Educating Teachers of Science, Mathematics, and Technology New Practices for the New Millennium (2001) / Chapter Skim
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Teacher Education as a Professional Continuum
Teacher Education as a Professional Continuum
Pages 72-84
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From page 72... ...
In California alone, legislatively man(late(1 reductions in class sizes, expectations that all students wall study more science and mathematics, the high attrition rate of science and mathematics teachers, and the inability to hire sufficient numbers of certified teachers in these disciplines has resulte(1 in a (tire situation: approximately one-thir(1 of chil(lren in that state are being taught by teachers who either are unqualifie(1 to teach science or mathematics or are in their first or secon(1 year of teaching. In(lee(l, in California, the probability that a student who attends school in a low socioeconomic (listrict will be taught by a lessthan-qualifie(1 teacher can be five times higher than for students in more afNuent (listricts in that state Shields et al., 199911.
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From page 74... ...
Similarly, the Holmes Group exhorted, 'The Universities that (levelop e(lucation knowledge, influence education policy, and prepare teachers and other leaders for our nation's schools and education schools must overcome 'business as usual' to meet the challenge of these truly unusual times in education. The indisputable link between the quality of elementary anti secondary schools anti the quality of the education schools must be acknowledged and we must respond." Other high-level reports have echoe the conclusions of this and the other Holmes Group reports (1986, 19901.
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From page 75... ...
The nee(1 for career-Ion" professional (levelopment, combined with the need to restructure schools and teacher preparation programs, created a unique opportunity for collaborative approaches to systemic reform, where the many components of reform are addressed and their interdependencies and interrelationships are recognized (GoodIad, 1990, 1994; Holmes Group 1986, 1990, 19951. Many individual school districts and states have now recognized the critical connection between ongoing professional development during the induction and post-induction years of teaching.
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From page 76... ...
become engage(1 learners. Like student learning, teacher e(lucation also is an extremely complex process.
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From page 77... ...
For example, in 1996, Trachtman conducted a survey of 28 "highly (levelope(l" PDS sites for the Professional Development Schools Standards Project.3 Sixty-five percent of the responding sites indicated that preservice teachers affiliate(1 with the sites in the PDS context spent more time in fiel(l-relate(1 experiences than teachers who were enrolled in more traditional teacher education programs. In PDS arrangements, preservice teachers usually are assigne(1 to a teaching site in cohorts, a desirable practice according to other research.
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From page 78... ...
, a PDS partnership between East Carolina University faculty and cooperating teachers in the Pitt County, NC schools was formed that included a full year of internship along with extensive and ongoing staff development. Of 60 MCTP graduates whose careers were followed after having completed this program, 96 percent continued as classroom teachers five, and in some cases, six years after entering the profession compared with a national average of less than 60 percent.
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From page 79... ...
Despite the accumulating evidence cited throughout this report that teachers need a deep knowledge and understanding of science and mathematics to teach these subjects effectively at any grade, education programs for people who teach in the primary grades typically emphasize and reinforce the notion of elementary teachers as non-specialists. Even in states that now require prospective elementary school teachers to major in a (liscipline other than e(lucation, few opt for majors in science or mathematics.
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From page 80... ...
Department of Education, the NCTM, and the Wisconsin Center for Education Research recommended that, in elementary schools, specialist teachers of mathematics teach all mathematics beginning no later than grade 4 and supervise mathematics instruction at earlier grade levels (Romberg, 19941. In recent years, many elementary schools and their districts have begun to address the disconnect between how elementary school teachers have been prepared to teach science and mathematics and the critical need for teachers who have the knowledge and acumen to work effectively with younger children in these subject areas.
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From page 81... ...
mentioned Professional Development Schools as the type of setting where such collaborative program planning, implementation, and research could take place. In PDS settings, experienced elementary school teachers can be both active and coequal partners with university faculty and work with student teachers.
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From page 82... ...
Collaborative partnerships appear to be particularly effective ways to realize improve(1 teacher e(lucation, particularly when they involve scientists, mathematicians, anti faculty from schools of education from two- and four-year colleges and universities and teachers from participating school systems (AAAS, 1989; MAA, 1991; NCrM, 1989; NRC, 1989, 1990, and 1996a; NSfA, 19981. The (lata cite(1 in this chapter point to some common themes about successful collaborative partnerships for the preparation anti professional (levelopment of teachers anti the enhancement 4A number of recent reports suggest that teacher shortages may be due in part (at least in the shortterm)
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From page 83... ...
Third, the comprehensive approach to teacher education appears to be promising. ProfessionalDevelopment Schools and similar collaborative programs attempt to address teacher preparation, professional (levelopment, end studentlearning holistically.
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From page 84... ...
This is not enough, however. Based on its two years of study, the committee also has concluded that improvement of teacher education for science, mathematics, and technology will require greater levels of cooperation among the various stakeholders than is currently EDUCATING TEACHERS OF SCIENCE, the case even among Professional Development Schools.
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