Through our collaborative efforts to improve education, the Board of Teaching, and MACTE institutions are changing lives. Each semester hundreds of preservice teaching candidates undertake one of the most challenging experiences of their lives; student teaching.  Guided by standards and prepared with strong content knowledge and high quality, research-based pedagogical practices, our candidates courageously enter the new and exciting territory of the classroom.  Most have prepared to enter this wonderful profession because they have hope for the future.

In her book Teaching to Transgress,  bell hooks reminds us of the world of the classroom when she writes:

The classroom, with all its limitations, remains a location of possibility. In that field of possibility we have the opportunity to labor for freedom, to demand of ourselves and our comrades, an openness of mind and heart that allows us to face reality even as we collectively imagine ways to move beyond boundaries, to transgress. This is education as the practice of freedom" (207).

In our candidates we see that the possibilities for a bright future are imaginable and endless. While still novice and in need of long-term faculty development and induction programs, these candidates are the future of our profession.  Across our MACTE institutions one can find examples of student teachers that inspire their students and us alike.  These students assure us that the profession is in incredibly capable and good hands.  Let me introduce you to three such students.  

Ashley imagined and has already taken initiative to create a summer literacy program for English Language Learner preschoolers.  She has developed a curriculum, secured funding, established working arrangements with school administrators, and inspired others to participate in this much needed and freeing experience.

Andrea noticed that one of her students was disinterested in participating in physical education activities. Sensitive to her students, Andrea discovered the flags used for flag football would not fit the student.  On her own initiative, Andrea took two of the flag belts and had a shoemaker custom make a larger one for her student. This imaginative and freeing act did not go unnoticed by her student. The student was not only thrilled, but became one of the most motivated students in the class.

Jonathan, while working with students at an environmental learning center, noticed a young man with Down syndrome sitting alone on a log in the woods. The student had fallen down in a puddle and had decided he wasn’t going to move from his wet and cold perch.  Without a moment’s hesitation, Jonathan threw himself into the puddle and came up with a big smile saying “ how would you like to take a walk?’  Immediately, the young man responded to Jonathan and together they walked hand-in-hand to the interpretive center.  Through these students and their experiences we are continually reminded of the imaginative powers of our candidates and of the freeing possibilities for their students and the profession.  

As presented to the Minnesota Board of Teaching on November 16, 2007:

On your agenda today is the question of the 5-8 specialties for candidates working towards K-6 licensure. Soon you will face a decision on whether to decouple the two licenses, allowing candidates prepared in Minnesota to be treated in the same way as candidates prepared in some other states. This dilemma has been on the Board of Teaching radar for a few years. MACTE has really appreciated Karen Balmer’s efforts to analyze the issues through the work of a task force last winter and through input gathered from constituents around the state through a series of panel discussions this summer. Middle school principals, teachers, and higher education representatives participated in the task force as well as the panels, carefully examining the issue under Karen’s guidance.  We appreciate the analysis that the staff has done to sift through the pluses and minuses of various alternatives in their report on the recommended action.

MACTE concurs with the recommendation to separate the K-6 and 5-8 licensures: moving the 5-8 license to an endorsement that could be added to any licensure area. This change would present higher education with opportunities to address several critical areas of need for K-6 students in our licensure programs. If this change is approved, institutions would likely respond in different ways to the opportunity to modify their K-6 teacher preparation programs. However, we expect many institutions would add content in critical need areas such as special education, English Language Learners, and reading.

Special education is an area that could be addressed in more depth in some elementary education licensure programs. We have heard recently about the increasing numbers of children with autism in Minnesota. We know that understanding Response to Intervention (RTI) is a critical area for general education teachers. Additional training that addresses these issues could be included in K-6 licensure programs.

Emphasis on preparing students to work with English Language Learners (ELL) could also be expanded in a revised K-6 licensure curriculum. Teacher candidates need to know more about English Language Learners and how to help them be successful. English Learners are with their classroom teacher for much of the day. That teacher has primary responsibility for their success in learning English while also meeting the state’s academic standards.

Elementary teachers might also receive more instruction in teaching reading and writing—essential skills for which the foundation is laid in elementary school. These areas are currently being addressed through the standards and corresponding coursework, but the greater flexibility would allow some programs to expand instruction on reading and writing in their curriculums.

