Teaching in the twenty-first century offers a number of satisfactions— witnessing and assisting the growth of young people, lifelong learning, the challenge and excitement of designing effective instruction. Four trends have affected the way that these satisfactions are experienced by classroom teachers: (l) increased diversity of students, (2) the spread of instructional technology in schools and classrooms, (3) increased expectations for accountability in education, and (4) the development of increased professionalism among teachers. Each trend presents new opportunities to students and teachers, but also raises new issues for teachers. Educational psychology, and this textbook, can help teachers to make constructive use of the new trends as well as deal with the dilemmas that accompany them. It offers information, advice, and useful perspectives specifically in three areas of teaching: (1) students as learners, (2) instruction and assessment, and (3) the psychological and social awareness of teachers.
On the Internet
Try this website of the Educational Testing Service if you are curious to learn more about licensing examinations for teachers, including the PRAXIS II test that is prominent in the United States (see pp. xxx). As you will see, specific requirements vary somewhat by state and region.
This is the website for the education branch of UNESCO, which is the abbreviation for the "United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization." It has extensive information and news about all forms of diversity in education, viewed from an international perspective. The challenges of teaching diverse classrooms, it seems, are not restricted to the United States, though as the new items on the website show, the challenges take different forms in different countries.
EdChange and the Council for Exceptional Students. These two websites have numerous resources about diversity for teachers from a North American (USA and Canada) perspective. They are both useful for planning instruction. The first one— maintained by a group of educators and calling itself EdChange— focuses on culturally related forms of diversity, and the second one— by the Council for Exceptional Children— focuses on children with special educational needs.
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Key terms
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| Accountability in education |
Instructional technology |
| Action research |
Lifelong learning |
| Assessment |
Professionalism |
| Diversity |
Teacher research |
| High-stakes testing |
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References
Bash, L. (Ed.). (2005). Best practices in adult learning. Boston: Anker Publications.
Bredekamp, S. & Copple, C. (1997). Developmentally appropriate practice, Revised edition. Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Cochran-Smith, M. (2003). Assessing assessment in teacher education. Journal of Teacher Education, 54(3), 187-191.
Cochran-Smith, M. & Fries, K. (2005). Research teacher education in changing times: Politics and paradigms. In M. Cochran-Smith & K. Zeichner (Eds.), Studying teacher education: The report of the AERA Panel on Research and Teacher Education, 69-110.
Cuban, L. (2001). Oversold and underused: Computers in the classroom. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Educational Testing Service. (2004). Study guide for Principles of Learning and Teaching, 2nd edition. Princeton, NJ: Author.
Fuhrman, S. & Elmore, R. (2004). Redesigning accountability systems for education. New York: Teachers College Press.
Gebhard, L. (2006). Teaching English as a second or foreign language: A teacher self-development and methodology guide, 2nd edition. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press.
Glassford, L. (2005). Triumph of politics over pedagogy? The case of the Ontario Teacher Qualifying Test. Canadian Journal of Educational Administration and Policy, Issue #45.
Haertel, G. & Means, B. (2003). Evaluating educational technology: Effective research designs for improving learning. New York: Teachers College Press.
Harris, D. & Herrington, C. (2006). Accountability, standards, and the growing achievement gap: Lessons from the past half-century. American Journal of Education, 112(2), 163-208.
Harvard Educational Review. (2005). Interview: United States Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings. Harvard Educational Review, 75(4), 364-382.
Kushner, H. (1983). When bad things happen to good people. New York: Schocken Books.
Lubienski, C. (2005). Public schools in marketized environments: Shifting incentives and unintended consequences of competition-based educational reforms. American Journal of Education, 111(4), 464- 486.
Mertler, C. (2006). Action research: Teachers as researchers in the classroom. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. National Institute for Early Education Research. (2006). Percent of population age 3 and 4 who are enrolled in school: Census 2000. Retrieved on March 21, 2006 from <www.nieer.org/resources/facts>.
Neil, M. (2003). The dangers of testing. Educational Leadership, 60(5), 43-46.
Pitt, K. (2005). Debates in ESL teaching and learning: Culture, communities, and classrooms. London, UK: Routledge.
Rudalevige, A. (2005, August). Reform or séance? Seeking the “spirit” of the No Child Left Behind. Teachers College Record. Online at <www.tcrecord.org>, ID# 12112.
Seiter, E. (2005). The INTERNET playground: Children’s access, entertainment, and miseducation. New York: Peter Lang.
