Teacher evaluation is a controversial topic. It is often thought by the general public and even some educators that once a teacher rises to a certain level there is little incentive to alter practices based on current research or training and even more alarming the ability for an administrator to terminate a teacher's contract can be difficult. According to surveys of parents and administrators, incompetence in the teaching profession has become

The ultimate goal is to increase student achievement by improving the hiring process by adding another layer of screening, namely teacher efficacy. The following aims will support the ability to achieve these goals. Aim 1: To evaluate the association between full and part time faculty regarding the characteristic of teacher efficacy. Hypothesis One: Part-time teachers sampled will report statistically lower teacher efficacy scores than will sampled full time faculty in business

Since smaller class size has been shown to positively affect student learning, at least in the early grades, one might also infer that this affects teachers' work positively. Further, researchers have found a positive relationship between collective bargaining and increased preparation time for teachers, which many educators believe is essential for good teaching and collaborative work among colleagues within a school. Collective Bargaining, Unions and Teacher/Educational Quality In a March 1999

Teaching Communication Skills for Students With Autism The conditions for diagnosis for autism that are presently prevalent within the U.S. are those mentioned in the American Psychiatric Association, Diagnostic and Statistic Manual for Mental Disorders," Fourth Edition, which is generally pinpointed as 'DSM-IV." Autism is taken into account by the Diagnostic and Statistic Manual (4th Ed, DSM-IV, American Psychiatric Association, 1994) as an existent development disorder (PDD) that is impacted by

With the conceptual tools offered by psychology, we now can, for instance, more readily investigate the effects of mistreatment on children's development. My concern regarding the general disharmony of the relationship between adult and child stems from the awareness that we adults have the inclination to view the child as grossly inadequate. In our misguided efforts to help them, we downplay the significance of what the children themselves find applicable

This issue was put in front of the public with the story of Keiko, a killer whale that was badly abused in a Mexican facility. Eventually, Keiko was moved to a better aquarium in Oregon, but activists insisted that Keiko should be released to live in the wild (Staff writers, 1997). In fact, people have worked for animal rights since the 1860's when the first Society for the Prevention