This study investigated inservice teachers' assessment competency as a function of measurement training and years of teaching. Data were collected from 311 teachers on a 67-item Assessment Practices Inventory (API). Seven composite scores were formed based on the underlying dimensions from a principal factor analysis. A 2x3 MANOVA was conducted to…

A constructivist practitioner's masters program in professional development (PDMA) was designed and piloted at the University of Northern Iowa. The program provides an option for pursuing a master's in education structured upon the following constructivism-focused framework of components: (1) the program is designed for experienced educators, and…

This report describes the Educational Testing Service professional development/assessment system for student and beginning teachers, "Pathwise," a classroom observation instrument, as used in the California Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment Program (BTSA) for teacher education. Three themes were noted by "Pathwise" users…

This study used existing databases to analyze, from a national perspective, the turnover of special education teachers (SETs) at the district level due to district migration, teaching field transfer, and exit attrition. The study also investigated district retention of SETs as a function of district location and teacher experience. The study used…

In spring 1991, a teacher exchange/mentor program was developed between Kansas' Johnson County Community College (JCCC) and the University of Kansas to attract young educators to community college teaching careers, give educators firsthand experience teaching at a community college while being mentored by a seasoned JCCC faculty member, and…

This paper looks at six mentoring programs in Wisconsin for beginning teachers. Four of the programs (Beloit, Kenosha, Plattesville, and West Allis-West Milwaukee) are district programs in which teachers assume mentoring responsibilities in addition to teaching. In the Milwaukee School District program, veteran teachers serve as full-time mentors,…

Documented cases of quality science teaching have the potential to share the best of what has been taught with science teachers in all science classrooms. This paper reports on the use of case studies of practice as mechanisms for recognizing good ideas for teaching science, documenting them, and making them readily accessible to teachers. An…

This study investigated inservice teachers' perceptions of the importance for instructional supervisors to possess content knowledge in the content areas that they supervise. Questionnaires were completed by 120 teachers from two elementary, one middle, and one high school, and follow-up interviews were conducted with 20 respondents. Teachers…

A survey was conducted of 280 teachers and principals in east-central Ontario (Canada) to investigate what variables best predict educators' attitudes toward local applied research. The four dependent variables were purpose of local research, attitudes toward participation in research, utility of research, and support for research activity. Eight…

This paper begins by relating the experiences of a beginning special education teacher in a small school in rural Montana. He soon became frustrated as he lacked the skills required for collaborating with other teachers, students, parents, and the community. Small rural schools have difficulty in recruiting and retaining qualified special…

In 1993, the Minnesota state legislature established a Teacher Residency Program, and it directed the Minnesota Board of Teaching to report to the education committees of the legislature on developing a residency program as part of teacher licensure. The residency program proposed in this report is one of three components of a restructured teacher…

This study was conducted in order to determine how beginning teachers evaluated preservice teacher education and performance. A survey was conducted of University of North Florida graduates who had been hired by school systems within the state of Florida. The graduates were asked to rate themselves on 27 generic teaching competencies and to write…

This study examined the perceptions of teachers experienced in working with mixed-age groups in child care settings for children from birth through age 12. A mixed-age group was defined as one with children having at least a two-year range in age. Questionnaires were mailed to 92 licensed family child care and school-age child care providers in…

This paper examines secondary preservice student teachers' conceptions of teaching and reflections upon teaching experiences, as expressed in journals written by the student teachers. The paper presents excerpts from the journals of several student teachers. A study is then reported of a student teacher in social studies and his cooperating…

A study examined teacher stereotypes as a factor in teacher resistance to change in schools. Based on a poststructuralist perspective, the study views teachers as both objects and subjects of reform and argues that research informs practice in ways that often result in socially constructed stereotypes. Methodology included a literature review, 129…