The Southwestern Pennsylvania Area Labor-Management Committee (SPALMC), which serves approximately 180 adult students annually, was experiencing inconsistencies in performance among its adult education staff. The problems included teachers arriving late 50% of the time and individualizing instruction only 70% of the time. To remedy these problems,…

This book contains eight papers from a detailed study of technical college provision in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, that raised the following four issues relevant to the transformation of technical colleges across South Africa: (1) the teaching and learning environment at technical colleges is suboptimal; (2) social relations at the technical…

This study evaluated how teachers perceived their efforts to improve their teaching practices by participating in the Jacksonville Urban Educational Partnership (JUEP), a Professional Development School (PDS). The JUEP was designed to create sustained, high quality, professional development systems for inservice educators in three PDSs. The study…

The most conspicuous and pertinent tendency in rural education in the biennium is that toward better understanding of and intelligent accomplishment in the direction of more equitable distribution of school opportunities and school expense burdens. Rural education is still the weak spot in the American educational system. The passing of the…

Reports a study of "Reach for the Sky," a telecommunications project offering rural teachers access to the Internet and online courses. Teachers received Internet training, then became mentors for other teachers enrolled in online courses. Interviews and analysis of e-mail messages highlighted lessons learned about mentoring and online…

Investigates structural effects of 4 research conditions designed to facilitate reflection about teaching practices among 12 student teachers. Uses colleagues as classroom observers and conversation-participants to help student teachers analyze their teaching effectiveness and content. Employs student teachers' portfolios to promote reflection.…

This report describes a practicum project designed to help first- through fourth-grade teachers acquire the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and strategies necessary to work effectively with a diverse student population; improve the social and academic performance of culturally diverse students; and increase parent involvement at school. The…

The Pennsylvania Adult Literacy Practitioner Inquiry Network (PALPIN) project was conducted to establish statewide and regional inquiry groups to help adult literacy practitioners improve their performance by raising and investigating issues meaningful to their day-to-day practice. The conceptual framework underlying Philadelphia's Adult Literacy…

This report is a case study of the shortage of science and mathematics teachers in Nigeria. The paper begins with a discussion of the Nigerian educational system, including the place of science and mathematics in the school system, and the shortage of science and mathematics teachers. Programs undertaken to increase the number of science and…

Students in poverty areas still perform poorly on achievement tests, have high dropout rates, and are not receiving the kind of assistance they need. This paper reports the educational experiences and needs of middle school students in poverty. Specific topics include: (1) the distribution of middle school students in poverty by social background,…

This document presents findings from the fourth and final phase of a longitudinal study of teacher education. The report is based on data collected in 1991 and 1992 from interviews with 100 beginning teachers trained at the Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch Colleges of Education in New Zealand. The investigation focused on beginning teachers'…

Levels of achievement and participation in both school mathematics and school science remain unacceptable throughout most of the nation. Addressing these concerns has unique and specific ramifications for small rural schools, particularly with respect to the economic aspects of providing the materials and manipulatives necessary for hands-on…

A project was undertaken to assess the needs for skills and knowledge among Georgia's high technology teachers and to develop a model for meeting those needs. During the project, 52 teachers involved in teaching electronics, electromechanical, and mechanical courses at six pilot high technology schools were assessed. Included among the processes…

Choosing Higher Options in Community Education (CHOICE) Alternative School is devoted to professional development. This report documents the need for and planning of sustained and supported professional development for 4 staff members at the CHOICE Alternative School in Jamestown, New York. There was no focused plan or vision for staff development…

A study was conducted to determine which of the following modes of professional practice is the dominant mode used by Ohio family and consumer science (FCS) teachers when implementing a refined critical science based curriculum: technical-rational; reflective-ethical; and process-oriented. The target population consisted of 1,013 secondary…