Implemented a situated learning model of coteaching in the weekly field component of a secondary science methods course. Students cotaught by observing and assisting their teachers for one period, then taught the same lesson, supported by their teachers, the following period. This resulted in comfort in learning to teach, increased confidence in…

Outlines recent efforts to analyze, document, or enhance the impact of collegiate teacher preparation on teaching, learning, and practice. Includes examples from empirical studies or reviews, national initiatives to make teacher preparation more assessment based and evidence driven, and regional efforts to assess the impact of naturally occurring…

Examined the influence of cultural identity on the learning of preservice teachers who were either community insiders or outsiders. Case study data indicated that all three participants valued literacy and wrote extensively about the teaching of reading and writing and principles of instruction. They differed in the extent to which they analyzed…

Suggests that teacher education faculty are not taking sufficient care in preventing weak, incompetent student teachers from attaining state licenses, noting factors contributing to the problem (e.g., the concept of incompetence is not sufficiently clear), placing incompetence on a continuum of teaching behaviors from criminality and malpractice…

Traces developments following warnings that tests used for teacher education admission or licensure may prevent capable African Americans from entering teaching, using elementary student teachers' evaluations and test scores to examine the possible impact on newly licensed teachers' effectiveness if passing cutoff scores were raised by one point.…

Describes a collaborative partnership between a special education professor and a general education professor within a program that highlights the integration of two courses: Academic Curricular Adaptations and Elementary Social Studies Methods and Curriculum. The article discusses the coteaching model and describes the integrated curriculum and…

Examined the usefulness of formal teacher preparation for those with prior teaching experience, investigating the experiences of Stanford Teacher Education Program graduates. Five themes emerged as central to their learning (e.g., greater awareness of students in their classes who were struggling academically and how to help them, broader and more…

Explores narratives about teacher work articulated through representations of substitute teachers, using this representation to render visible assumptions governing boundaries of professionalism. The article discusses professional teachers as constructed in educational reform; images of substitute teachers (incompetent, unqualified, deviant…

On the job experiences such as collaborative teacher meetings can shape how early childhood educators grow professionally and how schools can develop communities of practice. However, the effect of conversations during teacher meetings on teacher practice is not fully understood. This yearlong qualitative case study examined the relationship…

Beliefs often guide a teacher's decision-making, thinking, and practice in the classroom (Vartuli, 2005). There is limited longitudinal research on how early childhood preservice teachers develop new knowledge about their beliefs as they transition into in-service teaching positions (Joram & Gabriele, 1998). Across 4 years that encompassed a…

This article describes collaboration between preschool and university educators focused on adapting the Center for Research on Education, Diversity, and Excellence (CREDE) standards for Effective Pedagogy for use in early childhood (EC) settings. The CREDE standards are strategies of best practices for culturally diverse K-12 students. Teachers…

Early childhood teacher education courses must prepare students for the types of challenges they will face in communities and classrooms after graduation. By adopting a scenario-based approach, teacher educators and others designing online environments can help prepare students for these challenges. Solving complex problems inherent in a…

Synthesizing research with practice in a meaningful manner continues to be a challenge, particularly in relation to securing the place of play in the school setting. The struggle for early childhood teacher educators in dealing with the realities of this research-to-practice dilemma requires constructive action. A theoretical framework that is…

This qualitative study examines what early childhood preservice teachers enrolled in a field-based literacy methods course deemed relevant regarding teaching, literacy, and learning. This study is based on postcourse interviews with 7 early childhood preservice teachers. Findings suggest that "contextualized field experiences" facilitate…

This article presents results from a case study analyzing the process of change for early childhood educators as they engage in a semester-long professional development (PD) experience focused on developing a teacher research agenda related to mathematics instruction. During this PD experience, 11 participants (5 second-grade and 6 third-grade…