Professional development should provide opportunities to engage
in developing a theoretical understanding of the knowledge and
skills to be learned (CPRE, 1995; Eraut, 1995; Feiman-Nemser &
Parker, 1992; Fullan, 1991; Joyce & Showers, 1995; McDiarmid,
1994; NCRTE, 1991; Tillema & Imants, 1995). Results of research,
in comprehensible forms, need to be made accessible to teachers,
who cite lack of understanding and limited access as reasons why
they do not put theory into practice. Since teacher thinking and
classroom behavior are influenced by teachers' knowledge and
beliefs, an important component of their professional
development needs to be the expansion and elaboration of their
professional knowledge base. Broadly speaking, this would
include general pedagogical knowledge, subject matter knowledge,
and pedagogical content knowledge, which address such areas as
classroom management, conceptions of teaching a subject, and
students understandings and potential misunderstandings of
subject matter (Borko & Putn