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Education Statistics Quarterly
Vol 2, Issue 1, Topic: Elementary and Secondary Education
Teachers' Feelings of Preparedness
 
 
This article was originally published as an Indicator of the Month, taken from The Condition of Education: 1999. The sample survey data are from the "Teacher Survey on Professional Development and Training," conducted through the NCES Fast Response Survey System (FRSS).
 

Reform initiatives, new technologies, and changing student populations have required teachers to learn new ways of presenting material and managing their classrooms. Teachers' initial professional training may not have prepared them adequately to meet current expectations, so continuing professional development is important. Teachers' self-assessments provide one indication of the extent to which preservice and on-the-job learning prepare them to meet the new demands.
  • In 1998, the majority of public school teachers (71 percent) felt that they were very well prepared to maintain order and discipline in their classrooms (table 1).
  • Fewer teachers felt that they were very well prepared to meet certain instructional requirements, including implementing new teaching methods (41 percent), implementing state or district curriculum and performance standards (36 percent), or using student performance assessment techniques (28 percent).
  • Teachers were least likely to report that they felt very well prepared to integrate educational technology into their teaching methods (20 percent), or to address the needs of students with disabilities (21 percent) or of students with limited English proficiency or from diverse cultural backgrounds (20 percent).
  • Teachers who spent more than 8 hours in professional development in the content area of a specific activity in the previous 12 months were generally more likely than other teachers to feel very well prepared in that area. The exception was the area in which teachers felt most prepared: maintaining order and discipline in the classroom (figure 1).
Table 1.-Percentage distribution of public school teachers according to how well prepared they felt to perform various activities in the classroom, and the percentage of teachers who felt very well prepared, according to the number of hours spent in professional development in that content area in the last 12 months, by activity: 1998

Table 1.- Percentage distribution of public school teachers according to how well prepared they felt to perform various activities in the classroom, and the percentage of teachers who felt very well prepared, according to the number of hours spent in professional development in that content area in the last 12 months, by activity: 1998

*Percentages based on teachers who teach such students.

NOTE: Percentages may not sum to 100 due to rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Fast Response Survey System, "Teacher Survey on Professional Development and Training," FRSS 65, 1998.

Figure 1.-Percentage of public school teachers who felt they were very well prepared to perform various activities in the classroom, according to the number of hours spent in professional development in that content area in the last 12 months, by activity: 1998

Figure 1. Percentage of public school teachers who felt they were very well prepared to perform various activities in the classroom, according to the number of hours spent in professional development in that content area in the last 12 months, by activity: 1998

*Percentages based on teachers who teach such students.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Fast Response Survey System, "Teacher Survey on Professional Development and Training," FRSS 65, 1998.

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Data source: The NCES Fast Response Survey System, "Teacher Survey on Professional Development and Training," FRSS 65, 1998.

For technical information, see

National Center for Education Statistics. (1999). The Condition of Education: 1999 (NCES 1999-022).

Lewis, L., Parsad, B., Carey, N., Bartfai, N., Farris, E., and Smerdon, B. (1999). Teacher Quality: A Report on the Preparation and Qualifications of Public School Teachers (NCES 1999-080).

For complete supplemental and standard error tables, see either

• the electronic version of The Condition of Education: 1999 (http://nces.ed.gov/pubs99/condition99), or

• volume 2 of the printed version (forthcoming): The Condition of Education: 1999 Supplemental and Standard Error Tables (NCES 2000-016).

For questions about content, contact John Wirt (john.wirt@ed.gov).

To obtain this Indicator of the Month (NCES 2000-003), call the toll-free ED Pubs number (877-433-7827) or visit the NCES Web Site (http://nces.ed.gov) .


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