Month: May 2022

Categories
Teacher Education

Week of May 23 in Teacher Ed News

GLOBAL
Hungary Today. High Shortage and Workload with Low Salaries in Hungarian Public Education, EC Country Report Finds   …European Commission’s (EC) recently-released 2022 Country Report concluded… More than half of graduates from teacher-education courses end up in other careers due to the high workload and low pay of teachers, especially those at the beginning of their career.

Nation.Cymru. Number of teachers in Welsh medium training has more than doubled   The annual data is for entrants onto Initial Teacher Education (ITE) courses that led to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) in the academic year 2020/21. ITE courses that lead to QTS are the main route to becoming a teacher in Wales. The data covers student teachers at universities in Wales and also students from Wales studying across the UK.

UK.GOV. Teacher training to ensure excellent teachers in every classroom: Teacher training qualifications to be free for the next two academic years to upskill teachers across the country   The National Institute of Teaching will deliver high-quality Initial Teacher Training, Early Career Framework, National Professional Qualifications and National Leaders of Education development programmes and will generate and share cutting-edge research and insights into best practice, to improve the quality of teacher training nationwide.

UNESCO. Reimagining the future: developing teachers’ research and collaborative capacity through teacher education curriculum reform   …the International Commission on the Futures of Education has produced a critical report, Reimagining our futures together: A new social contract for education, which brings together inputs from students, teachers, governments and civil society… The report rightly recommends that teachers should more often work in teams, to better engage in knowledge production, reflection and research, and further suggests that teachers should participate in public debate, dialogue and education policy. But to achieve this, a deeper cross-national examination of teacher education curricula may be required. This could help to unpack what learning opportunities exist in teacher education programmes that can support teacher agency and solidarity as a new foundation across a number of different geographies.

UNITED STATES
Chalkbeat. Short on teachers, Michigan schools try to grow their own   Eighty-five years ago, Future Teachers of America chapters began cropping up in high schools to help inspire promising students to become teachers. The group morphed into the Future Educators Association in 1994 when the professional organization Phi Delta Kappa International took it over from the National Education Association. Seven years ago, Phi Delta Kappa relaunched the program under the name Educators Rising. Seventeen schools used the curriculum that first year. Now, 11,180 high schools across the country use it. 

EdPrepLab. Virtual Spring Convening 2022 [June 8 12 noon ET]

EdSource.
1) Most California teacher preparation programs flunk math instruction   Most California teacher preparation programs are failing to adequately train future teachers to teach elementary school level mathematics, according to a National Council on Teacher Quality report…
2) Will California teachers be ready to teach ethnic studies? Some say training needed   Currently, the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing believes that high school teachers who are credentialed in social sciences are “sufficiently prepared to teach ethnic studies at the high school level,” said David DeGuire, director of the professional services division for the commission…

EdWeek. Using Virtual Teachers to Fill Vacancies: Smart Solution or Big Mistake?   The companies may have “good marketing,” but they are not necessarily good for students, said Samuel Abrams, a former teacher who is now the director of the National Center for the Study of Privatization in Education at Columbia University’s Teachers College… he sees these companies’ very existence as a “symptom … of a diseased school system” that refuses to pay teachers fairly, or improve their working conditions.

Hechinger Report. Teachers, deputized to fight the culture wars, are often reluctant to serve: New laws to limit instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity leave teachers confused, scared and uncertain of their relationships with some of their most vulnerable students
Jacqueline Rodriguez, vice president of research, policy and advocacy at the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, said she worries the bills will discourage LGBTQ individuals from pursuing teaching careers by sending the message that “this is not the profession to pursue if you want to bring your whole self to work every day.” Enrollment in traditional teacher-preparation programs dropped 35 percent in the decade between 2008-09 and 2018-19, and fell further during the pandemic.

KNOX Radio. UND forms Office of Teacher Recruitment/Retention   In response to teacher shortages throughout North Dakota and the US…  UND has announced a plan to recruit and retain qualified teachers across the state. The University is launching the Office of Teacher Recruitment and Retention, which plans to be fully staffed by this summer… and starting new initiatives in the fall. The College of Education and Human Development will head the effort.

NYPost. Before they can learn ‘antiracism,’ kids need to be literate — & too many aren’t   In 2013, legislators in Mississippi provided funding to start training the state’s teachers in the science of reading… Other states, including Florida, Colorado, and Tennessee, are gesturing toward taking reading science more seriously.

