microsoft word editor's welcome.docx vol. 1, no. 2, january 2013 editors’ welcome james marshall, patrick newell, paul beare california state university, fresno this issue of educational renaissance is devoted to documenting the proceedings from the fall 2012 joint conference of the renaissance group (trg) and the teacher education council of state colleges and universities (tecscu) at the key bridge marriott, arlington, va, september 30 october 2, 2012. the conference, entitled “the proof of effective partnerships: educators meeting the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century,” highlighted outstanding examples of innovative partnerships in teacher preparation. here we present one article and the proceedings from five selected conference presentations, as well as the multimedia slides from five other sessions. we begin the issue with an article by susan tracz, effectiveness of teacher education programs: a descriptive aggregation of supervisor ratings of teachers trained by the renaissance group (trg) and the teacher education council of state colleges and universities (tecscu) institutions. in the article, dr. tracz synthesizes data on employer’s ratings of teachers trained in fourteen trg and tecscu institutions. following the article are the proceedings from five conference sessions: • kennesaw state university – collaborative clinical practice by jennifer heckert, toni strieker and maria shaheen, kennesaw state university • trg/western kentucky university: all university collaboration model by barbara burch, sam evans, and david lee, western kentucky university • sunbay digital mathematics: a scalable collaboration by vivian fueyo and george roy, university of south florida st. petersburg • winthrop university – school partnership network by lisa johnson and jennie rakestraw, winthrop university • innovative pds partnerships for effective teaching and learning by bradley balch, indiana state university     in addition to the conference proceedings, the multimedia presentations submitted for this issue include:   • transition to common core: reinventing collaboration by virginia (ginny) boris   • three models of collaboration for emporia state university by kenneth a. weaver and j. phillip bennett   • the best program: butler/emporia students to teachers by kenneth a. weaver and j. phillip bennett   • teaching 2030: leveraging teacher prep 2.0 by barnett berry, center for teaching quality   • hayward promise neighborhood: a transformational partnership by carolyn nelson     these presentations can be viewed by visiting http://www.renaissancegroup.org.   microsoft word 0. editor's welcome winter 2014.docx vol. 2, no. 2, feb 2014 editors’ welcome james marshall, patrick newell, paul beare california state university, fresno this issue of educational renaissance includes a featured research article and the selected proceedings from the fall 2013 joint conference of tecscu and trg held september 28 to october 1 in arlington, virginia. the issue features a research article from our teacher education colleagues at western kentucky university. the study examines the inter-rater reliability of the teacher work sample scoring rubric. the teacher work sample was the original “signature project” of the renaissance group and continues to be used widely by universities across the country. following the featured article is the selected conference proceedings from the fall 2013 joint conference of tecscu and trg. the proceedings include reflections on the conference by trg’s executive director, dr. michael giovannetti and tecscu’s president-elect, dr. katy heyning. at the conference, dr. john welty, president emeritus of california state university, fresno and renaissance leadership award recipient in 2013, shared his “reflection on the future of higher education.” this “last lecture” is also included in the proceedings. finally two papers were selected for inclusion in the conference proceedings: 1. common core state standards (ccss) – higher education’s role in developing education professionals: an evaluation of the network for instructional support and enhancement (nise) program at the university of central missouri, and 2. transforming clinical practice in teacher education through pre-service co-teaching and coaching. these two articles are not only very timely, but they cover issues of critical importance to the field of teacher education. we are confident that you will find this issue to be both interesting and useful. page intentionally blank   microsoft word editor's welcome summ 2013.docx vol. 2, no. 1, june 2013 editors’ welcome james marshall, patrick newell, paul beare california state university, fresno this issue of educational renaissance contains an eclectic collection of four articles illustrating the tremendously diverse nature of the teacher preparation enterprise. included in this issue is everything from curriculum redesign in an early childhood and elementary teacher preparation program, to the use of technology by math and science teacher candidates during student teaching, to a case study of a new urban education program. the issue begins with a commentary on current political trends in teacher preparation and the implications of these trends for the future of the renaissance group authored by the organizations executive director, dr. michael giovannetti. the first article is a descriptive description of the journey taken by a group of researchers at winthrop university as they endeavored to redesign their early childhood and elementary teacher education programs. the details of this journey offer a roadmap for the program revision process leading toward substantial improvement in teacher education. in the next article, researchers from western kentucky share their study on how effectively student teachers use technology to complement their teaching in mathematics and science. using the teacher work sample as a capstone project, teacher candidates reveal how they use technology to enhance their teaching goals. the final article highlights a case study of early findings from a new urban education teacher preparation program. the author, from kennesaw state university, describes four themes that emerged from the qualitative study: commitment, challenge, perceived benefits, and selfefficacy, and how these themes evolved into overconfidence within the teacher candidates. we are confident that you will find this issue to be both stimulating and provocative. page intentionally blank   microsoft word 0. giovannetti-the next generation 2.docx vol. 2, no. 1, june 2013, pp. 3-6 the renaissance group – “the next generation” michael giovannetti, executive director the renaissance group the “next generation” refers to the generation after the present one. the term is also used in manufacturing, especially for hardware and software, and even star trek has a "next generation" of cast members. i am especially attracted to the expression, given it offers a sense of hope and encouragement; although the past and present generations of the renaissance group (trg) have contributed in important ways to supporting and improving educator preparation programs throughout america, the next generation must be more creative in assembling the latest education puzzle and vehemently embrace the expressed and anticipated challenges and opportunities facing p-20 education today, employing the best possible strategies designed to support and strengthened this basic american institution. education is power, and this fundamental, inalienable right of all americans to have access to the powerful tool of a quality education cannot be minimized or allowed to slowly slip away. however, before characteristically defining the next generation of trg members and offering some personal thoughts about what trg’s next generation needs to look like and be able to do, let us quickly review the past 24 years of the life of the renaissance group. the renaissance group, a national consortium of colleges and universities, was conceived in the year 1989, a tumultuous time of increased expectations for schools and for teacher preparation programs. the criticism directed at our higher education institutions and educator preparation programs gave energy, purpose and serious motivation to counter that criticism to the university presidents, provosts, and deans who first gathered at the university of northern iowa in the spring of 1989 and to those who joined them in a series of meetings that followed. the educational leaders of the late 1980’s, representing the top leadership of the finest higher education institutions in the country, were visionary in their belief and firm in their conviction that the education of teachers must become an all-campus responsibility. the movement, as it was appropriately labeled, was established for the purpose of redirecting that criticism; with this mission came a rebirth of ideas, strategies, and initiatives genuinely developed to improve, articulate, and demonstrate the quality and effectiveness of america’s leading educator preparation institutions. the first 24 years of the renaissance group witnessed a number of reactions from a dissatisfied america relative to student achievement, leading to ‘a nation at risk’ in 1983, a national effort designed to improve the academic performance levels of american high school students. in 2001, the ‘no child left behind’ legislation focused on improving student achievement levels by raising academic standards for all p-12 students; in 2009, ‘race to the top’ challenged all educators to enforce rigorous standards and assessments for all students; and presently the 4   m.  giovannetti   ‘common core state standards’ have taken center stage for the educational rebirth of america’s p-20 institutions, serving as a forceful reminder that achievement standards need to be seriously addressed in all corners of the country in order to regain the prominent place in world leadership once associated with the united states of america. for years, members of the renaissance group, as well as colleagues from tecscu, aascu, and aacte, have responded positively and constructively to these and other challenges, as leaders and authors of educational initiatives and events, by developing and sharing research-based best practices, regularly communicating with the u.s. department of education and elected representatives at local, state and national levels, and serving on state and national education committees. member institutions of these organizations have been effectively preparing the majority of teachers, counselors, and administrators for america’s schools since the beginning of the twentieth century. for a more detailed description of the contributions of the renaissance group, read “the chronicles of the renaissance group” in the electronic journal, educational renaissance (giovannetti, 2012). in spite of the work and efforts of the many faculty and administrators from our higher education institutions, criticism of public education and public educators in america will undoubtedly continue, as evidenced by the events referenced above, and by the newest proposed “cure-all”, the great act. senator michael bennet, democrat from colorado, introduced senate bill 1250 on june 22, 2011. the bill, growing excellent achievement training academies for teachers and principals (the great act), died and was referred to committee; it was re-introduced as senate bill 1052 on may 23, 2013, again sponsored by senator bennet, and co-sponsored by senators alexander (r-tn), mikulski (d-md), kirk (r-il), klobuchar (d-mn), and landrieu (d-la). claiming support for the bill are the new schools venture fund, democrats for education reform, stand for children, teach for america, and the national council for teacher quality, just to name the leading contributors. should our schools and colleges of education be concerned about this latest effort? is this a movement orchestrated to remove the practice of preparing the country’s educators from local colleges and universities? should higher education institutions, public and private, be concerned? will teacher prep academies, as referenced in senate bill 1052, replace schools and colleges of education? let us examine the content of this proposed legislation to draw our own conclusions. the great act, authorizes the secretary of education to award grants to states to (1) create or approve teacher or principal preparation academies and create or designate authorizers of those academies; (2) support the creation and operation of such academies; and (3) award sub-grants to nonprofit entities to establish or expand such academies, measure their effectiveness, or recruit enrollees who have demonstrated strong potential to be effective teachers or principals. additionally, it requires each academy to enter into a charter with an authorizer that specifies the goals and outcomes expected of the academy and the obligations of the authorizer. furthermore, it prohibits authorizers from renewing an academy's charter if it fails to produce the minimum number or percentage of effective teachers or principals specified in its charter. the great act requires each academy to provide (1) enrollees with a significant portion of their training through clinical preparation that partners them with successful teacher or principal mentors, and (2) awards certificates of completion only to graduates who demonstrate a track record of success in preparing students for college and careers. additional requirements mandate the next generation 5 (1) state grantees to recognize a certificate of completion from an academy as at least the equivalent of a master's degree in education for the purposes of teacher or principal hiring, retention, compensation, and promotion in the state, and (2) directs the secretary of education to enter into an interagency agreement with the corporation for national and community service, under which the corporation approves national service positions for candidates at each teacher or principal preparation academy receiving financial assistance under this act. in light of these latest affronts, how will the next generation of educational leaders respond? what strategies or tools will they use? who is “the next generation?” as executive director of the renaissance group since july 1, 2008, working with members and friends of trg, and having evidenced educational leadership and teaching “par excellence,” i have some thoughts about the essential qualities of this next generation, particularly as the executive office of trg is preparing to relocate to another member institution after eight years of residence at california state university, fresno. the renaissance group comprises institutions of mid-to-large size and comprehensive in programming and is the only national consortium of colleges and universities in which presidents, provosts, deans of education and deans of arts and sciences commit to the preparation of educators as an all-campus responsibility, addressed in collaboration with local pk-12 school districts. these institutions have sizeable teacher education programs indicating that the program serves an important segment of the institution’s mission. furthermore, they are committed to the following additional principles and demonstrate that commitment: the member institution values and models teaching excellence. teacher preparation is integrated across the curricula of general education, in-depth subject matter content, and professional studies in both general content and specific teaching methodologies. the education of teachers incorporates extensive and sequenced field and clinical experiences in various settings with effective supervision. the institution meets and exceeds national and state standards for the preparation of school personnel. the university assesses learner outcomes in order to monitor its program effectiveness and assure teacher quality. pre-service teachers and faculty members reflect our pluralistic society and are committed to the education of all students in diverse schools. the continuing professional development of teachers is the shared responsibility of the individual, the university faculty, and other professional educators. the university provides learning experiences and mentoring that develop teachers who are creative and innovative leaders, and integrates technology throughout its teacher preparation program. in order to continue and improve upon these valued, needed practices, the next generation of trg members must continue to brave the implementation of these principles, respecting the organization’s unique structure and culture. the survival of colleges of teacher education depends on it. tomorrow’s educators cannot be prepared by entities, such as those outlined in the great act, or by groups, which include the national council of teacher quality. the divideand-conquer strategy used by these entities is never too old or outdated; it still works exceptionally well today, as demonstrated by tactics from the above-referenced groups. for these simple, basic reasons, the united, unconditional voice of organizations like trg, tecscu, aascu and aacte has never before been more important, more meaningful, and so very much needed as it is today. the next generation of educational leaders cannot operate in 6   m.  giovannetti   isolation. knowing our institutions are better equipped and more capable than anyone else to prepare highly qualified teachers is no longer sufficient. we must join forces and voices and form highly visible, effective partnerships internally, externally, and with local school districts. together we can more convincingly demonstrate how the educators we prepare are the very best qualified to teach and support all students in america’s schools. there is no mystery regarding how the next generation of educators must act in order to grow the tradition of excellence promised and practiced for over 100 years in our public schools. we must demonstrate with our work and actions that we can improve student achievement, not for some students but for all students, through positive, proactive actions, not reactions or defensive arguments. our energy must be spent on cultivating measurable evidence that illustrates the effectiveness of our educator preparation practices. by doing so, our century-old traditions of educational excellence will be renewed, respected, and reborn. this is the renaissance group, the next generation, ready to turn the pages of the next chapter, operable from anywhere in the united states of america, moving education forward, and serving generations to come. microsoft word final in pdf vol. 1, no. 2, january 2013, pp. 97-102 trg/western kentucky university: all university collaboration model barbara burch, sam evans, and david lee western kentucky university 98 b. burch, s. evans and d. lee trg/western kentucky university: all university collaboration model as an institution built on the foundation of a normal school, collaboration among faculty members and across program areas and academic units has been part of western kentucky university’s (wku) heritage since 1906. in addition to the various collaborative initiatives across campus, there are a variety of initiatives that involve various agencies across the community, including ongoing partnerships with local and area school districts, p-16 councils, and the green river region educational cooperative. these collaborations have been enhanced, especially since the court decision resulting in kentucky’s educational reform act (kera) in 1990 (rose v. council, 1989). in the early 1990’s the college of education and behavioral sciences created the task force on education reform – high schools and the task force on research based instructional strategies to facilitate institutional work relative to kera. both task forces involved faculty from what is now the ogden college of science and engineering and the potter college of arts and letters. in addition to the added focus on collaborative initiatives with the onset of kera, wku has had a tradition of hiring faculty members in content areas who have pedagogical backgrounds. not only has this facilitated collaborative efforts across the university, it has also strengthened our ability to bridge theory and application and to connect the on-campus learning opportunities with teacher candidate experiences in p-12 clinical settings. the various collaborative initiatives are designed and implemented from a win-win perspective with credit going to the group rather than an individual unit or person. promotion and tenure expectations convey the value placed on collaborative initiatives and work with our p-12 and community partners. collaboration involves opportunities for success along with potential risks, with the absence of success often resulting in new ways of looking at our work and the creation of new collaborative efforts. the following is a description of three collaborative efforts that have involved three colleges at wku and community partners. stem initiatives in an effort to increase the number of high quality teachers in the areas of mathematics and the sciences, wku was successful in receiving an exxon/mobile award to replicate the uteach model for educating stem focused teachers at the middle and secondary levels. based on feedback from the reviewers of the application, it became apparent that one of the strengths of the proposal related to the strong collaboration between the college of education and behavioral sciences and the ogden of science and engineering. the proposal development team was questioned as reviewers could not believe that the two colleges really worked so closely. the uteach replication model at the university of texas at austin at wku is known as skyteach and is highly successful in attracting and matriculating individuals who have expressed a desire to make a difference in student learning in stem (science, technology and mathematics) areas. while the program is unique, earlier collaborations strengthened wku’s capacity to craft a successful proposal. many of the earlier collaborations were related to wku involvement in teachers for a new era learning network (poliakoff, dailey, white, 2011) that involved participation by faculty members from across the university and the above-mentioned colleges. through our involvement in the learning network and critically looking at our programs to prepare educators across the various disciplines, proposals were written and funded all university collaboration model 99 to not only review our curriculum but to develop innovative ways to prepare classroom teachers to make a difference in p-12 student learning. through a critical review of our stem programs and the ability of our teachers to make a difference in student learning, one of the first gaps identified related to the capacity of elementary teachers in the areas of mathematics and science. pedagogical content courses were developed by faculty members and incorporated in a pilot master’s degree program. while the pilot master’s degree program did not evolve into a new program, the collaborative efforts did encourage conversations about pedagogical graduate degrees related to content disciplines in ogden college and influenced the conceptualization of the proposal resulting in our current skyteach program. in addition to the work in the stem areas, content faculty members in the disciplines aligned with the teaching of history and the social sciences began looking at their content courses relative to kentucky’s standards and revisions were made in numerous courses. the above work lead to a commitment to provide mentoring for new teachers and faculty members in the three colleges who were trained along with p-12 educators. a task force was created that involved individuals from all constituent groups. unfortunately, state professional development funding for the participating school districts was significantly cut, and wku was not able to fully implement the program. however, the commitment that was developed among the faculty to provide quality mentoring programs is evident in the skyteach program. wku’s skyteach program has been highly successful with an enrollment of approximately 250 students seeking middle and high school certification in mathematics or various science disciplines. students complete a content area major along with a major in science and mathematics education and are mentored in their pedagogy courses by the instructor of record and university-based master teachers. student feedback on experiences has been very positive as exemplified by the following comments provided by recent graduates: “i not only grew conceptually, but i also was able to practice what i learned in an arena.”; “it teaches you not to be the typical teachers.”; and “it is all about the relationships.” (mason, 2012). building on the skyteach model, wku applied for and received a u.s. department of education title ii teacher quality partnership award to develop and implement a graduate-level residency program in partnership with the jefferson county public schools (jcps) in louisville, ky. graduates of the program have a three-year commitment to the jefferson county public schools; two cohorts of math, chemistry or physics teachers are currently employed by jcps. strings program collaboration has also been at the heart of a very successful program in the performing arts that linked the wku music department with area schools. the department had tried unsuccessfully for years to develop a strings program. in 2001, a local philanthropist endowed the conductor’s position for the university symphony. the endowment carried the stipulation that the conductor must take an active role in developing strings education for young people in bowling green and warren county, kentucky. after an extensive national search, the department hired a conductor with a strong background in public education as well as outstanding credentials as a musician. working with the university’s division of extended learning and outreach (delo), the department created a partnership with the city school system and the county school system, offering strings education initially in the 4th grade and then adding a grade each year. simultaneously, delo and the music department also created a pre-college strings program to give private lessons to individual students. 100 b. burch, s. evans and d. lee the results are spectacular. the original 4th graders are now seniors, and 25 have stayed with the program the entire time. the city and county schools together now have 450 string students, and bowling green high school has more than 50 students in its orchestra. while the systems originally contracted with wku for instruction—providing valuable revenue to the music department--both the city and county have hired full-time string teachers, an impressive commitment at a time of shrinking budgets. simultaneously, the income from the program made it possible for the music department to begin to hire full-time faculty members. over the past several years, it has hired three full-time faculty members in strings, and the department is attracting majors in strings for the first time. in short, through a rather unique collaboration with two local school systems, the university was able to accomplish something that it had failed to achieve on its own. through pooled resources and common goals, we created shared success. a generous donor and the university’s continuing education unit played very important roles as well, and the superintendents of the two school systems were willing to try a new idea and to adopt it broadly when it proved to be viable and a good thing for their students. the result was a success story at a time when the arts often struggle in the public schools. in the process, this partnership enriched the cultural life of our community, created a learning opportunity for hundreds of young people, established a new program at the university, and created five new full-time jobs in the arts. literacy initiative the partnerships described above have provided both a strong foundation for wku’s participation in college and career readiness initiatives with area schools and the implementation of professional development experiences for university faculty members. as schools explore new ways of structuring student learning experiences and move toward a model of personalized learning, higher education must rethink its work in a way that will provide a seamless transition from high school. much of the impetus for change at the postsecondary level resulted from the passage of senate bill 1, education assessment act (2009) and senate bill 163 adolescent reading skills act (2009) which included specific mandates related but not limited to literacy, p-12 student learning standards educator preparation programs, and faculty teaching general education courses. with expectations that college students will be held accountable for their assignments, efforts have been made to provide faculty members with the necessary knowledge and skills relative to literacy. professional development opportunities have been provided by faculty members from the literacy and psychology programs for faculty in a variety of departments across campus including history, chemistry, and physics. in addition to the focused professional development opportunities in previous years, wku has made a commitment to provide professional development to all members of the faculty on the common core standards for english language arts (literacy) and senate bill 1 mandates during the 2012-2013 academic year. looking to the future these three specific collaborative initiatives are indicative of the types of commitment that has long been present in our university. however, it is not enough for those of us who are all university collaboration model 101 dedicated to the business of educating educators and advancing the learning of all students to assume that these types of collaborative initiatives will be sufficient to meet the needs of schools in the future. it is clear that elevating the status of the profession and further enhancing the quality of educator preparation will require even more intentional collaborations and partnering as we move forward. the call for preparation programs to be more clinically based carries with it changing roles for university-based teacher educators – both in education schools as well as in other academic departments – and for our colleagues in the school practice sites. one of the greatest barriers to achieving the kinds of partnerships essential to the work of teacher educators will be trying to find ways to establish new roles, recognition, and reward systems as well as new methods of accounting for work-time within the constraints and cultures of many of our institutions. partnerships require time and effort. in 1986, the all-university responsibility for teacher education initiative was launched by the california state university system by then-chancellor, w. ann reynolds. the initiative recognized both that 75-80% of the education of prospective teachers occurred through academic departments and that the issues surrounding the preparation of teachers could not be resolved without the university-wide efforts of faculty and administrators (campus progress reports, 1989). while many campuses still espouse this philosophy and framework for teacher preparation, it is clear that current pressures shaping higher education institutions may make it increasingly difficult to effectively operationalize this philosophy. partnerships and clinical educator preparation take more resources than programs that are more heavily campus based. such initiatives as common core state standards (2010) make it even more compelling that teachers gain the content knowledge needed in their classrooms, and this classroom content may not always be the focus of the academic majors taken by prospective teachers. faculty members are also being continuously reminded of the need to find ways to “do more with less.” in this environment, it may be very difficult, if not impossible, to gain the support needed to significantly enhance the clinical aspects of teacher education programs. there will also have to be adaptations in criteria for tenure, promotion, and other recognition systems to support the work of university faculty who are engaged in the partnering required in extensive clinical delivery systems. embracing what we have learned from the partnerships that we have successfully created will be essential as we move forward to a future that demands more collaboration both across the university and with our school partners. it may be that some of the most important initial partnering will come among the university-based educator preparation programs as they seek ways to support one another in shared efforts to expand partnerships and also achieve a university culture that will recognize, value, and assure that future partnerships can be sustained. 102 b. burch, s. evans and d. lee references adolescent reading skills act, 2009 kentucky general assembly, sb01630.100.1732 (2009). education assessment act, 2009 kentucky general assembly, sb000120.100.803 (2009). mason, c. (2012, september 21) $3m funds wku’s skyteach program. daily news, p. 3a. national governors association center for best practices & council of chief state school officers. (2010). common core state standards. washington, dc: author. poliakoff, a. r., dailey, c. r., and white, r. (2011). pursuing excellence in teacher preparation: evidence of institutional change from tne learning network universities. washington, dc: aed national institute for work and learning. reynolds, w. a. (1986, march 1). requirements for admission to teacher education basic credential programs, student teaching, and university recommendations for a teaching credential, executive order no. 476. long beach, ca: author. rose v. council for better education, inc., 1989 microsoft word 2. giovannetti-feb 2014.docx vol. 2, no. 2, feb 2014, pp. 19-22 fall 2013 joint conference of tecscu and trg: reflections michael giovannetti, executive director, the renaissance group (trg) katy heyning, president-elect, the teacher education council of state colleges and universities (tecscu) after months of preparation by the conference planners of tecscu and trg, the two national organizations and perhaps the very best “friends” of educator preparation programs and initiatives in america, greeted approximately 80 colleagues and friends at key bridge marriott in arlington, va, a most welcoming, familiar location. this year’s event marked the eight anniversary of the fall conference at this facility, five years for the renaissance group (trg), and three years as a joint venture with tecscu and trg. overlooking the nation’s capital and historic georgetown, the key bridge marriott is located four miles from ronald reagan washington national airport and within three blocks of the washington metro system. the riverside hotel is a five-minute walk to the francis scott key bridge, linking arlington, virginia to the capitol district. the iwo jima memorial, arlington national cemetery, the pentagon, the kennedy center, and downtown georgetown are all within five miles of the hotel. the conference program was purposely designed to address various aspects of america’s latest educational reform, the common core state standards. the theme,"parlez vous common core standards? implications and recommendations for p-20 instructional leaders at local, state and national levels” was successfully delivered as intended. however, given opportunities to improve teaching and learning are no stranger to public p-20 education, it is important to note that speaking the language of the common core state standards is only a first effort, and the ultimate goal is to achieve high levels of proficiency, if educators hope to attain a meaningful level of success with its implementation. the dates of the fall joint conference, september 28-october 1, 2013 proved to be a great choice. although prominent signs of a beautiful fall season were displayed throughout the countryside, with picture-perfect weather that could redirect even the most dedicated professionals to the outdoors, the conference content and engaging sessions did not give way to those temptations, as evidenced by the impressive number of participants at all presentations. the “shut down” of government offices and facilities prior to the closing of the conference did however limit the final phase of the conference, which was dedicated to congressional visits. the deans’ leadership institute held on saturday, september 28, opened three and one half-days of timely professional development for educators from a number of states, higher education institutions, as well as their partner school districts. the program provided opportunities for participants to actively engage in effective leadership and partnership building scenarios particularly as they related to engaging faculty in the common core state standards. using rubrics designed for managing change in the adoption of the common core standards, participants were invited to conduct an audit of existing opportunities within their respective institutions. finally, using a case study approach, program facilitators presented on effective advocacy as it related to strengthening voice of higher education in teacher education related 20   m. giovannetti and k. heyning   policy and practices. much of the day, sunday, september 29, was dedicated to tecscu’s executive committee and trg’s board of governors for the purpose of conducting the organizations’ regular business, including discussions and plans for the future. the official conference opening took place at 5:00 p.m., with welcome messages by trg’s and tecscu’s leadership, followed by a motivating keynote address by dr. jacqueline (jaci) king, director higher education collaboration, smarter balanced assessment consortium. dr. king provided an overview of the work of the smarter balanced consortium, the opportunities and challenges for all educators in k-12 schools and school districts, as well as in higher education institutions. the consortium is comprised of 26 states and territories, working collaboratively to build next-generation formative, interim and summative assessments for k-12 schools tied to the common core state standards in english language arts/literacy and mathematics. preparing all students to be college and career ready is the ultimate goal of this initiative, offering all educators new opportunities to improve teaching and learning, including opportunities for higher education to enhance educator preparation programs, improve college readiness, reduce remediation, strengthen lower division courses and boost completion rates. her message was very well received, setting the perfect stage for the next two days. the capital view ballroom, located on the 14th floor of the conference facility, was the site of the conference reception, which followed the keynote presentation, offering all guests a spectacular moon-lit view of georgetown and washington dc. the ambiance, the assortment of delicious treats and libations, and the lively exchange of thoughts, ideas and stories by the participants brought perfect closure to the first day of the fall 2013 joint conference of tecscu and trg. he following one and one half days were carefully designed to offer a menu of promising/best practices in the form of concurrent and general sessions. twenty such presentations were offered, including: common core across higher education: implications for practice; common core implementation: leadership opportunities for school of education; higher education’s role in developing education professionals; transforming teacher education through coaching pre-service co-teaching; bringing computational thinking to k12 teachers: effective professional development models and strategies; the mouse is dead: welcome to the post pc era; professional development partnerships: growth for educators and students; partnerships make a difference: pre-service candidates working with diverse populations; teacher residency: collaboration for instructional shifts in common core, and many more, all focused on the challenges and opportunities for the implementation of common core state standards. the luncheon on monday, september 30, featured dr. john welty, president emeritus of california state university, fresno, long-time supporter of educator preparation programs, trg and tecscu. dr. welty shared his reflections on the future, reminding us about some of the inevitable changes resulting from technology innovations and consumer demands, and the opportunities these present for all educators in p-20 instructional settings. dr. john welty was also the recipient of this year’s renaissance leadership award, in recognition of his many years of support and commendable leadership to educator preparation programs and to the renaissance group. dr. paul beare, dean, kremen school of education and human development at california state university, fresno was given a special award for his leadership and unconditional support in hosting the renaissance group for the past nine years. effective january 1, 2014, the renaissance group’s new home will be the university of central missouri, and dr. cathy barlow, provost emeritus at the university of north carolina, wilmington will conference reflections 21 lead the “next generation” of trg as executive director, replacing dr. michael giovannetti after his retirement in december 2013. the fall 2013 joint conference of tecscu and trg closed on tuesday, october 1 on a very positive note, following the aft panel presentation and discussion led by dr. william buxton, associate professor at the state university of new york cortland and ms. marla ucellikashyap, assistant to the aft president for educational issues, the take-away session led by dr. arlinda eaton and dr. kenneth witmer, and closing remarks by dr. john counts, president, trg and dr. mary gendernalik-cooper, president tecscu. during the three and one half days of the conference, particularly in the evening, participants found time for networking and personal/social enrichment experiences, individually and collectively planned. the renaissance group is now preparing to present the next issue of its ejournal, educational renaissance, to feature fall 2013 joint conference proceedings, and other important aspects of the program. the conference evaluations received thus far have spelled success, and work is underway for planning meaningful professional development opportunities for all members of tecscu and trg during 2014 and beyond. 