A study investigated whether teachers who receive training and then implement more effective instructional practices change in the reasons they offer for their effectiveness. Comparisons were made between 46 intermediate and high school teachers in a large urban school system who were trained in and implemented mastery learning techniques, and 50…

An exploratory study was conducted to identify the characteristics and behaviors related to effective instruction in an urban community college. The 30 instructors selected for the study taught introductory courses in biology, English, mathematics, or social sciences at the City Colleges of Chicago. All had exceptionally high levels of student…

This study investigated the effect of the development of mastery learning on the curriculum of preservice teacher education programs and the content of inservice professional development programs. Nine educational psychology textbooks, published since 1990, and three other texts used as supplementary textbooks were analyzed. The study found that…

In recent years, different researchers and research agencies, teacher associations, national education organizations, and the U.S. Department of Education have published lists of the characteristics of "effective professional development." This study analyzed 13 of the better known of these lists to determine if they were derived through similar…

All proposals for education reform include professional development as a significant element in promoting change. Questions have been raised about the effectiveness of professional development and its role in educational reform. Consequently, evaluation of professional development programs is increasing and expanding to include student…