Let us turn now to several studies of teacher education and of how teachers function in cooperative learning schools and classes.

Cooperative Learning, Teacher Satisfaction, and Teacher Efficacy
Teachers' expectations regarding their ability to promote student learning, called teacher "efficacy", has attracted interest among some researchers of cooperative learning. Research on teacher efficacy provides important knowledge for those involved in teacher education, both pre-service and in-service, and in school change. Ross (1994) explains the two kinds of teacher efficacy: personal teaching efficacy--a teacher's expectation that he or she will be able to promote student learning; and general teaching efficacy-- the extent to which teachers believe that their efficacy in teaching students is limited by factors outside their control or control of the school (e.g. family background, social class factors, intelligence).

Ross and colleagues conducted an in-service training program in cooperative learning for 50 experienced teachers of 7th , 8th and 9th grades over a period of 8 months. Readers must consult the original publication for details. The author points out that "the staff development program was too weak to bring about changes in personal teaching efficacy...opportunities for teachers to acquire needed technical knowledge were limited." Nevertheless, Ross found that teachers who actually made use of knowledge/skills acquired during the in-service workshops did report change in their sense of general teacher efficacy, but not in their personal sense of efficacy. It seems that interactions among the participants in the project led to increased belief in the potential ability of teachers to affect the learning of students whose family conditions left them academically disadvantaged.

Two studies reported from Israel by Shachar (Shachar, 1997; Shachar & Shmuelevitz, 1997) also assessed the effects of in-service teacher training and subsequent implementation of cooperative learning on teachers' sense of efficacy, and on their sense of satisfaction with their work. 121 social studies' teachers from 9 junior high schools in one town participated in a one-year in-service training to learn TGT, STAD, Jigsaw and Group Investigation. The second year was devoted to on-site consultation to encourage and support teachers to implement these methods (Shachar & Shmuelevitz, 1997). In addition to participating in 10 experiential workshops with groups of 15 to 20, teachers collaborated in groups of 3 to plan C-L lessons, observe each other implement them, and provide each other with feedback.

Results reported about cooperative learning and teachers' sense of efficacy in the Israel studies are consistent with Ross' findings, to the effect that teachers who had higher frequencies of actual classroom implementation reported higher levels of efficacy. Teachers had a greater sense of being able to help slow learners in their classroom, although there was no change in the general or personal sense of efficacy. Those teachers who reported a higher level of collaboration with colleagues for planning C-L lessons also reported a higher level of general teaching efficacy, and a higher level of efficacy for promoting students' social relations, than teachers who reported a low level of collegial collaboration.

Shachar's study (1997) of teacher efficacy was part of a larger project in 9 junior high schools that encompassed three groups of school personnel: principals, department heads or subject-matter coordinators and teachers. Two thirds of the teaching staff in each school participated in the project (total N=393). The project's aim was to cultivate the necessary knowledge and skills for problem solving and decision making teams, for teaching with cooperative learning methods, and for the training of internal change agents in the schools. Two sets of questions were administered to school personnel at the outset of the project and once again 2 years later. One set inquired about teachers'