22   m. giovannetti and k. heyning   page intentionally blank microsoft word 04-jm.docx vol. 1, no. 1, august 2012, pp. 43-44 presidential perspectives, engaging a region to transform its future john d. welty, president california state university, fresno presidential perspectives, engaging a region to transform its future on july 11, 2011, fresno california was designated as one of the six initial communities for the strong cities, strong communities (sc2) initiative, a new and customized pilot project by the obama administration to strengthen local capacity and spur economic growth in local communities. a team of federal administrators representing the environmental protection agency (pa), the economic development agency (eda), the u.s. department of agriculture (usda), the department of transportation (dot), the u.s. department of housing and urban development (hud), the minority business development agency (mbda), the u.s. department of health and human services (hhs), and the u.s. department of labor (dol) will work with local governments, the private sector, and other institutions to leverage federal dollars and support the work being done at the local level to encourage community development. federal administrators will be on site and housed at fresno city hall. by integrating government investments and partnering with local communities, sc2 channels the resources of the federal government to help empower cities with established planning and strong leadership as they develop and implement their vision for economic growth. this designation culminates years of work by region leaders to align resources and build a network to transform a region. fresno began its path to good planning and strong leadership with the establishment of fresno state’s futures institute in 1991. co-founded by the president of california state university, fresno, john welty, the fresno business council (fbc) brought together key leaders within the private sector who were committed to transformation of the community. fresno was experiencing a continuing rise in crime, low per capita income and high unemployment, a fragmented and often combative community, and a vacuum of steward leadership. the university adopted a vision statement stating “we will become new california’s premier engaged university, nationally recognized for our teaching, learning, transformational scholarship, and dynamic leadership which engages faculty, students, staff, and community in mutually beneficial and respectful collaboration benefiting the region and society as a whole.” the fbc sought to improve underlying conditions in key domains defined by many as the three e’s – economy, environment and equity. in fresno, these were defined as four spheres: economic development, infrastructure development, human development, and the whole, where the reality of interdependence and steward leadership guides the thinking. the focus was j. welty 44 on shifting the economy from a primarily low cost, single industry model to a more diversified set of industries driving innovation. since 1991, fresno state has been the leading partner with the fbc, in creating and implementing the fresno regional jobs initiative (rji) and the california partnership for the san joaquin valley (partnership), each of which rely on stewardship building and collaboration. established in 2003, the rji leads the continued implementation of the innovative regional economic development. administered by the office of community and economic development (oced), this comprehensive strategy involves industry, government, education, training, and community leaders creating strategic initiatives that leverage regional assets for fundamental change. rji is a partnership between private businesses and public/non-profit agencies centered around 12 industry clusters. rji was credited with bringing sectors together to assist in the generation of over 17,000 jobs. the c a l i f o r n i a partnership was created by governor schwarzenegger in 2005 to address the many issues and obstacles facing eight counties, 62 cities, and 4 million residents within the 27,000 square mile san joaquin valley. oced is the partnership secretariat. the partnership convenes experts and leaders committed to sustainable economic development, environmental stewardship and human advocacy. oced and t h e c a l i f o r n i a partnership received, coordinated or assisted in securing $5.5 billion in state and federal funding for the valley; established the central california workforce collaborative; created two 501©(3) organizations (the san joaquin valley clean energy organization and the san joaquin valley housing collaborative); established the central valley higher education consortium; and completed the san joaquin valley blueprint, a guide for future valley to the year 2050, including 12 smart growth principles. fresno mayor ashley swearengin, said it best “this federal effort recognizes the value of the strategic planning that we’ve already begun to revitalize in our economy and our city. we’ve made significant progress in our efforts, but there is still much more to be done” microsoft word 5-indiana final.docx vol. 1, no. 2, january 2013, pp. 121-126 innovative pds partnerships for effective teaching and learning bradley balch indiana state university would you like to breathe energy into your university-school district partnership? at indiana state university (isu), two clinical immersion imperatives and four partnership contexts provide an innovative focus that adds deeper meaning and intentionality to educator preparation. b. balch 122 clinical immersion our educator preparation programs had been migrating to more clinically intensive programming for several years, but the support of our k-12 partners was essential if we were to emphasize early and continuous clinical teaching experiences to enhance preparation efforts. as a first step, we developed the distinctive teachers of tomorrow advancing learning (total) internship for elementary and special education majors and an immersion program for secondary and all-grades majors. prior to student teaching, all elementary and special education teacher candidates spend a semester in the total program, becoming fully immersed and actively engaged in schoolbuilding activities including teaching, professional development, assessment, and administrative tasks. there is a structured, growth-oriented support model in place with total, with continuous feedback from cooperating teachers, administrators, and faculty. after two weeks of instruction, elementary and special education teacher candidates in the semester prior to student teaching go into schools four full days a week for an immersion experience. they are paired with a classroom teacher and are never alone with k-12 students. cooperating teachers are prepared by isu faculty in pre-service teacher supervision before being allowed to host a total intern. the total semester provides opportunities for remediation for those who are not meeting expectations before they enter the student teaching phase. our solid partnership with the college of arts and sciences as well as with our k-12 partners allowed us to focus on a tripartite approach to create the immersion program for secondary and all-grades programs. an immersion experience pairs teacher candidates with a classroom teacher for five weeks. the candidates are engaged for one instructional period a day for five days a week. the candidate acts as a classroom aide and then takes on the role of teacher for a unit of instruction lasting five to eight days. the candidate plans, delivers, assesses, reflects upon outcomes of, and provides remediation for the instructional unit. moreover, the candidate produces a report of the unit and its effectiveness, basing conclusions on student academic achievement. the candidate learns the school improvement goals and incorporates these into the instructional practices as appropriate to the goals and the setting. finally, the candidate is engaged in the larger school culture through a series of learning modules designed to help the candidate understand how schools work across units to support students’ development and academic achievement. as a second step towards greater clinical immersion, isu committed to a clinical faculty associate (cfa) position. the cfa model provides unique opportunities for k-12 educators to work as full-time temporary faculty in the department of elementary, early, and special education or the department of curriculum, instruction, and media technology with other university faculty responsible for the elementary or secondary teacher education programs. because of an indiana state statute, cfas are allowed a one-year sabbatical and return to their teaching position with tenure intact. cfas supervise interns and student teachers, work with veteran teachers, co-teach with regular university faculty, and provide professional development. in some cases, cfas teach the introductory elementary or secondary education course, exposing isu teacher candidates to current classroom practices early in their programs of study. innovative pds partnerships 123 partnership contexts in an effort to more fully understand our maturing partnership, isu and our key k-12 partner, the vigo county school corporation, engaged in a process of dialogue that realized four critical contexts. these included building partnership capacity, supporting and sustaining change, fostering a collegial and collaborative partnership, and developing critical questions. since 1992, isu has had a continuous professional development schools (pds) partnership with the vigo county school corporation. the partnership includes nine schools, 6,921 k-12 students, 418 k-12 faculty, 130 higher education faculty, and 1,400 pre-service candidates. as riggins (2001) noted, partnerships such as these require strong district support, appropriate administrative authority, and community buy-in. understanding the myriad of education reform challenges that k-12 and higher education must face, the partnership members decided to take advantage of the long-standing history of alliances and committed themselves to an innovative conceptual framework for change that was values-infused. building partnership capacity partnerships are the creation of networks (edens & gilsinan, 2005), often developed without any rules (engeln, 2003). however, in an effort to strengthen the partnership framework, it was decided to build capacity immersed in shared values. engeln (2003) suggested the following guiding principles: • begin with a discussion about values, goals, and needs; • respect and reflect the culture and goals of both partners; • support the core mission of the school district; • strengthen student well-being; • complement the social values and goals of the school district and university (p. 39). supporting and sustaining change institutional partnerships include a recognition and understanding of change as it relates to teaching and learning. change, then, is strongly correlated to improvement. effective university-school district partnerships can support and sustain change initiatives in meaningful and systemic ways that result in teaching and learning improvements. wholesale adoption of other partnerships’ successes rarely yields positive results. barth (1990) referred to this as “list logic” (p. 37). effective institutional partners understand change theory in relation to the unique needs of their district and university. tomlinson and allan (2000) described change principles. the partnership focused on seven, which included the following: 1. change is imperative; 2. for schools to become what they ought to be, systemic change is needed; 3. change is difficult, slow, and uncertain; 4. to change schools, the culture of schools must change; 5. what leaders do speaks with greater force than what is said; 6. change efforts need to link with a wider world; and 7. leaders for change have a results-based orientation. b. balch 124 change is often “riddled with dilemmas, ambivalences, and paradoxes” (fullan, 1991, p. 350). effective partners recognize this, practicing patience and persistence. most importantly, the partnership must model change and how to deal with the challenges of change initiatives. modeling change can render the partnership vulnerable since a roadmap for change does not exist and uncertainty looms over every change initiative. however, university-school district partners who remain focused on the vision and mission of the partnership can model focused and aligned change. fostering a collegial and collaborative partnership strong partners value a collegial and collaborative environment. glatthorn (1997) noted that more effective schools have a climate characterized by collegiality. collegiality (i.e., the equal empowerment of partners sharing a common purpose) is enhanced when collaboration (i.e., working together effectively) is practiced. a collegial and collaborative partnership should not be confused with a congenial (i.e., agreeable) partnership. a congenial partnership is nice and usually indicative of stakeholders who enjoy gathering together to talk and discuss; however, congenial conversations are often not about the complex and difficult work of the partnership. it is easy to mistake a congenial conversation for collaborative and collegial conversations. effective partners move beyond congenial relationships, striving for collaborative and collegial efforts focused on the vision and mission of the partnership. these efforts are embedded in datadriven decisions, effective use of resources, diverse perspectives, alignment, and an all-students orientation. developing critical questions effective partnerships share a common attribute: they ask critical questions. questioning is a powerful tool for seeking clarity about stakeholder roles. further, thoughtful questions seek deeper meaning and understanding. the single most important question partnership stakeholders can ask is, “what is working and what is not?” be advised! do not ask this question unless you are willing to listen and respond to the answer. if the question is asked, be prepared to respond.: it is the imperative of the partnership and an opportunity to support challenging improvement efforts laden in change. asking and listening to “why” and “how” questions will yield answers that are deeply rooted in motivation. it is generally accepted that motivation is an internal state or condition that activates and energizes behavior and gives it direction (kleinginna & kleinginna, 1981). understanding the motivators that result in effective actions and behaviors regarding teaching and learning assists the partnership in reaching its full potential. “why are we collecting data?” “why do we need assessment?” “how can we accomplish this for all students?” “why did you decide to implement this change?” “why must i attend this meeting?” these questions and their answers are deeply rooted in motivation. conclusion amid the innovative efforts to strengthen our clinical immersion programming and deepen our partnership with the vigo county school corporation, challenges remain. supervision and evaluation of student teaching is not as comprehensive as the total and innovative pds partnerships 125 immersion programs. in fact, many classroom teachers have expressed a preference for having a total intern or immersion candidate over hosting a student teacher. additionally, scheduling challenges, the absence of quality and uninterrupted reflection time for the candidate and host teacher, and resistance from some faculty have prevented the immersion experience for secondary candidates from reaching its full potential. finally, clinically based programs are resource intensive; building these strategic efforts into the base budget to ensure sustainable commitments takes time and support at the level of executive leadership. b. balch 126 references barth, r. s. (1990). improving schools from within: teachers, parents, and principals can make the difference. san francisco, ca: jossey-bass. edens, r., & gilsinan, j. (2005). rethinking school partnerships. education and urban society, 37(2), 123. engeln, j. t. (2003). guiding school/business partnerships. education digest, 68(7), 36-40. fullan, m. (1991). the new meaning of educational change (2nd ed.). new york, ny: teachers college press. glatthorn, a. a. (1997). differentiated supervision. alexandria, va: association for supervision and curriculum development. kleinginna, p. r., & kleinginna, a. m. (1981). a categorized list of emotion definitions with suggestions for a consensual definition. motivation and emotion, 5, 345-359. riggins, c. (2001). smaller learning settings help our kids. education digest 67(4), 31-32. tomlinson, c. a., & allan, s. d. (2000). leadership for differentiating schools and classrooms. alexandria, va: association for supervision and curriculum development. microsoft word 05-jm.docx vol. 1, no. 1, august 2012, pp. 45-46 an expectation of collaboration w. richard smith, deputy superintendent sanger unified school district, sanger, ca an expectation of collaboration i recently took a flight across california in an extremely small commuter airplane. i was seated directly behind the pilot and co-pilot and could hear them as they went about their preparations for the flight. they began this process by first announcing to one another where the flight was bound. they then moved through their checklist of pre-flight items announcing loudly to one another, “check!” at one point the co-pilot called out the fuel levels and the weight of the plane. only after they completed this process did they go about the business of starting and flying the plane to our destination. these two highly trained, professional pilots had just undertaken and applied a collaborative approach to ensuring that everyone on our plane traveled safely and that we all arrived at the intended destination. as i reflected upon their exchange i was struck by the absence of this type of collaboration among teachers and education professionals. these pilots had worked as a team focusing on a shared goal, working interdependently, and holding one another mutually accountable to ensure that the work was done correctly to accomplish their mission. interdependence, mutual accountability, and a focus on a shared goal are the attributes of successful teams in a professional learning community (plc) environment. teachers working in a plc environment work collaboratively focused on ensuring the learning of all students. they strive to answer four basic questions that drive the process of collaboration; what do we want our students to learn? how will we know when they have learned it? how will we respond when learning has not occurred? how will we respond when learning has already taken place? tradition holds that individual teachers, working in isolation, seek to answer these questions for their students. in a plc approach, a team of teachers works to answer these questions together for the benefit of all students that they serve. the team seeks to support one another as they work for the solutions to what is to be learned, how they will assess learning, how they re-teach those who have not learned, and how to enrich and deepen the learning for w. smith 46 those students who have already learned a concept. teachers working in a plc review data, discuss best practices, and learn from and support one another. like the pilots of my airplane, teachers working collaborative make sure that the team knows the destination; they check the important data, provide for the safety of their passengers, and then ensure that everyone reaches the destination. when and if problems occur, the team works together to overcome them. the questions then become how can we ensure that our teachers work as a plc and why haven’t they to this point? a culture of isolation and lack of training often appear as the biggest culprits. for decades america’s teachers have been trained to focus on the curriculum, manage their classrooms, and implement strategies as individual teachers in their own classrooms. little or no time was spent discussing how we might share and collaborate to overcome the myriad of obstacles that confront the instruction and learning of the children that come to us. it is no wonder that, when confronted by a class of 20-35 varied learners who come from a broad spectrum of backgrounds, at varying levels of proficiency and needs, individual teachers feel overwhelmed or unprepared to provide solutions. as a team of teachers working together in a plc, these obstacles are not removed, but the selection of potential solutions, strategies, and approaches provides each team member greater opportunity to meet the needs of their students. the pilots of my airplane did not show up one day, get handed the keys to the plane, and decide to fly it to a destination. they were trained and given opportunities to develop and learn their profession. a major component to their training was learning to work together collaboratively. we must take on this same work in the education profession. we must train teachers to know their curriculum, classroom management, and instructional strategies, but we must also teach them how to work collaboratively. we must teach them how to work in a plc focused on student learning. we must remove the perceived expectation and traditional acceptance of isolation in teacher training. we must train teachers to work as a team of professionals supporting one another, and this must become the norm and rather than the exception. when i get on an airplane my expectation is that the pilot and co-pilot are a team and are working together to get me to my destination. should we expect less from teachers with their students? microsoft word 1. curr redesign-summ 2013.docx vol. 2, no. 1, june 2013, pp. 7-15 tracing a journey of curriculum redesign in education: are we there yet? judy britt, christine ferguson, jonatha vare winthrop university abstract the phrase “are we there yet?” is used by travelers, often children who pose the question to gauge the distance and time remaining in a trip. how far have we traveled? how much longer will it be until we arrive at our destination? this article describes curriculum redesign for our early childhood and elementary education programs at winthrop university in south carolina. the details of this journey offer a roadmap of the program revision process that we encountered in our efforts to work toward continuous improvement in teacher education. by working with program faculty from within our college as well as faculty from the college of arts and sciences we accomplished our goals for curriculum redesign. as we enter the final phase of this 2-year endeavor, our writing documents the process that we encountered to achieve this goal. 8   j. britt, c. ferguson, and j. vare   travelers, often children, pose questions to gauge the distance and time remaining in a trip, “are we there yet?” how far have we traveled? how much longer will it be until we arrive at our destination? this case study describes curriculum redesign for our early childhood and elementary education programs at winthrop university in south carolina. the details of this journey offer a chronicle of the program revision process that a task force of faculty encountered in their efforts to work toward continuous improvement in teacher education. by working with program faculty from within the college of education as well as faculty from the college of arts and sciences, members of a task force accomplished their goals for curriculum redesign. as the group enters the final phase of this two-year endeavor, our article documents the process that the task force encountered to achieve this goal. for many years, teacher preparation programs have emphasized segmented academic preparation and course work with loosely connected school-based experiences. critics, policymakers, teachers, and school leaders have raised concerns that today’s teacher education programs are inadequately preparing educators to keep pace with 21st century classrooms and new technologies as well as ensuring that novice teachers are well-prepared to strengthen student learning (ncate, 2010). the national research council (nrc) report (2010), preparing teachers: building evidence for sound policy, identified clinical preparation (or “field experience) as one of the three “aspects of teacher preparation that are likely to have the highest potential for effects on outcomes for students,” along with content knowledge and the quality of teacher candidates (p.180).” the ncate blue ribbon panel (2010) recommends a national approach to teacher preparation reform that includes clinically based preparation interwoven with academic content and professional courses. this clinically-based approach requires that teacher education programs work in close partnership with schools and school districts as well as engage in shared decision making in the redesign of teacher preparation, selection of and placement of candidates in their schools, assessment of candidate performance and progress, and documentation of candidate impact on student learning. based on these recommendations and the teacher education faculty’s efforts to work toward continuous improvement in teacher education, the task force set out to redesign the curriculum for two initial certification programs through a clinically based, partnership approach. background the richard w. riley college of education (coe) at winthrop university in south carolina has offered a bachelor of science in elementary education (b.s. elem) and a bachelor of science in early childhood (b.s eced) degree for many years. the teacher certification earned by elementary education majors is aligned with the association for childhood education international (acei) 2007 standards and south carolina certification guidelines for students in grades 2-6. the early childhood program is aligned with the national association for the education of young children (naeyc) 2010 standards and south carolina certification guidelines for students in grades pre-k – 3. winthrop university adheres to the principles espoused by the renaissance group to improve the quality of teacher preparation (renaissance group, 2011). for example, the task force’s curriculum redesign effort involved faculty from multiple departments and colleges on campus in the implementation of coe initiatives to improve preparation of early childhood and elementary teachers. as part of netscope (network of sustained, collaborative, ongoing, preparation for educators), a u.s. department of education teacher quality grant obtained by winthrop curriculum redesign 9 university, the college of education’s dean charged an interdisciplinary task force of early childhood, elementary, education core, literacy, and special education faculty with the mission of transforming program design to align with recommendations of the ncate blue ribbon panel (ncate, 2010). awarded in 2009, netscope facilitates a network of educators and schools with the ultimate goal of improving student achievement. beginning in 2010, the college of education used the netscope grant to orchestrate changes in the professional education core curriculum. the netscope grant also supplied the funding and the impetus for making fundamental changes in eced and elem programs. the transformative curriculum redesign began during the spring semester of 201l with plans for full implementation in fall 2013. a three-fold rationale guided the program modification work: (a) to prepare early childhood and elementary candidates to meet fully the diverse needs of students in south carolina schools; (b) to prepare early childhood and elementary candidates to demonstrate content and pedagogical knowledge within a framework of comprehensive field-based applications; and (c) to provide eced and elem graduates with the opportunity to add on early childhood or elementary certification by successfully meeting praxis ii requirements for the south carolina certification. the first goal addressed the need to fully prepare candidates to work with diverse groups of students in classroom settings, including english language learners, gifted learners, students with special needs in inclusive classrooms, and students living in poverty. in today’s schools, teacher preparation programs must focus on meeting the diverse needs of all learners to make instruction culturally responsive and to improve student achievement (darling-hammond, 2006). the second goal addressed the need to prepare early childhood and elementary candidates to demonstrate content and pedagogical knowledge within a framework of comprehensive fieldbased applications. faculty identified a need for program modifications to engage candidates in multiple and diverse field-based settings that are woven into courses on content, child development, methods, classroom management, and technology and to ensure that candidates work with diverse learners throughout the four-year program to prepare them fully for high quality standards-based instruction (bornfreund, 2011). the third goal provided both early childhood and elementary graduates with the option to add on certification for both programs by completing the required coursework for both programs and successfully passing praxis ii requirements for each certification. this comprehensive preparation provides teacher candidates with the knowledge and skills and deep understanding of how children develop across grades prek-6 (bornfreund, 2011). based on previous collaborative work with candidates, graduates, and administrators within the coe community, early childhood and elementary faculty members concluded that offering increased certification opportunities for program graduates is essential for substantive improvement. the beginning: implementing a vision for programs in eced and eled to facilitate the work, the dean constituted a curriculum transformation task force to represent the stakeholders in the process of program revision. a diverse group of faculty members representing early childhood and elementary education, literacy education, the education core, and special education comprised the task force. the group’s approach to program revision began with a combination of small and whole small group discussions in which each program shared a vision for their programs. during these small group sessions, program faculty defined fundamental principles to establish a vision for their programs. beginning with faculty beliefs, the group identified important themes to provide an infrastructure for program design. 10   j. britt, c. ferguson, and j. vare   after meeting in small group sessions, faculty met in whole-group sessions to present the principles that were developed in the smaller groups. during this debriefing process faculty looked for common ground and found that the two programs (eced and elem) shared common ideals for making a difference in how their graduates approached teaching. guiding principles for program design confirmed a commitment to diversity and standards-based learning within a framework of field-based implementation. based on these early meetings in which faculty looked for common themes, the complex process of curriculum design began. the term complex serves as a euphemism for the give and take among faculty members who asserted their own passion and unique insight in the program revision process. going beyond sharing beliefs to providing a risk-free environment for fruitful discussions and innovation presented task force members with important challenges throughout the process. the following themes, illuminated through small group discussions, established the guiding vision for curriculum redesign: • academic content • learner diversity • additional clinical experiences • enhanced literacy content and pedagogy • age-appropriate content pedagogy • assessment of student learning monthly meetings raised a range of issues that small groups discussed and brought to the larger group for consideration. a summary of proposals that were presented to the group traced the meandering nature of ideas that came and went throughout the spring and summer of 2011 and continued into the 2011-2012 academic year. each phase of the curriculum redesign process involved a give and take of ideas. for each proposal, faculty discussed pros and cons of the various ideas. throughout this process, individual faculty brought forward a plethora of issues and proposals for the group to consider. reaching consensus required time and patience. faculty considered and rejected some early proposals for a variety of reasons. for instance, in response to a proposal that outlined an interdisciplinary approach to methods courses in math, science and social studies, faculty members from various departments decided that content-specific methods courses presented the best approach to developing content knowledge for the elementary program. another rejected proposal was to merge eced and elem programs for a k-6 certification but it did not align with south carolina standards for teacher certification. and finally, the group did not pursue the development of an early childhood special education program because of the additional hours that would have been added for completion. successful plans focused on implementing the group’s collective beliefs regarding what teachers should know and be able to do in pre-k-6 classrooms. the group maintained its focus on implementing an overarching goal of developing a content-rich, real-world approach to preparing teachers for today’s classroom. task force members succeeded in finding areas of commonality while maintaining the integrity of program specific standards. some innovative ideas developed by the task force included the following: • comprehensive field-based experiences woven throughout each program; • a leveled approach to content methods courses for eced and elem (students in each program take six hours of methods in math, science and social studies); curriculum redesign 11 • a curriculum-integration course for eced and elem majors during a year-long internship; • a comprehensive literacy sequence for both programs; and • work involving faculty members from multiple departments in the coe and the college of arts and sciences, including the following activities: o collaboration with special education faculty to develop an applied behavior analysis course to prepare teachers for challenging classroom behaviors; o work with arts faculty to develop an interdisciplinary approach to teaching through an integrated arts course that replaces separate courses in art, music, dance, and theatre; o input from mathematics instructors regarding mathematics requirements for both programs; o development of a children’s literature course aligned with general education goals to meet humanities requirements; and o the addition of assignments requiring work with families of diverse learners to an early childhood course to align with the university’s global perspective requirements. following the tedious process of organizing a sequence for each program, the next steps focused on meeting national standards and state requirements for teacher certification for both pre-k through grade three as well as grades two through six in both programs. table one shows how themes and transformational program components align with recommendations of professional groups such as ncate, naeyc, and acei. table 1. program components and alignment with recommendations of professional groups. themes transformational program components alignment with recommendations of professional groups ncate standards ncate blue ribbon panel early education policy initiative naeyc stds acei stds renaissance group principles academic content strong content preparation x x x x learner diversity skills to meet the needs of diverse learners (e.g., english language learners, gifted and exceptional learners in inclusive classrooms, students from diverse family backgrounds) x x x 12   j. britt, c. ferguson, and j. vare   additional clinical experiences early field experiences in junior-year methods courses; year-long senior internship x x x enhanced literacy content and pedagogy literacy instruction for emergent, beginning, struggling, transitional, intermediate, and advanced readers and writers x x ageappropriate content pedagogy sequences of content-specific methods courses in both early childhood and elementary grades (i.e., prek-3, 2-6) x x x assessment of student learning methods of formative and summative assessment; capstone course assessment of teacher candidate impact on student learning x x x the middle: meeting state and national guidelines for teacher preparation by first looking at certification requirements in other programs within the state, the task force concluded that graduates would be better prepared for the demands of the contemporary job market with a broader range of grade level certifications than currently available. the group agreed that that its curriculum redesign would increase candidates’ opportunities for teacher certification and employment throughout the region by building in options for certification in pre-k through grade three as well as grades two through six. the overarching benefit for the program modification described here aims to provide better preparation for both majors in content and pedagogical knowledge as they develop deeper understanding of earlier and later developmental stages and appropriate methods for teaching all students. planning a program that incorporates coursework for an eced, as well as an elem, certification enables our graduates to meet south carolina requirements for teaching pre-k – curriculum redesign 13 grade three and elementary grades two through six. by taking the appropriate praxis ii exams, our candidates can increase their certification options for teaching any grade in an elementary school. the end: providing a plan for evaluation and assessment as members of the task force organized the curriculum redesign for the eced and elem programs, layers of assessment emerged. the development of an assessment plan for candidates and their programs formed the foundation of eced and elem program modifications. the praxis ii requirements provide a useful tool to assess candidates’ content and pedagogical knowledge. based on the curriculum redesign, elem graduates will take coursework required for a south carolina teacher’s certificate (second through sixth grades) in elementary education and qualify for an add-on certification in early childhood education (pre-k through grade three). likewise, eced graduates will take coursework required for certification in early childhood education and qualify for add-on certification in elementary education. each graduate must take the praxis ii for his or her major program (eced or elem) with an option to take the required praxis ii for the additional certification. assessment plans use praxis ii along with other assessments to evaluate individual learning as well as program goals. the college of education has an established process for data collection, aggregation, and dissemination. program assessment plans for key assessments, data collection, and analysis comply with national council for accreditation of teacher education (ncate) requirements. since each program adheres to a different specialized professional association (spa), the task force decided that each program would maintain a separate approach to ncate (now the council for the accreditation of educator preparation, caep) evaluation and assessment. are we there yet? the curriculum transformation task force completed a successful journey toward curriculum redesign. during the fall 2012 semester the college of education received notification of approval from the south carolina department of education and the south carolina commission of higher education (che) regarding program changes for the b. s. in early childhood education and b. s. in elementary education. the task force achieved its goal to prepare candidates to work with diverse groups of students in classroom settings with full implementation of yearlong internships that immerse candidates in diverse school settings. changes in early courses and field placements helped achieve the goal to prepare early childhood and elementary candidates to demonstrate content and pedagogical knowledge within a framework of field-based applications. candidates in eced and elem develop content and pedagogical knowledge with six hours of content methods in math, science, and social studies. program changes also achieve the third goal of providing both early childhood and elementary graduates with the option to obtain certification in both programs by completing the required coursework for both programs and successfully passing praxis ii requirements for each certification. nonetheless, the achievement of program goals also presented challenges and learning opportunities that the group continues to encounter. during this complex process of curriculum redesign, faculty encountered challenges with both the process and the product of curriculum design. maintaining distinctive program elements for both programs, such as the specialized program assessment (spa) for ncate and as the coe makes the transition toward the caep accreditation and south carolina state certification 14   j. britt, c. ferguson, and j. vare   requirements, presented challenges to innovation in program design. ongoing collective reflection resulted in the development of additional curriculum action items and revised program checklists that align program changes within the context of university requirements. in addition to course changes, faculty members have developed fundamental changes to course schedules as well as field experience implementation in 2013. the development of program checklists that guide this transition has revealed issues that will require continued attention between now and the time that the program is fully implemented. in conclusion, members of the task force offer two fundamental lessons learned from this program modification experience. 1. curriculum design requires an equal exchange of ideas. members of the curriculum transformation task force comprised a useful range of stakeholders from the coe faculty including the dean’s office, early childhood, elementary, literacy, and special education faculty. at times the group seemed too large to foster useful dialogue in whole group settings; a smaller steering committee allowed all members to feel engaged in an equal exchange of ideas by strengthening communication among group members. program faculty meet in small groups to discuss implementation issues prior to meetings that include broader representation (such as program coordinators and department chairs). 