Reports on a survey of 122 elementary art education methods instructors in the United States and Canada. Finds that methods courses focus on one of three general areas: (1) those that focus on art itself; (2) those that focus on pedagogical issues; or (3) those that focus on the non-art major preservice teacher. (CFR)

Presents a feedback approach used by the author to evaluate the degree to which the desired outcomes of a science methods course are met and to clarify students' perceptions about the course. (PR)

Examines the efficacy beliefs preservice teachers bring to methods courses in science and mathematics and the changes in their beliefs as a result of the enriched experiences of methods courses. Contains 22 references. (DDR)

A study of 16 language-teacher trainees found distinct differences between perceived and actual language proficiency. During the foreign-language-teaching methodology course, candidates developed greater realism about their own abilities and need for further language development. The investigation illustrates how motivations change over time for…

Discusses the problems and benefits of implementing portfolio evaluation in a preservice teacher social studies methods course. Maintains that adopting portfolio assessment opens the way for students to construct alternative conceptions of teaching. Includes criteria for the development and evaluation of students' portfolios. (MJP)

This study compared preservice teachers' confidence to transfer computer applications into their classroom instruction depending on whether they were taught computer literacy from a theory perspective focusing on skills alone or from a theory and application perspective where their computer skills were learned simultaneously as they completed…

Discusses an innovative process that was used for engaging prospective teachers in collaboration and reflection on their learning as they developed a multi-media portfolio. (Contains 15 references.) (WRM)

The purpose of this study was to develop a picture of how preservice science teachers? instructional concerns changed during a yearlong science methods program spanning initial classroom observations through student teaching. Another goal of this study was to determine the teachers? ideas about inquiry teaching and the influence of their methods…

This paper will explore emerging benefits of telecollaboration and telementoring through an examination of the literature, a reflection on current practices at the University of Virginia and the University of South Florida, and a forecast proposal for potential seamless integration of technology with teacher preparation and training in schools of…

Preservice elementary teachers enrolled in a reading methods course learn how literacy instruction is a political act that can affect children's opportunities. Through discussions and readings, they learn how the ways in which they teach reading to children make a difference in their subsequent access to knowledge. Through a practicum experience…

Collaborative efforts between university methods courses and elementary classroom teachers provide laboratory experiences that facilitate preservice teachers understanding of thematic instructional approaches to teaching elementary science and social studies. Preservice teachers in these field-based programs learn to apply the theories to which…

Training teachers as reflective practitioners is an important element in many teacher education programs. Teacher education literature indicates that journal writing is an approach that fosters reflection, and is an effective source of dialogue between student and teacher. This document reports on an action research study on the use of journals in…

The majority of teacher candidates feel unprepared to teach with computers, and few teacher training programs are preparing future educators to effectively use the Internet to enrich their classrooms and contribute to their own personal development. The purpose of this study was to teach the procedural knowledge required to navigate the Internet…

Research has shown that elementary teachers are mathematics anxious, and that this anxiousness can be transmitted to their students. Therefore, many students are not afforded the opportunity to participate in a comfortable mathematics environment. Preservice elementary teachers (n=63) reported their pre- and posttest mathematics anxiety using the…

This paper reports the results of a deliberate effort to help preservice science teachers improve their ability to learn from experience and take charge of their own professional development as teachers. The study was conducted by a teacher educator who simultaneously taught a physics methods course and a 12th-grade physics class and thereby…