 

Last month, the MACTE congress was challenged by a futurist, Gary Marx to think about teacher preparation in the context of our changing world.  We were asked to imagine our students in 5 years, 10 years, and beyond in terms of their preparedness in a society very different from our own experience.  As professionals passionate about education, knowledge and pedagogy, we must embrace the proposition that future trends will change how we do “business” as educational professionals.

In his book, Sixteen Trends: Their Profound Impact on our Future, Gary Marx encourages his audiences to consider the impact of the future trends for students of all ages, education, the community and society as a whole.  As teacher educators, we must seriously examine the future trends if we expect to see the candidates we prepare become effective educators.  We must take responsibility for preparing individuals that will in turn prepare their students to become productive citizens.

As a futurist, Marx believes that all Sixteen Trends will have a profound impact on the future of education.  As an example of one of those trends, Marx states that, “By 2030, 24 percent of our population will be 18 or younger and 31 percent will be 55 or older”.  This will be the first time in the history of our nation that older citizens will outnumber the younger people in our population.  An aging population has a direct impact on the work force and the continuous strain on an already deficient Social Security System.  Marx reports that, “by 2020, it is expected that for every person drawing benefits from the U.S. Social Security System there will be 2.4 people of working age to support them”.  If that statistic is true, I want those 2.4 people to have a skill set that has prepared them for well paying positions in order to support me.

Critical to our existence in this century and centuries to come is a technical expertise that by far exceeds any I have ever needed in my lifetime.  My grandchildren now in kindergarten and first grade will be 21, 22, or 23 in 2023.  The experts in the field of technology tell us that the amount of new technical information is doubling every 2 years.  It is predicted that by 2010 this body of information will double every 72 hours.  According to former Secretary of Education, Richard Riley, the top 10 jobs that will be in demand in 2010 didn’t even exist in 2004.   It appears, then, that we are preparing students for jobs that don’t yet exist using technologies that haven’t yet been invented in order to solve problems not yet known as problems.

Gary Marx would say, “The 21st Century skills we need to teach our students are the skills of collaboration, diplomacy, critical and creative thinking”.  To do so, curriculum must be aligned with standards and assessments, but they must also include more that what can be measured via a paper-pencil test. Therefore, we must seek strategies to develop and improve assessments that measure growth and higher order thinking skills.

No one would argue with the fact that the world is in the midst of rapid change.  However, Marx would contend that due to the impact of rapid change on our world and society, personalization is the key to effective teaching and learning.  As partners in this challenging movement towards educating our society, let’s join our forces to embrace the changing future with “rigor, relevance, high expectations and personalization”.

October 2007

We have made it through the first month of the new school year. The experienced teachers and most students have settled into their academic routines for the year. But research suggests that the new teachers may still be struggling. They have learned about and practiced teaching while enrolled in Minnesota’s standards-based, teacher preparation programs. Now they are finally in their own classrooms – but in a new school, with new students, in a new community, and working with new colleagues and administrators. They may even be teaching a new curriculum. This can all be very overwhelming. How do we support these new teachers once they leave our programs?

In a 2003 article in the journal Educational Leadership, Sharon Feiman-Nemser comments, “More states are mandating induction programs than ever before, and many urban districts offer some kind of support to beginning teachers, usually in the form of mentoring.” Induction is another term often used for supporting new teachers. MACTE continues to believe that induction or mentoring programs are an important initiative that needs to be supported by the Board of Teaching. The new teachers who find themselves in these situations are important to all of us. They represent the product of MACTE teaching and BOT guidance and licensure. They have the ability to connect with their students to inspire learning but are in need of continued support in order to remain in the profession.

Unfortunately we are seeing large numbers of these new teachers leave the profession in the first few years. According to Richard Ingersoll and coauthor Thomas Smith, “The teaching occupation suffers from chronic and relatively high annual turnover compared with many other occupations.” They also note, “The turnover problem, although high for the entire teaching occupation, affects beginning teachers more than others.” Ingersoll and Smith found that about 20% of new teachers who leave teaching report staffing changes in their school or district led to their departure. For the new teachers that do remain, staffing changes often result in them being placed in new positions and often new schools. The University of Minnesota found that only 49% of their second year teacher graduates held the same position they had during their first year of teaching. So, once again, a large portion of new teachers find themselves as “new teachers” in their second year.

