This digest, addressed to prospective teachers, consists of questions and answers that provide information on such topics as teachers' responsibilities, how to become a teacher, teacher supply and demand, salaries, and working conditions. References are included. (JD)

The significance of competency assessment for schools of education is explored with emphasis on developments at the state level and in specific teacher education programs. Multidimensional quality indicators of teacher preparation programs are suggested in the first paper. Other papers present an overview of state legislative reactions to…

Reflective practice can be beneficial to preservice and inservice teacher professional development. This digest reviews the concept, levels, techniques for, and benefits of reflective practice. Donald Schon introduced the concept in 1987, and since then, many schools, colleges, and departments of education have begun designing teacher education…

This ERIC Digest focuses on the student teacher, the school-based cooperating teacher, and the university supervisor, all of whom form a supervisory triad. Barriers to improved student teaching supervision such as incongruent role expectations and lack of substantive communication and collaboration among triad members are discussed. Some efforts…

The 1989 Charlottesville Education Summit of the nation's governors resulted in the National Education Goals which describe six priorities (readiness for school; high school completion; student achievement; world leadership in science and math; adult literacy; and safe, disciplined, and drug free schools) for public schools to achieve by the year…

This study combined survey data with qualitative analysis to explore the preservice preparation of teachers of English language learners (ELLs). The American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education disseminated surveys to member institutions and Web site users, examining the breadth and depth of preparation programs for such teachers. The…

This digest examines how technology can support multicultural education. Multicultural education represents an approach to education and the teaching-learning process that is grounded in the democratic ideals of justice and equality. Five critical dimensions of multicultural education are: content integration, knowledge construction, prejudice…

Critiques of 10 articles reporting research studies focused on various aspects of attitude development in science education and of six research articles related to investigations of learning and cognitive development are contained in this issue. Seven of the attitude articles describe investigations designed to change the attitudes of both…

While the major thrust of this monograph is to recommend procedures for the preparation of teachers, it is also emphasized that educational reform and school improvement depend upon the realistic clarification of the separate and interdependent roles of society and the parents of students. This report presents recommendations for improving teacher…

Teaching skills can be acquired or modified through various processes, including observation, concept acquisition, practice, and feedback. However, evidence does not indicate that combining these processes into a single training methodology provides any advantage for teacher trainees. Teaching also may be influenced by providing information about…

This digest examines research on indicators of teacher quality. While research on the value of a teacher's advanced degree is mixed, all studies suggest that teachers with degrees in subjects different from the subjects they teach have little impact on students. There is no strong consensus about the value of pedagogical preparation for teachers,…

In this report, teacher educators scrutinize the relationships between the standards and assessment movement in education and the United States' increasingly multicultural population. The papers include: "Foreword" (Jacqueline Jordan Irvine); (1) "Diversity and Standards: Defining the Issues" (Norvella P. Carter); (2) "Accountability and…

This handbook shares methodologies for guiding teacher preparation and licensing. It provides a rationale for the inclusion of teacher work sample methodology in preparation and licensing programs, describes how student learning is the central concept within teacher work samples, explains how to teach students and teachers about work samples, and…

To ensure that future generations of girls as well as boys fulfill their potential without restriction, it is important that gender equity be taught in teacher education programs as a matter of course. Gender equity is defined as the set of behaviors and knowledge that permits educators to recognize inequality in educational opportunities, to…

This monograph identifies for researchers and teacher educators important questions about the ways in which race, ethnicity, and culture influence teachers' motivations and intentions for teaching, as well as their expectations of their students and of their own professional lives. Chapter 1, "The Culture of Teachers: The Culture of Teaching,"…