This policy brief focuses on teacher competence in using technologies in the Pacific region, identifying key policy issues that must be addressed if teachers are to be prepared to capitalize on the investments being made in technology at the local and entity level. Section 1 focuses on what teachers must know and do in order to effectively use…

Teacher inservice training is critical to the continual development of effective classroom instruction. Professionals who consistently improve their instruction positively impact student performance. Many inservice training sessions use formats that are not conducive to effective adult learning. Good training uses flexible formats, job-applicable…

This research project examined the training of foreign language teachers in Europe. Data were collected from 32 European countries from February to June 2002. Information was also gathered from published documents, ministries of education, higher education institutions, cultural organizations, UNESCO, and teacher associations. Data were fed into a…

Since the inception of "GOALS 2000: Educate America Act" (1994), the nation at large has been implementing standards for systematic reform. Teachers and teacher candidates must become "techno-savvy" overnight in order to comply with these reform initiatives as their level of expertise in educational technology will ostensibly affect their lesson…

This action research project was designed to improve faculty knowledge of hearing loss and its effects on education at two Illinois elementary schools. Sixty-nine faculty members participated in the project. Methods of assessment of faculty knowledge included a survey, questionnaire, document analysis, and anecdotal records of informal…

In coming to better value teachers' knowledge and practice, there is a need to be able to articulate and document what teachers know and are able to do. This is central in coming to understand pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). This paper presents a working understanding of PCK as it has emerged through a research project and describes the…

The professional development of teachers is a crucial element of the nation's efforts to improve education. In recent years, these efforts have sought to foster high standards for teaching and learning for all of the nation's children, and almost all states have met federal requirements for developing challenging statewide content standards. Such…

The Center for Learning Technologies in Urban Schools (LeTUS) is implementing a professional development program for science teachers to enact science curricula in a systemic reform initiative. This paper proposes a design approach for professional development in science education as a valuable way to re-conceptualize the process of fostering…

In science education, it is well understood that teachers' scientific conceptions can influence students' learning, but the extent to which students' knowledge influences teachers' ideas is not known. This paper describes a study of the mutual interaction of ideas between two second grade teachers, one teacher intern, and their classrooms during…

This study investigated the changes that occurred in the knowledge and attitudes of a group of science and mathematics teachers (n=38) who took a museum education course. The course contained lectures and discussions on the rationales and strategies of museum education. The students also learned about the history of museum development in Taiwan…

The purpose of this study was to investigate aspects of the Nature of Science (NOS) concepts and teaching practices acquired by inservice teachers who participated in a teacher education program at the National Changhua University of Education in Taiwan. Two instructors used both case-history and demonstration approaches to help science teachers…

The objective of this research study was to determine the graduate education needs of North Carolina's mathematics and science teachers. Federal and state mandates require a restructuring of graduate education in order to focus on professionalism in teaching. To validate this top-down approach, mathematics and science teachers were asked to tell…

Project TEAM--Teacher Education for the Approaching Millennium--represents an educational partnership designed to improve science teacher preparation, content knowledge among both students and teachers, and the desire to better connect the theoretical constructs offered in a science methods course with the practical concerns expressed by students…

The Educational Policy Reform Research Institute (EPRRI), with funding from the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Special Education Programs, investigates the impact of educational accountability reforms on students with disabilities and on special education. EPRRI addresses the research needs of policymakers and other key stakeholders by…

Describes the orientation and management of a science hotline managed by the University of Kentucky for the benefit of teachers. Results include a more positive public image of science and the creation of links between academic scientists and precollege teachers. (DDR)