Radiographic findings in late-presenting congenital diaphragmatic hernia: helpful imaging findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muzzafar, Sofia; Swischuk, Leonard E.; Jadhav, Siddharth P.

2012-01-01

Imaging findings in delayed presentation of congenital diaphragmatic hernia can be confusing and misleading, resulting in a delay in diagnosis. To evaluate the often puzzling plain film findings of late-presenting CDH in an effort to determine whether any of the findings could be helpful in arriving at an early diagnosis. We reviewed and documented the plain film findings and clinical data in eight patients seen during the last 20 years with late-presenting CDH. IRB exempt status was obtained in this study. There were five boys and three girls. The age range was 4 months to 12 years with a mean of 2.4 years. Five children presented with acute respiratory problems while three presented with acute abdominal pain. Two children presented with both respiratory and abdominal findings and one also presented with hematemesis. Two children had radiographic findings that were not difficult to analyze while the remaining six had findings that posed initial diagnostic problems. Although not common, late-presenting CDH can result in confusing plain film radiographic findings and a delay in diagnosis. We found that the most important finding in analyzing these radiographs is in evaluating the location and position of the gastric bubble with the more common left-side hernias. (orig.)

Radiographic findings in late-presenting congenital diaphragmatic hernia: helpful imaging findings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Muzzafar, Sofia; Swischuk, Leonard E.; Jadhav, Siddharth P. [University of Texas Medical Branch, Department of Pediatric Radiology, Galveston, TX (United States)

2012-03-15

Imaging findings in delayed presentation of congenital diaphragmatic hernia can be confusing and misleading, resulting in a delay in diagnosis. To evaluate the often puzzling plain film findings of late-presenting CDH in an effort to determine whether any of the findings could be helpful in arriving at an early diagnosis. We reviewed and documented the plain film findings and clinical data in eight patients seen during the last 20 years with late-presenting CDH. IRB exempt status was obtained in this study. There were five boys and three girls. The age range was 4 months to 12 years with a mean of 2.4 years. Five children presented with acute respiratory problems while three presented with acute abdominal pain. Two children presented with both respiratory and abdominal findings and one also presented with hematemesis. Two children had radiographic findings that were not difficult to analyze while the remaining six had findings that posed initial diagnostic problems. Although not common, late-presenting CDH can result in confusing plain film radiographic findings and a delay in diagnosis. We found that the most important finding in analyzing these radiographs is in evaluating the location and position of the gastric bubble with the more common left-side hernias. (orig.)

Radiographic findings in late-presenting congenital diaphragmatic hernia: helpful imaging findings.

Science.gov (United States)

Muzzafar, Sofia; Swischuk, Leonard E; Jadhav, Siddharth P

2012-03-01

Imaging findings in delayed presentation of congenital diaphragmatic hernia can be confusing and misleading, resulting in a delay in diagnosis. To evaluate the often puzzling plain film findings of late-presenting CDH in an effort to determine whether any of the findings could be helpful in arriving at an early diagnosis. We reviewed and documented the plain film findings and clinical data in eight patients seen during the last 20 years with late-presenting CDH. IRB exempt status was obtained in this study. There were five boys and three girls. The age range was 4 months to 12 years with a mean of 2.4 years. Five children presented with acute respiratory problems while three presented with acute abdominal pain. Two children presented with both respiratory and abdominal findings and one also presented with hematemesis. Two children had radiographic findings that were not difficult to analyze while the remaining six had findings that posed initial diagnostic problems. Although not common, late-presenting CDH can result in confusing plain film radiographic findings and a delay in diagnosis. We found that the most important finding in analyzing these radiographs is in evaluating the location and position of the gastric bubble with the more common left-side hernias.

Help provided by school counsellor to teachers and students in behaviour management at secondary school

OpenAIRE

Atıcı, Meral; Çekici, Ferah

2012-01-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the views of teachers, school counsellors, and students on counsellor help for dealing with misbehaviour at school. Qualitative data were collected from counsellors, teachers and students using interviews to address the research questions. Five counsellors, 20 teachers and 35 students in five high schools with a low socioeconomic level in Adana, Turkey, participated in the study. Data were analysed by using a content analysis technique. Results sho...

Helping Foster Children in School: A Guide for Foster Parents, Social Workers and Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

DeGarmo, John

2015-01-01

"Helping Foster Children in School" explores the challenges that foster children face in schools and offers positive and practical guidance tailored to help the parents, teachers and social workers supporting them. Children in care often perform poorly at school both in terms of their behavior and their academic performance, with many…

Helping students make meaning of authentic investigations: findings from a student–teacher–scientist partnership

Science.gov (United States)

Dolan, Erin

2013-01-01

As student–teacher–scientist partnerships become more widespread, there is a need for research to understand the roles assumed by scientists and teachers as they interact with students in general and in inquiry learning environments in particular. Although teacher roles during inquiry learning have been studied, there is a paucity of research about the roles that scientists assume in their interactions with students. Socio-cultural perspectives on learning emphasize social interaction as a means for students to make meaning of scientific ideas. Thus, this naturalistic study of classroom discourse aims to explore the ways scientists and teachers help high school students make meaning during authentic inquiry investigations. Conversational analysis is conducted of video recordings of discussions between students and teachers and students and scientists from two instances of a student–teacher–scientist partnership program. A social semiotic analytic framework is used to interpret the actions of scientists and teachers. The results indicate a range of common and distinct roles for scientists and teachers with respect to the conceptual, social, pedagogical, and epistemological aspects of meaning making. While scientists provided conceptual and epistemological support related to their scientific expertise, such as explaining scientific phenomena or aspects of the nature of science, teachers played a critical role in ensuring students' access to this knowledge. The results have implications for managing the division of labor between scientists and teachers in partnership programs. PMID:23828722

Reactions of teachers versus non-teachers toward people who stutter.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Jian; Arnold, Hayley S

2015-01-01

The primary purpose of this study was to assess whether kindergarten through twelfth grade teachers differ from people in non-teaching occupations in their reactions to people who stutter (PWS). Taking differences in age and education into account, we compared reactions to PWS between 263 teachers and 1336 non-teachers in the United States based on their responses on the Public Opinion Survey on Human Attributes-Stuttering (POSHA-S, St. Louis, 2012). Findings indicated that teachers use a greater number and variety of information sources about PWS than the general public and that male teachers do so even more than female teachers. With regard to the other POSHA-S components, accommodating/helping, knowledge/experience, and sympathy/social distancing of PWS, teachers' responses were not significantly different from their non-teaching counterparts. Regardless of occupation, women reported reactions to PWS that are considered more accommodating and helpful to PWS than the reported reactions of men. Readers should be able to: (1) identify the challenges that students who stutter encounter in the K-12 school setting, (2) identify recommended ways teachers can react to their students who stutter, (3) summarize findings regarding teachers' reactions to people who stutter (PWS), and (4) identify key variables that are associated with reactions to PWS. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Helping Immigrants Become Teachers.

Science.gov (United States)

Ross, Flynn

2001-01-01

Describes Newcomers Entering Teaching, a program designed by the Portland (Maine) Public Schools to prepare recent immigrants and refugees to enter local university's 9-month teacher-certification program. (PKP)

A Collaborative Approach to Helping Teacher Education Faculty Model Technology Integration in Their Courses: An Informal Case.

Science.gov (United States)

Zachariades, Iacovos; Roberts, Sherron Killingsworth

1995-01-01

Describes an innovative and collaborative approach to helping teacher educators better prepare preservice teachers to utilize technology for effective instruction. A mentoring program that paired graduate students in instructional technology with interested faculty members is discussed, and attitudes of the mentors and the faculty members are…

Earth Exploration Toolbook Workshops: Helping Teachers and Students Analyze Web-based Scientific Data

Science.gov (United States)

McAuliffe, C.; Ledley, T.; Dahlman, L.; Haddad, N.

2007-12-01

One of the challenges faced by Earth science teachers, particularly in K-12 settings, is that of connecting scientific research to classroom experiences. Helping teachers and students analyze Web-based scientific data is one way to bring scientific research to the classroom. The Earth Exploration Toolbook (EET) was developed as an online resource to accomplish precisely that. The EET consists of chapters containing step-by-step instructions for accessing Web-based scientific data and for using a software analysis tool to explore issues or concepts in science, technology, and mathematics. For example, in one EET chapter, users download Earthquake data from the USGS and bring it into a geographic information system (GIS), analyzing factors affecting the distribution of earthquakes. The goal of the EET Workshops project is to provide professional development that enables teachers to incorporate Web-based scientific data and analysis tools in ways that meet their curricular needs. In the EET Workshops project, Earth science teachers participate in a pair of workshops that are conducted in a combined teleconference and Web-conference format. In the first workshop, the EET Data Analysis Workshop, participants are introduced to the National Science Digital Library (NSDL) and the Digital Library for Earth System Education (DLESE). They also walk through an Earth Exploration Toolbook (EET) chapter and discuss ways to use Earth science datasets and tools with their students. In a follow-up second workshop, the EET Implementation Workshop, teachers share how they used these materials in the classroom by describing the projects and activities that they carried out with students. The EET Workshops project offers unique and effective professional development. Participants work at their own Internet-connected computers, and dial into a toll-free group teleconference for step-by-step facilitation and interaction. They also receive support via Elluminate, a Web

A school mental health literacy curriculum resource training approach: effects on Tanzanian teachers' mental health knowledge, stigma and help-seeking efficacy.

Science.gov (United States)

Kutcher, Stan; Wei, Yifeng; Gilberds, Heather; Ubuguyu, Omary; Njau, Tasiana; Brown, Adena; Sabuni, Norman; Magimba, Ayoub; Perkins, Kevin

2016-01-01

Mental health literacy (MHL) is foundational for mental health promotion, prevention, stigma reduction, and care; School supported information pertaining to MHL in sub-Saharan Africa is extremely limited, including in Tanzania. Successful application of a school MHL curriculum resource may be an effective way to increase teacher MHL and therefore help to improve mental health outcomes for students. Secondary school teachers in Tanzania were trained on the African Guide (AG) a school MHL curriculum resource culturally adapted from a Canadian MHL resource (The Guide) for use in Africa. Teacher training workshops on the classroom application of the AG were used to evaluate its impact on mental health literacy in a sample of Tanzanian Secondary school teachers. Pre-post training assessment of participant knowledge and attitudes was conducted. Help-seeking efficacy for teachers themselves and their interventions for students, friends, family members and peers were determined. Paired t test (n = 37) results demonstrate highly significant improvements in teacher's overall knowledge (p Teachers' stigma against mental illness decreased significantly following the training (p teacher's overall knowledge (p Teachers also reported high rates (greater than ¾ of the sample) of positive help-seeking efficacy for themselves as well as for their students, friends, family members and peers. As a result of the training, the number of students teachers identified for potential mental health care totaled over 200. These positive results, when taken together with other research, suggest that the use of a classroom-based resource (the AG) that integrates MHL into existing school curriculum through training teachers may be an effective and sustainable way to increase the MHL (improved knowledge, decreased stigma and positive help-seeking efficacy) of teachers in Tanzania. As this study replicated the results of a previous intervention in Malawi, consideration could be given to

The Financial Education Tool Kit: Helping Teachers Meet State- Mandated Personal Finance Requirements

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St. Pierre, Eileen; Richert, Charlotte; Routh, Susan; Lockwood, Rachel; Simpson, Mickey

2012-01-01

States are recognizing the need for personal financial education and have begun requiring it as a condition for high school graduation. Responding to teacher requests to help them meet state-mandated financial education requirements, FCS educators in the Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service developed a financial education tool kit. This article…

Helping technophobic teachers ease the burden of marking with easy-to-use online quizzes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

LIP Paul Chi Hong

2008-12-01

Full Text Available A number of studies have shown that teacher stress was due to teachers spending long hours in marking their students’ work such as quizzes and examination papers from large class sizes. With this problem in mind, a new web 2.0 technology has emerged, Quiz Center supported by DiscoverySchool.com which can help technophobic teachers make a free and easy-to-use online quiz. Online quizzes can be automatically marked by a script or managed by a server. In this paper, the following sections were addressed:1 the need for using online quizzes to ease the burden of teachers:2 the definitions of different types of online quizzes and the advantages and reasons for using them;3 the reasons for using Quiz Center from DiscoverySchool.com; 4 a sharing of how I made an online multiple-choice email quiz with Quiz Center from the perspective of a technophobic teacher; and 5 a discussion on the limitations, recommendations and implications for using online quizzes.

SCHOOL and WORK. HOW TO HELP TEACHERS AND STUDENTS COPE WITH CHANGES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cristina Anca COLIBABA

2016-05-01

Full Text Available The School and Work project (2014-1-UK01-KA204-000071, co-financed by the European Union under the Erasmus+ programme, intends to capitalise the existing results of previous European projects addressing the early school leaving issue with a view to establish a more concrete and effective cooperation between schools and the world of work, which will enhance students’motivation to learn and complete their studies. The article introduces e-learning resources focusing on strategies teachers could use in order to help students unveil their interests and aptitudes. This will enable teachers plan and implement personalized educational paths and guidance services and valorize students' talents through curricular and extracurricular activities , which will motivate students to stay at school.

ART drugs help reduce HIV transmission, Chinese study finds ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

International Development Research Centre Government of Canada ... ART drugs help reduce HIV transmission, Chinese study finds ... where only one person has HIV can reduce HIV transmission rates, at least in the short term, a Chinese study has found. ... Ecohealth Field-building Leadership Initiative in Southeast Asia.

Teachers as Air Traffic Controllers: Helping Adolescents Navigate the Unfriendly Skies of Executive Functioning

Science.gov (United States)

Hodgkinson, Todd; Parks, Stephanie

2016-01-01

The purpose of this article is to familiarize teachers with the concept of executive functioning and to provide them with a collection of strategies that they can use to help support middle and high school students with planning, organization, task-initiation, and impulse control.

TPACK in Teacher Education: Are We Preparing Teachers to Use Technology for Early Literacy?

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Voogt, Joke; McKenney, Susan

2017-01-01

This study examines if and how five teacher education institutes are helping students to develop the technological pedagogical content knowledge needed to effectively use technology for early literacy. Focus group discussions were held with teacher educators in which their responses to expert recommendations were probed. Findings indicate that,…

The Perceptions of Elementary School Teachers Regarding Their Efforts to Help Students Utilize Student-to-Student Discourse in Science

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Craddock, Jennifer Lovejoy

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to examine the perceptions of elementary teachers who teach science as opposed to science teacher specialists regarding their efforts to help students use student-to-student discourse for improving science learning. A growing body of research confirms the importance of a) student-to-student discourse for making meaning of science ideas and b) moving students' conceptual development towards a more scientific understanding of the natural world. Based on those foundations, the three research questions that guided this study examined the value elementary teachers place on student-to-student discourse, the various approaches teachers employ to promote the use of student-to-student discourse for learning science, and the factors and conditions that promote and inhibit the use of student-to-student discourse as an effective pedagogical strategy in elementary science. Data were gathered from 23 elementary teachers in a single district using an on-line survey and follow-up interviews with 8 teachers. All data were analyzed and evolving themes led to the following findings: (1) elementary teachers value student-to-student discourse in science, (2) teachers desire to increase time using student-to-student discourse, (3) teachers use a limited number of student-to-student discourse strategies to increase student learning in science, (4) teachers use student-to-student discourse as formative assessment to determine student learning in science, (5) professional development focusing on approaches to student-to-student discourse develops teachers' capacity for effective implementation, (6) teachers perceive school administrators' knowledge of and support for student-to-student discourse as beneficial, (7) time and scheduling constraints limit the use of student-to-student discourse in science. Implications of this study included the necessity of school districts to focus on student-to-student discourse in science, provide teacher and

"Don't Leave Me!": Helping the Child Whose Parents Are Separating. Between Teacher & Parent

Science.gov (United States)

Brodkin, Adele M.

2005-01-01

This article relates the story of a young girl's difficulties in accepting her parents' separation, and offers suggestions for both teachers and parents on how to help a child cope with his or her feelings and anxiety in this situation. Resources for further study are also offered.

Sound effects: Multimodal input helps infants find displaced objects.

Science.gov (United States)

Shinskey, Jeanne L

2017-09-01

Before 9 months, infants use sound to retrieve a stationary object hidden by darkness but not one hidden by occlusion, suggesting auditory input is more salient in the absence of visual input. This article addresses how audiovisual input affects 10-month-olds' search for displaced objects. In AB tasks, infants who previously retrieved an object at A subsequently fail to find it after it is displaced to B, especially following a delay between hiding and retrieval. Experiment 1 manipulated auditory input by keeping the hidden object audible versus silent, and visual input by presenting the delay in the light versus dark. Infants succeeded more at B with audible than silent objects and, unexpectedly, more after delays in the light than dark. Experiment 2 presented both the delay and search phases in darkness. The unexpected light-dark difference disappeared. Across experiments, the presence of auditory input helped infants find displaced objects, whereas the absence of visual input did not. Sound might help by strengthening object representation, reducing memory load, or focusing attention. This work provides new evidence on when bimodal input aids object processing, corroborates claims that audiovisual processing improves over the first year of life, and contributes to multisensory approaches to studying cognition. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject Before 9 months, infants use sound to retrieve a stationary object hidden by darkness but not one hidden by occlusion. This suggests they find auditory input more salient in the absence of visual input in simple search tasks. After 9 months, infants' object processing appears more sensitive to multimodal (e.g., audiovisual) input. What does this study add? This study tested how audiovisual input affects 10-month-olds' search for an object displaced in an AB task. Sound helped infants find displaced objects in both the presence and absence of visual input. Object processing becomes more

Can New Modes of Digital Learning Help Resolve the Teacher Crisis in Sub-Saharan Africa?

Science.gov (United States)

Moon, Bob; Villet, Charmaine

2017-01-01

Sub-Saharan Africa, more than any other part of the world, is experiencing a crisis in finding sufficiently qualified teachers to meet the needs of expanding school systems. The professional development support provided to serving teachers is also inadequate in most countries. The most recent data on learner outcomes has revealed a worrying…

Care and support of orphaned and vulnerable children at school: helping teachers to respond

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lesley Wood

2011-01-01

Full Text Available It is acknowledged that teacher training programmes around HIV in most of sub-Saharan Africa appear not to have been very effective in assisting teachers to respond to the demands placed on them by the pandemic. In response to the need identified by international development agencies, for research into teacher education and HIV in sub-Saharan Africa, this study investigated teacher perceptions of the effectiveness of training programmes offered in a specific school district in South Africa to equip them to deal with issues arising from having orphans and vulnerable children in their classrooms. A qualitative research design was followed to purposively select teachers who had attended the departmental training to participate in focus groups to explore the phenomenon of teaching orphaned and vulnerable children. The findings that emerged from the thematic data analysis provided supporting evidence that current teacher education approaches in this regard are not perceived to be effective. The results are used to suggest guidelines for an alternative approach to the current forms of HIV and AIDS training for teachers that is more likely to be sustainable, culturally appropriate and suited to the context.

Evolving minds: Helping students with cognitive dissonance

Science.gov (United States)

Bramschreiber, Terry L.

Even 150 years after Charles Darwin published On the Origin of Species, public school teachers still find themselves dealing with student resistance to learning about biological evolution. Some teachers deal with this pressure by undermining, deemphasizing, or even omitting the topic in their science curriculum. Others face the challenge and deliver solid scientific instruction of evolutionary theory despite the conflicts that may arise. The latter were the topic of this study. I interviewed five teachers that had experience dealing with resistance to learning evolution in their school community. Through these in-depth interviews, I examined strategies these teachers use when facing resistance and how they help students deal with the cognitive dissonance that may be experienced when learning about evolution. I selected the qualitative method of educational criticism and connoisseurship to organize and categorize my data. From the interviews, the following findings emerged. Experienced teachers increased their confidence in teaching evolution by pursuing outside professional development. They not only learned more about evolutionary theory, but about creationist arguments against evolution. These teachers front-load their curriculum to integrate the nature of science into their lessons to address misunderstandings about how science works. They also highlight the importance of learning evolutionary theory but ensure students they do not have an agenda to indoctrinate students. Finally these experienced teachers work hard to create an intellectually safe learning environment to build trusting and respectful relationships with their students.

From Teacher Isolation to Teacher Collaboration: Theoretical Perspectives and Empirical Findings

Science.gov (United States)

Ostovar-Nameghi, Seyyed Ali; Sheikhahmadi, Mohsen

2016-01-01

This study aims at: (1) reviewing the underlying causes of teacher isolation; (2) unrevealing the negative effects of isolation on teachers' professional and personal life; (2) illustrating different modes of voluntary collaboration among teachers; (4) presenting substantive evidence is support of collaboration as an efficient mode of professional…

Local Talent: By Tapping into the Resources Just outside Their School Walls, Music Teachers Can Help Broaden Their Students' Horizons

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Randall, Mac

2009-01-01

Many music teachers across the country have learned how beneficial it can be to tap into the communities around them. The author discusses how music teachers can help broaden their students' horizons by tapping into the resources just outside their school walls. One way is by employing local talents. Another is to put an ad in nearby music stores,…

Web-Enhanced Instruction and Learning: Findings of a Short- and Long-Term Impact Study and Teacher Use of NASA Web Resources

Science.gov (United States)

McCarthy, Marianne C.; Grabowski, Barbara L.; Koszalka, Tiffany

2003-01-01

Over a three-year period, researchers and educators from the Pennsylvania State University (PSU), University Park, Pennsylvania, and the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center (DFRC), Edwards, California, worked together to analyze, develop, implement and evaluate materials and tools that enable teachers to use NASA Web resources effectively for teaching science, mathematics, technology and geography. Two conference publications and one technical paper have already been published as part of this educational research series on Web-based instruction and learning. This technical paper, Web-Enhanced Instruction and Learning: Findings of a Short- and Long-Term Impact Study, is the culminating report in this educational research series and is based on the final report submitted to NASA. This report describes the broad spectrum of data gathered from teachers about their experiences using NASA Web resources in the classroom. It also describes participating teachers responses and feedback about the use of the NASA Web-Enhanced Learning Environment Strategies reflection tool on their teaching practices. The reflection tool was designed to help teachers merge the vast array of NASA resources with the best teaching methods, taking into consideration grade levels, subject areas and teaching preferences. The teachers described their attitudes toward technology and innovation in the classroom and their experiences and perceptions as they attempted to integrate Web resources into science, mathematics, technology and geography instruction.

Helping Them Grow.

Science.gov (United States)

Kreidler, William J.; And Others

1995-01-01

Three articles present suggestions to help elementary teachers promote student development. The first describes games that encourage a sense of community. The second deals with making parent teacher conferences a positive experience. The third discusses how to give confused children who are involved in custody battles an alternative to acting out.…

The Effectiveness of Supermarket Posters in Helping to Find Missing Children

Science.gov (United States)

Lampinen, James Michael; Arnal, Jack; Hicks, Jason L.

2009-01-01

One approach used to help find missing children is to place posters of them at the exits of supermarkets. The present research addresses the question of how effective that approach is likely to be. Posters of 8 missing children were displayed on a bulletin board at a cooperating grocery store. Customers leaving the store completed a survey and…

Crossing a Broad Gray Line to Help Children

Science.gov (United States)

Allen, Megan M.

2015-01-01

Helping students with mental health issues sometimes presents teachers with the dilemma of following the letter of school rules or doing what is best for the child. One teacher tells her story of crossing such lines, but only in service to children. She also outlines what teachers can and should do to help students who need mental health services.

Urban High School Teachers' Beliefs Concerning Essential Science Teaching Dispositions

Science.gov (United States)

Miranda, Rommel

2012-01-01

This qualitative study addresses the link between urban high school science teachers' beliefs about essential teaching dispositions and student learning outcomes. The findings suggest that in order to help students to do well in science in urban school settings, science teachers should possess essential teaching dispositions which include…

Attitudes of Preschool Teachers toward the Integration of Handicapped Children.

Science.gov (United States)

Dyson, Lily L.; Kubo, H. Richard

Forty-six supervisors and teachers were surveyed regarding their attitudes toward integration of handicapped children in a regular preschool program, the helpfulness of supportive services, and the necessary conditions for the integration of their programs. Findings showed that the majority of teachers were in favor of integration and supportive…

Claude Bernard Distinguished Lecture. Becoming a truly helpful teacher: considerably more challenging, and potentially more fun, than merely doing business as usual.

Science.gov (United States)

Jason, Hilliard

2007-12-01

Few medical faculty members are adequately prepared for their instructional responsibilities. Our educational traditions were established before we had research-based understandings of the teaching-learning process and before brain research began informing our understandings of how humans achieve lasting learning. Yet, there are several advantages you may have. If your expertise is at one of the frontiers of human biology, your teaching can be inherently fascinating to aspiring health professionals. If your work has implications for human health, you have another potential basis for engaging future clinicians. And, thanks to Claude Bernard's influence, you likely are "process oriented," a necessary mindset for being an effective teacher. There are also challenges you may face. Your medical students will mostly become clinicians. Unless you can help them see connections between your offerings and their future work, you may not capture and sustain their interest. To be effective, teachers, like clinicians, need to be interactive, make on-the-spot decisions, and be "emotional literate." If you aren't comfortable with these demands, you may have work to do toward becoming a truly helpful teacher. Program changes may be needed. Might your program need to change 1) from being adversarial and controlling to being supportive and trust based or 2) from mainly dispensing information to mainly asking and inviting questions? In conclusion, making changes toward becoming a truly helpful teacher can bring benefits to your students while increasing your sense of satisfaction and fulfillment as a teacher. If you choose to change, be gentle with yourself, as you should be when expecting your students to make important changes.

Problem Solution Project: Transforming Curriculum and Empowering Urban Students and Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Jarrett, Olga S.; Stenhouse, Vera

2011-01-01

This article presents findings of 6 years of implementing a Problem Solution Project, an assignment influenced by service learning, problem-based learning, critical theory, and critical pedagogy whereby teachers help children tackle real problems. Projects of 135 teachers in an urban certification/master's program were summarized by cohort year…

Comparing the Internet Usage of Pre-service Language Teachers With Teachers of Other Subjects: Distance Learning vs. On-Campus Learning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mehmet Firat

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Teachers play a crucial role in helping individuals gain adequate Internet competency, which requires teachers themselves to be Internet-literate. The purpose of this study is to investigate the Internet use of the distance and on-campus pre-service teachers of language and other disciplines by multiple parameters. A total of 789 teacher candidates participated in this survey. The findings show that the candidate teachers in on-campus and distance-learning programs have an average level of Internet usage adequacy and that the younger candidate teachers and those in higher classes use the Internet more frequently. Pre-service foreign language teachers have been found to have a moderate level of Internet usage frequency, adequacy and technology ownership in comparison with the other preservice teacher groups.

Reflections on "A Qualitative Analysis of Mainstreamed Behaviorally Disordered Aggressive Adolescents' Perceptions of Helpful and Unhelpful Teacher Attitudes and Behaviors."

Science.gov (United States)

Crowley, E. Paula

1993-01-01

The author of EC 607 583 responds to questions about her research on mainstreamed behaviorally disordered aggressive adolescents' perceptions of helpful and unhelpful teacher attitudes and behaviors. Issues relevant to future research in this area are noted. (JDD)

APPLYING RESEARCH FINDINGS IN COMPREHENSION TO CLASSROOM PRACTICE.

Science.gov (United States)

WILLIAMS, RICHARD P.

RESEARCH SHOWS THAT, IN SPITE OF THE FAVORABLE ATTITUDE TOWARD SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH, A GAP EXISTS BETWEEN THE INITIATION OF AN INNOVATION AND ITS WIDE ACCEPTANCE. TO HELP CLOSE THE GAP, TEACHERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO APPLY RESEARCH FINDINGS TO CLASSROOM PRACTICE AND TO DETERMINE THEIR FEASIBILITY. SIXTEEN STUDIES ON COMPREHENSION CITED IN THIS ARTICLE…

Practices implemented by a Texas charter school system to overcome science teacher shortage

Science.gov (United States)

Yasar, Bilgehan M.

The purpose of this study was to examine practices used by a charter school system to hire and retain science teachers. The research design for this study was a qualitative case study. This single instrumental case study explored the issue within a bounded system. Purposeful sampling strategy was used to identify the participants who were interviewed individually. Findings of the case study supported that using online resources, advertising in the newspaper, attending job fairs, using alternative certification programs, attracting alumni, contacting the college of educations and hiring internationally helped the charter school system with hiring science teachers. Improving teacher salary scale, implementing teacher mentorship programs, reimbursing teachers for certification and master's programs, providing professional development and supporting teachers helped to retain science teachers. Therefore, this study contributes to determining strategies and techniques, selecting methods and programs, training administrators, and monitoring for successful hiring and retaining science teacher implementation.

What Coping Strategies and Support Mechanisms Have Elementary Teachers Found Most Effective?

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Byrd, Kristie M.

2017-01-01

This basic qualitative research study explored the lives of 14 elementary teachers in their classroom environment to answer two central research questions which are: what coping strategies do teachers find most effective and what coping mechanisms provided by administration helps them cope with classroom stress? Data were collected through…

Helping Teachers to Help Children Living with a Mentally Ill Parent: Teachers' Perceptions on Identification and Policy Issues

Science.gov (United States)

Bibou-Nakou, I.

2004-01-01

The material presented here is based on a pilot European project (Daphne Project, 2000/EU funding, collaboration of Greece and England) regarding parental mental illness and children's welfare and needs (1).The presentation focuses upon the responses of a group of teachers working in primary education in relation to identification issues and…

Science Teachers' Beliefs about the Influence of Their Summer Research Experiences on Their Pedagogical Practices

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Miranda, Rommel J.; Damico, Julie B.

2013-01-01

This study sought to determine the beliefs that tenured, in-service high school science teachers hold about how their participation in a large mid-Atlantic university's 6-week summer research experiences for teachers (RET) program might influence their pedagogical practices. The findings show a number of factors that teachers believed helped them…

Elementary Teacher's Conceptions of Inquiry Teaching: Messages for Teacher Development

Science.gov (United States)

Ireland, Joseph E.; Watters, James J.; Brownlee, Jo; Lupton, Mandy

2012-02-01

This study explored practicing elementary school teacher's conceptions of teaching in ways that foster inquiry-based learning in the science curriculum (inquiry teaching). The advocacy for inquiry-based learning in contemporary curricula assumes the principle that students learn in their own way by drawing on direct experience fostered by the teacher. That students should be able to discover answers themselves through active engagement with new experiences was central to the thinking of eminent educators such as Pestalozzi, Dewey and Montessori. However, even after many years of research and practice, inquiry learning as a referent for teaching still struggles to find expression in the average teachers' pedagogy. This study drew on interview data from 20 elementary teachers. A phenomenographic analysis revealed three conceptions of teaching for inquiry learning in science in the elementary years of schooling: (a) The Experience-centered conception where teachers focused on providing interesting sensory experiences to students; (b) The Problem-centered conception where teachers focused on engaging students with challenging problems; and (c) The Question-centered conception where teachers focused on helping students to ask and answer their own questions. Understanding teachers' conceptions has implications for both the enactment of inquiry teaching in the classroom as well as the uptake of new teaching behaviors during professional development, with enhanced outcomes for engaging students in Science.

Finding a Third Space in Teacher Education: Creating an Urban Teacher Residency

Science.gov (United States)

Klein, Emily J.; Taylor, Monica; Onore, Cynthia; Strom, Kathryn; Abrams, Linda

2013-01-01

This paper describes an urban teacher residency program, the Newark Montclair Urban Teacher Residency, a collaborative endeavor between the Newark, New Jersey Public Schools and Montclair State University, built on a decades-long partnership. The authors see the conceptual work of developing this program as creating a "third space" in…

Burnout Syndrome of Teachers

OpenAIRE

Semrádová, Michaela

2013-01-01

The bachelor's thesis covers burnout syndrome of teachers. Defines burnout syndrome, describes its causes and symptoms. Describes teaching as helping profession and focousing on stressful situations at school. In the last chapter described different prevention strategies burnout syndrome. Key words: burnout syndrome, teaching, teacher, helping professions, beginning teacher, stress

Meeting Unique Student Needs: Dual-Identified Students and Teacher Self-Efficacy

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Dornayi, Hassan Mohsen

2017-01-01

This study explored the connection between how confident teachers feel about their skills in teaching dual-identified students and the types and amounts of training they have received. Additionally, this study attempted to find out what the needs of teachers were in order to help them feel more confident in their abilities to teach these students.…

Comparing teacher roles in Denmark and England

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kelly, Peter; Dorf, Hans; Pratt, Nick

2014-01-01

This article reports the findings of a comparative study of teaching in Denmark and England. Its broader aim is to help develop an approach for comparing pedagogy. Lesson observations and interviews identified the range of goals towards which teachers in each country worked and the actions...... these prompted. These were clustered using the lens of Bernstein’s pedagogic discourse to construct teacher roles, which provided a view of pedagogy. Through this approach we have begun to identify variations in pedagogy across two countries. All teachers in this study adopted a variety of roles. Of significance...... was the ease with which competent English teachers moved between roles. The English teachers observed adopted roles consistent with a wider techno-rationalist discourse. There was a greater subject emphasis by Danish teachers, whose work was set predominantly within a democratic humanist discourse, whilst...

COMMENTARY: I'M ONLY TRYING TO HELP: A ROLE FOR INTERVENTIONS IN TEACHING LISTENING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michael Rost

2007-02-01

Full Text Available In my work as an author and teacher trainer, I have the opportunity to travel around the world and talk to teachers in a variety of settings. Though I meet teachers with a range of backgrounds and a wide disparity of resources, I find that a few common themes come up whenever I talk with teachers about language teaching and technology. One of the familiar refrains is that most of us claim to lack the technological resources we feel we need to teach effectively. There’s always something new on the horizon that we feel we just have to have. Another recurring theme is the lament that most of our students just don’t seem to take advantage of the extra learning opportunities we present them anyway! Teachers want to help, but often feel under appreciated for their efforts. Personally, I have relished the ongoing advances in technology over the course of my teaching career. I started out as a secondary school teacher in Togo, West Africa with chalk – sometimes yellow or pink! – and a blackboard as my only teaching technology. When teachers express a sense of being overwhelmed by new technology, I sometimes talk about my own beginnings and also remind them of a few of Donald Norman’s principles of human-centered design. According to Norman (2004, for any new technology to be effective, it must be intuitively helpful and elegantly efficient. In the case of language teaching, this means the technology must – immediately and transparently – help us teach better than we do already. If it doesn’t, we simply shouldn’t use it. In addition, Norman says, for any new technology to be widely adopted, it must appeal to the emotions as well as to reason. If people don’t enjoy using a particular technology, no matter how logically useful it may be, they will tend to shun it. Perhaps because as language teachers we tend to favor eclecticism, we will often throw any emerging technology into the mix as a "helpful resource." As Doughty and Long (2003

Teachers' Health.

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Scheuch, Klaus; Haufe, Eva; Seibt, Reingard

2015-05-15

Almost 800,000 teachers were working in Germany in the 2012-13 school year. A determination of the most common medical problems in this large occupational group serves as the basis for measures that help maintain teachers' health and their ability to work in their profession. We present our own research findings, a selective review of the literature, and data derived from the German statutory health insurance scheme concerning medical disability, long-term illness, and inability to work among teachers. Compared to the general population, teachers have a more healthful lifestyle and a lower frequency of cardiovascular risk factors (except hypertension). Like non-teachers, they commonly suffer from musculoskeletal and cardiovascular diseases. Mental and psychosomatic diseases are more common in teachers than in non-teachers, as are nonspecific complaints such as exhaustion, fatigue, headache, and tension. It is commonly said that 3-5% of teachers suffer from "burnout," but reliable data on this topic are lacking, among other reasons because the term has no standard definition. The percentage of teachers on sick leave is generally lower than the overall percentage among statutory insurees; it is higher in the former East Germany than in the former West Germany. The number of teachers taking early retirement because of illness has steadily declined from over 60% in 2001 and currently stands at 19%, with an average age of 58 years, among tenured teachers taking early retirement. The main reasons for early retirement are mental and psychosomatic illnesses, which together account for 32-50% of cases. Although German law mandates the medical care of persons in the teaching professions by occupational physicians, this requirement is implemented to varying extents in the different German federal states. Teachers need qualified, interdisciplinary occupational health care with the involvement of their treating physicians.

Helicopter Parents Help Students, Survey Finds

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Lipka, Sara

2007-01-01

Helicopter parents, notorious for hovering over their college-age children, may actually help students thrive, according to this year's National Survey of Student Engagement. Students whose parents intervene on their behalf--38 percent of freshmen and 29 percent of seniors--are more active in and satisfied with college, says the monstrous annual…

Educating Prospective Teachers of Biology: Findings, Limitations, and Recommendations.

