Education researchers and policymakers agree that teachers differ in terms of quality and that quality matters for student achievement. Despite prodigious amounts of research, however, debate still persists about the causal relationship between specific teacher credentials and student achievement. In this paper, we use a rich administrative data…

This study was undertaken to determine the perceptions of a wide range of citizens and to inform the Mississippi Legislature on the issue of merit pay in education. From each of 50 randomly selected Mississippi school districts, a representation of grades K through 12 was chosen, with all professional and administrative staff members asked to…

Included are presentations on (or entitled): (1) restructuring the teacher education curriculum (Frank B. W. Hawkinshire); (2) teacher education reform (Carol Weinstein); (3) "Comments on Excellence in Teacher Education" (Maxine Greene); (4) teacher education in and for the future (Lenore H. Ringler); (5) teacher education and technology…

This report describes what schools and educators across Kentucky are doing to implement school reform in performance assessment based on the Kentucky Education Reform Act of 1990 (KERA). It provides research-based suggestions about how implementation of programs can be enhanced and how the benefits of reform increased for the Kentucky youth.…

This paper: (1) describes the recently implemented Texas plan for school reform; (2) delineates a major component of Texas reform, the career ladder. In response to a nationwide call for raised educational standards, Texas passed HB 72, a comprehensive education bill implementing a comprehensive "career ladder" model for the testing,…

Contends that secondary school teacher careers have been transformed in the past 25 years. Asserts that the increased influence of educators with broader curricular and administrative responsibilities is at the expense of heads of traditional subject departments. (CFR)

Research was reviewed to identify the characteristics of effective university and college-based programs for educating prospective teachers. Programs were considered effective to the extent that they enhanced the capability of teachers to contribute to student learning. The research reviewed was almost exclusively concerned with the learning of…

This report evaluates the success of the magnet school program in the Houston (Texas) Independent School District for the 1987-88 school year. The following sections are included: (1) "Overview of the District"; (2) "History of Desegregation in Houston"; (3) "Development of Houston's Magnet School Program"; (4)…

This report evaluates the success of the magnet school program in the Houston (Texas) Independent School District for the 1988-89 school year. The following sections are included: (1) "Overview of the District"; (2) "History of Desegregation in Houston"; (3) "Development of Houston's Magnet School Program"; (4)…

Part of a series of position papers prepared by the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE), this pamphlet considers the need for extended teacher education programs. Seven alternative models of extended teacher preparation programs are described: (1) four-plus-one (B.A.); (2) four-plus-one (internship); (3) five-year (B.A.…

This publication reports on a seminar held over five days which brought together teachers and administrators from the Albany (New York) area schools and colleges and universities to discuss teacher preparation and professional development. Opening sections introduce the seminar, list participants, and detail the six procedural steps that the…

The National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy (NCSALL) Professional Development Study investigated how adult education teachers changed after participating in one of three different models of professional development (multisession workshop, mentor teacher group, or practitioner research group), all on the same topic of learner…

This is a report of a study by the U.S. General Accounting Office for the U.S. Congress. Using data from the 2000-01 school year, the study focused on per-pupil spending, factors influencing spending, and other similarities and differences among selected high-poverty inner-city elementary schools and selected suburban elementary schools. From 42…

A process policy model that contains a broad range of categories and matrices that can be used to generate questions is used to analyze the development and application of selected segments of the South Carolina Educator Improvement Act. This act is a comprehensive legislative endeavor to upgrade public education in South Carolina. This paper…

The vast majority of Michigan's teachers work above and beyond their required work week; the average teacher works more than 45 hours per week. The time teachers spend outside regular school hours is often ignored by critics who deride the "short hours and long vacations" enjoyed by teachers. When discussing compensation policies and…