Seattle Times. Learning Nisqually history starts with building a sense of place   Legislation passed in 2005 set precedent for the Since Time Immemorial curriculum, but only “recommended” it be taught… In 2018, the state Legislature passed a bill requiring teacher preparation programs to include this curriculum. But schools are still lagging… There are current efforts to revive field trips and educator training — halted by the pandemic — on the Nisqually reservation.

The Conversation. Want to expand computer science education? Educate more teachers   Expanding the number of computer science courses depends on educating even more teachers to teach them. But almost half of all U.S. states don’t have a plan to teach computer science at the K-12 level. There are eight states that lack certification for computer science teachers. And 27 states and the District of Columbia don’t offer incentives for higher education institutions to offer computer science teacher education programs…

Washington Post. For five years, they were co-teachers. Then they were gunned down: Fourth-grade teachers Irma Garcia and Eva Mireles were among the victims of the school massacre in Uvalde, Tex.   Both of the teachers were graduates of Sul Ross State University in Texas. Garcia earned a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies in 1997, a university spokeswoman said, and Mireles earned the same in 2003.

NEW YORK STATE
InsideHigherEd. The Prestige Name Game: New York State is allowing colleges in the state that meet certain criteria to formally call themselves universities. Several image-conscious institutions have done just that.   Universities are now defined as “including graduate programs registered in at least three of the following discipline areas: agriculture, biological sciences, business, education, engineering, fine arts, health professions, humanities, physical sciences and social sciences.”… William Murphy, New York State’s deputy commissioner of higher education…cited “increasing competition from institutions chartered in other states recruiting students in New York, nationally and internationally, where the term ‘college’ presents a significant marketing challenge.”

New York State Education Department. NYSED’s Office of Higher Education is seeking candidates for the following position in the Office of Teaching Initiatives: Director, Teacher Certification Location: Albany

Professional Standards and Practices Board for Teaching. April meeting minutes

NEW YORK CITY
Teachers College.
1) Aligning Entrepreneurship with Education In her pursuit of a doctorate, Kisha Howell (Ed.D. ’22, Curriculum and Teaching) forges new roads to innovative learning and inclusion   Empowering Black students, Howell’s research suggests, requires a transformation of what counts as teacher education. Despite the evidence to support the value of Mississippi’s Freedom Schools, to Howell, the model design by the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and its practices have been historically undervalued in the development of education models to recenter marginalized people. “Teacher education is guided by academia,” explains Howell, “and as a result, the value of alternative spaces [such as the freedom schools] is often not appreciated.”
2) From Stage to School, English Language Teacher Audrey Yatdon Takes on His Most Challenging Role Yet: The actor turned educator is teaching English as a New Language in New York City high schools, as part of a new dream that applies old skills   Yatdon in early 2021 entered a program that prepares students to teach English as a New Language to immigrant children. Yatdon credits two TC programs for shaping him as an educator. The Teaching Residents at Teachers College offered an actor accustomed to one-day workshops “an opportunity to spend real time with students in real classrooms”… Meanwhile, for Yatdon, the Teacher Opportunity Corps II created a “space for conversation with other teachers of color at TC and throughout the city.”  The TR@TC and TOC graduate now looks forward to three additional years teaching English immigrant students in the NYC public schools as part of the state requirements. 

Categories
Teacher Education

Week of May 16 in Teacher Ed News

GLOBAL
European School Education Platform. Call for abstracts. The present call offers teachers and student teachers an opportunity to submit and have their works on action research published [Deadline May 31]

The Conversation [AUS]. Kids don’t vote but teachers and parents sure do – what are the parties offering on schools?    The Coalition is focusing its efforts on “raising school standards” and “improving the quality of teacher training”. This includes creating a one-year diploma for initial teacher education… It would also need schools to shoulder a greater responsibility for “on-the-job” training.

UK.GOV. Teacher bonuses and funding for schools to level up education   The premium follows the mathematics and physics teacher retention payments scheme piloted in the academic years 2019/2020 and 2020/21. It will be offered alongside the legacy early career payments that the government is continuing to pay to eligible teachers who started initial teacher training up until academic year 2020/21.

UNITED STATES
AP. Whitmer will propose retention bonuses for teachers, staff The governor also will request $600 million for educator recruitment — funding college scholarships for would-be educators, stipends for student teachers, training, and expanded programs to attract and keep teachers in their own communities.

