This longitudinal study compared 66 beginning elementary teachers who had traditional teacher preparation backgrounds to 58 elementary intern teachers who were prepared via alternative certification programs. This comparison of California teachers was designed to determine patterns of development with regard to classroom performance and teacher…

The article describes how state-mandated field experiences for teacher educators affected their instructional and supervisory performance and suggests ways to make the experiences more beneficial or to apply them in other situations. (Author/CB)

California high school teachers completed surveys about computer use in their schools and problems in realizing technology's full potential for education. Results indicate computer use is uneven, computers are scarce, certain departments use computers more than others, and very little of computer technology's potential is realized in mainstream…

This document provides a research study of a 10-year elementary school teacher science staff development project, "The Science in Rural California Teacher Enhancement Project." The study investigated the long term effects on teacher participants 3 to 5 years after project contact: beliefs about science, confidence levels about teaching…

A study outlined the processes through which two beginning elementary teachers in the San Francisco Bay area learned to overcome institutional constraints which tended to standardize ethnically diverse students' responses to literature. The study focused specifically on the changes in one teacher's instruction which freed her third/fourth grade…

Describes a California project which encourages educators to follow best practices for staff development and school improvement. The project helps them evaluate their staff-development plans by examining five essential questions about staff development and its connections to student success, professional climate, standards, and assessment. The…

A resolution is presented that was approved in the 1978-79 school year by six California professional associations in education, and which has been referred to the state education department and relevant accreditation associations. The issue is the accreditation and quality control of external degree programs. It is resolved that: (1)…

Nine San Francisco (California) second-year teachers who had conducted structured weekly meetings during their preservice program continue to meet monthly with two Stanford University researchers. At these meetings they discuss emerging values, philosophies, and pedagogical practice. The meetings involve formal check-in times for individuals to…

Reports on a follow-up study of teachers in a course to meet certification requirements. Entry and exit questionnaires indicated that teachers' personal computer skills increased and that their integration of computers into instructional practice was extended by the course, which directly affected their outlook on technology use. (SM)

Sets the context for examining a series of articles that highlight California's work on beginning teacher induction, discussing restructuring to connect teaching and learning, knowledge of student learning, teacher performance expectations, standards of practice, the role of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, implications for…

Describes California's efforts to examine and shape beginning teacher induction policies in the California New Teacher Project and its successor, the Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment Program. Key research findings related to support and assessment and the emerging policy directions resulting from this work are presented. (SM)

States have enacted a variety of far-reaching educational reforms in recent years which have focused on a mix of standards for improved programs and greater accountability for both students and teachers. In California, teacher professionalism reforms, including induction reform, have been introduced. Research, now in its third and final year, has…

In response to a California State education reform bill that requires professors of methods courses to return to the classroom once every three years, a university profesor of 15 years taught 9th-grade English in Watts. This essay presents nine tips for others who anticipate their own return to teaching. (IW)

One of our greatest educational challenges continues to be improving the education of English language learners (ELLs). Because many new teachers are underprepared and many veteran teachers wholly unprepared for teaching ELLs, school districts nationwide have initiated professional development programs for inservice teachers. In this article, the…

Describes a model used in Santa Cruz (California) for supporting and assessing beginning teachers that moves away from traditional inservice education and staff development into ongoing teacher development. The program's emphasis on collegial partnerships, personal inquiry and reflection, and ongoing self-assessment is described in relationship to…