03 Apr2018
By Kristin McCabe
Although violence and hate permeate our society, there is reason for hope: It is an amazing time to be in education. We are in a profession that has more to do with what we might do to change this society than any other profession. So how do we reframe the way we work with young people to make a better world?
These words were part of Deborah Loewenberg Ball’s introduction of a March 2 Deeper Dive session at the 70th AACTE Annual Meeting, organized by TeachingWorks under the theme “Outrage to Action: Disrupting Inequity Through Teacher Education.” Ball, of the University of Michigan, invited the audience to combat today’s fragmented society by intentionally building more connections, including with the “invisible” people who play supporting roles in our lives.
27 Mar2018
By Kristin McCabe
AACTE is now accepting nominations for the 2019 Outstanding Book Award. Nominations must be made through our online submission system by May 3.
The Outstanding Book Award recognizes books that make a significant contribution to the knowledge base of educator preparation or of teaching and learning with implications for educator preparation. Here are our most recent winners:
19 Mar2018
By Kristin McCabe
Cindy Gutierrez of the University of Colorado Denver listens as fellow panelist Steve Wojcikiewicz of the University of Portland (OR) discusses institutional supports for “deeper learning” teacher preparation.
A “Deeper Dive” session held March 3 at the 70th AACTE Annual Meeting shared lessons on how to engage preservice teacher candidates in the kinds of meaningful learning experiences they are expected to create later for their own students. Organized by the Learning Policy Institute (LPI), “Walking the Talk: Teacher Preparation for Deeper Learning” highlighted findings from a national study of seven teacher preparation programs that are organized in ways that align with deeper learning approaches – meaning less emphasis on rote learning and more on experiential, innovative, collaborative, and equity-focused pedagogy.
LPI researcher Maria Hyler opened the session by describing the primary features of successful programs identified in the study, details of which will be published by Harvard Education Press in a book later this year. These features include opportunities for candidates to experience learning that is applied and transferred, developmental and personalized, collaborative and social, contextualized, and socially just. Hyler then invited panelists representing several programs in the study to outline one of the key domains.
13 Mar2018
By Kristin McCabe
UPDATE: Video recording is now available! Visit the AACTE Learning Center to watch.
At the March 3 closing session of AACTE’s 70th Annual Meeting, Diane Ravitch delivered a rousing defense of public schools and an unsparing critique of those who seek to privatize education in America.
She opened with a declaration of admiration for the bravery and articulate activism of students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, following the recent tragic shooting there. Ravitch noted their engagement has been enabled by a well-rounded education—including drama, speech, and other subjects that have been eclipsed in many places by the focus on raising test scores.
08 Mar2018
By Kristin McCabe
Opening Keynote speakers Lynn M. Gangone, Marquita Grenot-Scheyer, and Kimberly Tobey on stage at the Baltimore Convention Center
To all 1,900 of the AACTE members, partners, and supporters who joined us last week in Baltimore for the 2018 Annual Meeting: Thank you! Your presence was a valuable part of “Celebrating Our Professional Identity” for the Association’s 70th anniversary.
Over the coming weeks, Ed Prep Matters will bring you a variety of conference coverage. Meanwhile, you can view (and share!) conference photos on Facebook, browse the event’s Twitter feed, and enjoy the following recap videos:
26 Feb2018
By Kristin McCabe
Congratulations to 2018 National Superintendent of the Year David Schuler of Township High School District 214 in Arlington Heights, Illinois!
Schuler, who heads the state’s second-largest high school district, was Illinois’ finalist for the honor given by AASA, the School Superintendents Association. He is also an alumnus of an AACTE member institution, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he received a master’s degree and Ph.D. from the School of Education’s Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis.
22 Feb2018
By Kristin McCabe
Participants in the 2017 JUSTEC annual conference in Hawaii
The 30th annual conference of the Japan-U.S. Teacher Education Consortium (JUSTEC) will be held September 14-17 at Bukkyo University in Kyoto, Japan. Conference organizers invite proposals for paper and poster presentations by March 15 under the theme “Next Steps in Teacher Education in the U.S. and Japan: Celebrating 30 Years of JUSTEC.”
To commemorate the milestone anniversary, participants in this year’s conference will reflect on past collaborations and accomplishments, assess the current changing landscape of teacher education, and look ahead to the new approaches, frameworks, technologies, and international relationships to support teacher learning and educational research.
14 Feb2018
By Kristin McCabe
Last month, the Oregon Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (OACTE) convened the second annual Oregon Education Summit, organized to unite as many stakeholder groups as possible around educator preparation and related topics. Held January 5 at Western Oregon University in Monmouth, just 15 miles from the State Capitol in Salem, the gathering attracted representatives from every OACTE member institution as well as community colleges, legislators, PK-12 district staff, the state Department of Education and licensing agency, and nongovernmental agencies.
The summit was borne of the desire by OACTE to both claim a seat at the state table and access first-hand information – while establishing the organization and its members as willing collaborators on all aspects of education in the state. The first summit, held a year ago, was a success that organizers were eager to build on in Year 2. “Our first step is always a proactive one. We begin by asking, ‘How can we help?’” said OACTE President Leif Gustavson, who is dean of the College of Education at Pacific University. “Then we tend to get invited to the table. We are not an obstructionist organization, and we need to not think of others that way either. The summit gives us all an opportunity to meet face to face and realize the potential of what we can accomplish collectively.”
