David,

Teachers tend to teach what they've been taught - or what is in the 
textbooks. As a rule, teachers do not have to time to discern their own 
"truths", but must rely on those provided by others.

Considering that a teacher's career can span twenty or more years, and a lot 
of new information can come to light in that time, it is problematical to 
keep all teachers up-to-date. Teachers in Virginia are required to take 
courses every five years, but career needs and time constraints may dictate 
what courses are actually taken. I don't know of any college course that are 
called or considered "teacher catch up on new information in *subject*". I 
took one such course in special ed, which the professor assured me would 
provide the latest information in the field. Alas, when the class was 
assembled there were too many newbies to special education for her to 
fulfill her promise, and we just rehashed what I already knew.

Anne

Anne Pemberton
[log in to unmask]
http://www.erols.com/apembert
http://www.educationalsynthesis.org 

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