Posts Tagged ‘innovation’

University of New Mexico and Albuquerque Public Schools Partnership Boosts Restorative Practices for Students of All Ages 

If you ever needed a perfect example of how the University of New Mexico directly feeds into the community, you don’t need to look further than the College of Education and Human Sciences (COEHS).

The new Restorative Practice Partnership between COEHS, the District Teacher Residency Program (DTRP), and Garfield Middle School is creating a fundamental pipeline of restorative practices from children, to future teachers, and to the classroom. 

“Our partnership with Albuquerque Public Schools (APS) is underscored by experiences like this for our Teacher Residents,” DTRP Director and COEHS Professor Marjori Krebs said. “By providing opportunities for our future teachers and future principals to learn the power of Restorative Practices from the Garfield Middle School students and teachers provides them with an excellent foundation for leading their own classrooms and schools.”  

AACTE Unveils Coaching Initiative

Invest in your Leadership Efficacy

 

In a dynamic era of higher education innovation, the importance of effective leadership within educator preparation programs (EPPs) cannot be overstated. Recognizing this imperative, AACTE unveils its new coaching program. AACTE Coaching is a visionary platform designed to foster professional growth among program leaders.  

This initiative represents a pioneering endeavor, connecting educators with invaluable opportunities to glean insights, strategies, and mentorship aimed at elevating their leadership experiences. Through this program, AACTE reaffirms its commitment to advancing excellence in educator preparation, empowering leaders to navigate the complexities of their roles with confidence and efficacy. 

AACTE Launches Inspiring Brand Refresh at 2024 Annual Meeting

AACTE (American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education) unveiled a transformative brand refresh at its 2024 Annual Meeting in Aurora/Denver, Colo., on Feb. 16. The comprehensive update signifies a new era in educator preparation, and Phase I of AACTE’s rebranding. With a modernized logo and an inspiring tagline, AACTE reinforces its position as the leading voice in educator preparation and its charge to stay at the forefront of progressing the field.

The new logo stands as the centerpiece of AACTE’s brand refresh, a symbol of the organization’s vision for educator preparation and its role in shaping the future of education. Moving from the old logo to this new design, AACTE signifies a journey towards what’s possible — for the Association, for educator preparation, and importantly, for each student and educator in the nation’s—and world’s—classrooms.

Western Governors University School of Ed Launches Podcast on Teacher Well-Being

With more than 90,000 working educator alumni in classrooms nationwide, WGU has a deep commitment to K-12 education, and to the future teachers coming through initial licensure programs as well as master’s degree programs for educators. While much has been said in media and news outlets about the increasing needs of students, especially post-COVID-19 pandemic, some education leaders, including those at WGU, are concerned that more attention needs to be given to what teachers need after the last three challenging years. 

Sharing that concern is Utah’s First Lady Abby Cox, who recently shifted the lens of her annual Show Up for Teachers conference to focus on teacher and educator personal and professional wellness with tools and resources throughout the conference breakout sessions and keynotes including guest speaker Arthur Brooks, the Harvard University researcher on happiness. In 2023, the WGU School of Education was honored to become a major sponsor of the conference.

SIU Researchers Explore Virtual Training to Foster Faster, Better Decisions in Sports and More

This article was originally published by Southern Illinois University.

Split-second decisions frequently determine the outcome of a game, a medical procedure, a military battle, or a law enforcement situation. Scott Boatright, a doctoral candidate at Southern Illinois University Carbondale, is conducting research to see if people can train with simulation and extended reality to make judgments more quickly and effectively. His work has already garnered national recognition along with a $10,000 scholarship from the National Training and Simulation Association (NTSA).

Boatright, of Tampa, Florida, has been working on the project in the School of Education’s Organizational Learning, Innovation and Development (OLID) program with Peter Fadde, OLID professor of learning systems design and technology.

