Describes curricular standards that concern teachers and teacher educators. Argues that reforms are based on changing images of good teaching, aimed at undetermined and uncertain aspects of teaching, and that little theory exists concerning how new teachers learn to teach. Proposes several areas of investigation as teacher education programs are…

Reveals that teacher expertise, facility condition, and instructional materials affect Kenyan primary school quality, indicated by student performance on the Certificate of Primary Education (CPE). Finds these factors produce higher CPE scores among urban students. Compares two rural districts, Nyeri and Bungoma. Ties Nyeri's students' higher CPE…

In connection with the changes in the structure of the work force that took place in Russia in the final ten years of the twentieth century and the increase in professional, intersectorial, and other kinds of labor mobility, the problem of the replacement and reproduction of cadres of top qualification (candidates and doctors of science) has come…

The French employers federation (MEDEF) has taken the initiative to develop a joint inter-sectoral mechanism for accreditation of occupational competences. The approach analyzes occupations at a more abstract level than the tasks performed within a specific job to facilitate comparison of different occupations from different sectors and allow…

This study examines the relationships between student literacy performance and discussion-based approaches to the development of understanding in 64 middle and high school English classrooms. A series of hierarchical linear models indicated that discussion-based approaches were significantly related to spring performance, controlling for fall…

This paper explains how adult educators involved in the development and delivery of general adult basic education (ABE), General Educational Development (GED) certificate, and English-as-a-second-language (ESL) programs can infuse the workplace into their programs. The paper begins with a brief overview of the rationale for infusing the workplace…

Compares first grade dropout and repetition rates between regions and within two cities, Belem and Porto Alegre, Brazil. Focuses on teacher selection, qualifications, and attitudes through classroom observation, 72 interviews, and 155 questionnaires. Shows first grade teachers expect low-income students to fail and encourage failure through…

A survey of directors of intensive English programs (IEPs) about their education, experience, skills, job satisfaction, program size and structure, membership in professional associations, and interest in further training had a response from 177 professionals felt to be representative of the profession, for a 52% response rate. The five most…

Most of the job losses that occurred in New York City after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center occurred in low-wage jobs held by lower-skilled workers. Many of those affected faced multiple obstacles limiting their employment prospects, including limited literacy and English language skills and a lack of "connections" to…

Following the setbacks of wartime, teaching is once more on the march toward a professional status that is in keeping with its great importance to the Nation and to the world. Numerous agencies have expressed the need for an authoritative statement setting forth the facts on which a young person might base a decision to enter upon teaching as a…

The French worker certification system is focusing on efforts to design a scheme for the accreditation of work-based learning. If implemented, the scheme would be directed by a business-government-worker partnership, recognized and accepted by different occupations, and accessible to all employees regardless of the way their qualifications were…