Chalkbeat.
1) Michigan to spend $100 million to open new child care programs, tackle pain points   The initiative will be divided into four parts: … * $11.4 million to recruit, train and retain early educators, including a $4 million apprenticeship program for early educators; and * $14.3 million to speed up a licensing process that many providers say is onerous…
2) Michigan’s teacher shortage: What’s causing it, how serious is it, and what can be done?   In 2018, elementary teachers appeared on the U.S. Department of Education’s critical shortage area list for Michigan. That’s startling in a state that once produced so many teachers that the State Board of Education in 2005 stopped authorizing new college and university teacher preparation programs. 

Education Week.
1) An Unconventional Approach to Teacher Training [interview with R. Hess]  I connected with ASU Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College school dean Carole Basile to learn more about what they’re doing to rethink teaching and teacher preparation.
2) Are Aspiring Elementary Teachers Learning Enough Math?   Experts agree: Elementary teachers need to have a strong foundation in math. But teacher-preparation programs don’t always dedicate much time to elementary math coursework… Undergraduate programs that prepare aspiring elementary teachers now require an average of 19 percent more time for elementary math coursework than they did in 2014.
3) ‘Brown v. Board’ Decimated the Black Educator Pipeline. A Scholar Explains How   After the decision, tens of thousands of Black teachers and principals lost their jobs as white superintendents began to integrate schools but balked at putting Black educators in positions of authority over white teachers or students. Scholars say that the current lack of Black educators in the profession can be traced to the aftermath of the Brown decision… These are people who played by the rules—they were committed. They went North, they got their graduate education, they came back [and were] still underpaid. 
4) Make Teacher Prep Practical, Not Theoretical   (This is the final post in a three-part series.) Teacher-credentialing programs should provide candidates with a window into what equity vs. equality looks like in practice throughout their program of study, spending time looking at student profiles and portfolios and discussing instructional implications. This way, they will be better prepared for meeting the needs of diverse learners in both the field experience and student-teaching…

Hechinger Report. Here’s a solution for attracting more Black, Latino and Indigenous talent to STEM — Start early   First, teacher preparation and training programs should have a systematic focus on elementary school mathematical content instead of counting college-level math courses as content training.

National Center for Teacher Residencies. NCTR’s latest data collection and analysis indicates that the teacher residency movement is continuing to grow in scale and influence with NCTR’s Network residency programs graduating over 2,000 residents during the 2021-2022 academic year.   In spite of national trends that point to declines in enrollment in teacher preparation programs, there was an increase in the number, mean, and median enrollment of residents in NCTR Network residency programs for the 2021-2022 academic year.

New Jersey Herald. Why this Montclair teacher has kept an empty chair in his classroom for 52 years   …he graduated from Columbia Teachers College in 1974 and took a job teaching social studies in a mostly-Black Montclair middle school. It was important to him that he worked and raised a family in a place that was diverse. It was with him when he helped desegregate Montclair’s schools in the early 1970s, by transforming Glenfield Middle School into a magnet school for the arts that became a model for schools mandated to integrate by the landmark case Brown vs. Board of Education.

New Jersey Legislature. Assembly Bill A677 Unanimously passed the Assembly Education Committee.  Prohibits State Board of Education from requiring completion of performance-based assessment as condition of eligibility for certificate of eligibility with advanced standing.

Obama.org. The Voyager Scholarship: The Obama-Chesky Scholarship for Public Service   This scholarship gives college students financial aid to alleviate the burden of college debt, meaningful travel experiences to expand their horizons, and a network of mentors and leaders to support them… Public service can include careers in government, non-profit, or the private sector, ranging from school teachers, community organizers, social workers…

San Francisco Standard. Hayward Superintendent Picked to Lead SF Public Schools   Wayne, who is fluent in Spanish, started his educational career as an English teacher in 1997 in New York…. He holds an undergraduate degree in rhetoric and a doctorate in Educational Leadership from UC Berkeley. He holds two masters degrees—an masters of arts in English education and a masters of education in public school administration from Teachers College, Columbia University.

The Harvard Crimson. Harvard Ends Undergraduate Teacher Education Program, Closing Off a Path to Teaching for College Students   The Harvard Undergraduate Teacher Education Program, which provided College students with teaching credentials prior to graduation, was recently ended as part of an effort to direct students interested in teaching to the Graduate School of Education’s new Teaching and Teacher Leadership master’s program. UTEP is the second undergraduate education program to be ended in recent years after the Harvard Teacher Fellows was rolled over into TTL last October.