2. curriculum design is a recursive process. faculty must carefully tie each course in the curriculum design back to the original goals for program design. the complex nature of developing programs that meet college, university, state, and national guidelines requires committed, flexible, and positive interdependence throughout the process. faculty must examine each change and project the potential impact on the curriculum of multiple programs. timing is essential in recognizing the recursive nature of curriculum design. embedded within this process, faculty must include time for thoughtful evaluation of changes throughout the process and be prepared to make adjustments based on that reflection. in addition, faculty must allot sufficient time for reflection and assessment of program changes prior to voting on changes in order to avoid mistakes that must be rectified through additional curriculum action. this case story describes curriculum redesign for early childhood and elementary education programs at winthrop university in south carolina. the case story offers a roadmap of the program revision process that curriculum transformation task force members encountered in their efforts to work toward continuous improvement in teacher education. as faculty look toward full implementation of the curriculum redesign in fall 2013, the journey toward curriculum redesign continues. implementing the changes illuminates new avenues for collaboration as program faculty revise the catalog, plan course offerings, and advise students and other faculty of program changes. curriculum redesign 15 references association for childhood education international. (2007). association for childhood education international elementary education standards and supporting explanation. retrieved from http://www.acei.org/affiliations/ncate.html. bornfreund, laura, a. (2011). getting in sync: revamping licensing and preparation for teachers in pre-k, kindergarten, and the early grades. new american foundation. retrieved from http://www.newamerica.net. darling-hammond, l. (2006). constructing 21st-century teacher education. journal of teacher education, 57(3), 300-314. national association for the education of young children. (2010). 2010 naeyc standards for initial and advanced early childhood professional preparation. (2010). author. national council for the accreditation of teacher education. (2010). transforming teacher education through clinical practice: a national strategy to prepare effective teachers. retrieved from http://www.ncate.org/public/publications/transformingteachereducation/tabid/737/def ault.aspx. the national research council (2010). preparing teachers: building evidence for sound policy. washington, d.c. author. the renaissance group. (2011). principles. retrieved from http://www.fresnostate.edu/renaissancegroup/about/principles.html. 16   j. britt, c. ferguson, and j. vare   page intentionally blank microsoft word 3. welty-feb 2014.docx vol. 2, no. 2, feb 2014, pp. 23-26 conference luncheon keynote address reflections on the future of higher education john welty, president emeritus, california state university, fresno renaissance leadership award recipient 2013 thank you for this opportunity to be with you today. we are at a very critical time for the future of higher education. it is one of those periods, which is very frightening, because the winds of change are howling, and yet, it is not clear how much damage these winds will wreak on our institutions. it is also one of those periods in which there is a great opportunity to take advantage of new knowledge that we have about student learning, and we also have new tools available to us that we have not had before today. i would like to explore some of the major forces, which are driving the winds of change, share a futuristic perspective with you that others have created, and then i will offer some observations about what should occur in the future. my goal is to make everyone feel somewhat uneasy by the time i finish, because i think we need to have an in-depth dialogue about the future. i hope i can stimulate your interest in being part of the dialogue and leading some of the change. i hope that today, we can spend a few minutes engaging in some of this dialogue. what are some of the forces or trends that are driving the winds of change? 1. the rising costs of higher education are not sustainable over time. president obama has raised the issue of the affordability of college as a major priority for his second term. across country, we are beginning to see calls for limiting fee increases for the future. since 1987, tuition and fees have doubled, while state funding for higher education has decreased by one third (eberly, j. & carmel, m.; the economics of higher education, december, 2012). there will be huge pressure to stop large fee increases, and at the same time, state funding of higher education is not likely to increase dramatically. the general public has now joined this bandwagon. 2. as a result of rising fees, student loan debt is rising at very alarming rates. student loan debt has now exceeded one trillion dollars in the united states. this is greater than the nation’s credit card debt (time, october 29, 2012). the average student loan debt for students graduating in 2010 was $25,250 (time carnegies corporation, december, 2012 study). the inability of students to pay off this debt may be the next fiscal scandal the country has to face. 3. students who are coming to us are digital natives. every year, students who enroll in universities, come to us more sophisticated in using technology. student’s methods of engaging with their world have changed dramatically in the last six-eight years, and it continues to change in staggering numbers. we must better understand how students learn in the current era. 24   j. welty   4. research on the brain and learning are helping us better understand how students learn. unfortunately, we have not spent a great deal of time changing how we teach based on this new knowledge. work at carnegie mellon university is beginning to change some of the ways we construct our learning environments. stanford professor sebastian thrun’s experiments with teaching online have utilized some of this new knowledge, which led to his founding udacity and launching moocs. 5. alternatives for the delivery of education are expanding at an exponential rate. (jeff selingo, chronicle of higher education). as we look across the nation, we see huge investments are being made in new learning tools; the kahn academy rose up almost overnight, and mooc's have become the hottest topic in higher education. i could go on at length about the new tools, which exist. many of these tools promise to lower the costs of education and make education universally available to all. the public has begun to question the value of higher education. an october 2012 time/carnegie corporation survey found that 80% of the general population said that they somewhat, or strongly agree that the education that students receive today, is not worth what they are paying for. interestingly enough, only 41% of the college leaders surveyed in the survey agree that the value of a college education is not worth what students are paying for. a more recent survey, by jeff selingo, found that 57% percent of the population believes that a college education is only a fair-to-good value today. increasingly, there is emphasis being placed upon competency based learning and assessment of learning. there is an emergence of interest in granting credit for previous learning, or granting degrees based on competencies students learn. we now have the tools, which make it more feasible to assess learning. there is new interest in changing college calendars, and the length of time in which a course is offered. these forces are causing a great deal of speculation about the future of higher education. every day, we hear of a new proposal to reduce costs of going to college. many advocate online education as the solution, without fully understanding the complexities. we are in a period of significant disruption. educause prepared a video titled edu@2020 in 2006, which attempts to trace the technological evolution of higher education. the video predict sin 2008 that the google higher education division will launch open source materials followed by mit open courseware. the video predicts that google phoenix will be created as a fully accredited entity. it further predicts that microsoft will announce the acquisition of pearson and blackboard. further, a faculty one talent agency will be formed. in 2009, the video predicts that disney, sony and apple will form an education division. in 2010, google phoenix announces a new effort to access all knowledge. in 2012, the mit open learning alliance announces that students can petition for a degree if certain experiences are completed. moving forward to 2017 the video predicts that google will create academic personas with professors who are simulated. this leads to the adoption of synthetic pedagogy on student learning and finally in 2020 synthetic educators dazzle the masses. all but the wealthiest experience a standardized curriculum to reduce costs. this dramatic change results in the increase in quality and the reduction of costs.  reflections  on  the  future 25 the picture painted by this video contains some major changes, which may not happen. however, there is a great deal to ponder in the video. much of the technology to create the scenario described is now available. so, what does our future look like and where are we headed? let me suggest some things, which i believe, will happen in the very near future. 1. the role of the faculty member will continue to change. we have all heard the stereotypes about the role of the faculty member changing from the sage on the stage to the guide on the side. i don' t think there is any question that the faculty member’s role will continue to move toward that of a designer of learning experiences, and away from the lecture approach to teaching. i think what will change even further, is an emphasis on the faculty member serving on a team of people who include instructional designers and others to design the learning experience .the faculty of the future must become comfortable with functioning as a team member or leader, and make a commitment to using new tools to improve instruction. there are numerous examples of our faculty who are engaged in course redesign and who are achieving very positive results in terms of student learning. pennebrantz and goosling at the university of texas have launched a research based psychology course in which they believe they can enroll 10,000 students effectively. novoed has just been founded to address new ways of teaching remedial math. there are many more experiments underway. 2. we must place greater emphasis on applying research on the brain and learning, to how we teach our courses. there needs to be less emphasis on seat time, and more attention devoted to assessing student learning and allowing students to progress at their own pace. we also need to redesign the academic calendar. there is no evidence, which suggests that the 14-week semester is the best timeframe for students to learn. 3. we will have to learn how to serve more students at less cost. this probably means that we rely more frequently on many of the tools which are available that can serve more students. it probably also means that we place greater emphasis on how we deliver learning experiences, and on how we can be more effective in helping students to learn. we will need to encourage experimentation in this area to learn how to do it best. we must overcome our resistance to attempting new approaches. 4. i believe we need to engage in serious discussions about how we can develop some competency-based degrees. further, we need to give serious attention to assessing learning and granting credit for students who can demonstrate that they have learned through other methods. this is not an easy task but it is a critical issue for our future. if we don't, we may face legislative interference in this area, and that would not be positive. 5. the advent of learning analytics provides a great opportunity to personalize learning experiences for students and to better understand how students learn. i think that we all know that not everyone learns in the same way. previously, we have lacked sufficient tools to figure out what these differences are. i believe that we have the tools available, and we must begin to understand how to use these tools. this may be the most positive outcome of the mooc phenomena. 26   j. welty   6. we must continue to place more emphasis on intrusive advising and the coaching of students. i believe we have learned through our student success work that our students do respond positively to more structure and the increased expectations we establish. supplemental instruction has been an extremely effective approach to improving student achievement. likewise, early intervention has proven to be successful. the for-profit sector has much for us to learn from through the coaching techniques, which many firms have established. we must not be afraid to try some of these approaches. 7. we must give priority to redesigned courses and experiences, especially those in which we have high failure rates. there are many examples of course resign, which have demonstrated that student achievement can be improved. we must be willing to attempt these efforts relying upon many of the resources that exist on campus and those that exist through national centers like the center for academic transformation. as we preparer teachers, we must utilize new approaches if future teachers are to function in the changed environment. we must better align our curricula at all levels. the common core standards effort is clearly a way to do that. however, i fear that higher education is not giving sufficient attention to this effort. the outcome could be another misalignment of the curriculum, which negatively impacts students. as we engage in attempting to control our destiny, i think it is very important to remember the admonition of william g. bowen, who gave the tanner lecture at stanford in october 2012. he suggests that we must retain three things as we address the future: 1. we need to emphasize and if need be to re-emphasize the great value of "minds rubbing against minds." 2. we must retain, whatever the provocation, the unswerving commitment of great colleges and universities to freedom of thought. 3. our colleges and universities should focus unashamedly on values as well as on knowledge and we should spend more time than we usually do considering how best to do this. i urge all of us to devote some time to reflect on the issues i have identified above. our failure to do so, could threaten our future. microsoft word tracz-vol1num2.docx vol. 1, no. 2, january 2013, pp. 63-82 effectiveness of teacher education programs: a descriptive aggregation of supervisor ratings of teachers trained by the renaissance group (trg) and the teacher education council of state colleges and universities (tecscu) institutions susan m. tracz, ph.d. california state university, fresno abstract this study aggregated supervisor’s ratings of teachers trained at the renaissance group (trg) and the teacher education council of state colleges and universities (tecscu) institutions. fourteen studies conducted by 12 universities or states were gathered, and 12 that met inclusion criteria were included in this analysis. the total number of survey items in all studies (n = 374) was coded into 13 variables. frequencies of the percentages of ratings falling into below average, average, and above average for those variables were tabled. supervisors consistently gave teachers very high ratings. 64 s. tracz background of paramount importance to p-12 education in this country is the quality of its teachers. not only are public and private schools concerned with hiring the best teachers available, but schools and departments of education at universities are fully cognizant that their own credibility rests on the performance of the teachers they train. research has demonstrated over and again that teachers do have a great impact on the education of the students they teach. the ratings supervisors give teachers about their knowledge and skills have often been used as indicators of teaching effectiveness, and by extension, of the effectiveness of university education programs. although numerous universities routinely conduct internal studies by surveying principals or other teacher supervisors, these studies are not well disseminated, and the results are largely unknown. in contrast, a conservative group is currently using a single study which purportedly found that a large proportion of teacher supervisors are highly unsatisfied with their teachers because their university training was lacking. the overt agenda of this message is that university education programs are ineffective. purpose therefore, the purpose of this study was to aggregate the results of studies conducted by the renaissance group and tecscu university education programs to determine how supervisors rate the teachers trained at these universities. methods study design. typically, when researchers want to determine the global effect of a phenomenon, they combine individual studies that examined the topic of concern. this type of design is called meta-analysis, which is generally presents effect sizes in terms of a standardized difference between the means for two groups or correlation coefficients. the data that is available for aggregation does not conform to the requirements for a meta-analysis. however, it was possible to combine this data in with descriptive aggregation technique that is described below. studies included. the director of the renaissance group solicited studies and reports of supervisor ratings of teachers and teacher ratings of their training. fourteen studies were submitted in a timeframe that enabled them to be included in this aggregation study. each study was considered a separate study if it was send as a separate file, although some studies have multiple parts and some universities send separate files for their various studies. ultimately, the aggregation of the data will make these distinctions irrelevant. the universities and states represented in this sample of studies follow: effectiveness of teacher education 65 table 1 description of the studies available for this descriptive aggregation report university study components n rating scale n of items study included 1 eastern kentucky univ principals eval teachers, superintendents eval principals, graduates eval education program 193 5 pt scale: poor, below aver, aver, above aver, outstanding 27 yes 2 montana state univ billings employers eval teachers 85 5 pt scale: strongly disagree, disagree, neutral, agree, strongly agree 11 yes 3 montana state univ billings teachers eval education program not available 3 pt scale: low preparation, moderate preparation, high preparation 6 no 4 ball state univ employers eval teachers 29 3 pt scale: disagree, agree, strongly agree 4 yes 5emporia state univ administrators eval teachers, graduates eval education program not available 2 pt scale: need help or not prepared, acceptable level of preparation 1 yes 6california state univ system supervisors eval teachers, graduates eval education program 3781 1 pt scale: well or adequately prepared 15 yes 7kean univ employers eval teachers not available 5 pt scale: insufficient, beginning, adequate, competent, strong 72 yes 8univ of mary washington employers eval teachers 75 5 pt scale: not satisfactory, needs improvement, satisfactory, good, excellent 35 yes 9radford univ principals eval teachers 25 5 pt scale: poor, below aver, aver, above aver, outstanding 23 yes 10 public & private univ, state of illinois supervising employers eval teachers 8144 2 pt scale: other, mostly or extremely prepared by teacher education program to be a successful teacher 108 yes 66 s. tracz university study components n rating scale n of items study included 11 lamar univ at beaumont supervisors eval teachers 28 4 pt scale: not at all prepared, not sufficiently prepared, sufficiently prepared, well prepared 30 yes 12 lamar univ at beaumont teachers eval education program 4484 4 pt scale: not at all prepared, not sufficiently prepared, sufficiently prepared, well prepared 30 no 13 longwood univ supervisors eval teachers 201 5 pt scale: 1 not prepared at all, 2, 3, 4, 5 outstanding 15 yes 14 longwood univ supervisors eval teachers 58 3 pt scale: below aver, aver, above aver 39 yes the majority of these studies report supervisor ratings of teachers after their initial teacher training, and only those study results are combined here. some studies report teacher ratings of their teacher education programs or supervisor ratings of teachers receiving graduate training in counseling, leadership, special education, and those results are not combined here. of the 14 studies, 2 studies and parts of other studies were not included, and 12 studies are combined. variables coded. a wide variety of survey items examining teacher competence were included in these 12 studies, and no two surveys were even closely similar in these items. the number of items per survey ranged from 1 to 108. in an effort to code survey items into consistent variables, the following 13 items were developed: 1. dispositions – personal characteristics or tendencies of teachers, not necessarily affected by teacher education programs, 2. knowledge base – content knowledge demonstrated by teachers, 3. pedagogy – knowledge of and ability to apply the methods and principles of teaching, 4. classroom management/environment – knowledge of students and ability to effectively manage classroom environment and activities, 5. technology – knowledge of and ability to teach effectively using technology, 6. assessment – ability to correctly ascertain student knowledge and learning, 7. reflective practice – continuous self-examination of one’s teaching practices in an effort to improve, 8. diversity/equity – cultural competence and ability to teach so all students are treated in an equitable manner, effectiveness of teacher education 67 9. disabilities – knowledge of and ability to teach students with disabilities effectively, 10. professional workplace/relations – ability to act in a professional manner and to have good relationships with co-workers, 11. parents/guardians/community – ability to have good relationships with parents and the community, 12. enhancing teacher quality – processes that encourage and support teacher quality, 13. overall effectiveness – comprehensive evaluation of teaching effectiveness. reliability. the author coded all items into the variables described above. in an effort to ascertain reliability, the director of the renaissance group, the dean and associate dean from csu fresno, were also asked to rate 2 to 5 studies. after discussion of the meanings of the 13 variables, the inter-rater reliability as a percent of agreement of 93% was achieved. this was deemed to be acceptable for this aggregation study. rating scales. as can be seen in table 1, a wide variety of rating scales were chosen in the individual studies. reported scales ranged from 1 to 5 points. in many studies, only part of the entire scale was reported. one study did not report a below average rating, one study did not report an average or midpoint rating, and one did not report a high rating. another reported a combined the midpoint and high rating, while still another reported only an “other” rating in addition to the high rating. the only commonality is that most studies reported at least one above average point and most studies reported a midpoint rating, so those will be reported in the summary over all studies. finally, the graph only reports the high ratings. data collection procedures the following procedures were done for each individual study. each survey item was coded into one of the 13 variables listed above. a data set consisting of each survey item, the rating scale for that study, and the variable code was developed. also input into that data set were the sample sizes, the frequencies of all responses, the percentages of all responses, and means as were available. studies rarely had all that information reported. analysis after the data set was compiled, it needed to be put into a format that allowed for aggregation. a set of consistent collapsing of ratings was developed. each study’s ratings were combined into below average, average and above average categories. as discussed in the ratings section, not all studies had all these categories, so only the ones that were available were compiled. when only frequencies were available, percentages were calculated. once each study had a percentage of responses for each item in below average, average and above average categories, those percentages were tallied for each of the 13 variables. the aggregate ranges of those percentages were reported by study for each of the variables when the number of studies combined was 1 to 5. when more than 5 68 s. tracz studies were aggregated per variable, the lowest and highest percentages were eliminated and the resulting ranges were reported. the reason for this is that a percentage can be calculated on a very few number of supervisor ratings so it is possible to greatly skew the results with only a few items. results tables 2 through 13 present the ranges of percentages of variables in rating categories over the individual studies. table 14 presents the ranges of percentages for the average and the above average categories aggregated over all studies. the number of items combined to produce these results was 374. figure 1 presents a graph of the above average categories aggregated over all studies. except for the disability variable, the ranges of above average percentages for all other variables have a low of 49.3% to 100.0% indicating substantial percentages of supervisors believe that their teachers are highly competent. the ranges for the average or competent category are also high, and the vast majority of ratings fall into those two categories. the range for the disability variable is 21.4% to 87.0%. ! figure 1. ranges of percentages for above average supervisor ratings of teachers on items from 12 studies from trg and tecscu institutions. effectiveness of teacher education 69 conclusions in general, supervisors give their teachers high marks. most of teachers are rated as either average or above average. only a small percentage of teachers are not considered to be competent. recommendations the value of aggregating the evaluations supervisors give teachers over teacher education institutions cannot be overemphasized. this information would allow the public, school districts and researchers to assess the institutions that train the teachers their schools hire. in order to accomplish this goal, some recommendations follow. these recommendations are not meant as criticism of the studies whose results are reported here. although many education programs at universities conduct their own research studies, combining their studies is difficult due to the plethora of methods and instruments used. 1. a common instrument should be developed. such an instrument could have some questions that are the same for all institutions and also allow for institutions to ask additional questions to address their individual research interests. 2. a common rating scale should be agreed upon. this scale should have at least 3 ratings: below expectation, meets expectation, and above expectation. 3. common definitions or rubrics for the ratings should be written so evaluating supervisors can approach a common understanding of what the ratings mean. most notably, what is truly considered above average is often defined in numerous ways: some believing that a teacher has to reach an outstanding level of performance much like that of a veteran teacher to be considered above average, while others view anything above the minimal acceptable level of performance to be above average. 4. instruments should be administered at a similar time during the academic year. 5. supervisors, principals or other persons who rate teachers should be very familiar with their teaching practices. 6. data should be input into a common data template that asks for items, codes, frequencies, and percentages. 7. a format for presenting the aggregation of the results should be agreed upon. 70 s. tracz table 2 results for eastern kentucky university (study #1) codes for variables range of % for items n of items combined poor or below average average outstanding or above average 1 dispositions ---0 2 knowledge base 2.6 21.2 76.2 1 3 pedagogy 2.6-11.5 24.1-34.7 55.5-72.3 9 4 classroom mgt/environment 2.6-5.1 23.8-31.3 63.6-73 3 5 technology 3.6-5.3 32.5-34.7 60.0-63.9 2 6 assessment 3.1-6.2 26.6-41.9 52.3-69.7 5 7 reflective practice 3.8-6.8 33.5-38.6 57.6-59.7 2 8 diversity/equity 5.9 33.9 60.2 1 9 disabilities ---0 10 prof workplace/ relations 1-2 23.4-28.5 69.5-75.5 3 11 parents/guardians/community 2.6 32.8 64.6 1 12 enhancing teacher quality ---0 13 overall effectiveness ---0 study citation: principals’ perceptions of eastern kentucky university (eku) teacher effectiveness of teacher education 71 table 3 results for university montana state university billings (study #2) codes for variables range of % for items n of items combined disagree or strongly disagree neutral agree or strongly agree 1 dispositions ---0 2 knowledge base 7.0 14.0 79.0 1 3 pedagogy 6.0-9.0 16.0-18.0 74.0-76.0 3 4 classroom mgt/environment 4.0 26.0 69.0 1 5 technology 7.0 18.0 75.0 1 6 assessment ---1 7 reflective practice 8.0 23.0 69.0 1 8 diversity/equity 8.0-12.0 20.0-42.0 50.0-69.0 2 9 disabilities ---0 10 prof workplace/ relations ---0 11 parents/guardians/community 5.0 29.0 66.0 1 12 enhancing teacher quality ---0 13 overall effectiveness ---0 study citation: follow-up studies of graduates and employers comments: * data entered incorrectly for this item. only beginning teachers evaluated by supervisors are reported. evaluations for teachers and counselors who received advanced degrees are not reported here. 72 s. tracz table 4 results for ball state university (study #4) variables range of % for items n of items combined disagree agree or strongly agree 1 dispositions --0 2 knowledge base 0.0 100.0 1 3 pedagogy 3.6 96.4 1 4 classroom mgt/environment --0 5 technology 0.0 100.0 1 6 assessment --0 7 reflective practice --0 8 diversity/equity 3.4 96.6 1 9 disabilities --0 10 prof workplace/ relations --0 11 parents/guardians/community --0 12 enhancing teacher quality --0 13 overall effectiveness --0 study citation: ball state university teacher fair survey summary effectiveness of teacher education 73 table 5 results for university emporia state university (study #5) variables range of % for items n of items combined need help or not prepared acceptable level of preparation 1 dispositions --0 2 knowledge base --0 3 pedagogy --0 4 classroom mgt/environment --0 5 technology --0 6 assessment --0 7 reflective practice --0 8 diversity/equity --0 9 disabilities --0 10 prof workplace/ relations --0 11 parents/guardians/ community --0 12 enhancing teacher quality --0 13 overall effectiveness 3.8-5.0 96.2-95.0 3 study citation: follow-up study of graduates and employers, emporia state university comments: data presented for 6 years from 2000 to 2006 74 s. tracz table 6 results for california state university system (study #6) variables range of % for items n of items combined adequately and well prepared 1 dispositions -0 2 knowledge base 81.5-85.0 3 3 pedagogy 81.5-84.3 5 4 classroom mgt/environment 84.2 1 5 technology 81.4 1 6 assessment 81.1 1 7 reflective practice -0 8 diversity/equity 78.6-80.5 2 9 disabilities 78.6 1 10 prof workplace/ relations -0 11 parents/guardians/community -0 12 enhancing teacher quality -0 13 overall effectiveness 81.3 1 study citation: learning to teach: comparing the effectiveness of three pathways comments: data presented for 6 years from 2006 to 2011 effectiveness of teacher education 75 table 7 results for kean university (study #7) codes for variables range of % for items n of items combined insufficient or beginning adequate competent or strong 1 dispositions 0 0-20 80-100 9 2 knowledge base 0 7.7-20 80-92.3 3 3 pedagogy 0.0-20.0 0.0-20.0 69.3-100.0 21 4 classroom mgt/environment 0.0-10.0 0.0-20.0 70.0-100.0 6 5 technology 0.0-10.0 15.4-20.0 70.0-84.6 3 6 assessment 0.0-10.0 10.0-30.8 60.0-90.0 9 7 reflective practice 0.0 7.7-30.0 70.0-92.3 3 8 diversity/equity 0.0-10.0 10.0-30.8 69.3-80.0 3 9 disabilities ---0 10 prof workplace/ relations 0.0 0.0 100.0 3 11 parents/guardians/community 00.0-200. 0.0-30.0 50.0-100.0 9 12 enhancing teacher quality ---0 13 overall effectiveness 0.0 0.0 100.0 3 study citation: survey of employers comments: just tables are provided for this study. 76 s. tracz table 8 results for university of mary washington (study #8) codes for variables range of % for items n of items combined needs improvement or not satisfactorya satisfactoryb excellent or goodc 1 dispositions 3.57-4.65 4.3-14.3 82.1-95.5 2 2 knowledge base 0.0 13.0-24.1 75.9100.0 3 3 pedagogy 0.0-3.57 8.7-17.9 82.1100.0 6 4 classroom mgt/environment 3.6-8.3 4.3-17.9 78.6-95.8 6 5 technology 0.0-10.7 13.0-14.3 75.0100.0 3 6 assessment 0.0-4.2 17.4-17.9 78.6-95.8 3 7 reflective practice ---0 8 diversity/equity 0.0-7.1 13.0-21.4 75.0100.0 6 9 disabilities ---0 10 prof workplace/ relations 0.0 0.0 100.0 1 11 parents/guardians/community 0.0-4.3 8.7-10.7 85.7100.0 3 12 enhancing teacher quality 0.0-7.4 7.4-13.0 85.2-87.0 2 13 overall effectiveness ---0 study citation: university of mary washington, mary washington college, education department, employer satisfaction survey comments: data for this study was collected between 2009 and 2011. a for part of this study, this category was labeled not very effective or ineffective. b for part of this study, there was no middle category. c for part of this study, this category was labeled effective or highly effective. effectiveness of teacher education 77 table 9 results for radford university (study #9) codes for variables range of % for items n of items combined poor or below average average above average or outstanding 1 dispositions ---0 2 knowledge base ---0 3 pedagogy 0.0-4.2 24.0-50.0 50.0-76.0 8 4 classroom mgt/environment 0.0 20.0-40.0 60.0-80.0 5 5 technology 0.0 8.0 92.0 1 6 assessment 0.0 25.0-41.7 58.3-75.0 3 7 reflective practice ---0 8 diversity/equity 0.0 23.8-41.7 58.3-76.2 2 9 disabilities ---0 10 prof workplace/ relations 0.0-4.0 12.0-20.0 80.0-84.0 2 11 parents/guardians/community 9.1 36.4 54.6 1 12 enhancing teacher quality 0.0 15.0 85.0 1 13 overall effectiveness ---0 study citation: radford university survey of program graduates and principals comments: data for this study was collected in 2010. 78 s. tracz table 10 results for 12 public and 3 private universities in illinois (study #10) variables range of % for items n of items combined other* “mostly” / “extremely” prepared by teacher educ prog to be successful new teacher 1 dispositions --0 2 knowledge base --0 3 pedagogy 4-20 80-96 18 4 classroom mgt/environment 14-20 80-86 12 5 technology 10-19 81-90 6 6 assessment 10-14 86-90 6 7 reflective practice --0 8 diversity/equity 9-32 68-91 18 9 disabilities 13-17 83-87 6 10 prof workplace/ relations 7-15 85-93 24 11 parents/guardians/ community 11-32 68-89 18 12 enhancing teacher quality --0 13 overall effectiveness --0 study citation: teacher graduate assessment: a statewide assessment of professional teacher education programs in illinois. illinois association of deans of public colleges of education comments: *categories for responses other than “mostly” or “extremely” prepared by teacher education program to be a successful new teacher are not reported. n2006 = 1454, n2007 = 1501, n2008 = 1564, n2009 = 1433, n2010 = 1352, n2011 = 840 effectiveness of teacher education 79 table 11 results for lamar university at beaumont (study #11) codes for variables range of % for items n of items combined not sufficiently prepared or not at all prepared sufficiently prepared well prepared 1 dispositions ---0 2 knowledge base ---0 3 pedagogy ---0 4 classroom mgt/environment 3.6-7.1 28.6-46.4 46.4-67.9 4 5 technology 0.0-3.9 37.0-80.8 15.4-59.3 10 6 assessment ---0 7 reflective practice ---0 8 diversity/equity 10.7-36.4 50.0-63.6 13.6-30.4 7 9 disabilities 14.3-28.6 35.7-64.3 21.4-42.9 7 10 prof workplace/ relations ---0 11 parents/guardians/community 7.1 42.9 50.0 1 12 enhancing teacher quality ---0 13 overall effectiveness ---0 study citation: texas education agency sb 174 principal pilot survey comments: data collected in 20010. unusual rating categories with 2 categories for below average with only 1 category for above average may possibly have skewed the results. 80 s. tracz table 12 results for longwood university (study #13) codes for variables range of % for items n of items combined insufficient or beginning adequate competent or strong 1 dispositions 15.9 0.0 84.8 1 2 knowledge base 0.0 0.0 100.0 1 3 pedagogy 0.0 2.0-27.4 72.6-98.0 6 4 classroom mgt/environment 0.0-18.9 25.9-43.8 49.3-74.1 3 5 technology 0.0 23.4 76.6 1 6 assessment 0.0 25.9 74.1 1 7 reflective practice 0.0 35.8 64.2 1 8 diversity/equity ---0 9 disabilities ---0 10 prof workplace/ relations ---0 11 parents/guardians/community 1.5 47.8 50.7 1 12 enhancing teacher quality ---0 13 overall effectiveness ---0 study citation: longwood university professional educational unit employer survey 2010-2011 comments: data collected in 2009. effectiveness of teacher education 81 table 13 results for longwood university (study #14) codes for variables range of % for items n of items combined below averagea averagea above averagea 1 dispositions 0.0-4.0 19.0-35.0 66.0-81.1 10 2 knowledge base ---0 3 pedagogy 0.0 20.0-38.0 61.0-80.0 10 4 classroom mgt/environment 0.0 31.0-50.0 50.0-70.0 5 5 technology 0.0 27.0 73.0 1 6 assessment 0.0 27.0-31.0 69.0-73.0 3 7 reflective practice 0.0 31.0 69.0 1 8 diversity/equity 0.0 31.1-42.0 58.0-69.0 3 9 disabilities 0.0 35.0 65.0 1 10 prof workplace/ relations 0.0 31.0 69.0-70.0 2 11 parents/guardians/community 0.0 38.0 62.0 1 12 enhancing teacher quality 0.0 27.0-31.0 70.0-74.0 2 13 overall effectiveness ---0 study citation: longwood university professional educational unit employer survey 2010-2011 comments: data collected in 2010-2011. a ratings were reported on a 5 point scale, but descriptors for those numbers were not reported. 82 s. tracz table 14 ranges of average and above average percentages for all items and all variables aggregated over 12 studies codes for variables range of % for items n of items combined average min – max above average min max 1 dispositions 0.0 35.0 66.0 100.0 22 2 knowledge base 0.0 21.2 76.2 100.0 22 3 pedagogy 2.0 38.0 55.5 100.0 82 4 classroom mgt/environment 4.3 46.4 49.3 95.8 42 5 technology 13.0 34.2 60.0 100.0 32 6 assessment 17.4 41.7 58.3 90.0 20 7 reflective practice 7.7 38.6 57.6 80.0 32 8 diversity/equity 13.0 42.0 50.0 91.1 32 9 disabilities 35.0 64.3 21.4 87.0 32 10 prof workplace/ relations 0.0 31.0 69.5 100.0 28 11 parents/guardians/community 8.7 42.9 50.0 100.0 18 12 enhancing teacher quality 7.4 31.0 70.0 87.0 5 13 overall effectiveness* 0.0 95.0 a 81.3b 100.0 7 *the interpretability of this item is difficult as only three studies had items in this category. one of these studies had low, middle and high ratings, one only had one category of “adequately and well prepared,” and the last one only had two ratings “not prepared” and “acceptable level of preparation.” a based on only one study which combined only had “acceptable level of preparation.” b based on only one study which one category that combined adequately and well prepared. microsoft word 2. math and science-summ 2013.docx vol. 2, no. 1, june 2013, pp. 17-28 math and science teacher candidates’ use of technology to facilitate teaching and learning during student teaching janet tassell, rebecca ruth stobaugh, and michael mcdonald western kentucky university abstract the goal of this study is to determine how effectively student teachers from a large comprehensive institution have used technology to complement their teaching in mathematics and science. the researchers reviewed the required teacher work sample (tws) capstone projects of student teachers. the tws is an assessment instrument designed to guide student teachers in designing, implementing, reviewing, and adjusting instruction. student teachers document in the tws narratives their use of technology, and this use was compared to the 2008 u.s. department of education (usde): measures of teacher and student technology use. data gathered in the study revealed both strengths and weaknesses regarding the student teachers’ use of technology to enhance their teaching goals. implications are derived about effective use of technology by mathematics and science teacher candidate preparation. 