How do we, as teacher educators, ensure that these new teachers are receiving the support they need? Ingersoll, Smith, Feiman-Nemser and a number of other researchers have explored the value of mentoring or induction programs for new teachers. The research concludes that mentoring and induction programs help us retain our new teachers. We can’t afford to lose new teachers in the licensure fields where we already have shortages. We don’t want to lose good new teachers in any licensure area. And, we want to help all new teachers develop into even better teachers.

It’s a good time of year to think about our new teachers. As we continue through the coming academic year, MACTE would like to work with the Board of Teaching to support, plan, and implement a teacher induction/mentoring program for new teachers throughout Minnesota.

September 2007

As leaders in teacher education, MACTE serves all learners in an ever-changing society through its commitment to high and consistent standards for every teacher.

On behalf of our entire Minnesota Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, we eagerly anticipate another productive and positive year working together with the Board. We, as always, look forward to serving as a resource for Executive Director Balmer, Chair Johnson, and the entire Board of Teaching.

We also invite all of you to attend our annual Congresses focused on “Embracing the Future to Maximize Human Potential.” Specifically, this year we will be examining a number of the sixteen trends raised by Gary Marx in his book Sixteen Trends: Their Profound Impact on our Future--Implications for Students, Education, Communities, and the Whole Society. Gary Marx will be our keynote presenter at the Fall Congress to be held on October 11-12th. We encourage you to hear what he has to say. For more information please visit our web site. http://www.mnteachered.org/

The MACTE website and its companion MTQM site have undergone extensive revisions this year, so we encourage you to visit both sites soon. As you know, the MTQM site has served several functions. First, it provides potential teacher candidates access to programmatic information about twenty-eight teacher preparation institutions in the state. If one is looking for alternative routes to certification, the site provides a myriad of options to explore. Second, the site has provided our organization and yours important data regarding the number of completers in all licensure areas. We, once again, encourage you to examine these two resources. The MTQM site and data will be rolling out in late fall.

In the September 2007 edition of Educational Leadership, Gordon Donaldson Jr. provides us with an interesting model for thinking about leadership. He suggests many individuals involved in education leadership roles have a lack of understanding about the complexities of leadership. While his article is primarily aimed at K-12 systems, I believe he raises substantive ideas for us all to consider. Central to his model is the notion that hierarchical leadership is not an effective model for an education profession culture that supports a rich egalitarian ethic. As an alternative to a hierarchical model, he suggests a relational model of leadership. Leadership does not reside in individuals, but in the spaces among individuals. Leadership is when we communicate with each other, share wisdom, and, together, influence school life to make learning better for all children. Essentially, he suggests strong leadership must build relationships, maintain a sense of purpose, work for the common good by improving practice, and include a complementary mix of individuals. As always, we value our partnership with the Board, and will strive to continue to build relationships with you in the quiet spaces between the titles, task forces, boards, and organizations.

2007 Legislative Session

MACTE is committed to having a highly qualified teacher in every classroom.  The Minnesota Board of Teaching, the Minnesota Department of Education, Education Minnesota, educational policymakers, school district administrators, school boards, and parents also express this commitment.

What really does stand behind the “highly qualified teacher” heading? It denotes a person who has obtained a bachelor’s degree, is “fully licensed in the core academic subject” that he/she teaches, and has passed the required state licensure tests. However, it is certainly more than a title.  We would refer you to the substance of the definition. It also means someone who:

• Meets the Minnesota standards of effective practice
• Assures the academic success of every learner
• Advocates for every learner
• Demonstrates a positive regard for the safety and welfare of all learners
• Teaches flexibly and manages the classroom responsibly
• Articulates well with parents, teachers and administrators
• Demonstrates a strong commitment to the advancement of shared principles of the school and its data-driven decision-making processes

Minnesota’s current rigorous standards for licensure serve students best. Rigorous teacher licensure ensures strong content knowledge and effective teaching skills. Standards-based licensure programs use multiple measures of content, pedagogy, dispositions, and demonstration of classroom teaching ability. All of the MACTE institutions ensure that individuals are prepared to work with children and youth.  Institutions are committed to working with individuals to meet standards. 