Science.gov (United States)

Hewson, Peter W.; Tabachnick, B. Robert; Zeichner, Kenneth M.; Lemberger, John

1999-01-01

Summarizes a complex study of a science-teacher-education program whose goal was to graduate teachers who held conceptual change conceptions of teaching science and were disposed to put hem into practice. Concludes that there are influences on prospective teachers from their content coursework that have significant implications for how they view…

How to be a brilliant English teacher

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Wright, Trevor

2012-01-01

Now in its second edition, Trevor Wright's hugely popular How to be a Brilliant English Teacher is packed with practical advice drawn from his extensive and successful experience as an English teacher, examiner and teacher trainer. This accessible and readable guide offers sound theoretical principles with exciting practical suggestions for the classroom. Fully updated to include a new expanded section on differentiation and inclusion, as well as covering new material on behaviour management and teaching poetry for enjoyment and personal response, this book tackles other tricky areas such as: Starting with Shakespeare Effective planning and assessment Learning to love objectives Working small texts and big texts Drama. Trainee teachers will find support and inspiration in this book and practising English teachers can use it as an empowering self-help guide for improving their skills. Trevor Wright addresses many of the anxieties that English teachers face, offering focused and realistic solutions.

Getting Help

Science.gov (United States)

... Parents & Students Home > Special Features > Getting Help Getting Help Resources from NIAAA Treatment for Alcohol Problems: Finding ... and find ways to make a change. Professional help Your doctor. Primary care and mental health practitioners ...

Promoting Special Educator Teacher Retention

OpenAIRE

Jeremy E. Vittek

2015-01-01

This article is a critical review of the literature on special education teacher attrition and retention. The research focused on journal articles from 2004 to present. The results of the study helped define special educator attrition and retention. The major themes present in the findings were job satisfaction, administrative support, induction programs, and mentoring. The literature shows a clear need for comprehensi...

SUPPORTING TEACHERS IN IMPLEMENTING FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT PRACTICES IN EARTH SYSTEMS SCIENCE

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Harris, C. J.; Penuel, W. R.; Haydel Debarger, A.; Blank, J. G.

2009-12-01

automatic to teachers and students. Routines function as classroom norms, governing how students and teachers interact with subject matter (i.e., the way ideas are elicited, taken up, and revised). We use the qualifier teaching because we view good classroom assessment as seamless with instruction. Each teaching routine defines a sequence of instructional moves, supported by classroom network technology, for creating formative assessment opportunities that address 3 goals: (1) Increase student-teacher and student-student communication;(2) Motivate students to participate and learn from discussion, investigation, and reading; and (3) Provide real-time feedback for the teacher who can then adjust instruction. We report on key features of our support system for helping teachers develop proficiency with using formative assessment to inform instruction and advance learning in Earth Systems science. We also present preliminary findings from the implementation of the support system with a test group of teachers in a large, urban school district. Findings highlight the promise of teaching routines as an important resource for structuring student opportunities to showcase their thinking.

Model program for the recruitment and preparation of high ability elementary mathematics/science teachers: A collaborative project among scientists, teacher educators and classroom teachers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1993-12-01

This teacher education program will provide a model for recruiting, educating and retaining high ability students to become mathematics and science lead teachers in elementary schools. The quality experiences and support provided these students will help them develop the knowledge and attitudes necessary to provide leadership for elementary mathematics and science programs. Students will have research experiences at the Ames Laboratory, high quality field experiences with nationally recognized mathematics and science teachers in local schools and opportunities to meaningfully connect these two experiences. This program, collaboratively designed and implemented by scientists, teacher educators and classroom teachers, should provide a replicatable model for other teacher education institutions. In addition, materials developed for the project should help other laboratories interface more effectively with K-8 schools and help other teacher education programs incorporate real science and mathematics experience into their curriculum.

Help Yourself, Help Your Students

Science.gov (United States)

Luft, Julie A.; Bang, EunJin; Hewson, Peter W.

2016-01-01

Science teachers often participate in professional development programs (PDPs) to improve their students' learning. They sign up for workshops, institutes, university classes, or professional learning communities to gain knowledge and new instructional practices and to find colleagues with whom to discuss their teaching. But with so many options…

How Physical Education Teachers Can Help Encourage Students to Read

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Richardson, Maurine; Richardson, James; Sacks, Mary Kathleen

2012-01-01

The pressure to ensure that all children learn to read and become lifelong readers has never been as strong at it is now. For this to become a reality for all students, including those that are not motivated to read, teachers must use any and all appropriate strategies. With this in mind, literacy teachers should enlist assistance from other…

Mathematics Teachers' Readiness to Integrate ICT in the Classroom: The Case of Elementary and Middle School Arab Teachers in Israel

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nimer F. Baya'a

2013-03-01

Full Text Available ICT integration in mathematics education provides mathematics teachers with integrative teaching methods that motivate students learning, support their independent learning and active participation in the discovery of mathematics concepts and topics, and, as a result, helps them have deeper understanding of the mathematical ideas. So, the integration of ICT in the teaching and learning of mathematics, as a result of ICT educational affordances, helps students have better achievement in mathematics. These potentialities of the ICT make its integration in the mathematics classroom a promising practice, but the success of this practice is dependent on various factors, among which are the following: teachers' perceptions of their ability in ICT, teachers' attitudes towards ICT contribution to the mathematics teaching, teachers' attitudes towards ICT contribution to students' mathematics learning, teachers' emotions towards the use of ICT in the mathematics classroom, teachers' feelings of self-esteem and control in the presence of ICT in the mathematics classroom, and teachers' intentions to actually integrate ICT in their teaching. The current research came to verify the readiness of Arab teachers in elementary and middle schools in Israel regarding the integration of ICT in the classroom, and hence its interest in the six above constructs. The research used a questionnaire that included statements related to each one of the above constructs. This questionnaire was administered to 475 Arab teachers in elementary and middle schools in the North, Center and Haifa regions in Israel. The research findings show that more than seventy percent of the participating teachers have positive perceptions of their competence in technology and technology integration in their teaching. Further, they have positive attitudes towards the integration of ICT in teaching and learning and of their self-esteem in the presence of technology, in addition to positive

Divorce: Helping Children Cope.

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Cook, Alicia S.; McBride, Jean

1982-01-01

Examines children's reactions to the divorce process and explores ways in which adults can promote growth and adjustment in children of divorce. Suggests ways in which parents, teachers, and counselors can help children. (RC)

Differentiation: Lessons from Master Teachers

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Carolan, Jennifer; Guinn, Abigail

2007-01-01

Carolan and Guinn assert that differentiated instruction helps diversity thrive. Observing how experienced teachers practice differentiation in real-life situations helps teachers who are reluctant to try such strategies take the plunge. The authors draw on two observational studies they conducted of five expert teachers in a high-performing,…

Helping the child with cancer: what school personnel want to know.

Science.gov (United States)

Fryer, L L; Saylor, C F; Finch, A J; Smith, K E

1989-10-01

As more children with cancer survive, the importance of facilitating school reintegration as a part of maximizing the quality of life has become evident. Workshops have been presented to school personnel to acquaint them with the issues facing cancer patients and their families, but there are gaps in our knowledge of what school personnel really need or want to know. In this study, 18 teachers of children with cancer and 15 teachers with no prior contact with students with cancer completed a questionnaire designed to assess needs, beliefs, and priorities with regard to working with cancer patients in the classroom. Significant findings included: (a) a consensus that a certain core of information about medical/psychological issues would be useful, and presentation of such information by psychologists and medical personnel working with such families would be optimal; (b) teachers having cancer patients as students were less likely to see the adaptation of siblings as an important issue; (c) teachers associated working with a student with cancer with less stress and demands on their time than predictable from previous studies; and (d) cancer patients as a whole were rated as having fewer behavioral, emotional, and learning problems than randomly selected students without a major illness, suggesting a "halo effect" or contradiction of some literature. Preliminary findings are detailed and implications are discussed for those attempting to help teachers facilitate students' adjustment to school following diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

Music Teachers and Music Therapists: Helping Children Together.

Science.gov (United States)

Patterson, Allyson

2003-01-01

Provides background information on music therapy. Discusses how music therapy works in the public school setting and offers advice to music teachers. Explores music therapy and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, addressing the benefits of having access to music therapists. (CMK)

School Effectiveness and Teacher Effectiveness in Mathematics: Some Preliminary Findings from the Evaluation of the Mathematics Enhancement Program (Primary).

Science.gov (United States)

Muijs, Daniel; Reynolds, David

2000-01-01

Examines effects of teacher behaviors and classroom organization on 2,128 pupils' progress in mathematics in UK primary schools participating in a math intervention program. Using multilevel modeling techniques, finds that teacher behaviors could explain between 60 and 70 percent of pupils' progress on numeracy tests. (Contains 35 references.)…

Math Anxiety: Can Teachers Help Students Reduce It? Ask the Cognitive Scientist

Science.gov (United States)

Beilock, Sian L.; Willingham, Daniel T.

2014-01-01

How does the mind work--and especially how does it learn? Teacher's instructional decisions are based on a mix of theories learned in teacher education, trial and error, craft knowledge, and gut instinct. Such knowledge often serves teachers well, but is there anything sturdier to rely on? Cognitive science is an interdisciplinary field of…

Shifting Perspectives and Practices: Teacher Candidates’ Experiences of a First Nation, Métis, and Inuit Infusion in Mainstream Teacher Education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Melissa Marilyn Fern Blimkie

2014-10-01

Full Text Available This exploratory case study shares teacher candidates’ perspectives and experiences of the First Nation, Métis, and Inuit Infusion at ABC University’s Faculty of Education field site in XYZ, Ontario. For this initiative, Aboriginal content and pedagogies were infused throughout placements and courses of the mainstream teacher education program. Teacher candidates shared that the Infusion prepared them to teach Aboriginal content in culturally respectful and meaningful ways by providing them with a foundation to build on and helping them to develop teaching practices inclusive of diverse ways of knowing and being in the world. These findings may be useful to other educators developing and implementing their own infusion initiatives.

Teaching the Federal Budget, National Debt, and Budget Deficit: Findings from High School Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Marri, Anand R.; Ahn, Meesuk; Crocco, Margaret Smith; Grolnick, Maureen; Gaudelli, William; Walker, Erica N.

2011-01-01

The issues surrounding the federal budget, national debt, and budget deficit are complex, but not beyond the reach of young students. This study finds scant treatment of the federal budget, national debt, and budget deficit in high schools today. It is hardly surprising that high school teachers spend so little time discussing these topics in…

Finding Freedom in Dialectic Inquiry: New Teachers' Responses to Silencing

Science.gov (United States)

Bieler, Deborah; Thomas, Anne Burns

2009-01-01

Background: The need to support new teachers in urban public schools is well established, given current shortages and research that highlights serious issues with teacher retention. Debate continues about approaches to support for new teachers, including questions about the importance of developing an inquiry stance toward teaching. As more…

Parental Expectations of Their Adolescents' Teachers.

Science.gov (United States)

Tatar, Moshe; Horenczyk, Gabriel

2000-01-01

Examines parental expectations of their children's teachers through use of the Expectations of Teachers questionnaire. Participating parents (N=765) reported greater expectations for help and assistance, followed by teaching competence and fairness on the part of the teacher. Mothers were found to hold higher fairness, help, and assistance…

Teachers Know Best: Making Data Work for Teachers and Students

Science.gov (United States)

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, 2015

2015-01-01

As part of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's broader efforts to improve educational opportunities for all students, the "Teachers Know Best" research project seeks to encourage innovation in K-12 education by helping product developers and those who procure resources for teachers better understand teachers' views. The original…

How did the Good School Toolkit reduce the risk of past week physical violence from teachers to students? Qualitative findings on pathways of change in schools in Luwero, Uganda.

Science.gov (United States)

Kyegombe, N; Namakula, S; Mulindwa, J; Lwanyaaga, J; Naker, D; Namy, S; Nakuti, J; Parkes, J; Knight, L; Walakira, E; Devries, K M

2017-05-01

Violence against children is a serious violation of children's rights with significant impacts on current and future health and well-being. The Good School Toolkit (GST) is designed to prevent violence against children in primary schools through changing schools' operational cultures. Conducted in the Luwero District in Uganda between 2012 and 2014, findings from previous research indicate that the Toolkit reduced the odds of past week physical violence from school staff (OR = 0.40, 95%CI 0.26-0.64, p students, teachers, school administration, and parents, and two focus group discussion with teachers. Interviews were conducted using semi-structured tools and analysed using thematic analysis complemented by constant comparison and deviant case analysis techniques. Within a context of normative acceptance of corporal punishment this qualitative paper reports suggestive pathways related to teacher-student relationships through which reductions in violence operated. First, improved student-teacher relationships resulted in improved student voice and less fear of teachers. Second, the intervention helped schools to clarify and encourage desired behaviour amongst students through rewards and praise. Third, many teachers valued positive discipline and alternative discipline methods, including peer-to-peer discipline, as important pathways to reduced use of violence. These shifts were reflected in changes in the views, use, and context of beating. Although the GST is effective for reducing physical violence from teachers to students, violence persisted, though at significantly reduced levels, in all schools with reductions varying across schools and individuals. Much of the success of the Toolkit derives from the support it provides for fostering better student-teacher relationships and alternative discipline options. Such innovation could usefully be incorporated in teacher training syllabi to equip teachers with knowledge and skills to maintain discipline without the

Finding Balance: The Professional Life of a Charter School Teacher

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Marjorie

2010-01-01

This phenomenological study of one charter school teacher sought to answer the question, what is it like to be a teacher in a charter school? Exploring issues of preparation, working conditions, and job satisfaction, this teacher expressed a range of emotions about her chosen work environment. I found that the pervasive stress surrounding her work…

Planning for What Kind of Teaching? Supporting Cooperating Teachers as Teachers of Planning

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Norman, Patricia J.

2011-01-01

Planning is a central task of teaching and a central focus in learning to teach. But what does planning entail, and how is planning best learned? What challenges do experienced teachers serving as school-based teacher educators face in becoming teachers of planning? What role can university teacher educators play in helping mentor teachers learn…

Promoting Teacher Adoption of GIS Using Teacher-Centered and Teacher-Friendly Design

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Hong, Jung Eun

2014-01-01

This article reports the results of a case study that employed user-centered design to develop training tutorials for helping middle school social studies teachers use Web-based GIS in their classrooms. This study placed teachers in the center of the design process in planning, designing, and developing the tutorials. This article describes how…

Strategies to Help ESL Students Improve their Communicative Competence and Class Participation: A Study in a Middle School

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Claudia Gómez Palacio

2010-12-01

Full Text Available This article examines a qualitative study carried out at a middle school in North Carolina, the United States of America. The main purpose of the study was to find effective strategies that teachers can use to help ESL students improve their speaking skills and class participation. Results indicated that both communicative and social strategies as well as exposure to independent reading help ESL students improve their communicative skills and class participation.

Ways to prepare future teachers to teach science in multicultural classrooms

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Billingsley, Berry

2016-06-01

Roussel De Carvalho uses the notion of superdiversity to draw attention to some of the pedagogical implications of teaching science in multicultural schools in cosmopolitan cities such as London. De Carvalho makes the case that if superdiverse classrooms exist then Science Initial Teacher Education has a role to play in helping future science teachers to become more knowledgeable and reflective about how to teach school students with a range of worldviews and religious beliefs. The aim of this paper is to take that proposition a step further by considering what the aims and content of a session in teacher education might be. The focus is on helping future teachers develop strategies to teach school students to think critically about the nature of science and what it means to have a scientific worldview. The paper draws on data gathered during an interview study with 28 students at five secondary schools in England. The data was analysed to discover students' perceptions of science and their perceptions of the way that science responds to big questions about being human. The findings are used to inform a set of three strategies that teachers could use to help young people progress in their understanding of the nature of science. These strategies together with the conceptual framework that underpins them are used to develop a perspective on what kinds of pedagogical content knowledge teacher education might usefully provide.

Designing a Reflective Teacher Education Course and Its Contribution to ELT Teachers' Reflectivity

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Tajik, Leila; Pakzad, Kazem

2016-01-01

Researchers in the present study planned a reflective teacher education course and documented the contribution of such a course to improving teachers' reflectivity. Five English teachers took part in the reflective teacher education course designed by the researchers. To record how the course could help improve reflective teaching, researchers…

Teacher and student supports for implementation of the NGSS

Science.gov (United States)

Severance, Samuel

Through three articles, this dissertation examines the use of supports for implementing the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) within a large urban school district. Article one, titled Organizing for Teacher Agency in Curricular Co-design, examines the need for coherent curriculum materials that teachers' had a meaningful role in shaping and how the use of a co-design approach and specific tools and routines can help to address this need. Article two, titled Relevant Learning and Student Agency within a Citizen Science Design Challenge, examines the need for curriculum materials that provide students with learning experiences they find relevant and that expands their sense of agency and how a curriculum centered around a community-based citizen science design challenge can help achieve such an aim. Article three, titled Implementation of a Novel Professional Development Program to Support Teachers' Understanding of Modeling, examines the need for professional development that builds teachers' understanding of and skill in engaging their students in the practice of developing and using models and how a novel professional development program, the Next Generation Science Exemplar, can aid teachers in this regard by providing them with carefully sequenced professional development activities and specific modeling tools for use in the classroom.

Teacher Compensation and School Quality: New Findings from National and International Data

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Zhang, Zhijuan; Verstegen, Deborah A.; Kim, Hoe Ryoung

2008-01-01

Are teacher salaries related to school quality in terms of student academic achievement and teacher retention? Are teacher salaries important factors influencing teacher job satisfaction? Is teacher job satisfaction related to retention? This research addressed these questions using international and national data. First, the literature will be…

PRACTICUM EXPERIENCE IN TEACHER EDUCATION

African Journals Online (AJOL)

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therefore, argued that the academic program of the teacher education should be coupled ... practicum which provides students with supervised experiences and help the student teachers to ... Lecturer, Department of Pedagogy, Eduction Faculty, Jimma University. ... teachers, different approaches to teacher .... Leadership.

Helping Students Acquire Thinking Skills through Mathematics Instruction.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Devender, Evelyn M.

1992-01-01

Describes three activities that the teacher can employ to help students develop thinking skills through mathematics instruction: (1) memorization using the technique of chunking; (2) higher order thinking with magic squares; and (3) predicting games. Identifies eight facets of the teacher's role in promoting thinking skills. (MDH)

The Role of Physical Educators in Helping Classroom Teachers to Promote Physical Activity

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Russ, Laura

2015-01-01

Elementary classroom teachers are an increasingly important constituency in school-based physical activity promotion. This article situates the need for classroom teacher physical-activity promotion at the intersection of what we know about teacher actions, what informs those actions, and what recent research has uncovered. Recommendations are…

How Can a Process of Reflection Enhance Teacher-Trainees’ Practicum Experience?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Diana Zulimay Camacho Rico

2012-12-01

Full Text Available The present study was an attempt to understand how a process of reflection helped five foreign language student teachers throughout their first teaching experience. This study was conducted in the classrooms of five public schools in Colombia where English was taught to high school students. Data were collected through classroom observations, students’ reflective journals, lesson plans and semi-structured interviews. Findings revealed that reflection is a way to help foreign language student teachers to improve their first teaching practice. The analysis was based on the light of two theories, reflection in action and reflection on action from Schön (1987 and Van Manen’s (1977 three levels of reflection.

Becoming a Leader: Finding My Voice

Science.gov (United States)

Finchum, Tabetha R.

2014-01-01

In this article, fourth-grade teacher Tabetha Finchum describes how a program called Arizona Master Teacher of Mathematics (AZ-MTM), a Noyce grant funded through the National Science Foundation, helped boost her confidence and broaden her understanding of the philosophies, curricula, and instructional decisions being implemented by other teachers.…

Teacher and Student Perceptions on High School Science Flipped Classrooms: Educational Breakthrough or Media Hype?

Science.gov (United States)

Hunley, Rebecca C.

For years educators have struggled to ensure students meet the rigors of state mandated tests. Challenges that often impede student success are student absences, school closings due to weather, and remediation for students who need additional help while advanced students can move ahead. Many educators, especially secondary math and science teachers, have responded to these issues by implementing a teaching strategy called the flipped classroom where students view lectures, power points, or podcasts outside of school and class time shifts to allow opportunities for collaborative learning. The purpose of this research was to evaluate teacher and student perceptions of high school flipped science classrooms. A qualitative phenomenological study was conducted to observe 3 high school science teachers from Georgia, North Carolina, and Tennessee selected through purposeful sampling who have used the flipped classroom method for a minimum of 2 years. Analysis of data from an online survey, direct observation, teacher interviews, and student focus groups helped to identify challenges and benefits of this teaching and learning strategy. Findings indicated that teachers find the flipped classroom beneficial to build student relationships but requires a significant amount of time to develop. Mixed student reactions revealed benefits of a flipped classroom as a successful learning tool for current and future endeavors for college or career preparation.

Teachers' Attitudes and Technology Use in Indonesian EFL Classrooms

Science.gov (United States)

Cahyani, Hilda; Cahyono, Bambang Y.

2012-01-01

The use of technology in education deals with two major aspects: mode and content. Nowadays, second-language teachers have the options to use technology, either web-based or non web-based, to help learners learn the target language (content) successfully. This paper aims at reporting research findings on the types of technology that the teachers…

An Investigation of Turkish Middle School Science Teachers' Pedagogical Orientations Towards Direct and Inquiry Instructional Approaches

Science.gov (United States)

Sahingoz, Selcuk

One of the most important goals of science education is preparing effective science teachers which includes the development of a science pedagogical orientation. Helping in-service science teachers improve their orientations toward science teaching begins with identifying their current orientations. While there are many aspects of an effective science teaching orientation, this study specifically focuses on effective pedagogy. The interest of this study is to clarify pedagogical orientations of middle school science teachers in Turkey toward the teaching of science conceptual knowledge. It focuses on what instructional preferences Turkish middle school science teachers have in theory and practice. The purpose of this study is twofold: 1) to elucidate teacher pedagogical profiles toward direct and inquiry instructional approaches. For this purpose, quantitative profile data, using a Turkish version of the Pedagogy of Science Teaching Test (POSTT-TR) assessment instrument, was collected from 533 Turkish middle school science teachers; 2) to identify teaching orientations of middle school science teachers and to identify their reasons for preferring specific instructional practices. For this purpose, descriptive qualitative, interview data was collected from 23 teachers attending a middle school science teacher workshop in addition to quantitative data using the POSTT-TR. These teachers sat for interviews structured by items from the POSTT-TR. Thus, the research design is mixed-method. The design provides a background profile on teacher orientations along with insights on reasons for pedagogical choices. The findings indicate that instructional preference distributions for the large group and smaller group are similar; however, the smaller workshop group is more in favor of inquiry instructional approaches. The findings also indicate that Turkish middle school science teachers appear to have variety of teaching orientations and they have varied reasons. Moreover, the

Teaching science to English Language Learners: Instructional approaches of high school teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Frank, Betty-Vinca N.

Students who are English Language Learners (ELLs) form the fastest growing segment of the American school population. Prompted by the call for scientific literacy for all citizens, science educators too have investigated the intersection of language and science instruction of ELLs. However these studies have typically been conducted with elementary students. Few studies have explored how high school science teachers, particularly those who have not received any special training, approach science instruction of ELLs and what supports them in this endeavor. This was a qualitative case study conducted with five science teachers in one small urban high school that predominantly served ELLs. The purpose of this study was to examine instructional approaches used by teachers to make science accessible to ELLs and the factors that supported or inhibited them in developing their instructional approaches. This goal encompassed the following questions: (a) how teachers viewed science instruction of ELLs, (b) how teachers designed a responsive program to teach science to ELLs, (c) what approaches teachers used for curriculum development and instruction, (d) how teachers developed classroom learning communities to meet the needs of ELLs. Seven instructional strategies and five perceived sources of support emerged as findings of this research. In summary, teachers believed that they needed to make science more accessible for their ELL students while promoting their literacy skills. Teachers provided individualized attention to students to provide relevant support. Teachers engaged their students in various types of active learning lessons in social contexts, where students worked on both hands-on and meaning-making activities and interacted with their peers and teachers. Teachers also created classroom communities and learning spaces where students felt comfortable to seek and give help. Finally, teachers identified several sources of support that influenced their instructional

Teacher Portfolios.

Science.gov (United States)

Wolfe-Quintero, Kate; Brown, James Dean

1998-01-01

A portfolio of achievements, experiences, and reflections can help English-as-a-Second-Language teachers attain professional development goals and offer administrators greater insight for making informed hiring and job-performance decisions. This paper focuses on what teacher portfolios are, what their contents should be, and what their uses are…

The perception of science teachers on the role of student relationships in the classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Mattison, Cheryl Ann

With the increased accountability of educators comes the responsibility of the entire educational community to find ways in which we can help our students succeed in the classroom. In addition, it is important to discover what it takes to keep those students in school Many science teachers enter the profession unprepared to handle the regular classroom routine. Classroom management, grading, lesson planning, setting up labs, and the myriad of other obligations, can leave teachers overwhelmed and sometimes can get in the way of actually helping students be successful. This study investigated how science teachers viewed the importance of developing strong teacher/student relationships to the increase of student success in a science classroom. I attempted to answer 4 major questions: · How do science teachers in a select high school community view the role of interactive relationships in their classrooms and how that might impact their students? · How do science teachers in a select high school community believe they establish successful interactive relationships with their students? · What do science teachers in a select high school community believe are some of the outcomes of those relationships? · What do science teachers suggest to increase the teacher's ability to form good relationships with their students? A qualitative research method was used including observations, interviews and group discussions of 5 high school science teachers in a small urban school.

Strategies to Help ESL Students Improve Their Communicative Competence and Class Participation: A Study in a Middle School

Science.gov (United States)

Gómez Palacio, Claudia

2010-01-01

This article examines a qualitative study carried out at a middle school in North Carolina, the United States of America. The main purpose of the study was to find effective strategies that teachers can use to help ESL students improve their speaking skills and class participation. Results indicated that both communicative and social strategies as…

Learning with Teachers; A Scientist's Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Czajkowski, K. P.

2004-12-01

Over the past six years, as an Assistant Professor and now as an Associate Professor, I have engaged in educational outreach activities with K-12 teachers and their students. In this presentation I will talk about the successes and failures that I have had as a scientist engaged in K-12 educational outreach, including teaching the Earth System Science Education Alliance (ESSEA) distance learning course, teaching inquiry-based science to pre-service teachers through the NASA Opportunities for Visionary Academics (NOVA) program, GLOBE, school visits, and research projects with teachers and students. I will reflect on the potential impact this has had on my career, negative and positive. I will present ways that I have been able to engage in educational outreach while remaining a productive scientist, publishing research papers, etc. Obtaining grant funding to support a team of educational experts to assist me perform outreach has been critical to my groups success. However, reporting for small educational grants from state agencies can often be overwhelming. The bottom line is that I find working with teachers and students rewarding and believe that it is a critical part of me being a scientist. Through the process of working with teachers I have learned pedagogy that has helped me be a better teacher in the university classroom.

Promoting Special Educator Teacher Retention

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jeremy E. Vittek

2015-06-01

Full Text Available This article is a critical review of the literature on special education teacher attrition and retention. The research focused on journal articles from 2004 to present. The results of the study helped define special educator attrition and retention. The major themes present in the findings were job satisfaction, administrative support, induction programs, and mentoring. The literature shows a clear need for comprehensive administrative support to improve job satisfaction and the likelihood a special educator will remain in their job.

Knowing Inquiry as Practice and Theory: Developing a Pedagogical Framework with Elementary School Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Poon, Chew-Leng; Lee, Yew-Jin; Tan, Aik-Ling; Lim, Shirley S. L.

2012-04-01

In this paper, we characterize the inquiry practices of four elementary school teachers by means of a pedagogical framework. Our study revealed core components of inquiry found in theoretically-driven models as well as practices that were regarded as integral to the success of day-to-day science teaching in Singapore. This approach towards describing actual science inquiry practices—a surprisingly neglected area—uncovered nuances in teacher instructions that can impact inquiry-based lessons as well as contribute to a practice-oriented perspective of science teaching. In particular, we found that these teachers attached importance to (a) preparing students for investigations, both cognitively and procedurally; (b) iterating pedagogical components where helping students understand and construct concepts did not follow a planned linear path but involved continuous monitoring of learning; and (c) synthesizing concepts in a consolidation phase. Our findings underscore the dialectical relationship between practice-oriented knowledge and theoretical conceptions of teaching/learning thereby helping educators better appreciate how teachers adapt inquiry science for different contexts.

Teachers' Ability and Help Attributions and Children's Math Performance and Task Persistence

Science.gov (United States)

Tõeväli, Paula-Karoliina; Kikas, Eve

2016-01-01

The present longitudinal study examined the reciprocal relationships between teachers' causal attributions and children's math performance and task persistence. In total, 760 elementary school children and their teachers participated in this study. The children were tested in math twice, at the end of the second and third grades. At both time…

Bridging the language gap: Exploring science teachers' dual role as teachers of content and English literacy

Science.gov (United States)

Arnold, Suzanne C.

Responsibility for educating English language learners is increasingly falling on the shoulders of content specialists at the secondary level, as students are mainstreamed into classes. Therefore, providing these students an opportunity to achieve academic success depends largely on the quality of mainstream instruction (Cornell, 1995). Most teachers receive little or no preparation in how to work with English language learners. In my study, I address the instructional issues confronting three white, monolingual English-speaking middle school science teachers who must meet the demands of an increasing English language learner population. Specifically, this study explores teacher beliefs and enactment of reform-oriented science and sheltered instructional approaches to develop English language learners scientific and English literacy skills. I also explore the relationships that exist between these two dynamics in an effort to determine the extent to which teachers take on a dual role as teachers promoting English language and science proficiency. Using a participant observation case study method and my adaptation of Schwab's commonplaces heuristic, I analyzed the relationship between teacher beliefs, milieu, subject matter, and enactment in bridging the language gap in the science classroom for English language learners. The most noteworthy finding of this study was the significant role of milieu in enacting lessons that bridge the language gap and foster the development of English language learners science and English literacy skills. The findings suggest that greater attention be given to helping teachers establish a relationship-driven classroom milieu. You can provide all kinds of courses or professional learning experiences to improve teachers' instructional practices, but they must also recognize the importance of establishing relationships with their students; the coursework they take will not supplant the need to foster a warm and safe environment for all

Compensatory help-seeking in young and older adults: does seeking help, help?

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Alea, Nicole; Cunningham, Walter R

2003-01-01

Asking other people for help is a compensatory behavior that may be useful across the life span to enhance functioning. Seventy-two older and younger men and women were either allowed to ask for help or were not allowed to ask for help while solving reasoning problems. Although the older adults answered fewer problems correctly, they did not seek additional help to compensate for their lower levels of performance. Younger adults sought more help. There were no age differences, however, in the types of help sought: indirect help (e.g., hints) was sought more often than direct help (e.g., asking for the answer). Exploratory analyses revealed that one's ability level was a better indicator than age of the utility of help-seeking. Findings are interpreted in the context of social and task-related influences on the use of help-seeking as a compensatory behavior across the life span.

Allowing the Voices of Parents To Help Shape Teaching and Learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Nicholson, Karen; Evans, Judith F.; Tellier-Robinson, Dora; Aviles, Leticia

2001-01-01

Three teachers describe how parents of deaf, severely disabled, and bilingual children participated in their children's learning. Qualitative research methods were used to help parents share their knowledge with teachers. (SK)

Collective pedagogical teacher culture, teacher-student ethno-racial mismatch, and teacher job satisfaction.

Science.gov (United States)

Stearns, Elizabeth; Banerjee, Neena; Mickelson, Roslyn; Moller, Stephanie

2014-05-01

Teacher job satisfaction is critical to schools' successful functioning. Using a representative sample of kindergarten teachers from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, we investigate the association among professional learning community and teacher collaboration, teacher ethno-racial group, teacher-student ethno-racial mismatch, and teacher job satisfaction. We find that White teachers are significantly less satisfied than African-American and Latino teachers, especially when they teach in majority non-White classrooms. However, the existence of a professional community moderates the negative influence of teacher-student ethno-racial mismatch on White teachers' job satisfaction. In effect, strong professional communities serve as a cushion to bolster teacher job satisfaction. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Teacher and parent experiences of parent-teacher conferences

African Journals Online (AJOL)

teachers are seldom trained to interact with parents, and both parents and teachers often find such encounters stressful and ineffective. This paper investigates parent and teacher perspectives on the parent-teacher conference through a qualitative inquiry. This is framed by the contributions of ecological theorists to home- ...

Teachers' Withdrawal Behaviors: Integrating Theory and Findings

Science.gov (United States)

Shapira-Lishchinsky, Orly

2012-01-01

Purpose: The article aims to investigate the relationships between different dimensions of organizational ethics and different withdrawal symptoms--lateness, absence, and intent to leave work. Design/methodology/approach: Participants were 1,016 school teachers from 35 high schools in Israel. A joint model of Glimmix procedure of SAS was used for…

Using a motivation-based instructional model for teacher development and students' learning of science

Science.gov (United States)

Bae, Min-Jung

2009-10-01

Science teachers often have difficulty helping students participate in scientific practices and understand scientific ideas. In addition, they do not frequently help students value their science learning. As one way to address these problems, I designed and examined the effects of professional development using a motivation-based instructional model with teachers and students. This motivation-based inquiry and application instructional model (MIAIM) consists of four steps of activities and identifies instructional and motivational functions that teachers can use to engage their students in scientific inquiry and application and to help them value their science learning. In order to conduct this study, I worked with three teachers (4 th, 8th, and 8th) in both suburban and urban environments. This study consisted of three parts-an initial observation of teachers' classrooms, professional development with MIAIM, and an observation of teachers' classrooms after the professional development. Data analysis of class observations, interviews, and class artifacts shows that there was a moderate change in teachers' teaching approach after the intervention. The three teachers designed and enacted some inquiry and application lessons that fit the intent of MIAIM. They also used some instructional and motivational practices more frequently after the intervention than they did before the intervention. In particular, they more frequently established central questions for investigations, helped students find patterns in data by themselves, provided opportunities for application, related science to students' everyday lives, and created students' interests in scientific investigation by using interesting stories. However, there was no substantial change in teachers' use of some practices such as providing explanations, supporting students' autonomy, and using knowledge about students in designing and enacting science lessons. In addition, data analysis of students' surveys, class

Globalization and Teacher Education

Science.gov (United States)

Flinders, David J.

2009-01-01

Educational researchers and teacher educators are often concerned with immediate and practical questions. How can health teachers help youth avoid substance abuse? Should a high school biology teacher show Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth," or is that film too political for a science classroom? What sports should be included in a physical…

Teacher Professional Development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nareerat Rakwichitkul

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Teacher professional development are the teachers’ learning process throughout their career stages to ensure that teachers have knowledge, skills and needed competencies for teaching among rapid changes in social, economic and technology which have the impact on learning and teaching. This article deals with the topics of the framework for teaching, teacher career stages and teacher professional development. The research findings related to teacher professional development, teacher professional development activities, suggestions for planning the professional development. Those research findings can be applied and implemented by the school principals, educational supervisors and other professional developers.

Finding Opportunity in Co-Teacher Personality Conflicts

Science.gov (United States)

Boyer, Kara; McMillen, Cory

2012-01-01

Co-teaching, the collaborative instruction of an inclusive classroom by a general education and special education teacher, is a relatively new construct. As a result, many of the pitfalls and struggles associated with it are still being defined, and solutions are often hard to come by. Disagreements, and especially large-scale personality…

Teachers under examination: reflections on teacher assessment policies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eneida Oto Shiroma

2011-06-01

Full Text Available This article discusses the current proposals of teacher assessment in Brazil. Based on historical materialism, we analysed national and international documents aiming at identifying the goals of this sort of assessment, the justifications for its implementation and debates about its outcomes. We found convergences between the policies recommended by the multilateral agencies, especially by the World Bank and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, and those adopted in Brazil, which indicates the great interest and influence of multilateral organizations in the development of policies for teachers. The first reactions of teachers, researchers, teacher associations and training institutions, added to the experiences of other countries that have adopted teacher assessment policies earlier, help us to understand possible outcomes and implications of these policies for teachers as a class, their careers and unions.

Trying To Reduce Your Technostress?: Helpful Activities for Teachers and Library Media Specialists.

