evaluation of the program…

An emeritus education professor ponders his career and passes on some advice to the younger generation. He urges teachers to acquire a broad education, obtain a solid professional education, discover who they are, avoid simplification, and try to make a difference. Teachers should have more say in their affairs, stand up for appropriate curricula,…

Compared two types of case-based hypermedia for teachers' professional development: one in which cases are episodes of classroom teaching and learning, the other in which cases are narratives that structure the episodes. Comparison showed that while both types helped teachers learn the material, access to narrative cases afforded greater…

Describes efforts by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, a private, nonprofit corporation, to develop a national system of advanced, voluntary teacher certification based on accomplished practice. Discusses efforts to develop new, flexible criteria for measuring actual teaching performance. Reviews implications for private…

This article identifies personal practical theories (PPT) held by a teacher educator and several of his students in a graduate curriculum course. Implications of including action research in graduate coursework for inservice teachers, student projects, and a curriculum development model are discussed. (IAH)

This article examines recent literature and a few classic works for insights into the aging teacher and into the reforming school. A model of teacher development and psychological stages of growth is presented. Implications for school improvement and staff development are described. (IAH)

Discusses the reasons why kindergarten teachers have an "identity crisis" and have come to be in professional limbo in terms of their historical roots, educational background and training, and certification procedures. (BB)