Collaboration between public schools and universities through implementation of professional development schools may be central to any effort to improve education in an increasingly complex society. Chicago State University (Illinois), in conjunction with a cadre of stake holders from Chicago Public Schools, implemented a professional development school pilot project (The Village Teaching Project) during the summer term of 1996. The project sought to orient preservice teachers in the early stages of their training and focused not only on discrete technical knowledge but also on issues of everyday practice for which no apparent technical knowledge exists. Expert teachers involved in the project provided a real world perspective on practice and on what underlies excellence in the teaching profession. Instruction was provided within the context of a "Village Teaching" paradigm in which knowledge represents a socially constructed entity. Broad, measurable outcomes of the project included assessment of the extent to which preservice teachers processed knowledge about the teaching experience on the basis of cognitive, emotional, or behavioral reactions. Project evaluation involved analysis of "well-remembered events" along with other journal data. The Village Teaching Project represents an attempt to address areas of need in teacher preparation by laying a foundation on which preservice teachers can build. (Contains 19 references.) (Author)