Argues that teacher education can be improved by making it more available to more experienced, older students. Asserts that those students who have reached higher developmental stages generally do better as trainees and as practicing teachers. (SK)

Common sense cannot and must not serve as the basis for professional practice. It is an inadequate approach to understanding the workings of the school bureaucracy and counterproductive in efforts to foster student learning. The great challenge to teacher educators is not to miss present opportunities to upgrade teacher education. (MT)

Questionnaires were sent to the 1972 graduates of the University of Wisconsin School of Education as part of a follow-up study to determine what teaching competencies the respondents felt they needed in the performance of their job and which of these topics or competencies were not adequately covered in their preservice preparation. The 44 items…

Describes the work of Florence B. Stratemeyer, a democratic teacher/educator who respected and was committed to her students and believed in their potential. Presents several anecdotes that typify her ability, her commitment to the practice of college teaching, and her relationships with others. (SM)

Teacher certification programs operated by urban school districts are expanding at the same time that higher standards are being imposed on schools of education. Four proposals are made to reverse the trend of preparing high-quality teachers for small towns and suburbs while certifying anyone at all for urban schools. (MT)

This paper presents two propositions: (1) that extensive knowledge of subject matter is a necessary but not sufficient condition for effective teaching; and (2) that teacher education is a legitimate professional preparation which should be improved rather than circumvented. Six rationales for the validity of the above propositions, based on…

Study examined how 227 White cooperating teachers and student teachers perceived goals of multicultural education. All participants focused on the individual, agreeing that tolerance and the ability to get along with others are the most important goals. Implications of teachers' apparent lack of awareness of group processes are discussed. (SM)

An overview of the present liberal arts disciplines points out the vast amount and diversity of knowledge available to the general education student. Addressing the question of what part of this knowledge is of most worth to the prospective teacher, it is suggested that a sound general education should be organized around six basic and persistent…

The critical need for minority teachers is discussed and descriptions given of the social, educational, and political conditions that militate against increasing minority enrollments. False hopes for enhancing minority student involvement are highlighted, and realistic approaches to recruiting and preparing minority teachers are outlined. (JD)

This document explores how basic American cultural value patterns have influenced the nature of general studies, specialization, and professional education in programs of teacher education. The value patterns examined deal with individualism, the work ethic and the civic arts. These patterns are analyzed in terms of their control over what…

Urban teachers need a set of attributes that enable them to connect with children and youth in poverty and to function in dysfunctional school districts. The Milwaukee Teacher Education Center's (MTEC's) urban mission is to prepare educators to teach in the real world classroom of urban schools. For example, teachers are prepared to work toward…

An unresolved dilemma in teacher education is the organizational dislocation that occurs between the setting in which teachers are educated and those in which they are expected to practice. College students are conditioned to be independent and self-interested, while beginning teachers are expected to conform to and support their school system. In…

A major problem in teacher education is the maintenance of beginning teachers' idealism in the face of practicing professionals' pragmatism. Teacher education programs train students in theories, concepts, and practices only to assign them to public schools, where the antithesis of everything the program attempted to teach is an accepted,…

Discusses the impact of grade repetition on disadvantaged students, questioning why the failing strategy persists. Among the sollutions advocated are preservice teachers must learn to view student diversity favorably; and thoughtful teacher preparation and teacher selection are essential to the process. (SM)

Several issues must be resolved to help teacher education become a truly multicultural experience. The paper discusses whether values can be taught in universities and suggests screening teacher candidates for prejudice prior to accepting them into programs. Universities need faculty who can model appropriate behaviors and teach about such issues.…