This review paper, prepared for the forthcoming Russell Sage volume Changing Poverty, considers the ability of different education policies to improve the learning outcomes of low-income children in America. Disagreements on this question stem in part from different beliefs about the problems with our nation's public schools. In our view there…

This paper reports on an ongoing 3-year study of the current status of instructional supervision within New York City public schools. Under the influence of a centralized and bureaucratically managed system (i.e., top down initiatives), educational reform in New York City has had serious consequences for both the theory and practice of…

Bechtel and O'Sullivan suggest that teacher change within the context of professional development (PD) is influenced by the design and content of PD initiatives. This paper examines the influence of an initiative designed to stimulate reflection and discussion among experienced teachers. It has been argued in the physical education literature and…

This paper presents a conceptual framework for fostering teacher professionalism in Government primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan. The framework identifies various stages for enhancing and sustaining teacher professionalism. These stages have been derived from in-depth multiple case studies of four Government primary schools in Karachi where…

This study assessed the influence of guided inquiry and explicit reflective instruction on K-6 teachers' views of nature of science (NOS). Using the Views of Nature of Science Elementary School Version 2 (VNOS-D2), and associated interviews we tracked the changes in NOS views of teacher participants prior to and following a summer professional…

Suggests ways in which universities can improve the quality of the educational experience, including keeping the size of classes small, encouraging better teacher/student ratios, supporting team teaching, and attracting and retaining better students. (Author/DB)

Examines the possibility that experiences as qualitative researchers can lead prospective teachers to examine the myths of teaching, theorize critically about their teaching experience, and construct new insights regarding teaching and themselves. Suggests that the process of qualitative research can be a metaphor for the process of qualitative…

Discusses teacher training in science available from local science museums for elementary school teachers. Includes a list of science museums offering instructional products and services. (FMW)

Staff development as a transferable package of bite-sized knowledge pieces is outdated. To implement reform plans, teachers must be able to discuss, think about, try out, and hone new practices. Teachers can learn by observing children, adopting new subject-matter approaches, using strategies for learning together, integrating assessment with…

Before deciding to recommend nonrenewal of a teacher's contract, the principal must be prepared to identify specific areas where significant improvement is critical and to provide maximum possible assistance. Some tips are provided to help principals prepare the formal evaluation, lend assistance, make the final decision, and live with it. (MLH)

During the 1995-96 school year, administrators in Lawrence Township School District in Indianapolis, Indiana, worked with teachers to develop an evaluation system that would encourage teachers to engage in positive self-assessment and grow professionally throughout their careers. Teachers like the new system better than the previous one. (11…

Many researchers have identified a process they call "deskilling", which they use to describe the daily experience of teachers who have been gradually losing control of their own labour within "low-trust" workplaces. Conversely, other scholars have found that under similar conditions, some teachers have their own ways of…

Although the research literature on Second Language Acquisition (SLA) has increased exponentially over the last few decades, it is not at all clear how its findings may or may not contribute to teacher growth or otherwise influence actual classroom praxis. The case study presented here shows one instructor, a native speaker of German, translating…

Teaching Practice as observed by (Ngidi and Sibaya 2003) forms an integral part of teacher training. It exposes the students to a teaching environment in which they will contextualise their theoretical knowledge gained during their training. It also grants student teachers experience in the actual teaching and learning environment. Given the…

This report describes a three-year project aimed at improving mathematics education in grades 6-9 in Birmingham, Alabama. The purpose of the project was to enhance mathematical knowledge and improve the instructional skills of middle school mathematics teachers (n=58) through an innovative teacher enhancement program. Since the middle school years…