This paper presents the results of a series of summary analyses of descriptive statistics concerning 5,720 Louisiana teachers who were assessed with the System for Teaching and Learning Assessment and Review (STAR)--a comprehensive on-the-job statewide teacher assessment system--during the second pilot year (1989-90). Data were collected by about…

An English language arts methods course developed through a professional teacher network offers many advantages of a professional development school (PDS) but is easier for individual teachers and university instructors to initiate than a PDS. This report describes a writing methods course that an expert National Writing Project (NWP) teacher…

This discussion of the uniqueness of the middle school focuses on the characteristics of the early adolescent student. It is pointed out that the special needs of these students are infrequently met by the traditional junior high school. Middle schools should be characterized by six unique elements: (1) specific individual counseling; (2) a…

Two papers are presented as part of the Effects on Testing Project. The first paper, "The Effects of Testing on Teaching and Learning" (Joan Herman, Shari Golan, and Jeanne Dreyfus), describes a study focusing on standardized, norm-referenced tests. A questionnaire was administered to 85 teachers (kindergarten through grade 12 levels)…

A study investigated attempts to influence student-teachers' interactive cognitions by means of specially designed video materials that were detailed illustrations of educational theories. It was hypothesized that student-teachers, having worked through these video materials, would be inclined to used the theoretical key elements in their thinking…

The Early Field Experience (EFE) is the laboratory component of a "Reading in the Content Area" methods course. Preservice secondary education teacher candidates are required to tutor a middle or high school student on a one-to-one basis for a semester. Content area reading strategies are taught in class and the EFE students apply them in their…

This report describes the activities and research directions taken during the second year of an anticipated four-school-year study that attempts to identify effective instructional practices in Chapter 1 junior high schools in Los Angeles (California). The report is divided into four sections. Section 1 reviews the purposes of the study and…

A study of 60 elementary and secondary math and science teachers who were nominated by their peers as effective microcomputer-using teachers was conducted to describe how peer-nominated teachers use microcomputers instructionally, and how these uses vary as a function of teacher characteristics (e.g., knowledge, attitudes) and other background…

PREP (Preparation through Responsive Educational Programs) is a teacher training model that is part of an educational research project presently in its fifth consecutive year of operation in Washington, D.C. area junior high schools. Its primary objective is the development and evaluation of procedures and curricula to assist academically or…

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between teachers' teaching effectiveness and school effectiveness in comprehensive high schools in Taiwan, Republic of China. The establishment of comprehensive high schools signals a new type of secondary education. In order to improve the quality of education in comprehensive high…

A number of papers each of which explains aspects of the life and background of new secondary school teachers in Papua New Guinea, have been produced as a result of the 1982 New Teachers Survey. This paper will summarise the major points which have been revealed so far. There appears to have been no previous research on new provincial high school…

In 1995 the Metropolitan Educational Research Consortium (MERC), Richmond (Virginia) commissioned a study of alternative high school scheduling modules to determine the effects of different schedules on teaching strategies, teacher and student satisfaction, and student and school performance. This report presents the results of an analysis of a…

Four 3-year projects within the Rural Telecomputing Initiative enabled rural teachers in Montana, Colorado, Minnesota, and Tennessee to connect with math and science reform communities and use resources available through the Internet. This study of the projects' first 2 years examined: (1) whether the projects made a difference in teachers'…

Co-teaching approaches to support students with disabilities in inclusive secondary classrooms were investigated through interviews with and classroom observations of 17 teachers. Data collected in Queensland (Australia) and Pennsylvania (USA) public schools allowed comparisons of teacher roles and responsibilities under two education systems. The…

The whole problem of secondary education, both as to aims and as to methods, is now undergoing investigation. The demands for the readjustment of the work of the high school are insistent. This bureau has no specialists in secondary education and is unable to respond as it should to the many requests for information in regard to the trend of…