Introduction to Teaching: Becoming a Professional

Introduction to Teaching, third edition, introduces beginning education students to the real world of teaching, providing education students with an honest look at the students, classrooms, and schools they’ll encounter. Three themes central to teaching today— professionalism, diversity, and decision-making— are woven through the text to give students deeper understanding of the teaching profession and to better prepare them for that profession. Two questions frame the text, “Do I want to be a teacher?” and “What kind of teacher do I want to become?”. Case studies at the beginnings of chapters provide a frame of reference for understanding chapter content while numerous teaching vignettes throughout the chapters provide vivid examples that increase reader understanding and interest.

Don Kauchak has taught and worked in schools in nine different states and in higher education for 40 years. He has published in a number of scholarly journals, including the Journal of Educational Research, Journal of Teacher Education, Teaching and Teacher Education, Phi Delta Kappan, and Educational Leadership. In addition to this text, he has co-authored or co-edited six other books on education. He has also been a principal investigator on federal and state grants examining teacher development and evaluation practices, and presents regularly at the American Educational Research Association. Don strongly believes in the contribution that public schools make to our democracy, and his two children benefited greatly from their experiences in state-supported K—12 schools and public institutions of higher education.

Paul Eggen has worked in higher education for 35 years. In addition to his duties there, he spends a great deal of time working as a consultant to public schools in his university’s service area, and he has provided support to teachers in 12 different states. Paul has also worked with teachers in international schools in 23 countries around the world, including schools in Africa, South Asia, the Middle East, Central America, South America, Europe, and Japan. He has several articles published in national journals, is the co-author or co-editor of six books in addition to this one, and is a frequent presenter at national and international conferences. Paul is strongly committed to public education. His wife is a middle school teacher in a public school, and his two children are graduates of public schools and state-supported universities.