“The goal is to systemize and speed up the training and learning experience,” Fadde said. “We asked ourselves, how we could take the seemingly intuitive decision-making process used by experts and capture their methodology and expertise and train others to use it faster and faster.”

Boatright said getting to work on this innovative research using video-occlusion technology, a form of virtual reality, with Fadde and other SIU faculty is what drew him to SIU.

“I developed a keen interest in applying my classroom knowledge to the real world. Specifically, the application of innovative training methods and technologies, such as extended reality, to improve human performance in dynamic, high-pressure environments,” Boatright said.

KSU Profiles its AACTE Award-Winning Innovative Use of Technology

In March 2023, AACTE awarded the 2024 Best Practice Award for the Innovative Use of Technology to Kansas State University. In this article, Debbie Mercer, dean, provides a summary of the university’s award-winning body of work.

AACTE is currently accepting nominations for the 2024 Best Practice Award for the Innovative Use of Technology The deadline is September 1. Learn more and submit an entry. 

Kansas State University’s College of Education (COE) has developed a significant body of work leveraging technologies for innovative remote learning opportunities. Through the use of telepresence robots in conjunction with more conventional remote communications platforms, the COE has developed an integrated body of teaching, research, and service activities that engage teacher education candidates, teachers, faculty, and students in bold new initiatives that build a vision for 21st-century learning and engagement on the traditional strengths of the institution. From remote field experiences that bring teacher education candidates to high-need rural schools, to international service-learning opportunities, to fully remote teaching internships, these initiatives are both sustainable and scalable.

The Teacher Educators’ Journal: Call for Manuscripts

The Teacher Educators’ Journal (TTEJ) is published by the Virginia Association of Colleges and Teacher Educators (VACTE), a state unit of the Association of Teacher Educators (ATE) and the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE). The journal aims to stimulate discussion and reflection about issues related to teacher education; authors need not be based and research need not be conducted in Virginia for manuscripts to be considered for publication. Manuscripts submitted for consideration may be research/empirical reports and analyses, position papers, book reviews, or conceptual essays.

Educators Receive AACTE Co-Teaching in Clinical Practice TAG Engagement Awards

The Co-Teaching in Clinical Practice Topical Action Group (TAG) presented five professional educators with Engagement Awards to attend the 2022 National Association for Co-Teaching (NACT) National Conference in St. Cloud, Minnesota, in October. Foothill Knolls STEM Academy of Innovation Principal Jennifer Morris, fifth grade teacher Amanda Soto, and special education teacher Kelly Stanger from Upland, California, attended the conference along with New York City Department of Education, District 31 Specialized Student Support Lead Contessa McNulty. College Place Public Schools Assistant Principal and Co-Teaching Support Lead Ambra Bryant of College Place, Washington, was unable to attend.

SchoolSims Webinar Highlights Research on the Impact of Simulations on School Leader Preparation

In the latest webinar hosted by SchoolSims, titled “Evidence of the Impact of Simulations on School Leader Development and Preparation,” a panel of experts in educational leadership discuss their research on school leader preparation and development and the impact of experiential learning opportunities through simulations. Panelists include including Sara Dexter, Ed.D., Jennifer Bailey, Ed.D., David De Jong, Ed.D., Mike Johanek, Ed.D., and Trent Grundmeyer, Ph.D.

The purpose of the webinar is to provide context for the potential impact of simulation practice as a targeted professional development method that may go beyond pre-service preparation and continue as a learning pathway for in-service school leaders and teachers by examining the most recent research on leadership and teacher development.

Surveying Attitudes Toward Game-Based Learning in Teacher Education Program

Virtual reality has a number of applications for pedagogy and teacher training; simulation training in these much-needed areas may add an essential component to the field of teacher education (Tondeur, Pareja-Roblin, van Braak, Voogt, & Prestridge, 2017). Computer simulations can provide guided practice for a variety of situations that pre-service teachers wouldn’t frequently experience during their teacher education studies (Mason, Jeon, Blair, & Glomb, 2011; Mason, 2011). Simulations can help pre-service teachers develop the skills that it takes to properly run a classroom without the high-stakes risk of causing harm to actual students (Matsuda, 2005).

