The authors were asked by the Office of Educational Research and Improvement and the U.S. Department of Education to conduct a review of high-quality research on five questions concerning teacher preparation. As part of that assignment, they were asked to develop a set of defensible criteria for including research in the review. In this article, they summarize what the research says about the five questions posed by their funders, and they discuss the development of the review criteria. The questions included attention to the subject matter and pedagogical preparation of prospective teachers, to the content and character of high-quality field experiences and alternative routes, and to research on the effects of policies on the enhancement of teacher preparation.

Defining what teachers need to know to teach algebra successfully is important for informing teacher preparation and professional development efforts. Based on prior research, an analysis of video, interviews with teachers, and an analysis of textbooks, the authors define categories of knowledge and practices of teaching for understanding and assessing teachers' knowledge for teaching algebra. They argue that the combination of categories and practices must be covered in assessments of teacher knowledge, if the assessments are to be used in research that investigates the presumed links among teachers' content preparation, their knowledge, their practice, and student learning.

Evidence is growing on benefits, and approaches, to increase diversity in the science and engineering workforce.

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