Describes a beginning secondary mathematics teacher's professional growth before and after teacher education. Interviews, observations, and analyses of videotaped lessons suggest that, if teacher educators want to increase the power of professional preparation, they should strengthen the relationship between academic learning and practical…

Describes the first four months of initial placement of two beginning teachers who took alternative routes to teacher certification. Both worked in urban schools. Both believed their introductions to their respective schools were abrupt, noting their mentors did little to help them make the transition into the classroom. (SM)

Describes an innovative collaboration between a Texas University and several school districts which partners veteran and novice teachers in a professional growth opportunity. Certified beginning teachers receive a fellowship stipend and tuition to get a master's degree, partner with full-time mentor teachers, and perfect their teaching skills.…

A survey of 208 teachers/graduate students at a Georgia university found that teachers regarded their principals' supervisory behaviors positively. The supervisory climate was more positive in elementary than secondary schools. More experienced and educated teachers were more dissatisfied with their principals' level of trust and decision making.…

Novice and experienced special educators and headteachers (total n=49) of special schools in Israel received the Teacher Training Interactive Problem-solving System computer-training system and then completed a questionnaire on four common behavioral difficulties in children: attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity, conduct disorders,…

Introduces a collection of articles that address the following issues: authority and morality in classroom discourse; becoming experienced in teaching and learning; first-year teaching success; teachers' roles in preservice education; student teacher cohorts; theories of language learning and teaching; and metaphors as blueprints of thinking about…

This paper relates the author's experience with a preservice teacher at Chicago State University. Ms. Young was a bright, intelligent student who demonstrated a high level of skill and enthusiasm for the profession of teaching--so high that she was asked to address the graduating body of student teachers with the notion that her ideals would…

This study presents comparative case studies of preservice and first-year teachers' and expert teachers' conceptions of the concept of prior knowledge. Kelly's ("The Psychology of Personal Construct", New York: W. W. Norton, 1955) theory of personal constructs as discussed by Akerson, Flick, and Lederman ("Journal of Research in…

Teachers with seven years of teaching experience or less (n = 10) participating in a large-scale mathematics professional development program in the United States were interviewed. The goal of this qualitative study was to better understand less experienced teachers' reactions to professional development and professional support in the teaching…

This study used a systems perspective to determine whether differences exist between classrooms of expert (n=35) and novice (n=35) teachers on the cohesion, communication, and flexibility dimensions of the Classroom Systems Observation Scale (CSOS). A 50-minute observation using the CSOS was conducted in elementary school classrooms in New York…

This mixed methods study gathered information about the experiences of beginning special education teachers, their systems of support, and their intent to continue their careers in the field. Individual open-ended interviews were conducted with 8 first and second year special education teachers to obtain their perceptions of their first year of…

This paper reports on an element of a long term research project on the development of a conceptual framework for the training of mentors of beginning teachers. Three aspects are being investigated: (1) mentors' perceptions about mentoring; (2) the relation between mentors' perceptions and their actions in practice; and (3) the effect of mentoring…

This report describes the implementation and operation of a 6-month peer coaching program, "Collegial Coaching: Transfer of Learning through Reflective Practice," at Estacado High School in Lubbock (Texas). The program was originally designed to assist teachers to improve their own management and instruction in the classroom. However, it…

The purpose of this longitudinal study was to investigate whether or not selected academic ability indices and personal characteristics of 117 teachers were associated with changes in their attitude toward their teaching as a career measured upon the commencement of training, the end of student teaching, and completion of their fifth year of…

This case study explored the socialization of four beginning teachers as they engaged in the pre-induction and induction years of professional training. The analysis provided information about what contributes to the development of beginning teachers as they participate in school communities engaged in inquiry, and as they grapple with issues of…