Franz Kafka's 1912 novella "The Metamorphosis" provides an analogy for a consideration of the process of teacher identity formation and performance. Gregor Samsa awoke to find himself transformed into a giant beetle. He faced a complete loss of identity as he lost connection with the micro-political space that formed the context of his former role…

How widespread is the use of personal self-disclosure by faculty in the college classroom? Employing a national survey of teaching faculty within liberal arts schools and smaller colleges and universities, the incidence of self-reported faculty self-disclosure was investigated. Teachers (n = 430) provided responses reflecting the content and…

Teacher identity is defined in its relations, on the one hand, to curriculum and, on the other, to students: to be identified as a teacher is to be taken by the latter as a bearer of the former. In this essay, I consider some variations on theorising teacher identity within these relational terms. Beginning with the educational task of cultivating…

The nature of special education has changed appreciably over the past several decades. As a result, the role of special educators needs to be examined and further developed to provide the most effective education for all learners at-risk and those with high- and low-incidence disabilities. In this article, the authors discuss five important roles…

The intent of this article is to generate thought and discussion about Alberta Education's Daily Physical Activity (DPA) initiative. Compelling reasons as to why the implementation process may be considered problematic are presented as the role and influence of institutional discourse in the implementation of new programming is explored. Through a…

Prospective teachers enrolling for teacher education programmes often bring with them fixed images and beliefs about the roles they see themselves fulfilling in the teaching profession. The aim of this research was to uncover, firstly, "beginning student teachers' initial perceptions of the roles that they see themselves performing," and…

The various roles that a teacher enacts are examined from four perspectives in this paper. Part one: "The Curriculum Text" presents a series of observations of classroom activity, and part two: "A Student Perspective" includes a collection of interviews with students who had been previously observed. The teacher's tape-recorded thoughts are…

This article reports findings from an exploratory study of how learning support and resource teachers perceive each other's role. The study was conducted during the debate on the proposed changes to allocation and deployment of support teachers, following the publication of Circular 24/03 by the Department of Education and Science. It sought to…

A language teacher describes her perception of her role in the language learning process as guide and companion to the student in the adventure of constructing knowledge. As such, the teacher must prepare for and encourage students' active participation. (MSE)

In a review of literature on college teaching and advising, characteristics of each are outlined and compared. Parallels between processes of teaching and advising are drawn. It is proposed that, if teachers were to transfer teaching knowledge and skills to the advising setting, they would perceive the advisor role differently. (MSE)

This article considers issues associated with the role of the special educator in testifying as an expert witness in disputes over special education programs. Guidelines for such witnesses cover preparation for giving testimony, responding to the cross-examination, and ethical considerations. (DB)

Views of teaching assistants (TAs) concerning the significance and impact of the job are considered, along with their interactions with the college and students. Teaching competence, knowledge, facilitating learning, TAs' responsibilities to the student, and feedback to TAs are also covered, including first person comments of three TAs. (SW)

This paper attempts to discover and describe the salient common factors constituting four high school science teachers' role conceptions. In a year-long ethnographic study, two researchers worked as participant observers in various science classroom settings at an urban high school. Teachers in charge of these classrooms were interviewed on issues…

Special educators experiencing stress are urged to take greater responsibility for their own well-being by maintaining a balanced lifestyle, planning for success, expanding their support network, creating a positive belief system, making learning a lifelong priority, and learning to cope with complexities and challenges. (DB)

This article argues that critical meeting facilitation skills support a collaborative group approach to working and learning, and that a computer-based technology, Group Support Systems (GSS), is a useful tool. Use of GSS with the case study method is offered as an example of blending technology and skills to teach people to work together more…