This study of exemplary university teachers sought to identify their thinking and knowledge about effective teaching dimensions and strategies, the effective strategies that they actually used in class, and the relationships between their thinking and knowledge about effective teaching strategies and their actual use of these strategies. Two…

In coming to better value teachers' knowledge and practice, there is a need to be able to articulate and document what teachers know and are able to do. This is central in coming to understand pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). This paper presents a working understanding of PCK as it has emerged through a research project and describes the…

By the year 2008, 2.2 million teachers will be needed to fill open teaching positions created by increasing student populations and the rapid rise of retiring teachers. The urgent need for qualified teachers looks to be overtaking the number of available qualified teachers. Despite the efforts of teacher training programs in nationally accredited…

This study examined the computer skills of secondary student teachers and cooperating teachers. Participants were 22 student teachers and 24 cooperating teachers from 8 high schools in 1 district. Participants completed the "Teacher Computer Skill Survey," which assessed their computer skills, focusing on: general computer use, creating written…

Purpose: The purpose was to investigate higher education quality because there are links between the main society and university graduates and the university. Methodology: This research sought aspects of the teaching quality of the Faculty that could be improved. The spheres were: improvement in qualifications of the teachers; finding ways to…

Partnering for Elementary Environmental Science, a professional development program developed to enhance teachers' skills and content knowledge in science education, pairs classroom teachers with resource professionals for one year of collaborative instruction. This paper reports part of the evaluation and research related to the program.…

A quasi-experimental, treatment-control group investigation was designed to test the effects of a preservice training course in direct instruction methodology for secondary education teachers. Previous findings from teacher-effects research and cognitive strategy instruction were translated into two direct instructional models: a model of…

The purpose of this study was to determine the knowledge and skills of teachers as they relate to school safety. Survey participants included 130 elementary and secondary school teachers enrolled in the Educational Administration Program at National University in San Diego (California). Areas covered included: knowledge of legal and professional…

Fifty-seven elementary education students enrolled in methods courses were asked to respond to an open-ended questionnaire to identify what knowledge and skills had been learned as a result of participating in field experiences required in the courses. Students provided 516 individual statements, with 245 being knowledge statements, which included…

This study examined the characteristics of graduate education students enrolled in an advanced methods class and their response to a micro-teaching approach. Conducted over 5 years beginning in 1987, the study involved 112 graduates micro-teaching 12 model lessons in groups of 4, in 10 academic areas of the curriculum. Participants were tested at…

This report presents the results of three studies on beginning teacher needs and support. The first study investigated what one beginning teacher and her mentor talked about in scheduled talk sessions. Audiotapes of the talk sessions and interviews with the teacher and her mentor uncovered how the beginning teacher perceived teaching and herself…

Institutions of higher education in the western part of the United States have begun to respond to the challenges faced by teachers working with students from diverse cultural and ethnolinguistic backgrounds. To establish the extent to which institutions offer inservice courses related to multilingual settings, the METRO Center at the Southwest…

In an interdisciplinary approach to improve faculty members' teaching competencies in higher education at the University of Innsbruck (Austria), an action research type of program proved most suitable to promote reflective professionality across the disciplinary boundaries. After an introductory session individual projects were initiated, in which…

This study explored how secondary teachers develop healthy, caring bonds with their students and thus nurture healthy emotional and social development in young people. Two teachers were interviewed and observed in the classroom, and four students exhibiting high-risk behavior and four parents were also interviewed. The teachers were a 39-year-old…

The larger the range of instructional skills, methods, strategies, and models that a teacher has at his or her command, the more skilled the teacher will be in selecting and delivering appropriate instruction, and the better students will learn. Effective teachers make use of a wide range of instructional resources. Research on instruction shows…