18   j. tassell, r. stobaugh, and m. mcdonald   introduction how do educators facilitate learning in light of the plethora of technology expectations and options available? one repeatedly hears of a school district purchasing interactive boards to replace the old chalkboards or the dry-erase boards in the classroom. however, are teachers truly making classrooms more interactive through the effective use of technology? what is becoming common is that teachers turn to technology to energize their presentations or lectures to the class, receive assignments from students, enter and communicate grades, complete required schools reports, and develop assignments and assessments. teachers have confidence that this helps them claim to be "technology literate" and have an interactive classroom. however, a barrier tends to be revealed when looking at the "teacher use of technology" in comparison to "student use of technology for learning" where students learn the content through the use of technology. while teachers often feel confident utilizing some technologies in presenting content, they feel uncomfortable planning instructional tasks with students. a great deal of technology is available for teacher use. one method to encourage the use of technology tools could be to incorporate their use in teacher preparation programs. teachers may believe that they must use technology to a capture the interest of the students rather than viewing technology as the vehicle for authentic and engaged learning. one thing is certain - technology is rapidly changing and growing in availability. the notion of a "static set of skills" does not describe the finesse it takes for teachers to interface with students in the classroom. in many ways, the use of technology for presentation in the classroom has become the chalkboard of twenty years ago. in teacher preparation programs, teacher candidates should integrate technology to engage students in critical thinking, decision-making, and real world problem-solving. in mathematics and science fields, technology is an integral part of the jobs in these areas and therefore technology should be a seamless focus of instruction to replicate the real-world applications of the content. however, the question must be asked: are today’s mathematics and science teacher candidates using technology effectively to enhance learning? in addition, are culminating performances in teacher preparation programs requiring teacher candidates to design instruction and assessment engaging k-12 students in using technology to achieve higher levels of learning? the study teachers need to be as effective as possible -every child needs to be learning to his or her fullest each and every day. without the incorporation of technology, today’s teachers run the risk of not connecting students to higher levels of learning. a time to incorporate teaching and learning technologies for teachers is during their teacher preparation program before they are in the trenches of the classroom. programs need to prepare the teacher candidates to know what technology is currently available, to understand how to use technology as a tool for student learning, and to prepare the new teacher and their students to continue learning as technology evolves. teachers need to have a clear understanding that technology should facilitate student learning, and this is often best achieved through student use of technology as part of their own learning. the national council for accreditation of teacher education (ncate) has given an "unacceptable" rating to programs that do not technologically prepare their teachers. in the "pedagogical content knowledge for teacher candidates," the "unacceptable" rating includes, use of technology 19 "teacher candidates do not understand the relationship of content and content-specific pedagogy delineated in professional, state, and institutional standards in a way that helps them develop learning experiences that integrate technology and build on students’ cultural backgrounds and knowledge of content so that students learn" (national council for accreditation of teacher education, 2008). teacher education programs are faced with a two-part challenge: (1) what technologies should teacher candidates understand and be able to incorporate in their teaching? (2) how can the teacher candidates be assessed for their knowledge and use of technology? ncate supports the requirement that effective teachers are "able users" of technology in the following statement: commitment to technology: the unit’s conceptual framework reflects the unit’s commitment to preparing candidates who are able to use educational technology to help all students learn; it also provides a conceptual understanding of how knowledge, skills, and dispositions related to educational and information technology are integrated throughout the curriculum, instruction, field experiences, clinical practice, assessments, and evaluations (national council for accreditation of teacher education,2008). consequently, this study was designed to determine if teacher candidates of mathematics and science at a large comprehensive institution’s teacher education program effectively integrate technology into math and science instruction. the concern that surfaced from preliminary informal conversations with education faculty that coursework expectations of math and science teacher candidates did not consistently prepare them comprehensively to plan learning experiences using technology. the framework that provided the vehicle for studying this was the teacher work sample (tws), a robust tool that assesses teacher candidates’ ability to embed technology in their instruction. purpose of the study the international society of technology in education (iste) organization created technology standards for teachers and students in 1998; the most recent version of these standards, the national educational technology standards (nets) for students, were released in 2007 (international society for technology in education). these standards support and promote a higher level of student use of technology where students are engaged in authentic learning to design products and improve problem-solving skills (kentucky department of education, 2008). the state teaching standards for this institution provide a list for initial expectations for teachers to demonstrate their skills and knowledge about technology. according to standard 6, "the teacher demonstrates the implementation of technology": 6.1 uses available technology to design and plan instruction 6.2 uses available technology to implement instruction that facilitates student learning 6.3 integrates student use of available technology into instruction 6.4 uses available technology to assess and communicate student learning 6.5 demonstrates ethical and legal use of technology (kentucky department of education, 2008) in light of these standards’ mandates, this study was designed to investigate whether teacher candidates at the institution are effective users of technology. 20   j. tassell, r. stobaugh, and m. mcdonald   research questions and assumptions the research questions addressed two specific questions: 1. are math and science teacher candidates from a state institution using technology to facilitate teaching and learning in the teacher work sample during the student teaching experience? 2. what are the differences between and among mathematics and science content areas in the type of technology used in the teacher work sample at this institution during the student teaching experience? the researchers made the following assumptions: that the united states department of education (usde): measures of teacher and student technology use (u.s. department of education, 2008) is an appropriate framework for evaluating the technology needed by student teachers to be effective, and that student teachers described their full use of technology in their teacher work sample. review of related literature universities are responsible for preparing teacher candidates for the state and national teaching standards. however, ncate goes a step further to push the mastery of technology standards: ncate expects that schools of education incorporate technology skill instruction within the methods courses, field experiences, and content courses of education students. vanetta and beyerbach (2000) noted the importance of the seamless use of technology in the teacher education curriculum to equip the teacher candidates during their experiences as a student and in preparing them to be a teacher. within field experiences, 79% of teacher education programs stated teacher candidates utilized technology to some extent within the field experiences. around 51% of all teacher education programs for initial licensure stated that they offered a course on educational technology within their programs (kleiner, thomas, & lewis, 2007). teacher education accreditation agencies, state teaching standards, and federal agencies have advocated for the integration of technology into instruction. whether this is happening is the question. the national center for education statistics 2007 report on education technology used in teacher education programs stated the following statistics about the programs (kleiner, thomas, & lewis, 2007): • utilized internet resources and communication tools in all or some of their teacher education programs (100%). • taught about ways to integrate technology into lesson planning (99%). • stated utilizing content specific software tools while teaching (97%). • noted multimedia digital content was used for instruction (95%). • reported technology was used for retrieving or organizing data to enhance teaching (90%). • instructed pre-service teachers on using technology for student assessment that aligned to state curriculum standards in all or some of their programs (88%). • used digital portfolios in all or some of their programs (82%). • instructed on the utilizing technology for student assessment in all or some programs (79%). however, a word of caution with these statistics: "…report of topics taught within programs should not be taken to mean that the topics were taught in any depth or breadth across use of technology 21 the curriculum. rather the estimates only indicated that the topic was taught at least to a minimal degree" (kleiner, thomas, & lewis, 2007). when questioned to a "major" extent about how teacher education programs incorporated technology instruction, the percentages dramatically declined: • fifty-seven percent taught pre-service teachers about how to use technology to enhance classroom instruction. • seventeen percent instructed pre-service teachers on using technology to assess student achievement. • seventeen percent trained pre-service teachers on designing instructional interventions to individualize instruction. • fifteen percent addressed how to utilize technology to accommodate for various student learning styles (kleiner, thomas, & lewis, 2007). incorporating technology was reported as problematic for teacher education programs. according to the u.s. department of education report on teacher education’s use of educational technology, one barrier was that 93% colleges of education report that the schools for field experiences and student teaching experiences do not have the appropriate technology needed. furthermore, pre-service teachers often lacked time to experiment with technology (93%) due to p-12 teachers facing pressures to pass state tests, and felt concerned about using a product without full knowledge of it in front of students who are savvy users of technology. another set of barriers includes that the classroom teachers had concerns about effectively implementing technological resources in their classroom due to their own lack of training (22%) or were unwilling to integrate technology (12%), in turn making it a difficult situation for the teacher candidate to integrate technology into the lessons they taught. other barriers included college of education faculty who lacked technology training (83%), lack of faculty time to use technology tools (87%), lack of willingness of faculty to incorporate technology (73%), and lack of infrastructure (6%). only 2% of teacher education programs stated that teacher candidates lacked technology skills as a major barrier to integrating technology. however, institutions affirmed that only 48% of the teacher candidates were able to practice their technology skills at a medium to high range (kleiner, thomas, & lewis, 2007). from a more optimistic angle, according to a u.s. department of education survey, a large majority of teacher education programs (67%) strongly agreed that their graduates possessed the knowledge and skills to effectively employ technology resources in their instruction. furthermore, 44% strongly agreed and 52% agreed somewhat that their graduates can design project-based lessons enhanced with technology. when asked about whether experiences include technology in lessons, 35% strongly agreed and 54% agreed somewhat. fewer programs reported that graduates would effectively integrate assistive/adaptive technology to assist special needs (18% agreed strongly; 61% agreed somewhat) (kleiner, thomas, & lewis, 2007). even though teacher candidates had a generally positive attitude toward technology, nationally a large number stated that they are unprepared to effectively incorporate technology into instruction (beckett, wetzel, buss, chisholm, misdoubted, & padgett, 2001). some of the challenges for integrating technology into undergraduate programs are training, technical support, lack of funding, and limited technology resources (duhaney, 2001). however, due to all of the competing interests in an undergraduate program of course requirements, technology integration was and is still a challenge. 22   j. tassell, r. stobaugh, and m. mcdonald   teacher work sample a consortium of 11 universities gathered to create a tool to measure and assess the growth of teacher candidates -hence the renaissance teacher work sample (tws) was developed by the renaissance partnership (the renaissance partnership for improving teacher quality, 2001). this initiative was designed to affect "a paradigm shift from a focus on the teaching process to learning results and connecting teacher performance to student learning" that would in turn lead institutions to "implement programs and practices that build their capacity to be accountable for the impact of their teacher candidates and graduates on student learning" (pankratz, 1999). to validate the tws as an authentic tool to measure candidate growth and impact on student learning, the group developed tws exemplars, and shared information, materials, expertise, and research across institutions related to the tws. the resulting tws instrument (schalock, schalock, & girod, 1997) documents teacher candidates’ preparation on seven teaching processes or components believed critical to improving p-12 instruction and student learning (denner, norman, salzman, pankratz, & evans, 2004): contextual factors, learning goals, assessment plan, design for instruction, instructional decision-making, analysis of student learning, and reflection and self-evaluation. all teacher candidates complete the teacher work sample during their student teaching semester and are scored on a common rubric that addresses the seven required sections. teacher candidates are given descriptive prompts and rubrics to guide their development of the capstone project. within each tws component, there are three to six indicators clarifying the expectations in each section. there is one indicator assessing students’ technology abilities in the design for instruction section of the tws. to be proficient in this area, a pre-service teacher must describe the incorporation of technology in their unit or offer a strong rationale for not using technology. methodology this study reviewed a random selection of teacher work sample (tws) capstone projects produced by mathematics and science student teachers. due to the design and credibility of the u.s. department of education (usde) (2008) research study, a framework was available to examine student teacher technology use at this institution via the tws projects. specifically, the study narrowed the focus to the indicators from the usde study to form a checklist by which to analyze the tws samples. this study reviewed the area(s) of the tws portfolios that dealt specifically with the ways student teachers described their use of technology to enhance their teaching effectiveness. the teacher candidates are required to describe the ways they use technology in their student teaching semester of instruction in their narrative. two initial teacher certification programs were selected for the study: math k-12 and science k-12. the tws projects of ten students in each major were randomly selected. for each student teacher submission, a score of one (1) was recorded if the student teacher revealed evidence of satisfying a usde technology standard on the checklist. a zero (0) was recorded if no evidence was offered satisfying a usde technology standard on the checklist. the student teacher tws projects were reviewed by three researchers and the results were compiled for this study. the administration of the study was conducted during the spring 2009 semester at this institution. the following provides evidence from a randomly selected tws used in the study: use of technology 23 technology has been a huge part of my unit. it has helped me create my lesson plans. i have also incorporated on-line activities in my lessons. there are two days of my unit where i will pull up internet sites and model or reinforce skills…. i have also incorporated united streaming into my unit. i chose to show a short video about how to subtract fractions. i also used the internet to challenge students who finished their work early. i have found several websites that reinforce skills... so that the students can work independently. in addition, my class visits the computer lab… using the fraction websites and fraction software to reinforce skills (teacher work sample #4600, 2006). for an example of coding, this sample was coded as a one (1), for each of the following indicators: • teacher’s use of technology in instruction o develop curricula or assignments o do research and lesson planning using the internet o present concepts to students • students’ use of technology in learning o practice or review content o extend learning with enrichment activities all other indicators were not present in the sample including the third category of indicators, "students’ use of technology for the critical thinking and decision-making skills related to technology literacy." findings the sample for the case study included 20 student teachers from the following initial teacher certification majors at this institution: 10 from math k-12 and 10 from science education (sci k-12). table one shows the checklist including the cumulative scores of each content area major. this table also reports the total obtained from all groups for each checklist item, the maximum score possible and the percentage of the codes received by each major in relation to each checklist item. table one checklist and codes calculated on a comparison of tws samples and usde indicators. math k-12 sci k-12 both groups total total indicators present % of codes received teacher’s use of technology in instruction develop curricula or assignments 8 7 15 20 75% create tests or quizzes 2 2 4 20 20% do research and lesson planning using the internet 5 8 13 20 65% present concepts to students 9 10 19 20 95% 24   j. tassell, r. stobaugh, and m. mcdonald   test students 1 2 3 20 15% adapt instructional activities to student’s individual needs 1 1 2 20 10% collaborate with experts to teachers in other locations 0 0 0 20 0% students’ use of technology in learning practice or review content 5 3 8 20 40% extend learning with enrichment activities 1 1 2 20 10% take tests or quizzes using a computer 1 2 3 20 15% conduct online research 1 0 1 20 5% prepare for standardized tests 0 0 0 20 0% produce media, web, or presentation products 1 1 2 20 10% students’ use of technology for the critical thinking and decision-making skills related to technology literacy work cooperatively or collaboratively with other students 0 0 0 20 0% communicate electronically about academic content with experts, peers, or others 0 0 0 20 0% visually represent or investigate concepts 2 0 2 20 10% take tests or quizzes using a computer 0 0 0 20 0% use inquiry-based strategies 0 1 1 20 5% solve real-world problems 0 1 1 20 5% work in content in multiple disciplines 0 0 0 20 0% use authentic tools 0 1 1 20 5% create products that had realworld audiences 0 0 0 20 0% codes received (20max/sample) 37 40 77 codes possible (10 tws samples) 220 220 percentage received 16.81% 18.18% the findings show mathematics and science k-12 teacher candidates utilizing technology most prominently in the “teacher’s use of technology in instruction” category. both mathematics and science teacher candidates used technology to “present concepts to students” in 95% of the cases. two other checklist items received more than 50% of the possible codes use of technology 25 indicating student achievement in the content area: "develop curricula or assignments" in 75% of the cases, and "do research and lesson planning using the internet," in 65% of the cases. in the teacher work samples examined, neither content major studied received 20% or more of the codes possible on the scoring checklist. science education k-12 received the highest percentage with 18.18% occurrences of the possible codes on the checklist. math k-12 received the lowest percentage with 16.81% occurrences of the possible codes on the checklist. all other indicators received less than 50% occurrences of the possible codes on the checklist. seven items received no codes on the checklist, indicating no achievement in these areas by the teacher candidates; most of these items fell within the categories that tracked student use of technology and student learning with technology: 1. collaborate with experts to teachers in other locations 2. prepare for standardized tests 3. work cooperatively or collaboratively with other students 4. communicate electronically about academic content with experts, peers, or others 5. work in content in multiple disciplines 6. create products that had real-world audiences 7. take tests or quizzes using a computer (in the "students’ use of technology for the critical thinking and decision-making skills related to technology literacy" category) there were various ranges among the three categories: "teacher use of technology in instruction" (which ranged from 0 to 95% of the students indicating achievement in the content area), "student use of technology in learning" (which ranged from 0 to 40% of the students indicating achievement in the content area), and "students’ use of technology for the critical thinking and decision-making skills related to technology literacy" (which ranged from 0 to 10% of the students indicating achievement in the content area). as the percentages indicate, the data reveals a lower rate of technology use when referring to students’ use of technology of critical thinking and decision-making skills compared to the other categories. conclusions based on the findings of this study, the following conclusions are drawn: 1. the math and science tws documents studied show that the undergraduate program is preparing student teachers in the category of "present concepts to students." 2. math education k-12 is preparing student teachers in the category of "develop curricula or assignments." 3. science education k-12 is preparing student teachers in the category of "do research and lesson planning using the internet." 4. concerning the remainder of the items detailed by the usde (2008), math and science content areas included in the study are deficient in preparing student teachers to use technology to accomplish the goals of "students’ use of technology in learning" and "students’ use of technology for the critical thinking and decision-making skills related to technology literacy." implications most of the math and science student teachers in the study reported using technology for delivering instruction. teachers indicated the technology they used most included powerpoint 26   j. tassell, r. stobaugh, and m. mcdonald   presentations, electronic whiteboards, and online videos. the technology mentioned second most were used to develop curricula or assignments, including word processing technology to create documents such as handouts and tests. the third most prevalent result indicates that math and science student teachers use the internet for conducting research for lesson planning. even though these were the secondand third-strongest findings from the data, since only 75% of student teachers were developing curricula or assignments and 65% were conducting research and lesson planning using the internet with technology, more attention should be paid to this part of their training by teacher education programs. the study revealed that very little technology was reported in the area of student use in completing work or assessments, or engaging in higher-level thinking. no math and science student teacher reported using technology to have students prepare for standardized tests; work cooperatively or collaboratively with other students; communicate electronically about academic content with experts, peers, or others; work in content in multiple disciplines; or create products that had real-world audiences. all of the areas dealing with the ways students used technology as addressed in the usde (2008) needed attention by teacher education programs in preparing student teachers. during student teaching, many teacher candidates did not have the opportunity to incorporate the level of technology they wished to due to constraints imposed by the school or due to limited technology access in their schools. this stifling of the student teaching experience itself was unfortunate but could be overcome by improving an understanding of what technology integration means and how to troubleshoot difficult situations. the students in k-12 classrooms should not be going without technology experiences. the findings of this study are being woven back into the mathematics and science methods coursework and tws design to strengthen its technological components. the tws technology indicator was itself not written in such a way that provided a detailed expectation within the technology indicator, whereas the usdoe holds a much higher standard for what should be achieved. math education k-12 and science education k-12 reported virtually equal use of technology by their student teachers. this study indicated that the content areas should invest more time and resources in preparing student teachers to use technology when planning instructional experiences where students engage technology for real-world tasks. limitations the study had the several limitations. the sample reviewed was limited to student teachers enrolled in this institution during spring 2009. the study reviewed only two content area majors: math k-12 and science k-12. the dichotomous checklist was used to code each technology indicator (which limited the degree that each indicator was actually met). recommendations for further study this study involved student teachers at one university. future studies should investigate whether the results from other universities in other regions report similar results. further research should investigate if discrepancies exist between elementary, middle school, and secondary grade teacher education programs to discover if teacher education programs are preparing student teachers in the most effective and most recent technologies. finally, future investigations should focus on the knowledge and skills of faculty in teacher education programs and their readiness to prepare future educators in the most effective use of technology. use of technology 27 the math and science teacher candidates’ effective use of technology should and can be utilized to develop strong lessons that engage students in higher levels of learning. teacher candidates are at a stage of learning the importance of strong lesson planning, and teacher programs have been expecting them to be masters in the area of “teacher use” more so than in the area of “student use” of technology. further study should be conducted to determine how to incorporate and encourage “student use” of technology to promote critical thinking, collaboration, and achievement in mathematics and science classes. references national council for accreditation of teacher education. (2008). professional standards for the accreditation of teacher preparation institutions. national council for accreditation of teacher education: washington, d.c. international society for technology in education. (2007). the national educational technology standards for students. international society for technology in education: eugene, or. kentucky department of education. (2008). kentucky teaching standards. retrieved from http://www.kyepsb.net/teacherprep/standards.asp. u.s. department of education. (2008). national educational technology trends study: locallevel data summary. u.s. department of education, office of planning, evaluation and policy development, policy and program studies service: washington, d.c. vanetta, r. & beyerbach, b. (2000). facilitating a constructivist vision of technology integration among education faculty and preservice teachers. journal of research on computing in education, 33(2), 133-48. kleiner, b., thomas, n., & lewis, l. (2007). educational technology in teacher education program for initial licensure (nces 2008-040). national center for educational statistics, institute of education sciences, u.s. department of education: washington, d.c. 28   j. tassell, r. stobaugh, and m. mcdonald   beckett, e., wetzel, k., buss, r., chisholm, i., misdoubted, e., & padgett, h. (2001). preservice and in-service teachers collaborate to integrate technology into k-8 classrooms. site conference: norfolk, va. duhaney, d.c. (2001). teacher education: preparing teachers to integrate technology. international journal of instructional media, 28(1), 23-30. educational renaissance vol. 1 vol. 1, no. 1, august 2012, pp. 1 editors welcome james marshall, patrick newell, paul beare california state university, fresno welcome to the inaugural issue of educational renaissance! this first issue includes articles and essays that portray the important history of the renaissance group as well as present research and perspective on how educational professionals are being prepared in our colleges and universities. the history of the renaissance group appears in the article by executive director, michael giovannetti, who gives an overview of the formation of the renaissance group. roger pankratz’s article chronicles successes in the development of the renaissance group, its educational partnerships, and the effect that his has had on education in the united states. following these articles are a series of brief essays that present perspectives on the importance of collaboration from a university president, a school district superintendent, and the president of the renaissance group. the essay by john welty provides the perspective of how an engaged university affects the community in its geographical region. rich smith's essay discusses the expectation of collaboration, how it works in the world of transportation, and how that expectation should become part of the world of education. john counts’ essay provides a perspective on how the renaissance group serves and furthers teacher preparation as a way of addressing america's educational challenges. the final article from this issue, by nancy bacharach and teresa heck, provides an overview of an exciting innovation in fieldwork from the perspective of teachers in the classroom. in future issues, we will be expanding the number of articles that involve primary inquiry and include research on teacher preparation, professional development, classroom dynamics, and partnerships across universities and school districts. in addition to the authors, we would like to thank all of the reviewers who participated in making this issue a success and whose dedication helped launch educational renaissance. we appreciate all of the work these reviewers do, and we encourage others to share their expertise as a reviewer for this journal by registering at http://educationalrenaissance.org. microsoft word 2murley-final.docx vol. 3, no. 1, dec 2014, pp. 7-20 introducing the co-teaching model in teacher education clinical practice lisa d. murley, rebecca r. stobaugh, and charles s. evans western kentucky university abstract with national and state regulatory changes related to clinical practice within teacher education programs a reality, one university examined the outcomes of co-teaching model trainings required for stakeholders, both higher education faculty and p-12 educators. the training participants indicated the co-teaching model could increase student teacher preparedness while also positively impacting p-12 student learning. nearly a year after the co-teaching training, one university surveyed student teachers on their co-teaching experience prior to and during student teaching. while there were increase mean scores of all the co-teaching models, results pointed to questions of whether teacher candidates were engaged in lower-level impact co-teaching models, which involved teacher candidates observing and assisting. 8   l. murley, r. stobaugh, & c. evans   introduction with national and state regulatory changes related to clinical practice within teacher education programs, it is imperative that higher education and primary through 12th grade (p-12) partners explore opportunities to strengthen clinical aspects of teacher education programs (kentucky education professional standards board, 2011; kar 5:040). one current practice in p-12 settings which shows promise in teacher preparation programs is the co-teaching model (committee on the study of teacher preparation programs in the united states and the national research council, 2010). as a model for preparing teacher candidates, co-teaching can be defined in a variety of ways. however defined, co-teaching during the student teaching experience must include collaboration between the student teacher and classroom teacher in the development, delivery, and evaluation of teaching and learning in the student teaching experience. both individuals are in the classroom throughout the student teaching experience. while the interaction can take different forms, both are integrally involved with students in the learning experiences; therefore, providing tremendous opportunities to enlist the expertise of both professionals to increase student learning. bacharach, heck, and dahlberg (2010) provide a definition of co-teaching that is relevant and adaptable to the use in the co-teaching model in teacher preparation programs which includes the following: • two or more individuals working together. • conducted in the same classroom at the same time. • conducted with heterogeneous groups. • when both teachers plan for instruction together. • when both teachers provide substantive instruction together. • when both teachers assess and evaluate student progress. • when teachers maximize the benefits of having two teachers in the room by having both teachers actively engaged with students. • when teachers reflect on the progress and process, offering one another feedback on teaching styles, content, activities, and other items pertinent to improving the teaching situation. (p. 2) literature review with increased accountability in p-12 education through federal reform initiatives such as the no child left behind act of 2001 (u.s. department of education, 2001) and race to the top, a part of the american recovery and reinvestment act of 2009 (u.s. department of education, 2009), came greater demand of teacher preparation programs (wiseman, 2012). it is seemingly impossible to initiate reform in p-12 schools without including a focus on teacher quality and ultimately teacher preparation programs. central to this increased focus on teacher preparation programs in recent educational reform is the report of the blue ribbon panel commissioned by the national council for accreditation of teacher education (ncate) titled transforming teacher education through clinical practice: a national strategy to prepare effective teachers (national council of accreditation of colleges, 2010). the blue ribbon panel recommendations include greater linkages between higher education and p-12 educators in teacher preparation experiences that are centered on clinical practices such as development, implementation, and evaluation. these recommendations are aligned with the 2010 national research council report that identified co-teaching models 9 clinical preparation as one of three components of teacher preparation that have the potential for having the greatest impact on p-12 student learning (committee on the study of teacher preparation programs in the united states and the national research council, 2010). as a result of recommendations from numerous national agencies and panels focused on reform, one state formed an educational task force to study ways to transform education (governor’s task force on transforming education in kentucky, 2011). an action area in the task force report focused on more clinical experiences for teacher candidates to ensure better teacher preparedness for the 21st century classroom. these recommendations led to state regulatory changes including the directive that student teachers will be provided opportunities to “…engage in extended co-teaching experiences with experienced teachers” (kentucky education professional standards board, 2011; kar 5:040). much of the current literature on co-teaching is derived from models associated with special educators interacting with general education or content teachers delivering instruction in settings that include students receiving special services with no teacher candidates present in the co-teaching setting (austin, 2001; dieker & murawski, 2003; magiera & zigmond, 2005; mastropieri, scruggs, graetz, norland, gardizi, & mcduffie, 2005; murawski & swanson, 2001). the co-teaching model has also been endorsed by some teacher preparatory institutions to prepare teacher candidates (national council of accreditation of colleges, 2010). in 2004, roth and tobin posited that co-teaching could help teachers become more effective and “… provide(s) new opportunities for enhancing student learning and learning to teach” (p. 161). furthermore, eick, ware, and williams (2003) reported the positive effects of using co-teaching in clinical components of science methods courses. however, there are little data on the impact of co-teaching on the improvement of student learning. one notable exception is a study reported by bacharach, heck, and dahlberg (2010). the reported data was associated with a teacher quality enhancement initiative at st. cloud university that involved co-teaching and non co-teaching settings in the st. cloud area school district. co-teaching settings included student teachers and cooperating teachers who attended workshops on how to incorporate co-teaching models during student teaching. the study spanned a period of four years. the analysis revealed a statistically significant effect (p< .01) for co-teaching on reading proficiency each of the four years and a statistically significant effect (p< -05) for co-teaching on math proficiency each of the four years. additional data analysis was conducted to examine the effect of student teaching on reading and math proficiency. students in the co-taught student teaching setting attained higher reading and math proficiency than those in the other two groups of classrooms. the differences were significant for all years except 2006-2007 where there were an insufficient number of classrooms that were not co-taught. they also found a statistically significant positive impact on reading and math scores for special education and those students receiving free or reduced lunch. in addition to the findings from the data analysis, students in the co-taught classrooms felt that there were fewer disruptions related to routine classroom tasks and improved student behaviors. these same observations were found in studies focusing on co-taught classroom with general education teachers and special education teachers. the co-taught setting allowed students greater opportunities to receive help and teachers were afforded opportunities to implement strategies and learning experiences that would have been more challenging to implement with just one teacher. findings from the study supported the use of the co-teaching model and more specifically the use of the model in student teaching situations. 10   l. murley, r. stobaugh, & c. evans   eick, ware, and williams (2005) explored the use of the co-teaching models in early clinical experiences. in this study, the co-teaching model was implemented within the clinical component of a science methods course. methods students found the experience to be positive and provided opportunities to not only learn from veteran teachers but to also improve their skills related to classroom management, use of inquiry-based strategies, and felt supported when taking the lead in the instructional experiences. basically, the methods students were learning to teach alongside and with veteran teachers. current findings support the use of the co-teaching model in classroom settings. while the evidence from the bacharach, heck, and dahlberg (2010) study provides a solid foundation for implementing the co-teaching model during student teaching, there is potential value in extending the model into coursework prior to student teaching which requires clinical experiences. the design and implementation of early clinical components of the teacher education programs are critical to preparing teacher candidates for student teaching. prior to the capstone experiences, teacher candidates spend time in classroom settings observing, assisting, and when possible, leading instructional experiences. as such, some candidates enter the student teacher experience having greater opportunities for developing, implementing, and evaluating learning experiences. implementing the co-teaching model prior to student teaching would provide teacher candidates with increased clinical experiences that would more than likely prove to be some of the most meaningful and rigorous of their teacher preparation program. purpose of the study with new state mandates requiring the implementation of the co-teaching model in teacher education clinical practice, one university embraced the challenge of providing coteaching model training for stakeholders, both higher education faculty and p-12 educators. the purpose of this study was to determine if these introductory training initiatives increased the capacity of participants to develop and implement co-teaching models in teacher education clinical practice. in addition, the institution desired to collect baseline data of co-teaching practices before and during student teaching to assess the current level of engagement of teacher candidates in co-teaching strategies. research questions this study examined preand post-survey data from a statewide co-teaching training in a southeastern state. in addition, data was collected from a southeastern university a year after the training to assess student teacher’s engagement in co-teaching experiences. the research questions were as follows: 1. to what extent do participants attending a co-teaching training believe co-teaching will increase the student teaching experience? 2. to what extent are participants attending a co-teaching training currently utilize coteaching strategies? 3. how effectively did the co-teaching training increase participants’ knowledge of the coteaching principles and belief they could implement the model? 4. to what extent were student teachers exposed to the co-teaching strategies during their coursework and field experiences prior to student teaching? 