Any route to licensure should ensure a highly qualified educator. Today’s classrooms are demanding and complex. Each classroom contains learners with different abilities, languages, socioeconomic, and ethnic backgrounds. In effective teacher preparation programs, new teachers develop skill in differentiating instruction for learners and helping those learners to develop their own knowledge of content and skills. The integration of content knowledge and pedagogical skills allows teachers to make the content comprehensible to all types of learners and provides the specific knowledge about content specific procedures. Pedagogical instruction and practice during clinical experiences help new teachers manage current classroom complexities. Assessment of candidates’ ability to blend knowledge and skills in practice is imperative for ensuring a well qualified candidate for the classrooms in Minnesota.

All routes to licensure must meet the state standards. All routes to licensure should meet all standards. Minnesota has already invested in proven methods of alternative licensure to meet the needs of career changers who wish to go into teaching. Alternative programs involve weekend and evening programs and online options. All include clinical experiences, content specific pedagogy courses, and evaluation of dispositions.
 

Action Needed:

All teachers new to the profession and new to the state must meet all of the licensure standards

• The legislature should reaffirm the Board of Teaching role in requiring all teachers to meet standards.
• Incentives for hard to staff areas should be provided by the legislature
• Alternate delivery of content for rural and small schools should be supported by state funds so that all children have access to high quality and fully licensed teachers.
• Teacher development and teacher retention serve students best.  Minnesota must support on-going professional and career development for all educators.

 

2007 Legislative Session

MACTE is committed to the success and happiness of all Minnesota children, youth and families.  In this work, MACTE chooses to support and collaborate with groups such as Ready-4-K, NAEYC, NCCCC, and MnAECTE.  The following research findings support aggressive early childhood goals in Minnesota.

Developmentally-appropriate early learning experiences are critical to the success of children later in school and life.   Children who experience early education experiences are more successful in kindergarten and are 40% less likely to be identified for special education and grade retention.  As young adults, these individuals are more likely to graduate from high school, be literate and attend post-secondary education.  In addition, their median annual earnings are higher and are more successful in some other metrics of adult success.

Through active exploration, children in early childhood education settings are provided the opportunity to engage in a broad base of important language, general knowledge, social interaction and experiential skill competencies that serve as a basis for school learning.  Children experience rapid social-emotional, physical and cognitive growth during the first five years of life.  Rich and stimulating experiences maximizes the growth opportunity during these years.  Challenges to health and learning during these years cannot be recovered fully.

In order for every child to succeed, responsive and comprehensive family and community partnerships must be established, mobilizing all appropriate community resources in support of child and family needs as soon as needs are identified.  The Ready-4-K “Building Initiative” project and the Rochester project funded by the Rochester Foundation are examples of coordinated efforts to develop community connections which serve the needs of children and their families during the early, preschool years of life.  Integrated services are more likely to provide coherent and comprehensive assistance across service providers which results in maximized student readiness and rates of families who thrive.

Costs of early childhood school readiness screenings, learning experiences and family education save much more in expenses to families and society across the life of affected individuals.  Rob Grunewald and Art Rolnick of the Minnesota Federal Reserve Bank cite research results -- every $1 spent on early education saves taxpayers up to $12.  These savings consist of education, welfare and crime savings as well as increased tax earnings.  In addition, savings and benefits to families are significant.

A substantial kindergarten experience is necessary to assure all children enter later academic learning situations ready to learn.  Research shows that developmentally appropriate full day kindergarten results in greater achievement gains in first grade and beyond for students.  These gains hold for students of color and students of poverty, therefore serving to decrease achievement gaps.

Action Needed:

All children must arrive to school healthy and ready to learn.

• The legislature should mandate and fund all-day kindergarten for all Minnesota children.
• The Legislature should mandate and fund a full screening (development, health, hearing, dental, speech) for all Minnesota children at age three and at the beginning of kindergarten.  Organizations, agencies, schools and communities should coordinate processes of referral and available services to address the needs of children with identified needs and their families.
• The Legislature should fund the study of the costs and benefits of universal preschool for Minnesota children.
• The Legislature should fund the study of the needs of rapidly growing numbers of preschool-aged Minnesota children with significant and severe disabilities and their families in order to recommend, implement and coordinate appropriate services and interventions.

