A DACUM (Developing A Curriculum) approach was used to design an appropriate graduate course using verified competencies of vocational resource teachers of handicapped students. Twelve experts participated in a 2-day workshop resulting in the identification of 53 task competencies and 8 human competencies. A survey instrument was developed from…

Previous research on class size has serious limitations because factors such as the abilities of pupils or the experience and teaching style of teachers were not controlled, and because of inconsistent criteria for large and small classes and for criteria of success. A major two-year study was mounted with four class sizes, random assignment of…

Teacher/coach role conflict was assessed by surveying individuals who have served simultaneously as teachers and coaches to determine their perceptions of how intense this conflict is. Five areas were examined: (1) value conflicts between society's attitudes and coaching ethics; (2) unequal professional status of coaches; (3) conflict between…

Based on the assumption that behavioral aspects of faculty productivity are often not considered in development efforts, it is proposed that data collection to support the enhancement of faculty productivity should account for the behavioral dimension. Research concerning faculty productivity is reviewed, and it is concluded that the entire work…

The first objective of this research project focused on organizing the large number of previously identified vocational special needs teacher competencies into an educational model. The model contained a matrix that compiled all these competencies into twelve domains of four performance phases each. The model provides a framework for all…

A study was undertaken to investigate the relationship between 38 teachers' perceptions of students' oral communication apprehension, and 776 fourth, fifth, and sixth grade students' self-reports of communication apprehension. The teachers listed the four most apprehensive and the four least apprehensive students in their classrooms, then…

In this study, 80 prospective elementary school teachers, having no teaching experience, were administered six Piagetian tasks in order to classify them as concrete or formal thinkers. They were then required to complete a series of teaching tasks consisting of two phases. Phase I required the subjects to prepare a lesson plan, arrange a series of…

This paper offers suggestions about the content and organization of a foreign language methods course. It begins with a list of basic skills that must be taught: (1) directing a pattern drill, (2) teaching a concrete word, (3) teaching an abstract word, (4) teaching a short dialogue, (5) teaching a contrastive structure in morphology and syntax,…

Competency Based Teacher Education (CBTE) may be gathering a bandwagon momentum and arousing high expectations, but it needs a realistic examination. Some of the advantages of the CBTE movement are that it specifies student and teacher outcomes, helps individualize instruction, brings about cooperation between the public schools and the colleges…

This study identified specific student teacher behaviors which could indicate success in 16 teaching competency areas. Part 1 of the study, completed by student teaching supervisors, resulted in the identification of the student teaching behaviors considered to be indications of success in each of the 16 competency areas. Part 2 resulted in the…

This paper presents a model by which research data may be used to develop inservice programs in reading, based on teachers' needs and receptivity. An instrument was produced in which skills thought to be essential to reading instruction were described by 34 competencies. Teachers were asked to rate themselves in the teaching of reading according…

Three topics are considered in this examination of the evaluation of teacher education and teacher effectiveness. Discussed first are the objectives of projects in the area of teaching. These objectives fall into four main categories: (1) increasing teacher effectiveness in general and unspecified ways; (2) increasing the knowledge and skills of…

This study investigated use of the Renaissance Partnership Teacher Work Sample (RTWS) as an accountability measure for demonstrating teacher candidates' ability to meet targeted teaching standards. Teacher work samples were collected from nine universities participating in the Renaissance Partnership to Improve Teacher Quality. Trained raters…

This study examined teacher education graduates' perceptions of the effects of their educational preparation curriculum on teaching success in their first 3 years in the classroom. Surveys examined respondents' level of satisfaction with content area preparation, preparation in working with diverse students, preparation for developing professional…

This study examined preservice teachers' perceptions of characteristics of effective teachers, as well as whether these perceptions were influenced by educational beliefs (i.e., progressive versus transmissive). Data for the study were collected from 134 preservice teachers enrolled in several sections of an introductory-level education class for…