There are numerous benefits to game-based learning, including improved learner motivation and engagement, constructive knowledge frameworks, exploratory and independent learning and, at times, higher achievement outcomes over traditional pedagogy (Boyle et al., 2016; Cheong, Flippou, & France, 2015; Peterson, 2019). Simulations can allow pre-service teachers to see their students from a different perspective, gain insight into the best ways to manage their future classroom, and understand the direct consequences of their actions in the classroom (Ferry et al., 2004).  Including simulations in pre-service teaching coursework has demonstrated an increase in the confidence and effectiveness of first year teachers (Englebert, 2010).

Learner Variability and Culturally Responsive Practices

Understanding learner variability helps disrupt the idea of a one-size-fits all approach and paves the way for more equitable teaching and learning. The intersection of culturally responsive practice with the science of learner variability can provide great insight into what it takes to successfully implement culturally responsive instruction with both teachers and students.  It also helps us understand why culturally responsive practices are necessary for reaching and embracing the whole learner.

On November 10, 2022 at 1:00 p.m., we will hear from our distinguished panelists, Courtney Teague, Angela Elkordy, and Leigh Ann Erikson, on how they approach culturally responsive practice in their courses and practice. We’ll discuss some of the key findings from the research on culturally responsive practices, where the research gaps are, and the importance of culturally responsive practices in teacher education and K-12 classrooms. Register today for the Learner Variability and Culturally Responsive Practices, hosted by Digital Promise and AACTE.

Call for Entries Now Open for 2023 AACTE Awards

AACTE is currently accepting entries for the 2023 awards. The AACTE Awards Program recognizes excellence in both member institutions and individuals who have made significant contributions to the field of educator preparation.

For most of the awards, programs and individuals can be either self-nominated or nominated by a third party. The deadline to apply is October 31, 2022Learn more about the 2023 AACTE Awards, eligibility and criteria.

Aiding Teacher Candidates’ Understanding of Learner Variability

Rachel Besharat Mann will share her experience in translating learning sciences into practice using the Digital Promise Learner Variability Navigator tool during the webinar co-hosted by AACTE, “Learning Sciences Research for the Classroom” on September 26, 2:00 – 3:00 p.m. Below, Mann offers a preview about her experience using the web app for whole child learning.

You can read all of the teaching books and take all of the courses but being in the classroom is a completely different experience. You are working with individual people with varied backgrounds and needs and their behaviors; strengths, and needs can change based on a variety of factors outside of a teacher’s control. There is no roadmap to tell you how students learn differently or even if they are learning at all. This is a lesson I’ve learned the hard way over the years and have vowed to help my higher education students avoid the same pitfalls in K-12 classrooms that I did.

AACTE Partners with Digital Promise to Elevate Learner Variability Tools that Support Equitable Teaching

AACTE has teamed up with the leaders of Digital Promise’s Learner Variability Project to address systems-level transformation that directly addresses the challenges students face by using the Learner Variability Navigator (LVN); a free open-source tool to make learning sciences research accessible to educators.  Earlier this year, a representative group of AACTE members were introduced to the project and navigation tools, and using their feedback, AACTE is  pleased to bring you the webinar series that lifts up tools and practices with the Learner Variability Project most relevant to the educator preparation field.

Using Video Reflection to Expand Support During Teacher Clinical Experiences

John HenningClinical experience is critical to the success of teacher candidates. It allows them to receive real classroom experience while they foster relationships with students and build their own instructional skills.

But, even with the skills they learn leading up to the clinical experience, teacher candidates can’t just enter the field and be expected to succeed. There’s a whole host of skills that cannot be taught in a college classroom or via a textbook. And, teacher candidates—just like classroom teachers themselves—need ongoing coaching and feedback to continuously improve their practice.