Examines collaborative research and practice-oriented inquiry groups which facilitate the professional development of educators and the enhancement of student achievement within a middle-school Professional Development School (PDS). Small groups of university and school educators conduct action research and inquiry about school-based educational…

Examines the benefits to student teachers, teachers, students, and teacher educators of a 1-year, Masters-level teacher education program that is part of a larger Professional Development School (PDS) partnership between a high school and the University of Louisville. Data come from interviews with individuals from each of these groups within the…

Many educators have suggested that teachers hold the authority, and thus the responsibility, for initiating the curricular and instructional changes made within their own classrooms. One implication of this suggestion is that teachers be reflective about their practice. Yet, reflection is a difficult process that requires critical thought,…

Professional development schools (PDSs) are collaborative partnerships between teacher education programs and K-12 schools that provide educational opportunities for teachers and students alike. Such school-university partnerships are an important part of current educational reform. The body of empirical research examining PDS partnerships is…

Both the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future and the Holmes Group suggest that the solution to improving student learning is through formal university-school collaborations, or Professional Development Schools (PDSs). As the research base on PDS partnerships grows, so does the evidence that PDSs improve the quality of teaching in…

This article explores the effects of the integration of diversity, service learning, and professional development school partnerships in preparing preservice teachers to understand and address discriminatory practices in school settings. Background information, challenges, and successes of this professional development school partnership between a…

Ideas that emerged from the "Teach America I": Teacher Preparation for the New American School conference (Washington, D.C., June 14-16, 1992) and a proposed program for teacher education are documented in this report. The conference was composed of teams of educators from 35 selected Association of State Colleges and Universities…

The purpose of this study was to determine if student teachers' attitudes toward their student teaching experiences differed significantly after the addition of professional development school experiences. Two groups of student teachers (Spring 1992 and Spring 1993) were compared using the Mississippi Student Teaching Attitude Inventory (MSTAI)…

This study examined teachers' transformations from "sages on the stage to guides on the side" through a survey of preservice secondary school teachers (N=73) over time to identify their envisioned preferred teaching methods; a survey of inservice master teachers (N=24) in professional development schools to identify their choices of…

This paper describes the development and operation of two professional development schools (PDS) by the School of Education at Baylor University. These schools were organized to develop and demonstrate: (1) high quality learning programs for diverse students; (2) practical, thought-provoking preparation for novice teachers; (3) new understandings…

This study examined the implementation of the Kansas Project Partnership objectives to improve teacher education by interviewing 53 representatives of 8 higher education institutions in Kansas (Pittsburg State University, Wichita State University, Emporia State University, Kansas State University, University of Kansas, the Associated Colleges of…

This paper highlights some emerging trends in rethinking the teacher education practicum in North America. The paper discusses several major obstacles to student teacher learning that persist even in many of the new inquiry-oriented practicums that focus on the development of reflective teaching practice. While teachers praise the value of the…

This study explored the perceptions of mentor teachers about the impact of mentoring on them. The study involved cross-cultural collaborative research between an American and an Israeli teacher education program and a collaboration within each country between the teacher education program and its elementary professional development school (PDS).…

The Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (INTASC) enhances collaboration among states rethinking teacher assessment for initial licensing and for preparation and induction into teaching. Towson University's Elementary Education Department adopted INTASC's standards for its teacher education program. In a pilot program involving…

In five meetings between June 1988 and September 1989, the national curriculum committee of the Holmes Group, a consortium of 96 U.S. research universities committed to making their teacher education programs more rigorous and connected, came to agreement about fundamental principles that should underlie the curriculum of teacher education. In…