Motivation is often a major concern for educators in all subject areas. Educational benefits associated with increased levels of student motivation have been well-documented within educational research. Improving student motivation can be affected by the educational environment (motivational climate), developed by the teacher. This study examined…

While nearly all states now have something on their books labeled "alternate route to certification," these programs defy standard definition due to their enormous variability. States differ in the types of candidates allowed to apply (e.g., career changers or recent college graduates) and in the academic backgrounds these individuals must…

Prior research in both education and cognitive science has identified analogy making as a powerful tool for explanation as well as a fundamental mechanism for facilitating an individual's construction of knowledge. While a considerable body of research exists focusing on the role analogy plays in learning science concepts, relatively little is…

The integration of technology into education, in particular, secondary English education, challenges that notion of wanting to become an English teacher. Today, it is not enough to be a "teacher of English"; instead, 21st-century English teachers must utilize and impart a number of literacies in their classrooms. It is challenging to…

This paper focuses on two components of a model for online teaching and learning--"teaching presence" and "community". It is suggested that previous research points to the critical role that community plays in academic success and persistence in higher education. Through a review of recent literature it is proposed that teaching presence--viewed…

Background: Over the past 20 years, a number of researchers have expressed concern over the lack of confidence and qualifications of primary school teachers to teach PE. Evidently, the influence of personal school PE experiences may play an important role in the development of teachers' confidence to appropriately teach PE. Most research that has…

Increasingly, fundamental questions are being asked of online language learning: In what ways can online teaching benefit the language learner most? How can online environments be designed, or redesigned, to suit the purposes of language learners? Finally, what does the language teacher need to know to become a successful online tutor? In other…

This article primarily focuses on the representation of the manner in which the activity is presented to the students, both in terms of how it is structured as a set of experiences and of the actual tasks that students learn.

As universities transform into enterprises, academics are facing new challenges, especially in their teaching. This is because of the demands for student-centred programmes that offer more flexibility, the use of Course Management Systems such as "Blackboard," and the expectation that instructors will perform (more) efficiently and effectively. In…

This paper describes the infusion of technology training into a university's special education program for intern teachers. As the teachers participate in their core classes they have the opportunity to immediately consider and plan for incorporating technology into their teaching to assist their special needs students. Through their class…

Effective online teaching is a popular topic in today's educational technology journals due to the vital role that educators play in the teaching and learning process. The author will provide insights into effective online teachers and highlight training and mentoring practices for online instructors at the University of Phoenix.

The purpose of this study is to determine the attitudes of preschool teacher candidates studying through distance education approach towards the teaching profession and to determine their perception levels of teaching competency. The population and sampling of the study were the senior students of Anadolu University, Open Education Faculty,…

A mixed methodology approach was used to address the question: what are skills, knowledge and dispositions that co-teachers need to balance the seemingly competing mandates of NCLB and IDEIA in order to prepare teachers for the classrooms of today and tomorrow? Based on the results of two recent studies that focused on secondary co-teacher teams…

This article describes a learning community for early-career faculty in the sciences aimed at course redesign and active-learning. Through findings from surveys, interviews, and observations, program outcomes regarding faculty teaching skills and confidence, understanding of how students learn, and use of assessment are explored. Finally, the…

This study assessed current criteria and procedures used when hiring health education faculty. One hundred thirty two program heads/coordinators of health education programs listed in the "AAHE 2001 Directory of Institutions" completed a mailed 45-item survey on hiring criteria and procedures. Results indicated that 90% of programs had conducted a…