The purpose of this paper is to investigate how preparation for teaching culturally and linguistically diverse children influences early childhood teachers' motivation to remain in teaching. This study is grounded in Bandura's self-efficacy theory. Early childhood teachers were sent an online survey and asked about their teacher preparation, job…

Background: Prior research shows that teachers' working conditions are important for teacher and student outcomes, such as teacher retention and student achievement. Because National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs) can be effective in the classroom and as instructional leaders, they are well positioned to create favorable working conditions for…

Soon after the author began her first year as a Teach for America (TFA) corps member, she realized how underprepared she felt teaching first grade. Although she grew as an educator over time and still committed to working in education, it was an uphill battle. And, like most other TFA corps members, she left teaching within the first three years.…

The purpose of this article is to examine whether there were improvements in the percentage of first-, second-, and third-grade students in Reading First (RF) schools in Michigan who performed at or above grade level on a standardized test of reading comprehension. The study reports results for 140 schools that participated in the RF initiative…

The basics of No Child Left Behind (NCLB)--adequate yearly progress benchmarks, provision of supplemental services, and a "highly qualified" teacher in every classroom--are known. The intense scrutiny of the "how to" of those basics has resulted in a mix of impassioned criticism and effusive praise. What has been left largely…

This article describes an investigation of the career-related experiences of 73 male K-2 teachers from across Nevada. Data were acquired and are discussed in three main categories: (1) perceived factors influencing men's initial choice to become a K-2 teacher; (2) perceived factors impacting men's present level of enjoyment in being a K-2 teacher;…