This paper is a response to Renuka Vithal's paper entitled "Context, Change and Instability", which addresses the theoretical methodological implications resulting from the act of researching associated with social, cultural, and political approaches. Renuka's opinions on the role of educators as intellectuals involved in teacher training, the…

This paper presents debates on the need to examine teacher education programs and discusses the importance and impact of mentoring on the learning outcomes of the science teacher educator (STE). The position is taken that a mentoring program for preservice teacher education should be a part of all advanced graduate programs. A lack of research on…

With rejection of the traditional normative conception of educational foundations, the intellectual basis for teaching students human values or aims has been eliminated. Teacher education programs that overemphasize value-neutral facts and narrowly defined methods are criticized. The Paideia Proposal is a possible alternative. (PP)

Reviews studies featured in this issue of "Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education" and examines the way that the study of practice can contribute to mathematics teacher education. Studying teaching in simulated or real situations offers considerable potential for both stimulating thinking about the application of theory to practice and creating…

This introductory article to the issue, which focuses on the preparation of special education teachers, discusses the different perspectives of winners of the Teacher Education Division Publication Award. Evaluates whether special education departments should work with general education in teacher preparation. Provides list of winners and their…

Analyzes the important challenges that researchers face in the creation and use of a knowledge base for restructuring teacher education in the field of special education. Promising avenues for research to meet these challenges are delineated and the critical roles of multiparadigmatic teacher communities are highlighted. (Author/CR)

Discusses, through a dialogue between an education professor and a student, a course entitled "Teaching Language Arts in the Elementary School." Describes selected aspects of the course, including purpose, plans, and results. Explains how the course helped prepare the student for teaching and how the dialogue helped the professor refine the…

This article discusses what a teacher education curriculum in professional ethics might be like. Although professional ethics for teachers is not a form of moral education, a curriculum for educators needs to emphasize specific moral concepts that are central to what educators do. (IAH)

Discusses a teacher education program for helping teachers facilitate the development of students' understanding of the nature of mathematics and science and to motivate students' interest. Describes the rationale, courses, delivery format, admissions, and program evaluation. (YP)

Elaborates on four factors that could be considered to hasten real reform in science teacher education, including defining leadership; forming partnerships; utilizing research in science education; and building collaboratives. (LZ)

Maintains that excellent teachers make it possible for elementary school students in enriched Montessori environments to learn as much by age 12 as most students learn by the time they graduate from high school. Contends that a minimum of 800 contact hours with experienced Montessori classroom teachers is necessary for proper training of…

Identifies historical factors involved in analyzing Initial Teacher Education (ITE) for primary level in England, focusing on institutions in which primary ITE courses are taught and the curricula for primary ITE. Argues that primary ITE has been characterized by rapid changes and discontinuities in both institutions and curricula. Concludes that…

This article builds a case for generating a new metaphor for teacher education that will sustain and nourish teacher intelligence. This intelligence requires that teacher educators prepare their students to be highly sensitive to dynamic classroom relations, to be aware of their positions as teachers, and to develop purposeful educational…

Secondary teacher education students should be given clear instruction in the assembling and assessment of professional teaching portfolios. In the teacher education program at the University of Louisville (Kentucky), student teachers are asked to prepare portfolios, exactly as all secondary students must in the state of Kentucky, meaning that the…

Issues of governance pervade the teacher education field due to the diverse agendas which influence the function of teacher education programs at the institutional level. The purpose of this article is to explore the philosophy and processes of governance. In order to clarify philosophical issues, the following questions are addressed: (1) Are…