In considering the problem of recruiting and retaining the most able candidates for teaching, five dilemmas facing the profession are discussed. They are: Equity vs. Excellence; Egalitarianism vs. Differentiation; Teaching: Art or Science; the Curriculum--Standardization vs. Individualization; and The Focus of Instruction. The following problems…

Current teacher shortages are particularly acute in small rural communities, in certain urban areas, and in certain teaching disciplines. As educational and policy leaders struggle to find solutions to the teacher shortages, they are also questioning who should be delivering teacher training and certification programs. Community college teacher…

This journal issue focuses on the role of the community college in training K-12 teachers. The chapters included in this volume are as follows: (1) "Community College Roles in Teacher Education: Current Approaches and Future Possibilities," by Townsend and Ignash; (2) "Transfer Issues in Preservice Undergraduate Teacher Education…

This paper contains two scenario-type assignments for students in a university tests and measurements class as well as a collection of materials developed by actual students in response to these assignments. An opening explanation argues that education students, often nearing the end of their program when they take the tests and measurement…

This study compared and investigated the attitudes toward educating for international understanding in college students preparing to become elementary school teachers in Finland and the United States--particularly California. The study also explored whether participants thought their respective teacher education programs had prepared them to…

A program plan was developed at Butler University (Indiana) which responds to the call for teacher education reform. The Butler response incorporates research of the professional educational community; reflects the direction of the university at large and the college of education in particular; addresses the needs of students at the university;…

The analogy of "Spaceship Earth" is used to suggest the necessary elements of a teacher education program that is future-oriented and that can be effective in changing and maintaining desired attitudes and behavior, particularly in relation to dealing with significant global issues and processes. Rationales are provided for a global education…

This paper reports on the major findings of a 1982 national survey of personnel preparation programs in the field of special education. Initial goals of the study were to identify and classify existing programs (of 698 identified, 516 returned surveys) and to determine the percentage of special educators prepared in "small" programs. Results…

The responsibility for ensuring that beginning teachers are competent to teach in the nation's classrooms should be that of teacher education institutions, according to the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE). Teacher education institutions must employ an assessment system that: (1) assesses specific competencies as…

Evidence from followup studies of teacher education graduates indicates that teachers do not value certain major components of their teacher education programs and do not really remember or know what their teacher education programs attempted to teach them. While educational experts cite the extensiveness and comprehensiveness of teacher education…

An experimental preservice teacher education program was developed to train prospective high school teachers to increase academic learning time through identification and arrangement of instructional tasks of personal and social significance. Participants were 34 junior-level prospective teachers who were subjected to two treatments which…

Discussion of teacher education begins by focusing on beliefs about learning that are built on recent understandings about language. Changes that teacher educators have explored in their classrooms and programs are then considered. (BB)

Studies effectiveness of the Pre-Professional Skills Test (PPST) in predicting subsequent grades for 9,064 Arizona applicants to teacher education programs in 1985 to 1989 and 100 students with subsequent performance data. The PPST has blocked minority students from teacher preparation programs, although correlations between score and performance…

In 1990, the Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) conducted a study to determine ways in which the community college system could increase its participation in the preparation of elementary and secondary teachers. Drawing information from ICCB course files and unit cost data, as well as a survey of the colleges, the study investigated the…

The adaptation and use of local area network (LAN) computer technology as an educational enhancement and as a social process in a university teacher education program were studied. The LAN technology, electronic bulletin board, and facsimile machines were used to enhance university supervised clinical settings for novice teachers in the public…