This book is an action plan for improving education in the U.S, focusing on the key role of teachers in this improvement. It offers a detailed comparison of the educational methods of Germany, Japan, and the United States. The analysis begins with an international study of mathematics teaching in the three countries that was conducted as part of the Third International Mathematics and Science Study--the first study to use video technology to observe a large sampling of classrooms for cross-cultural analysis. The videotape investigation revealed striking differences between the countries in teaching methods. This book includes 10 chapters: (1) "The Teaching Gap"; (2) "Methods for Studying Teaching in Germany, Japan, and the United States"; (3) "Images of Teaching"; (4) "Refining the Images"; (5)"Teaching is a System"; (6) "Teaching is a Cultural Activity"; (7) "Beyond Reform: Japan's Approach to the Improvement of Classroom Teaching"; (8) "Setting the Stage for Continuous Improvement"; (9) "The Steady Work of Improving Teaching"; and (10) "The True Profession of Teaching." Most of the classroom examples presented in the book are from eighth-grade mathematics classrooms, since the video study focused on eighth-grade mathematics. (SM)