Methods are proposed and described for estimating the degree to which relations among variables vary at the individual level. As an example, M. Fishbein and I. Ajzen's theory of reasoned action is examined. This article illustrates the use of empirical Bayes methods based on a random-effects regression model to estimate individual influences…

Offers a framework to help teachers change their personal or curricular perspective from "mainstream" to more "diverse" and to incorporate that new perspective into whatever subject matter they teach. Discusses the teacher's role, analyzing one's personal attitude, choosing instructional materials, and goals and objectives. (SR)

This article discusses teachers' ability to discriminate between effective and ineffective practices in terms of some etiological macrosystem influences and possible sequelae in practice that determine likely outcomes for teaching children and youth with disabilities. The relationship between high discriminative ability and efficient and effective…

Discusses the main dimensions of effective teaching as identified in research, as well as particular teaching strategies that are effective but rarely used in law school classes. These strategies include increasing clarity, increasing course and lesson organization, maintaining students' attention and concentration, and promoting a positive…

A first-year teacher recounts her action research project to address the misbehaviors occurring in her third-grade classroom. She reports on identification of four target behaviors and implementation of research-based intervention techniques such as eye contact, physical proximity, and "withitness," (constant awareness of the classroom). Analysis…

A study of teacher education in formerly British, Caribbean countries found that teachers were trained to use centrally produced curriculum guides in language arts, reading, and foreign languages. However, policy ideals related to teachers being "facilitators of learning," teaching low achievers, and using new technologies were unmet and…

Comparative education can provide a background of contrasts and possibilities against which to examine one's own problems. For comparative education to be effective, background conditions must be understood; educational systems must be examined as wholes, in their contexts; and ideas should only be borrowed from systems sufficiently similar to…

Responds to the issues raised by Werth and Holdwick, and Westefeld et al. (2000, [this issue]). Posits that there are important biopsychosocial trends that make the issue of suicide particularly salient today. Supports this view using two examples: the increased incidence of death from chronic disease and the greater awareness of the psychosocial…

The introduction to this special issue introduces each of the following 11 research-based articles, all originally presented in November 1999 at the 23rd annual conference of the Teacher Educators for Children with Behavioral Disorders. The articles cover a variety of research and practice issues relative to the education and treatment of children…

This article describes the characteristics of Participatory Research and Development (PR&D), a means of integrating research and practice by linking the university research and teacher practice. It outlines related methods and activities, details a number of qualitative findings regarding the nature of instructional change, and discusses the…

Discusses the limitations of experimental studies of learning and the emergence of alternative paradigms such as constructivism. Examines the growth of teacher research and its historical influences, including Montessori, Dewey's Progressive Movement, and Lucy Sprague Mitchell. Discusses current trends in teacher research, asserting that it is…

This commentary on C. Addison Stone's paper on the scaffolding metaphor for learning disabilities first suggests the flying buttress, which becomes integrated into a new structure, as a better metaphor. It suggests that scaffolded instruction depends on sophisticated shared assumptions about the conversational process. Evidence that some children…

This commentary on C. Addison Stone's paper on the scaffolding metaphor for the learning disabilities field urges that all available literature, rather than a particular metaphor, should be used to evaluate the efficacy of instructional procedures in interpreting findings of instructional research. (Author/DB)

This response by the original author to six commentaries on his paper concerning the scaffolding metaphor for learning disabilities highlights common themes (such as the basic dynamics of meaningful learning) and revisits arguments for and against the utility of the metaphor. Suggestions for broadening the metaphor to address related issues such…

Explores the perspectives of two high school science teachers on teaching for conceptual change as they work with graduate level preservice teachers. Details the conceptual change model employed by the teachers. (DDR)