Stringer, E. (2004). Action research in education. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.
Sutton, R. (2004). Teaching under high-stakes testing: Dilemmas and decisions of a teacher educator. Journal of Teacher Education, 55(5), 463-475.
United States Census Bureau. (2005). The Hispanic population in the United States: 2004. Retrieved on March 21, 2006 from <http://www.census.gov/population/www...c/cps2004.html>.
United States Government Printing Office. (2002). No Child Left Behind Act: A desktop reference. Washington, D.C.:
Federal Registry. (2005, June 21). Assistance To States for the Education of Children with Disabilities. United States Government Printing Office:
Volante, L. (2004). Teaching to the test: What every educator and policy-maker should know. Canadian Journal of Educational Administration and Policy, Issue #35. Online at <www.umanitoba.ca/publications/cjeap/articles/volante.html>.
References
Bash, L. (Ed.). (2005). Best practices in adult learning. Boston: Anker Publications.
Bredekamp, S. & Copple, C. (1997). Developmentally appropriate practice, Revised edition. Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Cochran-Smith, M. (2003). Assessing assessment in teacher education. Journal of Teacher Education, 54(3), 187-191.
Cochran-Smith, M. & Fries, K. (2005). Research teacher education in changing times: Politics and paradigms. In M. Cochran-Smith & K. Zeichner (Eds.), Studying teacher education: The report of the AERA Panel on Research and Teacher Education, 69-110.
Cuban, L. (2001). Oversold and underused: Computers in the classroom. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Educational Testing Service. (2004). Study guide for Principles of Learning and Teaching, 2 nd edition. Princeton, NJ: Author.
Fuhrman, S. & Elmore, R. (2004). Redesigning accountability systems for education. New York: Teachers College Press.
Gebhard, L. (2006). Teaching English as a second or foreign language: A teacher self-development and methodology guide, 2 nd edition. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press.
Glassford, L. (2005). Triumph of politics over pedagogy? The case of the Ontario Teacher Qualifying Test. Canadian Journal of Educational Administration and Policy, Issue #45. Online at <www.umanitoba.ca/publications/cjeap/articIes/glassford.html>.
Haertel, G. & Means, B. (2003). Evaluating educational technology: Effective research designs for improving learning. New York: Teachers College Press.
Harris, D. & Herrington, C. (2006). Accountability, standards, and the growing achievement gap: Lessons from the past half-century. American Journal of Education, 112(2), 163-208.
Harvard Educational Review. (2005). Interview: United States Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings. Harvard Educational Review, 75(4), 364-382.
Kushner, H. (1983). When had things happen to good people. New York: Schocken Books.
Lubienski, C. (2005). Public schools in marketized environments: Shifting incentives and unintended consequences of competition-based educational reforms. American Journal of Education, 111(4), 464- 486.
Mertler, C. (2.006). Action research: Teachers as researchers in the classroom. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
National Institute for Early Education Research. (2006). Percent of population age 3 and 4 who are enrolled in school: Census 2000. Retrieved on March 21, 2006 from < www.nieer.org/resources/facts >.
Neil, M. (2003). The dangers of testing. Educational Leadership, 60(5), 43-46.
Pitt, K. (2005). Debates in ESL teaching and learning: Culture, communities, and classrooms. London, UK: Routledge.
Rudalevige, A. (2005, August). Reform or seance? Seeking the "spirit" of the No Child Left Behind. Teachers College Record. Online at < www.tcrecord.org >. ID# 12112.
Seiter, E. (2005). The INTERNET playground: Children's access, entertainment, and miseducation. New York: Peter Lang.
Stringer, E. (2004). Action research in education. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.
Sutton, R. (2004). Teaching under high-stakes testing: Dilemmas and decisions of a teacher educator. Journal of Teacher Education, 55(5), 463-475.
United States Census Bureau. (2005). The Hispanic population in the United States: 2004. Retrieved on March 21, 2006 from <www.census.gov/population/www...c/cps2004.html>.
United States Government Printing Office. (2002). No Child Left Behind Act: A desktop reference. Washington, D.C.: Author.
Federal Registry. (2005, June 21). Assistance To States for the Education of Children with Disabilities. United States Government Printing Office: Author.
Volante, L. (2004). Teaching to the test: What every educator and policy-maker should know. Canadian Journal of Educational Administration and Policy, Issue #35. Online at < www.umanitoba.ca/publications/cieap/articIes/volante.html >.