5. to what extent were student teachers exposed to the co-teaching strategies during their student teaching experience? co-teaching models 11 methodology the study included data from two sources: (a) a statewide co-teaching training and (b) student survey data from a university. co-teaching training the participants for this study include faculty and administrators from thirty teacher education institutions across the state who attended a two day co-teaching training. the number of participants invited from each institution was based on the respective program’s number of student teachers the previous year. at least two participants from each institution attended with the largest institutions bringing up to six participants. each teacher education institution was asked to bring a p-12 school administrator or teacher to participate in the training. for the purpose of this study participants of the co-teaching training are defined as higher education faculty and administrators along with p-12 teachers and administrators. as a part of the training evaluation, participants completed a survey related to coteaching. the survey was administered as a pre-assessment, before the training, and again as a post-assessment after the training. student teacher survey in an effort to assess the level of skill related to co-teaching strategies and teacher candidates, one university added items focused on the co-teaching model to a student teacher survey administered to teacher candidates prior to and during the final semester of their undergraduate program. this student teacher survey was given almost a year after the statewide training initiative referenced above. during this year, those trained at the statewide co-teaching training subsequently led professional development in one university for the majority of all teacher education faculty and cooperating teachers who support the student teachers in the schools. in total over 1,000 faculty and cooperating teachers attended the co-teaching professional development. student teachers were also trained on the co-teaching strategies in an orientation meeting prior to student teaching. to determine the baseline level of implementation, the new items for the survey served to assess what type of co-teaching strategies student teachers engaged in before and during student teaching. the co-teaching strategies were identified based on the co-teaching strategy definitions by bacharach, heck, and dahlberg (2010). the teacher candidates represented 252 elementary education, middle grades education, secondary education, special education, interdisciplinary early childhood education, p-12 and 5-12 education majors. for the purpose of the student teacher survey, the co-teaching strategies were defined as: one teach, one observe: one teacher has the primary responsibility while the other gathers specific observational information on students or the instructing teacher. the key to this strategy is to have a focus for observation. one teach, one assist: one teacher has primary instructional responsibility, while the other assists students with their work, monitors behaviors, or corrects assignments. station teaching: the co-teaching pair divides the instructional content into parts and the students into groups. groups spend a designated amount of time at each station. parallel teaching: each teacher instructs half the students, addressing the same instructional materials and presents the material using the same teaching strategy. 12   l. murley, r. stobaugh, & c. evans   supplemental teaching: one teacher works with students at their expected grade level while the other teacher works with those students who need the information and/or materials re-taught, extended, or remediated. alternative or differentiated teaching: provides students with different approaches to learning the same information. team teaching: well-planned, team-taught lessons with no prescribed division of authority. (school of teacher education, 2013) the student teachers were instructed to answer the survey items based on the leveled response descriptors (a) extensive exposure very comfortable with the model and my ability to use it; (b) moderate exposure – somewhat comfortable with the model and ready to use it during student teaching; (c) minimal exposure – not comfortable with the model and would not use it during student teaching; (d) none at all – limited or no exposure to the model. results and findings the data analysis resulted in these findings for each research question. research question one on the co-teaching training survey, participants indicated on a four point scale (1= not at all; 4= to a great extent) whether co-teaching would (a) improve the learning experience of student teachers, (b) provide a better instructional experience during students teaching for p-12 students, and (c) better prepare new teachers for the classroom. means for p-12 educators ranged from 3.45 to 3.55 on the pre-assessment. the mean scores on the post-assessment increased slightly, ranging between 3.81 and 3.86. mean scores for higher education faculty were slightly lower that p-12 educators on the pre-assessment, ranging from 3.26 to 3.33. the mean scores increased slightly to ranges between 3.37 and 3.4 on the post-assessment. total mean scores on the post-assessment were higher on these three items than all other survey questions. table 1. benefits of the co-teaching model research question two using the same four point scale, two questions on the survey measured participant experience with co-teaching: “i have been involved in a co-teaching experience,” and “a survey question p-12 pre n= 30 p-12 post n= 37 higher ed pre n= 29 higher ed post n=41 total mean pre n= 59 total mean post n=78 co-teaching will improve the learning experience of student teachers. 3.47 3.81 3.33 3.82 3.39 3.81 co-teaching will provide a better instructional experience during student teaching for p-12 students. 3.55 3.86 3.26 3.79 3.4 3.83 co-teaching will better prepare new teachers for the classroom. 3.45 3.83 3.29 3.81 3.37 3.82 co-teaching models 13 majority of people in my workplace use co-teaching strategies.” when participants were asked if they had been involved in a co-teaching experience initially the scores were low (mp-12 educators=1.97; mhigher education=1.76). however, after training there were slightly higher mean scores (mp-12 educators=2.54; mhigher education=2.53). on the item, “a majority of people in my workplace use co-teaching strategies,” participants indicated low ratings across all groups on the preand post-assessment. total mean scores for all participants on the post-assessment was 1.74, the lowest scoring item on the post-assessment. table 2. experience with co-teaching research question three participants were assessed on their understanding of the co-teaching model and the strategies within the model. on a four point scale, participants rated their knowledge of the following: (a) theoretical base of co-teaching, (b) specific strategies of co-teaching, and (c) the co-planning process. both higher education faculty and p-12 educators scored the items with a low mean score (ranging from 1.3-1.91) on the pre-assessment. however, on the postassessment the means for these items were all above 3.60 for both higher education faculty and p-12 educators. total mean post-assessment scores increased from the pre-assessment by almost two points for each survey question. table 3. knowledge of co-teaching participants were also assessed on their understanding of the six co-teaching strategies: survey question p-12 pre n= 30 p-12 post n= 37 higher ed pre n= 29 higher ed post n=41 total mean pre n= 59 total mean post n=67 i have been involved in a coteaching experience. 1.97 2.54 1.76 2.53 1.86 2.54 a majority of people in my workplace use co-teaching strategies. 1.63 1.67 1.32 1.79 1.47 1.74 survey question p-12 pre n= 30 p-12 post n= 37 higher ed pre n= 29 higher ed post n=41 total mean pre n= 59 total mean post n= 67 theoretical base of coteaching 1.86 3.68 1.91 3.69 1.86 3.68 seven strategies of coteaching 1.3 3.86 1.44 3.87 1.38 3.87 the co-planning process 1.83 3.78 1.65 3.64 1.73 3.71 co-teaching demonstrations 1.73 3.78 1.5 3.6 1.61 3.68 specific co-teaching strategies to use in the classroom 1.63 3.81 1.65 3.69 1.64 3.74 14   l. murley, r. stobaugh, & c. evans   (a) parallel teaching, (b) station teaching, (c) one teach, one observe, (d) one teach, one drift, (e) remedial teaching, and (f) team teaching. based on pre-assessment data, both higher education faculty and p-12 school practitioners had some knowledge of these approaches to co-teaching with mean scores ranging from 1.86 to 2.62. post-test data shows higher means for each of the strategies with total mean scores ranging from 3.63 to 3.78. the total mean postassessment scores increase slightly more than 1.5 points for each of the co-teaching strategies. table 4. knowledge of the co-teaching strategies participant belief in self-efficacy to implement the co-teaching model increased from the preto post-assessment. initially, p-12 participants (m=1.66) and higher education faculty (m=1.67) had low levels of confidence in their ability to utilize the co-teaching strategies. however, in the post-assessment means increased to a total mean score of 3.54 on this item, a 1.87 point increase. table 5. self-efficacy research question four nearly a year after the initial state-wide training, one university surveyed student teachers on their co-teaching experience prior to student teaching. the survey item stated, “to what extent were you were exposed to the co-teaching models during your coursework and field experiences prior to student teaching experience?” table 6 depicts the results. the state professional licensure groups teacher programs in six areas: interdisciplinary early childhood education (iece), elementary education (eled), middle grades education (mge), secondary education (sec), 5-12 programs (e.g., agriculture, business and marketing, family and survey question p-12 pre n= 30 p-12 post n= 37 higher ed pre n= 29 higher ed post n=41 total mean pre n= 59 total mean post n= 67 parallel teaching 1.86 3.76 2.06 3.62 1.97 3.68 station teaching 1.9 3.77 2.06 3.64 1.97 3.68 one teach, one observe 2.27 3.84 2.32 3.73 1.98 3.7 one teach, one drift 2.2 3.73 2.14 3.56 2.29 3.78 remedial teaching 2.07 3.76 2.32 3.61 2.17 3.63 team teaching 2.3 3.78 2.62 3.71 2.2 3.68 survey question p-12 pre n= 30 p-12 post n= 37 higher ed pre n= 29 higher ed post n=41 total mean pre n= 59 total mean post n= 59 i feel ready to utilize the coteaching model. 1.66 3.58 1.67 3.51 1.67 3.54 co-teaching models 15 consumer science), and k-12 programs (e.g., art, german, chinese, physical education), and exceptional education or special education (sped). these teacher program areas were used to meaningfully collapse the data into representative groups. with 256 student teachers responding, two co-teaching strategies with the highest mean scores across all program areas were one teach, one observe (m=3.32) and one teach, one assist (m=3.16). special education (sped) student teachers reported high levels for team teaching (m=3.25), but even so one teach, one observe (m=3.40) and one teach, one assist (m=3.50) had the highest means. the k-12 program area, which also has larger mean scores for one teach, one observe and one teach, one assist, had the highest mean score for station teaching (m=3.09). table 6. student teaching survey results of co-teaching model skill level prior to student teaching program areas # of student s one teach one obser ve one teac h one assi st station teachin g parallel teachin g supplemen tal teaching alternative or differentiat ed teaching team teachin g iece 4 3.75 3.5 2.5 2.75 2.75 2.50 2.75 eled 106 3.34 3.37 2.89 2.13 2.53 2.49 2.21 mge 41 3.54 3.12 2.59 2.32 2.44 2.54 2.81 sec 54 2.59 2.37 1.81 1.65 1.69 1.85 1.93 5-12 8 3.25 2.38 1.75 1.50 1.88 2.00 2.00 k-12 23 3.52 3.22 3.09 2.74 2.61 2.78 2.91 sped 20 3.40 3.50 2.85 2.80 2.75 2.90 3.25 total 256 3.32 3.16 2.65 2.21 2.40 2.46 2.45 with one teach, one observe and one teach, one assist, typically it is the teacher candidate doing the observing and the assisting. both of these strategies provide low-levels of engagement in the teaching process in classrooms. the other five co-teaching strategies involve the teacher candidates leading instruction with small or large group instruction providing more quality experiences preparing teacher candidates for student teaching. research question five the second survey item added to the student teacher survey stated, “to what extent were you exposed to the co-teaching models during your student teaching experience?” table 7 displays the results. similar to the other student teacher survey item results, the two co-teaching strategies with the highest mean scores across all program areas were one teach, one observe (m=3.64) and one teach, one assist (m=3.64). station teaching also received high rankings from the student teachers (m= 3.06). means for the other co-teaching strategies did increase compared to the other survey item ranking student teacher engagement in the co-teaching strategies before student teaching. 16   l. murley, r. stobaugh, & c. evans   table 7. student teaching survey results of co-teaching model skill level during student teaching program areas # of student s one teach one obser ve one teac h one assi st station teachin g parallel teachin g supplemen tal teaching alternative or differentiat ed teaching team teachin g iece 4 3.25 3.75 2.75 3.0 3.0 2.75 3.0 eled 106 3.71 3.78 3.46 2.57 2.96 2.92 2.75 mge 41 3.88 3.85 3.12 2.90 3.05 3.10 3.46 sec 54 2.96 2.80 2.02 1.96 1.98 2.11 2.41 5-12 8 3.75 3.50 1.75 2.13 2.0 2.88 2.75 k-12 23 3.65 3.65 3.04 2.78 2.87 3.04 3.13 sped 20 3.60 3.60 3.35 3.15 2.80 3.35 3.45 total 256 3.64 3.64 3.06 2.61 2.78 2.89 2.96 while there were increase mean scores of all the co-teaching strategies on the student teaching item as compared to the prior the student teaching field experiences, both items point to questions of whether teacher candidates are engaging in lower-level impact co-teaching strategies which involve teacher candidates observing and assisting. conclusions university and p-12 educators participating in the training clearly believed that the coteaching model could increase student teacher preparedness while also positively impacting p-12 student learning. after learning about the co-teaching model, some participants realized the coteaching strategies were already a part of the curriculum. however, they believed few of their colleagues were engaged in co-teaching. this training increased participant knowledge of the co-teaching model and the seven strategies while also elevating their confidence in their ability to implement the model. a limitation of the study was the number of participants responding to the survey. a higher number of survey participants could have resulted in a better estimate of the population rather than a potential representative of only those who participated. as teacher education institutions replicate this training with teacher education faculty and p-12 teachers and administrators, the hope is that through understanding more about the coteaching model and the seven strategies, educators can more confidently design teaching experiences for teacher candidates to impact p-12 student learning in positive ways. teacher education institutions must partner with p-12 educators to communicate the vision for coteaching model. schools must understand the reason for implementing co-teaching, research supporting the model, and determine how to utilize the co-teaching strategies. this may involve teacher preparatory institutions leading trainings to engage stakeholders in the conversation on implementing the model. as new teachers are hired each year teacher preparation programs must develop ways of providing this training for new teachers who will be welcoming teacher candidates in their classrooms. co-teaching models 17 the student teacher survey results point to questions about the level of engagement of student teachers. support of that outcome can be found as hattie (2012) noted the important elements of the co-teaching model: planning can be done in many ways, but the most powerful is when teachers work together to develop plans, develop common understandings of what is worth teaching, collaborate on understanding their belief of challenge and progress, and work together to evaluate the impact of their planning on student outcomes. (p. 37) implications adopting the co-teaching model will require significant changes within teacher preparation programs. teacher education faculty must examine coursework prior to student teaching to ensure teacher candidates understand the co-teaching model and have engaged in the models so they are adequately prepared for their student teaching semester. this may require faculty to reexamine course assignments. institutions can create an intentional plan outlining where teacher candidates will learn about the model and engage in the strategies. as teacher education faculty work to integrate more co-teaching strategies into clinical work, students can be more prepared for student teaching and it is expected high scores will result on future surveys. additionally, as student teachers engage in the variety of co-teaching strategies they can further refine their skills and be more prepared to lead their own classroom after graduation. as the institution continues to track data on co-teaching, teacher education faculty can ascertain if there are increases in higher-impact co-teaching strategies. the co-teaching model implementation may provide opportunity for collaboration with special education preparation programs as the co-teaching has been part of special education classrooms for many years. another positive benefit for teacher candidates who have engaged in the co-teaching model is that they should be able to co-teach with special education professionals in their own classroom as the teacher candidate will have experience implementing the model in their clinical experience. recommendation for future study future research could replicate bacharach, heck, and dahlberg (2010) study examining the impact of the co-teaching model on student achievement. a teacher preparation institution could determine if implementing co-teaching positively impacted student achievement as well as survey p-12 students and teachers to assess their beliefs on the impact of co-teaching. an additional study would examine the co-teaching models further to clearly identify the types of experience student teachers are experiencing. one teach, one observe could be divided into two categories: solo teaching and student teacher observes. this would clearly identify who is leading the instruction—the cooperating teacher or the student teacher. in addition, definitions could clearly specify the role of the student teacher and the cooperating teacher (see table 8). additionally, teacher preparation institutions could replicate the survey to assess the level of coteaching practices at their university and consider these revised definitions and categories in table 8. 18   l. murley, r. stobaugh, & c. evans   table 8. co-teaching strategies defined for future research as one university seeks to examine the field experiences both before and during student teaching, teacher candidates engaging in a variety of co-teaching strategies provide an opportunity for teachers and teacher candidates to work in a collaborative manner that focuses on the learning of all students, which is the most important outcome of the co-teaching initiative. hattie (2012) emphasized the importance of the model and says it best with a cautionary note of what may happen if educators work in isolation, “…schools cannot help all students to learn” (p. 62). references austin, v. l. (2001). teachers’ beliefs about co-teaching. remedial and special education, 22(4), 245-255. bacharach, n., heck, t., & dahlberg, k. (2010). changing the face of student teaching through co-teaching. action in teacher education, 32(1), 3-14. student teacher observes the cooperating teacher is the primary teacher while the student teacher gathers specific observational information. (one teach, one observe) student teacher assists – the cooperating teacher has primary instructional responsibility of leading instruction while the student teacher assists students with work, monitors behavior, or corrects assignments. (one teach, one assist) station teaching – the cooperating teacher and student teacher divide the instructional content into parts. each teacher instructs one of the groups, and then the groups rotate. parallel teaching – the cooperating teacher and student teacher instruct half the students. the two teachers are addressing the same instructional material and presenting the material using the same teaching strategies. supplemental – the cooperating teacher and student teacher plan and implement a task/activity where one teacher works with students at their expected grade level, while the other teacher works with those students who need the information and/or materials extended or remediated. alternative – the cooperating teacher and student teacher plan and implement two different approaches to teaching the same information. the learning outcome is the same for all students however the avenue for getting there is different. team teaching – well planned, team taught lessons, exhibit an invisible flow of instruction with no prescribed division of authority between the cooperating teacher and student teacher. using a team teaching strategy, both teachers are actively involved in the lesson. from a student’s perspective, there is no clearly defined leader – as both teachers share the instruction, are free to interject information, and available to assist students and answer questions. co-teaching models 19 committee on the study of teacher preparation programs in the united states and the national research council. (2010). preparing teachers: building evidence for sound policy. washington dc: the national academies press. dieker, l., & mujrawski, w. (2003). co-teaching at the secondary level: unique issues, current trends, and suggestions. the high school journal, 86(4), 1-13. eick, c. j., ware, f. n., & williams, p. g. (2003). coteaching in a science methods course: a situated learning model of becoming a teacher. journal of teacher education, 54(1), 7485. hattie, j. (2012). visible learning for teachers. new york: routledge. kar 5:040 admission, placement, and supervision in student teaching. governor’s task force on transforming education in kentucky. (2011). breaking new ground: final report of the governor’s task force on transforming education in kentucky (tek). frankfort, ky: author. kentucky education professional standards board. (2011). 16 kar 5:040. section 6.(5)(e) 1.). frankfort, ky: author. magiera, k., & zigmond, n. (2005). co-teaching in middle school classrooms under routine conditions: does the instructional experience differ for students with disabilities in cotaught and solo-taught classes? learning disabilities research, 20(2), 79-85. mastropieri, m.a., scruggs, t.e., graetz, j., norland, j., gardizi, w., & mcduffie, k. (2005). case studies in co-teaching in the content areas: successes, failures and challenges. intervention in school and clinic, 40, 260-270. 20   l. murley, r. stobaugh, & c. evans   murawski, w., & swanson, h. (2001). a meta-analysis of co-teaching research: where are the data? remedial and special education, 22(5), 258-267. national council of accreditation of colleges. (2010). transforming teacher education through clinical practice: a national strategy to prepare effective teachers. washington dc: author. roth, w., & tobin, k. (2004). co-teaching: from praxis to theory. teachers and teaching, 10(2), 161-179. school of teacher education. (2013). wku co-teaching. retrieved from http://www.wku.edu/ste/co-teaching/ united states department of education. (2009). the american recovery and reinvestment act of 2009: saving and creating jobs and reforming education. washington dc: author. united states department of education. (2001). public law 107–110. washington dc: author. wiseman, d. (2012). the intersection of policy, reform, and teacher education. journal of teacher education, 63(2), 87-91. microsoft word 1-kennesaw final (2).docx vol. 1, no. 2, january 2013, pp. 83-96 kennesaw state university – collaborative clinical practice jennifer heckert, toni strieker and maria shaheen kennesaw state university i've had many student teachers before, and i always felt like a host in my own classroom. with this model, i feel that i've become part of the teacher educator team. there are so many teachable moments... for the children, my student teacher and myself. ~ third grade collaborating co-teacher 84 j. heckert, t. strieker and m. shaheen introduction as teacher educators in the united states, our capacity to prepare competent p-12 educators who are ready to meet the challenges of 21st century schooling has been called into question (darling-hammond, 2006). low student achievement and high teacher attrition rates have resulted in a national call to prepare prospective and practicing teachers with the knowledge, skills, and dispositions to collaborate with colleagues and to provide an equitable and quality education for all students, particularly those from diverse backgrounds (darlinghammond, 2010). for example, the ncate blue ribbon panel on clinical preparation and partnerships for improved student learning (2010) recommends the transformation of clinical practice in order to better prepare prospective and practicing teacher with programs that create opportunities: (a) for partnerships with schools to advance shared responsibility for teacher preparation; (b) for prospective teachers to learn by doing; (c) for transforming curriculum, pedagogy, structure and delivery; and (d) to ensure prospective teachers will know how to collaborate with colleagues. in response to this call as well as on-going challenges from the field, the teacher education faculty from kennesaw state university (ksu) created formal partnerships with local school districts and designed, developed, implemented, and evaluated a collaborative model of practice that occurs throughout a yearlong clinical experience. inherent in this model are two key partnerships that simultaneously support novice and practicing teacher development including pre-service co-teaching (bacharach, heck, & dahlberg, 2010; badiali & titus, 2010) and classroom coaching (knight, 2007). context kennesaw state university (ksu) is located in metropolitan atlanta and enrolls approximately 25,000 students. ksu is home to the bagwell college of education (bcoe), the largest preparer of p-12 teachers in the university of georgia system. ksu’s collaborative model of clinical practice (ccp) was initiated under the auspices of a teacher quality partnership (tqp) grant funded by the united states department of education (usdoe). in 2009, the bcoe began collaborating with a large local school district to develop seven professional development schools (pds) in an urban feeder path of five elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school. the overarching goal of this partnership was to improve p16 student achievement in high needs schools by transforming teacher preparation. in many ways, ksu’s reformed teacher preparation program has been “turned upside-down” and reflects the recommendations of ncate’s blue ribbon panel. for example, through a shared partnership, the university and school district faculty designed the highly rigorous prebaccalaureate curriculum that prepares p-12 students to effectively educate students who attend high needs schools. the pre-baccalaureate urban education (ue) teacher preparation option is co-administered, and co-taught by school and ksu faculty at the seven pds sites. given the site-based nature of this program, teacher candidates are offered continuous field experiences throughout their junior year. during their senior year, teacher candidates enroll in a yearlong clinical experience designed to enhance the learning of novice and practicing teachers as well as their classroom students through pre-service co-teaching (psct). collaborative clinical practice 85 purpose the purpose of this paper is to describe the ccp model and its components: (a) professional development, (b) psct, (c) classroom coaching, and (d) inquiry. further, brief results from a pilot study that utilized focus groups to inform the ccp model are presented. collaborative clinical practice the ccp model was founded in the previous work of faculty committed to creating a more clinically engaged teacher preparation program through formal yearlong partnerships with local school districts (gray, stockdale, & monti, in press) and co-teaching (strieker, zong, gillis, wright, & stockdale, 2012). this initiative to enhance candidates’ knowledge and implementation of co-teaching practices has evolved significantly over the past year. innovative professional development during the fall of 2011, university and district faculty collaborated to create a researchbased professional development series to prepare three levels of practitioners (i.e., novice teachers [nt], collaborating teachers [ct], and classroom coaches [cc]) to support the successful implementation of psct during spring 2012 (strieker & lozo, 2011). the professional development series was offered throughout the yearlong internship by means of seminars, site-based follow-up sessions, and job-embedded professional development provided by classroom coaches. the initial professional development session emphasized broad principles and values related to diversity, inclusive classrooms, and the need for intentional relationship building between the co-teachers (nt and ct) as well as with diverse classroom students and their families. the session addressed the expectations for co-teaching throughout the clinical experience and introduced collaborative practices (villa, thousand, & nevin, 2008) as well as the six co-teaching models that would be utilized (cook, 2005). the interactive seminar also provided the co-teachers with opportunities to discuss their teaching philosophies, establish ground rules for their co-taught classroom, and practice co-planning a co-taught lesson. the three subsequent follow-up sessions were held at the school sites ,and content focused on effective ways in which co-teaching strategies would facilitate increased positive classroom management, differentiated instruction, and formative assessment. participants were given multiple opportunities to revisit the broad principles and apply their knowledge and skills to solve real problems of practice. this model carefully guided and supported the novice teachers’ shift in autonomy from systematic observer to team teacher to teacher. upon completion, the coteachers received a tqp certificate on collaboration and co-teaching. pre-service co-teaching ksu researchers made critical assumptions regarding psct. • an actively engaged ct models best practice, scaffolds instruction, and collaborates to facilitate positive student outcomes; • psct serves as a vehicle for developing novice teacher’s knowledge and skills to teach all students through collaborative practices, positive classroom management, 86 j. heckert, t. strieker and m. shaheen formative assessments, and differentiated instruction. the ccp model (see figure 1) embraced the following definition to facilitate the initial vision of psct: “two teachers (a cooperating teacher and a teacher candidate) working together with groups of students; sharing the planning, organization, delivery and assessment of instruction, as well as the physical space” (heck, bacharach, mann, & ofstedal, 2005). whereas the content of the professional development described above drew heavily from literature describing co-teaching between two certified teachers (cook & friend, 1995; murawski, 2009), it was adjusted to meet the needs of cts and nts. after completing the professional development series, 70 pairs of cts and nts engaged in psct. these pairs committed to implementing psct strategies in their classrooms during the semester as appropriate to meet their classroom students’ needs. participants were encouraged to utilize the varied psct models and strategies to co-plan and co-teach daily. figure 1. collaborative clinical practice model (strieker, heckert, & blaver, 2012) classroom coaching our concept of classroom coaching as well as the content of the professional development series for the cc drew heavily from the literature on executive coaching (goldsmith, lyons, & freas, 2000), cognitive coaching (costa & garmston, 2002), and instructional coaching (knight, 2007). for ccp purposes, classroom coaching is described as professional development provided by trained ccs. classroom coaching was designed as another layer of support for the nt in their journey in becoming an effective teacher; however, cts also benefit from this collaborative and reflective opportunity. during the spring, 13 ccs (comprised of ksu and district faculty) completed 4–5 classroom observations of a pair where they collected non-evaluative data focused on implementation of psct practices, such as the collaborative clinical practice 87 psct models, classroom management, differentiation strategies and formats, assessment, and student and teacher engagement. following each observation, ccs engaged in debriefing sessions with participants focused on collaborative dialogue and reflection, analysis of teaching and learning, and personal goal setting. as the classroom coaches collaborated with participants, they engaged in a form of reflective analysis of the presenting problem or current situation. specifically, during the reflective analysis, the coach guided the conversations by asking critical questions, rather than offering solutions or making recommendations (bearwald, 2011). as the co-teachers reflected upon their teaching and student outcomes, they theorized the lesson with their coach, seeking to understand the theory-to-practice (or practice-to-theory) implications as they co-generated ideas for improving teaching and learning (roth, tobin, camambo, & dalland, 2004). inquiry: focus group study the purpose of this pilot study was to explore novice and collaborating teachers’ perceptions of the benefits and challenges/barriers to ccp, with an emphasis on psct. it was the researchers’ intention to utilize the outcome data to further inform the ccp model. please note that focus groups are only one of the multiple methods being utilized to facilitate the ongoing development of the ccp model. method participants. participants were elementary, middle, and high school novice and collaborating teachers. participants were asked to voluntarily participate in the focus group interviews upon completion of psct during the novice teacher’s final semester of clinical practice. consequently, of the 70 psct pairs (ct and novice), 19 collaborating teachers participated (n = 19; elementary school [es] n = 10, middle school [ms] n = 2, high school [hs] n = 7), whereas 22 novice teachers agreed to participate (n = 22; es n = 9, ms n = 4, hs n = 9) in the focus group interviews. focus group interviews. procedures and processes for the focus groups were created to facilitate accurate methods for data collection. an interview guide was prepared to ensure interview questions were consistently asked across focus groups. we conducted eight 90-minute focus groups (four groups of collaborating teachers and four groups of novice teachers). es, ms, and hs levels primarily separated collaborating teachers and novice teachers. the number of focus group participants ranged from 9 to 1 participant(s) (m = 5.5). participants filled out demographic surveys and then participated in the interviews. each focus group was audiorecorded and conducted by two facilitators. one facilitator moderated the discussion and the other summarized participants’ big ideas on chart paper. summarized responses were sent to participants for member checks with no changes noted. data analysis. the data sets collected for our study were a result of focus group interviews. the flow of analysis used to examine the qualitative data occurred in three steps (miles & huberman, 1994): (a) transcribing interview tapes and summarizing big ideas; (b) generating categories and themes; and (c) establishing trustworthiness (lincoln & guba, 1985). using data collected during the interviews, one author and a research assistant used a priori 88 j. heckert, t. strieker and m. shaheen codes based on the research questions to independently establish initial categories. ct and novice teacher data were initially analyzed separately; however, because there were no significant differences in responses, they were combined for the remainder of the data analysis. categories and themes were compared and revised through dialogue and agreement. another author independently reviewed the coding scheme as a peer de-briefer. results the results were organized into themes (see table 1) related to perceived benefits and themes regarding challenges of the ccp model (with a focus on psct). table 1. focus group themes theme brief description mentor modeling cts were able to provide consistent, immediate feedback. co-learning/reciprocal relationships cts and nts learned from each other and developed collaboration skills. shift in power nts noted increased self-efficacy due to “feeling like a teacher” from the first day. meet student needs cts and nts reported an increased ability to differentiate instruction to meet student needs. challenges of psct ct buy-in, defined cc role, as well as clear purpose and expectations are important prerequisites. benefits of psct: keeping each other afloat the participants discussed the positive collaborative relationships developed during the implementation of ccp. specifically, they reported the influence of mentor modeling and the development of reciprocal relationships. mentor modeling. both the cts and nts noted the mentoring benefits that were prevalent during psct. the nts reported, in comparison to the “traditional” model of student teaching, the cts were there to help continuously provide ongoing mentoring and feedback. nts were overwhelmingly positive about this instant feedback and modeling, noting that the ongoing support for behavior management and teaching strategies allowed them to immediately take on the role of the teacher without feeling “alone.” the cts were equally supportive of this mentoring model because they felt it allowed them to maintain greater control over the quality of collaborative clinical practice 89 their classroom instruction. instead of “giving up” their classroom to a nt, they were able to “step in” and provide mentoring as they taught together. this allowed the nts to grow and take on larger responsibilities within the classroom. co-learning: reciprocal relationships. in addition to the ongoing mentoring, the cts and nts also expressed that as psct progressed, there was evidence of co-learning and reciprocity among the co-teaching team. as the nts became more comfortable in the classroom and “learned the ropes” from the cts, they became more confident and took more risks. the novice teachers reported that this risk-taking was only possible because they knew their ct was there to help out if any mistakes were made. through these risks, the cts expressed that they also learned new ideas and teaching strategies from their nts so the learning was a reciprocal process for both co-teachers. as the relationship grew, cts and nts began experiencing a more collaborative relationship where co-planning and the co-generation of ideas became commonplace. a direct result of this was a reported increase in the development of collaboration skills. further, participants communicated that the ccs offered an additional level of collaboration, providing both the ct and nt with valuable suggestions, new ideas, resources, and strategies to improve instruction. shift in power distribution as the participants reflected on psct, they commented on the various ways their relationships shifted over the course of the experience. cts and nts both noted the positive nature of the shifting power relationship dynamics. for example, nts reported being frequently asked by their cts, “what do you think?” also, the nts appreciated being considered an “equal” from the first day of class and expressed this helped increase their self-efficacy and confidence because the classroom students perceived them as another teacher with co-authority rather than as a student teacher. another key finding that the participants communicated explained how the nt slowly moved into the lead position during co-teaching. increased ability to meet student needs participants reported that psct encourages the ct and nt to collaborate to design instruction to better meet the diverse needs of all students through the frequent implementation of multiple pedagogical methods. focus group data suggest the opportunity to individualize instruction increased for several reasons. first, both the ct and nt reported that having more than one teacher in the classroom allowed for multiple ways to structure grouping formats to allow for smaller teacher-to-student ratios. this allowed the co-teachers to use formative assessments more frequently to plan and implement instruction to meet individual students’ needs. in addition, classroom management was easier with two teachers, thus increasing active engagement and more time on task. finally, participants cited that having two teachers in the classroom allowed students to benefit from two different teaching styles. participants expressed that all of these factors contributed to their increased ability to meet student needs. 