The Learning Team at The Florida Aquarium in Tampa received funding in 2014 to create and conduct a long-term outdoor learning experience for Hillsborough County, Florida, fifth-grade students. The program was designed with four parts to optimize students' experiences in their local watershed, including both classroom and field activities. This…

The increase of English language learners (ELLs) in the United States of America (USA) public school classrooms and the diversification of the global education landscape urges initial teacher preparation programs to equip mainstream teachers with appropriate skills, knowledge, and dispositions to teach ELLs. This paper reports findings from a…

This research study examined the experiences of Black and Latino/a pre-service teachers who are enrolled in the BS/MS Teacher Preparation Programs within Florida State University's School of Teacher Education. Students within this study described their experiences in courses, how they navigated their clinical field experiences, and how their CTs…

The importance of early care and education (ECE) to children's lifelong learning and to our nation's economic well-being is recognized up to the highest levels of government and in businesses, schools, and living rooms across the country. Florida is home to more than 1 million children under the age of five, nearly 70 percent of whom attend some…

This report describes the early childhood degree programs offered in Florida, focusing on variations in program content, age-group focus, student field-based learning, and faculty characteristics, as well as the extent to which Florida ECE higher education programs are incorporating early math, family engagement, and working with dual language…

Teacher preparation in the field of early childhood education (ECE) has historically included a variety of higher education degree programs in various child-related disciplines, all of which have generally been considered equally acceptable. In Florida, despite progress over the last decade to improve ECE services and to ensure that teacher…