Washington Post.
1) Some Md. parents argue a new health curriculum is unfit for young students   Parents in some Maryland districts are pushing back against their school boards’ efforts to adopt a state health framework that instructs educators how to teach about gender identity. The framework broadly outlines how to teach health topics by each grade level; its family life and sexuality guidelines have been the most controversial. 
2) States are mandating Asian American history lessons to stop bigotry   At the helm of this movement is longtime activist and lawyer Stewart Kwoh, leading the charge with his wife, Patricia, and their nonprofit Asian American Education Project. Alongside other teachers, they have created 53 lesson plans on subjects including racism and immigration, training more than 1,000 educators over the past year online. 

NEW YORK STATE
NYSED News. Board of Regents Recognizes Winners of Vice Chancellor Emerita Adelaide L. Sanford Scholarships   Anderly and her family moved to the U.S. from the Dominican Republic when she was 10 years old. During the pandemic, she served as a peer tutor, helping other students struggling mentally and emotionally. Anderly plans to attend New York University as an English education major with a minor in Spanish and Psychology. Her goal is to become a teacher and to inspire students to create their own stories.

NYSED May Board of Regents Meeting
Proposed Amendments:
* Higher Education. Proposed Amendment… Relating to Extending Flexibilities for Incidental and Substitute Teaching
* Higher Education/K-12. Joint Proposed Amendment … Relating to Establishing the Students with Disabilities (All Grades) Certificate, Revising the Registration Requirements for Students with Disabilities (Birth-Grade 2) Programs, and Revising the Requirements for the Extension an…
Supplemental Presentation: Proposed Students with Disabilities (All Grades) Certificate
Consent Agenda (Passed unanimously):
* Proposed Amendment… Relating to the Assessment Requirements for School District Leader (SDL) and School District Business Leader (SDBL) Program Completion, the Institutional Recommendation for Professional SDL and SDBL Certification, and the Institutional…

NEW YORK CITY
Chalkbeat. I’m a high school history teacher. Here’s how I’m addressing the Buffalo massacre in class: As I prepared to discuss the racist violence, I couldn’t help but reflect on what conversations might be banned if I did not teach in New York City. [by S. B. Rosenberg TC MA ’02, Social Studies Ed.]   The U.S. is currently confronting multiple crises: COVID, gun violence, climate change, white supremacy, and systemic racism. It is educational malpractice not to provide the students with time and space to discuss these topics, including Saturday’s shooting. Laws meant to block or dissuade teachers from these conversations are insidious. How can we stop racist conspiracies like the Great Replacement from taking hold if young people can’t even rely on schools to learn the truth? 

New York Public Library. Culturally Responsive Fairy Tale Titles for the Classroom   In teaching nursery rhymes and fairy tales, choosing a culturally responsive title builds upon the knowledge that students have from their own upbringing and expands their understanding of the world around them. Use these titles in your classroom to facilitate a discussion about nursery rhymes and fairy tales and how they have been adapted and reimagined within different countries and cultures.

Teachers College. Grad Pia Maiti Crisscrossed the World to Get to Where She Wanted to Be – TC  … successful submission of an application to the Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant Program (FLTA), a professional development program that fosters cross-cultural understanding and learning by matching foreign educators with U.S. colleges and universities.

Categories
Teacher Education

Week of May 9 in Teacher Ed News

GLOBAL
Chalkbeat. How should the U.S. teach about slavery? Here’s how other countries face their most shameful chapters.   Managing difficult emotions in the classroom requires preparation, particularly when many teachers have lived through the difficult history they are now teaching… In Canada, most teachers did not learn about residential schools when they were students, and huge efforts have been made to provide resources and training… In South Africa, teachers are explicitly trained to facilitate difficult conversations… Alan McCully, a history teacher educator in Northern Ireland, advocates for teacher training to include experiencing discomfort. “You cannot teach controversial history, difficult history, unless you have felt the discomfort of being taught that sort of history yourself,” he argues.

Korea Herald. Education Ministry earmarks W600b for ‘education recovery’: Ministry says omicron-driven virus peak at schools has passed   College students, enrolled in programs trained to be teachers, are to tutor elementary and middle school students, consulting them on learning, relationships and future prospects. 

