During the 2004-05 school year, SRI International, an independent research firm, launched a fourth comprehensive round of data collection. They conducted analyses of statewide teacher data to follow trends in teacher distribution over time and to document changes in California's teacher development policies and programs. They also collected…

This step-by-step guide reviews important issues and things to consider for beginning, substitute, returning, and emergency credential teachers. The 11 chapters focus on: (1) "Getting Ready to Interview: Personal Reflection, Picking the Right Path, and Interview Readiness"; (2) "Where It All Happens: Creating the Right Atmosphere"; (3) "So Much to…

These three journal issues contain the following articles: "Japanese at Mimosa Elementary School" (Azusa Uchihara); "A Successful Keypal Project Using Varied Technologies" (Jean L. Pacheco); "Promoting a Language-Proficient Society: What You Can Do" (Kathleen M. Marcos and Joy Kreeft Peyton); "Journal Reflections…

This report summarizes a study of Americans' attitudes toward teaching, educational opportunity, and school reform. Surveys of 2,501 adults nationwide indicate that Americans unequivocally support the guarantee of free public education and consider improvement in fundamental areas of student behavior and academic performance essential. Greater…

This collection of papers includes: "New Teachers for a New Century: Recommendations from a National Invitational Conference" (Margaret C. Wang and Herbert J. Walberg); "Teacher Quality, Teacher Effectiveness: Basing Education Policy on the Facts" (Arthur E. Wise); "Accreditation Reform and the Preparation of Teachers for…

This fastback explains that better teaching is the key to higher student achievement, and improving the quality of both teachers and their teaching is an important challenge for departments of education and schools nationwide. The fastback focuses on: "Enhancing Teacher Quality" (content knowledge, licensure and certification, and…

The Office of Educational Research and Improvement funded nine projects exploring whether partnerships could help improve teacher education and induction. It created consortia of state education agencies, state agencies of higher education, teacher education colleges, and local school districts to collaborate on improving teacher education and…

This book provides advice intended to empower new teachers with the tools necessary to feel prepared, confident, and comfortable and to succeed, maintain enthusiasm, and remain committed to teaching. Among the numerous strategies and survival skills it promotes are time and stress management, effective organization, quality lesson plans, and…

This brief addresses four areas of opportunity to influence teacher quality. These areas of opportunity are used to create a framework to help state and district policymakers comprehensively address teacher quality. There are a number of policy levers or strategies that can be used as part of a comprehensive approach to improving teacher quality.…

This manual is intended for use as part of a 3-day orientation training for new faculty at the U.S. Army War College (USAWC) in Pennsylvania, a facility which trains tactical and operational leaders for policy and strategy roles in the military and related agencies. The orientation focuses on five factors which determine the value of an…

The national supply of teachers has risen to meet the demand, largely because of the growing interest in alternative programs of teacher preparation. An overview is given of alternative teacher certification that has allowed many districts, especially large urban districts, to fill their vacancies. (SLD)

Two portfolio projects were initiated at Montana State University to address the need for increasing teacher development opportunities in rural areas. Projects involved the use of portfolios to document and reflect on the teaching experiences of preservice special educators and general educators working towards special education certification.…

Trade and industrial (T&I) teachers enter the classroom as content level experts who may have acquired their content expertise through a combination of formal industry training and informal on-the-job experiences. When they make the career transition from industry to teaching, they must acquire professional teaching competencies. Like the content…

The recently mandated, National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) electronic submission format poses a significant challenge to teacher educators charged with compiling a program report for the purpose of securing national recognition from NCATE. The program report guidelines stipulate that compilers may use a maximum of only…

This study examines whether two online courses offering educational support for junior faculty have a positive effect on their attitudes to learning and curriculum and teaching capacities (CTC). The data used in the analysis are from two 2005 online university training courses. The tasks the online courses assign to faculty, the resources they…