Analysis of data from 741 college classes in which there were at least 10 male and 10 female students revealed small gender preferences in student evaluations of teachers, particularly in female students rating female teachers. Teaching style rather than gender may explain these preferences. (Author/DB)

Describes Louisell and Descamps's book as a resource to help teachers develop a philosophy of teaching. Considers organization and detail on topics to be adequate for reader engagement. Concludes that substantive omissions seriously limit value for preservice teachers and identifies as the volume's largest weakness its lack of current theory and…

Adopting the position that maximizing learner involvement is conducive to second language acquisition, examines the ways in which teachers, through their choice of language, construct or obstruct learner participation in face-to-face classroom communication. Concludes that teachers' ability to control their use of language is at least as important…

Examined the influence of state-level testing on high school social studies teachers' practice. Classroom observations of a specific unit and teacher interviews before and after the unit were used to examine the role of a state test on teachers' practice. While the test influenced teachers' instruction, it interacted with other factors, especially…

Reports on a case study in which a high school teacher explored Multiple Intelligence (MI) theory using it as a conceptual framework to make decisions about structuring her grade 9 science curriculum. Describes the teacher's initial explorations of the theory, incorporation of the theory into daily teaching, and the outcomes of the study for both…

The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA) Computer Algebra System (CAS)Pilot study (2001-2005) is monitoring the use of CAS in senior secondary mathematics. This article explores the author's experiences in the CAS classroom and delineates changes in teaching style, as a result of the introduction of CAS into the senior mathematics…

Feedback is one of the most important aspects of improving performance because it corrects, reinforces, and motivates. It can also create bonds and enable students to see that their performance is important. This article defines feedback, presents three important functions of feedback, identifies the four forms of feedback, gives examples of…

A growing array of nonfiction picture books, appropriate for every age level, is available that addresses an expanding range of historical topics. Nonfiction picture books should be considered far more than a passing fancy for such books are powerful tools, often highly superior to textbook material for involving students in an interactive way.…

Burke's own teacher-research has resulted in solutions for real classroom situations. In this, his last contribution as a column editor for "VM," he offers two more practical ideas for helping students achieve, and sends his readers off with advice to look to their own classrooms for solutions to the ever-present challenges of teaching. (Contains…

The high school and middle school English teachers consider the role of rhetoric instruction to be very important. Teachers in England teach English better than those in America as England has an extensive English Language Studies curriculum that provides the teachers the flexibility to approach their topics.

Culture can be thought of a set of shared practices, beliefs, and values that are transmitted across generations through language [Bruner, J. (1990). "Acts of meaning". Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press]. Teaching is one way that culture is transmitted, but forms of teaching vary across cultures and across activity settings within…

Building on previous research conducted over the past thirty years, this study attempts to inquire about students' attitudes towards social studies. Using a phenomenological research approach, two groups of eighth and eleventh grade students were interviewed. A total of forty-eight students were selected to participate in the study. With…

Taking as a starting point a paper published in 1981, this paper considers the importance of interaction between teacher and pupil in learning to read. Twenty-five years ago, the study of classroom language was relatively new. Research perspectives have moved from describing the process of interaction between teacher and child to considering the…

Qualities of adolescent-adult relationships across home and school environments are examined as predictors of academic growth in mathematics. An ethnically diverse sample of adolescents was drawn from the National Educational Longitudinal Study, 1988. In separate analyses, adolescents' perceptions of (a) connection with parents and teachers and…

Having taught both mainstream and special needs middle school students and in an alternative high school, the author resists the concept that all children are capable of doing the same work. She contends that there is no one best teaching style any more than there is any one best learning style. She suggests that a teacher needs to find his or her…