National Center of Education and the Economy (NCEE). Getting Teachers in Classrooms Where They’re Needed Most: America’s most effective teachers are often not in the classrooms where they’re needed most. Some new research shows other countries face the same challenge.   Ideally, teachers are given rigorous preparation and then when they are placed in schools, they are provided extensive support that leverages the expertise of more experienced, senior teachers. They’re given time to work collaboratively and to intervene with struggling students to help them stay on track. When it comes to teacher assignment policies in particular, Japan, Singapore, and Shanghai offer good examples.

The Guardian. Number of male teachers in England at all-time low as pay levels drop: New research also raises alarm over lack of minority ethnic senior teaching staff    The Department for Education said: “The teaching workforce is becoming more diverse – with the latest data showing 9.3% of teachers reported being from an ethnic minority background, while 21% of postgraduate teacher trainees reported the same. This is compared with 14% of people in the general population, but we know there is further to go.

UNITED STATES
100Kin10. The 100Kin10 Project Team is seeking applicants to serve as faculty interested in implementing a re-imagined Intro to Education Course through a racial equity and social justice lens.   The team searched for introductory courses that take this approach, requested enrollment data from those courses, and created a recommended course syllabus to share with the broader community.

Chalkbeat.
1) Dyslexia bills pass Michigan Senate with bipartisan support   Key features of the bills:… The State Superintendent could no longer allow teacher preparation programs — typically colleges of education at public universities — to provide certification if they don’t offer instruction specific to dyslexia by 2023.
2) How four Philly students ended up working for their principal as teachers   All four attended Lamberton School, in the Overbrook Park section of West Philadelphia, when Travis was principal there between 2003 and 2014. And all of them were, in part, inspired by her to enter teaching, at a time when the profession is suffering a shortage nationwide, and the proportion of Black teachers in particular is on the decline.
3) Teacher prep programs can do better. Here’s how.   Teacher preparation programs should create opportunities for future teachers not only to observe classrooms but also to practice teaching throughout their preparation, in the same way that apprenticeships and medical residencies allow for intensive and sustained on-the-job training. Pre-service teachers should have opportunities to work with students and share leadership of classrooms from their freshman year of college. Mentor teachers must also be trained to support, coach, and gradually release responsibility to their student teachers. 

Courier-Journal. How abolishing useless state tests helps increase Kentucky’s pool of Black teachers    First, no studies indicate that the passing of Praxis ensures that teachers can positively impact K-12 student learning. There is little evidence that these exams predict teacher effectiveness… Second, since the reliance on teacher testing, there has been a steep decline in ethnic and racial minority candidates entering the teaching profession. This decline may be because Black, minority and poor students are more likely to fail the tests.

Deans for Impact. Fueling the fire of teaching desire: How tutoring is helping one future teacher   To ensure teacher-candidates were well-equipped to work as tutors, the district offered comprehensive training to them, including a full-day workshop on Tennessee’s new phonics program, Reading 360, which is being implemented in schools statewide. Instructional coaches from the district are also coaching the candidates throughout the process, grounding their support in the science of reading.

EdSurge. New Research Looks for Better Ways for Schools to Recruit Teachers of Color   …the Premiere 100 Program in Richland, two school districts in South Carolina, where superintendent Baron Davis has a goal to recruit a hundred black male teachers over three years. In his first year, he recruited 50. And he does it through this brotherhood. The Premiere 100 is a brotherhood. So when you join as an African American male teacher, you have a network, a very deep support network.

EdWeek. (Unlimited access to TC community via Gottesman site license)
1) Are Teacher-Prep Programs Out of Touch?   This is the first post in a three-part series…. PJ Caposey, Keisha Rembert, Stephanie Smith Budhai, Ph.D., Jasmine M. Wilhelm, and Jeffrey Wilhelm share their responses.
2) Teacher Prep Should Include Classroom-Culture Training   This is the second post in a three-part series… Andrew Sharos, Tairen McCollister, Kelsey Pycior, and Wendi Pillars continue the conversation.
3) The Rise of Tutoring and Where It Falls Short, in Charts   Research has found that paraprofessionals, college students and others, if properly trained and supported, can also be effective tutors. But few districts are going this route.
4) These 3 Latina Teachers Are Pushing the Boundaries of Computer Science Class   Standards are still being written and revised. Curricula are being developed. Teacher-training programs are slowly adjusting. But there’s plenty of excitement about the country’s diversifying computer science teaching force, which now includes a critical mass of Latina educators determined to make their mark.
5) Timeline: How Federal School Accountability Has Waxed and Waned   No Child Left Behind…which passed with overwhelming bipartisan support, on Jan. 8, 2002, replacing the previous law. The new law significantly toughens up accountability and introduces teacher-quality requirements.

