Teachers improve their presentation of materials and interactions with students when they are able to learn from their mistakes and misconceptions. While there are days that require "an act of survival," as the author writes, helping adolescents reach the maturity of adulthood keeps her from being "just a teacher." In this article, the author…

Purpose: To investigate relationships between teacher empowerment and interpersonal level trust in the principal. Design/methodology/approach: Trust is a fundamental element in well-functioning organizations. Studies of empowerment, a motivational construct, have suggested that empowering employees is a key factor in managerial and organizational…

If a school's goal is to improve the quality of the educational environment that it provides for its students--one that encourages creative thinking and problem solving, cooperative learning, and higher levels of thinking--then a principal must create the same type of atmosphere for those individuals most directly responsible for the success of…

"Alabama Education News" is published monthly except for June, July, and December by the Alabama Department of Education. This publication, authorized by Section 16-2-4 of the "Code of Alabama", as recompiled in 1975, is a public service of the Alabama Department of Education designed to inform citizens and educators about…

A shortage of quality teachers in high-risk urban schools has compelled school leaders to examine innovative methods of recruiting and retaining new teachers to hard-to-staff campuses. Principals must work aggressively to attract new teachers to their campuses by forming university partnerships for early recruitment, and initiating on the job…

This report examines the timing of teaching careers of 1992-93 college graduates at three points during the 10 years after graduation. It answers questions about the characteristics of graduates who enter and leave teaching, focusing specifically on their demographic characteristics, academic preparation, teacher working conditions, and…

The percentage of urban teachers who leave the profession within the first 5 years is more than 50%; inadequate preparation is often cited as a cause of urban teacher attrition. This article explores a qualitative study regarding teachers' perceptions of their experience of and preparation for teaching in urban schools. Data from teachers in urban…

The purpose of this article is to provide insight into an elementary school whose climate issues appear to plague and impact it's performance as measured by it's Annually Yearly Progress (AYP). The Northwest Georgia elementary school is located in a rural school system approximately 50 miles northwest of Atlanta, Georgia. A review of the…

Teachers are facing an increasing number of changes in their job context, many of which significantly affect their work lives. This study offers a theoretical understanding of the changes in teachers' working conditions, starting from the intensification thesis. The case study of a Flemish (Belgian) elementary school shows the existence of various…

This study offers an interpretive exploration of teachers' perceptions of violence, and its links with their decisions to leave urban schools. The study presents the stories of those who began their career in urban districts and then left within five years. In-depth, semi-structured interviews with twelve former urban educators are the main source…

In recent years, the average educator's salary--never lavish--has grown at a far slower rate than those of other professions, often even lagging behind inflation. As everyone knows all too well, when salaries are low, it is not just the teachers who lose out. According to Texas education official, Carole Keeton Strayhorn, turnover is highest where…

There is a direct correlation between (teacher) morale and (learner) discipline at school. Since the scrapping of corporal punishment, a sense of despair seems to have taken over amongst teachers in South Africa. The findings of this study indicated that more than 65% of teachers, out of a sample population of 80 respondents from schools located…

"Alabama Education News" is published monthly except for June, July, and December by the Alabama Department of Education. This publication, authorized by Section 16-2-4 of the "Code of Alabama", as recompiled in 1975, is a public service of the Alabama Department of Education designed to inform citizens and educators about…

Beginning teachers are often filled with self-doubt and questions regarding school culture and principals' expectations. This book helps one answer teachers' questions and gain strategies to prevent the isolation that many new instructors experience. Updated to meet the challenges facing new teachers today, this revision of the bestseller helps…

This report raises questions about the support given to new teachers who come to teaching through "alternate routes." It focuses on new teachers in high-needs schools, comparing the perspectives of those from traditional teacher education versus those from three alternate-route programs: Teach for America, Troops to Teachers and The New Teacher…