Posts Tagged ‘research’

JTE Author Interview: ‘Connecting Teacher Professional Development and Student Mathematics Achievement’

Have you seen the JTE Insider blog managed by the Journal of Teacher Education (JTE) editorial team? Check out the following interview with the authors of a recent article. This blog is available to the public, and AACTE members have free access to the articles themselves in the full JTE archives online – just log in with your AACTE profile here.

This interview features insights from the article “Connecting Teacher Professional Development and Student Mathematics Achievement: A 4-Year Study of an Elementary Mathematics Specialist Program,” from authors Traci Shizu Kutaka, Wendy M. Smith, Anthony D. Albano, Carolyn Pope Edwards, Lixin Ren, Heidi Lynn Beattie, W. James Lewis, Ruth M. Heaton, and Walter W. Stroup. The article, featured in the March/April issue of JTE, is summarized in the following abstract:

Using NICs to Engage More Minority Males in STEM Learning

A member of the North Carolina A&T State University team shares its work during the May event at Morgan State University.
Abiodun Fasoro of Central State University discusses his campus’ minority male STEM program during the Verizon Innovative Learning Showcase.

Last month, I had the privilege of participating in the Building a Networked Improvement Community Around Engaging Minority Males in STEM Workshop at Morgan State University. The workshop focused on advancing the work of the Early STEM Engagement for Minority Males (eSEM) Initiative, a network of 16 minority-serving institutions (MSIs).

Led by Morgan State and in partnership with Verizon Innovative Learning Programs, SRI Education, the National CARES Mentoring Network, and local school districts, eSEM is a growing collaborative seeking to address STEM achievement challenges and improve outcomes for middle school minority male students through the development of a Networked Improvement Community (NIC). The initiative is supported through grants from the National Science Foundation and includes the following universities:

Apply Now for 2018 AACTE Awards

Nominations for the 2018 AACTE awards are now open on AACTE’s online submission site (except the Outstanding Book Award, which closed May 30). Applications for the Outstanding Dissertation Award are due August 18, and all other award submissions are due October 12.

Now in its 22nd year, AACTE’s awards program recognizes member institutions’ exemplary programs as well as individuals who have made noteworthy contributions to education preparation. For an overview of last year’s winners, see this press release.

Call for Entries: 2018 AACTE Outstanding Dissertation Award

Have you recently completed a fabulous dissertation? Then AACTE wants to hear from you! Applications for the 2018 Outstanding Dissertation Award are being accepted in our online submission system now through August 18.

The AACTE Outstanding Dissertation Award recognizes excellence in doctoral dissertation research (or its equivalent) that contributes to the knowledge base of educator preparation or of teaching and learning with implications for educator preparation. Dissertations completed since January 2016 are eligible for consideration, regardless of what institution awarded the doctorate (member or nonmember of AACTE). See the call for entries (PDF) for other requirements.

NBCTs Say Quality Preservice Prep Matters Long After They Become a Teacher of Record

Everyone likes a great investment, a sure thing, a great return for the money. In education, as in the markets, trying to figure out where to invest for the best results is challenging. Still, solid research can point us in the right direction, which is why I couldn’t wait for the results of the latest study in the “Good to Great” series by the National Network of State Teachers of the Year (NNSTOY): Investing in What It Takes to Move From Good to Great: Exemplary Educators Identify Their Most Important Learning Experiences.

NCTQ Offers Mixed Reviews of Undergraduate Secondary Teacher Prep

Today, the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) released the second installment of its now-segmented Teacher Prep Review, this time grading undergraduate programs preparing secondary teachers based on a document review of their admission standards, content requirements, and field experiences.

Out of the 717 programs reviewed across the country, the new report says “adequate” content knowledge requirements are in place in approximately 81% of programs for candidates in the sciences and in 65% of social studies programs, while nearly all programs provide adequate preparation for English and math teachers. About three quarters of the evaluated programs require subject-specific methods courses, and less than half of those require student teaching in connection with that course work.

Call for Papers: NKU Symposium on Teacher Diversity

Cynthia B. Dillard

Are you developing, implementing, or evaluating policies or practices that help increase the numbers and improve the experiences of teachers of color? The Department of Teacher Education at Northern Kentucky University (NKU) wants to hear from you! Paper proposals are due May 15 for a September event, “Teacher Diversity Matters: A National Symposium on Preparing, Recruiting, and Retaining Teachers of Color.”

