Reports on a study in which 61 science supervisors were asked to identify their most effective and least effective teachers. Differences were found regarding gender, quantity of National Science Foundation workshop experiences, and certain elected in-service experiences. (TW)

Reexamines category of teacher talk commonly called teacher disapproval. Presents expanded framework for examining behaviors in this category. Identifies and describes nine variations of teacher disapproval based on analysis of transcripts of interactions involving fourth, fifth, and sixth grade classroom Anglo, Hispanic, and Conservative Jewish…

Instead of employing a wide variety of teaching methods in the classroom, teachers should use only a few compatible methods. To choose these methods, teachers must clarify their own beliefs about basic elements of education and must assess the appropriateness and effectiveness of various methods in particular settings. (IW)

A classroom technique is described that is used by one college teacher in a course on the sociology of human sexuality. Specific acting techniques and design are used to turn the class into a performance where the delivery of facts is unified with the facts themselves. (MSE)

Nineteen pairs of center and noncenter children enrolled in a university-based, half-day model infant-toddler program were followed for eight months to see if "child-centered" features of the physical and social environment were carried over by parents to the home. Findings support an ecological model of substantial cross-influence…

Discusses a study in Kuwait which focused on students' ability to pick out appropriate teaching behaviors and teacher personality characteristics. Responses from high school students (N=210) corresponded closely with findings from similar perception studies. (ML)

An appellate court found that a college faculty member's use of offensive language in class was unprofessional, interfered with instruction, and not protected by principles of free speech and academic freedom. (MSE)

Workshops on effective teaching were attended by three groups of junior high school teachers: those who received no extra activities, those who participated in peer observations, and those who received coaching from the trainer. Behavior change and attitudes were assessed. Peer observation appeared to be more effective than coaching in boosting…

Data from an ethnographic study of an urban community college are used to describe elements of faculty culture, explore the reasons for the culture's form and characteristics, discuss the ways in which the culture may be linked to institutional outcomes, and offer a framework for viewing faculty-student conflict. (MSE)

Principles on which the teaching of mathematics is based are discussed. Sections concern the skill principle, the curriculum principle, and learning strategy, with many classroom illustrations. (MNS)

The Organizational Climate Description Questionnaire (OCDQ), modified by Thomas and Slater for use in South Australian schools in 1970, was based on four factors (rather than the original eight): principal supportiveness or operations emphasis and teacher disaffiliation or intimacy. A recent study in New South Wales has validated this four-factor…

Offers 10 principles of classroom discipline that can serve as general guidelines for teachers. These are: focusing, direct instruction, monitoring, modeling, cuing, environmental control, low-profile intervention, assertive discipline, I-message, and positive reinforcement. (IW)

Multidimensional scaling (MDS) was used to derive the dimensions underlying student ratings of instruction. A weighted MDS revealed that departmental affiliation, course structure, and intensity of teaching were particularly salient to the raters. The findings are discussed in light of the current literature on student ratings of instruction.…

Forty-five principals were interviewed concerning their experiences with and perceptions about serious incidents of teacher misconduct. The principals protected the image of the school by heading off, dampening, and containing the incidents. They preferred to resolve incidents in-house, but resorted to formal sanctions when necessary. (Author/DC)

The instructionally effective school is a function of six factors: teacher characteristics and behavior, administrator characteristics and behavior, student body composition, school learning climate, pupil evaluation, and curriculum material. This article discusses these factors, how their relative importance can be measured, and some of their…