90 j. heckert, t. strieker and m. shaheen challenges of psct with any type of new initiative, there will always be challenges to overcome, and this model was no exception. participants were asked direct questions regarding their perceived challenges and were asked to provide suggestions for improving the model. improving ct buy-in. though most of the cts willingly participated in the psct model, there were a few that were “chosen” to participate by administration. these teachers resisted using the psct models, and their nts reported this gave them a negative psct experience (compared to their peers). clarifying purpose and expectations. some participants communicated that the purpose of the initiative was not clear. for example, some cts expressed that the novice teacher needed to “stand on their own” and not co-teach because they would most likely not be a coteacher in the future. some nts also echoed this view. further, some participants voiced confusion of the role of the cc as opposed to the university supervisor. the ccs fulfilled a nonevaluative role, and this was in direct opposition to the supervisor’s role. finally, participants reported concerns with the amount of face-to-face professional development hours required as well as some redundancy in the pd content. conclusion the ksu collaborative clinical practice model has evolved since its inception, and researchers are utilizing various methods to continue informed development and revisions. while this paper has reported on the results of a pilot focus group study, inquiry pervades our ccp model, ranging from formal research projects and comprehensive program evaluation to content analysis of project artifacts. whereas only some of the results are disseminated, all of it is used to inform the revisions to our model to assure that it meets the needs of our novice and collaborating teachers and the p-12 students who attend the schools where they work. through the completion of this investigative work we have gleaned valuable insights related to the ongoing development and refinement of the ccp model, including the following: • a new definition and deeper understanding of psct; • a revised professional development focus and delivery method; • a clarification of the classroom coach role; • a clarification of the purpose and expectations of ccp/psct. we have adopted a definition of psct to reflect more accurately our understanding of psct and how the partnership principles and teacher reflection influence the psct relationships and outcomes: when two or more teachers, novice and experienced, collaborate to teach a group of students and reflect on teaching and learning. it focuses on the k-12 student learning, and provides professional development for practicing teachers. for student teachers and experienced teachers, co-teaching emphasizes responsibility, reflection, respect, and equity in collaborative planning and teaching. (gallo-fox, scantlebury, wassel, juck, & gleason 2005) further, as demonstrated in the results of the focus group data, psct facilitates mentor collaborative clinical practice 91 modeling and reciprocal relationships by requiring the nt and ct to “teach at one another’s elbow” (roth & tobin, 2002) and share responsibilities in all aspects of instruction by coplanning, co-teaching, co-assessing, and co-reflecting. this finding is very encouraging in light of the implication that this type of collaborative relationship may provide nts and cts with frequent opportunities to practice and improve critical collaboration skills. as reported by interview participants, the nt is not left to “sink or swim” on his or her own; rather, he or she has direct access to an experienced professional who is able to engage in on-going dialog and instant feedback about the teaching and learning process. this finding is promising as the continuous presence of an experienced cooperating teacher increases the novice teacher’s access to information, social networking, and teaching resources; this ultimately increases the quality of the clinical experience and the individual’s ability to teach (roth et al., 2004). we believe the model also provides opportunities for the ct to improve his or her own professional practice and fully participate in the development of the nt, rather than simply acting as a classroom host. this encourages a paradigm shift in hierarchy that builds nt’s selfefficacy and allows him or her access to co-authority as well as the chance to “take the lead” during co-teaching. finally, we understand that psct provides nts frequent opportunities to co-plan and co-assess in order to gain confidence and practice with implementing small groups and individualized instruction to meet the diverse needs of classroom students. as our model has evolved, we have also become increasingly aware of the roles and significance of reflective practice and equitable partnerships. reflective practice is viewed as an important component of professional development, a problem-solving strategy and a means of assessment (osterman & kottkamp, 2004). through reflective practice, nts work closely with their cts and ccs to examine and resolve important issues related to their emerging practice. given this, we intentionally integrated reflective practice opportunities as well as explicitly incorporated knight’s (2007) partnership principles into the refined pd content. these revisions are critical as we realize the classroom environment as well as ccp relationships must support reflective, trusting, equitable, and open communication that encourages mutual respect and risk taking in order for participants to achieve maximum benefit from their ccp experiences. ultimately, we hope the cc and ct will facilitate a safe learning environment where the nt can openly discuss her perceptions of her current reality and have clear choices in collaboratively developing a plan to improve her personal effectiveness as a teacher. based on feedback received during the focus groups, the professional development content was revised and transformed into an on-line learning format: a partnership approach to pre-service co-teaching. a moodle environment supported by the ksu it team is currently utilized to house the self-enrolling course. the content is divided into four learning modules: (a) an introduction to psct, (b) psct to support classroom management, (c) psct and assessment, and (d) psct to support differentiated instruction. the modules require cts and nts to complete collaborative activities focused on reflection and practical application including the creation of co-planned lessons. overall, the nts and cts both stated that the benefits of psct far outweighed any challenges. in fact, some expressed, “we can’t go back! we love this!” however, as noted, challenges to the ccp model emerged. one such challenge is the need to improve ct buy-in. we now believe it is critical to ensure that cts elect to participate in this model and are not forced to do so by administration. an additional challenge was the clarification of the cc role. classroom coaching is non-evaluative and non-supervisory; therefore, it was in direct contrast to evaluations completed by the university supervisor who had the power to make high-stakes 92 j. heckert, t. strieker and m. shaheen decisions relative to the novice teacher’s standing in the teacher preparation program (tschannen-moran & tschannen-moran, 2011). we are currently collaborating with our placement office to increase the supervisor’s understanding of the ccp model and its impact on the nt and ct expectations during clinical practice as well as the cc’s role. we hope to negotiate an outcome that is mutually beneficial to all stakeholders. finally, we have intentionally revised the professional development for all participants to ensure it provides explicit information regarding the purpose and expectations of the ccp model. collaborative clinical practice 93 references bacharach, n., heck, t., & dahlberg, k. 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(2004). co-teaching: creating resources for learning and learning to teach chemistry in urban high schools. journal of research in science teaching, 41(9), 882–904. roth, w. m., & tobin, k. g. (2002). at the elbow of another: learning to teach by co-teaching. new york, ny: peter lang. collaborative clinical practice 95 strieker, t., zong, g., gillis, b., wright, j. & stockdale, s. (april, 2012). improving pre-service middle school teachers’ confidence, competence, and commitment to co-teaching. 2012 aera distinguished paper award, presented at the annual meeting of the american educational research association in vancouver, british columbia, canada. strieker, t., heckert, j. & blaver, a. (may, 2012). ksu-ccsd collaborative clinical practice model. webinar presentation sponsored by the us department of education in washington, dc and funds received from the kennesaw state university and cobb county school district teacher quality partnership grant. strieker, t., & lozo, d. (2011). collaboration, co-teaching & classroom coaching. professional development series offered at kennesaw state university in atlanta, ga. this series was supported by funds received from the kennesaw state university and cobb county school district teacher quality partnership grant. tschannen-moran, b., & tschannen-moran, m. (2011). the coach and the evaluator, educational leadership, 69(2), 10–16. villa, r. a., thousand, j. s., & nevin, a. (2008). a guide to co-teaching: practical tips for facilitating student learning. thousand oaks, ca: corwin. acknowledgement the content of this presentation (and/or research) was facilitated through the collaboration between kennesaw state university and cobb county school district teacher quality partnership grant. 96 j. heckert, t. strieker and m. shaheen page intentionally blank. microsoft word 4. ccss-feb 2014.docx vol. 2, no. 2, feb 2014, pp. 27-38 common core state standards (ccss) – higher education’s role in developing education professionals: an evaluation of the network for instructional support and enhancement (nise) program at the university of central missouri tammy allen, scott ammon, amie breshears, brad drace, jennifer husemen, dan jensen and vicki orcutt university of missouri columbia abstract with the implementation of common core state standards (ccss), k-12 teachers, counselors, and administrators will be held accountable for meeting the explicitly defined standards of college and career readiness for every high school graduate. an equivalent and reciprocal challenge is also placed upon universities to prepare future education professionals to successfully meet the expectations for ccss downstream outcomes. this will require significant changes to higher education processes to ensure rigorous teacher preparation which includes not only best practices in pedagogy, but also full understanding of the standards set forth by the ccss. however, opportunities for developing in pedagogy and ccss do not commonly exist. in an attempt to improve pedagogical rigor of new faculty members, the network for instructional support and enhancement (nise) program at the university of central missouri was initiated in the fall semester of 2012. comprised of an orientation and mentoring process, this study provides an evaluation of the programs strengths, deficiencies and specific suggestions for enhancing the program. the research is limited because it was conducted at the mid-point of the pilot delivery of the complete program. qualitative analysis was conducted on data collected from university senior leaders, nise program committee members and new faculty about their perceptions of the program’s delivery and impact. keywords: common core state standards, faculty development, faculty mentoring, new faculty orientation, pedagogical skills, teaching effectiveness 28   t. allen, s. ammon, a. breshears, b. drace, j. husemen, d. jensen, & v. orcutt   introduction the completion of a terminal degree does not equate to pedagogical knowledge. formal mentoring programs of varying models have become a potential solution to bridge the gap between subject-matter expert and instructor. mentoring is a best practice that has been proven to develop the skills of teachers, resulting in increased student learning. this ultimately improves faculty retention and translates to career satisfaction (brown, 2003; lumpkin, 2011). in an effort to engage new faculty and improve student learning, the university of central missouri (ucm) has developed the network for instructional support and enhancement (nise) program as an institutional-level orientation and mentoring process. multiple approaches have been used to assist faculty transition into new positions throughout the world. mentoring circles, collaborative mentoring, peer-mentoring, intraand inter-departmental, informal mentoring are examples of mentoring models, aiding instructors with vocational abilities (bryant-shanklin & brumage, 2011; lumpkin, 2003; smailes & gannon-leary, 2011). the field of study in mentoring is rich; however, a single method has not shown itself to be effective for all subjects. rather than consisting of merely a checklist, mentoring is about developing relationships. the nise program at ucm takes a multifaceted approach to orientation and mentoring in an attempt to create and foster a relationship connection. additionally, the nise program provides the platform for university faculty to learn about ccss and model the pedagogical skills across all disciplines. purpose of program evaluation the purpose of this program evaluation was to evaluate the overall effectiveness of the nise program for the stakeholders and faculty at ucm. because the nise program is less than one year old, program effectiveness was measured by feedback from faculty in regard to the program and translation of pedagogical skills from mentoring sessions to the classroom. description of the program evaluated the nise program was conceived by the academic deans to enhance student engagement and learning with the desired outcome to be increased student retention and faculty satisfaction. the overarching concerns for student learning and retention were classroom pedagogy; specifically, the lack of instruction provided to new faculty with respect to the art of teaching. additionally, there was a desire to provide a more robust orientation to incoming faculty. the nise program addresses the concerns of the academic deans in two ways. the orientation program was completely reworked to have a focus on teaching skills, classroom management and assessment. in the pilot delivery, new faculty members were provided with teaching techniques that were modeled throughout the 3-day orientation program. upon completion of orientation new faculty members were encouraged to participate in the second phase of the nise program: mentoring. mentoring was completely focused on pedagogical skills and classroom management. each academic dean selected a faculty member to work on the nise committee. the four committee members (along with others from the ucm campus), conducted the orientation and have been made available to the new faculty for mentorship. the primary program coordinator for the nise committee assumed the role of mentor to all new faculty with respect to classroom management and assessment. classroom management and assessment mentoring was non-evaluative and conducted in three separate sessions. the coordinator worked with a given faculty member to determine the area to be observed in a common core state standards 29 pre-assessment session. upon completion of the pre-assessment the coordinator observed the new faculty member in the classroom and provided a post-assessment following the observation. besides the mentors available through the nise program, the academic deans stressed the need to continue with department level mentors for support in other career development areas, such as the promotion and tenure process. research questions the research questions addressed four specific questions: 1. what perceptions do new faculty members have about the nise program regarding pedagogy/andragogy? 2. what are the factors that support or limit effectiveness of the nise program? 3. what are the expectations of senior leadership for the nise program? 4. what are the perceptions of new faculty about the mentoring experience? review of related literature given the purpose and structure of the ucm nise program, a range of relevant literature was useful for the program evaluation research process. orientation of new faculty members is a standard practice for introduction to an institution’s culture, rules and operating practices. beyond technical orientation, ucm has identified a need for pedagogical training. pedagogy the pedagogical competence of new faculty remains a significant concern in institutions of higher learning. minter (2009) describes university teaching as placing the development of minds in the hands of novice teachers for whom certification is not required. this concern for teacher competency is not new. richlin (1995) stated “the college teacher is the only high-level professional who enters upon a career with neither the prerequisite trail of competence nor experience in the use of tools of [the] profession” (p. 258). this lack of experience is primarily due to the emphasis placed on research within doctoral programs, as opposed to pedagogical practice. balkin and mellow (2012), berschback (2010), jones (2008), and madhavaran and laverie (2010) highlighted the absence of teaching within doctoral programs; thus, creating a need for the hiring institutions to fill this “void” (madhavaram & laverie, 2010). collins and pratt (2011) articulated five perspectives on teaching (transmission, apprenticeship, developmental, nurturing, and social reform) as captured in the teaching perspectives inventory (tpi), a self-scoring inventory used to assess the value of a pedagogical approach, as well as defining the relationship between an instructor’s beliefs about teaching, intentions held, and resulting actions taken in the classroom. the results of their research demonstrate that there are legitimate variations of teaching excellence, and that a process of selfreflection (as explored through the tpi), articulation of teaching philosophy, and further conversations about teaching, can combine to help faculty members to determine their own style and to refine it based on the context of the needs of their students. orientation a variety of entry pathways into higher education exist, from “informal and casual” to “assigned and explicit.” ideally, the orientation program should be spread out across several weeks, with application exercises along the way (cullen & harris, 2008). there is clearly a tangible need for teacher instruction or training in pedagogical practice. successful new faculty 30   t. allen, s. ammon, a. breshears, b. drace, j. husemen, d. jensen, & v. orcutt   orientation programs incorporate new faculty members’ needs for safety, instructional competence, progression to tenure, and social enculturation. faculty members look for “communities where collaboration is respected and encouraged, where friendships develop between colleagues within and across departments” (rice, sorcelinelli, & austin, 2000, p. 13). by most accounts, new teachers need three or four years to achieve competence, and several more to reach proficiency (feiman-nemser, 2003). the development of competence begins with the orientation experience. “[w]e must treat the first years of teaching as a phase in learning to teach and surround new teachers with a professional culture that supports teacher learning” (p. 25). providing a high-quality orientation program increases the probability that new teachers will have positive, early teaching experiences (feiman-nemser, 2003). mentoring in the realm of higher education, mentoring has proven to be a successful method of professional development. research by hargreaves and fullan (2000), and lumpkin (2011), suggests that such methods help teachers to gain a deeper appreciation for relationship development. this translates into a more trusting and effective partnership, which ultimately produces quality mentoring. according to lumpkin (2011), “mentoring is a complex, multidimensional, idiosyncratic, and contextualized process that depends on the academic unit’s culture, the type of institution, and the expectations of those involved” (p. 358). a deeper look into the literature reveals a multitude of benefits from mentoring programs. faculty development faculty orientation and development remain a priority at educational institutions. adequate planning of the orientation program, with proper follow-up, is critical for its success. higher education administrators should reflect on how they can support work-life balance for their faculty in order to ensure that faculty members grow professionally in their field of study, as well as in educational pedagogy (good, greene, o’connor & zhang, 2011). faculty members (both new and experienced) need continuing education and dedicated time to become skilled instructors. non-threatening mentoring and peer evaluations can be helpful in achieving this by providing feedback that helps instructors improve without adding additional time demands on them (ackerman, gross & vigneron, 2009; huston & weaver, 2008) assessment while non-threatening mentorship provides for relational development, assessment of the effectiveness of each individual’s pedagogical approach in the classroom is an important factor leading to success. yet, assessment of effectiveness in the classroom is traditionally limited to student survey data; however, growing trends in practice demonstrate that assessment can be enhanced by peer-evaluation and/or departmental review (ackerman, gross & vigneron, 2009; dezure, 1999). assessment of adult learning-focused workshops is frequently framed within kirkpatrick’s (2006) four-level model of evaluation: level 1 – participant satisfaction; level 2 – participant acquisition of knowledge, skills or attitudes as a result of the experience; level 3 – participant application of what was learned; and, level 4 – outcomes related to participant application of what was learned (i.e., higher level outcomes or “return on expectations”) (kirkpatrick, 2006; kirkpatrick & kirkpatrick, 2009; steensma & groeneveld, 2010). common core state standards 31 as kirkpatrick and kirkpatrick (2009) position the rationale for higher outcome levels, “many learning leaders still try to demonstrate their value to the business by using attendance level 1 reaction data and level 2 testing scores” (p. 23). not only is training an expensive endeavor, it also requires a generous time commitment. therefore, evaluation should be used to carefully determine the effectiveness of the program and to decide whether the program should be improved, re-engineered, or discontinued altogether (steensma & groeneveld, 2010). various methods are used to assess the quality of faculty teaching, with the end-of-course student survey used most commonly and consistently. other methods include self-assessment, peer evaluation (based on observation), departmental evaluation (typically from a department chair), and subsequent student success (in future classes). evaluation approach and methods patton’s (2008) perspective on a “utilization focused evaluation” methodology was used by the research team to conduct the program evaluation. after discussion with stakeholders it was determined that the desired outcome of the nise program should be student retention. the research team used qualitative methods to evaluate the nise program, with this approach providing the necessary framework for analyzing the data (including attitudes and program outcomes), gathered to answer the research questions. the tools used were multiple observations, personal interviews, focus groups and a survey. the subjects participating in this study included: nise committee members, academic deans, and new faculty. the research team received ucm’s institutional review board (irb) approval for this human subjects study in order to proceed with the evaluation process. the interview, survey and focus group questions addressed the four research questions. the survey was disseminated to 38 new faculty members who did not participate in the focus groups and 15 were completed. the return rate percentage was high enough for the research team to agree that the sampling of convenience would give a wide enough range of reflection about the entire nise program. the survey was sent electronically for rapid response, and ease of collection and interpretation. the questions for the deans were created and designed to gather data relating to their desired outcomes for the implementation of the mentoring program. both the deans and the committee member interviews were conducted either by an individual interviewer or a team of two. the interviews were recorded, transcribed and analyzed by the research team. using an inductive process, coupled with triangulation, the responses from the interviews were aligned with the research questions as part of the data analysis. in addition to the interviews with the deans and committee members, two focus group sessions with new faculty were conducted. these focus groups focused on the degree of perceived success orientation and mentoring had on the new faculty. the first focus group had four participants (each from different colleges) and the second had two participants (who were also from different colleges). findings through data analysis, and the use of an inductive process, several themes emerged. the information provided below is a compilation of stakeholder and participant feedback derived from observations, surveys, focus groups and interviews. the faculty who were able to participate in the focus group provided insightful information that was corroborated by the new faculty surveys, thus validating the findings through triangulation. 32   t. allen, s. ammon, a. breshears, b. drace, j. husemen, d. jensen, & v. orcutt   development of the nise program the impetus to develop the nise program came from the academic deans, with the primary focus being to enhance student learning, increase student retention through effective teaching, and model pedagogical practices across disciplines in support of ccss. this point was articulated repeatedly, and can be illustrated by the following citation from an interview. …the ultimate rationale was to ensure that our students are successful, and to do that, we have to make sure that our faculty members are as well prepared as they can be, use appropriate learning strategies, teaching strategies and we wanted to give them an opportunity to have access to that [type of learning experience] throughout the orientation process. (d2) this approach was a significant departure from previous new faculty orientations. one committee member described the former orientations as a “virtual tour of the phone book.” in the past, members of campus organizations such as human resources and library services would introduce themselves and present at the orientation. at no time were learning strategies discussed or demonstrated. while the development of the nise program was enthusiastically conceived, there were comments about the time constraint placed on implementation that resulted in some logistical challenges to be addressed. in hindsight, one of the committee members suggested “if we would have had a year, we could have started this process and made it more vocal and a more visible process” (c2). faculty contracts it was clear new faculty believed the institution supported them, as evidenced by the institution providing the orientation. “the fact that the university has one, it sends a strong signal about the university and its commitment to its faculty” (fg1-3). however, one dean mentioned the initial start date on the faculty contract did not match the expected start date. “we had already issued appointment contracts for all our faculty and told them that they were to be here one day and we wanted them to come a different day” (d3). logistics based on the feedback from the stakeholders, there was consensus about a commitment to teaching excellence. “it’s going to take a lot more [than three days], it’s going to take a cultural change to begin with to really celebrate on this campus and campuses like us that teaching excellence is paramount” (d3). a change in culture takes time and persistence. however, it was also pointed out through the interviews that there are faculty members who do not believe this focus is necessary, stating “we wouldn’t have hired them if they weren’t good teachers” (d3). mentoring process several new faculty mentioned the university’s commitment to mentoring to be somewhat of a surprise. yet, it was clear from interviews with the academic deans that this was a priority aspect of the nise program. one dean described their orientation and mentorship as a new faculty as follows: i have a doctorate in [expertise] and i began teaching courses with absolutely no training, other than i sat down with the department chair for about an hour, and he said, “here’s what you do with the syllabus. here’s what the grade distribution looks like over time. common core state standards 33 don’t be too easy. don’t be too hard.” that was my orientation to teaching. i just had to rely on what i had learned from…other professors. (d2) the nise committee mentoring program is non-evaluative and provides instructional feedback for all new faculty members. “[i] appreciate [name] so much because it is a nonthreating thing, it is not evaluative. it is purely feedback and something that i think all teachers need to grow” (fg1-4). new faculty were impressed that the existing faculty wanted to demonstrate teaching excellence and help others achieve the same (d3); however, there was confusion as to whether the nise committee mentoring facet was required or voluntary (fg2-2). the faculty who had participated in the nise mentoring process were very pleased with the outcome and benefited from the focused, non-evaluative process. “[just] having personal contacts and someone to go to with questions [was helpful]. it is also beneficial for them to be outside of the department or at least a little bit removed from their specific program” (fs4). orientation process the pre-orientation survey revealed a diverse population of new hires (those with no teaching experience, and those with many years of teaching experience), which created a challenge for the nise committee. caffarella (2002) describes the need for adult learning to be applicable to the current situation, which was identified as a problem with the orientation program. with the varying levels of pedagogical experience, many of the new faculty with teaching experience that felt their time could have been better spent. “i think with new faculty who have never experienced any sort of teaching this would be really beneficial but i found some of it to be kind of repetitive, and it was stuff that i already know, and had already practiced and experienced.” (fg1-4) it was suggested that dividing the orientation into appropriate sections based on experience level would have been beneficial. “perhaps it would be better serviced if it were split into smaller work sessions” (fg1-3). however, nise committee members reported that the newly-hired faculty participated in such a way that there was a benefit for this diversity of experience. for example, one faculty member new to teaching said “i thought it was beneficial, especially with large classes” (fg1-1), and a more seasoned teacher commented, “i learned from it as well. it is always fun when you are in education to learn more” (fg1-2). orientation feedback when asked if new faculty had integrated any of the information or lessons provided during orientation into their classrooms, many replied affirmatively. several participants noted that they had incorporated interactive learning activities in their classrooms, which was one goal of the orientation. “i have utilized several of the interactive learning technique, and i have started to implement backward design concepts on a very small basis” (fs14). one survey response addressed student learning. “oh yes [applying information]. as a matter of fact, i have found my students retain knowledge better when they have more hands on work. worksheets in the classroom and labs have been great” (sf12). in contrast, some of the survey participants commented that the orientation had had little effect on their teaching. having several years of teaching experience prior to coming to ucm accounted for this. “it had little effect on my teaching. i have taught at the university level for about 14 years now and my educational background is in education” (sf4). 34   t. allen, s. ammon, a. breshears, b. drace, j. husemen, d. jensen, & v. orcutt   one of the focus groups discussed the desire to have peer mentoring as part of the orientation to create a practice environment, which could allow “the new faculty to actually practice the things they have been [taught]” (fg1-4). pedagogy as practice the primary focus of the orientation and mentoring process was the enhancement of teaching effectiveness, based on the belief that more effective teaching leads to increased learning, student retention, and a better understanding of ccss. effective teaching comes from practice and prior experiences, and stakeholders validated the need for pedagogy to be addressed. the vast majority of our faculty that come [to ucm] have zero [teaching] experience. as a doctoral student, i learned how to do research and i understand all of that piece but i had never taught a full semester course in my life. (d3) one committee member addressed the lack of pedagogy practice in the sciences stating “it’s all about the research and learning the theory, but there’s not a lot focused on the actual instructional side” (c2). from the data, as discussed earlier, it was clear that first-time teachers benefitted from the pedagogical aspects of the orientation program and implemented some of the concepts immediately. a new faculty member described his educational experience as one focused solely on research “…i wasn’t really taught the philosophy of teaching, engaging students and things like that” (fg1-1). program evaluation process stakeholders and committee members were asked what outcomes were necessary for them to deem the nise program successful. they focused on four elements: student retention, faculty satisfaction/retention, establishing expectations, and setting new faculty up for success. [w]e want to ensure that our students are successful and to do that, we have to make sure that our faculty members are as well prepared as they can be and use appropriate learning strategies, teaching strategies, and we wanted to give them an opportunity to have access to that throughout the orientation process. (d2) socialization and networking one of the strongest benefits of the orientation program was the opportunity for socialization and networking provided by the mentoring aspect of the nise program. “networking with other faculty members – very valuable” (sf2). participants particularly liked the ‘outside-the-department, non-evaluative’ nature of the mentoring program. technology technology was another key area for change. overwhelmingly, the survey data and focus group comments indicated a need for more time and for instruction on blackboard and banner. the new faculty members wanted hands-on time and practical experience with this technology and they wanted it earlier. “starting august 1st, i could have cherry picked those [it courses] throughout the entire month, and really felt prepared even more than i did going into the first day of class. i would have really liked that” (fg1-1). conclusions and implications for the future developing an institutionally-driven mentoring program is a shift in paradigm and will require an appropriate period of adjustment. institutional leaders and new faculty had varying common core state standards 35 views in regard to the outcomes. the leaders involved are visionaries and passionately dedicated to the success of this program. faculty, though split in their opinion on many concerns, definitely described their most valuable take-away from the mentoring program as developing relationships within the ucm. the relationships developed were more about ucm rather than any singular/departmental mindset. as with any newly designed program, there were peaks and valleys to chronicle. communication in regard to the nise program tended to be muddled at times, which created confusion amongst the ranks of new faculty. timing was one of the most commonly reported issues when discussing the orientation process. faculty overwhelmingly reported a preference to begin the orientation process earlier, or to extend it over a longer period using shorter blocks of time. hands-on experience with the technology utilized on campus was requested (well before class begins), possibly incorporating laboratory time. this could also include a peer-reviewed look at personal syllabi or a mini-lesson plan. first-time teachers reported utilization of orientation and mentoring techniques in their day-to-day routine. there were rich, descriptive data to evidence pedagogy in practice. however, experienced faculty found the techniques to have little effect on their classroom instruction. it was discovered that each department on campus does not consistently provide their new faculty with a mentor, either formal or informal. as a whole, ucm’s goal was to increase student retention by improving faculty success. a number of faculty members reported an appreciation for the non-evaluative mentoring sessions. along the same line, many also stated that having a mentor outside of their department was a positive experience. it removed the politics and interdepartmental issues and got to the heart of teaching. conclusively, faculty members were astonished by the passion and commitment of the nise committee and stakeholders. it was noted that establishing such a program indeed sends a loud message throughout the institution that they are committed to faculty (sf3). with an official start date of august 2012, the nise program is still in its early stages. it is impossible to measure programmatic success in such a brief amount of time. the goals of student retention and increased faculty success could be addressed in future research. the question as to whether or not mentoring assists with student retention could have ‘direct impact’ on university resources. as with any program, it will take several years to establish a set of meaningful data to correlate with student retention, faculty retention and the success of both. program evaluation limitations the primary limitation to this program evaluation was the challenge of making contact with participants. there were several attempts made to coordinate focus group dates and times. as a result of low participation, the research team requested amendment to the original irb approval to allow for survey data. once the data had been collected, it became clear that several of the faculty who answered the survey and participated in the focus groups had not initiated contact with the program coordinator for the mentoring with the nise program coordinator. with implementation of the nise program in august 2012, there was also limited data to collect. had this evaluation been conducted later in the academic year there may have been more information gathered on the mentoring aspect of nise program. 36   t. allen, s. ammon, a. breshears, b. drace, j. husemen, d. jensen, & v. orcutt   references ackerman, d., gross, b. l., & vigneron, f. 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(2010). evaluating a training using the “four levels model”. journal of workplace learning, 22(5), 319-331. 38   t. allen, s. ammon, a. breshears, b. drace, j. husemen, d. jensen, & v. orcutt   page intentionally blank microsoft word 2. atkins-dec 2016.docx vol. 5, no. 1, dec 2016, pp. 13-25 a co-requisite model for developmental mathematics: innovative pathway leads to positive outcomes for education majors charlene atkins and ann mccoy university of central missouri abstract the traditional mathematics pre-requisite model creates obstacles for pre-service educators by increasing the number of semesters to graduation. extended time results in additional financial burdens for students in developmental courses along with increased risk of student drop out. education majors, with little or no room for electives in their programs of study, have been particularly impacted. the pilot of a co-requisite model, involving the collaboration of two academic departments, has proven successful in enhancing students’ academic achievement while addressing social and emotional needs of students. 