Science.gov (United States)

McKenzie, Barbara K.; And Others

1997-01-01

As pressure increases to integrate technology into instruction, many teachers and library media specialists are having difficulty coping with "technostress." Presents suggestions and activities for teachers and library media specialists designed to reduce "technostress." (PEN)

Teacher learning and student outcomes in the context of classroom discourse. Findings from a video-based teacher professional development programme

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katharina Kiemer

2014-06-01

Full Text Available We present an innovative teacher professional development programme (TPD focusing on the re-definition of teachers’ discourse behaviour. We report findings on teacher learning and student outcomes, and reflect on practical implications and directions for future research on the programme. In the “Dialogic Video Cycle” (DVC six teachers participated in a year-long intervention built on effective components of TPD and using videos of teachers’ own practices as tools for reflection and basis for group discussions. We compared the DVC with a traditional TPD programme (n= 4 teachers. Additionally, students (N= 226 were assessed regarding their motivational orientations and individual beliefs. Results show that effective TPD components could successfully be implemented in the DVC and that this new and innovative programme enhances teachers’ performance in classroom discourse and affects students’ interest in the subject, self-efficacy and domain-specific self-concept of ability positively. Thus, the DVC seems a promising tool to foster teacher learning with an impact on perceived student motivation and learning. Presentiamo un programma innovativo per lo sviluppo professionale degli insegnanti (TPD, centrato sulla ridefinizione della conduzione di interazioni verbali in classe. Sono riportati i risultati dell’apprendimento di insegnanti e studenti, e la riflessione sulle implicazioni pratiche per la ricerca futura sul programma. Nel “Dialogic Video Cycle” (DVC sei insegnanti hanno partecipato per un anno a un intervento di TPD mediante videoregistrazioni usate come strumenti di riflessione sulle proprie pratiche e per le discussioni di gruppo. Abbiamo confrontato il DVC con un programma TPD tradizionale (n= 4 insegnanti. Inoltre sono stati valutati gli orientamenti degli studenti (N= 226 in termini di motivazione e fiducia nelle proprie capacità. I risultati mostrano che le componenti efficaci del TPD potrebbero essere attuate con

Teacher Effectiveness of Secondary School Teachers with High Tacit Knowledge

Science.gov (United States)

Mumthas, N. S.; Blessytha, Anwar

2009-01-01

To be a great teacher, more than content knowledge, teacher also needs practical and technical knowledge that contribute to teacher effectiveness. A teacher with high tacit knowledge is usually considered an expert teacher. The purpose of this study is to find out whether teachers with high tacit knowledge give equal preference to the various…

Vocational Teacher Perceptions on the use of ICT in Learning Computer Network

Science.gov (United States)

Yannuar; Rohendi, D.; Yanti, H.; Nurhabibah; Mi'raj, Y. Z.

2018-02-01

ICT has been widely used in primary education to vocational schools, but has not been so clearly integrate ICT in the learning process. While the teacher is the key to the effective use of ICT processed. This paper reports a study of surveys that examine the perspective of vocational school teachers. Current research aims to examine a vocational school teacher knowledge about ICT and support for computer use for learning. The sample in this research group consists of 25 teachers of vocational schools. The findings of this research use descriptive method with engineering survey with sampling purposes. Resources in research is journals and book report research results. The results showed teachers have a positive outlook towards the use of ICT in learning. The conclusions resulting from this research is the use of ICT to help teachers be more effective in teaching in the classroom and can improve student learning.

Grief: Helping Young Children Cope

Science.gov (United States)

Wood, Frances B.

2008-01-01

In their role as caregivers supporting the children they teach, it is important for teachers to understand the grieving process and recognize symptoms of grief. The author explains Elisabeth Kubler-Ross's five stages of grief and offers 10 classroom strategies to help young children cope with their feelings.

What Schools Are Doing To Help the Children of Divorce.

Science.gov (United States)

Sammons, William A. H.; Lewis, Jennifer M.

2000-01-01

Describes how teachers' observations of children can help behavioral pediatricians identify family situations contributing to marked changes in children's behavior related to divorce. Discusses ways teachers can support children of divorce, including maintaining consistency and discipline, making children feel competent, listening to the child's…

Care and Support of Orphaned and Vulnerable Children at School: Helping Teachers to Respond

Science.gov (United States)

Wood, Lesley; Goba, Linda

2011-01-01

It is acknowledged that teacher training programmes around HIV in most of sub-Saharan Africa appear not to have been very effective in assisting teachers to respond to the demands placed on them by the pandemic. In response to the need identified by international development agencies, for research into teacher education and HIV in sub-Saharan…

Technology Integration Coursework and Finding Meaning in Pre-Service Teachers' Reflective Practice

Science.gov (United States)

Kimmons, Royce; Miller, Brant G.; Amador, Julie; Desjardins, Christopher David; Hall, Cassidy

2015-01-01

This study seeks to inform teacher preparation programs regarding technology integration by understanding (1) relationships between tasks with specific technologies and pre-service teachers' critical thinking about technology integration and (2) relationships between how pre-service teachers are critically thinking about technology integration and…

Teachers' Working Conditions. Findings from "The Condition of Education, 1996," No. 7.

Science.gov (United States)

Choy, Susan P.

Working conditions play an important role in a school's ability to attract, develop, and retain effective teachers. Data presented here describe a number of aspects of teachers' working conditions, including workload, compensation, school and district support for teachers' professional development, school decision making, school safety, student…

K-12 Students, Teachers, Parents, Administrators and Higher Education Faculty: Partners Helping Rural Disadvantaged Students Stay on the Pathway to a Geoscience Career

Science.gov (United States)

Slattery, W.; Antonucci, C.; Myers, R. J.

2013-12-01

The National Science Foundation funded project K-12 Students, Teachers, Parents, Administrators and Higher Education Faculty: Partners Helping Rural Disadvantaged Students Stay on the Pathway to a Geoscience Career is a research-based proof of concept track 1 pilot project that tests the effectiveness of an innovative model for simultaneous K-12 teacher professional development, student learning and workforce development. The project builds a network of science experiences designed to keep eighth and ninth grade students from the Ripley, Union, Lewis, Huntington (RULH) Ohio school district on the path to a geoscience career. During each summer of the ongoing two-year project teams of RULH students, parents, teachers, administrators and college faculty traveled to the facilities of the New Jersey Sea Grant Consortium at Sandy Hook, New Jersey to study science from an Earth system perspective. Teachers had the opportunity to engage in professional development alongside their students. Parents participated in the science activities alongside their children. Administrators interacted with students, parents and their teachers and saw them all learning science in an engaging, collaborative setting. During the first academic year of the project professional development was provided to RULH teachers by a team of university scientists and geoscience educators from the Earth System Science Education Alliance (ESSEA), a National Science Foundation funded project. Teachers selected for professional development were from science disciplines, mathematics, language arts and civics. The teachers selected, taught and assessed ESSEA Earth system science modules to all eighth and ninth grade students, not just those that were selected to go on the summer trips to New Jersey. In addition, all ninth grade RULH students had the opportunity to take a course that includes Earth system science concepts that will earn them both high school and college science credits. Professional

Gathering Requirements for Teacher Tools: Strategies for Empowering Teachers Through Co-Design

Science.gov (United States)

Matuk, Camillia; Gerard, Libby; Lim-Breitbart, Jonathan; Linn, Marcia

2016-02-01

Technology can enhance teachers' practice in multiple ways. It can help them better understand patterns in their students' thinking, manage class progress at individual and group levels, and obtain evidence to inform modifications to curriculum and instruction. Such technology is most effective when it is aligned with teachers' goals and expectations. Participatory methods, which involve teachers closely in the design process, are widely recommended for establishing accurate design requirements that address users' needs. By collaborating with researchers, teachers can contribute their professional expertise to shape the tools of their practice, and ultimately ensure their sustained use. However, there is little guidance available for maintaining effective teacher-researcher design partnerships. We describe four strategies for engaging teachers in designing tools intended to support and enhance their practice within a web-based science learning environment: discussing physical artifacts, reacting to scenarios, customizing prototypes, and writing user stories. Using design artifacts and documents of teachers' reflections, we illustrate how we applied these techniques over 5 years of annual professional development workshops, and examine their affordances for eliciting teachers' ideas. We reflect on how these approaches have helped inform technology refinements and innovations. We moreover discuss the further benefits these strategies have had in encouraging teachers to reflect on their own practice and on the roles of technology in supporting it; and in allowing researchers to gain a deeper understanding of the relationship between technology, teaching, and design.

Physics Teachers Programme or how to bring modern physics to school

CERN Multimedia

2002-01-01

A new programme for teachers took place last weekend at CERN. Fifty high school teachers sacrificed their weekend and plunged into CERN physics to find new inspirations for exciting physics lessons.   The fifty participants in the Physics Teachers programme in the Microcosm garden. High school students are often convinced that physics is a boring and useless subject, and physics teachers have a hard time presenting interesting lessons. To help them, CERN has inaugurated the Physics Teachers Programme, whose goal is to present CERN and its activities, so that teachers can get an idea of what kind of physics research is going on at the frontier of science. 'Our philosophy is to show them today what they will read in textbooks of the future', says Antonella Del Rosso, responsible for this course, 'so that they can inspire their pupils'. This programme can be considered the younger brother of the High School Teachers Programme, since it has a similar aim, but instead of being three-weeks long, it las...

Helpful Entry Level Skills Checklist--Revised Manual [and] Helpful Entry Level Skill Checklist--Revised Edition.

Science.gov (United States)

Child Development Centers of the Bluegrass, Lexington, KY.

The Helpful Entry Level Skills Checklist was designed to assist preschool teachers in selecting functional skills that children (including children with disabilities) may need to make a successful transition into the public schools. These skills, for the most part, deal with attending, compliance, ability to follow directions, turn taking, ability…

Long Frontal Projections Help Battus philenor (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae) Larvae Find Host Plants.

Science.gov (United States)

Kandori, Ikuo; Tsuchihara, Kazuko; Suzuki, Taichi A; Yokoi, Tomoyuki; Papaj, Daniel R

2015-01-01

Animals sometimes develop conspicuous projections on or near their heads as, e.g., weaponry, burrowing or digging tools, and probes to search for resources. The frontal projections that insects generally use to locate and assess resources are segmented appendages, including antennae, maxillary palps, and labial palps. There is no evidence to date that arthropods, including insects, use projections other than true segmental appendages to locate food. In this regard, it is noteworthy that some butterfly larvae possess a pair of long antenna-like projections on or near their heads. To date, the function of these projections has not been established. Larvae of pipevine swallowtail butterflies Battus philenor (Papilionidae) have a pair of long frontal fleshy projections that, like insect antennae generally, can be actively moved. In this study, we evaluated the possible function of this pair of long moveable frontal projections. In laboratory assays, both frontal projections and lateral ocelli were shown to increase the frequency with which search larvae found plants. The frontal projections increased finding of host and non-host plants equally, suggesting that frontal projections do not detect host-specific chemical cues. Detailed SEM study showed that putative mechanosensillae are distributed all around the frontal as well as other projections. Taken together, our findings suggest that the frontal projections and associated mechanosensillae act as vertical object detectors to obtain tactile information that, together with visual information from lateral ocelli and presumably chemical information from antennae and mouthparts, help larvae to find host plants. Field observations indicate that host plants are small and scattered in southern Arizona locations. Larvae must therefore find multiple host plants to complete development and face significant challenges in doing so. The frontal projections may thus be an adaptation for finding a scarce resource before starving to

Aquaculture. Teacher Edition.

Science.gov (United States)

Walker, Susan S.

This color-coded guide was developed to assist teachers in helping interested students plan, build, stock, and run aquaculture facilities of varied sizes. The guide contains 15 instructional units, each of which includes some or all of the following basic components: objective sheet, suggested activities for the teacher, instructor supplements,…

What Every Teacher Should Know: Reflections on "Educating the Developing Mind"

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Lorin W.

2012-01-01

Over the past half century, much has been learned about the ways in which students develop and learn. Unfortunately, this knowledge often does not find its way into the classroom. Teachers can begin to use this knowledge by focusing on a few key ideas. They need to go beyond the presentation of content to helping students acquire strategies for…

Documentation Panels Enhance Teacher Education Programs

Science.gov (United States)

Warash, Bobbie Gibson

2005-01-01

Documentation of children's projects is advantageous to their learning process and is also a good method for student teachers to observe the process of learning. Documentation panels are a unique way to help student teachers understand how children learn. Completing a panel requires a student teacher to think through a process. Teachers must learn…

World Class Teachers.

Science.gov (United States)

Mitchell, Rosalita

1998-01-01

School communities are challenged to find ways to identify good teachers and give other teachers a chance to learn from them. The New Mexico World Class Teacher Project is encouraging teachers to pursue certification by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. This process sharpens teachers' student assessment skills and encourages…

Help me if you can: Psychological distance and help-seeking intentions in employee-supervisor relations.

Science.gov (United States)

Berkovich, Izhak; Eyal, Ori

2018-02-15

Social support at work is considered useful in treating job-related stress, and supervisors' emotional support has been found to be the most effective source of support at work. But an understanding of what elements make employees use supervisors as a source of emotional support is lacking. The present qualitative study included in-depth interviews with 24 teachers and 12 principals and a focus group with 12 school counsellors. The findings pointed at 2 groups of determinants of subordinates' intentions of asking socioemotional help from supervisors. The structural-organizational factors included low formalization structure, supportive and open work climate, shared goals, and manager's professional expertise; the dyadic factors included quality of relationship and demographic similarity. The determinants reflected different dimensions of psychological distance forming a close construal level that played a central part in employees' viewing the supervisor as an accessible socioemotional resource. The role of construal fit is discussed. Copyright © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Frank McCourt’s Teacher Man: A Novel Approach to Teacher Learning and Professional Development

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Renate Schulz

2009-07-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this research was to investigate how stories can be a learning tool to help teachers make sense of and learn from their own stories of teaching. The participants in this study were teachers enrolled in a graduate level course.  Frank McCourt’s novel, Teacher Man acted as a stimulus, springboard and guide for class discussions and for teachers writing their own story of teaching. My mode of inquiry included collecting the teachers’ written responses to class readings, noting their oral responses during class discussions, asking them to complete a short questionnaire, and following up with a taped focus group three months after the completion of the course. By reading, hearing and discussing the stories of others, teachers came to recognize the power of stories.  Writing their own stories helped them to understand their own practice better.

Where Can We Find Teachers Still Excited about the Learning Process?

Science.gov (United States)

McBride, Brian; Yuhasz, Louis; Mollineaux, Bill

1999-01-01

Presents the question, posed by two future English teachers, of how they can continue to cherish the learning process as well as their excitement and passion for English teaching as they enter the profession. Presents a response by a veteran English teacher. (SR)

Chinese Teachers' Perceptions of Students' Classroom Misbehaviour

Science.gov (United States)

Ding, Meixia; Li, Yeping; Li, Xiaobao; Kulm, Gerald

2008-01-01

This study focuses on Chinese teachers' perceptions of students' classroom misbehaviour. A questionnaire was designed to assess teachers' general concerns about classroom management, teachers' perceptions of the most frequent and troublesome types of misbehaviour, and teachers' perceived needs for help with improving classroom management. A total…

For what purpose do language teachers use group work in their lessons? : A study of group work in the teaching of English, and modern languages, in a Swedish school

OpenAIRE

Krogstad, Amanda

2011-01-01

The overall aim of this study is to investigate how and why teachers in the subjects of English and Modern Languages use group work in their lessons. This has been done with the help of a survey and interviews. The results indicate that all teachers in the study use at least some group work. Group work is often used to help the students practise their verbal skills as well as in teaching them to work together. The study has also shown that teachers find some parts of using group work in their...

Does Teacher Preparation Matter? Evidence about Teacher Certification, Teach for America, and Teacher Effectiveness.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Linda Darling-Hammond

2005-10-01

Full Text Available Recent debates about the utility of teacher education have raised questions about whether certified teachers are, in general, more effective than those who have not met the testing and training requirements for certification, and whether some candidates with strong liberal arts backgrounds might be at least as effective as teacher education graduates. This study examines these questions with a large student-level data set from Houston, Texas that links student characteristics and achievement with data about their teachers' certification status, experience, and degree levels from 1995-2002. The data set also allows an examination of whether Teach for America (TFA candidates-recruits from selective universities who receive a few weeks of training before they begin teaching-are as effective as similarly experienced certified teachers. In a series of regression analyses looking at 4th and 5th grade student achievement gains on six different reading and mathematics tests over a six-year period, we find that certified teachers consistently produce stronger student achievement gains than do uncertified teachers. These findings hold for TFA recruits as well as others. Controlling for teacher experience, degrees, and student characteristics, uncertified TFA recruits are less effective than certified teachers, and perform about as well as other uncertified teachers. TFA recruits who become certified after 2 or 3 years do about as well as other certified teachers in supporting student achievement gains; however, nearly all of them leave within three years. Teachers' effectiveness appears strongly related to the preparation they have received for teaching.

EPIC: Helping School Life and Family Support Each Other.

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Montgomery, David

1992-01-01

Born out of a 1981 murder, Buffalo (New York) Public Schools' EPIC (Effective Parenting Information for Children) program successfully combines parenting, effective teaching, and community programs to help family and school life support each other. Under EPIC, teachers are advised to help students acquire 23 skills involving self-esteem, rules,…

The Teacher-Scholar Project: how to help faculty groups develop scholarly skills.

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Heinrich, Kathleen T; Hurst, Helen; Leigh, Gwen; Oberleitner, Melinda Granger; Poirrier, Gail P

2009-01-01

Nursing education's challenge in the new millennium is to prepare all nurses as scholars. With many nurse educators feeling like impostors when it comes to scholarship, this is no small task. Turning the millenial challenge into an opportunity, this article describes how a collaborative faculty development initiative is turning a National League for Nursing Center of Excellence school's "scholar-impostors" into teacher-scholars. This Teacher-Scholar Project will interest those in teaching intensive schools of nursing or in teaching tracks in research-intensive institutions.

Towards Understanding EFL Teachers' Conceptions of Research: Findings from Argentina

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Banegas, Darío Luis

2018-01-01

This paper investigates the conceptions of research held by English as a foreign language teachers in Argentina. Quantitative data from 622 participants from an online questionnaire were followed by qualitative data from online interviews with 40 of those participants. Results show that the teachers conceptualised research through conventional…

The difficulties of teacher in teaching geometry for mental retardation students

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Shomad, Z. A.; Kusmayadi, T. A.; Riyadi

2018-03-01

The purpose of this research is to find out the problems faced by teachers in teaching materials on mental retardation students. It focused on the difficulties faced by the teacher in teaching geometry. A qualitative method with field study approach used in this study. The subjects in this research are the teacher and mild mental retardation students. There are six teachers and six students involve as the subject which is chosen by purposive sampling. The data of this research is the observation and interview against teachers and mental retardation students. The data was analyzed qualitatively with Miles and Huberman steps. The results of this research show that mental retardation students have less attention to the materials, less special books or learning media props, difficult in the set the students, and the difficulty in choosing the material that suits the student needs and the condition of mental retardation students. There's not much pay attention to the children with special need, particularly mental retardation student. Thus, this study can help analyze the difficulties teachers so that learning math for mental retardation students more optimal.

Impressions of Milgram's obedient teachers: situational cues inform inferences about motives and traits.

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Reeder, Glenn D; Monroe, Andrew E; Pryor, John B

2008-07-01

The research investigated impressions formed of a "teacher" who obeyed an experimenter by delivering painful electric shocks to an innocent person (S. Milgram, 1963, 1974). Three findings emerged across different methodologies and different levels of experimenter-induced coercion. First, contrary to conventional wisdom, perceivers both recognized and appreciated situational forces, such as the experimenter's orders that prompted the aggression. Second, perceivers' explanations of the teacher's behavior focused on the motive of obedience (i.e., wanting to appease the experimenter) rather than on hurtful (or evil) motivation. Despite this overall pattern, perceptions of hurtful versus helpful motivation varied as a function of information regarding the level of coercion applied by the experimenter. Finally, theoretically important relationships were revealed among perceptions of situations, motives, and traits. In particular, situational cues (such as aspects of the experimenter's behavior) signaled the nature of the teacher's motives, which in turn informed inferences of the teacher's traits. Overall, the findings pose problems for the lay dispositionism perspective but fit well with multiple inference models of dispositional inference.

Revising Teacher Candidates' Views of Science and Self: Can Accounts from the History of Science Help?

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Lewthwaite, Brian; Murray, John; Hechter, Richard

2012-01-01

Our inquiry uses accounts from the history of science to develop teacher-candidate (student teacher) understanding of the nature of science (NOS) in a science teacher education methods course. This understanding of the NOS is then used as a foundation for developing teacher candidate appreciation of the attributes of authentic science lessons.…

Journal Article: Using Scientists and Real-World Scenarios in Professional Development for Middle School Science Teachers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Morrison, Judith A.; Estes, Jeffrey C.

2007-04-01

Middle school science teachers were involved in a problem-solving experience presented and guided by research scientists. Data on the teachers’ perspectives about this professional development and any impact it may have had on their teaching practices were collected through interviews, surveys, and classroom observations. The findings show that the professional development experience was positive, although one concern expressed by teachers was their lack of understanding of the scientists’ vocabulary. Using scientists and real-world scenarios was shown to be an effective strategy for encouraging middle school teachers to teach science as a process and help them strengthen their science content understanding.

Teacher Research Programs = Increased Student Achievement

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Dubner, J.

2011-12-01

Columbia University's Summer Research Program for Science Teachers (SRP), founded in 1990, is one of the largest, best known university professional development programs for science teachers in the U.S. For eight weeks in each of two consecutive summers, teachers participate as a member of a research team, led by a member of Columbia University's research faculty. In addition to the laboratory experience, all teachers meet weekly during the summer for a series of pedagogical activities to assist them in transferring the experience to their classrooms. The primary goal of the program is to provide K-12 science teachers with opportunities to work at the cutting edge of science and engineering, and thus to revitalize their teaching and help them to appreciate the use of inquiry-based methods in their classroom instruction. The secondary goals of the program are to give the pre-college teacher the ability to guide their students toward careers in science and engineering, to develop new teaching strategies, and to foster long-term scholarly collaborations. The last is especially important as it leads to a model of the teacher as active in science yet committed to the pre-college classroom. Since its inception, SRP has focused on an objective assessment of the program's impact on attitudes and instructional practices of participating teachers, on the performance of these teachers in their mentors' laboratories, and most importantly, on the impact of their participation in the program has on student interest and performance in science. Our research resulted in a paper published in the journal Science. SRP also facilitates a multi-site survey-based evaluation of other teacher research programs around the country. The author will present the findings of both studies.

Teacher Inequality

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrew J. Wayne

2002-06-01

Full Text Available When discussing the teacher quality gap, policy makers have tended to focus on teacher certification, degrees, and experience. These indicators have become key benchmarks for progress toward equality of educational opportunity, in part for lack of additional teacher quality indicators. This article turns attention to teachers' academic skills. National data on teachers' entrance examination scores and college selectivity reveal substantial disparities by school poverty level. The findings commend attention to the gap in academic skills in the formulation of future policy and research on the teacher quality gap.

Why don't men seek help? Family physicians' perspectives on help-seeking behavior in men.

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Tudiver, F; Talbot, Y

1999-01-01

Men tend to underuse primary care health services despite their susceptibility to particular types of illness. The purpose of this study was to report the family physician's perspective on why men do not access the health care system for medical problems. We used focus group interviews to identify major themes. The participants were family physicians in active practice randomly selected from a list of 500 full- and part-time teachers. Four focus groups were formed from 18 participants (12 men, 6 women), in practice an average of 17 years. Eleven of the physicians were in community practice. Three key themes were identified: (1) Support: Men appear to get most of their support for health concerns from their female partners, little from their male friends. Their pattern of seeking support tends to be indirect rather than straightforward. (2) Help Seeking: Perceived vulnerability, fear, and denial are important influences on whether men seek help. They look for help for specific problems rather than for more general health concerns. (3) Barriers: Personal barriers involved factors related to a man's traditional social role characteristics: a sense of immunity and immortality; difficulty relinquishing control; a belief that seeking help is unacceptable; and believing men are not interested in prevention. Systematic barriers had to do with time and access; having to state the reason for a visit; and the lack of a male care provider. Many of these findings are supported by psychological theories. Future research should apply these theories in more transferable populations and settings. However, an in-depth understanding of the patterns of men's use of primary care services is needed before we can determine if a regular source of primary care would have a positive impact on their health.

Contextual factors, methodological principles and teacher cognition

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Rupert Walsh

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Teachers in various contexts worldwide are sometimes unfairly criticized for not putting teaching methods developed for the well-resourced classrooms of Western countries into practice. Factors such as the teachers’ “misconceptualizations” of “imported” methods, including Communicative Language Teaching (CLT, are often blamed, though the challenges imposed by “contextual demands,” such as large class sizes, are sometimes recognised. Meanwhile, there is sometimes an assumption that in the West there is a happy congruence between policy supportive of CLT or Task-Based Language Teaching, teacher education and supervision, and curriculum design with teachers’ cognitions and their practices. Our case study of three EFL teachers at a UK adult education college is motivated by a wish to question this assumption. Findings from observational and interview data suggest the practices of two teachers were largely consistent with their methodological principles, relating to stronger and weaker forms of CLT respectively, as well as to more general educational principles, such as a concern for learners; the supportive environment seemed to help. The third teacher appeared to put “difficult” contextual factors, for example, tests, ahead of methodological principles without, however, obviously benefiting. Implications highlight the important role of teacher cognition research in challenging cultural assumptions.

What do mathematics teachers and teacher trainees know about the history of mathematics?

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Gazit, Avikam

2013-06-01

The aim of this study is to present the findings of a study that examined the knowledge of mathematics teachers and teacher trainees, in different tracks, about the concepts, topics and characters from the history of mathematics. The findings indicate a lack of knowledge concerning most of the topics examined. Only about 40% of the participants knew about the origin of our counting system and the only item that reached above 50% was the item relating to the man who edited the book which is the basis for the plane geometry - Euclid (about 83%). Another meaningful finding was that the group with the highest score was that of mathematics teacher trainees in the accelerated track - a unique training scheme for middle school teachers (65.7%). The group with the lowest score was that of the elementary school mathematics student teachers (19.3%). One obvious conclusion is that we need to strengthen the knowledge of the history of mathematics in teacher training and in-service teachers' advanced studies.

Teaching Primary Science: How Research Helps

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Harlen, Wynne

2010-01-01

The very first edition of "Primary Science Review" included an article entitled "Teaching primary science--how research can help" (Harlen, 1986), which announced that a section of the journal would be for reports of research and particularly for teachers reporting their classroom research. The intervening 24 years have seen…

Receipt and Perceived Helpfulness of Mental Illness Information: Findings from the Australian National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing.

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Graham, Annette L; Brooker, Joanne; Hasking, Penelope; Clarke, David; Meadows, Graham

2017-10-20

The distribution of mental illness information is a crucial element of mental health promotion initiatives. We assessed the receipt and perceived helpfulness of such information in Australia. Data from the Australian National Survey of Mental Health and Wellbeing indicated that, during the year prior to the survey, 33.7% of Australians received mental illness information; of these, 51.2% found it helpful. Among people with a mental disorder, 46.1% received information; of these, 67.4% found it helpful. Non-English speakers and the socially disadvantaged were less likely to receive mental illness information. Older and less educated respondents were less likely to both receive mental illness information and find it helpful. Mental health service users were more likely to receive mental illness information perceived as helpful than those who had not accessed such services. Better targeted information interventions are required to ensure those most likely to benefit receive mental illness-related information.

A Qualitative Phenomenological Exploration of Teachers' Experience With Nutrition Education.

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Hall, Elisha; Chai, Weiwen; Albrecht, Julie A

2016-05-03

Background: Nutrition education delivered by classroom teachers has become a popular intervention designed to combat childhood obesity. However, few qualitative studies have explored nutrition education with teachers Purpose: The purpose of this study was to explore how elementary teachers describe their experience with nutrition education. Methods: A qualitative phenomenological approach was used. Semistructured interviews, observations, and document analysis were conducted with 10 teachers who delivered nutrition education in their classrooms. Inductive coding was used to determine invariant constituents, reduce constituents to categories, and cluster categories into themes. Reliability and validity were accomplished through intercoder agreement, audio recording, triangulation, bracketing, and member checking. Results: Results identified 5 core themes related to roles teachers play in nutrition education, the importance placed upon nutrition, motivation for supplementary activities, barriers, and a triadic relationship between students, teachers, and curriculum. Discussion: Findings reveal interactions within the nutrition education experience in which teachers balance barriers with their value of nutrition education and motivation to help students make healthy choices. Translation to Health Education Practice: Health educators should work with classroom teachers at the program design, implementation, and evaluation stages of curriculum development to better address needs and facilitate the delivery of high-quality nutrition education for students.

Perception of mathematics teachers on cooperative learning method in the 21st century

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Taufik, Nurshahira Alwani Mohd; Maat, Siti Mistima

2017-05-01

Mathematics education is one of the branches to be mastered by students to help them compete with the upcoming challenges that are very challenging. As such, all parties should work together to help increase student achievement in Mathematics education in line with the Malaysian Education Blueprint (MEB) 2010-2025. Teaching methods play a very important role in attracting and fostering student understanding and interested in learning Mathematics. Therefore, this study was conducted to identify the perceptions of teachers in carrying out cooperative methods in the teaching and learning of mathematics. Participants of this study involving 4 teachers who teach Mathematics in primary schools around the state of Negeri Sembilan. Interviews are used as a method for gathering data. The findings indicate that cooperative methods help increasing interest and understanding in the teaching and learning of mathematics. In conclusion, the teaching methods affect the interest and understanding of students in the learning of Mathematics in the classroom.

Teaching and Learning Science Through Song: Exploring the experiences of students and teachers

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Governor, Donna; Hall, Jori; Jackson, David

2013-12-01

This qualitative, multi-case study explored the use of science-content music for teaching and learning in six middle school science classrooms. The researcher sought to understand how teachers made use of content-rich songs for teaching science, how they impacted student engagement and learning, and what the experiences of these teachers and students suggested about using songs for middle school classroom science instruction. Data gathered included three teacher interviews, one classroom observation and a student focus-group discussion from each of six cases. The data from each unit of analysis were examined independently and then synthesized in a multi-case analysis, resulting in a number of merged findings, or assertions, about the experience. The results of this study indicated that teachers used content-rich music to enhance student understanding of concepts in science by developing content-based vocabulary, providing students with alternative examples and explanations of concepts, and as a sense-making experience to help build conceptual understanding. The use of science-content songs engaged students by providing both situational and personal interest, and provided a mnemonic device for remembering key concepts in science. The use of songs has relevance from a constructivist approach as they were used to help students build meaning; from a socio-cultural perspective in terms of student engagement; and from a cognitive viewpoint in that in these cases they helped students make connections in learning. The results of this research have implications for science teachers and the science education community in developing new instructional strategies for the middle school science classroom.

TPACK in teacher education: are we preparing teachers to use technology for early literacy?

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Voogt, Joke; McKenney, Susan

2017-01-01

This study examines if and how five teacher education institutes are helping students to develop the technological pedagogical content knowledge needed to effectively use technology for early literacy. Focus group discussions were held with teacher educators in which their responses to expert

Teachers for Multicultural Education.

Science.gov (United States)

Rivlin, Harry N.; Gold, Milton J.

Developing teachers for multicultural education is an essential assignment for teacher education and school administration today so that educators might help their students learn to live in a multicultural society. In an earlier view, public schools were considered the "great equalizers" among America's social institutions. The assumption was that…

Teacher in Residence: Bringing Science to Students

CERN Multimedia

Daisy Yuhas

CERN welcomes its first Teacher in Residence, Terrence Baine of the University of Oslo. Baine, who originally hails from Canada, will be concurrently completing his PhD in Physics Education during his time at CERN. Like CERN’s High School Teacher Programme (HST), of which Baine is an alumnus, the Teacher in Residence position is designed to help educators spread the science of CERN in a form that is accessible to students and can encourage them to pursue physics throughout their education.   Terrence Baine, first 'teacher in residence' at CERN Baine explains, “It’s very important to have a teacher present who can be that middle person between the young peoplecoming here, whom we are trying to enlighten, and the physicists who work at CERN. The Teacher in Residence can act as an on-site educational consultant.” As Teacher in Residence, Baine’s primary project will be to develop teaching modules, or a series of lesson plans, that can help high schoo...

Preservice Teachers Connecting Mathematics and Drumming

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Marshall, Anne Marie

2014-01-01

Increasingly, elementary classroom teachers are being called to teach a myriad of subjects, including visual art, dance, and music. Preservice teachers must be prepared to teach and integrate multiple subjects. To that end, preservice teachers will need experiences in their preparation that help them to see connections across content areas and…

"Who Stays and Who Leaves?" Findings from a Three-Part Study of Teacher Turnover in NYC Middle Schools

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Marinell, William H.; Coca, Vanessa M.

2013-01-01

This paper synthesizes findings from the Research Alliance's investigation of teacher turnover in New York City's public middle schools. These years are widely recognized as a critical turning point for students, and the NYC Department of Education (DOE) is pursuing a range of middle school improvement initiatives. The stability of the middle…

Who's doing the talking? Teacher and parent experiences of parent-teacher conferences

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E M Lemmer

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The most common form of direct communication between parents and teachers in schools worldwide is the parent-teacher conference. Purposeful parent-teacher conferences afford the teacher and the parent the opportunity to address a particular topic related to the child, such as academic progress and behaviour. However, teachers are seldom trained to interact with parents, and both parents and teachers often find such encounters stressful and ineffective. This paper investigates parent and teacher perspectives on the parent-teacher conference through a qualitative inquiry. This is framed by the contributions of ecological theorists to home-school communication and an overview of extant themes in the literature. In the present qualitative inquiry, teacher, parent and learner participants were selected by purposeful and snowball sampling and data were gathered by individual and focus group interviews, school visits and the perusal of written parent-teacher conference reports. The findings indicate that parent-teacher conferences are ritualised school events in all types of schools; parents and teachers' expectations of conferences are limited; teachers are not trained to conduct parent-teacher conferences; and conferencesare overwhelmingly directed at problem solution. Parent-teacher conferences are characterised by a client orientation to parents, rather than a partnership orientation to home-school relations.

Teacher-Principal Race and Teacher Satisfaction over Time, Region

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Viano, Samantha L.; Hunter, Seth B.

2017-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to replicate prior findings on teacher-principal race congruence and teacher job satisfaction and extend the literature by investigating trends over time and if the relationship between race congruence and teacher job satisfaction differs by principal race and region. Design/methodology/approach: The study…

The Future of Instructional Teacher Leader Roles

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Mangin, Melinda M.; Stoelinga, Sara Ray

2010-01-01

In response to increased performance expectations, schools and districts are turning to nonsupervisory, school-based, instructional teacher leader roles to help improve teachers' instruction and enhance student learning. Increased opportunities to learn about teacher leadership may facilitate the implementation and institutionalization of…

Helping Children Develop Resiliency: Providing Supportive Relationships

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Kersey, Katharine C.; Malley, Catherine Robertson

2005-01-01

Helping children develop resiliency begins with positive, meaningful connections between teachers and students. This article defines the importance of encouraging children to develop characteristics related to resiliency including confidence in their ability to bounce back from setbacks, overcome challenges and frustrations. Furthermore, critical…

Teacher Leadership: Everyday Practices Surrounding Work- Related Stress

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Chiweshe Nigel

2015-06-01

Full Text Available This interpretivist study contributes to our scholarly understanding of how everyday practices surrounding work-related stress in education affect teacher leadership and successful learning outcomes. Insights are drawn from our long-standing engagement in the field where we observed how teaching staff, students, and management interacted. These observations were supplemented by in-depth interviews with 20 teaching staff. Our findings reveal competing demands and practices across the individual intrapersonal environment and the work related environment. There were three key themes that emerged in answer to the core research question: 1 the role of relational practices in managing teacher burnout, 2 the role of surveillance practices in education and 3 the role of assimilating practices in education. Drawing insights from these practices, we develop a conceptual framework that will help us to see relations at work anew, and develop a deeper understanding of ‘sickies’, motivation, learning outcomes and teacher leadership opportunities in education

Workplace Experiences of Australian Lesbian and Gay Teachers: Findings from a National Survey

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Ferfolja, Tania; Stavrou, Efty

2015-01-01

Historically, lesbian and gay teachers working in schools have experienced silencing, invisibility, and discrimination. This paper reports on research that examined the experiences of self-identified lesbian and gay teachers working in a variety of school types and school systems across Australia. Specifically, it explores these teachers'…

How Do School-Based Prevention Programs Impact Teachers? Findings from a Randomized Trial of an Integrated Classroom Management and Social-Emotional Program.