Hechinger Report. Is recess a right or a privilege?: Despite evidence they shouldn’t, teachers still take away recess. Experts say it’s time to stop.
Training in better classroom management practices could also stem turnover: Many teachers say classroom management struggles are a primary reason for leaving the job.

Iowa Public Radio. English-only test for teaching license frustrates efforts by dual language schools to find teachers   Currently, a Praxis spokesperson said, the general test is only offered in English. Teachers who are studying to become world language educators are offered Praxis exams in the language they will be teaching. However, this test does not apply to dual language immersion teachers who will be educating on all subjects in a different language.

Kxii.com.  Oklahoma removes requirement to pass OGET for future teachers   Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt signed House Bill 3658 into effect that removes one of the testing requirements for Oklahoma teachers. Future candidates no longer have to pass the general education portion of the competency examination if they have a bachelor’s degree from an institution whose accreditation is recognized by Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education.

Los Alamos Reporter. PED Ends Requirement For Costly Tests For New Teachers    The Public Education Department is changing the way new teachers prove their fitness for the classroom, moving from a battery of expensive tests to a comprehensive portfolio students will prepare during their New Mexico’s college-based educator preparation programs… The portfolio assessment is an option, not a requirement. Praxis tests still will be available to those who prefer that pathway

NYTimes. Pre-K Is Powerful if Done Right. Here’s How.   A new study by the National Institute for Early Education Research finds that, because of the pandemic, a decade of progress was lost and the equity gap widened. “The pandemic confirmed that providing quality preschool programs that benefit children and families is not easy,” the report notes. Only five states had programs that met the institute’s list of 10 benchmarks of preschool quality, which include “college-educated teachers with specialized early childhood training, small classes that support individualization, and rigorous continuous improvement systems.”

Prism. Why New England school districts are struggling to retain diverse teachers: Teachers of color point to low wages, little institutional support, and a lack of commitment to diversity efforts   After southern schools integrated, Foster said, more than 38,000 Black teachers lost their jobs, and soon after, the idea of teacher testing came about. In the Northeast, Foster said, white teachers were often hired to teach by nearly all-white school district committees. “Those two things collided so that fewer Black people became teachers,” Foster said. “And because most of these school districts struggling to hire teachers don’t know the history, they’re asking themselves, ‘Where are the Black teachers?’—well, you fired them in the ’60s and ’70s!” 

San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD). SF Board of Education Selects Dr. Matt Wayne as SFUSD’s Finalist for Superintendent of Schools   Dr. Wayne, who is fluent in Spanish, began as an English Language Arts teacher in 1997 at The Riis Upper School at PS 126 in New York City…. Dr. Wayne earned … a Masters of Arts in English Education and a Masters of Education in Public School Administration from Teachers College, Columbia University.

NEW YORK STATE
NYSED.
1) Board of Regents May 2022 Meeting Agenda [5/16 & 17]
2) State Finalists Selected for 2022 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching incl. New York State Science Finalist (K-6) Shiela Lee, TC MA 2011

NYS Register. PROPOSED REGULATORY CHANGES: The April 27, 2022, NYS Register included proposed regulatory amendments regarding registration requirements for residency programs and revision to residency certificate requirements (see page 28 for this proposal). The public comment period is open and will expire on June 27. Submit comments to: William P. Murphy, Deputy Commissioner, NYS Education Department, Office of Higher Education, 89 Washington Avenue, Room 975 EBA, Albany, NY 12234, (518) 486-3633, email: [email protected] 

NEW YORK CITY
Chalkbeat. In a seismic shift, NYC to mandate elementary schools use phonics-based curriculum   Educators will also have more opportunities to be trained in evidence-based phonics programs, including Wilson and Orton-Gillingham… Changing a literacy curriculum is no easy process and can be challenging without buy-in from educators and solid training. 

NYTimes.
1) Kathy Boudin, Radical Imprisoned in a Fatal Robbery, Dies at 78   … she got a master’s degree in adult education and literacy from Norwich College while in prison and then, five years after her release, a doctorate from Teachers College at Columbia University. 
2) Mayor Adams Unveils Program to Address Dyslexia in N.Y.C. Schools   The mayor, who has dyslexia himself, would open two new schools, train teachers and direct schools to use phonics-based lessons as a way to address a literacy crisis in the city.