14   c. atkins & a. mccoy   introduction a popular saying often attributed to albert einstein speaks of the futility of expecting different outcomes without changing the process or procedure being followed. in other words, if we are dissatisfied with the results we are experiencing, we must be willing to make changes. such dissatisfaction with student performance in developmental mathematics courses and subsequent credit-bearing mathematics courses led faculty at a public mid-western university (mwu) to examine the university’s approach to developmental education. historically, mwu had taken a traditional approach to developmental education in mathematics. students who failed to meet an established cut-off score on a standardized test were required to successfully complete a series of pre-requisite courses prior to enrollment in a credit-bearing mathematics course. a lack of success in pre-requisite courses or in the subsequent credit-bearing course meant additional semesters at mwu and increased financial burdens for many students. a number of mwu education majors, especially those pursuing degrees in elementary or special education, scored below the established cut-off score required for credit-bearing mathematics courses and were required to enroll in developmental education courses. because these education students have few or no electives in their programs of study, the additional developmental education pre-requisite courses impacted their progress towards graduation and teacher certification. consequently, mwu faculty made the decision to pilot a co-requisite model as an alternative to the traditional pre-requisite model for education majors. promising results from the pilot led to the recent formalization of the model and the courses that are part of the model. this article will provide a brief overview of developmental education, a discussion of corequisite models for developmental education, a description of the process followed in implementing a co-requisite model at mwu, and a summary of the results from the pilot of the model. finally, a discussion of the lessons learned by mwu faculty is provided. developmental education history of developmental education when universities were initially established in the united states, over 200 years ago, the only admission requirement of students was the ability of their families to pay tuition fees. it was not unusual for a student from a wealthy family to be accepted for enrollment even though the student lacked the academic preparation necessary for success at the college level (arendale, 2011). accepting students who were academically underprepared for the rigor of post-secondary coursework contributed to the financial stability of the institution; however, this practice caused great concern for the success of these students. eventually, institutions found it necessary to offer college-preparatory courses, to a large population of entering freshmen. as this population continued to grow, institutions established full college-preparatory programs and departments to assist underprepared students in achieving their academic goals. over time, such assistance became known as “remedial” education, having a focus on building content knowledge that students had not yet mastered due to a lack of prior schooling or to students’ fragmented understanding. through the years, america witnessed numerous historical events having a direct impact on education at secondary and post-secondary levels. following world war i (1914-1918), co-requisite model for developmental mathematics 15 education systems began to require formal schooling through the 12th grade, a recommendation made by education reformer john dewey. this change generated an increase in college enrollment causing colleges “to lower standards to accommodate many of the applicants” (tucker, 2012, p.4). world war ii (1939-1945) generated a demand for mathematicians causing a need for increased numbers of mathematics teachers at the secondary level and encouraging a larger enrollment of college freshmen in calculus courses. those students unprepared for calculus studies were enrolled in remedial college-level algebra courses. a greater number of military veterans began to enter college following the creation of the g. i. bill, though many lacked academic preparation due to their military service. the launching of the russian satellite, sputnik, in 1957 brought about political concern for the soviet union’s lead in the space race along with public blame on american education. each of these events, along with others, brought about education reform at both the secondary and post-secondary levels. reform at the secondary level seemed to occur consequently with societal needs. lambdin and walcott (2007) described reforms at the secondary level as six phases: drill and practice, meaningful arithmetic, new math, back to basics, problem solving, and the current standards and accountability phase. instructional practices in american high schools experienced change through each phase; however, university classrooms remained unchanged causing a growing gap between high school achievement levels and expected college entry levels. traditional pre-requisite model developmental mathematics education originated as remedial courses designed to address academic deficiencies, due to the lack of preparation of students entering college. college algebra began as a remedial course serving to prepare students for calculus. traditionally, remedial courses were pre-requisite courses for an algebra intensive pathway. eventually, college algebra became the required gateway course for most major programs of study. students unprepared for college algebra were enrolled in pre-requisites of intermediate and introductory algebra. in addition to the number of high school graduates entering college underprepared, the number of non-traditional students continued to grow creating a diverse population of students with academic deficiencies. educational doors opened to a new population including immigrants with language barriers, military veterans, and those seeking a career change. those serving this diverse population realized that these students shared additional characteristics, aside from academic deficiencies. students enrolled in remedial pre-requisite courses reported a lack of self-esteem, lack of support from family and friends, trouble adjusting to university culture, time-management issues and mathematics anxiety (bitner, austin, & wadlington, 1994; boylan, 2009; castator, 1995). the traditional pre-requisite model of remediation was not designed to offer student services in addition to academic courses. in the last 10 years, such traditional models have been accused of creating obstacles for students, preventing students from reaching their academic goals. traditional pre-requisite remedial algebra preparation models have been identified as creating financial burdens on students and institutions by extending time to graduation. those opposing college-preparatory programs argue that such programs “cost taxpayers twice” and only serve to re-teach what should have been learned in high school (saxon & boylan, 2001, p. 2). those supporting such programs argue that the traditional system is flawed and should be reformed to eliminate obstacles and address student needs beyond content understanding. for these reasons, remedial courses and programs have evolved into developmental courses and 16   c. atkins & a. mccoy   programs designed to address the social, emotional and intellectual needs of students while removing unnecessary obstacles. another obstacle, cited in current research, is the tradition of requiring all students to complete a college-level algebra course (cooper, 2014). college algebra was once the prerequisite for calculus, as calculus was the required gateway course for many majors for most university students. eventually, college algebra became the acceptable gateway course for most students. students unprepared for college algebra were placed into developmental algebra courses, based on scores earned on a standardized assessment such as the act. higher education has since seen a demand for mathematics courses that more appropriately align with and prepare students for chosen careers and professions. as a result, institutions have begun to offer basic statistics and quantitative reasoning courses as alternatives to college algebra for students not entering a science, technology, engineering or mathematics (stem) field. though these new gateway courses are now available, the pre-requisite algebra pathway has seen little change. until recently, developmental algebra courses have been accepted as appropriate prerequisites for a variety of gateway courses, even though developmental algebra courses were designed to prepare students only for college-level algebra. in addition, the act was designed to measure preparedness for college-level algebra and there is no evidence it will predict success in other gateway courses (clough & montgomery, 2015). co-requisite model one result of current research in developmental education is the effort to enroll students directly into college-level courses rather than expecting students to complete a sequence of one to three developmental courses prior to the gateway course. rather than following the prerequisite model by re-teaching high school mathematics content in preparation for college-level content, co-requisite models allow students to immediately begin work at the college-level while receiving just-in-time academic assistance along with support and services designed to address social and emotional needs as well. co-requisite models can be implemented using a variety of structures. for example, students may be required to enroll in parallel, supplemental courses or to participate in noncourse-based options such as self-paced instruction hosted in university computer labs. mandatory tutoring that accompanies the credit-bearing course is another strategy used as part of co-requisite models. some institutions offer developmental support immediately after the scheduled credit-bearing course ends while others add additional hours to courses (core principles for transforming remediation, 2015). changing the model, changing the outcomes the department of academic enrichment at mwu has been serving students with developmental needs for more than 50 years. traditionally, students have been placed into developmental algebra courses when the reported act math score was below the placement score required for all gateway mathematics. depending on the reported act score, students were expected to complete from one to three developmental algebra courses before enrolling in the required college-level course, offered in the department of mathematics and computer science. as noted earlier, a number of education majors were placed in these developmental courses. co-requisite model for developmental mathematics 17 each year the mwu department of academic enrichment holds a department retreat where members of the entire department come together to share program reports, research, legislative updates, and university goals. at the spring 2014 retreat, members reviewed and discussed the implications of an education bill recently approved by state legislators. this bill requires higher education to identify and reduce the use of methods shown to be ineffective in supporting students or that delay student enrollment in credit-bearing courses. best practices in developmental education were discussed at the spring retreat and ideas for improvement were shared among faculty and staff. in an attempt to meet the expectations of the state bill and the mwu vision to improve graduation rates, members of the department agreed that steps should be taken to reduce time to graduation by decreasing time spent in developmental mathematics courses. academic advisors identified education majors as having the least time for elective credits in the current program of study. in addition, new state level teacher certification rules require all prospective teachers to pass a series of rigorous assessments, the first of which is an assessment of general education knowledge and skills. initial pass rates for the mathematics portion of this assessment were very low. these two factors, along with the knowledge that preservice teachers maintain the highest levels of math anxiety compared to students of other undergraduate majors (gresham, 2007), led to the suggestion that a co-requisite model be implemented for education majors to provide these students with a successful pathway through their required gateway mathematics courses, while reducing time to graduation and alleviating financial burdens. the next step was for the academic enrichment mathematics program coordinator to consult the mathematics education coordinator in the department of mathematics and computer science. though the two academic departments had occasionally worked together to ensure curricular alignment from pre-requisite courses to gateway courses, the departments had not worked collaboratively on such a huge project. changing the developmental model would have an impact on both departments so it was imperative that both departments contribute to the foundation of this project. the department of mathematics and computer science offers several mathematics courses that fulfill the general education mathematics requirement at mwu. it was agreed that a co-requisite developmental lab would be paired with a contemporary mathematics course. contemporary mathematics is a mathematics survey course focused on quantitative reasoning. topics in the course include set theory, statistics, probability, measurement, and geometry, and students are assessed through course assignments, projects, and tests. contemporary mathematics (cm) is required of all mwu elementary, middle school, and special education majors because the topics studied are more relevant to future educators. in addition, the course is a popular general education option for students in other teacher education programs. historically, contemporary mathematics had been one of the general education mathematics courses for which introduction to algebra was required as a pre-requisite. the co-requisite model for the cm course was piloted over four semesters, beginning the fall 2014 semester. students who did not meet the required act mathematics placement score, or did not have a score on file, were enrolled in a cm course, carrying three college credit hours, meeting on monday, wednesday, and friday each week. these students were also enrolled in a developmental mathematics lab (dml), carrying two elective credit hours, meeting on tuesday and thursday of each week. students enrolled in the dml received traditional instruction, 18   c. atkins & a. mccoy   alongside students who met the recommended placement score, in the program specific cm course. just-in-time content support was provided through student-centered activities and tasks in the co-requisite dml course. for this to be successful, instructors of the gateway cm courses shared course objectives, syllabi, and instructional schedules with the dml instructor. this allowed the dml instructor time to plan appropriate activities that would align with the content covered in the cm course at the appropriate time. the dml instructor was able to identify student prior knowledge and implement pre-teaching tasks to prepare students for instruction received in the cm course. if a cm instructor needed to alter the schedule, he or she simply sent a short email notifying the dml instructor so that adjustments could be made prior to lab meetings. co-requisite lab description and example activities in addition to academic deficiencies, students with developmental needs deal with mathematics anxiety, low self-esteem, time-management troubles, and other non-cognitive issues. the dml course was designed to address the social, emotional and intellectual needs of students while supporting the development of both conceptual and procedural content knowledge. in addition to helping students develop understanding of the mathematics curriculum, the dml served to provide students with materials, tools, and resources for success in the gateway course and, in a broader sense, in all university courses and experiences. because teachers who suffer from mathematics anxiety unintentionally transmit their fears to students and rely on traditional methods of instruction (focusing on algorithms, expecting seatwork, relying on lectures), the dml also served to expose education students to a variety of instructional strategies appropriate for use in future classrooms (aslan, 2013; bekdemir, 2010). though there were many areas of importance, instructional activities in the dml course focused heavily on mathematical language development. stahl, simpson, and hayes (1992) emphasized the importance of student ability to understand and use the language of mathematics including mathematical symbols. student ability to draw from multiple definitions and examples including synonyms and antonyms is vital for effective communication in current courses and for success in subsequent courses. for this reason, each new unit was introduced in the dml by focusing on vocabulary fluency through student-centered activities. for example, a unit on geometry was introduced first by establishing definitions of specific terms that would be used throughout the unit. students were given a list of important terms along with the textbook definition of each term. in small groups, students worked together to develop their own appropriate definitions of these terms so that they could personalize the definitions and make connections to their own prior knowledge and experiences. finally, students were asked to take photos of objects representing each term and to share with the class their reasons and justification for selecting the objects photographed. this activity allowed students to personalize their learning of the vocabulary while building an understanding of mathematical language through communication with classmates. allowing students to work collaboratively promotes communication in a non-threatening situation where students can receive feedback and accept responsibility for their learning (osterholt & barratt, 2010). for example, while completing a lesson on probability, students were randomly placed into small groups and each student was randomly assigned a specific responsibility (driver, recorder, starter, or judge) within the group. the task of each group was to co-requisite model for developmental mathematics 19 participate in a remote control car race, in order to collect data that would later be used to investigate the probability and odds of different cars winning a race. while in the small groups, students encouraged their team drivers by providing driving tips, cheers, and pats on the back. they also worked together to ensure data was recorded correctly and that decisions were made fairly. the activity provided an opportunity for students to become comfortable with their teammates and to build relationships that would be supportive in the future as well. after the activity, teammates worked together to solve mathematical problems. during this time, communication was comfortable for students because the teams had shared in the fun activity first. students felt comfortable in asking mathematical questions and offering suggestions to their teammates. discussions moved through phases that started with the activity itself, turned to the mathematics content and language, and ended with plans to collaborate for other shared tasks and courses. students not only developed conceptual knowledge but learned the value of cooperation as well. at the same time, these education majors experienced instructional strategies they can eventually implement in their own classrooms once they become in-service educators. formative assessment was used daily in the developmental lab, often through the use of technology including ipad apps such as kahoot and nearpod. students often reported, through anonymous course evaluations, enjoying the use of technology and the participation in simple, friendly, no-pressure competitions. regular formative assessment provided information to the lab instructor that was then used to develop new tasks to address content areas where students continued to struggle. grade evaluation in the developmental lab was based only on class work, lab attendance and summative assessments completed in the gateway course. no summative assessments were administered in the developmental lab. rather than spending valuable class time on additional summative assessments, the time was spent on building content knowledge and understanding. student performance on unit exams was assessed in the gateway course and scores were then shared with the lab instructor. pilot results in order to determine the effectiveness of the co-requisite model, faculty at mwu designed a study to investigate the relationship between student participation in a developmental lab and student achievement in the associated contemporary mathematics course. the study also sought to examine the relationship between possible placement variables and achievement of education students enrolled in contemporary mathematics and participating in the co-requisite model of instruction. a total of 54 education majors participated in the co-requisite pilot; however, for the purpose of this study, students without both an act mathematics score and a high school grade point average on file with the university were eliminated from the study. the subjects of this study were 43 education majors having both an act mathematics score and a high school grade point average on file. two of the 43 participants were males. all subjects of this study had a reported act mathematics score less than 22, placing these students into the developmental mathematics program. education majors with areas of emphasis in elementary, early childhood, middle school, music, art, special education, and career and technology education participated in the study. quantitative data for this study came from a total of four semesters of a pilot co-requisite mathematics program. the data include student high school grade point average, act mathematics sub-scores, daily attendance rates in the developmental mathematics lab, and final 20   c. atkins & a. mccoy   gateway mathematics course scores. all quantitative statistical analyses were completed using the spss statistics 23 software package. a descriptive analysis found the mean act mathematics score to be 17.33 with a standard deviation of 1.44. the mean high school grade point average was 3.13 with a standard deviation of 0.48. the mean daily lab attendance rate was 0.79 with a standard deviation of 0.17. the mean gateway course score was 2.95, on a 4-point scale, with a standard deviation of 1.17. descriptive data is displayed in table 1.1. the pearson product moment correlation was computed to describe the strength and direction of the linear relationship between each pair of variables. an analysis of the data revealed a and positive correlation between attendance in the developmental lab and gateway course scores (r = 0.644, p < 0.001**). the analysis revealed a moderate and positive correlation between high school grade point average and gateway course scores (r = 0.451, p = 0.002*). the analysis also revealed a moderate and positive correlation between act mathematics scores and gateway course scores (r = 0.403, p = 0.007*). a correlation matrix is provided in table 1.2. table 1.1 descriptive statistics variable mean standard deviation act mathematics score 17.33 1.44 high school gpa 3.13 0.48 lab attendance rate 0.79 0.17 cm course score 2.95 1.17 table 1.2 correlation matrix act high school gpa lab attendance cm course score act mathematics score pearson correlation sig. (1-tailed) n = 43 1 0.176 0.259 0.053 0.734 0.403* 0.007 high school gpa pearson correlation sig. (1-tailed) n = 43 0.176 0.259 1 0.226 0.145 0.451* 0.002 lab attendance pearson correlation sig. (1-tailed) n = 43 0.053 0.734 0.226 0.145 1 0.644* <0.001 * p<.01, ** p<.001 to determine the value of using multiple measures as course placement tools, regression analyses were conducting using act mathematics scores, high school grade point averages, and dml attendance as the independent variables, and gateway course scores as the dependent variable. using the enter method regression model, a significant equation was found (f(3, 39)= 20.877, p < 0.001) with an r2 of 0.616. the model summary is provided in table 1.3 and theresults for independent variables in table 1.4. co-requisite model for developmental mathematics 21 table 1.3 model summary model summary model r r square adjusted r square std. error of the estimate 1 0.785 0.616 0.587 0.75483 anova model sum of squares df mean square f sig. regression residual total 35.686 22.221 57.907 3 39 42 11.895 0.570 20.877 <0.001 table 1.4 coefficients table coefficients model unstandardized coefficients standardized coefficients t sig. b std. error beta (constant) -6.639 1.536 -4.323 <0.001 lab attendance 3.737 0.671 0.567 5.568 <0.001 act mathematics score 0.265 0.082 0.326 3.231 0.003 high school gpa 0.653 0.254 0.266 2.570 0.014 dependent variable: cm course score the quantitative data analysis indicates that there is a correlation between attendance in the developmental lab and performance in the gateway course. the analysis also indicates that using multiple measures, rather than a single measure alone, will contribute to cm course scores. all independent variables were significant predictors of cm course scores: lab attendance (t = 5.568, p <0.001), ct mathematics scores (t = 3.231, p = 0.003), high school gpa (t = 2.570, p = 0.014). although all students in this analysis had complete data, unfortunately, not all students are able to report those scores. students who did not complete high school in the united states may not have a traditional high school grade point average to report. non-traditional students who completed high school many years ago may have a high school grade point average to report, but those high school gpas may not parallel those of more recent high school graduates as graduation requirements and course offerings have changed over the years. along with these issues is the concern over the possibility of grade inflation that could impact the reported high school grade point average. 22   c. atkins & a. mccoy   in addition to the quantitative analysis, another indicator of program success may be the overall course completion rate for the subjects of this study. mwu monitors the dfw rate of each course offered. courses with fewer than 30% of students earning a letter grade of d or f or having withdrawn from the course are considered successful courses. of the students participating in this study, approximately 86% successfully passed the gateway course with a letter grade of c or higher leaving only 14% in the dfw category. of these students, 67% earned a letter grade of d meaning less than 5% of the students in this study either failed or dropped the co-requisite courses. the reported dfw rate for students enrolled in the same sections of the cm course but participating in the traditional pre-requisite instead of the corequisite pathway was 25%. lessons learned from implementing the pilot as the results above indicate, mwu’s co-requisite model has been effective in terms of promoting student success and completion of a gateway mathematics course while reducing time to graduation and financial burden. the pilot of the model has also provided faculty with a great deal of insight into the successful implementation of a co-requisite model. first, if multiple sections of the co-requisite courses are offered, the model works best when each section of the gateway course is paired with a specific dml section. when this is not possible, then all sections of the gateway course associated with a specific dml course should have the same instructor. when students in a dml course have different instructors for the gateway course, different topics are often being studied. just-in-time content support really only works if all students are studying the same content. frequent communication and ongoing collaboration between the instructors of the gateway and dml courses is essential. face-to-face meetings prior to the beginning of the semester have allowed faculty to plan together and to establish means of communication. a weekly email from the gateway course instructor provided the dml instructor with an update on the topics to be covered during the week, and this allowed the dml instructor to plan accordingly. adding the dml instructor to the course management site of the gateway course was another strategy that helped to facilitate communication. having access to the site allowed the dml instructor to access student grades, and thus, monitor student progress and performance in the gateway course. in addition, assessments must be carefully planned and coordinated between the gateway course and dml instructors. in the mwu model, summative assessment occurs exclusively in the gateway course and formative assessment is a major component in the dml course. interestingly, students in the dml course have asked for graded quizzes that help them practice for the summative tests given in the gateway course. this assessment plan has worked to provide students with the information they need to monitor their progress without overwhelming them with multiple summative assessments. monitoring attendance in both the gateway course and the dml course has proven to be an important aspect of the model. not surprisingly, students who were successful in the gateway course attended both the gateway and dml course regularly. in addition, instructors of the courses must communicate with each other on a regular basis about student attendance. the logistics involved in ensuring students are enrolled in the appropriate gateway and dml courses proved to be more challenging than initially anticipated. several different processes were investigated and tried before a workable procedure was identified. while course co-requisite model for developmental mathematics 23 management and enrollment platforms vary from university to university, spending time upfront to address enrollment issues is essential. finally, many models for co-requisite programs are in use at universities. in some of these models, the same instructor teaches the gateway and dml course. for the model described here, a deliberate decision was made to involve two different faculty members representing two departments of the university. doing this has provided students the opportunity to experience the content from two different perspectives and through two different teaching styles. this practice supports a variety of student learning styles and needs. next steps extending the model based on the success of the pilot of a co-requisite model for the contemporary mathematics course for education majors, the co-requisite option has been opened to students with majors other than education. enrollment in the co-requisite sections of the gateway course and the dml course has grown tremendously and several sections of each course must now be offered. in addition, the success of the pilot has led mwu to begin offering a co-requisite option for a second course, introduction to mathematical modeling. the same structure of offering the gateway course through the department of mathematics and computer science and the dml course through the department of academic enrichment is being utilized with this new course. the dml course is structured in a similar manner as the course used with contemporary mathematics. this fall, the department of mathematics and computer science will use a corequisite model for basic statistics. for this course, both the gateway course and the dml will be offered in the department of mathematics and computer science. data will be collected and analyzed for each of these new models. conclusion the co-requisite model implemented by the mwu has resulted in positive outcomes for students. education majors have been supported in achieving success in gateway mathematics courses and in gaining the knowledge required for successful completion of required teacher certification assessments. in addition, the credit hours previously devoted to pre-requisite developmental math courses can now be spent on other required or elective courses. the success of the pilot of the model has resulted in the model being extended to include majors other than education and to additional mathematics courses. a deliberate, yet informed, move away from traditional practices and the willingness to undertake the work involved in trying something new has led to very different, and very positive, results for students. 24   c. atkins & a. mccoy   references arendale, d. r. (2011). then and now: the early years of developmental education. research and teaching in developmental education, 27(2), 58-76. aslan, d. (2013). a comparison of preand in-service preschool teachers’ mathematical anxiety and beliefs about mathematics for young children. academic research international, 4(2), 225-230. bekdemir, m. (2010). the pre-service teachers’ mathematics anxiety related to depth of negative experiences in mathematics classroom while they were students. educational studies in mathematics, 75(3), 311-328. bitner, j., austin, s., & wadlington, e. (1994). a comparison of math anxiety in traditional and nontraditional developmental college students. research and teaching in developmental education, 10(2), 35-43. boylan, h. r. (2009). targeted intervention for developmental education students (t.i.d.e.s.). journal of developmental education, 32(3), 14-23. castator, m. m. (1995). identifying high-risk courses for underprepared students. (unpublished doctoral dissertation). university of kansas, lawrence, ks. clough, s., montgomery, s. (2015). how act assessments align with state college and career readiness standards. retrieved from act: http://www.discoveract aspire.org/pdf/act_alignment-whte-paper.pdf cooper, k. j. (2014). remedial rescue: new approaches to developmental education have proved successful for several two-year colleges. diverse issues in higher education, 31(18), 14-15. co-requisite model for developmental mathematics 25 core principles for transforming remediation within a comprehensive student success strategy: a joint statement. (2015). retrieved from http://completecollege.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/core-principles-2015.pdf gresham, g. (2007). a study of mathematics anxiety in pre-service teachers. early childhood education journal, 35(2), 181-188. lambdin, d. v., & walcott, c. (2007). changes through the years: connections between psychological learning theories and the school mathematics curriculum. in w.g. martin, m.e. strutchens, & p.c. elliott (eds.), the learning of mathematics: sixty-ninth yearbook (pp. 3-25). reston, va: the national council of teachers of mathematics. saxon, d. p., & boylan, h. r. (2001). the cost of remedial education in higher education. journal of developmental education, 25(2), 2-8. stahl, n. a., simpson, m. l., & hayes, c. g. (1992). ten recommendations from research for teaching high-risk college students. journal of developmental education, 16(1), 2-10. tucker, a. (2012). the history of the undergraduate program in mathematics in the united states. retrieved from the mathematical association of america: http://www.maa.org/sitesdefault/files/pdf/cupm/pdf/maaundergradhistory.pdf 26   c. atkins & a. mccoy   page intentional blank microsoft word 03-jm.docx vol. 1, no. 1, august 2012, pp. 27-42 the power of partnerships in becoming accountable for the impact of teacher candidates on p-12 learning roger pankratz western kentucky university abstract the “renaissance partnership”, a consortium of eleven universities and their partner schools, was one of the first twenty-five teacher quality enhancement projects funded in 1999. the project’s two primary goals, “to become accountable for the impact of teacher graduates on the students they teach” and “to institutionalize reforms in preparation programs,” to a great extent have been achieved. successes are attributed to “the power of partnerships.” this paper provides a brief account of the development of the renaissance partnership and the struggles to achieve project objectives, a description of project achievements, a third party evaluator’s summary and, finally, a project director’s reflections and conclusions. r. pankratz 28 the power of partnerships in becoming accountable for the impact of teacher candidates on p-12 learning the renaissance partnership for improving teacher quality the renaissance partnership consists of eleven universities and their partner schools directly involved in a five-year title ii teacher quality enhancement project which began in october, 1999. these partner schools include california state university, fresno; eastern michigan university; emporia state university; idaho state university; kentucky state university; longwood university, virginia; middle tennessee state university; millersville university, pennsylvania; southeast missouri state university; university of northern iowa; and western kentucky university. all eleven universities are members of the renaissance group, a larger consortium of about thirty teacher preparation colleges and universities across the country that together produce about one of every nine classroom teachers in america. the presidents, provosts, deans, and teacher education directors of renaissance group institutions have been meeting semi-annually since 1987 to share and encourage all-university strategies that produce quality teachers. representatives of the eleven institutions that comprise the renaissance partnership had been meeting for about two years before title ii funding was received to design plans to become more accountable for the impact of teacher graduates on p-12 students’ learning. thus, the focus and communication structures among these eleven institutions began more than two years before the beginning of the five-year funded title ii teacher quality enhancement grant. the beginning of a quest the seeds for the 1999-2004 title ii renaissance partnership project were sown in the fall of 1997 when presidents, provosts, and deans from about twenty renaissance group universities met for their fall conference in san antonio to consider new strategies for improving teacher preparation programs. the theme of the conference was “accountability for teacher preparation”. a teacher educator who had been highly involved in kentucky’s school reform since 1989 offered a bold proposal: collect, analyze, and report data on the impact of teacher graduates on p-12 student learning and the world will turn their heads to renaissance group institutions. while there were skeptics present that thought the suggestion was a “pipe dream,” the teacher educator (who authored this paper) was supported by the group and given a small grant to pursue this extremely challenging goal. in subsequent 1998 spring and 1998 fall meetings of the renaissance group, representative faculty with expertise in assessment met to consider ideas and strategies for better ways to assess teacher candidate performance, especially with respect to evidence that graduates can facilitate learning of all students. del schalock from western oregon was invited to speak about the potential of teacher work samples, a concept he had been developing over the past decade. also, during the 1998 year, a ten-institution study was conducted that revealed two startling facts: (a) our leading teacher preparation institutions used instructional time teaching methods compared to assessment of student learning at a ratio of about 7 to 1 and (b) none of the ten institutions had a performance assessment and data management system that included the quality components specified by the new ncate 2000 standards. the power of partnerships in becoming accountable 29 all assessment representatives from the ten renaissance group institutions that met over the next two years agreed that more should be done to develop performance assessment and data management systems, but funding for any development at the local level simply did not exist. at a fall meeting in 1998 of the renaissance group assessment leaders, participants agreed that obtaining support for development programs would be absolutely essential if accountability programs were to become a reality. in the spring of 1999, two actions were initiated that became the foundation for a fiveyear development effort toward performance accountability. first, a concept paper was developed entitled “becoming accountable for the impact of graduates on students and schools: making operational the shift from teaching to learning” that was presented at the annual meeting of the american association for colleges of teacher education in february of 1999 (pankratz, 1999). this discussion document expanded on proposals (barr & tagg, 1996) that we change our focus from teaching to producing student learning. while teaching was important, it had to produce learning and had to relate to results. this basic concept was applied to teacher preparation. the second important initiative taken by the renaissance group in the spring of 1999 was the development of a teacher quality enhancement proposal submitted to the title ii teacher quality enhancement renaissance program. the request for proposals of the partnership programs aligned with the goals of the renaissance group’s quest for accountability for p-12 student learning. the renaissance grant proposal involved ten universities and their partner schools and presented a five-year plan to (a) become accountable for the impact of teacher candidates and graduates on p-12 student learning, and (b) to improve teacher performance in key areas and show an increase in teacher’s ability to facilitate learning of all students. the proposal also presented a work plan for six project objectives that all institutions would address: • develop an accountability system that regularly collects and reports data on the impact of their graduates on student learning; • use teacher work samples in their teacher education programs as a means of improving teaching skills and increasing the teacher’s impact on student learning; • implement a team mentoring model consisting of school practitioners, arts and science faculty, and teacher educators that facilitates the ability of teachers to impact student learning in partner schools; • modify, revise, and improve teacher preparation programs to address teacher impact on p-12 learning; • build an electronic network among all renaissance institutions and partner schools to share information, materials, ideas, and data related to improvement of teacher quality and student learning; and • design and conduct research programs that link teacher performance to p-12 student learning. the renaissance partnership proposal was approved and a usdoe grant of $5,730,011, supplemented with $3,573,921 non-federal funds, was awarded in september of 1999. western kentucky university was the grantee with subcontracts to nine partnership universities. r. pankratz 30 thus, on october 1, 1999, the renaissance partnership for improving teacher quality officially began as a five-year development effort. idaho state university, the eleventh institution, was added to the partnership in the third year of the project. building a partnership to reform teacher preparation programs forming a partnership of individual entities assumes that a collaborative endeavor and collective effort can achieve more when working together than operating independently. this was the position of the title ii partnership program with respect to colleges of education, colleges of arts and sciences, and partner elementary/secondary school programs. in the renaissance partnership this three-way collaboration effort occurred at eleven different sites in ten states across the country. these eleven sites prepared about 5,000 new teachers each year. building a dynamic and functional program of teacher preparation reform among different entities with different purposes has been a most important but difficult challenge. the diversity of talent and experience across eleven project sites also has been a real strength of innovative synergy that contributed to project success. the first year of the project began as a series of struggles to get a focus. while the six project objectives framed a clear project vision for the developers of the proposal, they were little more than professional platitudes to teacher educators, arts and science faculty, and school practitioners across eleven project sites who were expected to implement the project work plan. getting “buy in” to a central project vision by different groups in different geographical areas, each with their own agendas, proved to be a difficult challenge. commitment to accountability systems, the implementation of teacher work samples in all preparation programs, and forming mentoring teams for candidates was especially difficult because there were few operating models to examine and emulate. even though all renaissance partner institutions were accredited by ncate, none had systems of performance assessment, data management, and program evaluation that operationally met ncate standards. and, even more discouraging, a search for operational models at ncate institutions across the country that truly met standard 2 program evaluation came up empty. a similar scenario was experienced with teacher work samples. although western oregon university (schalock & schalock, 1997) had developed and used teacher work samples for the greater part of a decade, the processes and materials used locally among faculty at this institution were not directly transportable to renaissance partners, especially for universities such as california state, fresno and eastern michigan that each prepared nearly 2,000 teachers per year. most of year one activities were directed at teacher work samples. western oregon university faculty were employed as consultants to share their ideas and experiences. site representatives traveled to western oregon to review teacher work sample materials and talk to teacher candidates about their perceptions. based on these initial interactions, project task force groups began to develop their own “renaissance partnership” processes for teacher work samples, including candidate performance tasks (prompts) and scoring guides (rubrics) that best met the needs of renaissance partner project sites. while western oregon had provided the basic theory and conceptual framework for teacher work samples, renaissance partnership members needed to develop both standards of performance for teaching processes they believed the power of partnerships in becoming accountable 31 were most important as well as instrumentation (teacher work sample prompts and rubrics) they “collectively owned” and understood. the first year of the project produced some rocky results. assessment coordinators met in st. louis to set parameters of measurement and key indicators of performances for teacher work sample prompts and rubrics. at times the debate over issues such as what constitutes