This study compares the views of teachers and professional development facilitators about effective professional development (PD). We analyzed interviews with 72 teacher participants and 23 PD facilitators involved in nine science and mathematics PD projects. The teachers' themes for characterizing effective PD included classroom application,…

This study explored the potential acceptability of performance pay to new teachers by investigating attitudes toward performance pay of students preparing to be teachers. Focus groups and a survey of students preparing to be teachers at a large U.S. university were conducted. Most students expressed a preference for some form of performance pay…

The authors detail technology-based active literacy strategies that they employed with preservice teachers to enhance their skill and comfort level in providing appropriate technology-supported literacy instruction to future students. They examine four theoretical and pragmatic threads to include in course design: active learning, open-ended…

Virtual schooling, or the practice of offering K-12 courses via distance technologies, has rapidly increased in popularity since its beginning in 1994. Although effective interaction with and support for students in these environments requires a unique set of skills and experiences, teacher education programs currently place very little emphasis…

As teachers face increasing demands to meet the needs of students with special needs in inclusive classrooms, there is a corresponding increase in the need for professional development opportunities for practicing teachers in areas that will assist them to become more knowledgeable in meeting these needs. One area of concern for teachers is the…

Although nearly every college offers a major in computer science, many computer science teachers at the secondary level have received little formal training. This paper presents details of a project that could make a significant contribution to national efforts to improve computer science education by combining teacher education and professional…

This issue of the Center's "Systems Newsletter" will be the last one published under the aegis of Dr. JoyceVanTassel-Baska, the Center's founder and current Executive Director. As of this August Dr. VanTassel-Baska will officially retire from the College of William and Mary and the Center. She will still be an integral part of the Center…

The purpose of this study was to examine teaching assistants' conceptions of the nature of teaching after they were taught a pedagogical strategy directly related to their subject matter. Four teaching assistants who taught the Biology 1201 laboratories at the University of Minnesota participated in this study which included participating in 16…

This monograph explores issues around the position of child development knowledge in early childhood education. Part 1 of the monograph raises questions regarding the role of such knowledge in teaching young children and its place in teacher education. This section considers the definition of "development," the type of child development…

Based on the assumption that much can be learned from the studies of experienced science teachers, the purpose of this study is to identify the knowledge base that contributed to the instructional representations demonstrated by four exemplary junior high school biology teachers. Results are intended to provide suggestions that would be useful to…

This report on teachers' academic preparation and professional development, the amount of emphasis science instruction receives in schools, student course taking, and the availability of school resources that support science learning is intended primarily for policy makers, school administrators, and educators concerned with state- or school-level…

This paper examines the differences between Marxian/Gramscian educators and Foucauldian educators regarding school curriculum, teacher education, knowledge production, and other factors. Marxian/Gramscian educators view the school as continuing to reproduce unfair and unjust institutions and to assert that ideology shapes schooling. Foucauldian…

This comprehensive annotated resource list is designed to assist in the selection of science resources for elementary classrooms. This guide is organized by grade level, and within that heading by series and topic. Following the lists for individual grades is a list of elementary science resources, which are not topic specific, authorized for…

The research reported here focuses on the beliefs, values and attitudes of one experienced biology teacher (Teacher A) in relation to the teaching of controversial biological issues. Of specific interest is the thinking behind what this teacher conceptualizes are the possibilities and problems for the teaching of controversial issues as part of…

After more than two decades of federal transition legislation, students with disabilities continue to have significantly poorer postschool outcomes as compared to their peers without disabilities. One reason for these outcomes is that educators are inadequately prepared to provide the services required under the Individuals with Disabilities…