Given the distinctive characteristics of Japanese mathematics lessons found by the international studies and the subsequent focus of the attention to Lesson Study in mathematics education community, the author discusses the relationships between the scientific studies and improvement of mathematics teaching and learning from an insider's…

The Swan Valley Cluster of Schools for the Make it Count project identified the professional learning of teachers as a key factor in improving the numeracy outcomes of urban Indigenous children. Two mentor teachers were assigned to support cluster teachers in planning and teaching mathematics during 2011. This paper reports on the initiative and…

At the heart of the instructional supervisor's role is helping teachers learn and unlearn attitudes, concepts, and skills relevant to their jobs. Among the principles the supervisor must understand to provide this help are those relating to motivation, learning readiness, the learning climate, levels of aspiration, and reinforcement. Diagnostic…

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…

This paper tries to present a careful analysis of current trends and challenges to importing Japanese model of teachers' professional development. The objective is to examine what "we" can learn from Japanese approach to improving instruction, especially "Jugyou Kenkyu" (Lesson Study) as a collaborative research on the…

This paper examines beginning teacher induction programs in both the United States and Great Britain. Descriptions are given of the scope and activities in 11 selected programs in the United States: (1) the NASSP Project; (2) Washington State; (3) Oswego, New York; (4) Hawaii; (5) Wheeling, Illinois; (6) Wilmette, Illinois; (7) New York City; (8)…

"First wave" educational reform has resulted in various state and local incentive and pay-for-performance programs, such as Tennessee's career ladder program offering extended contract opportunities for teachers and administrators achieving a certain performance status. While the intent was to reward excellence, offer supplemental pay…

Teacher development is theoretically possible in those instructional supervision settings that emphasize collegiality. The paper reports and analyzes episodes taken from two cases in a larger study which investigated the different outcomes in teachers' classroom development associated with hierarchical and collegial approaches to instructional…

This paper raises issues regarding two reports on improving teaching: the Report of the California Commission on the Teaching Profession, "Who Will Teach Our Children: A Strategy for Improving California's Schools" and the Carnegie Report, "A Nation Prepared: Teachers for the 21st Century." A brief review is presented on the…

A study was conducted to determine whether the Stallings Effective Teaching Practices inservice training program contributed to improved teacher performance in the Cincinnati, Ohio, Public Schools. The study had two major objectives: (1) to assess the degree of improvement in selected teacher practices after training; and (2) to investigate the…

An experimental program designed to test an inservice method for introducing the practical aspects of John Dewey's educational philosophy to teachers was received positively by 17 of the program's 20 volunteer participants. The program used a limited version of R.A. Gibboney's "Toward Intellectual Excellence: Some Things to Look for in…

Issues for policymakers at the national and local authority levels concerning teacher appraisal are discussed, from the perspective of a local educational agency advisor in London, England. Teacher appraisal is one of the ways in which the plurality characterizing the English and Welsh education systems is being replaced by a national system. At…

The development of processes for considering student achievement data in the evaluation of teaching is discussed. As an alternative to the inappropriate and indefensible use of standardized test scores, the project on Expected Student Achievement (ESA) of the Kentucky Career Ladder Commission considered a management by objectives, or goal setting…

The Humanities Enrichment Program (HEP) and The Master Teacher Program (MT) were sponsored by the National Humanities Faculty to improve and encourage humanities instruction. The 40 schools in the program participated in curriculum development workshops, demonstration lessons, and public information meetings. A consultant also contacted local…

A review of current educational literature identifies three different approaches to defining, describing, and applying the term "teacher development." One application of the term deals with the commonly experienced changes most teachers undergo. Teachers develop through the stages of survival, consolidation, renewal, and maturity. The second…