Excitement about handhelds must be tempered by an understanding of what is typically required when any new technology is introduced into classrooms. We know, for example, that to succeed, handheld initiatives will need clear educational objectives and a logical theory of action that guides implementation. We can anticipate that teachers will need…

Learning is a lifelong process. That's something career and technical educators are always telling their students, but through their professional development activities they are also practicing what they are preaching. Why is professional development so important? According to the U.S. Department of Education initiative "Building Bridges: The…

Results of a qualitative study conducted at four diverse higher education institutions revealed that adult learning principles that describe how programs should be offered, as opposed to what is offered, are of primary importance. Faculty development programs should foster new friends, conversations, and connections outside of individuals'…

Faculty learning communities create connections for isolated teachers, establish networks for those pursuing pedagogical issues, meet early-career faculty expectations for community, foster multidisciplinary curricula, and begin to bring community to higher education. The following are appended: (1) Qualities Necessary for Community in FLCs; and…

Previous FLC facilitators share experiences and insights about group process and provide their advice for facilitating successful communities.

Traditionally, faculty development programs and fellowships have been shown to successfully address the developmental needs of individual faculty members. Despite positive results, there are very few programs targeted specifically toward career development for Latino and other minority faculty. The Hispanic Center of Excellence, as a Bureau of…

Peer assistance and review (PAR) reduces the burden on principals, the isolation of the classroom teacher, and sometimes even the antagonism and hostility between labor and management by involving teachers in the formal evaluation of other teachers and making them responsible for employment recommendations. Coaches who have been identified for…

This paper describes the development of the first in a series of e-learning courses intended to influence the professional practices of 200+ teachers in 15 locations across a western state. The course, anchored in a socially constructed view of learning, combined the use of interactive video, WebCT, and on-site discussion groups to implement…

Since the inception of instructional television (ITV) in the 1950s and 1960s, public broadcasting has been a valued source of quality video resources for the nation's classrooms. From the early days of "television teachers," whose expertise could be broadcast across wide geographical areas, to today's digital video delivery, public television…

A new type of teacher is needed in the contemporary classroom--one who is not just a mere technician, but who can keep an open and critical mind. Today's teacher must adjust to a fast-changing reality and the demands of the surrounding world, and internalize the ever-growing flow of information while reflecting on both personal and professional…

This paper discusses the Geography Faculty Development Alliance (GFDA), a five-year project begun in 2002 with funding from the U.S. National Science Foundation. The purpose of the foundation is to improve professional development opportunities for early-career geography faculty members in U.S. colleges and universities, and to improve the…

The various stages of the teacher research group to experience what professional development committed to social justice looks like and sounds like over a four-year period are explored. The complex relationships between professional development and social transformation are discussed.

Lesson study is a form of professional development favored by teachers in Japan that has gained attention in many parts of the United States. Teachers participating in lesson study immerse themselves in a cycle of instructional improvement focused on planning, observing, and revising. The various ways in which teachers work together in a lesson…

Writing instruction can be improved by encouraging teachers to question assumptions, test strategies, and put learning into practice. Professional development should be designed in such a way that it should provide time and structure for teachers to pursue questions that interest them in order to create continual improvement in teaching of writing.

Teacher education faculty need to bridge college course knowledge to actual practices in early childhood classrooms. Historically, faculty have lectured about best practices and then students have attempted to integrate these concepts into their own teaching with children. This article highlights one community college's use of digital photography…