Teachers College. An Aspiring Hometown Hero for Newark Schools  Sociology & Education graduate Elijah Gardner looks to fulfilling a historic family promise to improving public education in Newark, New Jersey

Categories
Teacher Education

Week of May 2 in Teacher Ed News

GLOBAL
AllAfrica. Ghana: Govt Committed to Quality Teacher Education   The government is committed in the promotion of quality teacher education in the country to make it more relevant and beneficial to society, Senior Presidential Advisor, Yaw Osafo Maafo, has stated. “In view of this everything possible will be done to improve infrastructure in our Colleges of Education as well as promote the welfare of teachers who are at the centre of education,” he assured.

Financial Express (India). NCTE invites applications for the four year Integrated Teacher Education Programme 2022-23   National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) under Ministry of Education (MoE) has invited online application for the four year Integrated Teacher Education Programmes (ITEP) for academic session 2023-24. Admission for ITEP will be carried out by the National Testing Agency (NTA) through the National Common Entrance Test (NCET). The four year ITEP will be available for all students who choose teaching as a profession after secondary, by choice. 

Manila Bulletin. Duterte signs Excellence in Teacher Education Act   Republic Act (RA) No. 11713, which Duterte signed on April 27, 2022, applies to teachers and school leaders in all public and private primary education institutions and all public and private technical education institutions (TEIs). The new law mandates the creation of Teacher Education Centers of Excellence (Teacher Education-COEs) in strategic places in every region of the country. These are public or private colleges, institutes, schools, or agencies that may exist by themselves or within a university or college, that are engaged in providing academic training…

The Guardian. UK faces childcare crisis as staff shortages force nurseries to close   “We used to have a lot of applicants when we advertised but nowadays we can’t attract the staff and those with the right qualifications aren’t coming through”

UNITED STATES
Chalkeat.
1) In Chicago, a new push to steer more young men of color into teaching   University of Illinois Chicago started a program for would-be male Black and Latino teachers named Call Me MISTER, which offers scholarships, mentoring and help with finding a job. In Chicago, the Thrive pilot has built on a district program called Teach Chicago Tomorrow, which supports high school students interested in education jobs more broadly. That program is among efforts the district credits for helping it increase the portion of Black and Latino new teacher hires from about 30% in 2019 to 45% last year.
2) Without state leadership, Michigan’s patchwork tutoring programs struggle to address learning loss   At least a dozen states and many large city districts have created large-scale tutoring efforts … Tennessee is spending $200 million to hire and train tutors and provide matching grants to districts. New Mexico plans to spend $62 million to train tutors and support districts in developing programs. Louisiana used COVID funds to create an extensive series of educator trainings and technical guidance on tutoring.

Education Trust. Addressing Teacher Shortages in the Short- & Long-Term   Below are some short- and long-term actions that state and district leaders can take to address these shortages and support the most underserved students and teachers to prevent deeper, persistent inequities.

Education Week.
1) The Pool of Future Teachers Is Dwindling. Can It Be Refilled?   Almost half of district leaders and principals labeled their staff shortages as “severe” or “very severe” in a fall 2021 survey by the EdWeek Research Center. AACTE data also revealed that, over the past 50 years, the number of education degrees awarded plunged from 200,000 annually in the 1970s to fewer than 90,000 in 2019. 
2) Why These Aspiring Teachers Are Eager to Enter a Beleaguered Profession   Education Week spoke to four students at NC State University’s college of education about why they’re choosing teaching, despite all the challenges and stressors. They say they are well-aware that job satisfaction among teachers has plummeted over the years, and that low teacher salaries are discouraging—but they’re still excited to pursue their dream job.

KBTX. Could a new certification exam help Texas’ teacher shortage?   The people who want to move to the edTPA exam argue that the PPR exam is too easy to pass. While the edTPA exam may be more difficult to pass, proponents believe it could actually be the answer to the teacher shortage in Texas. Lopez explained that with the edTPA exam you “can kind of analyze what a teacher is good at, what they might be lacking in some aspects, so that way down the line, they don’t feel overwhelmed and leave the profession.”

Los Angeles Times. USC education school omitted key data for U.S. News & World Report rankings, report says    The report describes a practice that lasted for many years under Dean Karen Symms Gallagher, who oversaw the Rossier School from 2000 to 2020, and continued under Dean Pedro Noguera, who started in 2020. Both deans signed off on the misreporting, though Noguera in late 2021 alerted the school’s provost to a possible problem.

