Four elements in secondary schools make educational change difficult: (1) the presence of a unified faculty representing academic disciplines; (2) the students in the college-bound track for whom the curriculum is designed; (3) the sweathogs or delinquents in the general track; and (4) the parents who want to maintain their children in a safe…

Implications of widespread reform in education in Central and Eastern European countries for secondary school teacher education are discussed. Available data on teacher characteristics, compensation, and working conditions are examined, and the current status and composition of teacher training is compared for different countries. Teacher…

An analysis of recent changes in Bulgarian secondary education looks at several major trends in: the structure of the formal education system; new curricula and conditions for implementation; financing and management of the system; and problems with school staffing. A period of transition characterized by some instability and occasional crises is…

Under conditions of fundamental systemic and cultural change in eastern German schools and society, redistributed authority relationships become a salient feature of educational change. Survey of teachers at eight secondary schools reveals teachers' distress at their changing relationships with students, parents, and state and the lack of critical…

Discusses how to initiate good professional development options and how to evaluate existing professional development programs for appropriateness. Options noted are teacher networks, National Board certification, university collaborations, Professional Development Schools, and local staff development efforts. Some resource information is…

New constructivist approaches to teaching and learning are at odds with much of what teachers believe. Four questionable sets of beliefs that may be obstacles to adopting a constructivist approach to teaching and learning are reviewed. Real educational reforms will require changes in many teacher ideas. (SLD)

Discusses interviews with black teachers who witnessed many reform initiatives to improve black students' academic achievement. The teachers challenged white, middle class perspectives on black community norms, cultural values, political realities, and community aspirations. Successful school reform must acknowledge and incorporate black community…

The effects of educational reform policies in Texas were studied as they relate to teacher burnout. A survey was mailed to 3,000 teachers. In all, 700 teachers responded, and interviews were conducted with about 120 of them. Teachers experienced considerable emotional exhaustion, and the effects of paperwork were significant. (SLD)

Changes that occur in teachers' careers are typically conceptualized in research as occurring in several demarcated and sequential stages/phases. This study examines secondary schoolteachers' understandings of their careers and whether they could identify stages/phases in their career development. It is based on experienced teachers' recall of…

Block scheduling has become an increasingly popular reform movement for schools, school districts, and principals to enact. Much of the decision making as to whether to implement some type of block scheduling has occurred without understanding the implications this type of reform has on teachers and their classroom practices. This paper reports on…

Practicality is the "Achilles heel" of alternative assessment in middle school science. This 5-year study of an "early adopter" school explores factors that enable alternate assessment to thrive in spite of practical problems. Interviews with five seventh-grade life science teachers and five eighth-grade physical science teachers who initiated and…

It would be foolish to succumb to the view that the educational problems of America are limited to schools in poor neighborhoods or to students from disadvantaged families. Across the country, whether in suburban affluence or urban poverty, students' commitment to school is at an all-time low. This low level of student commitment is matched by…

This publication explores the future of schooling and the role of teacher leaders. Several questions are examined: (1) why teachers must take primary responsibility for creating a new context for teaching and learning; (2) how "constructivist leaders" create meaning out of learning; (3) how the roles of leadership with adults and with…

A study examined teacher stereotypes as a factor in teacher resistance to change in schools. Based on a poststructuralist perspective, the study views teachers as both objects and subjects of reform and argues that research informs practice in ways that often result in socially constructed stereotypes. Methodology included a literature review, 129…

The historical needs for teacher competence in assessment are being increased as educational reform efforts bring new types of assessment into use. A statewide proportional random sample of 1,220 Maryland high school teachers was surveyed to determine the amount of training they had received in classroom assessment and the sources of that…