This publication summarizes the proceedings and outcomes of four conferences, each of which had the same purposes: to identify, clarify, and specify the issues relevant to preparing teachers of disadvantaged youth; and to recommend substantive changes and appropriate strategies for improving the preservice and inservice education of these…

This proposal deals with the implementation of a field oriented, performance based elementary teacher preparation program. The first section of the proposal defines intern roles, intern responsibilities, and performance goals. Section two lists expected competencies and presents the rationale for these competencies. Section three discusses the…

This paper proposes the restructuring of preservice professional laboratory programs in order to make these preservice experiences meaningful for prospective teachers of students whose racial, social, religious, and cultural backgrounds differ from the mainstream. Professional laboratory experiences are defined as learning activities in which the…

The Teacher Center at Portland Community College was established for several reasons. First, driving between campus and the out-of-town sites for student teacher supervision was too costly for Oregon State University faculty. Secondly, it was thought that the preparation of teachers should include experiences in schools outside a single local area…

This paper presents an inner-city, elementary teacher education program which focused upon a) the acquisition of teaching techniques and skills in the urban learning setting, b) the learning of theory together with reinforced practice in functional field experiences, c) the reinforcement of principles of child growth and development through direct…

Portland State University's Cooperative Professional Education Program offers an internship which combines coursework and clinical experiences for teacher education students with extension to beginning teacher placements. (CB)

Field experiences that provide preservice teachers with the opportunity to work beyond the school setting offer insight into the "real world" of teaching. Suggestions for organization and implementation of field experiences dealing with learning centers, health fairs, and youth organizations are discussed. (DF)

Results of this study provide empirical support for the inclusion of early field experiences in teacher preparation programs. While the effects of early field experiences in subsequent course achievement are modest, these effects are substantially greater than those reported for field experiences in conjunction with course work. (FG)

Five alternatives to traditional field experiences in special education are described and contrasted, including: infusion of experiences within content courses; traditional experiences offered during the summer session; working practica; roving practica; and specialized field-experiences. It is argued that these alternatives can provide…

Teacher education programs continue to search for alternative field experiences for preservice teachers. Whether the public schools are overloaded with interns or a break from certain schools is recommended for various reasons, it is important to identify appropriate alternative practice teaching opportunities prior to student teaching. With the…

An educational psychology curriculum for preservice teachers that attempts to overcome some of the shortcomings of most such curricula while providing clinical experience is described. The curriculum is based on three major propositions: (1) preservice teachers must acquire psychologically informed inquiry skills and a general understanding of…

Miami University's (Ohio) two-course educational psychology sequence for prospective teachers has been redesigned to incorporate early field experiences. Concerns about the congruence of field tasks with course content, as well as about limiting situational constraints, were addressed by a committee on teacher preparation. Currently, each semester…

This study proved an alternate secondary teacher education program at the University of Victoria to be a success. The most distinguishing characteristic of the program is that selected student teachers spend the entire school year situated in one of two secondary schools in the Saanich, British Columbia, school system. During this time students…

This study was designed to provide descriptions of employment histories experienced by graduates of five different student teaching programs. These field programs were regular, cluster, overseas, elementary interns, and competency based. Differences between these programs are identified and analyzed. Subjects of the survey were graduates of…

The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that there would be no significant differences between elementary school children who were taught math, reading, and language by several untrained teacher assistants using highly structured materials, and those children who were taught by professional experienced teachers using less structured…