This article investigates the hidden curriculum of Ontario's New Teacher Induction Program (NTIP). The study involved interviews with 47 teacher educators from eight faculties of education. Responses revealed concerns about (a) who chooses the mentors, (b) the probationary status of new teachers, and (c) the evaluation of new teachers' competence.…

Providing comprehensive services to students with significant support needs is a complex and challenging endeavor because of the uniqueness of a wide range of conditions and variables that impact one or more of the functioning capacities of these students. Along with this complexity, it is necessary to fully integrate culturally responsive…

The use of ICT in the classroom is very important for providing opportunities for students to learn to operate in an information age. Studying the obstacles to the use of ICT in education may assist educators to overcome these barriers and become successful technology adopters in the future. This paper provides a meta-analysis of the relevant…

With the increasing popularity and accessibility of the Internet and Internet-based technologies, along with the need for a diverse group of students to have alternative means to complete their education, there is a major push for K-12 schools to offer online courses, resulting in a growing number of online teachers. Using the Tailored Design…

This study explored the development of a community of learners through a professional development program to improve teachers' views of nature of science (NOS) and teaching practice. The "Views of Nature of Science" questionnaire and interviews were used to assess teachers' conceptions of NOS three times over the course of the study. Notes and…

Internationalising strategies in engineering education have been widely discussed. Globally, at European level, and in Finland, the strategies are formulated to internationalise higher education. Further, in Finland, the discussion of internationality in higher education is lively. Higher education internationalisation is defined through three…

The issue of teacher quality has emerged with special force recently; between 2000 and 2005, at least 15 reports addressing teacher quality from a public policy perspective have been produced (Cochran-Smith & Fries, 2005). The National Research Council has been charged by the U.S. Congress to do a national study of teacher preparation programs to…

While virtual schools, which currently serve only a tiny fraction of the nation's 48 million K-12 students, get all the buzz, a much bigger, largely untold story of online learning is unfolding in America's brick-and-mortar classrooms: a simple yet profound merger of virtual-school technology and the traditional classroom is taking place. This…

The competency testing of teacher candidates has become almost universal in the United States. This paper explores some of the issues associated with competency testing, especially as they relate to teacher testing in California. The practice has its origin in concern that some of those who choose to pursue teaching careers in the elementary and…

Used modified Delphi approach to examine whether a consensus could be reached between Taiwanese professors and teachers about desired competencies for kindergarten teachers that could be examined during a simulated teaching performance test. Found that the 2 groups agreed on 17 of 22 competencies and all agreed the 22 competencies could be…

This article describes the work Colorado has done to meet the "highly qualified teaching" requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind Act. Colorado's standard is devoid of the loopholes that have drawn criticism to other states' policies, many of which, observers have suggested, fall short of both the letter and the spirit of the…

This paper analyses the current Australian policy and research context in relation to developing quality teachers. Like other countries, many educational authorities in Australia are developing professional standards for teachers and the evaluation of teachers against those standards as a mechanism for ensuring and extending the quality of…

As the method we use to measure the effectiveness of educational institutions changes to focus more on learning outcomes rather than learning processes, teaching styles may need to adapt to facilitate this approach to evaluation. This paper proposes several strategies to build a more student-focused classroom including the…

Prior studies suggest that faculty members who are credible are more effective in the classroom in that they are evaluated more highly and their students achieve greater learning. This paper explores how the instructor's attire impacts his or her perceived credibility, and how the students' corresponding perception of instructor credibility…

The purpose of this study was to examine the professional impact of the National Board Certification from the perspective of teachers who have achieved National Board Certification, which is granted through the National Board of Professional Teaching Standards. This phenomenological study involved interviews with 10 National Board Certified…