This study aims to report how Hong Kong teachers handle a seemingly conventional, orderly schooling phenomenon--the teaching of the newly arrived children (NAC) migrated from mainland China. Semi-structured interviews with ten teachers from nine primary schools were conducted. The principal findings are that the teachers are not prepared for the…

As states and provinces develop large-scale assessment programs linked to their curricula, teachers are increasingly expected to interpret the assessment results and to explain them to parents. The challenge for teachers is especially great in Ontario, which began developing an assessment program in 1996 after almost three decades without…

Events in the development of competency standards for the teaching profession in Australia are documented, including publishing articles and reports, conducting conferences, commissioning sets of standards, validating support for the competency framework, and promoting of standards by government and professional organizations. Competency-based…

This study was conducted to determine whether the educational degree of mathematics instructors at New York City Technical College was a significant factor in students' perceptions of teacher effectiveness. A 10-item student opinion survey was distributed to 738 students enrolled in 44 mathematics classes. Instructors with doctoral degrees taught…

Legislators and school districts are reviewing alternative compensation plans in an effort to attract and retain qualified teachers. Limited merit-pay based plans have been abandoned, and the single salary schedule remains in place nationwide. A tight labor pool, greater scrutiny by legislatures, and new laws create pressures to raise salaries…

This study examined (1) whether students taught by National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS)-certified teachers would produce higher quality work than students of teachers who attempted NBPTS certification but were not certified; (2) whether the observed classroom behaviors of NBPTS-certified teachers would be demonstrably…

This fastback gives teachers and other educators a feel for being a National Board for Professional Teaching Standards candidate, offering an outline of the candidacy process, ways to assess readiness to become a candidate, and tips for proceeding through candidacy. Section 1, "National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS),"…

Legislators and school districts are reviewing alternative compensation plans in an effort to attract and retain qualified teachers. Limited merit-pay based plans have been abandoned, and the single salary schedule remains in place nationwide. A tight labor pool, greater scrutiny by legislatures, and new laws create pressures to raise salaries…

Examines key educational policies and practices that limit opportunities for bilingual education teachers to obtain academic language proficiency in Spanish. Bilingual-education teacher training cannot make up for ground lost by educators who lack prior attainment of math and science Spanish-language skills. Effective Spanish-language competency…

In a question-and-answer session, David C. Berliner discusses wide range of topics related to current state of the teaching profession, including qualities of the expert teacher, attracting higher quality teachers, teacher career-stage programs, merit pay, and promising reforms for teacher education in last decade. (PKP)

Adult and continuing education practitioners must engage in continuing professional education as a means of developing and maintaining their professional competence. This paper reviews the literature on competencies for continuing educators and examines the strengths of existing instruments for continuing educators to self-assess their…

The author posits that testing teacher quality will not improve education unless people realize how current means of teacher testing could eliminate from teacher preparation the utopian elements that foundations courses present through material from authors such as Maxine Greene, Samuel Bowles, and Herbert Gintis. He presents a history of the…

This paper presents and critically analyzes data from a project that sought teacher candidates' responses to the process and content of the Ontario Teacher Qualifying Test (OTQT), a mandatory, standardized, pencil and paper initial teacher qualification test. The aim of the project, guided by a critical democratic perspective, was to critically…

Technology skills and attitudes were compared between 51 school of education faculty members and 378 student teachers in teacher education programs in six Northwest liberal arts colleges. Few significant differences were found between the groups. In general, faculty members had higher levels of knowledge of a greater number of technology-based…

This updated compilation of state certification requirements for library media specialists lists titles of certificates or endorsement areas; academic preparation, experience, and recommendations needed; and required standardized tests. A second table lists knowledge/subject areas/competencies related to administration, technology/audiovisuals,…