The fundamental theses of this book are: (1) major improvements are needed in preservice teacher education programs; (2) increased use of case-based, discussion-oriented methodology as a primary, but not exclusive, pedagogical approach offers promise for substantial improvement over current efforts; (3) using case studies, students learn to apply…

Beginning teachers' learning is complex and personal: they learn about themselves as teachers; they fight with newly revealed selves endeavoring to change; and they engage in a struggle that is both emotional and intellectual. This report presents narratives, based on both journals and taped conversations, of the learning experiences of six novice…

This book offers guidelines to support beginning special education teachers in their first year of teaching. "Getting Ready To Teach" covers things to do before school begins, such as organizing the classroom and establishing planning and record-keeping strategies. "Tips for the Classroom" focuses on surviving the first day, establishing classroom…

In 1979, Act 187, known now as the Educator Improvement Act, was mandated by the legislature of the State of South Carolina. One tenet of Act 187 was the establishment of an Educator Improvement Task Force to develop an instrument which could effectively measure minimal teaching competencies. To help in the content and design of the instrument,…

Two-year longitudinal case studes were conducted of four teachers, beginning with the student teaching experience through the first year of teaching. The study explored ways in which teaching perspectives, evidenced at the end of student teaching, are strengthened or modified during the first year of teaching. It also sought to determine who and…

A plan is proposed for the revision of the National Teacher Examinations. The plan is based on measuring what is taught in teacher education curricula. Preservice pedagogical education consists of two types of studies: academic pedagogy and clinical pedagogy. Academic pedagogy consists of concepts and principles pertaining to the making of…

This paper reviews the major educational reform literature to identify commonalities of ways in which the reform movement is bringing changes to teacher education programs. The literature reviewed includes: (1) "A Nation at Risk: The Imperative for Educational Reform"; (2) "Tomorrow's Teachers: A Report of the Holmes Group";…

To develop a support program for its recent graduates, the University of Lowell (Massachusetts) surveyed those who had completed the teacher certification program since 1985. Focus was on determining: (1) instructional concerns of beginning teachers; (2) their non-instructional concerns; (3) what help they wanted; (4) nature and extent of…

The 1988-89 study reported in this paper focused on teacher attrition, examining the characteristics of beginning teachers in North Dakota. The purpose was to compare characteristics of those teachers who stayed in their first positions with those who left. The study gathered data by surveying school administrators and elementary and secondary…

Two Connecticut programs designed to support beginning teachers, the Beginning Educator Support and Training Program (BEST) and the Cooperating Teacher Program (CT), are grounded in the collaborative leadership concept. A working partnership between principals and mentor teachers shares responsibility with a state assessment team to support and…

This descriptive depiction of teacher education in Japan begins with a profile of Japanese teachers, their characteristics, salary scale, and the kinds of classrooms and schools they work in. A description of the conventional pattern of teacher education in Japan is organized in its sequential order: preservice education, induction, inservice…

Issues concerning articulation between high school and college are discussed, along with the role of the State Higher Education Executive Officers (SHEEO) agency. The situation in Louisiana is used as illustration. One important consideration is communicating clearly the meaning of general education within the baccalaureate degree, based on…

In a study of four begining teachers' understanding of curriculum decision-making, three questions were addressed: (1) How do beginning teachers understand district policies about curriculum decision making? (2) How can or should school districts provide guidance and leadership to incoming teachers? and (3) Do current induction policies consider…

A study examined the effectiveness of supervising teacher educators as perceived by new and returning vocational agriculture teachers in Ohio who participated in the inservice teacher education offered by the Department of Agricultural Education of The Ohio State University. The study was conducted in two parts: once in 1984 and again in 1986. A…

The evaluation of the Dade County Public Schools, Florida 1983-84 Beginning Teacher Program was designed to achieve these specific goals: (1) assess the extent to which program operations and procedures facilitated the implementation of major project components; and (2) determine the program's effectiveness in achieving its major outcome of…