This book provides a reflective process through which teachers may consider their distinctness as educators in a Catholic school. After an overview that discusses the ideal Catholic school teacher, the book focuses on five themes: Teacher as Community Builder; Teacher as Committed to Lifelong Spiritual Growth; Teacher as Committed to Lifelong…

Presents a detailed case study of a ninth grade science teacher to explain how school science constrains the development of her professional knowledge. Concludes that the version of experiment and inquiry seemingly prescribed by the institutional science of school is antithetical to the sort of explanatory inquiry the teacher uses when planning…

Describes how one high school implemented schoolwide action research teams as a comprehensive change management strategy to develop teacher leaders, teachers as change agents, and a collaborative reflective culture. The three-year case study showed that work on action research teams did not come naturally or easily, but teachers improved over time…

Describes an action research inquiry conducted by a primary science tutor, focusing on his work with preservice and inservice teachers. The paper examines parallels between the research process and the researcher's approach to teaching adult learners. Both were underpinned by explicit epistemological assumptions based on a constructivist view of…

Reflective peer coaching is a formative model for improving teaching and learning by examining intentions prior to teaching, then reflecting upon the experience. The goal of reflective peer coaching is to promote self-assessment and collaboration for better teaching and ultimately better learning. There are obvious benefits to colleagues…

The authors describe the ways in which, as preservice and inservice teacher educators, they conceptualize balanced literacy within an educational climate that values quick fixes, standardized curricula, and high-stakes testing. They proffer a professionalized version of the work of teachers in the classroom that values, fosters, and supports…

Reflecting on one's teaching practice is often an implicit goal for faculty development programs. Yet very little has been documented on how programs for diverse groups of university teachers actually engage faculty in such reflection. This paper examines how theoretical constructs of reflective practice were applied in the context of an 8-month…

This volume in the Language Teacher Research Series (Thomas S. C. Farrell, series editor) presents research conducted by language teachers at all levels, from high school English teachers to English language teacher educators, reflecting on their practices. The countries represented in this book are Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador,…

This publication summarizes two surveys of teachers and researchers in Scotland on different aspects of staff development. In the first survey, teachers were asked what types of support they valued at times of change in the curriculum. A total of 165 questionnaires were returned by principal teachers from 45 of the 51 schools targeted by the first…

Results of a study which used a research-based model for clinical supervision of student teachers provide evidence that the model's methodology and use of technology foster reflective teaching and promote implementation of sound decision making strategies by student teachers. Research on the interrelated domains of teacher decision making and…

This guide provides teacher educators and staff developers with strategies to enhance the reflective thinking abilities of preservice and inservice educators. Strategies for reflective thinking are approached at three levels: technical, contextual, and dialectical. Within each level, strategies have been field tested with populations of preservice…

A public school district in Colorado initiated a study which addressed the issue of how to insure good beginnings for new teachers and provide direct assistance and intervention to develop the skills of competent professionals. The approach discussed here is a beginning teacher induction program, which includes a Professional Development Seminar.…

This study examined the influential factors toward conceptual changes in in-service teachers as they engaged in a summer professional development program. The program curricula attempted to challenge teachers over weaknesses in their pedagogical instruction, provide feasible teaching approaches, and cultivate their strengths and interests through…

Paper describes one approach to preservice teacher education that considers the experiences of other nations and cultures in meeting the educational needs of students, arguing for the merits of closely analyzing particular examples of English elementary school practice in the context of an advanced undergraduate course in elementary teacher…

Teacher development will increasingly focus on how teachers' inner/spiritual life can be nourished. A renewed interest in the teacher-as-person stems from the eternal revolution/counterrevolution in education, the resurgence of Constructivism, and concerns for quality of working life in schools. Clinical supervision brings out the "inner…