Public debate surrounds the success of charter schools in serving students and providing a generative environment for teacher innovation. Through semi-structured interviews with eleven (N = 11) K-12 charter school music teachers, this study aims to contribute to the understanding of charter school music teachers' perceptions of their setting in…

Statewide teacher shortages are hindering Michigan's efforts to ensure that all students have equitable access to qualified teachers. Implementing teacher supports--which may be policies, practices, or programs--to increase teacher retention offers a way to alleviate shortages. This study identified supports implemented by local education agencies…

The "Supports Associated with Teacher Retention in Michigan" study examined local teacher retention rates from 2013/14 to 2018/19 and teachers' responses to a survey about teacher supports in their local agencies and their perceptions of those supports. Average annual teacher retention rates among Michigan's local education agencies…

COVID-19 shuttered schools across the United States, upending traditional approaches to education. We examine teachers' experiences during emergency remote teaching in the spring of 2020 using responses to a working conditions survey from a sample of 7,841 teachers across 206 schools and 9 states. Teachers reported a range of challenges related to…

Although many high schools are switching from a semester to a trimester schedule as a response to increased high-school graduation requirements, there is very little empirical research on trimesters. In this ethnographic case study (2006-2009), we observed 22 math and science classrooms, interviewed seven administrators, two counselors and 22…

This article presents results of a study of 229 kindergarten teachers who completed a survey designed to gather information about the current state of Michigan kindergartens. In addition to detailed data that reveals teachers' literacy instructional practices, teachers provided written responses to the following open-ended questions: What are the…

Student teaching experience is important in the professional preparation of teachers. Successful teaching practice hinges on the effectiveness of cooperating teachers (CTs) who spend considerable time supervising and mentoring student teachers. Unfortunately, the welfare of the cooperating teachers is often neglected, and this is detrimental to…

This study was conducted to examine high school teachers' perceptions of self-efficacy and ways in which self-perception is affected by: (1) differences in the characteristics of classes taught; (2) differences in the organizational environments in which teachers work; and (3) interactions that neutralize the negative effects of difficult classes.…