The opinion in this paper is that there is a need to reexamine the meaning of constructivism in an age where the concept has come to mean different things to different people. This paper examines one person's understanding of constructivism in order to uncover multiple meanings of the term in ways that ultimately affect teachers' practice in K-12…

Discusses issues of teaching and teacher education found in the biographies of eminent Brazilian teacher educators which present their personal stories, their social milieu, and influences by Brazilian socioeconomic and cultural contexts. Each biography highlights specific educational characteristics of, influences upon, and theoretical frameworks…

Three portraits of adolescent students with Asperger's syndrome include descriptive details about the students as young children, their schooling experiences, their interests, and their social life experiences. Portraits were developed through interviews with the students, their parents, and focus groups with professionals providing services to…

Recounts the pedagogical history of the Anglo-Welsh Adams family that spans the 1840s to the 1930s in England and Wales. Comprises summarized biographical details of relevant family members and offers generalizations drawn from this longitudinal case study. Argues that this study highlights neglected aspects within educational history. (DSK)

New research on teaching involves qualitative, or ethnographic, methods. It is highly descriptive and often relies on narrative inquiry, which is embedded with messages about power, justice, and inequality. The new research relies on language and dialogue, using metaphors, stories, biographies, autobiographies, conversations, exemplars,…

A research approach describing the career biographies of individual teachers as a means for exploring the idea of professional development and the personal and contextual conditions affecting it is discussed. Implications for inservice teacher education policies and strategies are drawn, and teacher development models are advocated. (MSE)

Life history interviews with four women holding doctorates in educational administration are presented in this paper, which examines how chances and choice affect women administrators' career decisions. A second focus is on how organizational structure in educational organizations can enhance career opportunities for women educators. Three…

Investigated preservice teachers' understandings of their own and their students' cultural backgrounds, examining how they integrated those understandings into literacy instruction. The ABC model (autobiographies, biographies of students, cross-cultural analysis, analysis of cultural differences, and classroom practices) helped stimulate students…

This final volume of a six-volume study of an elementary school called "Kensington" in a school district code-named "Milford," examines its own assumptions and procedures. After the brief, introductory chapter, which presents the methodological appendixes of the preceding volumes as a serial, chapter 2 discusses exploratory and…

The case study of an Ohio school superintendent's experiences during the depression illustrates how political, social, and economic events can affect an educational system. Dr. Thomas Warrington Gosling was named superintendent of Akron schools in 1928, following resignation of the previous superintendent as a consequence of turmoil on the Board…

This collection of papers includes the following: "On the Educational Uses of Fantasy" (Geoffrey Madoc-Jones and Kieran Egan); "The Dangers of Empathy with Students" (Mario Rinvolucri); "The Magic of Folktales for Teaching English and Culture" (Planaria Price); "The Inner Voice: A Critical Factor in L2…