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Domitrovich, Celene E; Bradshaw, Catherine P; Berg, Juliette K; Pas, Elise T; Becker, Kimberly D; Musci, Rashelle; Embry, Dennis D; Ialongo, Nicholas

2016-04-01

A number of classroom-based interventions have been developed to improve social and behavioral outcomes for students, yet few studies have examined how these programs impact the teachers who are implementing them. Impacts on teachers may affect students and therefore also serve as an important proximal outcome to examine. The current study draws upon data from a school-based randomized controlled trial testing the impact of two prevention programs. In one intervention condition, teachers were trained in the classroom behavior management program, PAX Good Behavior Game (PAX GBG). In a second intervention condition, teachers were trained to use an integrated program, referred to as PATHS to PAX, of the PAX GBG and a social and emotional learning curriculum called Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies (PATHS©). This study aimed to determine whether both interventions positively impacted teachers, with a particular interest in the teachers' own beliefs and perceptions regarding self-efficacy, burnout, and social-emotional competence. The sample included 350 K-5 teachers across 27 schools (18 schools randomized to intervention, 9 to control). Multilevel latent growth curve analyses indicated that the PATHS to PAX condition generally demonstrated the most benefits to teachers, relative to both the control and PAX GBG conditions. These findings suggest that school-based preventive interventions can have a positive impact on teachers' beliefs and perceptions, particularly when the program includes a social-emotional component. Several possible mechanisms might account for the added benefit to teachers. Additional research is needed to better understand how these programs impact teachers, as well as students.

Mentoring Matters: Finding the Golden Mean--Mentors and Student Teachers Working for Success

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Spangler, Susan

2012-01-01

The cooperating teachers who make the greatest positive impact on interns allow student teachers to make mistakes and learn from them, offer constructive feedback, invest in their student teachers' success, practice current pedagogy in their own classrooms, and remain positive throughout the experience. In this article, the author suggests that…

Assessment of Understanding: Student Teachers' Preparation, Implementation and Reflection of a Lesson Plan for Science

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Juhler, Martin Vogt

2017-05-01

Research finds that student teachers often fail to make observable instructional goals, without which a secure bridge between instruction and assessment is precluded. This is one reason that recent reports state that teacher education needs to become better at helping student teachers to develop their thinking about and skills in assessing pupils' learning. Currently in Europe, the Lesson Study method and the Content Representation tool, which both have a specific focus on assessment, have started to address this problem. This article describes and discusses an intervention in which Lesson Study was used in combination with Content Representation in student teachers' field practice. Empirical materials from one group of student teachers were analyzed to illustrate how the student teachers worked with assessment during the planning of a lesson, how they implemented it in a research lesson, and how they used the gathered observations to make claims about assessment aims. The findings suggest that the student teachers placed greater emphasis on assessment through the intervention. However, it is also found that more attention should have been dedicated to the planning phase and that the group did not manage to keep a research focus throughout the Lesson Study process. This suggests that it properly would be beneficial with several planning sessions prior to the research lesson, as well as having an expert teacher leading the Lesson Study.

Learning and Teaching Technology in English Teacher Education: Findings from a National Study

Science.gov (United States)

Pasternak, Donna L.; Hallman, Heidi L.; Caughlan, Samantha; Renzi, Laura; Rush, Leslie S.; Meineke, Hannah

2016-01-01

This paper reports on one aspect of a large-scale nationwide study that surveyed English teacher educators about English teacher preparation programs throughout the United States. One aspect of the study focused on how technology is integrated within the context of English teacher education programs, asking the question, "As an area of…

Instructional Coaching through Dialogic Interaction: Helping a Teacher to Become Agentive in Her Practice

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Haneda, Mari; Teemant, Annela; Sherman, Brandon

2017-01-01

We investigate the instructional coaching interactions between a kindergarten teacher and an experienced coach using the analytic lens of dialogic teaching. The data were collected in the context of a US professional development project that supports urban elementary school teachers in enacting critical sociocultural teaching practices. We…

A Window into New Teachers' Minds

Science.gov (United States)

Brooks, Jacqueline Grennon; Mammo, Behailu

2016-01-01

The authors--directors of the Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program that recruits new teachers to help students in high-needs schools learn math and science--gave participants in their program the chance to present a metaphor or symbol for good teaching. Each novice teacher presented an artifact or image and described what that artifact represented to…

Evolving Minds: Helping Students with Cognitive Dissonance

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Bramschreiber, Terry L.

2013-01-01

Even 150 years after Charles Darwin published "On the Origin of Species," public school teachers still find themselves dealing with student resistance to learning about biological evolution. Some teachers deal with this pressure by undermining, deemphasizing, or even omitting the topic in their science curriculum. Others face the…

Preparing Content Area Teachers for Disciplinary Literacy Instruction: The Role of Literacy Teacher Educators

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Fang, Zhihui

2014-01-01

The recent call for secondary reading instruction to move away from a focus on generic literacy strategies to discipline-specific language and literacy practices presents new challenges for secondary teacher preparation. This column identifies some of the roles literacy teacher educators can play in helping address these challenges.

Analysing the problems of science teachers that they encounter while teaching physics education

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cihat Demir

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Even though physical science is very important in our daily lives, it is insufficiently understood by students. In order for students to get a better physical education, the teachers who have given physics lesson should first eliminated the problems that they face during the teaching process. The aim of this survey is to specify the matters encountered by science teachers during the teaching of physics and to provide them with solutions. The study group consisted of 50 science teachers who worked in Diyarbakır and Batman over the period of 2014 - 2015. This research is a descriptive study carried out by content analysis. In this study, semi-structured interview have been used along with qualitative research methods. According to the research findings, the top problems that the physics teachers encountered in physics lesson while processing the topics were laboratory problems. Some solutions have been introduced for science teachers in order to help them provide a better physics education.

Teacher Turnover in Organizational Context: Staffing Stability in Los Angeles Charter, Magnet, and Regular Public Schools

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Newton, Xiaoxia A.; Rivero, Rosario; Fuller, Bruce; Dauter, Luke

2018-01-01

Background/Context: Studies that compare the achievement benefits of charter public schools versus traditional public schools (TPSs) yield quite uneven results. The quality and long-term commitment of teachers represent related mediators that may help to explain effective and ineffective charter schools. Early findings on the comparative rates of…

The Influence of Achievement Goals on Online Help Seeking of Computer Science Students

Science.gov (United States)

Hao, Qiang; Barnes, Brad; Wright, Ewan; Branch, Robert Maribe

2017-01-01

This study investigated the online help-seeking behaviors of computer science students with a focus on the effect of achievement goals. The online help-seeking behaviors investigated were online searching, asking teachers online for help, and asking peers or unknown people online for help. One hundred and sixty-five students studying computer…

The impact of Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) professional development on the self-efficacy of science teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Akella, Somi Devi M.

In 2012, the National Research Council introduced the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), which were created to improve the K-12 education in the U.S. and stress the importance of providing professional development (PD) to acquire the knowledge, skills, and self-efficacy to design lessons to meet high standards of teaching and learning. Bandura's (1977) theory of self-efficacy posits that people are motivated to perform an action if they are confident that they can perform the action successfully. The purpose of this survey research was to investigate the impact of professional development on the self-efficacy of science teachers with regard to the NGSS practice of Analyzing and Interpreting Data as well as to probe teachers' perceptions of barriers to their self-efficacy in applying this practice. The study found that focused and targeted PD helped improve participants' self-efficacy in incorporating the NGSS practices and addressed several barriers to teacher self-efficacy. In response to findings, Akella's Science Teaching Efficacy Professional Development (ASTEPD) model is proposed as a tool to guide PD practice and, thus, helps improve teacher self-efficacy.

Teacher Training to Handle Bullying in the School in Indonesia

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hidayatus Sholihah

2016-02-01

Full Text Available There are several students in Indonesia who have suffered from injury or even died because of bullying. As a consequence, school teachers in Indonesia need to be trained to handle and prevent bullying. This essay examines the importance of pre-service and in service teacher training in order to reduce and prevent bullying in school in Indonesia by examining the problem of bullying, discussing the effects of it and providing areas of training to help teachers to tackle bullying. There are several reasons why bullying becomes serious problem in school. First of all, bullying is a complex task for teachers because it is difficult to identify and, teachers find it difficult to differentiate between bullying and fighting or horseplay. Moreover, teachers lack the knowledge and skills to handle bullying. Bullying has negative effects not only on victims but also on bullies. Victims feel lonely, depressed, and often have low self-esteem, while bullies often exhibit sign of bad temper or depression. Areas of teachers pre- service and in- service training are1 assisting teachers to differentiate between bullying and fighting or horse playing 2 developing skills to communicate with bullies and to manage classrooms where bullying occurs. In conclusion, teacher training is a good solution to tackle bullying at school in Indonesia because teachers are in the front line to solve this problem. Permalink/DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15408/tjems.v2i1.1786

Social Goals and Willingness to Seek Help for School Violence

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Yablon, Yaacov B.

2012-01-01

The relation between students' social goals and their willingness to seek help for school violence was examined. Four hundred and sixty-two students from sixth, eighth, and tenth grades responded to vignettes used to assess willingness to seek help from teachers and friends for dealing with relational and physical violence. Intimacy goals enhanced…

Key Issue: Enhancing Teacher Leadership

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National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality, 2007

2007-01-01

"Teachers are leaders when they function in professional communities to affect student learning; contribute to school improvement; inspire excellence in practice; and empower stakeholders to participate in educational improvement" (Childs-Bowen, Moller, & Scrivner, 2000, p. 28). Enhancing teacher leadership can help schools and districts reach the…

Teacher Salaries and Teacher Unions: A Spatial Econometric Approach

OpenAIRE

John V. Winters

2011-01-01

The author uses a spatial econometric framework to examine the determinants of teacher salaries in the United States, including union activity in the teachers' own and in neighboring districts, teacher salaries in nearby districts, and other school district characteristics such as size and student-teacher ratios. Using the 1999-2000 Schools and Staffing Survey as well as the School District Demographic System and Bureau of Labor Statistics data sets, he finds that union activity increases sal...

Using Diagnostic Assessment to Help Teachers Understand the Chemistry of the Lead-Acid Battery

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Cheung, Derek

2011-01-01

Nineteen pre-service and in-service teachers taking a chemistry teaching methods course at a university in Hong Kong were asked to take a diagnostic assessment. It consisted of seven multiple-choice questions about the chemistry of the lead-acid battery. Analysis of the teachers' responses to the questions indicated that they had difficulty in…

Help! They Don't Speak English: Partnering Preservice Teachers with Adult English Language Learners

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Hooks, Laura M.

2008-01-01

It is well documented that parent and family involvement in children's education correlates with success in school. The increasing number of English Language Learners in public schools has created a need for teacher educators to prepare preservice teachers to be able to work with families who have limited English. This study examined the outcomes…

Engaging Pre-Service Teachers to Teach Science Contextually with Scientific Approach Instructional Video

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Susantini, E.; Kurniasari, I.; Fauziah, A. N. M.; Prastowo, T.; Kholiq, A.; Rosdiana, L.

2018-01-01

Contextual teaching and learning/CTL presents new concepts in real-life experiences and situations where students can find out the meaningful relationship between abstract ideas and practical applications. Implementing contextual teaching by using scientific approach will foster teachers to find the constructive ways of delivering and organizing science content. This research developed an instructional video that represented a modeling of using a scientific approach in CTL. The aim of this research are to engage pre-service teachers in learning how to teach CTL and to show how pre-service teachers’ responses about learning how to teach CTL using an instructional video. The subjects of this research were ten pre-service teachers in Department of Natural Sciences, Universitas Negeri Surabaya, Indonesia. All subjects observed the instructional video which demonstrated contextual teaching and learning combined with the scientific approach as they completed a worksheet to analyze the video content. The results showed that pre-service teachers could learn to teach contextually as well as applying the scientific approach in science classroom through a modeling in the instructional video. They also responded that the instructional video could help them to learn to teach each component contextual teaching as well as scientific approach.

Adoption of Mobile Technology for Teaching Preparation in Improving Teaching Quality of Teachers

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Aliff Nawi

2015-07-01

Full Text Available This study aims to identify the readiness of teachers to use mobile phones for the purpose of teaching preparation. The study also reviewed the level of teachers’ satisfaction when using the mobile technology applications developed for the purpose of teaching and learning in the classroom. This study used the mix method to collect data. A total of 31 teachers were involved in answering the questionnaire and seven teachers were interviewed to obtain supportive data. The findings show that the use of applications on mobile phones can help teachers smoothen the lesson preparation. In addition, the use of mobile technology also gives satisfaction to the teachers in enhancing their knowledge in the field of teaching. However, the technical aspects are still a priority and influence the usability aspects of an educational application. The study also revealed that the end users’ age factor is important because it affects the frequency and usage of mobile technology in developing their skills. In conclusion, the use of mobile technology among teachers is appropriate and facilitates the teaching activities.

Assimilation or transformation? An analysis of change in ten secondary science teachers following an inquiry-based research experience for teachers

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Blanchard, Margaret R.

2006-12-01

It is argued that teachers must experience inquiry in order to be able to translate it to their classrooms. The National Science Foundation's (NSF's) Research Experiences for Teachers (RETs) offer promising programs, yet scant empirical support documents the effectiveness of these programs. In this study, ten experienced, secondary science teachers were followed back to the classroom after a five-week, marine ecology RET, addressing the questions: How do teachers' conceptions and enactment of classroom inquiry change after the program?; What are the program's goals?; What accounts for these differences?; and What do these findings imply for future RETs? Data collected includes pre and post program questionnaires, audiotapes and videotapes of pre and post program teaching, post program STIR instrument responses, interviews, and field notes. The study found that an extensive, reflective program model, conducted by scientists who are teacher-centered, successfully conveyed the program model of inquiry. Post program, teachers' conceptions of inquiry were more student centered, focused less on assessment and classroom management and more on authentic content, questions, and presentations, and incorporated program language. Question patterns during enactment shifted to fewer teacher questions, more student questions, and increased higher order questions by students and teachers. More procedural questions indicated role shifts. The STIR instrument fostered understanding of enactment and, with critical incidents analyses, highlighted underlying teacher value structures. Teachers with more theoretical sophistication and who had Rationalistic and Egalitarian value structures applied inquiry throughout their teaching and moved beyond contextual constraints. Implications suggest that those who develop and implement RETs need to be masterful "bridge builders" to help transition teachers and their learning back to the classroom. Reflection holds promise for illuminating teachers

CLIL Teacher Professional Development for Content Teachers in Thailand

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Punwalai Kewara

2018-01-01

Full Text Available In Thailand, the new educational policy is mandated to encourage content teachers to integrate English in content classrooms. The policy has created tensions and misconceptions among content teachers, who must change the medium of instruction from Thai to English. This paper presents an attempt to foster teacher knowledge about the Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL approach in a teacher professional development program. Classroom language in English and CLIL classroom structure were provided for 15 teachers at a secondary school. Four volunteer teachers were observed to determine the extent to which teachers implemented CLIL. The findings revealed the teachers partly implemented classroom language in English and the provided CLIL structure was not evident. The contribution of this paper is to the literature of CLIL teacher professional development effectiveness and the implementation fidelity of a professional development program.

Empathy Research and Teacher Preparation: Benefits and Obstacles

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Bouton, Bobette

2016-01-01

Teacher preparation is critical in cultivating good teachers, but more importantly in helping teachers learn how to meet the academic and emotional needs of preK-12 students. Teaching and training the socio-emotional trait of empathy is an important skill for pre-service teachers to develop. However, due to the multiple definitions, fields of…

Philippine Classroom Teachers as Researchers: Teachers' Perceptions, Motivations, and Challenges

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Ulla, Mark B.; Barrera, Kenneth Ian B.; Acompanado, Meller M.

2017-01-01

This study explores teachers' perceptions and motivations, challenges, and needs of 50 teachers in Agusan del Norte, Philippines with regards to doing research. Methodologies used were survey questionnaire, and group and individual interviews. Findings revealed that teacher-respondents had a positive perceptions towards doing research and its…

Mentoring a new science teacher in reform-based ways: A focus on inquiry

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Schomer, Scott D.

"Essential Features and Variations of Inquiry" table, were helpful for planning and assessing inquiry-based experiences. Examination of findings revealed how the process of purposefully collaborating on the development of inquiry-based lessons fostered a more student-centered approach to teaching and learning by the protege. Therefore, having new teachers continue to collaborate with reform-minded mentors beyond their first year of teaching may help new teachers develop inquiry-based pedagogies.

Student Generated Rubrics: An Assessment Model To Help All Students Succeed. Assessment Bookshelf Series.

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Ainsworth, Larry; Christinson, Jan

The assessment model described in this guide was initially developed by a team of fifth-grade teachers who wrote objectives of integrating social studies and language arts. It helps the teacher guide students to create a task-specific rubric that they use to evaluate their own and peers' work. Teachers review the student evaluations, determine the…

Teacher to Researcher: Reflections on a New Action Research Program for University EFL Teachers

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Burns, Anne; Westmacott, Anne

2018-01-01

One of the current challenges facing many universities is how to support teachers in becoming researchers. This article discusses the experiences at a small private Chilean university of a new action research programme that was developed as a vehicle for helping teachers to become involved in research and write a research publication for…

Preparing Science Teachers for the future

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Stein, Fredrick

2002-04-01

What will teachers need in the future to be successful? What will "successful" mean in the future? Are the teaching approaches learned 40 years ago still relevant for tomorrow's classrooms? Will technology really change the way physics is taught (K-16)? Will we close the performance gap between students of differing ethnicity? Are schools of education rising to the challenge to answer these questions? Can college and university physics departments rise to the challenge of presenting physics to all students in an engaging manner? What can the APS, in partnership with AAPT and AIP, do to find the answers and provide strategies to improve the science preparation of future teachers? PhysTEC aims to help physics and education faculty work together to provide an education for future teachers that emphasizes a student-centered, hands-on, inquiry-based approach to learning science. The compelling evidence produced from Physics Education Research warrants this approach. A National Science Foundation grant of 5.76 million and a 498 thousand grant from the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education support PhysTEC, its partners and activities. http://www.phystec.org/

I-LLINI Partnerships for 21st Century Teachers

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Read, K.; Wong, K.; Charlevoix, D. J.; Tomkin, J.; Hug, B.; Williams, M.; Pianfetti, E.

2008-12-01

Quest data loggers. The participants also took pictures with the digital cameras provided through the partnership. During the afternoon session, water and air data was analyzed using TinkerPlots. The science teachers helped the math teachers understand the process of data collection, the physical environment where data was collected and the limitations of the instruments. The math teachers helped the science teachers to use the TinkerPlots software and find statistical representations of the data. A group discussion ensued with regard to the meaning of various statistical measures such as average and median and what they really mean when using real data. Feedback from the teachers was overwhelmingly positive, in particular the modeling of using science data to understand mathematical concepts. Several teachers planned to borrow the instruments and conduct similar activities in their science and math classrooms. Future work include conduct workshops for the participating teachers throughout the academic year to solicit from in-service teachers how university level science classes can be better tailored to pre-service teacher needs.

Exploring Science Teachers' Argumentation and Personal Epistemology About Global Climate Change

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Liu, Shiyu; Roehrig, Gillian

2017-06-01

This case study investigated the nature of in-service science teachers' argumentation and personal epistemology about global climate change during a 3-year professional development program on climate change education. Qualitative analysis of data from interviews and written assessments revealed that while these teachers grounded their arguments on climate issues in evidence, the evidence was often insufficient to justify their causal claims. Compared with generating arguments for their own views, teachers had more difficulties in constructing evidence-based arguments for alternative perspectives. Moreover, while these teachers shared some similarities in their epistemology about climate science, they varied in their beliefs about specific aspects such as scientists' expertise and the credibility of scientific evidence. Such similarities and distinctions were shown to relate to how teachers used evidence to justify claims in their arguments. The findings also suggested a mismatch between teachers' personal epistemology about science in general and climate science, which was revealed through their argumentation. This work helps to further the ongoing discussions in environmental education about what knowledge and skills teachers need in order to teach climate issues and prepare students for future decision making. It constitutes first steps to facilitate reasoning and argumentation in climate change education and provides important implications for future design of professional development programs.

A Multicultural Fairy Tale for Teacher Educators

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Robinson, Scott

2014-01-01

The purpose of this narrative research is to examine cultural diversity among teacher candidates. A secondary purpose is to offer a pedagogical tool for teacher educators to use with their teacher candidates to help them develop a critical consciousness in their encounters with diverse students and their reflections on their own cultural…

Introducing Rubrics to Physical Education Teacher Candidates

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Shaw, Gerard F.

2014-01-01

The importance of using rubrics as an assessment tool has been well established. Rubrics communicate to students what is expected of them, scaffold learning, provide feedback to students and teachers concerning the teaching-learning process, and allow teachers and students to self- and peer-assess. They also help teachers evaluate consistently and…

Implication of formative assessment practices among mathematics teacher

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Samah, Mas Norbany binti Abu; Tajudin, Nor'ain binti Mohd

2017-05-01

Formative assessment of school-based assessment (SBA) is implemented in schools as a move to improve the National Education Assessment System (NEAS). Formative assessment focuses on assessment for learning. There are various types of formative assessment instruments used by teachers of mathematics, namely the form of observation, questioning protocols, worksheets and quizzes. This study aims to help teachers improve skills in formative assessments during the teaching and learning (t&l) Mathematics. One mathematics teacher had been chosen as the study participants. The collecting data using document analysis, observation and interviews. Data were analyzed narrative and assessments can help teachers implement PBS. Formative assessment is conducted to improve the skills of students in t&l effectively.

Ways to Evaluate the Success of Your Teacher Incentive Fund Project in Meeting TIF Goals

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Milanowski, Anthony; Finster, Matthew

2016-01-01

This brief outlines some simple methods that Teacher Incentive Fund grants could add to their local evaluations to find out how well they are promoting attainment of the four overall TIF goals. The methods described in this brief can help grantees determine if they are moving toward improving effectiveness, student achievement, and equity.…

The Relationship Between Teachers' Mathematical Content and Pedagogical Knowledge, Teachers' Perceptions, and Student Achievement

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Campbell, Patricia F.; Nishio, Masako; Smith, Toni M.; Clark, Lawrence M.; Conant, Darcy L.; Rust, Amber H.; DePiper, Jill Neumayer; Frank, Toya Jones; Griffin, Matthew J.; Choi, Youyoung

2014-01-01

This study of early-career teachers identified a significant relationship between upper-elementary teachers' mathematical content knowledge and their students' mathematics achievement, after controlling for student- and teacher-level characteristics. Findings provide evidence of the relevance of teacher knowledge and perceptions for teacher…

Science Teachers Taking their First Steps toward Teaching Socioscientific Issues through Collaborative Action Research

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Lee, Hyunju; Yang, Jung-eun

2017-06-01

This study presents two science teachers, Catherine and Jennifer, who took their first steps toward teaching socioscientific issues through collaborative action research. The teachers participated in the collaborative action research project because they wanted to address socioscientific issues but had limited experience in teaching them. The research questions included what kinds of challenges the teachers encountered when implementing socioscientific issues and to what extent they resolved the challenging issues as participating in collaborative action research. The primary data source consisted of audiotapes of regular group meetings containing information on the process of constructing and implementing lesson plans and reflecting on their teaching of socioscientific issues. We also collected classroom videotapes of the teachers' instruction and audiotapes of students' small group discussions and their worksheets. The findings indicated that when addressing socioscientific issues in the classes, the teachers encountered several challenging issues. We categorized them into four: (1) restructuring classroom dynamics and culture, (2) scaffolding students' engagement in socioscientific issues, (3) dealing with values, and (4) finding their niche in schools. However, this study showed that collaborative action research could be a framework for helping the teachers to overcome such challenges and have successful experiences of teaching socioscientific issues. These experiences became good motivation, to gradually develop their understanding of teaching socioscientific issues and instructional strategies for integrating the knowledge and skills that they had accumulated over the years.

Find a Therapist

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... My ADAA Blog Home / Find Help Print | Email Find a Therapist Zip Code: Radius: 5 Miles 10 ... personal referrals. We supply information to help you find local mental health services and resources that allow ...

Celebrating 40 years of Medical Teacher: As the "last man standing" I look back to help us look forward.

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Jason, Hilliard

2018-04-01

In this reflective, descriptive, analytical, first-person piece, I offer recollections, data, and literature to help elucidate the emergence of medical education as a scholarly field, as part of celebrating Medical Teacher's 40-year anniversary. I emphasize the impressive growth of the professional literature in medical education, and recognize that much remains to be done. Medical education as a domain for research and development has transitioned from being largely ignored during the first 20 of the past 60 years, through a slow growth phase, to rapid acceleration during the last 2 decades. By introducing the use and potential of "edumarkers," we can see that medical education as a focus of scholarly pursuits was absent to minimal before recent decades, and we can identify trends and questions that deserve further exploration. Concern and recommendations: Only a small subset of the large population assigned to instruct health professions learners actually conducts and responds to medical education scholarship. I raise several questions as possible guides to the future for those of us who are devoted to enhancing educational processes and outcomes for learners who are expected to help prevent and manage the health challenges faced by the world's people.

Attitudes of Nigerian Secondary School Teachers to Student Evaluation of Teachers

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Joshua, Monday T.; Joshua, Akon M.

2004-01-01

This study was designed to assess the attitudes of Nigerian secondary school teachers to student evaluation of teachers (SET), and to find out if the attitudes expressed were influenced by teacher characteristics such as gender, professional status, geographical location, academic qualification and teaching experience. The study was a survey, and…

Iranian EFL Teachers' Perceptions of Teacher Self-Disclosure

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Rahimi, Ali; Askari Bigdeli, Rouhollah

2016-01-01

Teacher self-disclosure (TSD) as a communication behavior can influence students' learning by increasing their engagement and class participation as well as helping them establish effective interpersonal relationships. Owning to its context-sensitive and culture-dependent nature, however, TSD topics, purposes, and considerations may vary…

Being and Becoming a Teacher: How African American and White Preservice Teachers Envision Their Future Roles as Teacher Advocates

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Mawhinney, Lynnette; Rinke, Carol R.; Park, Gloria

2012-01-01

This article captures the life histories and professional futures of preservice teachers at three institutions of higher education. In this article, we focus on the experiences and expectations of 4 preservice teachers. We find that, although African American and White preservice teachers both see themselves as advocates for their students, they…

Tried & Tested. Ideas from Teacher Centers in the Southeast.

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Bohstedt, Jinx, Ed.; Eisenmann-Donahue, Pat, Ed.

Throughout the southeastern United States, teacher centers share much in common. The conceptual framework of teachers helping teachers inspires the development of resources and services which are similar whether the center serves a large district or only a few schools. Although the teacher centers share similar philosophies, concerns, successes,…

The teacher: A facilitator of prosociality

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Jevtić Bisera S.

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Even though behaviours we call prosocial are significant for achieving individual competency in almost all spheres of life, they are still a neglected area of investigation and study. However, in light of considerable spread of aggressive and other negative behaviours, there is a pronounced need for countermeasures in the form of positive behaviours such as helping, sharing, solidarity and understanding. The most important factor in the development of prosocial behaviour in students and moral dimension of competency in schools are certainly teachers. This is the reason why this paper deals with the role of teachers in the development of moral dimension of competency in personality of young people. The findings of the investigation raise the following pedagogic implication: the objectives and outcomes of education and upbringing should be adapted so that greater emphasis should be placed on individuals as well as on the development of values leading to better human relations and students' quality of life.

Novice Mathematics Teachers Create Themselves

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Schatz Oppenheimer, Orna; Dvir, Nurit

2018-01-01

This study presents a qualitative research based on three narratives written by novice mathematics teachers. We examine their unique professional world during their first year of work. The methodology of narrative framework, on which this article is based, helps to gain better understanding of the need for novice mathematics teachers to have…

A Knowledge Base For Teachers on Teacher-Student Relationships

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wubbels, T.

2017-01-01

Teacher-student relationships are an important factor in effective learning environments and of specific importance in multicultural classrooms. This chapter presents some of the findings of a research programme that studied for more than 30 years teacher-student relationships. We first summarise

Field-Based Teacher Research: How Teachers and Scientists Working Together Answers Questions about Turtle Nesting Ecology while Enhancing Teachers' Inquiry Skills

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Winters, J. M.; Jungblut, D.; Catena, A. N.; Rubenstein, D. I.

2013-12-01

Providing rigorous academic supplement to a professional development program for teachers, QUEST is a fusion of Drexel University's environmental science research department with Princeton University's Program in Teacher Preparation. Completed in the summers of 2012 (in partnership with Earthwatch) and 2013 in Barnegat Bay, New Jersey, QUEST's terrapin field research program enhances K-12 teachers' ecological knowledge, develops inquiry-based thinking in the classroom, and builds citizen science engagement. With a focus on quality question development and data analysis to answer questions, teachers are coached in developing, implementing, and presenting independent research projects on diamondback terrapin nesting ecology. As a result, teachers participating in QUEST's week long program bring a realistic example of science in action into their classrooms, helping to develop their own students' critical thinking skills. For teachers, this program provides training towards educating students on how to do real and imaginative science - subsequently sending students to university better prepared to engage in their own independent research. An essential component of the collaboration through QUEST, in addition to the teacher's experience during and after the summer institute, is the research data collected which supplements that of the Principal Investigator. In 2012, by documenting terrapin nest site predators, teachers gained valuable scientific experience, while Drexel acquired important ecological data which would have not been able to be collected otherwise. In 2013, teachers helped answer important questions about terrapin nesting success post Superstorm Sandy. In fact, the 2013 QUEST teachers are the first to visualize the frighteningly increased erosion of a primary terrapin nesting site due to Sandy; showing how most terrapin nests now lie in the bay, instead of safe on shore. Teachers comment that interacting with scientists in the field, and contributing to

Peer support: helping to influence cultural change.

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Whitmore, Mary

2015-02-01

Breastfeeding peer support schemes in Blackpool and Lancashire work closely with midwifery and other partners to offer additional support and encouragement to breastfeeding mothers. Employed and volunteer peer supporters deliver a systematic service in target areas delivering workshops to pregnant mothers, supporting new mothers in hospital, including in the neonatal units, in mothers' homes and in groups at children's centres. Working with health, children's centres, public health and councils, the peer supporters were instrumental in Fleetwood town agreeing to always welcome breastfeeding. They worked with teachers, public health and infant feeding coordinators to deliver a month-long breastfeeding campaign at a local college and, working with health visitors, have engaged with grandmothers to find out how they feel they can help support new mothers. Skilled supervision is essential to ensuring peer supporters work safely and continue to develop their skills and knowledge. Volunteer coordinators play a key role in valuing and organising volunteers.

English-Language Teachers' Engagement with Research: Findings from Bangladesh

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Anwaruddin, Sardar M.; Pervin, Nasrin

2015-01-01

In this article, we report on a small-scale study in which we investigated English-language teachers' engagement with educational research. We conceptualized engagement with research as reading and systematically using research for professional development. Using questionnaires and in-depth interviews, we gathered empirical materials from 40…

Development: Ages & Stages--Helping Children Manage Fears

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Poole, Carla; Miller, Susan A.; Church, Ellen Booth

2004-01-01

By watching, listening, and offering gentle reassurance, you can help young children work through their fears. Sudden noises, movement, or unfamiliar people often frighten babies. After 12 months of nurturing experiences with familiar teachers and routines, a baby is more prepared and less easily startled. Preschoolers have a variety of fears such…

CO-CREATE: Teachers' Voices to Inform Special Education Teacher Education

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Young, Kirsty

2018-01-01

Teacher education is under increasing scrutiny regarding the preparedness of graduates to work in the profession in the early years of their career. To inform a teacher education program on the issues affecting graduates working in the field of special education, 77 special education teachers and principals were surveyed. Findings highlight the…

EPISTEMOLOGICAL PERCEPTION AND SCIENTIFIC LITERACY IN LEVEL HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS

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Ramiro Álvarez-Valenzuela

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Research in science education has helped to find some difficulties that hinder the teaching-learning process. These problems include conceptual content of school subjects, the influence of prior knowledge of the student and the teachers have not been trained in their university education epistemologically. This research presents the epistemological conceptions of a sample of 114 high school teachers university science area, which refer the ideas about the role of observation in scientific knowledge development and the work of scientists in the process of knowledge generation. It also includes the level of scientific literacy from the literature that is used as a source of information on the teaching. The result also identifies the level of scientific literacy in students and their influence on learning.

Providing Effective Feedback to EFL Student Teachers

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Ali, Holi Ibrahim Holi; Al-Adawi, Hamed Ahmed

2013-01-01

Feedback on school practicum is of utmost importance for student teachers to help them to develop their pedagogical and teaching skills. This paper attempts to collect data from both student teachers and their mentors in an ELT teacher training programme in Oman to answer the questions which are raised by this study: 1) What kind of feedback do…

A storied-identity analysis approach to teacher candidates learning to teach in an urban setting

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Ibourk, Amal

While many studies have investigated the relationship between teachers' identity work and their developing practices, few of these identity focused studies have honed in on teacher candidates' learning to teach in an urban setting. Drawing upon narrative inquiry methodology and a "storied identity" analytic framework, I examined how the storied identities of science learning and becoming a science teacher shape teacher candidates' developing practice. In particular, I examined the stories of three interns, Becky, David, and Ashley, and I tell about their own experiences as science learners, their transitions to science teachers, and the implications this has for the identity work they did as they navigated the challenges of learning to teach in high-needs schools. Initially, each of the interns highlighted a feeling of being an outsider, and having a difficult time becoming a fully valued member of their classroom community in their storied identities of becoming a science teacher in the beginning of their internship year. While the interns named specific challenges, such as limited lab materials and different math abilities, I present how they adapted their lesson plans to address these challenges while drawing from their storied identities of science learning. My study reveals that the storied identities of becoming a science teacher informed how they framed their initial experiences teaching in an urban context. In addition, my findings reveal that the more their storied identities of science learning and becoming a science teacher overlapped, the more they leveraged their storied identity of science learning in order to implement teaching strategies that helped them make sense of the challenges that surfaced in their classroom contexts. Both Becky and Ashley leveraged their storied identities of science learning more than David did in their lesson planning and learning to teach. David's initial storied identity of becoming a science teacher revealed how he

Teacher Mentoring as a Community Effort

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Bradley-Levine, Jill; Lee, Jean Sangmin; Mosier, Gina

2016-01-01

This article presents the findings from a study of a mentoring program for novice mathematics and science teachers, which was provided by their teacher education program. This study reports the findings of interviews with novice math and science teachers, their mentors, and the mentoring program administrators to explore stakeholder perceptions of…

Preparing culturally and linguistically diverse preservice Early Childhood teachers for field experience

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Melinda Miller

2016-07-01

Full Text Available This article reports on an action research project focussed on preparing culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD preservice early childhood teachers for field experience. A series of targeted workshops delivered over one semester was designed to support the students to develop intercultural competence in relation to knowledge, attitude, skills and behaviours that contribute to success on field placement. Findings indicate that short-term initiatives targeted specifically to students’ identified needs and strengths can help to build intercultural competence for both students and teacher educators. For the participants, access to communication strategies, opportunities for rehearsal of teaching practice, and peer and academic support contributed to shifts in attitude, and the development of skills and new knowledge. New learnings for the teacher educators included challenging assumptions about CALD students’ sense of community and belonging in the university context.

Measuring Teachers' Knowledge of Vocabulary Development and Instruction

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Duguay, Annie; Kenyon, Dorry; Haynes, Erin; August, Diane; Yanosky, Tiffany

2016-01-01

This article describes the development of an instrument to measure teachers' knowledge of vocabulary development and instruction, the Teacher Knowledge of Vocabulary Survey (TKVS). This type of knowledge has become increasingly important as all classroom teachers are expected to help students meet language and literacy standards that include…

Teacher Impact on EFL Students’ Motivation

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Haroun BOURAS

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This study probes teachers and students’ perceptions of some teacher characteristics impact on students’ motivation. The investigation explores eight elements to elicit the views of students and teachers and find out which teacher characteristics both groups believe foster learners’ motivation in the EFL classroom. A total number of 200participants was surveyed in the academic year 2014-2015. The same questionnaire was administered to 21teachers. The findings disclosed that teachers differed from students in the ranking of their characteristics. This therefore implies that motivating learners requires a teacher to strike a good balance between the teaching methodology and the preferences of the students in terms of his or her motivating characteristics.

Investigating Teachers' Beliefs in the Implementation of Science Inquiry and Science Fair in Three Boston High Schools

Science.gov (United States)

De Barros Miller, Anne Marie

In previous decades, inquiry has been the focus of science education reform in the United States. This study sought to investigate how teachers' beliefs affect their implementation of inquiry science and science fair. It was hypothesized that science teachers' beliefs about inquiry science and science fair are predictive of their implementation of such strategies. A case study approach and semi-structured interviews were employed to collect the data, and an original thematic approach was created to analyze the data. Findings seem to suggest that science teachers who embrace science inquiry and science fair believe these practices enhance students' performance, facilitate their learning experience, and allow them to take ownership of their learning. However, results also suggest that teachers who do not fully embrace inquiry science as a central teaching strategy tend to believe that it is not aligned with standardized tests and requires higher cognitive skills from students. Overall, the study seems to indicate that when inquiry is presented as a prescribed teaching approach, this elicits strong negative feelings/attitudes amongst science teachers, leading them not only to resist inquiry as a teaching tool, but also dissuading them from participating in science fair. Additionally, the findings suggest that such feelings among teachers could place the school at risk of not implementing inquiry science and science fair. In conclusion, the study reveals that science inquiry and science fair should not be prescribed to teachers as a top-down, mandatory approach for teaching science. In addition, the findings suggest that adequate teacher training in content knowledge and pedagogy in science inquiry and science fair should be encouraged, as this could help build a culture of science inquiry and implementation amongst teachers. This should go hand-in-hand with offering mentoring to science teachers new to inquiry and science fair for 2-5 years.

