Characteristics of knowledge producers in teacher education

Studies have indicated the need for more research on those scholars conducting inquiry into the specific areas of professional development. A very small minority of faculty are responsible for the majority of knowledge being produced both in teacher education and higher education in general. This small number of researchers are establishing the knowledge base in teacher education. We need to know the characteristics and background of these scholars.;This inquiry was a study of the knowledge production of professors in teacher education with an emphasis on professional development. Scholars were defined as university faculty holding positions in institutions of higher education who have presented papers between 1986 to 1988 at the conferences of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, American Educational Research Association (Division K), and the Association of Teacher Educators. The sample also included university faculty in higher education who had published at least one article in the Journal of Teacher Education, Action in Teacher Education, and the American Educational Research Journal during the same time period.;A survey instrument, entitled "Scholarly Activity Among Teacher Educators" was developed by the researcher to collect these data. The survey instrument included four major areas: (1) demographic information, (2) educational background and institutional affiliations, (3) faculty attitudes and expectations, and (4) the nature of scholarly activities and inquiry. A stratified, random sample of 260 scholars was chosen to receive the survey. The number of usable questionnaires was 166 yielding a response rate of 85.1%.;Descriptive data were utilized to provide a profile of scholars in teacher education. Correlational statistics determined there were significantly more males at the professor rank and significantly more females at the assistant professor level. There was no statistically significant difference between high knowledge producers and low knowledge producers holding the Ph.D. degree and the Ed.D. There was no significant difference between the productivity of men and women. Three characteristics were determined to be predictors of high knowledge producers: (1) The belief they were well-respected as a researcher and a scholar; (2) They do not find writing for publication demanding; (3) They share their ideas and scholarly activities with colleagues at their institutions.