Discusses three prospective secondary biology teachers' conceptions of teaching science and selected portions of their knowledge base in biology. Explores how these teachers' conceptions, along with their teaching actions, developed during the course of a teacher-education program. Contains 31 references. (Author/WRM)

Summarizes a complex study of a science-teacher-education program whose goal was to graduate teachers who held conceptual change conceptions of teaching science and were disposed to put hem into practice. Concludes that there are influences on prospective teachers from their content coursework that have significant implications for how they view…

Reports the impact on instructional practice of a mathematics professional-development program for middle-grade teachers which enhanced content and pedagogical knowledge within an infrastructure supporting collaboration and reflection. Qualitative and quantitative data indicated that teachers' curricular approaches became more balanced; classrooms…

The president of the University of Vermont discusses the relationship between higher education research and practice from an administrative viewpoint. She suggests that good campus decision making begins with a base of scholarly knowledge that is generated by higher education researchers and is ideally modeled by higher education leaders who…

This article describes a University of Hawaii at Manoa course that is designed to prepare teachers and related school personnel to work with at-risk students in inclusive settings. A survey of 105 special education teacher certification programs found that only 9 offered a separate course on working with at-risk students. (Contains references.)…

Summarizes the latest issues and research on reading that are of particular interest to classroom teachers. Discusses phonics versus whole language, meeting individual student needs, matching teaching strategies to grade levels, the reading-writing link, and using technology to support instruction. (WRM)

Argues that the science methods course should be envisioned as the launching pad for a career-long process of professional development, a foundation for a successful student teaching experience, and the lynchpin of a teacher education program. (DDR)

Compares the way preservice elementary teachers build knowledge and beliefs to the way learners build science knowledge. Describes a reconceptualization of an elementary science methods course consistent with this assumption about science teaching. Contains 22 references. (DDR)

Describes the experiences of art educators participating in the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) certification program for early-adolescent and young-adult art. NBPTS candidates are asked to collect data on their own teaching, observe videos of their classes, and analyze their teaching through reflective writing. (MJP)

Describes ongoing case studies of U.S. teacher-education institutions that are reforming subject-matter preparation for prospective teachers. Discusses research goals, theoretical framework concerning levels of disciplinary understanding and the nature of knowledge and skills across university disciplines, and problems with the administrative…

A survey questioned 22 early childhood professionals, 10 parents of preschoolers with disabilities, and 20 parents of typical preschoolers on inclusion at the beginning and end of a school year. Both parents and educators were concerned about general educators' preparation to meet the needs of children with complex special needs. (Contains…

Explores the environmental knowledge and attitudes of secondary teachers (N=360). Reveals that negative environmental attitudes are prevalent and that most of the teachers in the study have never attended any workshop or seminar on the teaching of the subject. (DDR)

This article reports on a survey of 41 special education faculty that found that few included instruction on self-determination in their courses. It then describes a course that was developed on transition planning to ensure that special educators obtain the skills necessary to support the development of self-determination skills. (Contains…

Today, one out of four American children attends school in an urban district; one out of every six American children lives in poverty; and, in urban schools where most of the students are poor, two-thirds or more of the children fail to reach even the "basic" level of achievement on national tests. Urban schools are where most states…

This article describes a course for reinforcing the knowledge of biochemistry in secondary school science teachers. The Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of the University of Barcelona designed a course to bring these teachers up to date with this discipline. In addition to updating their knowledge of biochemistry and molecular…