Students' and teachers' cognitions about good teachers.

Science.gov (United States)

Beishuizen, J J; Hof, E; van Putten, C M; Bouwmeester, S; Asscher, J J

2001-06-01

Good teachers have been studied ever since Plato described how Socrates taught by asking questions of his audience. Recent findings shed light on two characteristics of good teachers: their personality and their ability. However, more attention has been paid to teachers' practices and opinions than to students' views. The study reported here attempted to deepen our understanding of what students think about good teachers. Students of four age groups (7, 10, 13, and 16 years of age) and teachers from primary and secondary schools were asked to write an essay on the good teacher. The correspondence between conceptual items in the essays was investigated by determining the extent to which they were used in the same essays to describe good teachers. Correspondence analysis revealed two dimensions. The first dimension reflected the preference of students and teachers for describing the good teacher in terms of either personality or ability characteristics. The second dimension was interpreted as an orientation in the essays towards either attachment to, detachment from or commitment to school and teachers. Students and teachers were compared to establish the amount of (dis)agreement about what makes a good teacher. Primary school students described good teachers primarily as competent instructors, focusing on transfer of knowledge and skills, whereas secondary school students emphasised relational aspects of good teachers. Teachers, however, considered good teachers in the first place a matter of establishing personal relationships with their students. Consequently, primary school students and teachers disagreed about the characteristics of good teachers. In secondary education, disagreements between teachers and students were relatively small. The research method of collecting free essays and utilising correspondence analysis to represent conceptual items and groups of participants seems promising as long as a theoretical framework is available to interpret the

Helping Young Children See Math in Play

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Parks, Amy Noelle; Blom, Diana Chang

2013-01-01

The purpose of this article is to provide strategies for recognizing meaningful mathematics in common play contexts in early childhood classrooms and to offer suggestions for how teachers might intervene in these moments to help children attend to the mathematical ideas embedded in their play. In particular, the author's focus on the concepts of…

Comparison of perceptions among rural versus nonrural secondary science teachers: A multistate survey

Science.gov (United States)

Baird, William E.; Preston Prather, J.; Finson, Kevin D.; Oliver, J. Steve

A 100-item survey was distributed to science teachers in eight states to determine characteristics of teachers, schools, programs, and perceived needs. Results from 1258 secondary science teachers indicate that they perceive the following to be among their greatest needs: (1) to motivate students to want to learn science; (2) to discover sources of free and inexpensive science materials; (3) to learn more about how to use computers to deliver and manage instruction; (4) to find and use materials about science careers; and (5) to improve problem solving skills among their students. Based on whether teachers classified themselves as nonrural or rural, rural teachers do not perceive as much need for help with multicultural issues in the classroom or maintaining student discipline as their nonrural peers. Rural teachers report using the following classroom activities less often than nonrural teachers: cooperative learning groups, hands-on laboratory activities, individualized strategies, and inquiry teaching. More rural than nonrural teachers report problems with too many class preparations per day, a lack of career role models in the community, and lack of colleagues with whom to discuss problems. Among all secondary science teachers, the most pronounced problems reported by teachers were (in rank order): (1) insufficient student problem-solving skills; (2) insufficient funds for supplies; (3) poor student reading ability; (4) lack of student interest in science: and (5) inadequate laboratory facilities.

The First Summer--Critical for Vo-Ag Teachers.

Science.gov (United States)

Vaughn, Paul R.; Vaughn, Roscoe C.

1979-01-01

To aid beginning New Mexico vocational agriculture teachers, the New Mexico State Department of Vocational Education initiated two activities: developing a first-year handbook to provide direction and guidance and making a visit to beginning teachers before the start of school. Beginning teachers indicated that both activities have been helpful.…

Reshaping teacher thinking, planning and practice using embedded assessment: Case studies of three middle school science teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Jeranyama, Letina Ngwenya

At the dawn of the 21st century the science education community is seeking ways of improving science education to produce a scientific literate citizenry. They have put forth new goals. Teachers are key to all efforts to improve schools, that without their full participation, any move to reform education nor matter how well intentioned is doomed to failure. The changes in the goals of science education imply that teachers have to change the way they teach science. Some scholars have suggested that one way to help teachers attain the reform goals is by using embedded assessment. Embedded assessment is defined as a cyclical and ongoing process whereby teachers gather data about students' understanding as they teach, they analyze the data formally or informally and use the analysis to plan or adjust teaching immediately, for the next hour, day, topic, unit or year. The next day's activities also include embedded assessment and so the cycle repeats itself. This study investigates how teachers make sense of embedded assessment, how embedded assessment looks in practice, how it influences teachers and their classroom environments and the challenges teachers face as they use embedded assessment. Three middle school science teachers were involved in the study. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with open-ended questions, participant observations and professional development conversations. Data were analyzed using the qualitative method of constant comparative analysis. The findings indicate that teachers passed through different stages in conceptualizing embedded assessment. This conceptualization influenced the way embedded assessment looked in the classroom. Embedded assessment took many forms and shapes in the teachers' classrooms. Embedded assessment influenced the teachers' perspectives about the curriculum, students, teaching, assessment, planning and reflection in ways that enabled the teachers to be investigators of their students' understanding

Toward a More Dialogic Pedagogy: Changing Teachers' Beliefs and Practices through Professional Development in Language Arts Classrooms

Science.gov (United States)

Wilkinson, Ian A. G.; Reznitskaya, Alina; Bourdage, Kristin; Oyler, Joseph; Glina, Monica; Drewry, Robert; Kim, Min-Young; Nelson, Kathryn

2017-01-01

In this paper, we report findings from the second year of a three-year research and professional development program designed to help elementary school teachers engage in dialogic teaching to support the development of students' argument literacy. We define argument literacy as the ability to comprehend and formulate arguments through speaking,…

Teacher Attitude to Inspectors and Inspection: Quality Control ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

International Journal of Educational Research. Journal Home · ABOUT ... These will help to change the negative attitude of teachers to inspectors and inspection to positive. Keywords: Teacher Attitude; School Inspection; Education Inspectors.

Assessment practices of third- and fifth-grade science teachers: A comparison to the style/format, process, and content of Ohio's proficiency tests

Science.gov (United States)

Janson, David C.

This descriptive study is addressed to policy-makers, textbook publisher, teachers, principals, and curriculum directors. It compares the assessment practices of ten elementary teachers over a period of 11 weeks with Ohio's fourth and sixth grade science Proficiency Tests. Results show that the teachers' assessment practices were not aligned with Ohio's Proficiency Test. The tests used in the participants' classroom contained a disproportionate number of items characterized as low-level in terms of their cognitive function. Classroom test items generally fell into three categories---true/false, completion, and matching. The remaining items were predominantly low-level multiple-choice items requiring simple recall of information. The teachers in this study showed a heavy reliance on the packaged assessments that accompanied their adopted textbook series with little use of teacher-designed instruments. This differs from the findings of previous researchers who reported that most teacher assessments were done with teacher-made tests. The lack of alignment between classroom tests and Ohio's Proficiency Test is a concern because previous researchers and the teachers in this study believe that aligning classroom tests with high-stakes assessment improves student performance. Other research shows teachers teach what they test suggesting that the curriculum would be better aligned with State expectations if classroom tests were more in line with the proficiency tests. This study found that textbooks and their assessment packages are not aligned to most state standards and that teachers need help developing better assessments. The results of this study suggest directions school administrators might take to facilitate inservice training for current teachers and could be helpful to textbook publishers as well as educators serving on adoption committees. Since high-stakes testing of students in the nation's public schools and school accountability seem destined to remain a

Preservice elementary teachers' actual and designated identities as teachers of science and teachers of students

Science.gov (United States)

Canipe, Martha Murray

stories and enactments in order to determine which storytellers were significant narrators for the preservice teachers' identities. The findings from this study show that significant narrators vary among the preservice teachers and include artifacts such as curriculum materials and instructional models in addition to people who are expected to be significant narrators. Furthermore, differences between preservice teachers' actual and designated identities influence opportunities to learn about what it means to be a teacher of science and students. This took different forms with each preservice teacher. In one case the preservice teacher worked to enact aspects of her designated identity and reflected about how she was not quite able to be the teacher of science she wanted to be as a novice teacher. Another case showed how the gap between actual and designated identities could limit opportunities to learn when the preservice teacher's strong actual identity as a novice led her to consider certain aspects of her designated identity as things which could not even be tried at this point. Finally, in the third case the preservice teacher's strong actual identity limited opportunities to develop a designated identity because she did not see herself as being a different kind of teacher of science in the future than she was right now as a student teacher. These findings suggest that supporting preservice elementary teacher identity development as teachers of science is an important part of preparing them to teach science in ways that engage students in scientific practices. Additionally, it is essential to examine identity stories and enactments in concert with each other in order to gain deeper understandings of how identities are developed and put into practice in classrooms.

ESL Teacher and ICT:Teachers' Perception

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Chua Pei Lin

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The rapid development of Information Communication and Technologies (ICTs has made tremendous changes in the twenty-first century. ICT is said to bring a variety of benefits in facilitating the teaching and learning process. Therefore, ICT has been the emphasis in school and higher institutions of education nowadays. However, to integrate ICT in education is not problem free, problems are faced by the teachers. This paper aims to investigate the ESL teachers’ perception toward the use of ICT in KT, Malaysia. Data were collected via interviews with four Form 4 English teachers in a secondary school in Kuala Terengganu. Findings show teachers have a positive perception towards the use of ICT. However, teachers claimed they face challenges in using ICT especially due to insufficient facilities.

Minority Teacher Recruitment and Retention Strategies

Science.gov (United States)

Kearney-Gissendaner, Janet E.

2010-01-01

The tools and resources in this book help school leaders seamlessly incorporate minority teacher recruitment and retention programs into current human-resources activities. With details about exemplary minority teacher recruitment and retention programs, this book also showcases strategies for how to replicate such programs in your own school or…

Primary Teacher Educators' Perception of Desired and Achieved Pedagogical Content Knowledge in Geography Education in Primary Teacher Training

Science.gov (United States)

Blankman, Marian; van der Schee, Joop; Volman, Monique; Boogaard, Marianne

2015-01-01

This paper presents the findings of a study conducted among primary geography teacher educators. The research examines the perceptions of educators of primary teacher students' desired and achieved levels of substantial knowledge, syntactic knowledge, and beliefs about the subject of geography. The findings indicate that primary teacher educators…

Promoting Prospective Elementary Teachers' Learning to Use Formative Assessment for Life Science Instruction

Science.gov (United States)

Sabel, Jaime L.; Forbes, Cory T.; Zangori, Laura

2015-06-01

To support elementary students' learning of core, standards-based life science concepts highlighted in the Next Generation Science Standards, prospective elementary teachers should develop an understanding of life science concepts and learn to apply their content knowledge in instructional practice to craft elementary science learning environments grounded in students' thinking. To do so, teachers must learn to use high-leverage instructional practices, such as formative assessment, to engage students in scientific practices and connect instruction to students' ideas. However, teachers may not understand formative assessment or possess sufficient science content knowledge to effectively engage in related instructional practices. To address these needs, we developed and conducted research within an innovative course for preservice elementary teachers built upon two pillars—life science concepts and formative assessment. An embedded mixed methods study was used to evaluate the effect of the intervention on preservice teachers' (n = 49) content knowledge and ability to engage in formative assessment practices for science. Findings showed that increased life content knowledge over the semester helped preservice teachers engage more productively in anticipating and evaluating students' ideas, but not in identifying effective instructional strategies to respond to those ideas.

Using expanded individualized health care plans to assist teachers of students with complex health care needs.

Science.gov (United States)

Heller, Kathryn Wolff; Tumlin, Jennifer

2004-06-01

As special education teachers have increasing numbers of students requiring health care procedures in their classrooms, school nurses need to help these teachers maintain a safe, healthy environment for their students. Part of this consists of having teachers know the steps to take should certain problems arise. This article examines the receptivity of using an expanded version of an individualized health care plan (IHP) to provide critical information to address health care problems, as well as having individualized education program (IEP) objectives for instructional targets identified in the IHP. The findings of this study indicate that a high percentage of school nurses and special education teachers were in favor of an expanded version of the IHP. There was also support for teaching students to independently or partially participate in performing their own health care procedures and having this instruction formalized as IEP objectives.

The Effects of Study Abroad on Teacher Competencies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mustafa Altun

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Promoting harmony within diversity has become a goal of both global education and multicultural education. Schools need to help students to become more culturally aware today. Teachers who study abroad can enable diverse groups to live in harmony. Individuals need to promote respect and mutual understanding to function in modern diverse societies. Unless people develop better inter-community relations, a cohesive and tolerant society cannot be created. Study abroad experience helps teachers develop increased cultural awareness as they acquire more cultural knowledge and cultural sensitivity while studying abroad. It has been assumed that teachers who study abroad can work more effectively in an intercultural context. This article attempts to explain whether study abroad experience allows teachers to encourage students to recognize the diversity of cultures and values.

Becoming Reflective and Inquiring Teachers: Collaborative Action Research for In-service Chilean Teachers

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Martine Pellerin

2015-08-01

Full Text Available This article discusses the outcomes of a case study that engaged Chilean in-service teachers in systematic action research (AR as a means of improving their pedagogical practice and effecting changes in their educational context. The study involved six in-service teachers from a region of Chile and two university researchers. The findings show that knowledge of systematic AR provided the teachers with the necessary means to engage in a critical reflection and inquiry process regarding their own practice. The teacher participants also perceived the self-reflective spiral of reflection and action to be crucial in establishing new habits of inquiry and reflection about their own pedagogical actions. The findings support earlier studies (e.g., Price & Valli, 2005; Steven & Kitchen, 2005, 2011 concerning the necessity of including knowledge of systematic AR in teacher preparation programs in order to foster strong habits of inquiry and reflection among preservice teachers. Finally, the study suggests that participation in a systematic reflection and inquiry process contributes to empowering in-service teachers to become agents of pedagogical change through their own actions.

Greek Teachers Programme 2015

CERN Multimedia

Hoch, Michael

2015-01-01

The 3rd edition of this year's Greek Teachers Programme was co-organized by CERN Education Group and the Hellenic Physical Society and took place from 8 to 12 November 2015. The programme targets physics high-school teachers from all over Greece. It aims to help teachers inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers by motivating their students to understand and appreciate how science works at the world's largest physics laboratory, whereby increasing their interest in pursuing studies in STEM fields in secondary and post-secondary education. 33 teachers took part in this programme which comprised lectures by Greek members of the CERN scientific community, with visits to experimental facilities, hands-on activities and dedicated sessions on effective and creative ways through which participants may bring physics, particle physics and CERN closer to their school classroom. In 2015, more than 100 teachers took part in the three editions of the Greek Teachers Programme.

75 FR 8854 - Teacher Incentive Fund Program

Science.gov (United States)

2010-02-26

..., evaluation, retention, and advancement into instructional leadership roles. When the PBCS's implementation... responsibilities and leadership roles; and (4) Include helping teachers and principals to better understand and use... high-need schools by creating incentives for effective teachers and principals in these schools. DATES...

Problems Teachers Face When Doing Action Research and Finding Possible Solutions: Three Cases

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Jun

2012-01-01

Through case studies, this paper explores problems teachers face when doing action research: for instance, teachers may misunderstand the research, mistrust university researchers, lack the time or adequate library resources to conduct research, lack theoretical guidance or knowledge of research methodology, and feel pressure or frustration during…

Listen, Protect, Connect--Model & Teach: Psychological First Aid (PFA) for Students and Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Schreiber, M.; Gurwitch, R.; Wong, M.

2006-01-01

Just as teachers help connect students with appropriate academic and counseling services under normal circumstances, after a disaster they can help them return to school, stay in school, continue to learn, and return to their usual school-based activities. This pamphlet presents some steps for teachers to follow to help themselves and their…

Distance Learning for Teacher Training in Brazil

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Alvana Maria Bof

2004-04-01

Full Text Available Proformação is a distance teacher certification course aimed at providing training to 27,000 uncertified teachers in 15 Brazilian states. This innovative program organizes human and technical resources for delivering distance education in a cost-effective manner. Different from other institutional systems – which typically employ their own dedicated content, design, and instructional resource personnel, and accompanied by a large pool of administrative staff – Proformação leverages pre-existing learning resources such as content experts, technology specialists, instruction, and student support systems from several institutions. Proformação goal is to create a viable teacher certification course to upgrade thousands of non-certified teachers working in the field. Proformação is coordinated by an administrative unit of the Brazilian Ministry of Education. To support the program, an information system was implemented to continuously and consistently monitor the program’s activities and results. Results of an external evaluation have been positive; Proformação is regarded by some as an innovative model for delivering decentralized training opportunities to large student numbers. Therefore, the findings in this article may prove interesting to those charged with implementing distance learning initiatives in developing countries, in that the lessons learned in Brazil may help others interested in implementing similar distance training programs.

Why Teachers Find It Difficult to Include Students with EBD in Mainstream Classes

Science.gov (United States)

Gidlund, Ulrika

2018-01-01

In Sweden, teachers in mainstream schools show frustration and insecurity about how to organise education for inclusion and diversity. This article contributes to the understanding of how they articulate their view of the advantages and disadvantages of including students with EBD in mainstream classes. To study teachers' understanding, an…

Study on Related Courses to Help Undergraduate Students Write Research Reports: A Curriculum Evaluation

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Eny Winarti

2014-02-01

Full Text Available From the experience of joining the boards in the students’ research report defence, teaching education research methodology, and classroom action research, the researcher indicated that students had challenges related with the logic of research methods and academic research writing.  These findings encouraged the researcher to study the courses that have potential in helping students writing their research reports.  To study the courses, the researcher analysed related documents, such as syllabi and lesson plans.  The researcher also interviewed teachers and students to clarify the relevance of the syllabi and the classroom learning.  The results of the study indicated that logic, academic writing, statistics, research methodology, and classroom action research had the potential of helping the students write their research report.  The researcher also indicated that the content of the courses should have been more helpful.  The fact, however, was that the students still had challenges understanding the materials after taking the courses.  Further study about this fact is then recommended.

Beyond Culture: Helping International Students Avoid Plagiarism

OpenAIRE

Soni Adhikari

2017-01-01

With the rapid increase in the number of international students from different academic backgrounds around the world, college and university teachers in the West find it harder to understand the many and complex reasons when these students plagiarize or use sources ineffectively. Reviewing relevant literature, I first make a pedagogical analysis of student plagiarism then show why teachers should shift focus from traditional views about cultural difference toward a multidimensional understand...

University Student and Teacher Perceptions of Teacher Roles in Promoting Autonomous Language Learning with Technology outside the Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Lai, Chun; Yeung, Yuk; Hu, Jingjing

2016-01-01

Helping students to become autonomous learners, who actively utilize technologies for learning outside the classroom, is important for successful language learning. Teachers, as significant social agents who shape students' intellectual and social experiences, have a critical role to play. This study examined students' and teachers' perceptions of…

Teaching the teachers.

Science.gov (United States)

Zavalkoff, Anne

2002-10-01

SUMMARY This paper presents a conceptual tool designed to help teacher education students think critically about the roots and consequences of personal, parental, community, and institutional resistance to diverse sexual identities and behaviours. To explore the roots of sexualized and gendered prejudice and ground the conceptual tool theoretically, it begins with a careful examination of Judith Butler's work on performativity. The paper then describes and illustrates the conceptual tool. The Continuum of (Subversive) Drag Performance helps stimulate critical thinking about the power implications of people's sexed and gendered performances through its six ranges: Radical, Stealth, Commercial, Passing, Mainstream, and Privileged. Because these ranges are independent of common considerations of "normalcy," they offer teacher education students a relatively unthreatening framework for analyzing conceptions of sexuality and gender that, left unexamined, can contribute to sexism, heterosexism, and homophobia.

Collaboration Model for ESL and Content Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Broer, Kathleen

2013-01-01

This study will examine strategies that ESL teachers and content teachers can use to help middle school ESL students acquire science vocabulary and meta-cognitive strategies for writing skills in non-fiction text forms. Two appendixes are included. (Contains 3 figures and 2 footnotes.)

Finding Our Way: Eighth Graders Explore Social Networking Sites

Science.gov (United States)

Leland, Chris; Ociepka, Anne; Kuonen, Kate

2012-01-01

As adolescents spend more and more time engaging in various on line activities, teachers are questioning the role that language arts curricula might play in helping them become savvy technology users. In this study, an eighth-grade teacher responded to her students' unauthorized participation on MySpace[TM] by initiating an inquiry into social…

Math Is Like a Scary Movie? Helping Young People Overcome Math Anxiety

Science.gov (United States)

Kulkin, Margaret

2016-01-01

Afterschool teachers who tutor students or provide homework help have a unique opportunity to help students overcome the social or emotional barriers that so often block learning. They can embrace a creative and investigative approach to math learning. Margaret Kulkin's interest in being a math attitude "myth-buster" led her to apply to…

Perceptions of Linguistically Responsive Teaching in Teacher Candidates/Novice Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Tandon, Madhavi; Viesca, Kara Mitchell; Hueston, Colin; Milbourn, Tamara

2017-01-01

This qualitative study examined data from 36 teacher candidates and novice teachers to explore their perceptions and understandings of linguistic responsiveness. The findings illustrate the challenge of demonstrating linguistically responsive teaching practices in the early and initial stages of entering the teaching profession, and more research…

Pre-Service Teacher Training in Malawi: Findings of a Pilot Study on the Viability of Media Players for Teacher Development

Science.gov (United States)

Carrier, Carol; Finholt-Daniel, Matt; Sales, Gregory C.

2012-01-01

As part of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funded Malawi Teacher Professional Development Support project, a sub-task was the piloting of an alternative technology that could be used for improving the quality and consistency of teacher continued professional development (CPD). The pilot, which included 26 open and…

Thinking Systemically: Steps for States to Improve Equity in the Distribution of Teachers-- An Action-Planning Workbook to Help Guide Regional Comprehensive Center and State Education Agency Conversation to Address the Inequitable Distribution of Teachers

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National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality, 2009

2009-01-01

The National Comprehensive Center for Teacher Quality (TQ Center) is a resource to which the regional comprehensive centers, states, and other education stakeholders turn for strengthening the quality of teaching--especially in high-poverty, low-performing, and hard-to-staff schools--and for finding guidance in addressing specific needs, thereby…

Seniority Rules: Do Staffing Reforms Help Redistribute Teacher Quality and Reduce Teacher Turnover? CRPE Working Paper 2010-1

Science.gov (United States)

Gross, Betheny; DeArmond, Michael; Goldhaber, Dan

2010-01-01

Education reformers routinely call on school districts to stop hiring teachers based on seniority, which they argue interferes with effective staffing, especially in disadvantaged schools. The few researchers who have empirically studied the issue, however, disagree about whether seniority-based hiring is systematically associated with staffing…

Bonding Ideas About Inquiry: Exploring Knowledge and Practices of Metacognition in Beginning Secondary Science Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Rivero Arias, Ana Margarita

Metacognition, identified generally as "thinking about thinking", plays a fundamental role in science education. It enhances the understanding of science as a way to generate new knowledge using scientific concepts and practices. Moreover, metacognition supports the development of students' life-long problem solving, collaboration, and critical thinking skills. When teachers use metacognition with intention, it can promote students' agency and responsibility for their own learning. However, despite all of its benefits, metacognition is rarely seen in secondary science classrooms. Thus, it is important to understand what beginning teachers know and how they use metacognition during their first years in order to find ways to prepare and support them in incorporating metacognitive practices into their science teaching. The purpose of this multimethod study was to describe the metacognitive knowledge and experiences of beginning science teachers. For the quantitative research strand, I surveyed 36 secondary science teachers about their awareness of metacognition and used classroom observations coded from a larger research study to identify how often teachers were using metacognition to teach science. For the qualitative strand, I interviewed 15 participants about their knowledge and experiences of metacognition (including reflective practices) and spent two weeks observing two of the teachers who described exemplary metacognitive teaching practices. I found that participants had a solid awareness of metacognition, but considered the term complicated to enact, difficult for students, and less important to focus on during their first years of teaching than other elements such as content. Additionally, teaching experience seemed to have an effect on teachers' knowledge and experiences of metacognition. However, participants who were using metacognitive practices had recognized their importance since the beginning of their teaching. Reflective practices can help improve

Head Teachers and Teachers as Pioneers in Facilitating Dyslexic Children in Primary Mainstream Schools

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Fahima Salman Jaka

2015-12-01

Full Text Available This study explores the perceptions of school heads and teachers in facilitating young dyslexic children in primary mainstream schools of Pakistan. Through purposive sampling, the researcher selected eight participants: Four primary school heads and four primary teachers from elite schools of Karachi. The research instrument selected for this study was in-depth interviews to get a deeper insight of school heads and teachers perceptions regarding the facilitation of dyslexic children. The findings revealed that children with dyslexia face many emotional and academic problems and only a few elite schools provide policy to facilitate them in mainstream education. Findings showed that some schools hired remedial teaching services or special education services and the school heads and primary teachers put in immense effort in preparing intervention plans and evaluation plans to suit individual and young dyslexic children needs. It was also suggested that positivity of the learning environment depends upon the teachers. The findings further disclosed that unlike the more developed nations, apart from a few elite schools in Pakistan, there is no importance paid to professional training related to dyslexia.

Effects of Help Options in a Multimedia Listening Environment on L2 Vocabulary Acquisition

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Mohsen, Mohammed Ali

2016-01-01

Several types of help options have been incorporated into reading and listening comprehension activities to aid second language (L2) vocabulary acquisition. Textbook authors, teachers, and sometimes even students may pick and choose which help options they wish to use. In this paper, I investigate the effects of two help options in a multimedia…

Finding the Connective Tissue in Teacher Education: Creating New Spaces for Professional Learning to Teach

Science.gov (United States)

Hopper, Tim F.; Sanford, Kathy; Fu, Hong

2016-01-01

A common concern in teacher education programs is the fragmentation of knowledge between courses that contribute to separation between discipline-focused theoretical knowledge and teachers' practical work in schools. Drawing on reviews on innovative learning spaces in schools and analysis of teacher knowledge, we theorize a conceptualization of…

Burnout does not help predict depression among French school teachers.

Science.gov (United States)

Bianchi, Renzo; Schonfeld, Irvin Sam; Laurent, Eric

2015-11-01

Burnout has been viewed as a phase in the development of depression. However, supportive research is scarce. We examined whether burnout predicted depression among French school teachers. We conducted a 2-wave, 21-month study involving 627 teachers (73% female) working in French primary and secondary schools. Burnout was assessed with the Maslach Burnout Inventory and depression with the 9-item depression module of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). The PHQ-9 grades depressive symptom severity and provides a provisional diagnosis of major depression. Depression was treated both as a continuous and categorical variable using linear and logistic regression analyses. We controlled for gender, age, and length of employment. Controlling for baseline depressive symptoms, linear regression analysis showed that burnout symptoms at time 1 (T1) did not predict depressive symptoms at time 2 (T2). Baseline depressive symptoms accounted for about 88% of the association between T1 burnout and T2 depressive symptoms. Only baseline depressive symptoms predicted depressive symptoms at follow-up. Similarly, logistic regression analysis revealed that burnout symptoms at T1 did not predict incident cases of major depression at T2 when depressive symptoms at T1 were included in the predictive model. Only baseline depressive symptoms predicted cases of major depression at follow-up. This study does not support the view that burnout is a phase in the development of depression. Assessing burnout symptoms in addition to "classical" depressive symptoms may not always improve our ability to predict future depression.

Exploring the Job Satisfaction of Late Career Secondary Physical Education Teachers

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Carson, Russell L.; Hemphill, Michael A.; Richards, K. Andrew R.; Templin, Tom

2016-01-01

As teachers move toward the end of their careers, understanding the experiences that help them derive satisfaction from their work has implications for helping them stay engaged in teaching. The purpose of this study was to qualitatively examine the job satisfaction of late career physical education teachers. Jessica, Sandy, and Bill were later…

Technology in Teacher Education: Developing Online Teacher Education Programs Tecnología en formación de docentes: Desarrollo de programas en línea para la formación de docentes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Khalil Motallebzadeh

2005-10-01

Full Text Available Many ESL/EFL teachers in the Middle East and Central Asia find themselves isolated not only geographically but also professionally from ESL colleagues. They often teach at rural schools where, in some cases, they are the only ESL teachers in the school or even district. These teachers, unlike their counterparts in large urban settings and developed countries, have fewer avenues for obtaining advice, sharing experiences, or finding collegial support. To help such teachers (as well as many novice teachers or even teacher trainees, the most inexpensive and easy-to-do method seems to be to develop a professional online ESL network. This paper, which is part of a study conducted in Iran in 2002, discusses the major considerations and problems one may find developing an online program.Muchos docentes de inglés como segunda lengua o como lengua extranjera en el Medio Oeste y Asia Central se hallan apartados, no sólo geográfica sino también profesionalmente de otros colegas. Usualmente enseñan en escuelas rurales donde, en algunos casos, son los únicos maestros de inglés de la escuela e incluso del distrito. Estos docentes, a diferencia de sus homólogos de grandes contextos urbanos y países desarrollados, tienen menos oportunidades de obtener consejo, compartir experiencias o encontrar apoyo. Para ayudar a esos docentes, principiantes e incluso educadores de maestros, la manera más económica y fácil es desarrollar una red profesional de enseñanza del inglés como segunda lengua. Este artículo hace parte de un estudio realizado en Irán en el año 2002 y discute las consideraciones y problemas más importantes que se pueden hallar al desarrollar un programa en línea.

Organisational Correlates of Secondary School Teachers' Job ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The major finding of the study revealed that teachers' job perception significantly relate to teachers' job commitment. Premised on the finding, it was recommended that all hands must be on deck, that the society at large should raise teachers' morale by viewing them as achievers. The teaching profession should be seen as ...

Pre-Service Teachers' Conceptions of Probability

Science.gov (United States)

Odafe, Victor U.

2011-01-01

Probability knowledge and skills are needed in science and in making daily decisions that are sometimes made under uncertain conditions. Hence, there is the need to ensure that the pre-service teachers of our children are well prepared to teach probability. Pre-service teachers' conceptions of probability are identified, and ways of helping them…

State Teacher Policy Yearbook, 2009. Hawaii

Science.gov (United States)

National Council on Teacher Quality, 2009

2009-01-01

The Hawaii edition of the National Council on Teacher Quality's (NCTQ's) 2009 "State Teacher Policy Yearbook" is the third annual look at state policies impacting the teaching profession. It is hoped that this report will help focus attention on areas where state policymakers can make changes that will have a positive impact on teacher…

10,000th teacher visits CERN

CERN Multimedia

Kathryn Coldham

2016-01-01

This year, the 10,000th teacher will visit CERN since its first teacher programme in 1998.   HST 2016 teachers with CERN Director-General Fabiola Gianotti in the CERN Council Chamber. (Image: Maximilien Brice/CERN) This summer, CERN welcomed the 10,000th teacher to participate in one of its teacher programmes! This milestone was achieved in this year’s International High School Teacher (HST) programme, a three-week residential programme that saw 48 enthusiastic teachers flock from all over the world to help inspire young minds. Taking place every July since 1998, the HST programme aims to increase teachers’ knowledge on the cutting-edge particle physics research currently being carried out at CERN. It also opens up a whole new world of educational resources available for use by the teachers to inspire their students’ curious young minds. More information is available here.

Queer Teachers' Ethical Dilemmas regarding Queer Youth

Science.gov (United States)

Russell, Vanessa Tamara

2010-01-01

Although all teachers are expected to be "role models," discursive trajectories reaching back to the West's gay liberation pressure queer teachers to be role models in specific ways--by "coming out" and helping queer students out of their "time of difficulty." Paradoxically, discourses that construct children as…

Turkish Mathematics and Science Teachers' Technology Use in Their Classroom Instruction: Findings from TIMSS 2011

Science.gov (United States)

Tas, Yasemin; Balgalmis, Esra

2016-01-01

The goal of this study was to describe Turkish mathematics and science teachers' use of computer in their classroom instruction by utilizing TIMSS 2011 data. Analyses results revealed that teachers most frequently used computers for preparation purpose and least frequently used computers for administration. There was no difference in teachers'…

Barriers and Facilitators for Teachers' Implementation of the Curricular Component of the Boost Intervention Targeting Adolescents' Fruit and Vegetable Intake

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jørgensen, Thea Suldrup; Krølner, Rikke; Aarestrup, Anne Kristine

2014-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To examine barriers and facilitators to teachers' implementation of the curricular component of the school-based, multicomponent Boost intervention to promote fruit and vegetable intake among 13-year-olds guided by concepts of Diffusion of Innovations Theory and findings of previous...... and extra workload and motivated by a pre-intervention workshop and the thoroughness of the project. Detailed implementation manuals were helpful for some teachers but a barrier to others because they limited opportunities for adaptation. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Implementation of curricular activities...

Contract Teachers in India

Science.gov (United States)

Goyal, Sangeeta; Pandey, Priyanka

2013-01-01

In this paper, we use non-experimental data from government schools in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, two of the largest Indian states, to present average school outcomes by contract status of teachers. We find that contract teachers are associated with higher effort than civil service teachers with permanent tenures, before as well as after…

Strangers and Professionals: Positioning Discourse in ESL Teachers' Work

Science.gov (United States)

Haneda, Mari; Nespor, Jan

2013-01-01

English Language Learners (ELLs) usually spend most of the school day with regular classroom teachers. The ability of English-as-a-second-language (ESL) teachers to help these students, then, depends in part on their ability to influence how the classroom teachers think of ELL students and ESL itself. One way ESL teachers do this is through…

The perceptions of teachers and principals toward providing additional compensation to teachers in high-need subject areas

Science.gov (United States)

Longing, Jeffrey Lucian

also showed that teachers not teaching in high-need areas understood the overall need for varied compensation, but were less likely to agree with compensating high-need teachers more. In addition, the majority of teachers in other high-need areas, such as foreign language and special education, also understood the need for varied compensation. However, they were more likely to agree with compensating high-need teachers more when compared to non-high-need teachers. The majority of principals agreed that high-need teachers should be compensated more than teachers not considered high-need. The results of this study indicated that most teachers and principals agreed that higher compensation would attract and retain teachers in hard-to-staff schools, but fewer teachers not considered high-need agreed with compensating high-need teachers more. Even though varied compensation (i.e., salaries, bonuses, housing incentives, etc.) would help hard-to-staff schools find and retain high-need teachers, administrators should take caution to avoid possible problems associated with such actions (Goldhaber, 2006).

Episode-Centered Guidelines for Teacher Belief Change toward Technology Integration

Science.gov (United States)

Er, Erkan; Kim, ChanMin

2017-01-01

Teachers' episodic memories influence their beliefs. The investigation of episodic memories can help identify the teacher beliefs that limit technology-integration. We propose the Episode-Centered Belief Change (ECBC) model that utilizes teachers' episodic memories for changing beliefs impeding effective technology integration. We also propose…

Listening to Music: Helping Children Regulate Their Emotions and Improve Learning in the Classroom

Science.gov (United States)

Foran, Lucille M.

2009-01-01

Early education teachers are familiar with using music and rhythm as tools for learning language and building memory. However, the potential of music to help across all special education settings is largely unexplored. Work with music has been widely judged helpful in cases of psychological trauma, yet people do not know why it is helpful. The…

Using a Conceptual-Change Approach to Help Preservice Science Teachers Reorganize Their Knowledge Structures for Constructivist Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Dhindsa, H. S.; Anderson, O. R.

2004-02-01

This study, based on constructivist learning theory, examined how effectively preservice chemistry teachers (N = 43) can be educated to think flexibly and to reorganize their thinking in a way that may complement diverse ways students approach the subject domain. The teacher's cognitive structure was assessed prior to and after a conceptual change intervention using flow-map narrative analyses. There was a significant change in the organization of the preservice teacher's narrative after the conceptual change intervention, including greater networking of ideas and more thematic development of the content. Hence, a conceptual change approach may be a useful way to educate teachers to be more responsive to student individual differences when planning and delivering science lessons.

