Suggests ways music teachers can improve their teaching and solve instructional problems by using existing research and conducting their own. Also offers strategies to help music district supervisors encourage effective use of research. Identifies several useful publications as sources of research reports. Includes a chart listing reasons and…

Changes affecting higher education planning in Sweden are age structure of the academic workforce will result in rapid growth of retirements; number of young people eligible for higher education will decrease; and skewed age distribution of faculty will lead to a growing need for new recruitment of teachers and researchers. (Author/MLW)

Faculty should be conscious of the need for continuing education in teaching as well as in mastery of their disciplines. This chapter lists some resources to help faculty keep up to date. Resources include books, journals, workbooks, handbooks, sourcebooks, guidebooks, and newsletters. (Author/MLW)

Interviews with 55 new lecturers at an Australian university focused upon early experiences in the institution and attitudes regarding teaching and student evaluations. Among findings were that help in learning about the institution and special consideration in workload favored the more academically qualified while help in solving problems favored…

In a guided book review, small groups of teachers read a book pertaining to their professional area, think about what they read, and meet to discuss their reactions. The article explains the essential steps of the review process and discusses governance, recruitment, scheduling, and the merits of the process. (SM)

Through diary entries and written reflections, two educators chronicle and comment on a two-week summer seminar for college faculty on use of the case method as a teaching technique. Discussion focuses on the stresses and rewards of the experience at all levels of participation. (MSE)

Describes theory and a research program that uses guided reflection to promote the development of mentor teachers. Significant findings from a quasi-experimental study and a replication study are presented. The paper can assist teacher educators, policymakers, and school personnel who are searching for a teacher induction model. (GLR)

Israeli case study explored the impact of introducing a student-centered writing instruction model within an educational system that did not support the approach. Teacher surveys indicated gains in self-efficacy, subject matter knowledge, and pedagogical knowledge. Environmental-organizational factors affected teacher change and teacher…

Describes an approach to enhancing teachers' classroom critical-thinking and decision-making skills. The approach emphasized teacher-initiative research to develop an understanding of the meaning of becoming problem solvers and to help teachers learn from their experiences how to identify, define, solve, and assess solutions to their concerns. (SM)

Describes a summer program which brought together high school, college, and university teachers to do collaborative research that constitutes a cross between teaching and research as traditionally understood. The learning communities in the workshops worked effectively because they drew upon the educational experiences of participating teachers…

Synthesizes the central themes from a session on how theatre educators can survive in academia which took place at the 1998 AATE (American Alliance for Theatre and Education) conference. Presents the "Top Ten Suggestions for Surviving in Academia," including the following suggestions: clarify what is expected, to whom faculty are responsible, and…

Discusses what five teachers learned when they engaged in a literature discussion group to discuss children's books to develop themselves as writing teachers. Highlights the three layers of talk (emotional responses, exploring the meaning of the book, and exploring the writer's craft) and the role these play in the learning process. (SR)

Describes the development of a program fostering prospective and practicing elementary school teachers' research on their science-teaching practices, discussing the science-education community's recognition of the importance of teacher research, examining beliefs underlying development of the program, describing the program's setting, summarizing…

Describes the Vienna (Austria) School-Based Teacher Development Project, an innovative inservice-teacher-training project that views faculty development as a process that should allow teachers to participate in decision making within their schools. A key feature is that teachers acquire new knowledge and skills while they improve their group…

Refers to a study on how negative perceptions of American Indians held by elementary students change over time. Addresses curricular issues and suggests professional-development activities to help supplement teachers' knowledge of American Indian peoples. Provides a list of children's books and other resources that present the perspectives of…