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.

 

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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”.