Jordanian Preservice Primary Teachers' Perceptions of Mentoring in Science Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Abed, Osama H.; Abd-El-Khalick, Fouad

2015-03-01

Quality mentoring is fundamental to preservice teacher education because of its potential to help student and novice teachers develop the academic and pedagogical knowledge and skills germane to successful induction into the profession. This study focused on Jordanian preservice primary teachers' perceptions of their mentoring experiences as these pertain to science teaching. The Mentoring for Effective Primary Science Teaching instrument was administered to 147 senior preservice primary teachers in a university in Jordan. The results indicated that the greater majority of participants did not experience effective mentoring toward creating a supportive and reflexive environment that would bolster their confidence in teaching science; further their understanding of primary science curriculum, and associated aims and school policies; help with developing their pedagogical knowledge; and/or furnish them with specific and targeted feedback and guidance to help improve their science teaching. Substantially more participants indicated that their mentors modeled what they perceived to be effective science teaching. The study argues for the need for science-specific mentoring for preservice primary teachers, and suggests a possible pathway for achieving such a model starting with those in-service primary teachers-much like those identified by participants in the present study-who are already effective in their science teaching.

Understanding Teacher Attraction and Retention Drivers: Addressing Teacher Shortages

Science.gov (United States)

Ashiedu, Jennifer A.; Scott-Ladd, Brenda D.

2012-01-01

The attraction and retention of teachers is a problem faced by schools worldwide and possibly more so in the public sector. One possible solution to this problem is likely to be better targeting of attraction and retention drivers of value to teachers. This paper presents the findings from a qualitative study conducted in Australia. The study used…

Compassion, Caring and Justice: Teachers' Strategies to Maintain Moral Integrity in the Face of National Hostility to the "Non-Citizen"

Science.gov (United States)

Arnot, Madeleine; Pinson, Halleli; Candappa, Mano

2009-01-01

Refugees commonly have just one remaining identity--that of being stateless and statusless. They represent the ultimate "other in our midst". The humanism of our teachers in helping the children of asylum-seekers and refugees is tested by the state, especially its immigration policy. This paper offers preliminary research findings on…

Teacher Perceptions of Their Curricular and Pedagogical Shifts: Outcomes of a Project-Based Model of Teacher Professional Development in the Next Generation Science Standards.

Science.gov (United States)

Shernoff, David J; Sinha, Suparna; Bressler, Denise M; Schultz, Dawna

2017-01-01

In this study, we conducted a model of teacher professional development (PD) on the alignment of middle and high school curricula and instruction to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSSs), and evaluated the impact of the PD on teacher participants' development. The PD model included a 4-day summer academy emphasizing project-based learning (PBL) in the designing of NGSS-aligned curricula and instruction, as well as monthly follow-up Professional Learning Community meetings throughout the year providing numerous opportunities for teachers to develop and implement lesson plans, share results of lesson writing and implementation (successes and challenges), provide mutual feedback, and refine curricula and assessments. Following the summer academy, six female teachers were interviewed about their current conceptualizations of NGSS, the extent of curricular shifts made that are required by NGSS, their self-perceptions regarding their level of accomplishment in curriculum writing, and the benefits of the PD in reaching their goals related to NGSS. Interviews were supplemented with an analysis of lesson plans written while participating in the PD program. The interviewed teachers suggested that they had made important conceptual and pedagogical shifts required by NGSS as they participated in the PD, and also noted a variety of challenges as they made this shift. While all teachers were relative novices at NGSS curriculum writing before the PD, most of the teachers interviewed felt that they had achieved the status of an "accomplished novice" following the summer academy. An analysis of their written lessons suggested a great range in the extent to which teachers effectively applied their understanding of NGSS to write lessons aligned to NGSS. Interviewed teachers believed that the PD model was helpful to their development as science teachers, and all reported that there were no aspects of the PD that were not helpful. Even though most teachers obtained a basic

Accountability or Authenticity? The Alignment of Professional Development and Teacher Evaluation

Science.gov (United States)

Su, Yahui; Feng, Liyia; Hsu, Chang-Hui

2017-01-01

The alignment of professional development and teacher evaluation has been a growing concern in teacher professional development practices. The issue of how teacher evaluation can help authentic professional development is important in that teachers only learn what is real, useful and valuable to them. Based on our reflections on current…

Assessment of Teacher Motivation

Science.gov (United States)

Gokce, Feyyat

2010-01-01

The aim of this study is to contribute to the achievement of educational goals by determining teachers' levels of motivation. With this aim in mind, the opinions of 386 teachers employed in primary schools in Tokat province were sought. According to the findings of the study, the teachers stated that their needs were not fulfilled according to…

An analysis of learning in an online biology course for teachers and teacher candidates: A mixed methods approach

Science.gov (United States)

Lebec, Michael Thomas

Due to discipline specific shortages, web-based learning has been proposed as a convenient way to upgrade the content knowledge of instructors interested in learning to teach science. Despite quantitative evidence that web-based instruction is equivalent to traditional methods, questions remain regarding its use. The efficiency and practicality of this approach with teachers in particular has not been extensively studied. This investigation examines learning in an online biology course designed to help teachers prepare for science certification exams. Research questions concern flow teachers learn biology in the online environment and how this setting influences the learning process. Quantitative and qualitative methodologies are employed in an attempt to provide a more complete perspective than typical studies of online learning. Concept maps, tests, and online discussion transcripts are compared as measures of assimilated knowledge, while interviews reflect participants' views on the course. Findings indicate that participants experienced gains in declarative knowledge, but little improvement with respect to conditional knowledge. Qualitative examination of concept maps demonstrates gaps in participants' understandings of key course ideas. Engagement in the use of online resources varied according to participants' attitudes towards online learning. Subjects also reported a lack of motivation to fully engage in the course due to busy teaching schedules and the absence of accountability.

Personality Traits of Expert Teachers of Students with EBD: Clarifying a Teacher's X-Factor

Science.gov (United States)

Buttner, Svenja; Pijl, Sip Jan; Bijstra, Jan; Van den Bosch, Els

2016-01-01

Teaching students with emotional and behavioural difficulties (EBD) is a challenge for many teachers in inclusive education. Much research has been done to find out what differentiates expert teachers from their less skilled colleagues. Recent evidence points to personality as an underlying core factor influencing teacher performance. In this…

Levi-Strauss's "Bricolage" and Theorizing Teachers' Work.

Science.gov (United States)

Hatton, Elizabeth

1989-01-01

A teacher's work is compared to Claude Levi-Strauss's concept of "bricolage." A "bricoleur" is a professional do-it-yourself person, falling somewhere between an odd-job person and a craftsperson. The concept helps to explain pedagogical inadequacy by linking inherent limiting features of teachers' work and some causal…

Attitude of Student Teachers towards Teaching Profession

Science.gov (United States)

Bhargava, Anupama; Pathy, M. K.

2014-01-01

Teaching being a dynamic activity requires a favourable attitude and certain specific competencies from its practitioners. Teachers' proficiency depends on the attitude she possesses for the profession. The positive attitude helps teacher to develop a conductive learner friendly environment in the classroom. This also casts a fruitful effect on…

Using an Adult Development Model to Help Explain Pre-Service Teacher Resistance to Learning about Race

Science.gov (United States)

Puchner, Laurel; Markowitz, Linda

2016-01-01

This article shows the potential usefulness of applying Kegan's constructive-developmental model to White teacher education students' difficulties in understanding racial dynamics in US society. The data for this analysis come from a study examining the evolution of White teacher candidates' understandings and practices related to diversity as…

Reflection on the Teaching-Learning Process in the Initial Training of Teachers. Characterization of the Issues on Which Pre-Service Mathematics Teachers Reflect

Science.gov (United States)

Chamoso, J. M.; Caceres, M. J.; Azcarate, P.

2012-01-01

Our aim was to highlight the issues of the reflections of pre-service mathematics teachers in their learning portfolio about the teaching-learning process taking place in a university teacher-training classroom. Category systems were designed which, together with the analysis system used, could provide a method helpful to teacher educators,…

Research and Rhetoric on Teacher Certification

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Linda Darling-Hammond

2002-09-01

Full Text Available In October, 2001, the Baltimore-based Abell Foundation issued a report purporting to prove that there is "no credible research that supports the use of teacher certification as a regulatory barrier to teaching" and urging the discontinuation of certification in Maryland. The report argued that large inequities in access to certified teachers for poor and minority students are not a problem because research linking teacher education to student achievement is flawed. In July, 2002, the U.S. Secretary of Education cited the Abell Foundation paper in his Annual Report on Teacher Quality as the sole source for concluding that teacher education does not contribute to teacher effectiveness. The Secretary's report then recommended that requirements for education coursework be eliminated from certification standards, and attendance at schools of education and student teaching be made optional. This article documents the many inaccuracies in the Abell Foundation paper and describes the actual findings of many of the studies it purports to review, as well as the findings of other studies it ignores. It details misrepresentations of a number of studies, including inaccurate statements about their methods and findings, false claims about their authors' views, and distortions of their data and conclusions. The article addresses methodological issues regarding the validity and interpretation of research. Finally, the article presents data challenging the Abell Foundation's unfounded claims that uncertified teachers are as effective as certified teachers, that teacher education makes no difference to teacher effectiveness, that verbal ability is the most important determinant of teaching effectiveness, that private schools staffed by uncertified teachers are more effective than public schools, and that untrained teachers are more qualified than prepared teachers. It concludes with a discussion of the policy issues that need to be addressed if all students are

Teaching Abroad: Why Teachers Prefer Teaching Overseas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mustafa Serbes

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Teaching overseas has always been a great opprotunity for academic and social development. Teachers who have international experiences stand a better chance of not only developing their teaching skills, communication skills and classroom management but also learning new languages and about other cultures. Teaching abroad can help teachers promote their skills for efficiency and effectiveness. It is important to stress that teachers with international experience can teach effectively and can contribute to the achievement of their students more. This paper focuses on five reasons why teachers prefer teaching overseas.

Promoting Issues-based STSE Perspectives in Science Teacher Education: Problems of Identity and Ideology

Science.gov (United States)

Pedretti, Erminia G.; Bencze, Larry; Hewitt, Jim; Romkey, Lisa; Jivraj, Ashifa

2008-09-01

Although science, technology, society and environment (STSE) education has gained considerable force in the past few years, it has made fewer strides in practice. We suggest that science teacher identity plays a role in the adoption of STSE perspectives. Simply put, issues-based STSE education challenges traditional images of a science teacher and science instructional ideologies. In this paper, we briefly describe the development of a multimedia documentary depicting issues-based STSE education in a teacher’s class and its subsequent implementation with 64 secondary student-teachers at a large Canadian university. Specifically, we set out to explore: (1) science teacher candidates’ responses to a case of issues-based STSE teaching, and (2) how science teacher identity intersects with the adoption of STSE perspectives. Findings reveal that although teacher candidates expressed confidence and motivation regarding teaching STSE, they also indicated decreased likelihood to teach these perspectives in their early years of teaching. Particular tensions or problems of practice consistently emerged that helped explain this paradox including issues related to: control and autonomy; support and belonging; expertise and negotiating curriculum; politicization and action; and biases and ideological bents. We conclude our paper with a discussion regarding the lessons learned about STSE education, teacher identity and the role of multimedia case methods.

Pedagogical Decision Making through the Lens of Teacher Preparation Program

Science.gov (United States)

Prachagool, Veena; Nuangchalerm, Prasart; Subramaniam, Ganakumaran; Dostal, Jirí

2016-01-01

Pedagogical decision making is very important for professional teachers, it concerns belief, self-efficacy, and actions that teachers expose to classroom. This paper employed theoretical lens and education policy in Thailand to examine the preservice teachers' views about pedagogical decision making. Discussion helps school mentors understand…

The "Come and Go" Syndrome of Teachers in Remote Indigenous Schools: Listening to the Perspective of Indigenous Teachers about What Helps Teachers to Stay and What Makes Them Go

Science.gov (United States)

Hall, Lisa

2012-01-01

High turnover of teachers in remote Indigenous community schools in the Northern Territory has long been considered a significant contributing factor to low academic outcomes for students in those communities. The average length of stay for a non-Indigenous teacher in a remote school can more easily be measured in months than years. This…

Language experience narratives and the role of autobiographical reasoning in becoming an urban science teacher

Science.gov (United States)

Rivera Maulucci, Maria S.

2011-06-01

One of the central challenges globalization and immigration present to education is how to construct school language policies, procedures, and curricula to support academic success of immigrant youth. This case-study compares and contrasts language experience narratives along Elena's developmental trajectory of becoming an urban science teacher. Elena reflects upon her early language experiences and her more recent experiences as a preservice science teacher in elementary dual language classrooms. The findings from Elena's early schooling experiences provide an analysis of the linkages between Elena's developing English proficiency, her Spanish proficiency, and her autobiographical reasoning. Elena's experiences as a preservice teacher in two elementary dual language classrooms indicates ways in which those experiences helped to reframe her views about the intersections between language learning and science learning. I propose the language experience narrative, as a subset of the life story, as a way to understand how preservice teachers reconstruct past language experiences, connect to the present, and anticipate future language practices.

TEACHER-ADVISORS: Where There's a Skill There's A Way.

Science.gov (United States)

Tamminen, Armas; And Others

This report discusses a program to present the Teacher Advisement Training Model. This model for training teacher-advisors is based on the assumption that tentative commitment to making school a more rewarding experience for all is the first step in starting an effective program. The approach is to help teachers learn specific skills and methods…

High School Physics Teacher Preparation: Results from the 2012-13 Nationwide Survey of High School Physics Teachers. Focus On

Science.gov (United States)

White, Susan; Tyler, John

2015-01-01

This report examines teachers' self-assessed preparedness to teach physics, their membership in professional organizations, and where they turn for help when they have questions. Almost every teacher reports feeling at least adequately prepared to teach basic physics knowledge and the application of physics to everyday experience. The smallest…

Mental health first aid training for high school teachers: a cluster randomized trial.

Science.gov (United States)

Jorm, Anthony F; Kitchener, Betty A; Sawyer, Michael G; Scales, Helen; Cvetkovski, Stefan

2010-06-24

Mental disorders often have their first onset during adolescence. For this reason, high school teachers are in a good position to provide initial assistance to students who are developing mental health problems. To improve the skills of teachers in this area, a Mental Health First Aid training course was modified to be suitable for high school teachers and evaluated in a cluster randomized trial. The trial was carried out with teachers in South Australian high schools. Teachers at 7 schools received training and those at another 7 were wait-listed for future training. The effects of the training on teachers were evaluated using questionnaires pre- and post-training and at 6 months follow-up. The questionnaires assessed mental health knowledge, stigmatizing attitudes, confidence in providing help to others, help actually provided, school policy and procedures, and teacher mental health. The indirect effects on students were evaluated using questionnaires at pre-training and at follow-up which assessed any mental health help and information received from school staff, and also the mental health of the student. The training increased teachers' knowledge, changed beliefs about treatment to be more like those of mental health professionals, reduced some aspects of stigma, and increased confidence in providing help to students and colleagues. There was an indirect effect on students, who reported receiving more mental health information from school staff. Most of the changes found were sustained 6 months after training. However, no effects were found on teachers' individual support towards students with mental health problems or on student mental health. Mental Health First Aid training has positive effects on teachers' mental health knowledge, attitudes, confidence and some aspects of their behaviour. ACTRN12608000561381.

Music Teachers' Everyday Conceptions of Musicality.

Science.gov (United States)

Brandstrom, Sture

1999-01-01

Investigates music teachers' everyday conceptions of musicality through (1) a pilot study involving music teachers in higher education and (2) interviews with teachers in music teacher education and in compulsory school. Finds in the pilot the categories of musical achievement, musical experience, and musical communication, while the interviews…

Physics & Preservice Teachers Partnership Project (P4): An interdisciplinary peer learning tool

Science.gov (United States)

Simmonds, Paul J.; Wenner, Julianne A.

Physics graduate students (PGs) and teacher candidates (TCs) often graduate with specific weaknesses. PGs frequently lack training in teaching and effective communication. TCs are typically underprepared for teaching science, and physics in particular. In response to these challenges, we created P4 . P4 is an innovative model for peer learning, creating interdisciplinary partnerships that help college physics instructors train their students in the ``soft skills'' prized in both academia and industry, while helping teacher educators infuse more content knowledge into science methods courses. In P4, PGs plan a lesson and deliver physics content to TCs. TCs then use this content to design and execute a 15-minute elementary science lesson. Framed by the concept of peer learning, we expected P4 would help PGs develop their teaching and communication skills, and TCs learn more physics. We studied the affordances and constraints of P4 to inform future iterations. Overall, P4 was successful, with both PGs and TCs reporting benefits. Affordances for PGs included the chance to plan and teach a class; TCs benefitted from working with experts to increase content knowledge. We will share the full findings and implications of our study, and outline next steps for P4.

Yes You Can...Help Your Teenager Succeed in School.

Science.gov (United States)

Adamek, Sue; And Others

Ways parents can help their teenagers succeed in school are offered by teachers in the Minnetonka (Minnesota) Public Schools. Sections of the parent guide concern: (1) encouragement--encouraging the student through generous praise, encouraging best efforts, communicating love, making education a family priority, avoiding pressuring the teen,…

Reaching the Future Teachers in Your Classroom: New Directions in Pre-Service Education

Science.gov (United States)

Grier, Jennifer A.; Ruberg, L.

2006-09-01

We will present results and progress from initiatives seeking to improve the experiences of future teachers in college level science classes. A future teacher (pre-service teacher) is inspired to teach science based on personal experiences with college science classes. The most critical opportunity to make a real difference in science education in schools comes when the teachers themselves are first being educated. Given the difficulties in identifying future teachers and the wide variations in their needs, how can we best help future teachers in training? What critical thinking skills are most important for them to absorb from their exposure to science as undergraduates and graduate students? What teaching and learning experiences can we offer that will help science teachers in training confidently assess the relationship between evidence and explanations and then bring that understanding and experience effectively into their own classroom? Recent initiatives in pre-service education have identified several key strategies for improving teacher preparation at the post-secondary level: - Using a constructivist approach to teach physical science concepts and guided inquiry - Knowing common misconceptions about key scientific concepts that students bring to college-level science classrooms - Applying documented strategies for identifying and addressing student misconceptions; and - Knowing how to select and adapt curriculum materials based on common preconceptions held by students. The challenge of reaching these outcomes is complex and cannot be addressed with simple solutions. Teaching strategies that help prepare future teachers include modeling effective teaching of science, understanding the relationship between student/teacher misconceptions, designing and implementing evaluation and assessment, appropriate use of technology tools, and tapping into the existing community of learners to provide ongoing education opportunities and support as the pre

The Mentoring Profile Inventory: An Online Professional Development Resource for Cooperating Teachers

Science.gov (United States)

Clarke, Anthony; Collins, John; Triggs, Valerie; Nielsen, Wendy; Augustine, Ann; Coulter, Dianne; Cunningham, Joni; Grigoriadis, Tina; Hardman, Stephanie; Hunter, Lee; Kinegal, Jane; Li, Bianca; Mah, Jeff; Mastin, Karen; Partridge, David; Pawer, Leonard; Rasoda,Sandy; Salbuvik, Kathleen; Ward, Mitch; White, Janet; Weil, Frederick

2012-01-01

We report on the origins, development and refinement of an online inventory to help cooperating teachers focus on selected dimensions of their practice. The Mentoring Profile Inventory (MPI) helps quantify important features of both the motivating and challenging aspects of mentoring student teachers and provides results to respondents in a…

TEACHER TRAINING: How to Produce Better Math and Science Teachers.

Science.gov (United States)

Mervis, J

2000-09-01

Two National Research Council panels have released new reports on improving science and math education in the United States. One panel says that the best way to improve teacher education is to make it a continuum, with school districts taking more responsibility for the initial preparation of new teachers and university faculty playing a bigger role in ongoing professional development. The other panel says that more recent science Ph.D.s would be willing to teach high school science and math if the government helped with the transition, if the certification process were compressed, and if they could retain ties to research.

Rational-Emotive Therapy to Help Teachers Control Their Emotions and Behavior when Dealing with Disagreeable Students

Science.gov (United States)

Maag, John W.

2008-01-01

Students with challenging behaviors are very deft at engaging teachers in power struggles as a way to either feel empowered, obtain attention, or escape an unpleasant task. The more frustrated that teachers permit themselves to get, the less capable they are of responding in a therapeutic, productive fashion to students' challenging behaviors. The…

Becoming a teacher: tracing changes in pre-service English as a foreign language teachers' sense of efficacy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H Gülru Yüksel

2014-03-01

Full Text Available This longitudinal study aimed to trace changes in Turkish pre-service English as a foreign language teachers' self-efficacy over a year, and to detect possible sources of information influencing their efficacy. Utilizing concurrent mixed model design of Creswell (2003 both qualitative and quantitative data was collected. A total of 40 pre-service teachers participated in the study. Findings indicated that pre-service English language teachers' efficacy changed significantly over time. We also found that pre-service teachers seem to depend more on enactive mastery experience and social persuasion than on vicarious experience and affective state as sources of information. Based on our findings, measures are suggested on how to support pre-service teachers to improve their sense of efficacy. Implications for research on teaching and teacher education are discussed.

Jordanian Preservice Primary Teachers' Perceptions of Mentoring in Science Teaching

Science.gov (United States)

Abed, Osama H.; Abd-El-Khalick, Fouad

2015-01-01

Quality mentoring is fundamental to preservice teacher education because of its potential to help student and novice teachers develop the academic and pedagogical knowledge and skills germane to successful induction into the profession. This study focused on Jordanian preservice primary teachers' perceptions of their mentoring experiences as these…

Preparing Net Gen pre-service teachers for digital native classrooms

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Valentin Ekiaka Nzai

2014-09-01

Full Text Available This paper explored Net Gen Bilingual pre-service teachers’ perspectives future digital native classrooms based on the National Education Technology Plan (2010 postulates. Participants were Seven Net Gen bilingual future teachers enrolled at a semester – long laboratory of practices project for Literacy Development for English Language Learners. Data were collected using Ginsburg’s (1989 narrative strategy, which consisted of analyzing information from participants’ life stories produced during two audiotaped focus group conversations. Findings showed that pre-service teachers had positive perceptions and beliefs toward the laboratory of practices built upon the experimental cyberlearning workstation frame designed by the authors. The hands-on experiences helped them enhance their digital native-like citizenship in order to meet future students’ individual abilities and learning styles, and stimulate teaching with digital technologies. Some recommendations and limitations are also addressed.

The Research Portfolio: Educating Teacher Researchers in Data Analysis

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Bates, Alisa J.; Bryant, Jill D.

2013-01-01

This paper describes research on a course assignment, the research portfolio, designed for a two-course teacher research experience in a Masters of Arts in Teaching program. The focus of the assignment is the process of data collection and analysis that is critical to the success of teacher research. We sought a way to help our teacher candidates…

The evolution of a science teacher: An autobiography

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Vincent, Daniel E.

This qualitative study explores the experiences of a science teacher as he seeks to understand the foundations of his pedagogy, his view of learning, and his role as a teacher. By using the autobiographical style of currere, the author investigates the significant events of his educational journey and describes the transformation that occurred while teaching science in secondary schools. The author discovers how his instructional methods were intimately linked to his perception of the content and nature of science, how his interactions with others within a learning community challenged him to grow professionally, and how his educational metaphors helped him make sense of teaching, learning, and life. By telling his story, the author/researcher was able to use his transformed notions of how people learn to construct personal meaning about his own educational foundations and pedagogical perspectives, and in turn, give others a story within which they might find their own personal meaning.

Teacher's Questions in Reading Classes

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Zuliati Rohmah

2002-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract: The present paper discusses an English teacher's questions in Reading classes at MAN Malang III. Types of questions, functions of teacher's questions, question levels and the strategies applied by the teacher were put as the research problems. Non-participant observa­tion was applied to collect the data with the researcher as the main in­strument aided by field-notes and a tape recorder. It was found that the distribution of the questions did not allow the students to talk longer and to think more analytically. Meanwhile, the strategies applied by the teacher helped the students to respond to the questions previously unanswered. The teacher is suggested to produce more open and refer­ential question as well as inference and evaluation questions as to give more chances for the students to think aloud more.

A recommendation module to help teachers build courses through the Moodle Learning Management System

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Limongelli, Carla; Lombardi, Matteo; Marani, Alessandro; Sciarrone, Filippo; Temperini, Marco

2016-01-01

In traditional e-learning, teachers design sets of Learning Objects (LOs) and organize their sequencing; the material implementing the LOs could be either built anew or adopted from elsewhere (e.g. from standard-compliant repositories) and reused. This task is applicable also when the teacher works in a system for personalized e-learning. In this case, the burden actually increases: for instance, the LOs may need adaptation to the system, through additional metadata. This paper presents a module that gives some support to the operations of retrieving, analyzing, and importing LOs from a set of standard Learning Objects Repositories, acting as a recommending system. In particular, it is designed to support the teacher in the phases of (i) retrieval of LOs, through a keyword-based search mechanism applied to the selected repositories; (ii) analysis of the returned LOs, whose information is enriched by a concept of relevance metric, based on both the results of the searching operation and the data related to the previous use of the LOs in the courses managed by the Learning Management System; and (iii) LO importation into the course under construction.

Factor Analysis of Teacher Professional Development in Chinese Military Medical Universities

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Yue, Juan-Juan; Chen, Gang; Wang, Zhen-Wei; Liu, Wei-Dong

2017-01-01

Background and purpose: Teacher professional development potentially enhances teachers' professional morale, knowledge, skills and autonomy, which helps improve the quality of education. The military medical university is an important medical education institution in China; however, studies of teacher professional development within military…

Colleges Scramble to Help Students Find New Lenders

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Supiano, Beckie

2008-01-01

Recent turbulence in the student-loan business has colleges scrambling to find new loan providers. Financial-aid offices at affected colleges are working hard to get the word out to students. Changes in the loan market have hit community colleges particularly hard because their students tend to have smaller loans and higher default rates than…

The ASSISTments Ecosystem: Building a Platform That Brings Scientists and Teachers Together for Minimally Invasive Research on Human Learning and Teaching

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Heffernan, Neil T.; Heffernan, Cristina Lindquist

2014-01-01

The ASSISTments project is an ecosystem of a few hundred teachers, a platform, and researchers working together. Development professionals help train teachers and get teachers to participate in studies. The platform and these teachers help researchers (sometimes explicitly and sometimes implicitly) simply by using content the teacher selects. The…

"Dear Teacher, Johnny Copied."

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Jackson, Louise A.; And Others

1987-01-01

Presents the problem of intentional or unintentional plagiarism on the part of young students, several possible causes for it, and offers ways teachers can help students avoid copying and understand the value of owning one's writing. (JC)

Coteaching with senior students – a way to refine teachers' PCK for teaching chemical bonding in upper secondary school

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Schultze, Felix; Nilsson, Pernilla

2018-04-01

During the last decade there has been on-going discussions about students' declining interest and low achievement in science. One of the reasons suggested for this decline is that teachers and students have different frames of reference, whereby teachers sometimes communicate science in the classroom in a way that is not accessible to the students. There is a lack of research investigating the effects of coteaching with senior students in science in upper secondary schools. To improve teaching and to narrow the gap between teachers' and students' different frames of references, this study investigates how an experienced chemistry teacher gains and refines her pedagogical content knowledge (PCK) by cooperating with two grade 12 students (age 18) as coteachers. The teacher and the two coteachers coplanned, cotaught and coevaluated lessons in chemical bonding in a grade 10 upper secondary class. Findings indicate that the coteachers contributed with their own learning experiences to help the teacher understand how students perceive difficult concepts. In such way, the coteachers were mediating between the teacher and the students, thus bridging the gap between the teacher and the students' frames of references. The teachers' PCK was refined which in turn lead to improved teaching strategies.

A Questionnaire Survey of the Type of Support Required by Yogo Teachers to Effectively Manage Students Suspected of Having an Eating Disorder.

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Seike, Kaoru; Hanazawa, Hisashi; Ohtani, Toshiyuki; Takamiya, Shizuo; Sakuta, Ryoichi; Nakazato, Michiko

2016-01-01

Many studies have focused on the decreasing age of onset of eating disorders (EDs). Because school-age children with EDs are likely to suffer worse physical effects than adults, early detection and appropriate support are important. The cooperation of Yogo teachers is essential in helping these students to find appropriate care. To assist Yogo teachers, it is helpful to clarify the encounter rates (the proportion of Yogo teachers who have encountered ED students) and kinds of requested support (which Yogo teachers felt necessary to support ED students). There are no studies that have surveyed the prevalence rates of ED children by ED type as defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (DSM-5), nor were we able to find any quantitative study surveying the kinds of support Yogo teachers feel helpful to support ED students. A questionnaire survey was administered to 655 Yogo teachers working at elementary/junior high/senior high/special needs schools in Chiba Prefecture. The questionnaire asked if the respondents had encountered students with each of the ED types described in DSM-5 (anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), binge eating disorder (BED), avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), and other types of EDs (Others)), and the kinds of support they felt necessary to support these students. The encounter rates and the kinds of requested were obtained and compared, taking their confidence intervals into consideration. The encounter rates for AN, BN, BED, ARFID, and Others were 48.4, 14.0, 8.4, 10.7, and 4.6 %, respectively. When classified by school type, AN, BN, BED, and ARFID had their highest encounter rates in senior high schools. Special needs schools had the highest rate for Others. The support most required for all ED types was "a list of medical/consultation institutions." Our results have clarified how to support Yogo teachers in the early detection and support of ED students. We found that the

A Review of Literature on Teacher Efficacy and Classroom Management

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Dibapile, Waitshega Tefo Smitta

2012-01-01

The purpose of this paper was to review the literature on teacher efficacy and classroom management. The conceptual framework of this paper was based on the theories of Rotter (1966) and Bandura (1977). The review of literature indicated that teacher efficacy helps teachers plan effective instructional strategies, increases performance, and…

Child Behavior Problems, Teacher Executive Functions, and Teacher Stress in Head Start Classrooms

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Friedman-Krauss, Allison H.; Raver, C. Cybele; Neuspiel, Juliana M.; Kinsel, John

2017-01-01

Research Findings The current article explores the relationship between teachers’ perceptions of child behavior problems and preschool teacher job stress, as well as the possibility that teachers’ executive functions moderate this relationship. Data came from 69 preschool teachers in 31 early childhood classrooms in 4 Head Start centers and were collected using Web-based surveys and Web-based direct assessment tasks. Multilevel models revealed that higher levels of teachers’ perceptions of child behavior problems were associated with higher levels of teacher job stress and that higher teacher executive function skills were related to lower job stress. However, findings did not yield evidence for teacher executive functions as a statistical moderator. Practice or Policy Many early childhood teachers do not receive sufficient training for handling children’s challenging behaviors. Child behavior problems increase a teacher’s workload and consequently may contribute to feelings of stress. However, teachers’ executive function abilities may enable them to use effective, cognitive-based behavior management and instructional strategies during interactions with students, which may reduce stress. Providing teachers with training on managing challenging behaviors and enhancing executive functions may reduce their stress and facilitate their use of effective classroom practices, which is important for children’s school readiness skills and teachers’ health. PMID:28596698

Dispatches from the front: emergency medicine teachers' perceptions of competency-based education.

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Bandiera, Glen; Lendrum, David

2011-05-01

Controversy exists regarding the applicability of competency-based education during clinical rotations in emergency medicine (EM). Little has been written about the perceptions of front-line teachers regarding one such competency-based education paradigm, the CanMEDS framework. We undertook to determine 1) what perceptions exist among front-line teachers at two academic health science emergency departments (EDs) regarding the use of the CanMEDS roles to frame what residents should learn on ED rotations and 2) how those same teachers envision practically incorporating the CanMEDS roles into feedback provided to residents. Teachers at two sites volunteered for a semistructured focus group study. Focus groups were moderated by an experienced qualitative researcher, and verbatim transcriptions were coded by two independent reviewers. The codes were merged into final themes. The final focus group was used to further explore issues raised and test assumptions made in the preceding groups. In five focus groups involving 21 participants, the Medical Expert and Professional roles were seen as most relevant to an EM rotation, whereas the Health Advocate, Manager, Scholar, and Collaborator roles were least relevant. On further exploration, however, faculty identified highly relevant components of each role that they could envision teaching in an ED. Participants also felt that the framework helped highlight the breadth of physician competencies and provided structure for teaching and feedback. EM faculty find the CanMEDS framework helpful for structuring teaching and learning and that many elements of the roles, when defined, are feasible to integrate into a clinical rotation.

Digital Technology and Teacher Preparation: The Instructional Role of Social Media Among Pre-Service Teachers

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Trytten, Bria Klotz

As social media use becomes more prevalent among teachers, it becomes vital to understand how teachers are using social media and what effects it has, if any, on teaching practices in the classroom. This study sought to explore the relationship between pre-service teachers' use of social media and their perceptions of inquiry-based science education, an important teaching best practice. This study is unique in that it explores pre-service teachers' use of three social media platforms--Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest--and how pre-service teachers plan to apply them to classroom education. Previous studies focused on only one social media platform, usually Twitter or Facebook. This study surveyed 113 pre-service teachers in their 3rd or 4th year of school at one of two teacher colleges. The survey employed multiple choice, open-ended, and Likert-type questions to assess pre-service teachers' use of social media as well as their attitudes surrounding inquiry-based instruction. In order to better explain and analyze survey results, fourteen survey participants were interviewed with follow-up questions to elaborate on both social media use and inquiry attitudes. Findings indicated that the pre-service teachers used social media, and overwhelmingly Pinterest, to find lesson plans and classroom organizational ideas. Cited reasons for this practice included convenience, variety of lesson planning, and easily searchable databases. The study found statistical significance in that teachers who aspire to teach lower grade levels will turn to social media to find lesson plans more frequently than those who aspire to teach higher grade levels. The study found social media use had no statistically significant effect on the level of inquiry-based teaching that the participants aimed to achieve in their future classrooms.

Mental health first aid training for high school teachers: a cluster randomized trial

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Jorm Anthony F

2010-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Mental disorders often have their first onset during adolescence. For this reason, high school teachers are in a good position to provide initial assistance to students who are developing mental health problems. To improve the skills of teachers in this area, a Mental Health First Aid training course was modified to be suitable for high school teachers and evaluated in a cluster randomized trial. Methods The trial was carried out with teachers in South Australian high schools. Teachers at 7 schools received training and those at another 7 were wait-listed for future training. The effects of the training on teachers were evaluated using questionnaires pre- and post-training and at 6 months follow-up. The questionnaires assessed mental health knowledge, stigmatizing attitudes, confidence in providing help to others, help actually provided, school policy and procedures, and teacher mental health. The indirect effects on students were evaluated using questionnaires at pre-training and at follow-up which assessed any mental health help and information received from school staff, and also the mental health of the student. Results The training increased teachers' knowledge, changed beliefs about treatment to be more like those of mental health professionals, reduced some aspects of stigma, and increased confidence in providing help to students and colleagues. There was an indirect effect on students, who reported receiving more mental health information from school staff. Most of the changes found were sustained 6 months after training. However, no effects were found on teachers' individual support towards students with mental health problems or on student mental health. Conclusions Mental Health First Aid training has positive effects on teachers' mental health knowledge, attitudes, confidence and some aspects of their behaviour. Trial registration ACTRN12608000561381

Exploring Beginning Teachers' Attrition in the Netherlands

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den Brok, Perry; Wubbels, Theo; van Tartwijk, Jan

2017-01-01

Based on a review of recent studies and reports, this research investigates attrition among beginning teachers in the Netherlands as well as reasons for teacher attrition, and compares the finding with studies on this topic conducted elsewhere in the world. The findings suggest that attrition among beginning teachers in the Netherlands with a…

Teachers and ICT: a necessary meeting

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Ignacio Berzosa Ramos

2015-04-01

Full Text Available ICT (Information and Communication are a key element in today’s society and they will, little by little, sitting in the school. In this integration process teachers take a leading role research is needed. In this article the way the integration of ICT in a particular school affects the attitudes of teachers towards the same is reviewed, while the evolution that teachers experience in the uses made of ICT is observed and how they become an innovative tool that helps in the search for new educational practices.

Taking Back the Future with an Innovative Program for Training Science Teachers

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Hooper, E. J.; Dickinson, G.; Walker, M. H.; Marder, M. P.; Kumar, P.

2003-12-01

Research findings for students in Texas and Alabama indicate that teachers' expertise accounted for about 40% of the variance in mathematics and reading achievement. Given that about one third of high school mathematics and science teachers lack either a major or certification in their field, the impact of underqualified teachers can have far reaching impacts. In 1997, the colleges of Natural Science and Education at the University of Texas, in concert with the local school district and experienced teachers, developed a new joint secondary school science teacher preparation program called UTeach. This program provides early and frequent field experience, instruction from master teachers and university scientists, the development of a teaching portfolio, plus a peer and support network which extends beyond graduation. The innovative and streamlined courses focus on the particulars of secondary science education, project and inquiry teaching methodologies, and lab experiences more true to what actually happens in research. After starting with only 28, UTeach now has approximately 400 students enrolled, and graduates have started fanning out across the country. Two research astronomers (EH & PK) recently joined the program and now work alongside physicists, biologists, and chemists teaching courses or parts of them. In addition to helping some of the students with physics and astronomy projects, the astronomers provide guidance on experiment design and execution principles, statistics, and scientific writing to students working in all fields.

