This paper reports on the use of teacher-written "cases" as evaluation data sources. Cases are first hand, candid, dramatic, highly readable accounts of events or a series of events in teaching. Eight teaching cases were collected which had been written by new teachers who graduated from the Maryland Collaborative for Teacher Preparation…

Intending teachers in two science education methods classes (Fall Quarter, n=27; Spring Quarter, n=21) read and discussed a qualitative study describing science teaching and learning in a culturally diverse middle school. The two primary participants in the qualitative study were a white female veteran life science teacher and a white male…

The Maryland Collaborative for Teacher Preparation (MCTP) is a National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded statewide undergraduate program whose goal is to promote the development of professional teachers who are confident teaching mathematics and science using technology, can make connections between and among the disciplines, and can provide an…

Discusses the use of four strategies in a science methods class that demonstrate how to use diversity to improve middle school science instruction. The strategies include sharing teacher/learner backgrounds to promote the notion of a class community, using case study, using multicultural scenarios, and using case study combined with video…

This study describes the ongoing use of a valid and reliable instrument to measure longitudinally teacher candidates' attitudes and beliefs. The instrument, "Attitudes and Beliefs about the Nature of and the Teaching of Mathematics and Science," was developed for the Maryland Collaborative for Teacher Preparation (MCTP). The MCTP is a National…

This study was conducted in a reform-based mathematics and science teacher education program in the USA, the Maryland Collaborative for Teacher Preparation (MCTP). The goal of the undergraduate program was to prepare upper elementary/middle level specialists in mathematics and science. One significant aspect of the MCTP was the expectation that…

This study reports the use of a valid and reliable instrument, "Attitudes and Beliefs About the Nature of and the Teaching of Mathematics and Science," to measure teacher candidates' attitudes and beliefs about the nature of mathematics and science teaching. This paper examines how teacher candidates felt over 3 years. Teacher candidates…

This study reports the use longitudinally of a valid and reliable instrument to measure teacher candidates' attitudes and beliefs about the nature of and the teaching of mathematics and science. The instrument used, "Attitudes and Beliefs about the Nature of and the Teaching of Mathematics and Science," was developed for the Maryland…

This report orients the reader to the Maryland Collaborative for Teacher Preparation (MCTP) and gives an overview of the ongoing research activities being conducted within the project. The MCTP is a National Science Foundation funded statewide undergraduate program for students who plan to become specialist mathematics and science upper elementary…

The purpose of this empirical study was to present a detailed description and interpretation of what happens in schools to beginning teachers who are prepared to enact reform-based practices in mathematics and science. The focus was on a select sample of graduates from the Maryland Collaborative for Teacher Preparation [MCTP], a statewide…

Stresses the importance of experiential educators being prepared to teach environmental education to students in specific contexts. A model for urban African American students includes the introduction and selection of a relevant local environmental issue; teaching strategies to investigate the issue; and techniques for initiating environmental…