In the context of today's turbulent university life, public education debates, and highly charged political milieu, the phrase "middle school teacher education" might be said to describe a less-than-quiet target of opportunity for a whole host of groups who despise the values, meanings, and the central goals of the middle school movement…

The past eight years have seen an unprecedented level of education policy activity focused on issues of teacher quality. Policies have been developed at federal, state, and institutional levels, and include increased institutional reporting of teacher candidates' test scores, the mandate for Highly Qualified Teachers (HQT) in the No Child Left…

In 2007, the Texas Legislature (80th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2007) authorized the creation of the Texas Rural Technology (R-Tech) Pilot program, which provides $8 million in funding to support rural districts in implementing technology-based supplemental education programs. In order to be eligible for funding, districts must have…

The federal Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs, or GEAR UP, strives to equalize low-income students' access to higher education by increasing their participation in rigorous coursework, providing expanded opportunities for low-income students and parents to learn about postsecondary educational opportunities and…

This study used cognitive developmental theory to analyze how teachers learn to teach sport education. Two groups of undergraduate pre-service teachers were studied, one group during their secondary methods and corresponding field-teaching courses, the other during an independent teaching course. Data were collected through ethnographic…

When we think of China, with a history dating back more than 4,000 years, with a national literature not excelled by that of any other ancient people, a system of government conducted by her ablest scholars, chosen for more than 12 centuries by competitive examinations, we are not surprised to find her characterized by a spirit of self-confidence.…

This study examined the extent to which statistics and mathematics anxiety, attitudes toward mathematics and statistics, motivation and mathematical aptitude can explain the achievement of Arabic speaking pre-service teachers in introductory statistics. Complete data were collected from 162 pre-service teachers enrolled in an academic…

The Wilderness Education Association (WEA) helps people enjoy and protect our nation's most precious resource: Our wilderness areas. They have been training and certifying outdoor leaders around the world for nearly 30 years, teaching students safely and effectively to lead groups in the outdoors without harming the environment. In addition,…

This paper draws on data gathered from a five-month phenomenological study of middle school students' perceptions of the effects of computer-based technologies on a learning community in an online synchronous environment. Twenty-four eighth-grade students participated in the Web Pen Pals project, a university-secondary telecollaborative…

This descriptive study addressed the role of virtual learning environments in fostering reflective thought among preservice teachers through dialogic interaction. Preservice teachers tend to view teaching as a formulaic application of theory and strategies. When challenged with making decisions in novel settings, they are often unable to apply…

Inverness Research studied the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) Seminars on Science program for eight years, from its inception in 1998 to 2006. This paper presents teacher survey ratings for "The Ocean System", along with profiles of three teachers who took the course. Course takers report on the annual follow-up surveys that…

Inverness Research studied the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) Seminars on Science program for eight years, from its inception in 1998 to 2006. In 2008, Inverness Research conducted additional studies of the AMNH's new online course, "Evolution". This paper presents teacher survey ratings for "Evolution", along with…

"Minding the Gap" argues that in today's highly competitive, global economy, all young people need a postsecondary education. Yet only one in ten students from the lowest economic quintile in the United States currently earns a postsecondary credential. This timely and instructive book from Jobs for the Future explores policies and…

In 2007, the Texas Legislature (80th Texas Legislature, Regular Session, 2007) authorized the creation of the Texas Rural Technology (R-Tech) Pilot program, which provides $8 million in funding to support rural districts in implementing technology-based supplemental education programs. In order to be eligible for funding, districts must have…

These proceedings contain the papers of the IADIS International Conference on Cognition and Exploratory Learning in the Digital Age (CELDA 2013), October 22-24, 2013, which has been organized by the International Association for Development of the Information Society (IADIS), co-organized by The University of North Texas (UNT), sponsored by the…