The consultative needs and practices of 80 elementary school teachers in 3 Alberta schools were surveyed. Assistance was most commonly desired in tasks related to special needs of students, selecting instructional materials operating audio-visual equipment, and developing course outlines. (JC)

Investigates 49 preservice elementary teachers' conceptions of what causes the seasons using both a written procedure and a procedure that used models with verbal explanations. Results suggest that preservice elementary teachers are likely to show a high frequency of alternative conceptions of what causes the seasons and these conceptions are not…

Explores the experiences of preservice elementary teachers with science fairs, attitudes resulting from their participation in science fairs as students, and the importance of these past histories for their students. Results indicate that most teachers felt that science fairs are beneficial, but those who rated them as most worthwhile had never…

Uses data from a longitudinal study exploring experiences of elementary teachers as they learned and taught science in the transition from preservice to inservice status. Uses information based on one participant to examine a narrative device, restorying, exploring its usefulness as a way of enhancing legitimation in narrative inquiry. (BT)

Achievement goal theory was used as a theoretical framework to identify motivational climates in second- and fourth-grade physical education classes. Findings indicated that the motivational climate was a blending of the mastery and performance approaches, with teachers providing a variety of meaningful activities, recognizing and evaluating…

Examines two UK research studies, one from Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) and one from Homerton College, Cambridge, on initial teacher education (ITE) trainees' confidence in their science knowledge. Reveals the importance of school experience in developing this knowledge. Discusses implications of these surveys for the design of ITE…

Describes the programs of 43 responding universities that have specialized content science courses for elementary education majors. Provides contact addresses for each university. (MVL)

Examines effectiveness of a teachers-as-readers discussion group in (1) suggesting how teachers can use multicultural literature to foster an ethical respect for others and (2) engaging teachers in conversations about multicultural literature that challenge prevailing patterns of school literature discussions. Suggests success of the second aim…

Used a nontraditional approach to assess teacher acceptance of (1) seven reading comprehension strategies; (2) six sets of published materials that promoted comprehension strategies; and (3) reciprocal instruction. Favored strategies were prior knowledge activation, representational imagery, and question generation. (DG)

This paper presents a guide to help teachers learn to use the Internet, describing what the Internet is, what they will need to access the Internet, how to speak Internet, and how to connect with online services. A final section presents eight recommended Internet resources for teachers. (SM)

Determines the professional reading habits of 125 elementary school teachers and principals in South Dakota. Finds that professional journals with a "how-to-do-it" approach were the most widely read while those journals with theoretical and abstract concepts were the least widely read. (RS)

Looks at teachers' reluctance to engage in self-assessment, and the consequences in terms of public attitudes and policy. Includes a checklist of professional behaviors. (ET)

Results of a survey of 65 of 82 preservice elementary education majors were as follows: (1) high overall mean knowledge level about agriculture; (2) positive overall mean perceptions of agriculture; (3) higher knowledge scores correlated with more positive perceptions; and (4) only 20% feeling confident to teach agriculture concepts. (SK)

Describes the 54-month National Science Foundation-supported collaboration, the Thinking Mathematics Project. The project involved the American Federation of Teachers and the Learning Research and Development Center of the University of Pittsburgh in an effort to codify research and knowledge on early-grade mathematics instruction. (SLD)

Classroom teachers can understand the importance of fitness by experiencing the benefits first hand. The paper explains how to start and implement a worksite fitness program for teachers, discussing how to maintain interest by inviting guest speakers, highlighting different issues, measuring success, and providing incentives. (SM)