When testing dominates decisions about instruction in public schools, complex interactions significant to how students actually learn are often ignored. Teachers who critically interrogate conflicts between institutional policies and practices, such as testing and instruction, position themselves as informed, active, and professionally responsible…

This article discusses a veteran teacher's literacy pedagogy in response to policies at the district, state, and national level. The yearlong ethnographic case study analyzed the teacher's resistance, compliance, and innovative hybridization of both "official" and "unofficial" curriculum. The author collected data through…

In this article, Cochran-Smith argues that now more than ever, teacher education needs public intellectuals to challenge prevailing views and expose its governing myths. The author makes this argument by describing two issues that are in great need of public critique: (1) the myth that teacher education is a public policy problem that can be…

This article examines a pilot program's mentoring component involving first-year interns and veteran teachers in relation to new teachers' needs and effects regarding support and professional development. Mentoring along with delayed work requirements and evaluation increased interns' adjustment to teaching. However, emotional and technical…

Recently developed Professional Development School standards underscore the importance of professional learning community, inquiry, shared decision-making and a focus on student learning. These standards closely mirror the goals of "Critical Friends Groups," a significant movement in education to improve student achievement through…

This article discusses teacher burnout which scholars define as a condition caused by depersonalization, exhaustion, and a diminished sense of accomplishment. A psychological model of how stress leads to burnout describes it as a syndrome resulting from teachers' inability to protect themselves against threats to their self esteem and well-being.…

Using qualitative and quantitative methods, we studied a large sample of our 2002-2003 preservice students to see how they were selected and how they fared in the program. Our research suggested that a key component of a preservice admissions process is to look for evidence that applicants possess qualities important for strong teaching; in our…