Education & Pedagogy

Describes a study which examined personal teaching metaphors developed by secondary teachers in a graduate course for improving understanding of relationships between teaching theory and practice and factors like school context, subject matter domain, personal history, and teaching experience. Case studies found several themes confirming prior recommendations for metaphor development in teacher education. (SM)

Utilizes New York state's development and attempted implementation of multicultural education as a case study providing a concise yet thorough examination of the principles, objectives, and controversies surrounding this issue. Delineates the people and organizations involved in grass roots organizing and media representation on both sides of the issue. (MJP)

The design for teaching a required preservice teacher education course was changed to involve six instructors who alternated presenting course material to six groups of 30 students. In addition, cooperative learning was promoted by dividing students into subgroups of 5 who had equal responsibility for preparing an oral report. Includes student and teacher comments regarding course design. (LP)

Investigated what physical education (PE) student teachers observed and responded to during secondary PE instruction. Videotapes of eight PE student teachers in the classroom and audiotapes of discussions with their university supervisors about teaching events indicated that they had developed observational and analysis skills in three areas: student responses to instruction, teacher behaviors, and lesson objectives and organization. (SM)

Addresses the lack of theory and directing constructs for reflective practice in teacher education, reviewing Vygotskyian and Piagetian theoretical tenets, relating them to a developmental action/reflection framework for adult learners, and summarizing a taxonomy for differentiating reflection according to adult learners' needs. Summarizes the results from seven studies that used the framework. (SM)

Examined Dutch and Israeli teacher educators' and student teachers' perceptions of meaning, implementation, and role expectations in self-regulated learning (SRL) within teacher education. Interview data indicated support for the concept of SRL, although conditions for its actual implementation were not always favorable. Student teachers were more positive about SRL than were teacher educators, with higher expectations about their own self-regulated competencies. (SM)

The Free School is an independent, alternative elementary school in inner-city Albany (New York) based on open democratic education dedicated to the authentic lives of children. Emotional freedom is balanced by meetings in which everyone participates in solving discipline problems. The highly flexible and individualized curriculum uses the surrounding city and the outdoors whenever possible. (TD)

Mary Leue started the Free School, an independent, alternative elementary school in inner-city Albany (New York), based on open democratic education dedicated to the authentic lives of children. Other accomplishments include a community-investment organization, a magazine of alternative education, a magazine for empowering families, and a community enterprise renovating neighborhood buildings to finance the school. (TD)

A professor at Middlebury College (Vermont) discusses the benefits of teaching outdoors; the development of a bioregional curriculum that interweaves the indigenous, scientific, and literary lineages of a specific place; the use of journal writing to connect students to local geographies and communities; and the value of place-based education for a largely mobile population. (SV)

Focuses on the philosophies and practices of art education in the primary and lower-secondary schools that have occurred since the early twentieth century. Identifies the different policy issues facing art education, such as integration into other subject areas using visual representation, creativity and the aesthetic learning processes, and communication about art through dialogue. (CMK)

Finds that collaborative group work among pre-service elementary teachers stimulated increased levels of discussion and fostered deeper conceptual understanding than did traditional instructional methods. Discusses implications for science education in Fiji and similar places. (Contains 37 references.) (Author/WRM)

The Youth Sport Trust developed a package of activities to support the teaching of outdoor and adventurous activities, integrated into the British national curriculum through physical education programs for preschool through secondary school age. Activity categories are physical challenges, trails, and orienteering. Teaching resources and their development and evaluation are described. Accommodations for disabled students are discussed. (TD)

Through a series of policy documents, the Australian government succeeded in establishing a climate of belief that technical and further education institutions were unresponsive to industry needs. Although empirical evidence failed to substantiate this claim, the mobilization of opinion led to a policy agenda based on corporate values and an instrumental view of education. (SK)

Students in business education and English education methods (n=25), randomly assigned to 9 mixed teams, developed an integrated high school curriculum unit. Survey results showed that 92% would teach the unit and appreciated its interdisciplinary potential. The one team that would not use it had experience group conflict issues. (SK)

Presents a collection of articles on current issues related to African Americans in higher education. Some of the topics include the following: Congressional opponents of educational opportunities for blacks, the harm in college rankings, important news events of the 20th century, black faculty, actions of white supremacists, aspirations of freshmen at black colleges, and enrollment trends related to black students. (SM)