Mastering Teacher Leadership
The “Ohio Department of Education through legislator’s approval implemented new standards that impacted teacher’s certification to teach within Ohio’s public and private schools” (Schindler & Cooper, 2001). “Under the new standards, teachers certified to teach in 2002 or later will need to complete a master’s degree after their initial licensure within a five-to-seven year window” (Ohio Department of Education, 1999). Wittenberg University, centrally located in Ohio, has historical offered professional programs in education for K-12 programs and, other undergraduate studies. “Of the other six universities and colleges within central Ohio, only two currently offers Master of Arts degree in teaching” (Schindler & Cooper, 2001). There was an expected increase of enrollment in universities to fulfill the new Department of Education teacher’s certification standard. The purpose of Wittenberg University’s study was to “identify resources that might contribute to a master’s program and, explore the opportunity for offering a Master of Arts degree in Classroom Leadership” (Schindler & Cooper, 2001).
Methodology
Wittenberg University used a descriptive technique to determine the research design plan. First, “Wittenberg’s administrators conducted a brainstorming session to identify university resources for the master’s program” (Schindler & Cooper, 2001). Next, “the administrators participated in a retreat with an Ohio Department of Education consultant” (Schindler & Cooper, 2001). One of the outcomes of the retreat was the advantages of a liberal arts-based program. Finally, “Wittenberg Center for Professional Development (WittCPD) conducted three focus groups. Two groups consisted of Springfield City distr...
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...versity marketed surveys mailing them to 2,000 practicing teacher with a return rate of 763. The study had limitations that compromise the integrity of the findings. As illustrated on the survey, there were many blank responses. Wittenberg University met the task of locating resources that contributed to the master’s program, while the survey tool was insufficient to measure the viability of starting the program.
References
Ohio Department of Education. (1999). Report onThe Quality of Teacher Education in Ohio. Government Publication, Department of Education. Ohio Department of Education. Retrieved from http://cdm16007.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/singleitem/collection/p267401ccp2/id/837/rec/84
Schindler, P. S., & Cooper, D. R. (2001). Mastering Teacher Leadership. Retrieved from www.wittenberg.edu: www.quirks.com/CGI-BIN/SM40i.exe?docid=3000:58911&%70assArticleID=409
A Race to the Bottom is a highly informative article detailing a study conducted by Arthur Levine. It relates to the quality of educational administration programs across various college and university campuses. This analysis will discuss the core concepts, logic, contexts, arguments and justifications, major points, and state my personal evaluation of the article.
166-173). Linda Darling-Hammond (2000) discusses how teacher education has changed and how it has affected our education system (p. 166). The author also notes how even the most intelligent people found it hard to prosper in the field without the right skills and preparation (Darling-Hammond, 2000, p. 166-173). In the article, she presents how post baccalaureate programs are carefully structured, versus alternative routes which can be no more than backup employment options. Darling-Hammond (2000) also addresses how it becomes difficult for aspiring teachers to learn both subject matter and pedagogy (p.
Leadership training programs allow for teachers to use their professional experience as an educator and combine it with the academic and hands on experience of being a leader by providing a comprehensive program. Leadership “…is learnable by providing real world leadership training” (Ramsey, 2006, p.xx). The training program prepares educators to be leaders and equips them with the tools necessary to be an effective leader. There is a need for an “,,,infusion ...
Almost all teachers, certainly all public school teachers who want to obtain tenure, will seek and complete a master's level of study in the subject that they are teaching, or in education. This is not a benchmark to measure teachers by, but a requirement in all of America's public school districts. Not all will continue to a doctoral study. Many teachers find satisfaction with their economic, career and development without pursuing a doctorate. There are important benchmarks of doctoral study to consider before beginning.
During Teach For America's first year of operation, the organization received applications from 2,500 candidates and chose 500 of them to become teachers for the program who began their two-year teaching commitment in low-income communities all across the cou...
It is a well-known fact that students entering higher education increasingly lack the academic skills necessary to succeed in their collegiate endeavors. It goes without saying that this is largely due to the widespread substandard education provided by legions of mediocre teachers—teachers who deliver shoddy instruction due to their own innately inferior academic abilities. At least, these facts are what Notre Dame Professor of Philosophy Gary Gutting would have readers of The Chronicle of Higher Education believe in his article “Why College Is Not a Commodity.” Although he makes many points that, if true, would be damning of the elementary and secondary teaching professions, Gutting stops short of proving his arguments logically or empirically. He claims today’s budding K-12 teachers often come from the bottom of the heap academically, directly leading to poor teaching—yet he provides no research to back up this connection. Furthermore, Gutting attempts to provide a solution to this so-called travesty by recommending that teaching be “professionalized,” ignoring the already-present professional practices and standards present. Gutting’s critiques, though thought-provoking, ultimately are logically and statistically unsatisfying in both their explanations of the state of teacher qualifications and in their calls to action.