The symposium, to be held September 15 at NKU, will feature a keynote address from Cynthia B. Dillard of the University of Georgia titled “You Are Because I Am: The Necessity of Identity, Mutuality, and Equity in Teacher Education.” Other sessions will highlight accepted papers from researchers, practitioners, and students based in PK-12 and higher education.

Study Examines How Asset-Based Pedagogy Affects Latino Students’ Ethnic, Achievement Identities

Have you seen the JTE Insider blog managed by the Journal of Teacher Education (JTE) editorial team? Check out the following interview with an author of a recent article.

In the interview below, Francesca A. López of the University of Arizona provides some insight behind her research for the article, “Altering the Trajectory of the Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: Asset-Based Pedagogy and Classroom Dynamics.” The article, published in the March/April issue of the journal, is summarized in the following abstract:


New Survey Gauges Attitudes About Ethics in Educator Preparation

To understand more about attitudes toward professional ethics in preservice educator preparation, AACTE is collaborating with the National Council for the Advancement of Educator Ethics (NCAEE) to conduct a brief survey this spring. We invite you and your colleagues in both PK-12 and higher education to complete the survey by May 15, 2017.

This survey is intended to gather information regarding teacher educators’ beliefs about professional ethics as well as practices in educator ethics preparation across the nation. Responses will inform the future work of NCAEE, which was created following the 2015 release of the Model Code of Ethics for Educators (MCEE) by the National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification.

AACTE, Westat Piloting Surveys of EPP Graduates, Supervisors

AACTE and Westat are partnering with state chapters and education agencies this spring to pilot new surveys of beginning teachers and their supervisors. By developing common instruments to be used across states that can also be customized with state-specific questions, the partners aim to fill the need for both national benchmarks for preparation programs (as called for in accreditation standards) and state-determined priorities.

AACTE staff conducted exploratory work last year, collecting and studying state-level instruments currently used for surveying program completers in 13 states that were willing to share both their instruments and their most recent survey results. We found that all of the instruments align with the InTASC model standards for beginning teachers, although their length and emphasis areas vary. Meanwhile, we began talking with state education agencies (SEAs) and AACTE state chapters and member institutions to gauge their interest in consolidating these state and institution data collection efforts in a national-level instrument.

JTE Authors: New Taxonomy Facilitates Studying, Improving Teachers’ Collaborative Learning

Have you seen the JTE Insider blog managed by the Journal of Teacher Education (JTE) editorial team? Check out the latest author interview below.

In this interview, Ilana Seidel Horn, Brette Garner, Britnie Delinger Kane, and Jason Brasel of Vanderbilt University discuss the research behind their recent article, “A Taxonomy of Instructional Learning Opportunities in Teachers’ Workgroup Conversations.” The article is available in the January/February 2017 issue of the journal.


JTE Author Interview: How Preservice Teachers Learn to Plan Intellectually Challenging Tasks

Have you seen the JTE Insider blog managed by the Journal of Teacher Education (JTE) editorial team? Check out the latest author interview below.

This interview features insights from the JTE article “Preservice Teachers’ Learning to Plan Intellectually Challenging Tasks,” by Hosun Kang, assistant professor of education at University of California, Irvine. The article appears in the January/February 2017 issue of JTE.

The article’s abstract reads in part, “This study explores how and under which conditions preservice secondary science teachers (PSTs) engage in effective planning practices that incorporate intellectually challenging tasks into lessons. Drawing upon a situative perspective on learning, eight PSTs’ trajectories of participation in communities of practice are examined with a focus on planning throughout student teaching. […] The analyses show that instructional tasks observed at the beginning of lessons link to the ways in which PSTs engage in the three interrelated processes of (a) framing instructional goals, (b) constructing a lesson scenario, and (c) addressing problems of practice.”

Community-Based Programs Boost Candidate, Student Learning

In an AACTE major forum held March 3, a panel of teacher educators from three state universities discussed the power of partnering with nonschool sites in communities to help prepare effective teachers. “Community-Based Teacher Preparation as Praxis: Preparing Effective Educators Through Research-Practice Partnerships” was organized by the editors of the Journal of Teacher Education (JTE)to bring attention to pioneering work under way on this emerging practice.

JTE Coeditors Dorinda Carter Andrews and Gail Richmond of Michigan State University served as moderators for the panel, which included the following presenters: