Just as elementary mathematics teaching is complex and lacks a single appropriate method, the same is true for mathematics teacher education. There is no consensus around the best approach to preparing prospective mathematics teachers to have a strong command of mathematical concepts, a robust understanding of pedagogical approaches, and a…

Imagine a fourth grade classroom filled with 26 students all equally unique in their abilities, successes and challenges, talents, likes and dislikes. What is a teacher to do to meet all of their instructional needs? What about their behavioral, social, and emotional needs? Differentiated instruction (DI) is an approach to teaching that suggests…

This research investigates the professional life histories of upper elementary science teachers who were identified as effective both within the classroom and in the outdoor learning environment (OLE). The narratives of five teachers, collected through semi-structured and open-ended interviews, provided the data for the study. Professional life…

As teacher shortages continue in countries worldwide, international teachers may be recruited from other countries to help fill critical teacher vacancies, particularly in high-need subject areas such as mathematics and science. International teachers are a unique group who have specific needs, which could be addressed through school…

The experience of headteacher socialization has been described as challenging and often traumatic for new headteachers. The research reported in this article provides a theoretical explanation of that experience by analysing the socialization of new primary school headteachers in England from a role boundary perspective. The role boundary is the…

Background/Context: Collaboration is increasingly part of teachers' professional learning and continuous improvement of teaching practice. However, there is little exploration of how teachers' racial, gender, and social class identities influence their collaboration with colleagues and, in turn, their teaching and professional learning.…

This research investigates the professional life histories of upper elementary science teachers who were identified as effective both within the classroom and in the outdoor learning environment (OLE). The narratives of five teachers collected through semi-structured and open-ended interviews provided the data for the study. Professional life…

In this paper future elementary teachers reflect on their past experiences and talk about their teachers and the way they were taught, and portray the characteristics of effective and not so effective teachers. The study also highlights Turkish teachers` way of instruction and the strategies they use. Participants were 41 sophomore and 62 junior…

This paper is part of a research study undertaken with Portuguese teachers. The main objective is to understand the impact of recent educational legislation on the quality of teaching and the professional development of teachers. In this context the following research questions were formulated: "Do the education policies of the government…

The paper reports on professional experience opportunities experienced by school leaver pre-service primary teachers. It will emphasise the experience of one pre-service teacher (PST) in particular, Anna. Recommendations highlighted could contribute to university preparation of pre-service primary school teachers particularly during professional…

Beginning teachers are leaving the profession at an alarming rate, financially draining the nation each year (Gonzales, 2007; National Commission on Teaching and America's Future [NCTAF] & NCTAF State Partners, 2002). One method schools enact to counter this problem is to require beginning teachers to participate in induction programs which…

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) are a key piece of current reform efforts to reshape the U.S. educational system. Critics contend that the related Revised Publishers' Criteria (RPC), coupled with the authoritative power of the CCSS, will de-professionalize teachers, directing their practice from a distance. The purpose of this qualitative…

This dissertation describes an ethnographic case study of an elementary school in a border city in Southern Arizona. Its purpose is to explore teachers' professional lives at Cactus Elementary School (CES; pseudonym) through classroom observations, interviews and informal conversations. The majority of the fieldwork was conducted in the 2004-2005…

This paper reports the initial findings of a study in the UK and the Republic of Ireland of teacher educators and teachers who are involved in promoting geography education in primary schooling. Following research by Buttimer, Chawla, McPartland, Palmer and others, it sought to investigate the connections between early formative life experiences…

The life history method, which achieved a prominent position in the Chicago tradition of sociological research in the early 1920s, has been widely adopted for educational inquiries since the 1980s. The power of the life history method in illuminating subjective teacher experiences in social historical contexts has made it "probably the only…