In the United States, standardized tests shape what, how, and why English Language Arts teachers teach. For the last generation, these tests have increasingly taken a narrowly text-centered approach to literature, making it difficult to enact or research alternatives. But what if it were otherwise? In the current study, we asked teachers to…

This study described the strategies used by expert teachers to instruct low motor skill students in physical education classes. The method was extensively pilot tested. Eleven physical education teachers took part in the study. Data were collected via observations, field notes, interviews, and nonstructured informal interviews. Two major themes…

Forty school administrators in the Lower Hudson Valley of New York State were surveyed about the characteristics of preservice and novice teachers believed most critical. These administrators represented a broad and socio-demographically diverse cross-section of rural, suburban and urban school districts. The administrators collectively rated…

This is an era of transformation in the preparation, induction, and assessment of prospective teachers. The tension between local and state control is at the heart of the debate. States should be responsible for establishing performance standards that ensure that new teachers are well-prepared, competent, and ready to teach. This is why the…

The importance of practical learning environments for developing preservice teachers' (PSTs') dispositions and skills for teaching mathematics is underscored in a growing body of literature. Hence, teacher preparation programs often include methods courses embedded within K-12 schools. Utilized to a lesser extent; however, are campus-based…

To guide and support teacher candidates in developing the knowledge and skills they need in the classroom, teacher preparation programs must prepare students in acquiring the experience and expertise needed to demonstrate mastery of general knowledge in the specific subject or content area. In addition, teacher preparation programs must support…

Studying Topography, Orographic Rainfall, and Ecosystems with Geospatial Information Technology (STORE), a 4.5-year National Science Foundation funded project, explored the strategies that stimulate teacher commitment to the project's driving innovation: having students use geospatial information technology (GIT) to learn about weather, climate,…

By 2012, all of the states in this study had started implementing new or revised teacher and leader evaluation systems. There are many and varying updates to these systems, and some of them have been made to meet conditions for a state's federal "Race to the Top" (RTT) grant. Other updates have been made to meet conditions for a state's…

By 2012, all of the states in this study had started implementing new or revised teacher and leader evaluation systems. The systems include many and varying updates. In some cases, the updates were designed to meet conditions for a state's "Race to the Top" grant. In others, the updates were made to meet conditions for a state's waiver…

Over the past 2 years, educational policy makers have focused much of their attention on issues related to teacher effectiveness. The Obama Administration has made teacher evaluation and teacher quality a central feature of many of its educational policies, including Race to the Top (RTTT), Investing in Innovation (i3), and the Teacher Incentive…

Invited as a paper from SITE 2013. This study focuses on the development of Technological Pedagogical And Content Knowledge (TPACK) in mathematics and science of pre-service special education teachers for teaching mathematics and science via one course. This course introduces a variety of strategies and techniques for using instructional…

The National Center for Research on Early Childhood Education's (NCRECE) program of research is a series of experimental studies of specific approaches to training early childhood (EC) educators to be effective in implementation of curriculum and instructional interactions focused on promoting language and literacy skills, two domains that operate…

This study of action research, authored by three colleagues teaching the same teacher-education methods course but from different content areas, involves teacher-candidates' use of self-recorded limited-access YouTube videos to make their microteachings accessible to the authors, each of whom was teaching candidates of her or his content expertise…

The purpose of this paper is to describe and present results from the fourth year of a five-year collaborative research project between an interactive science center and a local college. The purpose of the project is not only to recruit and train approximately 50 highly qualified science teachers who will teach in New York City public schools, but…

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) mandates a "highly qualified" teacher in every classroom. To meet the standard, teachers must have a bachelor's degree, be state-certified, and prove they know the subjects they teach, either by satisfying minimum course-taking requirements or passing a test in the subject they teach. But will compliance…