12 Feb2018
By Kristin McCabe
The National Association of Community College Teacher Education Programs (NACCTEP) and AACTE are partnering in a new effort to better align their members around common work. In this pilot initiative, the organizations will explore and develop collaborative membership and governance structures, joint programming at the AACTE Annual Meeting, and other offerings.
Currently, 2-year colleges are eligible only for “affiliate” membership with AACTE, but a recent survey of AACTE members revealed an openness to incorporating community colleges more explicitly in the Association’s membership structure. About 800 community colleges nationwide offer some type of teacher preparation, including many programs that lead to bachelor’s degrees and licensure as well as others that prepare candidates to move on to 4-year institutions. Approximately 120 of these community colleges are members of NACCTEP.
06 Feb2018
By Kristin McCabe
As AACTE heads into the final weeks of planning for the 70th Annual Meeting, we can’t wait to welcome you to Baltimore! Be sure to visit the Online Event Planner to create a personal schedule that makes the most of your time. In addition to adding the opening and closing keynote sessions, you’ll want to select the Learning Labs and “Deeper Dive” sessions that are of greatest interest to you.
The Deeper Dives take the place of AACTE’s former “Major Forums,” providing a large-format, expert-facilitated exploration of a key topic during one dedicated time slot each day. Refreshed for 2018 with new expectations for audience interaction and other adult-learning principles, five such sessions will be offered this year:
01 Feb2018
By Kristin McCabe
Congratulations to the University of Colorado Denver School of Education and Human Development (SEHD) on its selection to receive the 2018 AACTE Best Practice Award in Support of Multicultural Education and Diversity! The award will be presented March 1 at the Opening Keynote of the AACTE 70th Annual Meeting in Baltimore, Maryland.
The university, known as CU Denver, offers multiple pathways for teacher preparation to fit the needs of candidates from a variety of backgrounds and contexts, succeeding in attracting a diverse range of students. The program aims to prepare teacher candidates who believe all PK-20 learners deserve access to an excellent education by building upon the strengths of their individual culturally diverse backgrounds.
01 Feb2018
By Kristin McCabe
AACTE’s Committee on Professional Preparation and Accountability has selected Stacy K. Duffield, professor in the College of Human Development and Education at North Dakota State University, to receive the 2018 AACTE Edward C. Pomeroy Award for Outstanding Contributions to Teacher Education. The award will be presented at the 70th AACTE Annual Meeting Closing Keynote session, March 3 in Baltimore, Maryland.
The Pomeroy Award, named for longtime AACTE Executive Director Edward C. Pomeroy, is one of the Association’s highest honors, recognizing distinguished service either to the educator preparation community or to the development and promotion of outstanding practices in educator preparation at the collegiate, state, or national level. Duffield stands out in all of these categories.
01 Feb2018
By Kristin McCabe
AACTE will honor Molly Baustien Siuty, assistant professor of inclusive teacher education at Portland State University (OR), with the 2018 AACTE Outstanding Dissertation Award for her study (Re)constituting Teacher Identity for Inclusion in Urban Schools: A Process of Reification and Resistance. The award will be presented at the 70th AACTE Annual Meeting Closing Keynote session, March 3 in Baltimore, Maryland.
Siuty’s dissertation investigated how teacher candidates’ learning about diversity and inclusion in their preservice preparation programs translates – or struggles to translate – into their practice as new teachers. The study uncovered important insights for bridging gaps between teacher preparation and induction.
01 Feb2018
By Kristin McCabe
AACTE has chosen an article by Claire Sinnema, Frauke Meyer, and Graeme Aitken of the University of Auckland (New Zealand) to receive the 2018 AACTE Outstanding Journal of Teacher Education (JTE) Article Award. The winning article, “Capturing the Complex, Situated, and Active Nature of Teaching Through Inquiry-Oriented Standards for Teaching,” was published in the January/February 2017 issue of the journal. The award will be presented at the 70th AACTE Annual Meeting Opening Keynote session, March 1 in Baltimore, Maryland.
In this article, the authors identify problems in the design and implementation of teaching standards that widen the divide between theory and practice. They propose an alternative model, dubbed Teaching for Better Learning, which attempts to account for the complex contextual features that teachers face and that significantly shape the identification of student needs and instructional practices. This model also positions both teachers and students as learners and is driven by inquiry and evidence. In this way, the authors raise critical issues that diverse stakeholders in teacher preparation – from practitioners to policy makers – must take into account to ensure more effective teaching.
01 Feb2018
By Kristin McCabe
AACTE’s Committee on Professional Preparation and Accountability has selected Jolanda M. Westerhof, associate vice president and director of teacher education for the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), to receive the 2018 AACTE David G. Imig Award for Distinguished Achievement in Teacher Education. The award will be presented at the 70th AACTE Annual Meeting Opening Keynote session, March 1 in Baltimore, Maryland.
The Imig Award, named for AACTE President and CEO Emeritus David G. Imig, recognizes distinguished achievement in the formulation, implementation, or analysis of teacher education policy, or in the performance of distinguished scholarship in educator preparation.