Several of the major reform initiatives of the 1980s and early 1990s argued that improving education requires improving teacher quality and, accordingly, teacher education. Numerous changes in teacher recruitment, preparation, and certification were proposed. (For a detailed list, see Hartley, Mantle-Bromley, and Cobb 1996.) In response to the calls for reform, general teacher education programs raised admission standards/exit requirements; revised curricula to reflect multiculturalism and new K-12 standards; paid more attention to pedagogy, teaching practice, and relevance; included clinical experiences in public schools and other learning environments; and proposed new model standards/principles for licensing beginning teachers (Lynch 1997).
Public education in the United States of America continuously faces many challenges – diverse student body, overcrowded classrooms, and lack of resources. Besides, many think that in order to provide quality of education for all students we need to improve effectiveness of our teachers. It is necessary to evaluate existing school teachers routinely. However, it will not be sufficient for improving the teacher body overall. Not only have we needed to evaluate existing teachers. It is especially important to ensure that young inexperienced teacher candidates are prepared to educate all students and meet their academic needs. Ravitch points out that “we don’t need to hire bad teachers” ( 69??? ) Thus, we need to ensure that prospective teacher candidates upon their graduation possess necessary skills to support student learning and take charge of their classrooms from day one. That is why New York and 25 other states are currently in the process of changing the way they give their initial certification. The new legislation is expected to take place in New York State beginning May 1, 2014. All candidates graduating at that time and thereafter will be subjected to the new Teacher Performance Assessment or edTPA.
National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education. (2007). Professional standards for the accreditation of schools, colleges, and departments of education. Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved from: http://www.ncate.org
This paper will describe two studies, one quantitative and the other a mixed method, which dealt with aspects of educational leadership. The studies chosen for review were conducted by Bush, et al. (2005), a study that reported participant results in a Leadership Academy, and another by Somech (2005) in which the results of an investigational study of leadership styles, participative and directive, with regard to their impact upon managing school effectiveness. To offer a deeper understanding of the respective studies, a discussion follows that details the design rationa...
“Critical Issues Facing the Teaching Profession” The South Carolina Center for Teacher Recrutement (2004) http://www.cerra.org/sectionone.pdf
York-Barr, J. & K. Duke (2004) what do we know about teacher leadership? Findings from two decades of scholarship. Review of educational research 74(3), 255-316.
The state’s new evaluation system was in response to administrators who produced, “superficial and capricious teacher evaluation systems that often don't even directly address the quality of instruction, much less measure students' learning” (Toch, 2008). Too often, the “good-ol-boy” attitude would insure mediocre educators would remain employed. Realizing this was often more the rule then the exception, the governor created educational mandates to focus, “on supporting and training effective teachers to drive student achievement” (Marzano Center, 2013). Initially, they expected the school districts and the teachers would have issues and experience growing pains, but in the end the goal was, “to improve teacher performance, year by year, with a corresponding rise in student achievement” (Marzano Center, 2013).
The role of teacher leader has been defined as “teachers who aspire to stretch beyond their classrooms to engage in leadership roles that take many shapes and forms, both “informal and formal”. (ECS, 2010). Teacher leadership has also been described as “the process by which teachers, individually and collectively, influence their colleagues, principals, and other members of the school community to improve learning practices with the aim of increased student learning and achievement.” (ECS, 2010). In years past, a majority of teacher leadership roles took the form of department chair, committee chair, grade level chair, etc. It was more of a representative role versus a leadership role. Their responsibility primarily involved dispersing information from administration to their counterparts and taking information back to administration from the group. Their position lacked decision-making power and true leadership that brings about “real” change. These tasks are still viewed as opportunities for teacher leadership; however, recently, the
U.S. Department of Education . (2009, 11 06). Teacher Quality Partnership Grant Program. Retrieved 11 19, 2013, from www.ed.gov: http://www2.ed.gov/programs/tqpartnership/index.html