Describes measures adopted in Austria to help ensure school success for all, examining measures taken at the structural and school levels. Discusses indicators for success and failure, changes in Austria's education system, and the monitoring and evaluation of change. Argues that coherent educational, social, and economic policies are a…

Fighting against school failure has become a priority in Italy. This paper examines criteria for reorganizing the problem of school failure, and its incidence in Italy's primary, lower secondary, and upper secondary schools. Discusses some initiatives for fighting school failure that are contained in current legislation and pilot projects. (SM)

Discusses the current problem of school failure in Luxembourg. Examines school failure in general and describes the main characteristics of Luxembourg's school system, highlighting possible remedial solutions to the situation that are being recommended by the government, and examining pertinent developments in the field of teacher training. (SM)

Examines principles and practices of the Dutch educational system, emphasizing the process of implementing new educational concepts in schools and teacher education. Discusses school failure among students at all levels and examines the failure of schools to prepare students for social, economic, and political responsibility. Notes governmental…

Examines the complex social and educational problem of school failure in Portugal. Defines school failure's place within the Portuguese educational system and traces its causes. Explores forms of assessment in elementary and secondary education, analyzing them in terms of student achievement rates and dropout rates. Discusses measures currently…

In examining Sweden's problem with school failure, the paper notes the importance of understanding the problem on both the educational-political level and the economic, practical, and organizational levels. Discusses the criteria for defining school failure and examines the magnitude of the problem and investigates solutions. A statistical…

Discusses the aims of education and definitions of student success and failure in the United Kingdom, proposing a model of student success and failure; identifying different criteria for measuring success and failure (e.g., academic attainment, student progress, student behavior, and student attitudes); tracing the legislative basis of educational…

Presents conclusions about school failure in European countries reached by the European Symposium on School Failure. The conclusions focus on the conceptualization of school failure, acceptance of the problem by governments, frequently adopted solutions, more coherent solutions, and implications for teacher education (prerequisites, the…

Reviews various models and interpretations of mentoring, highlighting the explication of mentor teachers' practical knowledge as a contribution to student teachers' learning to teach. Relates research on mentoring to research on teacher knowledge. Opportunities for eliciting mentor teachers' practical knowledge are noted, and preconditions for…

Describes a mentoring process that helped a Norwegian preservice teacher learn to teach elementary multiplication. The mentoring interaction provided the novice with an intensive discussion based on a small sequence of events. Through discussions with her mentor, the student teacher learned to use the language of practice to examine her own…

Identifies constraints and opportunities provided by a British model of mentoring that involves inducting student teachers into a nationally prescribed but locally created community of practice. Considers how increased attention to student teachers' intentional and metacognitive learning may benefit mentors and schools and provide a counterweight…

Drawing on personal anecdotes and findings from a comparative, cross-cultural study of mentored learning to teach, the paper examines why teachers in mentor-type roles do not see themselves as school-based teacher educators. Also examines what educative mentoring looks like and discusses how to help teachers become thoughtful, serious mentors for…

Describes eight general functions and roles of teacher educators, including facilitator of learning, encourager of reflection, curriculum developer, teacher selector, researcher, stimulator of professional development, team member, and collaborator. Also analyzes the functions and roles of cooperating teachers, which include orientation, personal…

Explored mentor teachers' perceptions about the impact of mentoring on them, focusing on American and Israeli teacher-education programs and professional-development schools. Data from surveys, observations, and reflection sessions with mentors indicated that the mentors benefitted from their mentoring when they had access to serious training and…

Discusses mentoring within British initial teacher education, exploring factors that motivate mentors, describing mentor self-actualization, and noting the importance of relationships developed during mentoring. Examples of mentoring where mentors and mentees are matched according to personality and professional goals are presented. Suggests that…