NEA News. Meet Kurt Russell, the 2022 National Teacher of the Year: The Ohio history teacher aims to bring attention and awareness to the importance of a diverse teaching force and an inclusive curriculum that empowers every student.   Russell was born and raised in Oberlin and attended the same school where he now teaches. He was inspired to become a teacher by Larry Thomas, the first Black teacher he ever had. It was a revelation, he recalled, to actually see a teacher who looked like him. Thomas regularly attended student events, always dressed well, and was respected in school and in the community—a model Russell has successfully emulated throughout his career.

Next Pittsburg. Pittsburgh-area student teachers help close pandemic learning gaps   “[PALS] doesn’t only provide help with learning loss with children, it’s also helping to support our preservice teachers to get the hours they need to become a certified teacher,” said Tanya Baronti, apprenticeship coaching coordinator in the education and liberal studies department at Carlow University. Baronti said the state eased its requirement on hours of service for student teachers during the pandemic to allow them to graduate. 

NPR. The education culture war is raging. But for most parents, it’s background noise   …when you zoom in closer, parents seem to like their own kids’ school, and they like their kids’ teachers even more… 88% of respondents agree “my child’s teacher(s) have done the best they could, given the circumstances around the pandemic.” And 82% agree “my child’s school has handled the pandemic well.”

Santa Fe New Mexican.
1) New Mexico governor announces expansion of free child care   Noble and Freeman were most excited about a seemingly smaller investment they believe will make the biggest difference: a stipend for people pursuing degrees in early childhood education at public colleges and universities in New Mexico. That program will take effect May 5. The stipends will provide $2,000 a semester and replace an existing scholarship program run through the Early Childhood Education and Care Department.
2) Public Education Department to eliminate exam requirements for teachers in training   Officials with the state Public Education Department announced Friday they are planning to overhaul the teacher licensing system, scrapping a requirement for the long and costly tests and offering instead a portfolio-based option for teachers in training to demonstrate competence… Currently, the state uses a series of exams through a company called Praxis. 

Texas Tribune. Texas moves one step closer to adopting a new, more rigorous teacher certification exam .   The 11-member State Board for Educator Certification, which oversees the preparation, certification and standards of conduct of public school educators, adopted the Educative Teacher Performance Assessment, also known as the edTPA exam, in a 8-to-1 vote… The State Board of Education must still approve the test before it’s officially adopted for new Texas teachers. The board is expected to consider the matter in June.

The74. Bipartisan Bills in Michigan Would Help Provide Dyslexia Screenings For Kids & Teacher Training    Senate Bill 381, introduced by Sen. Lana Theis (R-Brighton), would mandate teacher preparation institutions to include instruction on the characteristics of dyslexia, the consequences of dyslexia, evidence-based interventions and accommodations for students with dyslexia… Senate Bill 382, introduced by Sen. Dayna Polehanki (D-Livonia), would mandate that new teacher’s certificates only be granted to those who have received instruction on the characteristics of dyslexia, secondary consequences of dyslexia, effective interventions, accommodations for those with dyslexia…

Washington Post. A brief lesson on Roe v. Wade

NEW YORK STATE
New York State Education Dept.
1) Gale OneFile: Educator’s Reference Complete is a fantastic resource for educators and education students.
2) State Education Department Announces Fifth Class of My Brother’s Keeper Fellows   More than $18.45 million in Teacher Opportunity Corps II (TOC II) grants have been awarded to 23 colleges and universities since 2016. The TOC II statewide enrollment as of August 2021 was 647, with TOC II institutions reporting 624 graduates of the program. Eligible applicants are New York State public and independent degree-granting colleges and universities with a teacher preparation (undergraduate or graduate) program approved by NYSED.

NEW YORK CITY
Gothamist. Mayor Adams proposes $7.4 million plan for public schools to address dyslexia   Families and advocacy groups welcomed the news, but say that the city needs to commit to training all teachers across the system on strong, proven literacy strategies that benefit students with dyslexia and other reading challenges, such as training more teachers in evidence-based interventions. 

NYPost. NYC DOE falls short of preparing students with reading skills: advocates   Typically, schools stop prioritizing reading after the early elementary grades, even though many students don’t master the subject before third grade, according to the report. Advocates for Children also found a lack of consistency in reading instruction and teacher trainings across neighborhoods, schools and classrooms.

Teaching Residents at Teachers College. Induction and Beyond. May 2022 Educator Resources.  Special Announcements; Educator Grant Opportunities; Induction Highlights; more…