Summarizes the results of a study designed to identify minimum standards for the initial licensure of secondary social studies teachers in the fifty states and the District of Columbia. Provides statistical data on required coursework, competencies, and performance criteria. Individual states are not listed. (MJP)

Questioned Ontario college students and administrators regarding their opinions on standards of practice for postsecondary special needs programs. Respondents indicated strong support for most suggested practices. Fewer administrators, however, supported practices that required enhanced funding, staffing, and resources, and fewer students…

Proposes an alternative knowledge base to that currently articulated for physical education teacher preparation, examining knowledge areas important in preparing novices for teaching in current and future schools: Education and Physical Education, knowledge production and access, the person in/and society, cross-boundary experiences, and politics,…

Asserts that the lack of adequate geography instruction for preservice teachers has reached the level of crisis. Identifies a number of academic pressures and prejudices that have contributed to this crisis. Discusses a series of established and proposed programs designed to address these deficiencies. (MJP)

Data from the health education component of the 1994 School Health Policies and Programs Study were analyzed. This report summarizes the findings, which indicate that although HIV prevention education has been widely implemented in U.S. schools, improvement in these programs is needed, particularly in numbers of teachers receiving inservice HIV…

This article describes the implementation of a self assessment process based on competencies and validated behavioral indicators used statewide in Georgia for personnel in early intervention. An analysis of 3500 self-assessment forms found that self assessments were useful as one measure for evaluating the effectiveness of training. (Contains…

A case study explored how an effective teacher in an urban multicultural classroom uses computers. Identified effective management and instructional strategies. Results support previous research findings that indicate that effective teaching of minority children involves children in decision making, challenges learners, offers meaningful learning…

In response to concern about the French language proficiency of teachers of French as a first or second language in Canada, a test of communicative competence designed for teacher selection and evaluation was developed. The rationale for, development of, and response to the test are discussed. (MSE)

Examines ethical dilemmas encountered during an ethnographic study of how the concept of competence at a Scottish teacher-education institution included the need to prepare future teachers as critical professionals able to handle diversity. The paper discusses negotiations in the fieldwork, constraints imposed upon it, and potential for developing…

Reports on a study of primary student-teachers' perceptions of their experience in schools during student teaching; the effectiveness of university-based courses in preparing them to teach the arts; and their perceptions of support given to them by the teachers training them to teach art, dance, drama, and music in schools. (DSK)

Describes the origins and development of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, noting challenges it faced; critical documents guiding its work; five core propositions central to its work; the role of teachers in defining and improving their profession; and the partnership of teacher unions, local school districts, and schools in…

Presents an interview that shares the perspective of North Carolina's governor, Jim Hunt, who was a founding member of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS). In the interview, Mr. Hunt offers insights on the role of states in National Board Certification and reflects on the future of the NBPTS. (SM)

Four authors provide a profile of one school district's efforts to recruit and support a teacher willing to meet the challenge of National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification. A partnership among the district's teacher union, the superintendent, a school principal, and the teacher emerged to produce the district's first…

Examined Alabama's teacher certification assessment practices. Alabama's colleges of education determine which assessment methods to use. Data from a state summary report and surveys of Alabama's higher education institutions investigated assessment practices and reactions to pending legislation requiring nationally normed certification…

Investigated the cumulative effects of alternative certification (AC) on the public school teaching force and the comparative characteristics of teachers certified traditionally and alternatively. Data from the 1993-94 national Schools and Staffing Survey indicated that AC had mixed results in terms of fulfilling its promises, with some of the…