Describes a study that investigated preservice elementary teachers' decisions about teaching strategies and their attitudes toward mathematics and computer-related technologies in a constructivist-centered methods course which included the use of problem-solving multimedia. The effectiveness of these strategies in developing more positive…

This paper reviews changes in an elementary teacher education program based on several studies regarding the content of the program. The nature of each study and its implementation in the program are described. Three changes have been made in the program as a result of the studies: student teachers are required to complete a junior year practicum…

This paper describes an intervention which was designed to: (1) provide opportunities for preservice teachers to collaborate with and network with inservice teachers; (2) create an environment which facilitated collaboration and interaction among early childhood, elementary, and special education majors; and (3) model collaborative teaching and…

This publication, designed to help teacher educators profit from the experience and wisdom of colleagues, brings together articles from "The Arithmetic Teacher" on preservice elementary school mathematics teacher education. This collection of articles has two specific purposes. One is to serve as a reminder of the broader issues and concerns that…

Evidence that elementary school children possess inadequate economic knowledge is presented, and four arguments are outlined for the importance of economics education in the public schools: (1) economic knowledge is essential to civic duty in a democracy; (2) economic knowledge is important when individuals attempt to function rationally in a…

An effective junior-year student teaching program in elementary education was designed that combines application of theory learned in methods courses with practical school experience. The objective was to prepare education majors for student teaching and to give them an opportunity to evaluate themselves and the prospects of a teaching career.…

Teacher educators are concerned about the limited impact that methods courses have on instructional practices and the considerable impact that cooperating teachers have. The experiences of student teachers who taught in elementary reading practica without the presence of cooperating teachers were analyzed. Five student teachers were observed by…

IN CONSIDERING EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATIONS (PSYCHOLOGICAL, SOCIOLOGICAL, PHILOSPHICAL, HISTORICAL) FOR PREPARING TEACHERS OF THE DISADVANTAGED, PROJECT "TEACH" MADE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR AN IDEAL TREATMENT. (1) PSYCHOLOGY SHOULD BE TAUGHT ON A TEAM BASIS BY FACULTY FROM BOTH THE PSYCHOLOGY DEPARTMENT AND THE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION. (2) THE…

The McNeese State University's pilot program in field-oriented competency-based teacher education in early childhood education is designed for prospective teachers to develop and demonstrate competencies believed to be necessary for effective teaching in the early childhood area (K-3), as well as to develop evaluative criteria relevant to the…

Fourteen suggestions to help alleviate a problem which the author believes to exist today in United States educational institutions are included in this article. The author has listed these suggestions as possibilities for enriching the preservice experiences of elementary education teachers, with particular attention directed to relating the…

This is the second module in a series on mathematics methods and materials for preservice elementary teachers. This module focuses on three instructional and learning modes: expository, guided discovery, and inquiry (pure discovery). Objectives for the module are listed, the prerequisites are stated, pre- and post-assessment standards are…

Preservice elementary teachers were videotaped teaching three self-designed micro-teaching lessons to their peers, and the videotapes were rated by elementary mathematics-methods instructors. Mathematics methods course quiz average, mathematics anxiety score, and spatial ability were investigated as potential predictors of videotape ratings.…

This study was designed to develop an instrument that would measure preservice teachers' belief efficacy in teaching environmental education (EE). This belief efficacy includes a person's perception of ability to perform the behavior (self-efficacy) and a person's expectation that a specific behavior will result in desirable outcomes (outcome…

A DETAILED SUMMARY OF PROJECT "TEACH" (TO IMPROVE PREPARATION OF TEACHERS FOR INNER-CITY SCHOOLS) PRESENTS THE FOLLOWING FINDINGS--(1) SPECIAL TRAINING AND FIELD EXPERIENCE SHOULD BEGIN IN THE FRESHMAN YEAR AND CONTINUE ON THROUGH GRADUATE WORK. (2) THE ENTIRE PROGRAM SHOULD RELATE TO THE "LABORATORY" OF THE URBAN COMMUNITY.…

The Off Campus Methods Course (OCMC), devised to relate closely the theory of methods courses to actual teaching experience, consists of three episodes (teaching map and globe skills, using a questioning strategy, and individualizing instruction), each comprised of four phases. In the theoretical phase, an education professor teaches the strategy…