Suburban middle schools have been affected by a growing enrollment of English language learners and by the need to demonstrate that this population of students is meeting prescribed academic proficiency benchmarks. These developments necessitate cogent, English learner--focused professional learning across content areas. Using Gee's…

Through course readings, museum visits, focus group discussions, and reflections on clinical observation experiences, preservice teachers developed a fictitious educational setting (Courage High School) that incorporates critical, social justice practices and privileges the experiences and cultural backgrounds of all K-12 students. Participants…

Recently, interdisciplinary instruction has come back to the educational scene, specifically supported through the Common Core State Standards. As teacher educators and former middle-level teachers, the authors see this as a positive move to enhance learning for adolescents. This qualitative study sought to answer: How do secondary preservice and…

Because the English learners' (ELs) population is growing in the United States, teacher candidates should be provided with experiences that prepare them to effectively teach and empower linguistically/culturally diverse students. Teacher candidates should be provided with opportunities to learn skills that engage ELs in mathematics. In this…

Case studies about issues arising from education policy were written between 2003 and 2011 by doctoral candidates in Curriculum and Instruction who were career K-12 educators. Literary analysis was employed in grouping 57 case studies, which described primarily situations that occurred in school districts in one large metropolitan area, by topic…

Today's teacher candidates frequently exhibit confusion and express discouragement while navigating the expectations of their educational journeys and career goals. Characteristically, many candidates tend to be first-generation college students limited in universal knowledge, global travels, diverse experiences, and multiple perspectives.…

The purpose of this study was to obtain an accurate picture of minority student enrollment in honors and advanced placement (AP) classes at Wichita (Kansas) High School East and to develop a plan of action to close the achievement gap between White and non-White students. Prior to this study there was no clear, concise data to move this discussion…

This study investigates new teachers' challenges in implementing the secondary mathematics and English Common Core State Standards (CCSS) using a survey approach that addressed 17 secondary mathematics and English teachers' understanding and implementation of the CCSS and their needs for collaboration with peers in a positive learning…

Set in an undergraduate Secondary English Education Program, this qualitative study draws on theories of power, positioning, and identity to explore how positions of power affect teacher identity construction. Drawn from a larger study, the authors examine how one preservice teacher negotiated positions of power with students in ways that enabled…

The purpose of this article is to explore the relationships between prospective teachers' content knowledge, student understanding, and pedagogy using video cases. The emphasis was on the extent to which the participants utilized constructs of Technology Pedagogy And Content Knowledge. Ten prospective teachers viewed video cases of students…

This article reveals the findings of a 3-year, qualitative study that began by identifying the pedagogical practices and conceptions of teaching and learning espoused or modeled within a reputable teacher-preparation program. The study examined the transfer of these practices and conceptions into in-service settings. Findings indicated that…

Teaching for social justice is an increasingly popular emphasis among P-12 teachers and teacher educators alike. However, research suggests teachers, and especially beginning teachers, struggle to enact their social justice visions when faced with the myriad of mandates characteristic of today's classrooms. In this article the author examines how…

This case study examines the impact of the 1-year implementation of a state-mandated, standardized teacher performance assessment (TPA) on a faculty's infusion of multicultural education across a secondary education teacher preparation program. Findings show that faculty and teacher candidate (TC) perceptions predominantly concluded that the TPA…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to examine how the experiences in a master's in literacy program are preparing teacher candidates to be school leaders and to examine candidates' self-perception as literacy leaders before, during, and after the program. Data sources include surveys, field notes, course syllabi, assignments, and rubrics.…

The shortage of certified science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) teachers is of concern throughout the United States because of significant numbers needed over the next over the next 10 years. Addressing this issue in education, this study examined the experiences of three new STEM teachers who entered teaching through different…