Musical competence of preschool teachers

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Grdešič, Irena

2012-01-01

My diploma deals with musical competencies of preschool teachers. Music education includes many different activities: singing various songs, playing different instruments, listening to music, being creative while listening to music and creating the music itself. It is of utmost importance that kindergarten teachers are capable of mediating music to the children and are able to incorporate it into the every day of their kindergarten activities. Music helps calm children down, it relaxes them, ...

Institutional traditions in teachers' manners of teaching

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Lundqvist, Eva; Almqvist, Jonas; Östman, Leif

2012-03-01

The aim of this article is to make a close case study of one teacher's teaching in relation to established traditions within science education in Sweden. The teacher's manner of teaching is analysed with the help of an epistemological move analysis. The moves made by the teacher are then compared in a context of educational philosophy and selective tradition. In the analyses the focus is to study the process of teaching and learning in action in institutionalised and socially shared practices. The empirical material consists of video recordings of four lessons with the same group of students and the same teacher. The students are all in Year 7 in a Swedish 9-year compulsory school. During these lessons the students work with a subject area called "Properties of materials". The results show that the teacher makes a number of different moves with regard to how to proceed and come to a conclusion about what the substances are. Many of these moves are special in that they indicate that the students need to be able to handle the procedural level of school science. These moves do not deal directly with the knowledge production process, but with methodological aspects. The function of the moves turns the students' attention from one source of knowledge to another. The moves are aimed at helping the students to help themselves, since it is through their own activity and their own thinking that learning takes place. This is characteristic in the teacher's manner of teaching. When compared in a context of educational philosophy, this manner of teaching has similarities with progressentialism; a mixture of essentialism and progressivism. This educational philosophy is a central aspect of what is called the academic tradition—a selective tradition common in science education in Sweden between 1960 and 1990.

When teacher clusters work: selected experiences of South African teachers with the cluster approach to professional development

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Loyiso C Jita

2014-06-01

Full Text Available Recent scholarship on teacher professional development has shown renewed interest in collaborative forms of teacher learning. Networks, communities of practice and clusters are related concepts that describe forms of collaboration between schools and/or teachers that encourage such learning. In South Africa, teacher clusters represent a relatively recent and popular experiment in teacher professional development. However, there is no verdict yet about their effectiveness. While the utility of such collaborative structures for teacher learning is fairly well established in many developed countries, we still know very little about how the intended beneficiaries (the teachers experience these non-traditional structures of professional development. Using qualitative data from a large-scale research project, we explore teachers' perspectives on what constitutes a successful clustering experience, and the kinds of professional development benefits they derive from their participation therein. Our major findings are twofold: First, clusters seem to enhance teachers' content knowledge and pedagogical content knowledge. Second, and somewhat unexpectedly, the teachers identified another set of benefits, the so-called "process benefits" that include collaboration, instructional guidance and teacher leadership. In a context where teachers have tended to work solo and insulated their classroom practices from influence, the presence of the "process benefits" represents a significant finding. We conclude the paper by exploring several possible directions for further research on these process benefits of clusters for teachers in South Africa and elsewhere.

Teachers' Experience from a School-Based Collaborative Teacher Professional Development Programme: Reported Impact on Professional Development

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Svendsen, Bodil

2016-01-01

The aim of this study was to find out how science teachers who have participated in a one-year school-based collaborative teacher professional development programme, perceive the programme's impact on their professional development. Constant comparative analysis was used on data from three schools to generate the findings in this study. The…

An Economic Course for Elementary School Teachers. Second Revised Edition.

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Lovell, Hugh; Harter, Charlotte

This handbook is intended to help economic educators develop teacher training courses for demonstrating to classroom teachers how to teach economics to children, grades 1-9. Teachers enrolled in the course carry out their own pupil activities which teach economic ideas. These activities include problem solving, case studies, skits, making posters,…

How Learning Conditions and Program Structure Predict Burnout and Satisfaction in Teacher Education

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Zimmermann, Friederike; Rösler, Lena; Möller, Jens; Köller, Olaf

2018-01-01

To support prospective teachers' professional development, teacher education should be characterised by conditions that help to prevent burnout and facilitate satisfaction. This study investigates predictors of burnout and satisfaction in teacher education by drawing on universities with different teacher education programme structures and assumed…

A phenomenological case study concerning science teacher educators' beliefs and teaching practices about culturally relevant pedagogy and preparing K-12 science teachers to engage African American students in K-12 science

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Underwood, Janice Bell

to address the needs of black students in science classrooms (Rodriguez, 1998). Thirdly, the findings suggested the participants' in the study generally reported early experiences related to race helped to shape their beliefs about race and their teaching beliefs and practices. Lastly, implications for science teacher educators, classroom teachers, and educational researchers are provided.

Career Pathways of Teacher Leaders in the United States: Adding and Path-Finding New Professional Roles

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Eckert, Jonathan; Ulmer, Jasmine; Khachatryan, Edit; Ledesma, Patrick

2016-01-01

This study examines how participation in a US Department of Education policy fellowship influenced the career pathways of teacher leaders. This sample of teacher leaders is illustrative of teacher leadership development beyond the classroom and demonstrates challenges and opportunities. Notably, 64% of participants reported changing their…

Seafloor Eruptions Offer a Teachable Moment to Help SEAS Students Understand Important Geological and Ecological Processes

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Goehring, L.; Williams, C. S.

2006-12-01

In education parlance, a teachable moment is an opportunity that arises when students are engaged and primed to learn, typically in response to some memorable event. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, even natural disasters, if meaningful to the student, often serve to catalyze intense learning. Recent eruptions at the East Pacific Rise offer a potential teachable moment for students and teachers involved with SEAS, a Ridge 2000 education outreach program. SEAS uses a combination of web-facilitated and teacher-directed activities to make the remote deep-sea environment and the process of science relevant and meaningful. SEAS is a web-based, inquiry-oriented education program for middle and high school students. It features the science associated with Ridge 2000 research. Since 2003, SEAS has focused on the integrated study site at the East Pacific Rise (EPR) to help students understand geological and ecological processes at mid-ocean ridges and hydrothermal vents. SEAS students study EPR bathymetry maps, images of lava formations, photomosaics of diffuse flow communities, succession in the Bio-Geo Transect, as well as current research conducted during spring cruises. In the Classroom to Sea Lab, students make direct comparisons between shallow-water mussels and vent mussels (from the EPR) to understand differences in feeding strategies. The recent eruptions and loss of seafloor fauna at this site offer the Ridge 2000 program the opportunity to help students better understand the ephemeral and episodic nature of ridge environments, as well as the realities and processes of science (particularly field science). In January 2007, the SEAS program will again sail with a Ridge 2000 research team, and will work with scientists to report findings through the SEAS website. The eruptions at the EPR covered much of the study site, and scientists' instruments and experiments, in fresh lava. We intend to highlight the recency and effect of the eruptions, using the students

Morally injurious experiences and meaning in Salvadorian teachers exposed to violence.

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Currier, Joseph M; Holland, Jason M; Rojas-Flores, Lisseth; Herrera, Sofia; Foy, David

2015-01-01

Helping professionals working to alleviate the effects of violence and injustice can confront morally injurious experiences (MIE) that violate deeply held moral values/beliefs, placing them at risk for burnout and trauma-related problems (e.g., posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD]). Focusing on 257 teachers from educational departments throughout El Salvador, we incorporated structural equation modeling (SEM) to examine (1) whether exposure to MIEs for this population (e.g., betrayal, witnessing harm to an innocent student) are directly linked with higher PTSD symptomatology and work-related burnout and (2) whether MIEs contribute to these outcomes via meaning made of trauma. SEM results revealed that MIEs were in fact uniquely linked with PTSD symptoms and burnout, above and beyond rates of direct victimization and demographic factors. In addition, greater MIEs were indirectly linked with study outcomes via the extent to which teachers were able to make meaning of their identified stressors. These findings support the importance of screening for MIEs among helping professionals and also suggest that meaning making could serve as a central mediating factor for how MIEs contribute to trauma-related problems among persons working to promote peace and justice in the world. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

A Structural Equation Modelling Approach for Massive Blended Synchronous Teacher Training

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Kannan, Kalpana; Narayanan, Krishnan

2015-01-01

This paper presents a structural equation modelling (SEM) approach for blended synchronous teacher training workshop. It examines the relationship among various factors that influence the Satisfaction (SAT) of participating teachers. Data were collected with the help of a questionnaire from about 500 engineering college teachers. These teachers…

Tourette--and Teachers.

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Teitelbaum, Blanche R.

1979-01-01

Describes the Gilles de la Tourette Syndrome, a little-known disorder of the central nervous system whose symptoms include involuntary movements, such as facial tics, and the production of involuntary sounds, such as grunts and obscenities. Suggests ways teachers can help a child afflicted with this disorder. (SJL)

Investigating Knowledge Exchange amongst School Teachers, University Teacher Educators and Industry Partners

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Maher, Damian; Schuck, Sandy; Perry, Rachel

2017-01-01

This article reports on a study in which teachers, university teacher educators and a software company formed a learning community which provided a mechanism for knowledge exchange regarding pedagogical approaches using mobile technologies. The study employed an interpretivist methodology. The findings indicated that the collaboration promoted…

Teacher Perceptions of Their Curricular and Pedagogical Shifts: Outcomes of a Project-Based Model of Teacher Professional Development in the Next Generation Science Standards

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David J. Shernoff

2017-06-01

Full Text Available In this study, we conducted a model of teacher professional development (PD on the alignment of middle and high school curricula and instruction to the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSSs, and evaluated the impact of the PD on teacher participants’ development. The PD model included a 4-day summer academy emphasizing project-based learning (PBL in the designing of NGSS-aligned curricula and instruction, as well as monthly follow-up Professional Learning Community meetings throughout the year providing numerous opportunities for teachers to develop and implement lesson plans, share results of lesson writing and implementation (successes and challenges, provide mutual feedback, and refine curricula and assessments. Following the summer academy, six female teachers were interviewed about their current conceptualizations of NGSS, the extent of curricular shifts made that are required by NGSS, their self-perceptions regarding their level of accomplishment in curriculum writing, and the benefits of the PD in reaching their goals related to NGSS. Interviews were supplemented with an analysis of lesson plans written while participating in the PD program. The interviewed teachers suggested that they had made important conceptual and pedagogical shifts required by NGSS as they participated in the PD, and also noted a variety of challenges as they made this shift. While all teachers were relative novices at NGSS curriculum writing before the PD, most of the teachers interviewed felt that they had achieved the status of an “accomplished novice” following the summer academy. An analysis of their written lessons suggested a great range in the extent to which teachers effectively applied their understanding of NGSS to write lessons aligned to NGSS. Interviewed teachers believed that the PD model was helpful to their development as science teachers, and all reported that there were no aspects of the PD that were not helpful. Even though most teachers

Choosing Great Books for Babies: Helping Children Develop a Life-Long Love of Reading

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Honig, Alice Sterling

2007-01-01

This article describes how a great choice of books could help children develop a life-long love of reading. Every teacher wants to boost a baby's chances in later success. The single most powerful tool a teacher has for awakening a deep love of books and learning is to read to children daily. Reading should become a loved, intimate activity filled…

Helping Italian science teachers to make earth and climate active lessons. Results of 3 years support with the ICLEEN project

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Cattadori, M.

2013-12-01

collaboration with the University of Trento dealing with the effectiveness of the service as well as the usability of the graphic user interface (GUI). The present work aims to illustrate the essential features of the service I-cleen and the results achieved during the last three years of operation. It will be display and interpret for the first time data with web traffic, and other data from downloading and publishing documents of the teaching resources and the main outcomes of the above mentioned tests. The purpose of this contribution is to highlight strengths and weaknesses of this experience and potentially able to provide valuable information on the role of today's web based services and online communities to help support teachers in earth and climate sciences subjects.

Implementing Measures of Teacher Effectiveness

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Stecher, Brian; Garet, Mike; Holtzman, Deborah; Hamilton, Laura

2012-01-01

An initial look at work being done in a reform project sponsored by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation finds that evaluations of teacher performance aren't as unpopular with teachers who have experienced the new system as some would have us believe. Leaders acknowledge that the new approach to teacher evaluation takes more time than…

Integrative curriculum reform, domain dependent knowing, and teachers` epistemological theories: Implications for middle-level teaching

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Powell, R.R. [Texas Tech Univ., Lubbock, TX (United States). College of Education

1998-12-01

Integrative curriculum as both a theoretical construct and a practical reality, and as a theme-based, problem-centered, democratic way of schooling, is becoming more widely considered as a feasible alternative to traditional middle-level curricula. Importantly for teaching and learning, domain dependence requires teachers to view one area of knowledge as fully interdependent with other areas of knowledge during the learning process. This requires teachers to adopt personal epistemological theories that reflect integrative, domain dependent knowing. This study explored what happened when teachers from highly traditional domain independent school settings encountered an ambitious college-level curriculum project that was designed to help the teachers understand the potential that integrative, domain dependent teaching holds for precollege settings. This study asked: What influence does an integrative, domain dependent curriculum project have on teachers` domain independent, epistemological theories for teaching and learning? Finding an answer to this question is essential if we, as an educational community, are to understand how integrative curriculum theory is transformed by teachers into systemic curriculum reform. The results suggest that the integrative curriculum project that teachers participated in did not explicitly alter their classroom practices in a wholesale manner. Personal epistemological theories of teachers collectively precluded teachers from making any wholesale changes in their individual classroom teaching. However, teachers became aware of integrative curriculum as an alternative, and they expressed interest in infusing integrative practices into their classrooms as opportunities arise.

Examining Teacher Framing, Student Reasoning, and Student Agency in School-Based Citizen Science

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Harris, Emily Mae

This dissertation presents three interrelated studies examining opportunities for student learning through contributory citizen science (CS), where students collect and contribute data to help generate new scientific knowledge. I draw on sociocultural perspectives of learning to analyze three cases where teachers integrated CS into school science, one third grade, one fourth grade, and one high school Marine Biology classroom. Chapter 2 is a conceptual investigation of the opportunities for students to engage in scientific reasoning practices during CS data collection activities. Drawing on science education literature and vignettes from case studies, I argue that the teacher plays an important role in mediating opportunities for students to engage in investigative, explanatory, and argumentative practices of science through CS. Chapter 3 focuses on teacher framing of CS, how teachers perceive what is going on (Goffman, 1974) and how they communicate that to students as they launch CS tasks. Through analysis of videos and interviews of two upper elementary school teachers, I found that teachers frame CS for different purposes. These framings were influenced by teachers' goals, orientations towards science and CS, planning for instruction, and prior knowledge and experience. Chapter 4 examines how students demonstrate agency with environmental science as they explore their personal interests across their third grade classroom, school garden, and science lab contexts, through the lens of social practice theory (Holland, Lachicotte, Skinner, & Cain, 1998). Through analysis of classroom observations, student interviews, teacher interviews and important moments for three focal students, I found that student agency was enabled and constrained by the different cultures of the classroom, garden, and science lab. Despite affordances of the garden and science lab, the teachers' epistemic authority in the classroom permeated all three contexts, constraining student agency. In

Misconceptions Regarding the Brain: The Neuromyths of Preservice Teachers

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Dündar, Sefa; Gündüz, Nazan

2016-01-01

Understanding preservice teachers' misconceptions regarding the brain and neuroscience (neuromyths) can provide information that helps teachers to apply neuroscience knowledge in an educational context. The objective of this study was to investigate these misconceptions. Following preliminary research, a questionnaire comprising 59 challenging…

The hidden challenges in role transitions and how leadership coaching can help new leaders find solid ground.

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Weinstock, Beth

2011-01-01

Leadership coaching is becoming an increasingly important intervention that helps individual nurse executives and managers develop and use the best of their strengths, gifts, and talents. As the need for leadership in nursing becomes urgent and brave souls move into the positions of greater authority and potential impact, they will face challenges as they move up in rank. This article identifies the hidden and often-overlooked challenges that are faced by new leaders as they transition into roles of increased responsibility, and it demonstrates how leadership coaching can help new leaders make successful transitions. As the current health care crisis creates opportunity for new leaders, those who opt for promotions and lateral shifts encounter both expected and surprising challenges. The expected challenges include mastering new content skills, learning new organizational structures, and getting to know new teams. The less obvious stressors include issues of self-esteem, assertiveness, self-consciousness, self-criticism, perfectionism, new boundaries, changing identities, and finding one's own leadership style. These important issues are often kept out of conscious awareness and overlooked at great cost to the individual leader and her institution. Leadership coaching can provide support and practical strategies for managing and overcoming these hidden challenges.

Abnormal immune system development and function in schizophrenia helps reconcile diverse findings and suggests new treatment and prevention strategies.

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Anders, Sherry; Kinney, Dennis K

2015-08-18

Extensive research implicates disturbed immune function and development in the etiology and pathology of schizophrenia. In addition to reviewing evidence for immunological factors in schizophrenia, this paper discusses how an emerging model of atypical immune function and development helps explain a wide variety of well-established - but puzzling - findings about schizophrenia. A number of theorists have presented hypotheses that early immune system programming, disrupted by pre- and perinatal adversity, often combines with abnormal brain development to produce schizophrenia. The present paper focuses on the hypothesis that disruption of early immune system development produces a latent immune vulnerability that manifests more fully after puberty, when changes in immune function and the thymus leave individuals more susceptible to infections and immune dysfunctions that contribute to schizophrenia. Complementing neurodevelopmental models, this hypothesis integrates findings on many contributing factors to schizophrenia, including prenatal adversity, genes, climate, migration, infections, and stress, among others. It helps explain, for example, why (a) schizophrenia onset is typically delayed until years after prenatal adversity, (b) individual risk factors alone often do not lead to schizophrenia, and (c) schizophrenia prevalence rates actually tend to be higher in economically advantaged countries. Here we discuss how the hypothesis explains 10 key findings, and suggests new, potentially highly cost-effective, strategies for treatment and prevention of schizophrenia. Moreover, while most human research linking immune factors to schizophrenia has been correlational, these strategies provide ethical ways to experimentally test in humans theories about immune function and schizophrenia. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled SI: Neuroimmunology in Health And Disease. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Importance of Minority Teachers: Student Perceptions of Minority versus White Teachers

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Cherng, Hua-Yu Sebastian; Halpin, Peter F.

2016-01-01

The demographic divide between teachers and students is of growing public concern. However, few studies have explicitly addressed the common argument that students, and particularly minority students, have more favorable perceptions of minority versus White teachers. Using data from the Measure of Effective Teaching study, we find that students…

Teachers' Experiences With and Perceptions of Students With Attention Deficit/hyperactivity Disorder.

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Lawrence, Kay; Estrada, Robin Dawson; McCormick, Jessica

The purpose of this research was to examine teacher experiences with and perceptions of students with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Teachers are integral in helping these children learn effectively and foster healthy relationships, yet little is known about their interactions with these children. Semi structured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of fourteen currently practicing or retired elementary and middle schools teachers in North Carolina and South Carolina. All interviews were audio-recorded then analyzed for common themes. Participants obtained ADHD information from in-services or peer interaction, rather than formal education. Culture and gender influenced teacher perceptions, and ADHD classroom strategies were based on anecdotal experience. Teachers experienced guilt and worry while negotiating student needs, school system constraints, and family issues. While teachers have developed effective coping mechanisms through informal means, formal education and support will help teachers better serve students with ADHD. Pediatric nurses in many settings can benefit from better understanding how teachers perceive and interact with students who have attentional issues. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Culturally Responsive Pedagogy for Teachers of Color

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Gist, Conra D.

2017-01-01

This study utilizes the conceptual framework of culturally responsive pedagogy and theoretical suppositions about the culturally responsive teacher educator to examine the learning experiences of teacher candidates of color. Findings from the case study of a teacher educator's and teacher candidates' of color teaching and learning experiences in a…

Writing in elementary school science: Factors that influence teacher beliefs and practices

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Glen, Nicole J.

requirements, science and writing content knowledge, and classroom management. The findings indicated that the teachers were using writing in some of the ways supported by science and literacy education, but there were many areas of writing in science in which teachers could use support and education. This included more knowledge of authentic uses of writing in the science discipline, general writing-to-learn strategies, and assessment of student ideas and information in writing and not only writing skills. The teachers also needed support in better understanding the nature of science and scientific inquiry, and in how to negotiate the social and cultural factors that influence their pedagogical decisions in order to use writing in more authentic ways. This study suggests that teacher educators and administrators must learn more about how teachers understand their role as elementary teachers, as teachers of writing and science, and the environments within which they work in order to help them move toward authentic literacy and science writing practices.

World History and Teacher Education: Challenges and Possibilities

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Marino, Michael

2011-01-01

This article discusses the role that teacher educators can play in helping their students develop a fuller understanding of world history. Trends such as globalization have led to calls for increased teaching about the diverse cultures and peoples of the world. However, prospective teachers' educational backgrounds have in most cases not…

Modelling Scientific Argumentation in the Classroom : Teachers perception and practice

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Probosari, R. M.; Sajidan; Suranto; Prayitno, B. A.; Widyastuti, F.

2017-02-01

The purposes of this study were to investigate teacher’s perception about scientific argumentation and how they practice it in their classroom. Thirty biology teachers in high school participated in this study and illustrated their perception of scientific argumentation through a questionnaire. This survey research was developed to measure teachers’ understanding of scientific argumentation, what they know about scientific argumentation, the differentiation between argument and reasoning, how they plan teaching strategies in order to make students’ scientific argumentation better and the obstacles in teaching scientific argumentation. The result conclude that generally, teachers modified various representation to accommodate student’s active participation, but most of them assume that argument and reasoning are similar. Less motivation, tools and limited science’s knowledge were considered as obstacles in teaching argumentation. The findings can be helpful to improving students’ abilities of doing scientific argumentation as a part of inquiry.

A Teacher-Focused Intervention to Decrease PE Students' Amotivation by Increasing Need Satisfaction and Decreasing Need Frustration.

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Cheon, Sung Hyeon; Reeve, Johnmarshall; Song, Yong-Gwan

2016-06-01

Intervention-induced gains in need satisfaction decrease PE students' amotivation. The present study adopted a dual-process model to test whether an intervention could also decrease need frustration and hence provide a second supplemental source to further decrease students' PE amotivation. Using an experimental, longitudinal research design, 19 experienced PE teachers (9 experimental, 10 control) and their 1,017 students participated in an intervention program to help teachers become both more autonomy supportive and less controlling. Multilevel repeated measures analyses showed that students of teachers in the experimental group reported greater T2, T3, and T4 perceived autonomy support, need satisfaction, and engagement and lesser T2, T3, and T4 perceived teacher control, need frustration, and amotivation than did students of teachers in the control group. Multilevel structural equation modeling analyses confirmed the hypothesized dual-process model in which both intervention-induced increases in need satisfaction and intervention-induced decreases need frustration decreased students' end-of-semester amotivation. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of this new finding on the dual antecedents of diminished amotivation.

A Teacher's Bookshelf: The Historical Geography of the United States.

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Danzer, Gerald A.

1993-01-01

Contends that historical geography helps teachers understand the link between history and geography. Presents an annotated bibliography of recommended geography books for teachers. Asserts that the most essential volume is an atlas of U.S. history. (CFR)

Child Behavior Problems, Teacher Executive Functions, and Teacher Stress in Head Start Classrooms.

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Friedman-Krauss, Allison H; Raver, C Cybele; Neuspiel, Juliana M; Kinsel, John

2014-01-01

The current article explores the relationship between teachers' perceptions of child behavior problems and preschool teacher job stress, as well as the possibility that teachers' executive functions moderate this relationship. Data came from 69 preschool teachers in 31 early childhood classrooms in 4 Head Start centers and were collected using Web-based surveys and Web-based direct assessment tasks. Multilevel models revealed that higher levels of teachers' perceptions of child behavior problems were associated with higher levels of teacher job stress and that higher teacher executive function skills were related to lower job stress. However, findings did not yield evidence for teacher executive functions as a statistical moderator. Many early childhood teachers do not receive sufficient training for handling children's challenging behaviors. Child behavior problems increase a teacher's workload and consequently may contribute to feelings of stress. However, teachers' executive function abilities may enable them to use effective, cognitive-based behavior management and instructional strategies during interactions with students, which may reduce stress. Providing teachers with training on managing challenging behaviors and enhancing executive functions may reduce their stress and facilitate their use of effective classroom practices, which is important for children's school readiness skills and teachers' health.

The Relationship between Iranian EFL Teachers' Collective Efficacy Beliefs, Teaching Experience and Perception of Teacher Empowerment

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Baleghizadeh, Sasan; Goldouz, Elnaz

2016-01-01

The present study aimed to contribute to the current findings of the relationship between collective efficacy perceptions of EFL teachers and their perception of teacher empowerment. To this end, 147 Iranian EFL teachers from a well-known institute in Tehran participated in the study. The instruments used were two questionnaires: Collective…

The Development of Teacher Perspectives: Social Strategies and Institutional Control in the Socialization of Beginning Teachers.

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Zeichner, Kenneth M.; Tabachnick, B. Robert

1985-01-01

The findings from a two-year longitudinal study of the development of teaching perspectives by four beginning teachers are reviewed. Individual responses of these teachers to the environment in which they worked and the extent to which these teachers abandoned or maintained perspectives they began with are examined. (Author/DF)

What Makes a Motivating Teacher? Teachers' Motivation and Beliefs as Predictors of Their Autonomy-Supportive Style

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Katz, Idit; Shahar, Bat-Hen

2015-01-01

Findings from several studies suggest that teachers who embrace an autonomy-supportive style vis-à-vis their students promote student motivation. However, the question of what makes teachers adopt this supportive style remains unanswered. Using Self-Determination Theory as a framework, we suggest that teachers' own motivation and their beliefs…

A Personal Journey to Merge Literacy Education and Multicultural Teacher Education

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Doepker, Gina M.

2015-01-01

There has been considerable attention to multicultural education and how to effectively integrate it into teacher education programs so that it helps teachers to be attentive to and effective for the economically, culturally, and racially diverse student populace. This article will focus on my personal journey with multicultural teacher education…

iTE: Student Teachers Using iPad on a Second Level Initial Teacher Education Programme

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Mac Mahon, Brendan; Grádaigh, Seán Ó.; Ghuidhir, Sinéad Ní

2016-01-01

Research on the use of iPad in initial teacher education is limited. This paper outlines a study to examine how the professional learning and pedagogical knowledge development of student teachers could be supported following 1:1 iPad deployment on a second-level initial teacher education programme in Ireland. Findings show that iPad can be…

Teachers' Perceptions of Students' Challenging Behavior and the Impact of Teacher Demographics

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Alter, Peter; Walker, Ja'Nina; Landers, Eric

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study is to update the research regarding perceptions of specific challenging behaviors that teachers find to be most prevalent and/or problematic. This study analyzes the role of teacher demographics (gender, race, grade level, and years of experience) on their perceptions of specifically defined challenging behaviors. After…

Organizational Conflict among Teachers and the Principal's Strategies of Dealing with It from the Teachers' Perspective in Schools of Jordan

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Jubran, Ali Mohammad

2017-01-01

This research aimed to evaluate the degree of organizational conflict among teachers in Jordanian schools, along with the principal strategies to deal with them effectively. The research population was based on a sample of 123 teachers from Irbid, Jordan for the academic year 2013/2014. A descriptive research approach was adopted with the help of…

A psychotherapeutic approach with elementary school teachers.

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Multari, G

1975-01-01

The tradional "lectures delivering" approach to classroom teachers used by mental health practitioners is investigated in the present study. An attempt is made to demonstrate the validity of preventative work in helping elementary school teachers as important agents in the promotion of more positive mental hygiene in the classroom and by adding to the lectures the variable of group therapy--"ego-sparing" techniques type. The latter approach seems to promote a teacher's own sense of security in dealing the pupils, an easier acceptance of differences in others, and, finally, it tends to stimulate the development of a teacher's own ability to deal sensibly, more conscientiously, and more realistically with daily problems.

Saudi Parents' Perceptions of the Kind of Help They Offer to Their Primary School Kids

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Mahmoud, Salameh S.

2018-01-01

Parents in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia usually help their kids in early school years especially in English language. This help varies according to the parents' level of education, the degree of difficulty of the curriculum and the type of school their kids join. Sometimes they give the right kind of help that matches the teachers' strategies and…

Sociocultural handicap of foreign pupils and professional qualification of teachers

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Markéta Zachová

2017-11-01

Full Text Available The presented text shows the results of research carried out within the dissertation thesis. The main topic is the phenomenon of sociocultural handicap of foreign pupils (pupils with a different mother tongue. The research is based on the expert belief that integration of foreign pupils (pupils with a different mother tongue into Czech schools and the training of teachers in this field is still somewhat marginal, even though there is a growing debate about increasing cultural diversity, increasing heterogeneity of schools and introduction of inclusive measures. The aim of the research was to analyze professional training of teachers in relation to the sociocultural handicap of foreign pupils (pupils with a different mother tongue. The goal was refined by the formulation of research questions: What possible problems (difficulties reflect teachers in the teaching process of foreign pupils? What procedures and strategies do teachers use to help these pupils to be integrated successfully? How do teachers assess their professional readiness for education of foreign pupils (whether they were sufficiently prepared to work with foreign pupils in the course of their undergraduate studies, where they find benefits, deficiencies in this training? How do students assess their undergraduate education for foreign-pupil teaching (whether they were ready to work with foreign pupils in their previous undergraduate education, where they find benefits, deficiencies in this training? The research used questionnaire survey techniques for teachers and students and semi-structured interviews for teachers. The partial technique was the analysis of study subjects focused on the education of foreign pupils at the Faculty of Education at West Bohemian University in Pilsen (hereinafter WBU. The research group was made up of teachers of the 1st grade of primary schools of the Pilsen and Karlovy Vary regions and students of the 4th grade of the field of Teaching for the

Tracing Assessment for learning Capability in Teachers (TACT)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Otrel-Cass, Kathrin; Agerbo, Jette Nørgaard; Skipper-Jørgensen, Anette

2018-01-01

education program. This chapter presents preliminary survey and focus group interviews data after tracing 21 pre-service teachers over two years. Our findings reflected a picture of Danish student teachers who value in particular formative assessment practices, while summative assessment is acknowledged......The focus on assessment literate teachers who know how to construct, administer assessments and communicate learning outcomes on student learning raises questions on how student teachers can develop the necessary skills to assess their students' learning. This is so important since...... there is evidence that beginning teachers continue to feel under prepared to assess student learning. This chapter presents findings of a study conducted in Denmark with the aim of investigating how student teacher candidates develop the capacities to become ‘assessment literate' over the course of their teacher...

Toddlers Help a Peer.

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Hepach, Robert; Kante, Nadine; Tomasello, Michael

2017-09-01

Toddlers are remarkably prosocial toward adults, yet little is known about their helping behavior toward peers. In the present study with 18- and 30-month-old toddlers (n = 192, 48 dyads per age group), one child needed help reaching an object to continue a task that was engaging for both children. The object was within reach of the second child who helped significantly more often compared to a no-need control condition. The helper also fulfilled the peer's need when the task was engaging only for the child needing help. These findings suggest that toddlers' skills and motivations of helping do not depend on having a competent and helpful recipient, such as an adult, but rather they are much more flexible and general. © 2016 The Authors. Child Development © 2016 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

Teachers staying ahead of the game

CERN Multimedia

2009-01-01

Even though the school holidays are in full swing, some 40 high-school teachers have come to CERN to take part in the High School Teachers (HST) programme organised by the CERN Education Group (see box). Far from considering this as a piece of holiday fun, the teachers are getting their hands dirty and putting in some serious hours’ learning. The High School Teachers 2009 at CERN.The 3-week HST programme hosts dozens of teachers from around the world, offering a deeper insight into particle physics through a variety of lectures, visits and workshops. The programme’s ambitious overall aim is to help these teachers to inspire their students to follow careers in science. In the second week, they split up into working groups to evaluate CERN’s existing educational tools or create new ones. "This year, one of the groups is reviewing some of the CERN visits service itineraries," says HST programme manager Mick Storr. "From their pers...

Teachers Who Grow As Collaborative Leaders

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Richard D. Sawyer

2001-10-01

Full Text Available The following narratives examine three teachers over a course of ten years as they first entered teaching and began to collaborate with other teachers on curriculum. Specifically, the study examines how the teachers 1 developed as collaborators and 2 perceived elements of support from both within and outside the classroom for their collaborative efforts. The article argues that the successful collaborative efforts helped deepen their sense of agency and initiative within their teaching and, to a lesser degree, stimulated reform and change within their schools. In turn and to varying degrees, the process of collaboration supported their personal renewal in their work. The article suggests that structural support for these teachers that connected to their emerging personal practical knowledge was crucial for their development as teacher collaborators. The article concludes by suggesting how schools may be restructured to start to become sites of authentic leadership that build on the talents, meaning, voice, and knowledge of teachers.

Exploring graduate teachers' perceptions of their praxis after an AELS course

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Arnold, Laura Jane

2015-12-01

Full Text Available While speakers of English as an additional language are more common than native English speakers, most English teachers do not know how to teach plurilingual learners in their classrooms. Though studies have looked at the effect of teacher education on praxis, there is a dearth of studies in South Africa that have examined teachers’ perceptions of their praxis after a course on bilingual education models and practices. This study investigates whether in-service teachers feel that the ‘Paradigms and Methods in Applied English Language Studies’ course helped them to further develop their praxis. Students’ weekly reflection pieces were examined for evidence of critical reflection before interviews were conducted with three students who have taught, or are currently teaching in under-resourced areas. All participants reported that they had developed a more bilingual teaching praxis, but they often felt unsure of how to practically implement their learning from the course. Based on this finding two recommendations to lecturers and course coordinators of AELS courses are provided. Teacher praxis could be strengthened by 1 referring students to articles on bilingual education models and practices that mirror their teaching contexts and 2 explicitly teaching students how to reflect on implementing the theories that they have learned during the course within their classrooms.

Mobility-Related Teacher Turnover and the Unequal Distribution of Experienced Teachers in Turkey

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Özoglu, Murat

2015-01-01

This study investigates the issue of mobility-related teacher turnover in Turkey through both quantitative and qualitative methods. The quantitative findings derived from descriptive and correlational analyses of countrywide teacher-assignment and transfer data indicate that a high rate of mobility-related turnover is observed in the…

Factors Related to Professional Development of English Language University Teachers in Thailand

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Wichadee, Saovapa

2012-01-01

Professional development is deemed necessary for university teachers at all levels, as it helps to enhance teaching quality. However, the extent of English language university teachers' professional development might depend on a number of factors. This paper reports on a study investigating English language university teachers' professional…

Determining the Critical Skills Beginning Agriculture Teachers Need to Successfully Teach Welding

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Pate, Michael L.; Warnick, Brian K.; Meyers, Tiffany

2012-01-01

Using the Delphi technique, agriculture teachers with significant experience teaching welding were asked to help determine the critical skills beginning agriculture teachers need to successfully teach welding. The study's objectives sought to (1) identify the knowledge and technical skill competencies that beginning agriculture teachers need to…

Teacher Justice and Students’ Class Identification: Belief in a Just World and Teacher–Student Relationship as Mediators

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Ronghuan Jiang

2018-05-01

Full Text Available For school-age adolescents, teacher justice plays an important role in their learning and social outcomes. The present study examined the relation between teacher justice and students’ class identification in 1735 Chinese school-age adolescents by considering belief in a just world (BJW and teacher–student relationship as mediators. Structure equation modeling (SEM was used to reveal the direct and indirect effects. The analyses showed that all the direct and indirect effects were significant. These findings indicated that teacher justice had a positive effect on students’ class identification. In addition, teacher justice impacted students’ class identification through students’ just-world belief and teacher–student relationships. These results suggested that for adolescents, teacher justice played an important role in shaping their just-world belief system and their interpersonal relationships with teachers, which in turn affected their sense of belonging and values in relation to their class. Thus, it is important for teachers to be aware that their injustice may negatively impact their relationships with students, students’ belief systems, and their psychological engagement at school. There is a need to develop teacher-training programs to help teachers to establish classroom reward-punishment systems with the consideration of social justice, to communicate with students through an unbiased approach, and to increase student participation in the important decision making of the whole class.

