As teacher-education institutions implement portfolios across contexts and for multiple purposes, assessment of their effectiveness specific to shifting programmatic goals often takes place. At the institution where this research is based, an effort is underway to shift the focus of the current teaching portfolio requirement from an exit or…

In North American teacher education programs, preservice students typically complete a substantial proportion of time practice teaching in schools, experiencing the extent to which professional school communities of inquiry contribute toward improving teaching and learning. Although there is extensive research about the experiences of new…

The induction of beginning teachers has assumed a burgeoning priority given existing North American preoccupations with teacher retention, state educational standards, and large-scale assessment. In Canada, and especially Ontario, school boards are following the lead of many American institutions in establishing key partnerships with university…

Teacher education students placed in clinical settings for methods coursework need adequate guidance in order to make the most of their experiences. Guidance in terms of teaching, reflections, clinical settings, and other related activities offers these candidates a realistic view of teacher, teaching, and learning. Oftentimes, the clinical…

An in-depth examination of an elementary beginning teacher's successes and struggles was conducted to provide insight into the demands placed upon her from teacher responsibilities, her school, the students in her classroom and their parents, as well as the pressures from personal goals and setbacks. Monthly open-ended interviews and a…

This paper describes a school/university graduate induction program that has provided support to beginning teachers since 1994. A 10-year follow-up study of program graduates was recently conducted to examine these questions: (a) How many graduates are still in the education profession? (b) How many have remained in the classroom? and (c) What are…

Julius Rosenwald (1862-1932) made enormous contributions to African American education, rural education, and many aspects of American life. Even so, he remains a little known figure to many. To a large extent, his impact was the result of an ability to build and maintain effective partnerships. This brief history summarizes Rosenwald's thoughts on…

Teacher beliefs are mediated and lived in the dialectic of teacher education and teacher practice. We reframe this dialectic of "teacher" preparation as "faculty" preparation, as many faculty are not prepared for the rigors of teaching, and most are not trained in the ethics of their profession. We propose a critical model of faculty development…

Most students prefer visual input--through normal development or instructional reinforcement--yet, most teachers provide information to be taken in by listening. This mismatch can confound the learning process. To determine how well teachers listen and what their teaching/learning preferences might be, more than 200 educators provided data about…

In the last fifty years, the use of stories in education has included vignettes as an effective stimulus for discussion of real-life contexts and problems. However, vignettes have rarely been used as an assessment tool and there is no reported consensus on their definition and design. This article documents the use of vignettes as an effective…

The reliability and stability of Elementary Reading Attitude Survey (ERAS) scores were examined for the recreational and academic subscales and for the total scale. The responses of 718 students in fourth, fifth, and sixth grades were included in the analyses. A seven-day interval between testings was used. The recreational and academic subscale…

This paper presents a model of a teacher needs-based (TNB) professional development program. The TNB model formed the foundation of three externally funded professional development programs. The objectives of this model are to maximize the effects of a professional development program, and to help participants sustain their learning over the long…

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if there was a difference in the internship experience between student interns placed in either an urban Professional Development School or an urban non-Professional Development School. Student interns from two urban universities who have partnerships with neighboring urban school districts…

The purpose of this study was to assess administrators' views in a mid-western state regarding the development of a job search portfolio for pre-service teachers. All pre-service teachers must complete the professional portfolio, a requirement for initial teacher certification, during the teacher preparation phase of the degree program. It is…

This article describes a design for a teacher preparation program that is successfully preparing teacher candidates to teach in the complex, diverse classrooms in urban schools. The program provides intensive, authentic, field-based experiences and effective mentoring support for teacher candidates as they gain the knowledge, skills, and…