A study determined the effectiveness of Pennsylvania professional development centers in the preparation of vocational teachers. The study used the perceptions of participants to ascertain the effectiveness in the various activities for which the centers receive state and federal funds. Vocational teachers responded to questions about nine center…

This report is the first of four that stem from a study of The Impact of Approved Induction Programs on Student Learning (IAIPSL), conducted by Educational Testing Service (ETS) and funded by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CCTC). The IAIPSL study began in July 2002 and continued through April 2004. The purpose of the study is…

Many Catholic school principals have limited assistance from their respective central offices in the recruitment and selection of teachers, especially if their objective is to recruit candidates of color or candidates for a particular subject area. Aware that teacher quality is related to student achievement, Catholic school principals must employ…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Alliance Releases Teacher Paper: Tapping the Potential: Retaining and Developing High-Quality New Teachers; (2) A…

A longitudinal sample of 242 predominantly white teacher candidates was studied to identify possible relationships between the candidates' academic abilities, the degree of their success in making the transition from student to teacher, and their development of concerns about teaching during teacher preparation as hypothesized by Fuller's model of…

State policymakers can have an impact on the quality of the teaching force if they look seriously at three issues. The first issue is setting and enforcing teaching standards: setting standards for teacher education, teacher licensing, and ongoing evaluation and professional development; working toward National Council for the Accreditation of…

This annotated bibliography offers information from presentations at a 1995 seminar on practical teaching experience in preservice teacher education programs throughout Europe. Each entry includes a brief abstract of the presentation and a list of keywords. (SM)

A statewide survey on teacher induction and mentoring programs, conducted in Ohio during 1991-92, asked districts to report on the presence or absence of program components required by the Ohio standard for entry-year certification. Most districts reported having mentoring programs that had major positive effects, though there were some problems.…

Four particularly troublesome problems for beginning teachers are imitation, isolation, transfer, and teaching technique. The structure of many teacher education programs contributes to such problems. The article describes the changes in the teacher education program at the Catholic University of America to overcome such problems. (SM)

Examines problems faced by first year teachers, focusing on the shortage of well-qualified minority group beginning teachers. Recommendations for inducting and retaining an ethnically diverse teaching force are offered, emphasizing the roles of public school educators, university personnel, state legislators and agencies, and advocacy and…

This case study documents the experiences of a first-year teacher in a small Aboriginal community in Canada, describing the ways in which she developed and modified her beliefs about teaching in order to create a sense of self-efficacy in the cross-cultural classroom. (IAH)

This mixed methods study gathered information about the experiences of beginning special education teachers, their systems of support, and their intent to continue their careers in the field. Individual open-ended interviews were conducted with 8 first and second year special education teachers to obtain their perceptions of their first year of…

The New York edition of the National Council on Teacher Quality's (NCTQ's) 2009 "State Teacher Policy Yearbook" is the third annual look at state policies impacting the teaching profession. It is hoped that this report will help focus attention on areas where state policymakers can make changes that will have a positive impact on teacher…

This study describes the existing "state of the state" with regard to preservice elementary science preparation at colleges and universities in Texas. Data consisted of responses from 61 educational institutions involved in elementary teacher preparation on a 50-item survey mailed to 98 institutions in Texas. Data analysis focused on…

Case studies are presented of the induction and professional development of five young teachers, specifically focusing on the impact of structural and policy changes (external workplace environment) on the ideas of young teachers in schools (internal workplace environment). The case studies investigate issues of continuity and change in teachers'…