This speech covers three major topics: (1) the origins of the present day paradigm of professional training in education and the problematics of education as a field of study; (2) the recent history of the doctorate in education; and (3) recommendations on the present day doctorate in education, based on an analysis of the central requirements of…

The role of the language teacher is changing and teacher training must be adapted to orient teachers toward facilitating language learning for communication. The working group held in connection with the Modern Languages Project of the Council of Europe's Council for Cultural Cooperation summarized the main objectives in all teacher training for…

A basic speech course required of prospective teachers seeking admission to the University of Hawaii's College of Education is described in the first half of this paper. The described course focuses on interviewing, group discussion, and public speaking skills. The second half of the paper presents complete descriptions of four assignments that…

The strengths and weaknesses of student teachers participating in field based practicums at the University of Lethbridge from 1972 through 1979 were studied to determine the effects of increasing the time spent in the field experience programs. The practicum component of the undergraduate teacher education program was gradually increased from…

A Minicourse on Flanders' Interaction Analysis was adapted and re-developed for use in West German teacher training institutions, and evaluated in several studies with pre- and inservice teachers. The Minicourse incorporates the microteaching components of discrimination training, laboratory teaching experience, and feedback. The results of four…

Teachers, administrators, and a few parents and students rated 100 teacher competency statements with the help of the Research and Development Center for Teacher Education. These competency statements then served as the basis for the Professional Personnel Evaluation System (PPES), which also consists of rating scales to be completed by…

As part of a study of basic skills of secondary education students, a study was conducted at Pennsylvania State University of the speaking ability of 43 prospective secondary level teachers. A rating instrument was developed based on a list of criteria considered important to teachers by speech communication experts and teacher educators alike.…

A growing movement to improve the quality of teaching has been called "faculty development." It is based on three assumptions: the primary professional activity of most faculty is teaching; instructional behaviors are learned skills, attitudes, and goals; and faculty can be taught how to improve their classroom performance. Interest in faculty…

One purpose of this study was to design a set of procedures for interviewing pupils in order to diagnose mathematical difficulties. A second purpose was to evaluate a manual describing these procedures to preservice elementary teachers, and to determine the relationship of their abilities to use these procedures with scores on mathematics concept…

This work addresses itself to improving the process of teacher selection by providing more information about teaching ability. The study reported was undertaken to determine the effects of incorporating into the educational placement credentials a set of materials relating to a science teacher's classroom performance. In the report, past research…

In order to develop relevant teacher education programs which will satisfy the demands for accountability, competencies necessary to perform effectively in contemporary school setting need to be identified and validated. A listing of selected competencies, identified for vocational and applied arts teacher education, was examined. Sixty-one…

In a 1973 Smithsonian behavioral science project, observational methods were used to record school group behaviors during docent guided tours in the National Museum of History and Technology. The purpose of this exploratory study was to reveal the natural museum habitat and criterion behaviors of visiting fourth through sixth graders. Children's…

Since the inception of "GOALS 2000: Educate America Act" (1994), the nation at large has been implementing standards for systematic reform. Teachers and teacher candidates must become "techno-savvy" overnight in order to comply with these reform initiatives as their level of expertise in educational technology will ostensibly affect their lesson…

This paper addresses what makes an excellent secondary school teacher, what training should occur for potential secondary school teachers to enable classroom excellence, what characteristics define such excellence, and whether excellence is learned or is the product of a particular predisposition, or both. It begins by explaining how excellent…

This paper discusses strategies related to the challenge of program accountability for subject matter knowledge and competency among beginning teachers. It focuses on reaching common understandings of three key concepts (accountability, subject matter knowledge, and competence), presenting them from the perspective of the state of Florida. Florida…