Discusses three European educational practices from which Americans could learn: emphasis on building personal relationships; intelligent use of time; and superior teacher working conditions. Argues not for copying these practices, but for reflecting the broad principles behind them. (SR)

Teaching with the grain is a teacher education model rooted in constructivism. It has three phases: the teacher describes a specific teaching situation; analyzes the situation by examining its relationship to self, culture, students, curriculum, sponsors, and colleagues; and generates and addresses systemic issues arising from the analysis.…

Nationwide, there are several innovative approaches to substitute teacher staffing issues, including: increased substitute teacher pay and enlistment of local college students to substitute at least 3 days per week in exchange for tuition help and a guaranteed job after graduation. Incentive programs for low absenteeism rates are a good way to…

Argues that the situation of adjunct instructors, particularly those who piece full-time employment from part-time appointments, is appalling and that there is responsibility to be meted out to all the various interests connected to the academy that benefit from it. Explores how adjunct instructors and graduate student can make decisions about…

Provides results of a survey given to 150 educators across 5 school Direct Instruction implementations. Proposes that this survey is an initial step in the direction of determining teacher preferences with regard to levels of support and coaching provided in school. Finds teachers identified the team-teach method of coaching as the most effective.…

Explores the relationship between academic mentoring behaviors and the organizational socialization of new faculty members within the communication discipline. Indicates that mentors' tendencies to provide support and encouragement, a sense of collegiality, and research assistance are related to an organizational newcomer's feelings of…

Argues for the significance of "personal theories" in teaching. Profiles first year teaching of four teachers who had completed program of self-inquiry and reflection about their own developing conceptions of education. Describes their personal theories of teaching before employment and the nature and impact of their teaching…

In the current educational reform movement, schools have become the new scapegoat for the American economy's increasing failure to compete in the world market. The Bush Administration needs to articulate a vision linking public education to democratic imperatives, rather than the marketplace's narrow demands. Education for empowerment should be a…

Although the Department of Education declared that smaller classes don't really make for better education, one teacher discusses how common-sense experience keeps getting in the way of the Department's "higher truth." Experiences with "off-track" senior English students in a class of 12 are described. (MLW)

Supported by the Carnegie Foundation and other allies, teacher unions are now demanding that teachers take over the nation's schools and run them without management interference. Teachers need "enablement" more than empowerment, as seen in the case of Rochester, New York. (MLH)

To begin to conceptualize teaching, one must focus on the teaching setting. Five general qualities for effective teaching are identified: active engagement, decentralized management, orderly instructional practice, setting evolution, and summative evaluation. (Author/MLW)

Education is the only "business" in which the consumers (students) rather than the workers (teachers and administrators) do most of the work. For educational technology to fulfill its potential, we must change our views about work in schools. Technology must be used for the workers to improve connections and by the workers to enhance and extend…

Responses from 69 of 92 secondary marketing teachers in Illinois illuminated their concerns about human relations, classroom management and routines, working conditions, personal matters, and professional growth. In small, medium, and large schools, teachers are most concerned with professional growth and working conditions, want opportunities for…

Exploration of the ways in which early childhood education administrators and teachers perceived organizational practices indicated that there were significant differences between administrators' and teachers' perceptions, with the administrators consistently more favorably rating the organizational climate. (Author/CB)

Points made in favor of year-round education include: improved attendance; better coordination of students, vacations, and facilities; fewer discipline problems; less stressful teaching conditions; and continuity benefits for special needs students. (CB)