Describes a study that identified the roles and competencies needed in distance education in higher education, rated the importance of those competencies, and compared results to those of a competency study conducted five years previously. Highlights include the roles of leader, change agent, and trainer; and interpersonal and communication…

Examines the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards National Board Certification process, noting the legitimacy of this process for teachers of special needs students and concluding that while National Board Certification is beneficial to the teaching profession at large, for special education, it needs to be reconceptualized and…

Surveys of college faculty members' current use of objective tests indicated that most respondents (N=38) did not use state-of-the-art procedures associated with construction and analysis of objective tests. Many were unfamiliar with basic testing terms and tools and did not understand the meanings of the terms and tools. (SM)

Discussion of changes in classrooms as a result of communication networks focuses on teachers' roles in future educational settings. Topics include teachers as information consultants, as team collaborators, as facilitators, as course developers, and as academic advisors; and the computer and communication skills needed by teachers. (LRW)

Discusses the connection of service learning competencies to nationally recognized beginning teacher standards, such as Interstate New Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (INTASC), providing two examples of strategies that various teacher education programs have used to infuse service learning pedagogy into courses while addressing INTASC…

Focuses on the self-education of teachers in Russia and addresses topics such as the personalities, characteristics, and qualities of teachers. Explores the productive stages of the autopedagogical competence of schoolteachers by focusing on the value attitude of teachers toward professionalism. (CMK)

Identified curricular and instructional practices within schools whose students exceeded the state passing average for Language Arts on the Alabama High School Graduation Examination, even though student population were predominantly high risk. Teacher and administrator data indicated that teachers' years of experience, certification levels, and…

Examines whether K-12 teachers are prepared to use technology in innovative and effective ways to authentically present multicultural education, examining the potential inability of teachers to provide an authentic version of multicultural education in the presence of technology as both an individual decision and as the result of generally…

Discusses findings from five studies undertaken to elicit judgments from education professionals regarding what newly licensed teachers should know and be able to do. Presents findings from a review of learning-to-teach literature, noting that beginning teachers may not have all the knowledge and skills expected of them. Discusses implications for…

Analyzes the complex background of debates on quality teacher education, highlighting sociological perspectives and arguments of the educational sciences, defining problem areas of teacher education, and discussing ways to handle perceived problems by considering experiences in various European countries discussed at a seminar of experts on the…

Reports a study that examined the reasons why health educators practicing at various sites chose not to become certified health education specialists. Surveys found that subjects' responses to proposed benefits of certification varied depending on the benefit, and many did not believe they would receive the proposed benefits. (SM)

Argues that the competency-based guidelines for teacher training in Scotland fraudulently present teaching as an uncontroversial set of basic skills; obscure the point that educational knowledge and practice are rooted in forms of moral and evaluative discourse; and belie the inherent controversy of educational aims, objectives, and methods. (KS)

A study of 1,663 teachers of students with blindness or visual impairments addressed their perceived competence in reading and teaching braille, attitudes toward braille, and preservice training in braille. Most teachers were confident in their braille abilities, strongly supported use of braille with students, and were dissatisfied with their own…

Reviews literature and statistical test data from previously administered student evaluations at Middle Tennessee State University to draw conclusions about evaluation reliability. Five series of tests were performed on the evaluations, comparing measures such as time of class and type of course taught. The most notable finding was that…