This conference on physics education was held to improve cooperative efforts in connection with 12 topics previously identified by a survey. A working group was organized in association with each of these topics with the hope of creating or reinforcing a network. Working groups included: network development procedures; graduate education and…

A project was conducted to assess and improve existing field experiences to prepare future industrial arts teachers in Texas. The following activities were accomplished during the project: determination of current field experiences available to industrial arts preparation students in Texas schools; identification of model industrial arts teacher…

In Texas, inservice and preservice education has been mandated for teacher certification. This education covers least restrictive environment, characteristics of handicapped students, informal assessment, and individualized educational programs. The training provided has taken many forms--statewide conferences, school district inservice, retreats,…

The Webfolio project was developed at James Cook University to extend students' professional learning beyond what is taught in lectures or gleaned through the practicum. The Webfolio project trialled alternative platforms and approaches to teaching and learning. It was developed as an online learning environment that incorporated both real people…

The multiyear study discussed in this paper focuses on the use of a course management system (CMS) to deliver video clips and interactive mathematics investigations and to support shared reflections in a field-based elementary mathematics methods course. The findings reveal that virtual observations of mathematics teaching episodes in diverse…

This paper draws on data gathered from a five-month phenomenological study of middle school students' perceptions of the effects of computer-based technologies on a learning community in an online synchronous environment. Twenty-four eighth-grade students participated in the Web Pen Pals project, a university-secondary telecollaborative…

Presents a report on the first phase of a large scale meta-analysis of the field of science education in which the major research questions pursued in the extant science education research literature were identified and organized to provide a conceptual framework for meta-analysis. The six major research questions identified from this project are…

This issue of "Investigations in Science Education" (ISE) provides analytical abstracts, prepared by science educators, of research reports in the areas of preservice and in-service teacher education for elementary and secondary science teachers; and in cognitive development of elementary and secondary school children. Each abstract…

Documenting the processes and procedures, this report reviews phases of development, testing, and revision of 100 modules in a set of performance-based teacher education (PBTE) curricular materials. The first of two chapters discusses the need to develop a professional development program for vocational education teachers. A two-phase process is…

These papers are partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Master of Science Degree in Education at Winona State University in Winona, Minnesota. The cohort included a variety of licensure areas that represent most levels and content areas of K-12 education. The students were encouraged to keep their questions and hypothesis directed at…

These 15 papers include: (1) "Current Models and New Developments in Teacher Education in Austria" (Michael Schratz and Paul Josef Resinger); (2) "Teacher Education in Canada: Renewing Scholarly, Pedagogical, and Organizational Practices" (Therese LaFerriere, Nancy Sheehan, and Tom Russell); (3) "Current Models and New…

This report presents a framework to help educators improve teacher training in family involvement. Information comes from the Harvard Family Research Project, which documented the nature and scope of preservice education in family involvement. Researchers reviewed state teacher certification requirements, surveyed courses and requirements at…

In 1997 The Oregon State System of Higher Education (OSSHE) assessed the status of Oregon's K-12 educator professions. Separate sections of this OSSHE report: (1) provide information about Oregon's K-12 educator professions, including data on students, personnel, and teacher training; Teacher Standards and Practices Commission (TSPC) licenses and…

This study examined what low income parents perceived about their involvement in their children's education and what teachers needed to know about teaching in urban schools. The study also investigated whether, given explicit instruction and practice, prospective teachers would positively change their perceptions about interacting with low income…

This study interviewed six preservice teachers in early childhood education at an Australian university concerning their knowledge about and attitudes toward young gifted learning disabled children. Information was sought concerning the subjects' understanding of the term "gifted learning disabled" as well as their ability to identify…