Teacher Justice and Students’ Class Identification: Belief in a Just World and Teacher–Student Relationship as Mediators

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Jiang, Ronghuan; Liu, Ru-De; Ding, Yi; Zhen, Rui; Sun, Yan; Fu, Xinchen

2018-01-01

For school-age adolescents, teacher justice plays an important role in their learning and social outcomes. The present study examined the relation between teacher justice and students’ class identification in 1735 Chinese school-age adolescents by considering belief in a just world (BJW) and teacher–student relationship as mediators. Structure equation modeling (SEM) was used to reveal the direct and indirect effects. The analyses showed that all the direct and indirect effects were significant. These findings indicated that teacher justice had a positive effect on students’ class identification. In addition, teacher justice impacted students’ class identification through students’ just-world belief and teacher–student relationships. These results suggested that for adolescents, teacher justice played an important role in shaping their just-world belief system and their interpersonal relationships with teachers, which in turn affected their sense of belonging and values in relation to their class. Thus, it is important for teachers to be aware that their injustice may negatively impact their relationships with students, students’ belief systems, and their psychological engagement at school. There is a need to develop teacher-training programs to help teachers to establish classroom reward-punishment systems with the consideration of social justice, to communicate with students through an unbiased approach, and to increase student participation in the important decision making of the whole class. PMID:29875726

EFL Teachers' Stress and Job Satisfaction: What Contribution Can Teacher Education Make?

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Karim Sadeghi

2016-10-01

Full Text Available The present study was conducted to find out the level of job satisfaction and stress among Iranian EFL teachers. More precisely, an attempt was made to investigate the main sources of EFL teachers’ stress, their level of satisfaction with the job and the relationship between occupational stress and instructors’ age, marital status and tenure. Using a localized self-reported questionnaire, adapted from Ferguson, Frost, and Hall (2012, data was collected from 149 EFL teachers working in Urmia, Iran. The analysis of the data revealed that 29.93% of the teachers reported feelings of stress in one way or another. In addition, more than one-third of the teachers claimed to be somewhat or very dissatisfied with their job. It was also observed that age, marital status and employment play significant roles in the level of occupational stress perceived by EFL teachers. Suggestions are offered for relieving teachers from stress and how teacher education programmes can contribute.

Get These Questions Right and Your Teachers Make the Grade.

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Ellis, Nancy H.

1989-01-01

A properly structured job-enrichment program can help motivate classroom teachers and encourage them to remain in the classroom. Offers examples of programs for enhancing the professional lives of teachers and cites pitfalls to avoid in designing a program. (MLF)

Relationship Domain of Form Six Teachers Thinking in Teaching with External Factors of Form Six Teachers

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bin Pet, Mokhtar; Sihes, Ahmad Johari Hj

2015-01-01

This study aims to examine the external factors of form six teachers who can influence thinking domain form six teachers in their teaching. This study was conducted using a quantitative approach using questionnaires. A total of 300 form six teacher schools in Johor were chosen as respondents. The findings were obtained as student background…

Teachers Should Not Only Inform but Also Entertain

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Kubli, Fritz

2007-01-01

Teaching is, in many respects, an art. Teachers must strike the right balance between sometimes opposite demands. On the one hand, they should lead students to scientific insights; and on the other hand, their teaching should be attractive. Teachers should not only inform, but also entertain. Experiments and stories can help them to combine these…

The E.N.A.C.T. Model: Enhancing Teacher Candidates' Ability to Manage Student Behavior

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Yost, Deborah S.; Mosca, Frank J.

2003-01-01

This program description presents a model of critical reflection that has helped teacher candidates appropriately apply behavior management theory to resolve behavioral problems. The authors developed the ENACT (Examine, Name, Analyze, Critically evaluate, and Treat) model to help teacher candidates analyze the cause of inappropriate behaviors to…

EFL Teachers' Stress and Job Satisfaction: What Contribution Can Teacher Education Make?

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Sadeghi, Karim; Sa'adatpourvahid, Morteza

2016-01-01

The present study was conducted to find out the level of job satisfaction and stress among Iranian EFL teachers. More precisely, an attempt was made to investigate the main sources of EFL teachers' stress, their level of satisfaction with the job and the relationship between occupational stress and instructors' age, marital status and tenure.…

Fight the Dragons: Using Online Discussion to Promote Critical Literacy in Teacher Education

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Woodcock, Christine

2009-01-01

Today's children are bombarded by a range of media, and it is the responsibility of teachers to equip students to engage critically. Just as teachers are responsible to teach critical literacy, teacher educators must help empower teachers to become more critically literate. This paper explores the role of online discussion in the ways it fosters…

Black and White Parents' Willingness to Seek Help for Children's Internalizing and Externalizing Symptoms.

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Thurston, Idia B; Hardin, Robin; Decker, Kristina; Arnold, Trisha; Howell, Kathryn H; Phares, Vicky

2018-01-01

Understanding social and environmental factors that contribute to parental help-seeking intentions is an important step in addressing service underutilization for children in need of treatment. This study examined factors that contribute to parents' intentions to seek formal and informal help for child psychopathology (anxiety and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder [ADHD]). A total of 251 parents (N = 128 mothers, N = 123 fathers; 49% Black, 51% White) read 3 vignettes describing children with anxiety, ADHD, and no diagnosis. Measures of problem recognition, perceived barriers, and formal (pediatricians, psychologists, teachers) and informal (religious leaders, family/friends, self-help) help seeking were completed. Four separate hierarchical logistic regression models were used to examine parental help-seeking likelihood from formal and informal sources for internalizing and externalizing symptoms. Predictors were socioeconomic status, parent race, age, and sex, parent problem recognition (via study vignettes), and perceived barriers to mental health service utilization. Mothers were more likely than fathers to seek help from pediatricians, psychologists, teachers, and religious leaders for child anxiety and pediatricians, religious leaders, and self-help resources for child ADHD. Black parents were more likely to seek help from religious leaders and White parents were more likely to use self-help resources. Problem recognition was associated with greater intentions to seek help from almost all formal and informal sources (except from friends/family). Understanding factors that contribute to parental help seeking for child psychopathology is critical for increasing service utilization and reducing the negative effects of mental health problems. This study highlights the importance of decreasing help-seeking barriers and increasing problem recognition to improve health equity. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Reflective Methodology: The Beginning Teacher

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Templeton, Ronald K.; Siefert, Thomas E.

1970-01-01

Offers a variety of specific techniques which will help the beginning teacher to implement reflective methodology and create an inquiry-centered classroom atmosphere, at the same time meeting the many more pressing demands of first-year teaching. (JES)

Our Prospective Mathematic Teachers Are Not Critical Thinkers Yet

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As'ari, Abdur Rahman; Mahmudi, Ali; Nuerlaelah, Elah

2017-01-01

In order to help students develop their critical thinking skills, teachers need to model the critical thinking skills and dispositions in front of their students. Unfortunately, very rare studies investigating prospective teachers' readiness in critical thinking dispositions are available in the field of mathematics education. This study was…

Qualities of an effective teacher: what do medical teachers think?

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Singh, Simerjit; Pai, Dinker R; Sinha, Nirmal K; Kaur, Avneet; Soe, Htoo Htoo Kyaw; Barua, Ankur

2013-09-17

Effective teaching in medicine is essential to produce good quality doctors. A number of studies have attempted to identify the characteristics of an effective teacher. However, most of literature regarding an effective medical teacher includes student ratings or expert opinions. Furthermore, interdisciplinary studies for the same are even fewer. We did a cross-sectional study of the characteristics of effective teachers from their own perspective across medicine and dentistry disciplines. A questionnaire comprising of 24 statements relating to perceived qualities of effective teachers was prepared and used. The study population included the faculty of medicine and dentistry at the institution. Respondents were asked to mark their response to each statement based on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree. These statements were grouped these into four main subgroups, viz. Class room behaviour/instructional delivery, interaction with students, personal qualities and professional development, and analysed with respect to discipline, cultural background, gender and teaching experience using SPSS v 13.0. For bivariate analysis, t-test and one way ANOVA were used. Multiple linear regression for multivariate analysis was used to control confounding variables. The top three desirable qualities of an effective teacher in our study were knowledge of subject, enthusiasm and communication skills. Faculty with longer teaching experienced ranked classroom behaviour/instructional delivery higher than their less experienced counterparts. There was no difference of perspectives based on cultural background, gender or discipline (medicine and dentistry). This study found that the faculty perspectives were similar, regardless of the discipline, gender and cultural background. Furthermore, on review of literature similar findings are seen in studies done in allied medical and non-medical fields. These findings support common teacher training programs

How Can We Help Hesitant Kindergarten Writers Become Risk Takers?

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Sterling, Lora T.; Martin, Suzanne; Lyons, Sandra

This paper examines the ways kindergarten teachers can help improve the writing skills of their students who are hesitant to write. The paper describes a project that modified the physical classroom environment, nurtured the emotional climate, and used other strategies, such as allowing more time to write, modeling functional writing, and valuing…

Becoming Reflective and Inquiring Teachers: Collaborative Action Research for In-service Chilean Teachers

OpenAIRE

Martine Pellerin; Fraño Ivo Paukner Nogués

2015-01-01

This article discusses the outcomes of a case study that engaged Chilean in-service teachers in systematic action research (AR) as a means of improving their pedagogical practice and effecting changes in their educational context. The study involved six in-service teachers from a region of Chile and two university researchers. The findings show that knowledge of systematic AR provided the teachers with the necessary means to engage in a critical reflection and inquiry process regarding their ...

Professional Development of Teacher Educators: What Do They Do? Findings from an Explorative International Study

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Van der Klink, Marcel; Kools, Quinta; Avissar, Gilada; White, Simone; Sakata, Tetsuhito

2017-01-01

The attention being devoted to teacher educators as professionals and their professional development is unquestionably increasing. Whilst much of that attention is being directed at teacher educators in different countries, international comparisons have been quite rare to date. The research question addressed in this study was: "Do…

Perceived teacher support and language anxiety in Polish secondary school EFL learners

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Ewa Piechurska-Kuciel

2011-04-01

Full Text Available The teacher’s role is vital, both in respect to achieving academic goals, and with regard to the regulation of emotional and social processes. Positive perceptions of teacher support can endorse psychological wellness, and help maintain students’ academic interests, higher academic achievement and more positive peer relationships. The teacher who shows understanding, empathy and consistency in their behavior helps students start forming an identity, which will assist them in coping with stress and anxiety directly connected with the foreign language learning process (language anxiety. The main aim of this research is to investigate the relationship between teacher support and language anxiety levels. It is speculated that teacher support functions as a buffer from the effects of negative emotions, such as language anxiety experienced in the foreign language learning process. The participants of the study were 621 secondary grammar school students whose responses to a questionnaire were the main data source. The results of the study demonstrate that students with higher levels of teacher support experience lower language anxiety levels in comparison to their peers with lower levels of teacher support. Students who have a feeling that they can count on the instructor’s help, advice, assistance, or backing manage the learning process more successfully. They evaluate their language abilities highly and receive better final grades. Nevertheless, gender and residential location do not moderate teacher support and language anxiety due to the specificity of the sample consisting of novice secondary grammar school students.

How Is My Child Doing?: Preparing Pre-Service Teachers to Engage Parents through Assessment

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Mehlig, Lisa M.; Shumow, Lee

2013-01-01

The aim of this study was to help pre-service teachers develop basic knowledge and skill for partnering with families on assessment-related issues. An assessment class for teacher educators (experimental group) participated in role-playing activities designed to expand their understanding and skill in a way that would help them learn how to…

Content-Focused Teacher Meetings as Effective Teacher Learning Opportunities: Do They Really Help Improve Overall Reading Achievement and Reduce the Achievement Gap in First Grade Classrooms?

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Kang, Ho Soo

2013-01-01

Teacher professional development has long been of interest since it may affect teachers' learning, the practice of teaching, and student learning. Although empirical research has mainly explored the effect of specific professional development interventions on student achievement, these inventions have been initiated outside the school, and little…

Authentic Role-Playing as Situated Learning: Reframing Teacher Education Methodology for Higher-Order Thinking

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Leaman, Lori Hostetler; Flanagan, Toni Michele

2013-01-01

This article draws from situated learning theory, teacher education research, and the authors' collaborative self-study to propose a teacher education pedagogy that may help to bridge the theory-into-practice gap for preservice teachers. First, we review the Interstate Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium standards to confirm the call for…

Teachers and Science Curriculum Materials: Where We Are and Where We Need to Go

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Davis, Elizabeth A.; Janssen, Fred J. J. M.; Van Driel, Jan H.

2016-01-01

Curriculum materials serve as a key conceptual tool for science teachers, and better understanding how science teachers use these tools could help to improve both curriculum design and theory related to teacher learning and decision-making. The authors review the literature on teachers and science curriculum materials. The review is organised…

A Case Study Examining Change in Teacher Beliefs Through Collaborative Action Research

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Vaino, Katrin; Holbrook, Jack; Rannikmäe, Miia

2013-01-01

The main goal of this study was to explore the role of collaborative action research in eliciting change in teacher beliefs. The beliefs were those of five chemistry teachers in implementing a new teaching approach, geared to enhancing students' scientific and technological literacy (STL). The teacher beliefs were analysed based on Ajzen's Theory of Planned Behaviour (2005) by looking at the teacher's (a) attitude towards implementing STL modules, (b) perceived subjective norms, and (c) behavioural control regarding the new teaching approach. After an introductory year, when teachers familiarised themselves with the new approach, a collaborative action research project was initiated in the second year of the study, helping teachers to minimise or overcome initially perceived constraints when implementing STL modules in their classroom. The processes of teacher change and the course of the project were investigated by teacher interviews, teacher informal commentaries, and meeting records. The formation of positive beliefs towards a STL approach increased continuously, although its extent and character varied depending on the teacher. The close cooperation, in the format of collaborative action research and especially through teacher group reflections and perceived collegial support, did support teacher professional development including change in their beliefs towards the new teaching approach. Additionally, positive feedback gained from other teachers through running a two-day in-service course in year three helped to strengthen all five teachers' existing beliefs towards the new approach. The current research demonstrated that perceived constraints, where identified, can be meaningfully addressed by teachers, through undertaking collaborative action research.

Leadership that promotes teacher empowerment among urban middle school science teachers

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Howard-Skipper, Joni

In this study, the focus was on determining leadership strategies that promote teacher empowerment among urban middle school science teachers. The purpose of the paper was to determine if leadership strategies are related to teacher empowerment. The emphasis was on various forms of leadership and the empowerment of teachers in context in restructuring the democratic structure. An effective leadership in science education entails empowering others, especially science teachers. In this regard, no published studies had examined this perspective on empowering teachers and school leadership. Therefore, this study determined if a relationship exists between leadership strategy actions and teacher empowerment. The significance of the study is to determine a relationship between leadership strategies and teacher empowerment as a positive approach toward developing successful schools. Empowerment is essential for implementing serious improvements. Empowering others in schools must form a major component of an effective principal's agenda. It is becoming clearer in research literature that complex changes in education sometimes require active initiation. For this study, a quantitative methodology was used. Primary data enabled the research questions to be answered. The reliability and validity of the research were ensured. The results of this study showed that 40% of the administrators establish program policies with teachers, and 53% of teachers make decisions about new programs in schools. Furthermore, the findings, their implications, and recommendations are discussed.

Challenges to Teacher Resilience: Conditions Count

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Gu, Qing; Day, Christopher

2013-01-01

Drawing upon findings of a four-year national research project on variations in the work and lives of teachers in England, this paper provides empirical evidence which contributes to understandings about the importance of resilience in teachers' work. The experience of resilience as perceived by teachers in this research was that it was neither…

Affect and Acceptability: Exploring Teachers' Technology-Related Risk Perceptions

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Howard, Sarah K.

2011-01-01

Educational change, such as technology integration, involves risk. Teachers are encouraged to "take risks", but what risks they are asked to take and how do they perceive these risks? Developing an understanding of teachers' technology-related risk perceptions can help explain their choices and behaviours. This paper presents a way to…

Using Analysis in Children's Literature to Challenge Future Teachers.

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Roberts, Sherron Killingsworth

Teacher educators need to take the responsibility for providing future teachers with long-term evaluative skills necessary to select good literature. Educators must also take responsibility for modeling the powerful notion that books or literature aid in everyone's personal search for meaning. The process of analyzing literature is helpful in…

Zmienne komunikacyjne nauczyciela w percepcji studentow [Teachers' communication variables in higher education students' perceptions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sztejnberg, A.; Brok, den P.J.; Hurek, J.; Karczmarek, Z.; Jankowski, K.; Sitarska, B.; Tkaczuk, C.

2004-01-01

This study investigated students¿ perceptions of their best teachers in higher education. Teacher behaviour was conceptualised in terms of the teacher-student interpersonal relationship and described in terms of eight behavioural sectors ¿ leadership, helpful/friendly, understanding, student

Stres and burnout related to work with special education needs students in elementary school teachers

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Katja Košir

2014-11-01

Full Text Available The aim of the present study was to examine the predictive value of elementary school teachers' workplace characteristics on work stress and burnout. Workplace characteristics were defined as job demands and resources, which were further divided into general and specific, related to work with special education needs students. We examined whether variables related to work with special education needs students explained incremental variance in stress and burnout above and beyond general workplace characteristics. Elementary school teachers from all twelve regions of Slovenia (N ranges from 439 to 886 took part in the study. The results have shown that workplace characteristics independently predict a significant amount of variance in stress, emotional exhaustion and depersonalization among teachers. General job demands and specific demands related to special education needs students are the highest and most stable predictors of all three studied criteria. Based on our findings, we suggest several measures which can help to alleviate stress and foster efficient coping strategies.

Predictors of Teacher Educators' Research Productivity

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Nasser-Abu Alhija, Fadia M.; Majdob, Arin

2017-01-01

This study examined the relationship between teacher educators' research productivity (RP) and their background and professional characteristics, attitudes, motives, obstacles and time devoted to research. The sample included 161 teacher educators from four teacher education colleges in Israel. The findings indicate the significance of five…

A narrative inquiry into novice science mentor teachers' mentoring practices

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Naseem, Samina

account, the study revealed that each NSM had a core practice, which was based on their preferred teaching and learning styles, such as hands-on, lecture, etc. Given the core of their practice, the NSMs approached mentoring situations differently, thus making mentoring individualistic in nature. Sociality revealed that beliefs, relationships, and context as the major factors to inform the NSMs' mentoring practices. Place as a factor was significant only in one NSM's stories. These findings suggested a relationship between the NSMs' mentoring practices and professional identity. The study was concluded with an emphasis on the importance of taking in to account the biographies of teacher mentors and their professional identity to understand mentoring practices and the process of mentoring. Based on the findings, it was recommended to offer teacher mentor - centered professional development opportunities to help novice mentors build on their strengths and ways to use their skills to mentor interns in productive ways.

Why Do Student Teachers Enrol for a Teaching Degree? A Study of Teacher Recruitment in Portugal and Sweden

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Flores, Maria Assunção; Niklasson, Laila

2014-01-01

This paper reports on findings from an exploratory study carried out in Portugal and Sweden, concerning student teacher recruitment to Initial Teacher Education (ITE) programmes. It addresses issues such as the motivations and expectations of the student teachers regarding the teaching profession. Drawing upon existing related literature, a…

Teachers Attitude towards English in Batu Anam

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Mah Zhi Jian

2011-07-01

Full Text Available This research investigates the attitude of 60 primary and secondary school teachers towards English in Batu Anam. A questionnaire was administered to find out whether they have a positive or a negative attitude towards the English language. Results indicate that teachers in Batu Anam generally have a positive attitude towards English. Comparison between male and female teachers, optionist and non-optionist teachers and teachers from different types of schools are also analyzed.

Psychological Distress and Help Seeking Amongst Higher Education Students: Findings from a Mixed Method Study of Undergraduate Nursing/Midwifery and Teacher Education Students in Ireland

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Deasy, Christine; Coughlan, Barry; Pironom, Julie; Jourdan, Didier; Mannix-McNamara, Patricia

2016-01-01

Psychological distress as experienced by higher education students is of major concern because of its potential to adversely impact academic performance, retention, mental health and lifestyle. This paper reports a mixed method investigation of student self-reported psychological distress and help-seeking behaviour. The sample comprised all…

Teachers as Secondary Players: Involvement in Field Trips to Natural Environments

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Alon, Nirit Lavie; Tal, Tali

2017-08-01

This study focused on field trips to natural environments where the teacher plays a secondary role alongside a professional guide. We investigated teachers' and field trip guides' views of the teacher's role, the teacher's actual function on the field trip, and the relationship between them. We observed field trips, interviewed teachers and guides, and administered questionnaires. We found different levels of teacher involvement, ranging from mainly supervising and giving technical help, to high involvement especially in the cognitive domain and sometimes in the social domain. Analysis of students' self-reported outcomes showed that the more students believe their teachers are involved, the higher the self-reported learning outcomes.

Careers in Industrial Sewing for the Apparel Manufacturing Industry: Teacher-Student Guide.

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American Apparel Manufacturers Association, Arlington, VA. Education Committee.

The teacher-student guide has been developed as a service to schools in an effort to help them organize and operate meaningful courses in apparel manufacturing. For the school it furnishes practical information in implementing the course, such as facility design, equipment requirements, and teacher selection. For the teacher it provides a…

How Can I Help My Students with Learning Disabilities in Mathematics?

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Jiménez-Fernández, Gracia

2016-01-01

Learning Disabilities in Mathematics (LDM) or dyscalculia are a frequent and disruptive problem within schools. Nevertheless, this problem has received little attention from researchers and practitioners, if compared with the number of studies published on disabilities in reading. Therefore, teachers do not have enough guidance to help children…

Elementary teachers' ideas about, planning for and implementation of learner-directed and teacher-directed inquiry: A mixed methods study

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Biggers, Mandy Sue

Using a framework for variations of classroom inquiry (National Research Council [NRC], 2000, p. 29), this study explored 40 inservice elementary teachers' planning, modification, and enactment of kit-based science curriculum materials. As part of the study, a new observation protocol was modified from an existing protocol (Practices of Science Observation Protocol [P-SOP]) to measure the amount of teacher direction in science inquiry lessons (Practices of Science Observation Protocol + Directedness [P-SOPd]). An embedded mixed methods design was employed to investigate four questions: 1. How valid and reliable is the P-SOPd? 2. In what ways do inservice elementary teachers adapt existing elementary science curriculum materials across the inquiry continuum? 3. What is the relationship between the overall quality of inquiry and variations of inquiry in elementary teachers' enacted science instruction? 4. How do inservice elementary teachers' ideas about the inquiry continuum influence their adaptation of elementary science curriculum materials? Each teacher chose three lessons from a science unit for video-recorded observation, and submitted lesson plans for the three lessons. Lesson plans and videos were scored using the P-SOPd. The scores were also compared between the two protocols to determine if a correlation existed between the level of inquiry (measured on the P-SOP) and the amount of teacher direction (measured on the P-SOPd). Findings indicated no significant differences between planned and enacted lessons for the amount of teacher direction, but a correlation existed between the level of inquiry and the amount of teacher direction. In effect, the elementary teachers taught their science curriculum materials with a high level of fidelity for both the features of inquiry and the amount of teacher direction. A smaller group of three case study teachers were followed for the school year to give a more in-depth explanation of the quantitative findings. Case

Professional Learning Communities: Teachers Working Collaboratively for Continuous Improvement

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Griffith, Louise Ann

2009-01-01

Current research indicates that a professional learning community (PLC) is an effective means for helping teachers to bridge the gap between research and practice. A PLC is a team of educators systematically working together to improve teaching practice and student learning. This study evaluated the PLC formed by teachers at a public elementary…

Teaching Is Still an Art, Mexican Teachers Remind Us.

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Hill, Margaret

1997-01-01

Describes working with 14 Mexican English teachers for 2.5 years at an elementary school in Guadalajara to help them implement an effective whole language program. Describes how these teachers used models of rich language, familiar movies, drama creations, family stories, and their own artistic talents to enhance learning in their classrooms.…

Understanding Emotions through Games: Helping Trainee Teachers to Make Decisions

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Lavega, Pere; Filella, Gemma; Agullo, Maria Jesus; Soldevila, Anna; March, Jaume

2011-01-01

Introduction: The aim of this study was to provide guidelines to help professionals make decisions regarding the types of emotions produced by different sporting games classified into four domains of motor action (psychomotor, co-operation, opposition and cooperation/opposition). Method: The sample comprised 284 first-year university students of…

Help!

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Adams, Caralee

2006-01-01

This article presents ten time-saving ideas for teachers. One great time-saving tip is to come in an hour early once or twice a week for grading papers. It is also a great idea if teachers will not give tests on Friday in order to reduce their weekend work.

Teachers as Human Capital or Human Beings? USAID's Perspective on Teachers

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Ginsburg, Mark

2017-01-01

This article analyzes three USAID education strategy documents (1998, 2005, and 2011) as well as USAID's requests for proposals for three projects to assess how teachers are represented. The main findings indicate that USAID education strategy documents a) treat teachers as human capital, a human resource input, rather than as human beings and b)…

A self-determination theory approach to understanding the antecedents of teachers' motivational strategies in physical education.

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Taylor, Ian M; Ntoumanis, Nikos; Standage, Martyn

2008-02-01

Physical education teachers can influence students' self-determination through the motivational strategies that they use. The current study examined how teachers' reported use of three motivational strategies (providing a meaningful rationale, providing instrumental help and support, and gaining an understanding of the students) were predicted by perceived job pressure, perceptions of student self-determination, the teachers' autonomous orientation, psychological need satisfaction, and self-determination to teach. Structural equation modeling supported a model in which perceived job pressure, perceptions of student self-determination, and teacher autonomous orientation predicted teacher psychological need satisfaction, which, in turn positively influenced teacher self-determination. The last positively predicted the use of all three strategies. Direct positive effects of teachers' psychological need satisfaction on the strategies of gaining an understanding of students and instrumental help and support were also found. In summary, factors that influence teacher motivation may also indirectly affect their motivational strategies toward students.

Educating English Learners: What Every Classroom Teacher Needs to Know

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Nutta, Joyce W.; Strebel, Carine; Mokhtari, Kouider; Mihai, Florin M.; Crevecoeur-Bryant, Edwidge

2014-01-01

In "Educating English Learners," Joyce W. Nutta and her colleagues offer practical tools for helping schools and teachers successfully integrate English learners into mainstream classrooms. Drawing on the One Plus model presented in their award-winning book, "Preparing Every Teacher to Reach English Learners," the authors now…

Professional Development for Rural and Remote Teachers Using Video Conferencing

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Maher, Damian; Prescott, Anne

2017-01-01

Teachers in rural and remote schools face many challenges including those relating to distance, isolation and lack of professional development opportunities. This article examines a project where mathematics and science teachers were provided with professional development opportunities via video conferencing to help them use syllabus documents to…

Mentoring and Coaching Tips: How Educators Can Help Each Other

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Waterman, Sheryn Spencer

2013-01-01

This book is for educators at all levels and is packed with creative, use-now tips and activities to support new and struggling teachers. Combining real-life scenarios with current research, the author demonstrates how educators can get the most out of available resources, promote a school culture devoted to helping and caring, and meet common…

Helping the Child with a Cleft Palate in Your Classroom.

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Moran, Michael J.; Pentz, Arthur L.

1995-01-01

Guidelines for teachers of a student with a cleft palate include understand the physical problem; know what kind of speech problem to expect; be alert to the possibility of language-based learning difficulties; watch for signs of hearing loss; be alert to socialization problems; help the student make up work; and avoid self-fulfilling prophecies.…

Global Connections: Web Conferencing Tools Help Educators Collaborate Anytime, Anywhere

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Forrester, Dave

2009-01-01

Web conferencing tools help educators from around the world collaborate in real time. Teachers, school counselors, and administrators need only to put on their headsets, check the time zone, and log on to meet and learn from educators across the globe. In this article, the author discusses how educators can use Web conferencing at their schools.…

Challenges and Induction Needs of Novice English as a Foreign Language Teachers in Saudi Arabia

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Rufaida Alhamad

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The first year of teaching poses massive challenges that lead to attrition among novice teachers. School communities often fail to provide adequate support to novice teachers to help them adapt to their new professional environments. In Saudi Arabia, attrition among novice teachers is a significant problem that hinders the development of the educational system. This study was conducted to examine the challenges that Saudi Arabian EFL novice teachers face as they transit into their first teaching jobs, and to determine whether these teachers have adequate support or would benefit from a formal induction process.  Two kinds of data collection methods were used in this study, namely quantitative and qualitative. In this mixed methods study, 150 novice teachers were surveyed and 5 teachers were selected for semi-structured interviews. The quantitative analysis of the data was accomplished using descriptive and inferential statistics to answer the research questions. The qualitative analysis of the data was accomplished by interpreting the responses provided to the interview questions. The findings indicated that the challenges surrounding novice teachers hinder them in their development as new teachers. The most conspicuous challenges reported by the study participants were dealing with low English proficiency students and managing the negative attitudes of students toward learning English. This report also determined additional perceptible challenges: adoption of various teaching methods and the establishment of a student-centered approach, student behavior management, course planning, dealing with individual differences, and communication with parents.  This study showed that these teachers had left their pre-service training with a very limited knowledge and skills for dealing with the reality of teaching. Mentoring and observing veteran teachers were identified by novice teachers as the two most beneficial strategies for implementing a teacher

Using Research-Based Video-Cases to Help Pre-Service Primary Teachers Conceptualize a Contemporary View of Mathematics Teaching

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Lin, Pi-Jen

2005-01-01

The study inquired into the effect of research-based video-cases on pre-service teachers conceptualizing their understanding of contemporary mathematics teaching. The 43 participants enrolled in a Mathematics Method Course viewed and discussed 5 video-cases of primary teachers teaching. Journal entries, lesson plans, and microteaching observations…

Creativity Styles and Emotional Intelligence of Filipino Student Teachers: A Search for Congruity

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Gilbert C. Magulod Jr.

2017-02-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study is to determine the congruity between the creativity styles and emotional intelligence of Filipino student teachers. Descriptive correlational research design was employed. The participants of the study were the 76 fourth year students of Bachelor in Elementary Education (BEED and Bachelor in Secondary Education (BSED in one state university in the Philippines. Data of the study were obtained using two standardized instruments relating to creativity styles and emotional intelligence. Findings of the study revealed that the student teachers espoused themselves to have high creative capacity while they assessed themselves to have high creativity styles along belief in unconscious processes, use of techniques, use of other people and final product orientation. With regards to their emotional intelligence, they assessed themselves to have high attributes on self-awareness, management of emotions, self-motivation, empathy and social skills. Significantly, this study also revealed that gender, birth order, course and scholastic standing in high school spelled differences on the creativity styles of Filipino student teachers. Moreover, test of difference also showed that scholastic standing in high school and family income defined differences along emotional intelligence. Finally, it was also revealed in the study that there is a significant relationship between creativity styles and emotional intelligence of Filipino student teachers. Implications of the congruity between emotional intelligence and creativity styles would help Teacher Education Institutions (TEIs to implement curriculum enhancement which is vital to the preparation of twenty-first century teachers.

TEACHER PROFESSIONALISM ON TEACHER PEDAGOGIC KNOWLEDGE IN MERAUKE – PAPUA

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Rias Ning Astuti

2015-12-01

Full Text Available English becomes an international language that has to be mastered by the students in Indonesia and many countries in the world. Teaching English is not easy as we thought. As an English teachers, we should master some criteria to be  good teachers. Because English today in Indonesia is considered as a foreign language, then it difficult for the students to learn it. Teacher is also  important in teaching learning process in the classroom, the foundation of English teacher education, teacher knowledge, and professionalism of the teacher is primary goal that should be mastered In this case, the writer tries to explore the phenomena that happened in Indonesia especially in East Indonesia, that is,  Merauke - Papua. The educational system in Merauke- Papua is good enough, but there are several terms that should be changed by the government and the teachers themselves. There are some problems faced by the teacher when they teach in the class, such as: what they teach does not match with the skills the  subject requires and they only focus on finishing the curriculum. In this context, the roles of the government is very important in order to improve the teacher professionalism in Indonesia, one of which is certification for the teacher and the government will increase their salary per month. But, it is not only the matter of salary, but the government should find another ways to improve the teacher’s professionalism such as: conference, seminars, or another activities.

We'll Make You a Better Teacher: Learning from Guitar Techniques

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Greenbowe, Thomas J.

2008-02-01

It is worth noting that there are more resources and more uses of technology available world-wide to help individuals become better guitar players than there are resources available to help individuals become better science teachers. Providing resources and services to help individuals become effective chemistry teachers and improve their chemistry teaching and expand their range of techniques is a worthwhile endeavor. This commentary proposes that a new magazine should be developed and designed to complement and augment the Journal of Chemical Education , the Examinations Institute, the BCCEs, and programming at regional, national, and international meetings. We need to be making use of the expertise of chemical educators from around the world to convey the best practices of teaching chemistry. This magazine would feature topics directly relating to teaching chemistry in the classroom and it would include master teachers explaining and discussing chemistry education techniques. A Web site and perhaps a DVD would have digital movies of master chemistry teachers illustrating how they implement a specific technique with students. The Web site would serve as a repository for resources. It would serve as an alternative site for professional development.

The Impact of Help Seeking on Individual Task Performance: The Moderating Effect of Help Seekers' Logics of Action

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Geller, Dvora; Bamberger, Peter A.

2012-01-01

Drawing from achievement-goal theory and the social psychological literature on help seeking, we propose that it is the variance in the logic underpinning employees' help seeking that explains divergent findings regarding the relationship between help seeking and task performance. Using a sample of 110 newly hired customer contact employees, a…

Educational Philosophies Adhered by Filipino Preservice Teachers: Basis for Proposing Initiatives for 21st Century Teacher Education Preparation Program

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Gilbert C. Magulod Jr.

2017-02-01

Full Text Available The study endeavoured to ascertain the educational philosophies adhered by Filipino preservice teachers. Descriptive survey research method was employed. The participants of the study were the 76 fourth year Bachelor in Elementary Education (BEED and Bachelor in Secondary Education (BSED of the College of Teacher Education in one state university in the Philippines. Data were gathered with the use of standardized research tool. Research findings showed that the Filipino preservice teachers espoused a very high adherence to progressivism educational philosophy and high orientation to existentialism and reconstructionism. They also showed a moderate adherence to perennialism and existentialism philosophies. These imply that they espoused a high student-centred teaching belief with partial acceptance to teacher-centred teaching belief. Test of difference and Post hoc analysis revealed that course, residence and scholastic standing in high school spelled differences on the educational philosophies of the Filipino preservice teachers. Findings of the study present initiatives for 21st century teacher education preparation program.

Approaches to Inquiry Teaching: Elementary teacher's perspectives

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Ireland, Joseph; Watters, James J.; Lunn Brownlee, J.; Lupton, Mandy

2014-07-01

Learning science through the process of inquiry is advocated in curriculum documents across many jurisdictions. However, a number of studies suggest that teachers struggle to help students engage in inquiry practices. This is not surprising as many teachers of science have not engaged in scientific inquiry and possibly hold naïve ideas about what constitutes scientific inquiry. This study investigates teachers' self-reported approaches to teaching science through inquiry. Phenomenographic interviews undertaken with 20 elementary teachers revealed teachers identified six approaches to teaching for inquiry, clustered within three categories. These approaches were categorized as Free and Illustrated Inquiries as part of an Experience-centered category, Solution and Method Inquiries as part of a Problem-centered category, and Topic and Chaperoned Inquiries as part of a Question-centered category. This study contributes to our theoretical understanding of how teachers approach Inquiry Teaching and suggests fertile areas of future research into this valued and influential phenomenon broadly known as 'Inquiry Teaching'.

Conferencias de padres-educadores: Sugerencias para los padres (Parent-Teacher Conferences: Suggestions for Parents). ERIC Digest.

Science.gov (United States)

Clark, Ann-Marie

Parent-teacher conferences sometimes become a cause for concern for everyone involved. This Spanish-language ERIC Digest outlines ways to improve communication during parent-teacher conferences. Suggestions are offered to help parents participate more effectively in conferences, including identifying what is being done to help a child overcome a…

Secondary Science Student Teachers' Use of Verbal Discourse to Communicate Scientific Ideas in Their Field Placement Classrooms

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Cian, Heidi; Cook, Michelle

2018-06-01

Student teachers struggle to identify themselves as teachers in their field placement during their student teaching year, and some of the difficulty can be attributed to the change they encounter when they must communicate scientific ideas to students in a language that differs from how they recently learned science at the university level. Using developmental levels of student teaching (Drafall and Grant in Music Educators Journal, 81(1), 35-38, 1995), we explore how three cases differ in their use of verbal classroom discourse over the course of their student teaching year. We use data from six observations, post-observation debriefs, reflections associated with the observations, and responses to assignments from the student teachers' teaching classes as data to demonstrate how the cases differ in the proficiency of their verbal communication in their classroom placement. We find that when student teachers have difficulty communicating science to their students, they struggle to use lectures effectively or engage students in meaningful conversation or questioning. This work suggests a need for more study as to the causes of different communication proficiencies and how methods instructors can help teachers develop awareness of the value of their verbal discourse interactions with students.