This study investigated 35 physical education teachers' appreciation of a continuous professional development (CPD) training on need-supportive teaching, embedded in Self-Determination Theory, using qualitative (i.e. focus groups) and quantitative methods (i.e. questionnaire). The findings suggest that teachers highly valued opportunities for…

A number of recent studies (see, for example, Lantolf, 2010; Negueruela & Lantolf, 2006; van Compernolle, 2011) have focused on the use of learning tools developed according to the principles of concept-based instruction (CBI). Using videorecorded data from interviews and observations of classroom instruction, our study seeks to contribute to…

This study examined the perspective of a cohort of 60 Chinese EFL pre-service teachers with regards to microteaching. Reflective paper writing was employed to explore the student teachers' perceptions of the experience. The study results show that microteaching was a useful tool for the pre-service teachers' professional development; however, the…

We investigate experienced high school geometry teachers' perspectives on "authentic mathematics" and the much-criticized two-column proof form. A videotaped episode was shown to 26 teachers gathered in five focus groups. In the episode, a teacher allows a student doing a proof to assume a statement is true without immediately justifying it,…

In the last two years, English language teaching at the level of basic education in China has been changing very fast due to the new Standard Curriculum. The paper takes a school in the northwest of China as an example, illustrating the process of implementing the Curriculum, summarizing the work the school has done, the problems encountered and…

This paper provides an account of professional learning in action through documenting the experiences of three upper primary teachers as they engaged in reflection-on-action with the assistance of an academic mentor. Video-stimulated recall was used as a mechanism to encourage productive reflective practice, using video footage of each teacher's…

The study explored teaching and teacher education in the postcolonial context, Jamaica, based on arguments that Jamaica's education system and teacher training is constructed on its colonial past and the heavy reliance on knowledge from the West. It provided a rich description of the shared teaching experiences of teacher educators in Jamaica,…

In this paper, the authors first discuss the main rationales of situated cognition and its connections with innovation in teacher education. The challenges that might occur in applying situated cognition in teacher education programs, including insufficient opportunities for cognition apprenticeship, limited social interactions, and constraints in…

The effects of a microteaching experience on the achievement and attitudes of teacher candidates enrolled in a basic educational psychology course was investigated. A class of 137 students was randomly split into five discussion groups (which met once a week); the students of one group participated in microteaching-feedback-reteaching experiences…

The new South African curriculum known as Curriculum 2005 (to depict the year of its full implementation) requires that teachers integrate school science with Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS). Curriculum 2005 has generated heated debates at various levels since its inception in 1997. This study focuses on the effectiveness or otherwise of a…

The introduction of technology education in primary and secondary schools during the past 10-15 years around the world has presented a number of difficulties for teachers, primarily related to their coming to understand the phenomenon of technology and to conceptualise the technology learning area in line with national frameworks. This paper…

Describes a systematic, role-oriented approach to the preparation of teachers for inner city schools, by familiarizing them with the students and setting before their student teaching experience. (MM)

This paper points to a neglected dimension to Schon's work on the reflective practitioner: his distinctive characterisation of the practicum. We argue that Schon's understanding of the practicum is integrally related to his understanding of the reflective practitioner. The appropriation of the latter concept within programmes of initial teacher…

Teachers possess several strategies to fine-tune their purposive interactions to children's needs. Our study investigates which strategies teachers use in their goal oriented interactions with pupils, whether differentiation is perceptible in the way they interact with children whom they define as "children at risk" as compared to the…

In an attempt to devise protocols for the microteaching of university teachers, an experiment was undertaken using 15 subjects in four training sessions. Attitudes of lecturers to training were used as the dependent variable. Independent variables were the feedback medium (CCTV and audio) and the type of feedback (low and high structure). The…