Two departments in a secondary school in England participated in "lesson study" projects over a five-month period to explore its usefulness as a vehicle for professional development. Through a cycle of two research lessons, conducted separately in each department, teachers identified challenges that inhibited the learning of their…

This article discusses some issues related to the professional development of Religious Education (RE) student teachers in initial teacher education based on empirical results on the development of the pedagogical thinking of Finnish RE student teachers during their teacher education. The article begins by describing the concept of professionalism…

This article advances a continuing line of inquiry into the potential of digital educative curriculum materials to support teachers' development of professional teaching knowledge. Instead of standalone levers of change, the educative curricula in this study were featured resources within a novel professional development approach. The qualitative,…

The aim of this study was to determine pre-service social studies teachers' skills to plan and apply the activity-based teaching and contribute to their development of these skills. In the study, the action research design of qualitative research was used. The sample of the study consisted of 6 pre-service teachers who were 4th year students at…

Researchers have recently used traditional item response theory (IRT) models to measure mathematical knowledge for teaching (MKT). Some studies (e.g., Hill, 2007; Izsak, Orrill, Cohen, & Brown, 2010), however, have reported subgroups when measuring middle-grades teachers' MKT, and such groups violate a key assumption of IRT models. This study…

Profile analyses were used to investigate differences in the self-efficacy growth of teachers with more and less mathematics background as the teachers participated in professional development across two summers. Professional development activities were associated with increases in teachers' self-efficacy; however, without considering mathematics…

This study explores how informal inquiry among teachers occurs in pursuit of their professional development within a learning community that has been voluntarily constructed by South Korean teachers. To this end, the study investigates what leads teachers to participate in a self-organized learning community, how informal inquiry occurs in the…

This article is part of a larger research project on professional development, and more specifically the emergence of "professional knowledge" among pre-service teachers. The intent here is to analyze recognition phenomena in supervisory discussions. We consider recognition of pre-service teachers' discourse as a condition for the emergence of…

This article focuses on a teacher's evaluation of an experiment with problem-based learning (PBL) and its effects on his professional development. This case study, of a descriptive-analytical nature, involved the collaboration between the researcher and teacher in the planning, implementation of PBL and, to some extent, analysis of results.…

This study was designed to explore how Korean preschool and kindergarten teachers understand teacher research and utilize it in professional development. Two teachers, two site directors, and one district supervisor were interviewed in South Korea. Data were collected in multiple ways: (1) open-ended individual interviews; (2) participants'…

Hispanic and Latino students are regarded as one of the most uneducated and educationally at-risk and disadvantaged groups in the United States, yet few studies have focused on teaching and learning in classrooms where they are making significant academic gains due to high quality teachers. Current research in this area lacks strong theoretical…

Starting in the fall of 2009, ELL (English-language learner) instructional coaches began to provide workshops to ELL and general education teachers in a northwest American city. This article aims to analyze the differentiated instruction provided in the workshops. Data in this study include observational field notes, interviews, and documents.…

In this article, the authors examine the effect of a National Writing Project professional development model on a group of middle school writing teachers. The authors examine how contact with other professionals in intensive week-long sessions as well as mentoring from the professional development coach affected the teachers’ concept of themselves…

This paper reports on a study which examined the impact of a course in Reflective teaching in the third year of a Bachelor of Education degree programme at a local University College. A broader purpose for the study was to continue the process of giving credence to reflective teaching as integral to effective teaching and learning. Specifically,…

International practicum is disappearing from teacher education programs with the increasing pressures for "local experience". International practicum is seen as too different from local contexts to develop preservice teachers to meet professional standards. This study explores the teaching development of a group of 24 preservice teachers…