Argues that teaching is a form of social activism and that teacher educators should encourage preservice teachers to think deeply and critically about teaching and consider infusing aspects of a multicultural, social reconstructionist approach within their own teaching. (SM)

Examines tensions and balances between what colleges of education and teacher educators are and should be, personal/professional elements of teacher educators' lives, and how they negotiate experience in the academy while retaining their beliefs. The paper examines research on new faculty members and educational reform, offering personal voices…

Two beginning teacher educators exchanged letters documenting their experiences and highlighting contexts and demands associated with their roles and institutional expectations. Five years later, they reviewed their letters and now present an open letter to Deans of Education raising issues related to the induction and work of beginning teacher…

Presents data from an eight-year longitudinal study of the development of teachers' thinking about behavior, development, learning, and teaching. The case discussed illustrates thinking at Level five, "integrated constructivism," in which learning is problem solving and teaching is guiding thinking. Suggestions for encouraging continued…

Community service learning encourages human service-oriented teachers. The paper defines service learning and its status in education, provides examples from four teacher education programs, discusses why it is effective in developing human service-oriented teachers, and raises issues about challenges of implementing service learning within…

This study examined the quantity and quality of teacher recruitment programs for K-12 public school students, highlighting the need for minority group teachers. Surveys of 380 California schools in northern California indicated that 96% had no opportunities for students at any grade level to learn in a systematic manner about becoming a teacher.…

Describes a partnership effort between a small college and a small elementary school that focused on the student teaching experience. Surveys of partnership and nonpartnership teachers and student teachers indicated that the partnership succeeded due to teacher commitment, the small size of the partnership program, and the principal's complex…

Investigates the perspectives of public school teachers, student teachers, and university faculty who participated in a school/university partnership, using data from journals, interviews, and questionnaires to examine changing roles and relationships. The program included an alternative teacher education program linked to a professional…

This paper chronicles the steps taken in pursuing the Pre-K-16 Community Collaborative, involving California State University Northridge, the Los Angeles Achievement Council, and the Los Angeles Unified School District. It provides insights into the incentives, funding, challenges, and difficulties encountered in the process. (SM)

Using a variety of data sources collected over a three-year period, this article presents a case study of a professional development school collaborative established by Texas Tech University and Lubbock (Texas) Independent School District. The study outlines the development and implementation process, organizational structure, and problems…

One innovative course for prospective middle school science teachers, theoretically grounded in pedagogical content knowledge, was taught by an instructional team of scientists, science educators, and practicing teachers who utilized discussion and experiential learning. Data from discussions and observations indicated that students were…

This paper considers the legacy of racism that marks our society, arguing that critical race theory provides a framework for challenging the genetic and cultural deficit theories. Specific recommendations, based on critical race theory, to help teacher educators challenge racism and stereotyping in the classroom are presented. (SM)

Introduces an issue devoted to teaching portfolios in teacher education. The articles present initial research and reflections on the use of portfolios and share lessons learned through practice. They address such issues as the purposes of portfolios in teacher education; portfolio organization, management, and evaluation; and strengths and…

Presents an overview of teaching portfolios in teacher education, defining and describing the strengths and limitations of three portfolio models (the learning portfolio, the assessment portfolio, and the employment portfolio). The article emphasizes that portfolios can serve a variety of purposes and take many forms and notes the relationship…

Surveys of teacher educators in 24 teacher education programs nationwide examined their use of teaching portfolios with preservice teachers. The educators provided documents, assignments, and guidelines used in connection with portfolios. Results showed that they recognized the positive impact, but not the full value, of portfolios. Portfolio use…