This report argues that instructional improvement, which goes hand-in-hand with efforts at education reform, can be promoted through the strategic use of human resource management (HRM) practices at the school, district, and state levels. The authors present information from the organizational and management literatures on how firms in several…

It is becoming widely recognised that teachers' content knowledge has an important influence on their pedagogical content knowledge, and hence on the learning of students. In secondary schools, function is one of the fundamental concepts of mathematics. This paper considers the understanding of function exhibited by a group of teacher trainees in…

This study examined the types of knowledge influencing classroom teaching in higher education. A total of 102 professors from across North America regarded as exemplary teachers participated in the study. Respondents were asked to recall a time during the last 3 years when they thought that they had done a poor job of teaching as well as a time…

In multigrade instruction, children of at least a 2-year grade span and diverse ability levels are grouped in a single classroom and share experiences involving intellectual, academic, and social skills. "The Multigrade Classroom" is a seven-book series that provides an overview of current research on multigrade instruction, identifies…

Recent reforms in science education call for curricula designed to support students' construction of knowledge through inquiry. Teachers need to learn new methods and content to enact reform-based curriculum, and educative materials designed to address teacher as well as student learning are one vehicle for this type of reform. This paper…

The progressive agenda of science education reform, particularly the goal of promoting student inquiry, places substantial intellectual demands on teachers. If this reform is to succeed, the education community must do more to appreciate and address its demands. This paper presents three examples of high school physics teachers' conversations…

Discusses the collaborative approach of the Rocky Mountain Teacher Education Collaborative to helping preservice teachers develop pedagogical content knowledge. Describes a course in the teaching of chemistry that was believed to be key in the development of pedagogical content knowledge. Highlights assessment and reactions to the course. (JRH)

A study compared the results of a previous study on 725 Nova Scotia teachers' general attitudes toward inclusion and confidence in their abilities with those of 287 teachers from Newfoundland & Labrador. No provincial differences in teachers' perceptions of inclusion were found despite differences in provincial policy/practice. (Contains…

The initial training of the United Kingdom's primary teachers is undergoing major restructuring. This article analyzes the main strands of these changes over the last 10 years, examining both the politicization of teacher education and the development of theoretical perspectives that reveal the complexity of the nature of professional knowledge.…

Examines a beginning elementary teacher's experiences participating in an educational research project and her work in the classroom to bring her students' ideas into contact with accepted scientific ideas and practices. The project explored an approach to professional development that engaged teachers in learning and viewing science as a socially…

Identifies the types of reasoning involved in middle grade mathematics with regard to multiplicative structures and the difficulties students have with the concepts, why these difficulties might occur, and the interconnections within this content area. Offers four recommendations for the preparation and professional development of teachers.…

Reports on the Iowa Project, a broad effort in 20 school districts where a Science-Technology-Society (STS) approach was emphasized through a constructivist philosophy of teaching and learning. Results indicate the project's success in four areas: strengthening teacher confidence and knowledge base, encouraging teachers' use of innovative…

Discusses the influence of a reflective, explicit, activity-based approach to nature of science (NOS) instruction used in an elementary science methods course on preservice teachers' views of some aspects of the nature of science. Finds that participants made substantial gains in their views of some of the target NOS aspects. Advocates a…

Describes researcher and teacher-researcher analyses of inquiry teaching of the nature of science to prospective elementary teachers. Discusses the difficulties with presenting a cogent and comprehensive picture of the nature of science, the teacher's pivotal role in initiating discussions of science and scientists' work, and the strengths and…

Since China initiated its modernization program in the late 1970s, professional development of secondary teachers of English as a foreign language (EFL) has been given much prominence because of the perceived important role that English can play in the modernization drive. This article provides a critical overview of secondary EFL teacher…