 

2007 Legislative Session

Enrollment of students of color in Minnesota continues to increase, while enrollment of White non-Hispanic continues to decline. According to the 2006 State of Students of Color, Minnesota had an enrollment of 20% students of color in Minnesota schools. Despite modest gains the achievement gap continues, especially in math, reading, and writing. The report further affirms that students of color are less likely to be prepared for higher education and less likely to enroll in college preparation curriculum in high school. There is considerable overlap of low achievement with poverty, and poverty often correlates with race.

Helping students of color access higher education
A major barrier to students of color in admission to higher education is the lack of experience with higher education in the students’ environment. In order to sustain their motivation as they move from elementary to middle school, students need to see their future role in higher education. The building blocks to ensure success include making sure students are prepared with requisite knowledge and skills as well as encouragement. All the influential people in students’ live play a role, including middle school parents, to establish expectations for students’ future aspirations at two-year and four-year institutions. Family education beginning in middle school is needed to meet this goal. Additionally, the support through campus visits, summer camp experiences on campus, and ongoing tutoring programs provide the tools to help students see a way to get there. Funding for higher education and K-12 schools is needed to further these critical relationships.
 
Building a workforce of teachers of color  
Teachers of color serve as mentors, role models, cultural translators, and advocates for students of color according to a 2004 report, Minority Teacher Recruitment, Development, and Retention from Brown University. The knowledge of community and the world that teachers of color possess affects their interaction with students as well as their effectiveness of instruction. White teachers can misinterpret behaviors of students of color, contributing to their overrepresentation in special education. Teachers who understand the reality of students of color and their families can help overcome the cultural barriers that can block communication between schools and families.

The teacher preparation pipeline begins in high school. Funding is needed for pre-college support programs that include skill development as well as apprenticeships in schools so that students have an experience in a teaching role.  Scholarships for potential teachers of color, support structures for test preparation, and creation of a support network for inservice and preservice teachers of color are needed.

Action Needed by Minnesota Legislature:

• Funding for programs to support middle and high school students in poverty so that access to higher education is in their picture of the future
• Funding for scholarships and incentives for new Teachers of Color

Action Needed by Higher Education:

• Further partnerships with K-12 schools to develop college access programs
• Recruit more faculty of color
• Utilize personal recruitment strategies targeting students of color who may be interested in teaching

 

2007 Legislative Session

The National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future (NCTAF) released a report titled Induction into Learning Communities (http://www.nctaf.org/home.php). This research builds on their earlier report, No Dream Denied (2003), which re-directed the nation’s attention from teacher shortage to teacher retention. Induction into Learning Communities “examines data on induction’s impact on teacher retention and emerging information on induction’s effects on improving student learning, and goes in-depth on models of strong mentoring programs in the U.S. and comprehensive induction systems in other countries.”  Based on both a national and international review of successful induction programs, NCTAF found the following:

• Induction should be a stage in teacher development.
• Induction should support entry into a learning community.
• Mentoring is a useful component of induction, but it is only one element of a comprehensive induction system.
• External networks supported by online technologies can add value.
• Induction is a good investment. Teachers become more effective with experience and teacher effectiveness is directly related to P-12 student learning.  Highly effective teachers tend to stay in the profession longer, saving the district money for recruiting and creating a more stable learning environment for students.

Several years ago, the Minnesota Board of Teaching in collaboration with the Minnesota Department of Education commissioned eight teacher induction programs to be piloted across the state.  Although the results of those pilots were not widely disseminated, they supported the findings in the 2005 NCTAF report: engaging teachers from all experience levels in a learning community has a positive impact on teaching and learning. 

Action Needed:

All teachers new to the profession engage in a year-long induction and mentoring program. 

• The Minnesota legislature should increase funding to all school districts by 1%.  These monies would be used to provide structured induction and mentoring for all new teachers in the district. 
• Board of Teaching-approved teacher preparation programs would partner with districts to assist with new teacher induction.