Improving Teachers and Education
All students deserve
outstanding teachers. Arguably, those students most at educational
risk because of the economic condition of their families, limited
English proficiency, or disability require teachers and classrooms
of the highest quality (National Commission on Teaching & America's
Future, 1996). Policymakers and educators alike have identified teacher
preparation deficiencies that affect teacher quality. Among them are
an insufficient, poorly designed curriculum delivered in an uninspired
manner (e.g., The National Commission on Teaching and America's Schools,
1996); inadequate links between teacher education, liberal arts programs,
and K-12 schools (e.g., Goodlad, 1994); and the attraction of weak
candidates into the teaching profession (Rigden, 1996). Suggestions
for reforming these weaknesses have included the articulation of strong
standards for pre-service teachers in content, liberal arts, and pedagogy;
the adoption of strong models of teaching and learning across the
university program; the development of improved K-12 field experiences
for students and faculty, and improved collaboration across schools
of liberal arts, education, and K-12 systems (e.g., Interstate New
Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium, 1992; National Commission
on Teaching and America's Future, 1996; Holmes Group, 1990).
Vision of SCTEA
The vision of the Southern Colorado Teacher Alliance is that K-16 classrooms be transformed into communities of learners in which all members (1) are challenged to higher levels of thinking, to solve problems, to generate questions, and to use data and technology appropriately; (2) see themselves as sources of knowledge, seeking multiple sources of knowledge, and (3) successfully use literacy and other skills to learn and interact across disciplines and in real world settings.
Such a vision requires teachers who know their content and related pedagogy, who can address the needs of diverse learners in various contexts, who create optimal conditions for achievement, and who are committed to lifelong learning. Two concurrent reform efforts are required in order to effect this vision for teachers and learners: reform in the education of beginning teachers and reform in the professional development of current teachers (Sparks & Hirsh, 1997). For purposes of this initiative, the focus will be on the transformation of the preparation of beginning teachers, even though the expectation is that current teachers' roles as mentors, cooperating teachers, and master teachers will be developed and impact learning in their classrooms.
Purpose of the Project
The purpose of the Project is the transformation of the teacher education program at the Colorado State University - Pueblo into a collaborative effort of PK-12 schools, institutions of higher education, and other stakeholders in the southern region of Colorado. To assure the success of the Project, the alliance will extend the concept of community of learners to all partners, with shared responsibilities and ongoing collaboration and dialogue about teaching and learning. Through the activities of the consortium, all stakeholders will have a voice in the development of the program, will feel a shared responsibility for success of the program, and will contribute to its success. Input from partners who have different educational missions and different expertise, shared in meaningful ways, will result in improvements in the quality of pre-service teacher preparation across southern Colorado.
In preliminary working meetings to plan the partnership, representatives of local educational agencies (LEA's) in southern Colorado and the business community, as well as faculty from the liberal arts and sciences and professional education at the Colorado State University - Pueblo agreed on the following principles to guide the transformation of teacher education:
- Systemic and deliberate responsibility of all major stakeholders for the preparation of beginning teachers.
- Implementation of effective teaching and learning processes for all learners in standards based classrooms.
- Addressing of student needs and learning outcomes and closing student achievement gaps.
- Refinement of clinical and field experiences for pre-service teachers.
- Strengthening of content specific and generic teaching skills (i.e., deeper understanding of both academic disciplines and specific pedagogical approaches).
- Provision of consultation, planning, and facilitation services for beginning teachers, mentors, cooperating teachers, and master teachers.
- Continuous improvement of performance of all whose roles impact the preparation of beginning teachers.
- Appropriate and fair support for all participants in project activities (e.g., release time, stipends, recognition, respect for tenure).
- Transformation based on best practices for teacher education at pre-service and Inservice levels (such as suggested by Sparks & Hirsh, 1997).
- Hiring practices which support the standards established for beginning teachers by the Project.
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Teacher Education Program
Colorado State University-Pueblo
2200 Bonforte Blvd.
Pueblo, Colorado 81001-4901
(719) 549-2681
This page last updated: Thursday, April 14, 2005 - 3:02:04 PM
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