evidence of p-12 learning, which teacher performances were most important, and the format of instrumentation became quite heated. while a visitor to the discussions might have perceived chaos, reflecting back on those early meetings we are certain they were the essential interactions between project representatives from eleven sites that were needed to build a strong partnership. assessment coordinators, teacher work sample coordinators, and mentoring coordinators from all ten project sites convened in st. louis in january 2001 for a 3.5 day work session. sites that had piloted the first draft of the renaissance teacher work sample model brought teacher candidate exhibits to score. most brought war stories of teacher candidate frustration with the work sample task and back-home faculty resistance to the idea of work samples. several coordinators came to st. louis with stories of real successes and exhibits of outstanding candidate performances. the stated purpose of the january work session was to review progress, revise the work sample prompt and rubric, and plan for the second semester of tws implementation in spring of 2001. the work session exemplified the concept of synergy. the right people were in the right place at the right time and partners from ten institutions accomplished far more collectively than any delegation from each of the individual project sites could have done separately. the failures and successes from the fall semester of 2000 were used as learning experiences. the teacher educators, arts and science faculty, and school practitioners who came to st. louis in january of 2001 worked long and hard for more than three days and most said they left feeling professionally rewarded that progress had been made. all left with a set of teacher work sample materials they had helped to develop and which were much improved and more likely to produce results with teacher candidates. their understanding of standards-based teaching and learning had grown, professional ownership of teacher work samples had increased, and confidence in the power of the partnership process was established. the january 2001 work session by project teacher educators, arts and science faculty, and school practitioners from the ten partner sites established the structure and work standard for the remaining four years of the title ii project. since that first 2001 event, 60 to 70 coordinators, faculty and school practitioners from partner sites in ten states have convened in st. louis twice each year for three days of program development, sharing experiences, networking, and production of training and support materials. these intense three-day work sessions held on a wednesday, thursday, and friday of mid-january and june have been the driving force of partnership support that enabled this project to exceed its original goals and achieve the results that will be described later in this chapter. assessment, teacher work sample, and mentoring coordinators usually met on wednesdays to report progress on the project objectives and work plan with respect to the development of performance data management and accountability systems, implementation of teacher work samples, and the establishment of mentoring programs. key issues and concerns about project initiatives were brought to the semi-annual meetings and were addressed as a partnership effort. on thursdays and fridays, site coordinators were joined by colleagues from back home to work in cross-institution teams on specific development tasks. in looking back at the project strategies that have enabled the partnership to achieve its goals and objectives, most project leaders would highly rank the value of our st. louis work r. pankratz 32 sessions for a number of reasons. first, the partnership work sessions served as our primary vehicle for communicating expectations of the project work plan. every work session began with an update of progress relative to the project goal and seven objectives, as well as the activities designed to achieve the objectives. every three-day session ended with back-home planning to see what was developed or learned at each local project site. second, the st. louis events were a catalyst for communication and networking; professionals made connections to other people, ideas, and resources that could be followed up electronically back home. in addition, work sessions were occasions where both successes and concerns about project implementation were shared and discussed. the synergy of these events gave key project representatives a broader perspective that they were a valued part of teacher preparation and quality reform across the nation and that they were not alone in their quest to impact teaching and learning. a third recognized benefit of the st. louis work sessions was the opportunity to assemble the best minds and talents of professionals from eleven universities and partner schools at one location for three days to design and develop reform strategies. the successes of the renaissance teacher work sample standards, prompt and scoring rubric document is a prime example of where sixty-six heads were better than six and the whole was more than the sum of its parts. coordinators from the eleven project sites have often commented about the role st. louis work sessions have played in the development of the renaissance partnership. accomplishments: working together and sharing common goals the renaissance partnership project began with a central goal of accountability for teacher performance that results in p-12 student learning and six measurable project objectives. of these, developing performance data management systems, implementing teacher work samples, and mentoring for high performance became the key reform strategies that directly impacted teacher candidate’s ability to facilitate learning of all students. business partnerships, networking, and research linking teacher performance to student learning were developed to support the three reform initiatives. by the end of year one of the project, it became evident that performance accountability, teacher work samples, and focused mentoring would drive significant changes in teacher preparation courses and experiences. thus, a seventh objective (program revisions that improved the quality of graduates) was added. except for the development of business partnerships, significant progress was made on all project objectives. performance data management and accountability systems all eleven project sites developed data management systems that enabled universities to collect, analyze, and report performance data on their graduates that were not in existence at the start of the project. five critical components were identified early in the project to measure progress toward accountability systems that met standards established by the national council for the accreditation of teacher education (ncate). rubrics for each of the five components were developed to judge four levels of progress on each element. table 1 shows the number of institutions reaching defined levels of development of accountability systems for each of the five critical components. table 1. number of institutions in the renaissance partnership at various stages of progress on july 1 of 2005 the power of partnerships in becoming accountable 33 critical component documented stage of development beginning developing at standard above standard unit-wide commitment to accountability 0 0 9 2 employed accountability system coordinator 1 1 2 7 process for on-going performance assessment development 0 0 10 1 electronic data management system 1 1 7 2 process for reporting and using performance data for program improvement 0 3 6 2 in comparison, when the project began in 1999, no institution had reached the “at standard” level on any of the five components and most were at the “beginning” level on all components. implementation of teacher work samples this component of the project has been the primary driving force for reform in teacher preparation. teacher work samples require student teachers to (a) design standards-based unit of instruction; (b) design formative preand post-classroom assessments that measure content standards; (c) implement the unit over a three to six week period in a real school setting; (d) analyze and report achievement progress of all students; and (e) evaluate their teaching and student learning. valid and reliable teaching tasks were developed early in the project along with scoring rubrics to judge teacher performance on each of the seven components of a teacher work sample. the project employed four dimensions by crocker (1997) to establish validity as a performance measure and the generalizability formula proposed by shavelson and webb (1991) to establish scorer reliability. table 2 shows the progress growth in use of teacher work samples with student teachers across the eleven sites over the duration of the project. table 2 number of valid teacher work samples produced by student teachers and scored for performance. time period teacher work samples produced and scored spring 2001 198 spring 2002 964 spring 2003 1,245 spring 2004 1,575 spring 2005 2,000 * *exact count not available r. pankratz 34 performance standards for each of the seven components of the work sample were set at a high level. when teacher work samples were first introduced, less than 50% of student teachers scored at the “proficient” level. in the spring of 2004, all of the eleven institutions report more than 80% of student teachers achieving the proficient or above level of performance on teacher work samples. team mentoring of candidates by teacher educators, arts and science faculty, and school practitioners while the involvement of the three principal role groups has been achieved in this project, team mentoring models have been a challenge. interaction among arts & science faculty, school practitioners, and teacher educators is important and essential. however, scheduling these collective interactions has been difficult but progress is being made through innovative strategies. achievements toward the mentoring objective include the following: • more than 150 arts & science faculty, 300 teacher educators, and 300 school practitioners across the project have been trained to mentor teacher candidates on developing teaching units that produce high levels of student achievement. • a manual for teacher mentors and a manual for teacher candidates have been developed primarily to assist teacher candidates in producing high performance teacher work samples. • two project-wide studies of mentoring successes and challenges have been conducted and shared across sites to guide mentoring programs. • mentoring models (structures and processes) used at sites have been described, documented and shared with other partnership members. program and course revisions resulting from implementing teacher work samples course revisions have been a by-product of introducing teacher work samples. several of the work sample processes (i.e., use of context to design instruction, development of assessment plans, analysis of student learning and reflection on teaching and learning) have not been given much attention in traditional teacher preparation programs. consequently, both teacher candidates and university faculty recognized the need to strengthen these important processes and have made additions and modifications to the curriculum. • more than one hundred pedagogy and fifty content courses that prepare teachers have been modified or revised to address expectations in teacher work samples, especially with respect to designing learning goals aligned with content standards and developing assessment tools to measure student learning. • a study of eighty-six representative faculty across the eleven partnership sites relative to actual course changes was conducted and published in 2003 to show how course revisions relate to the seven processes of teacher performance. the 86 faculty selected for the study identified 122 major changes, 229 significant changes and 162 minor changes in courses and program preparation experiences resulting from the teacher work sample initiative. in june of 2004, university coordinators from across the partnership the power of partnerships in becoming accountable 35 reported a collective total of 189 identified courses in teacher preparation programs revised to address one or more teaching processes introduced and assessed by the teacher work samples. networking of people, ideas, and resources network and communication across eleven project sites has been a prime vehicle for innovation and change in this project. twoand three-day work sessions were conducted twice each year for between fifty and seventy representative teacher educators, arts and science faculty, and school practitioners to (1) design and develop materials, (2) train faculty in the use and scoring of teacher work samples, and (3) share implementation successes and concerns. table 3 shows the primary developmental activity for each of nine networking events between june 2000 and june 2004. table 3. networking activity events that supported renaissance partnership initiatives date primary activity of work session june 2000 initial training for teacher work samples (tws) january 2001 revision of tws prompt and rubric june 2001 benchmarking and scoring, revision of prompt and rubric january 2002 advanced scoring training, inter-rater reliability check june 2002 sharing successes and problems, advance training, materials development january 2003 sharing successes and problems, assessment tools manual development, mentoring manual development june 2003 sharing successes and concerns, credibility manual development, revision of mentoring manual january 2004 sharing successes and concerns, revision of assessment tools manual, identification of twenty-four tws exemplars june 2004 reporting and celebrating of project achievements, forward action planning (institutionalization) a second major vehicle for networking has been the project web site http://fp.uni.edu/itq. this web site has provided project information, descriptions of project activities and project resources to thousands of project participants and non-project educators since the start-up of the renaissance partnership. teacher work sample prompts, rubrics, and exemplars for various disciplines, as well as training manuals and powerpoint presentations, are available for downloading free of charge from the web site. research and dissemination during the first three years of the project, formative data was collected on program practices related to management data bases, teacher work samples, and mentoring teams to guide the r. pankratz 36 development of these initiatives. also, data on candidate performance was collected to provide a baseline for evaluating the effects of program initiatives. over the past two years, studies have been completed at idaho state university, longwood university, western kentucky university, and emporia state university, linking teacher work sample performance to other factors, including course grades and perceptions of candidates about their instruction. also, over the past year studies have been completed that measure the validity and scorer reliability of the renaissance teacher work sample performance instrument. these studies are published in a chapter of the association of teacher educator’s yearbook in press (denner, pankratz, norman & newsome, 2003). in addition to the above research efforts, project personnel have been extremely active in dissemination activities. from january 2003 to july 2004, more than eighty formal presentations were delivered to state, regional, national, and international audiences based on project initiatives and the experiences with and results of these initiatives. eighteen articles related directly to project initiatives have been submitted to professional publications. a number of these presentations have been placed on the project web site and are available to view or download. the results of a third party evaluation of the renaissance partnership project in the fall of 2002, the renaissance partnership contracted with appalachia education laboratory (ael) of charleston, west virginia, to conduct an independent evaluation of the eleven-site title ii project. ael conducted the evaluation over a one-year period from august of 2001 to august of 2002 (cowley, finch & meehan, 2003). a multi-method research approach suggested by brewer and hunter (1989) was employed to corroborate data from different stakeholders to address evaluation questions. data sources included in-depth interviews with presidents, provosts, and deans of the eleven universities as well as completed surveys from institution coordinators, assessment coordinators, teacher work sample coordinators, institution faculty, project school practitioners, and student teachers who completed teacher work samples. at the end of the fourth year of the project, ael reported the following findings: • the teacher work sample project objective was “clearly the most advanced and the mentoring objective met to a high degree.” to some extent, the project objectives for accountability systems, course revisions, and networking have been achieved showing marked differences across institutions. the least progress was found with respect to business partnerships and research linking teacher performance to p-12 student learning. • the project is clearly aimed toward the goals and expectations of the title ii teacher quality enhancement partnership program. some activities seem to have more widespread support across institutions and so more time is being spent in these areas. • across program objectives there is a strong leadership component, faculty commitment and buy-in and collaboration both within and across institutions. for teacher work samples, respondents note that it is of professional interest, it is not too expensive to implement, and it improves service delivery. as a result, faculty are more interested and willing to complete activities pertaining to this objective. • the ability to learn from each other, problem solve and discuss how to adapt or adopt systems or methods was seen as one of the major strengths of this project. • barriers to progress most often identified were resistance to change, faculty turnover, and the lack of resources for employing additional staff to implement project the power of partnerships in becoming accountable 37 initiatives. also, lack of technical support and faculty time to develop the various components of a performance data accountability system was often cited as the chief impediment to progress toward this objective. key recommendations for greater effectiveness and project productivity based on the findings of ael included (a) achieve full implementation of teacher work samples, (b) expand mentoring programs for higher performance, (c) initiate and conduct more research studies that link teacher performance to student achievement, (d) accelerate progress on data management systems, (e) fully integrate project initiatives into each university’s culture, and (f) seek continued funding for key initiatives and research. while the value of teacher work samples as a tool for teacher preparation, performance, and assessment was cited by the ael evaluators as a most important outcome of this project, the experiences of partnering and networking were viewed by most project participants interviewed and surveyed as the most helpful and effective strategies for developing, implementing, and institutionalizing teacher quality reform initiatives (cowley, et al., 2003) in the fall of 2004, two years after the first third party evaluation, ael was contracted for an indepth study of the implementation of accountability systems and teacher work samples at four partnership universities (cowley, et al., 2003). the purpose of this second study was to determine (a) the extent of institutionalization of these two key reform initiatives in four more successful project sites and (b) factors that contributed to adoption and institutionalization of performance accountability systems. six institutions were asked to submit project implementation data and four were selected based on criteria of comprehensiveness, organization, and available information on the two target reform initiatives. emporia state, longwood university (va), university of northern iowa, and western kentucky university were selected as the four study sites. study protocols were developed, two-day site visits were made to each of the four universities, and 209 people were interviewed in 65 individual and group sessions. these included 18 university and project administrators, 79 faculty members, 85 teacher candidates and recent graduates, and 27 cooperating k-12 school practitioners. electronic data materials, training protocols, implementation data, and records of development efforts were collected. from the data collected, the researchers concluded that “the concept of teacher work samples as both a process and product has become firmly embedded in the culture of each of the four universities.” the completion of teacher work samples as measures of teaching performance were required for all candidates at three universities, and it would become mandatory at the fourth institution in the fall of 2005. key factors that researchers found contributed most to the institutionalization of teacher work samples were • strong administrative commitment and support that backed the efforts of individuals involved in development and implementation; • the “right” individuals were identified that had both the ability and respect to promote and lead a new initiative; • adequate training in the use of work samples for all stakeholders; • involvement of university councils and decision making bodies that approved policies that institutionalized teacher work samples; and • connecting the work sample initiative with other reform efforts (i.e., ncate standards, state accountability demands, nclb). r. pankratz 38 • contributing factors to the development and institutionalization of accountability systems also were identified • external “drivers”, such as ncate standards, state accountability mandates, and k12 data-based instructional improvement and decision making; • strong leadership and support for performance accountability systems – i.e., the employment of half-time assessment coordinators to lead and coordinate development efforts; and • external resources of the title ii grant for start up and development costs, as well as the sharing of expertise and technical information on accountability systems by institutions “leading the pack.” • in addition, ael researchers concluded that based on the data and experience at the four universities visited that both accountability systems and teacher work samples had contributed to improving teacher quality through four processes: • teacher work samples and accountability systems shifted the teacher preparation focus from textbook-driven instruction which focuses on “material coverage” to datadriven instruction to meet state and local content standards; • teacher work samples helped teacher educators become more accountable for their own performance through standards-based teaching, learning, and assessments; • teacher work samples prompted all universities to modify their preparation curriculum because of observed needs of candidates in areas, such as assessment and reflective writing; and • both teacher work samples and accountability systems have increased conversations and cooperation across departments within colleges of education and across to colleges of arts and sciences (cowley, voelkel & finch, 2005). a project director’s analysis, reflection, and conclusion as a thirty-five year veteran of writing proposals for federally-funded projects and directing development programs in teacher preparation, i have always tended to promise more than i could deliver and expect more than can reasonably be achieved over the life of a project. however, i can truthfully say that with the renaissance partnership for improving teacher quality, we will come nearer achieving and, in some cases, exceeding the objectives of any project i have directed. i attribute the higher level of success in this project to five key factors. use of sound concepts and strategies the relentless focus on p-12 student learning of content; the seven teaching processes that comprise the teacher work sample; directed mentoring for higher performance, partnering between teacher educators, arts and science faculty; and school practitioners and accountability for performance all represent concepts and processes that have a strong conceptual base and are supported by standards-based teaching and learning across the nation. in other words, the project was designed to advance teacher quality initiatives that had a high probability of working. however, in the case of teacher work samples, the strategy has certainly exceeded all expectations. development of user-friendly materials the development, revision, and wide distribution of the renaissance teacher work sample standards, prompt and rubric document and the renaissance teacher work sample the power of partnerships in becoming accountable 39 scoring guide has been key to communicating the seven teaching processes to teacher candidates, teacher educators, arts and science faculty, and school practitioners. all are on the project website for anyone to download along with about thirty candidate-produced teacher work samples. this effort was based on previous research on adoption of educational initiatives and i believe the wide distribution of materials served as a primary factor in the growing use of teacher work samples (hall et al, 1973). availability of outstanding professional talent the teacher educators, arts and science faculty, and school practitioners who were leaders at each of the eleven project sites (especially those sent to the work sessions in st. louis), were the most talented, hardworking, and professional group i have had the privilege of working with in my educational career. they truly were the top performers from each project site, and working together became a powerful force for development and implementation of project initiatives. a history of collaboration among renaissance group institutions the ten years of collaboration and communication and interaction between presidents, provosts, and deans prior to the startup of this project gave the renaissance partnership for improving teacher quality a real advantage over any partnership formed in 1999. also, the fact that i, as director, had worked with most of the deans and some of the provosts of the eleven institutions prior to the title ii project aided our efforts to collaborate as did the coincidence that western’s provost was the former education dean at california state, fresno and served on the renaissance group board of directors. learning from past experience as the director of this project, i admit that the saying “you learn from past experience” truly captured what we experienced in the renaissance partnership. since the late 1960s, i have had the opportunity to direct head start training projects, teacher corps projects, career ladder projects, school reform projects, and research. consequently, i had the opportunity to make a lot of mistakes and to learn from some. my professional contribution to this project as its director had a lot to do with the rich set of experiences that have come my way and the competent mentors whom i was privileged to interact with over the past thirty-five years. a concluding comment over the past four years i have been privileged to be part of a community of learners that i believe is making a difference in how teachers are prepared and mentored. also, it has been my good fortune to have had the support of the u. s. department of education, eleven universities, and their partner schools to pursue a passion to improve learning for all children. the documented accomplishments of this project and reports from hundreds of professionals who are using ideas and resources developed by the renaissance partnership certainly are gratifying. the eleven universities in ten states along with their partner schools have been a powerful force for the improvement of teacher quality. by working together, we have been able to achieve far more than what each of the sites could have produced alone. however, achievement of the primary goal of the renaissance partnership – to show accountability for the impact of teacher graduates on the students they teach – is just beginning to surface. while we have some evidence that teacher graduates have the skills and abilities to produce learning, years r. pankratz 40 of teaching and learning, data collection, and analysis will be required to fully realize the fruits of our efforts in this project. toward that goal we must remain diligent. the power of partnerships in becoming accountable 41 references barr, r. b. & tagg, j. (1995, november/december). from teaching to learning: a new paradigm for undergraduate education. brewer, j., & hunter, a. (1989). multimethod research: a synthesis of styles. newbury park: sage publications. cowley, k.s., finch, n. l., & meehan, m. l. (2003). formative evaluation of the title ii renaissance partnership for improving teacher quality project. charleston, wv: appalachia education laboratory. cowley, k. s., voelkel, s., & finch, n. l. (2005). teacher work samples and accountability systems: an in-depth study of successful implementation at four universities participating in the title ii renaissance partnership for improving teacher quality project. charleston, wv: appalachia education laboratory. crocker, l. (1997). assessing content representativeness of performance assessment exercises. applied measure in education, 10, 83-95. denner, p., pankratz, r. s., norman, a., & newsome, j. (2003). building credibility into performance assessment and accountability systems for teacher preparation programs: a “how to” manual for teacher educators who want to collect, use and report valid and reliable performance data on teacher candidates with a link to p-12 student learning. hall, g. e., zigarmi, p., and hord, s. m. a taxonomy of interventions: the prototype and initial testing. austin: research and development center for teacher education, the university of texas, 1973. pankratz, r.s. (1999, february). becoming accountable for the impact of graduates on students and schools: making operational the shift from teaching to learning. paper presented at the r. pankratz 42 annual meeting of the american association of colleges for teacher education, washington, d.c. schalock, h. d., schalock, m., & girod, g. (1997). teacher work sample methodology as used at western oregon state college. in j. millman (ed.). grading teachers, grading schools: is student achievement a valid evaluation measure? (pp. 15-45). thousand oakes, ca: corwin press. shavelson, r. j., & webb, n. m. (1991). generalizability theory: a primer. newbury park, ca: sage. microsoft word 3. urban education option-summ 2013.docx vol. 2, no. 1, june 2013, pp. 29-44 the early findings of an urban education teacher preparation program: a case study alice w. terry and catherine head kennesaw state university abstract a university near a major city in georgia and a large, urban school district established a professional development school (pds) in which the majority of junior and senior-level preservice teacher coursework and fieldwork took place at seven urban, high-needs public schools. the purpose of this study was to provide preliminary feedback to the middle grades teacher preparation program concerning the ue (urban education) program in preparation for the second cohort of ue interns and the second year of study with the first cohort. what emerged from the study was evidence that the program, for its participating teacher candidates, leads to commitment, strengthens self-efficacy, and fosters early development of teacher efficacy, but which ultimately evolves into teacher candidate overconfidence. as pressure continues to mount concerning the quality of education in america, teacher preparation programs must improve their programs in order to better prepare teachers for diverse classrooms. this study relates one such effort toward that end. 30   a. terry introduction to provide the most effective preparation for future teachers, it is incumbent upon universities to collaborate with school systems when designing and implementing their teacher preparation programs. effective teacher preparation curricula and experiences should provide knowledge of and experiences in working with students from diverse backgrounds in diverse settings. the following study relates the early findings of the effects on pre-service teachers of a new urban-emphasis teacher preparation program that established a professional development school (pds) with urban schools in a metropolitan area of georgia. the combination of increasingly diverse students populating american schools combined with a teacher workforce consisting primarily of white, female teachers requires institutions of higher education to continually improve and expand their teacher education programs (wiggins & follo, 1996; zeichner, 2003). although minority enrollment in teacher education programs is increasing, according to the national center for education statistics (2011), white female teachers continue to dominate the classroom, comprising over 71% of teacher education candidates. in addition, the number of students whose first language is other than english has increased from 4.7 million in 1998 to 11.2 million students in 2009. classrooms across the united states continue to be more racially and culturally diverse than in the past. the challenge for teacher preparation programs is to create programs which bridge the gap between the preservice teachers’ beliefs and their previous school experiences, addressing the reality of the increasingly diverse classroom environments in which they will teach (bales & saffold, 2011). the national council for accreditation of teacher education (ncate), the primary organization which accredits institutions with teacher preparation programs, seeks to ensure that teachers are prepared for the reality of the classroom and to meet the needs of every student (ncate, 2008). ncate standards require pre-service teachers to have authentic experiences which expose interns to the realities and diversities of the school environment. cochran-smith and zeichner (2005) reported the following aspects of teacher education programs that produce successful teachers: • collaborative arrangements between university programs and local school districts, professional development schools (pds); • clear and consistent vision of teaching and learning; • strategies employed in teacher education programs, such as case studies and teaching portfolios; and • opportunities for initial university coursework which combine school and community fieldwork. internship experiences for teacher candidates are a typical component of most teacher preparation programs. both ncate and the national association of professional schools (napds) postulate that experience in the field serve as an important aspect of any teacher preparation program (ncate, 2008; napds, 2008). although studies on the effectiveness of internship experiences have been inconclusive, it has been found that the length of time of the actual internship experience affects the overall outcome. foote and cook-cottone (2004) found that pre-service teachers following the traditional model of student teaching without much exposure to the environment beforehand suffered dissonance about the experience. a developmental model requiring a certain number of hours of field experience in an urban environment before the onset of student teaching was found to be beneficial for pre-service urban education program impact 31 teachers. mckinney et al. (2008), however, found no significant differences between interns who experienced a traditional student teaching experience with those that completed an internship within a pds. it is noteworthy that this study only focused on the student teaching experience, not on other aspects of the teacher preparation program that may have impacted the results. professional development school (pds) because it has become so commonplace for universities to work in collaboration with local school systems in the preparation of teaching, the term professional development school has become a catch all term for any collaborative work between universities and local school systems. napds developed a set of standards that must be in place to be explicitly termed a professional development school. among these standards is the understanding that pds encourages community involvement and provides a structure where all parties are involved in decision-making and research (napds, 2008). description of setting and program pharr university, one of the largest producers of teachers in georgia, established a partnership with an area school district located outside a large city. the school district, one of the largest in the united states, has a student enrollment of 107,681with 112 schools including 67 elementary schools, 25 middle schools, and 16 high schools. in an effort to improve the teacher education program at the university of 25,000 students, a program was created utilizing a professional development school model in which the majority of juniorand senior-level preservice teacher coursework and fieldwork takes place at seven urban, high-needs public schools in the school district that include five elementary schools and one middle and high school. like many urban schools, these schools are in a high-crime area with a highly transient, diverse student body; they struggle to make mandated adequate yearly progress (ayp). the majority of students qualify for free or reduced lunch and many students’ first language is other than english. the school’s ethnic breakdown includes: asian 2%, black, 38%, hispanic, 48%, multi-racial, 4%, white 8%. the urban education (ue) program differs from the traditional teacher preparation program at pharr university in several ways. the students must apply to the program through a highly competitive selection process that includes an application and interview. selected students then become members of a cohort. the middle school cohort completes its education courses and fieldwork together on an urban school campus. education courses are co-taught by university and school district instructors. the ue interns participate in an intensive two-year induction program that includes extensive clinical experiences in the field. further elements of the ue option include preparing the interns to teach with a strong focus on literacy; including families as stakeholders; developing pedagogy effectively to instruct students with disabilities, english language learners, and students of poverty. the ue interns spend a substantial amount of time at the schools and have the opportunity to immerse themselves in both the school and the community through observations, coursework, and interactions with students and parents. year one of the program in this study involved the eight junior-level, middle school ue interns spending two days per week attending to coursework and fieldwork connected to the college courses and one day per week in the classroom with their collaborating teacher. the first semester found the interns immersed in the middle school for their education courses, with built in coordinated field experiences, where they took foundation-level education courses in addition 32   a. terry to edmg 3300, success in the middle school. additionally, they completed 55 hours of fieldwork in urban middle school classrooms. content courses, in subjects such as history and english, were taught on the university campus. because middle grades certification in georgia addresses grades 4-8, the second semester of the ue program took place at an elementary school where the ue interns completed their remaining foundation courses and an instruction and assessment course. during this semester, students perform 55-65 hours of fieldwork per semester, which translates into a minimum of 110 hours of fieldwork per student during the first year of the program. during the first semester of their senior year of college, the interns will take education methods courses, content courses, and a classroom management course. like the first year of the program, the coursework is closely aligned with the fieldwork. the students must clock 180 hours working in a middle school classroom in addition to their coursework. the second semester experience closely aligns with the traditional student teaching experience with the interns fully immersed in the middle school for 75 full school days in addition to completing a reading methods course. at the time of this study, the middle grades ue interns were completing their first year of teacher training (for most of them, their junior year in college). methodology this study was intended to provide preliminary feedback to the middle grades teacher preparation program on the ue program as it prepared for the second cohort of ue interns and began the second year with this first cohort. a qualitative, case study design was selected in order to allow others to understand the meanings people have constructed about their experiences in the program—how they make sense of their world (merriam, 1998). in this type of research, the researcher serves as the primary instrument of data collection and analysis using an inductive, investigative strategy and ending with a thick, rich description of the area under analysis (merriam, 2009). the research question guiding the study is “what is the preliminary impact of the middle grades urban education program? data collection conducted during spring 2011, the second semester of the ue program, the study’s data collection included a focus group interview with six middle grades ue interns; individual interviews with three ue interns, the middle grades liaison and a pharr university professor who taught this group for two consecutive semesters; a class observation; a panel discussion observation; field notes; quantitative survey results; and researcher-generated documents which contained relevant, background material, clues, and insights into the phenomenon under study and, in some instances, helped to triangulate the findings (merriam, 2009). below is a list of the data collected and how the data were utilized in the study. urban education program impact 33 data collected how data were used in the study five individual interviews triangulation focus group interview with six ue interns triangulation class observation triangulation field notes triangulation panel discussion observation background information documents: background information and triangulation • syllabi (4) background information • performance measures and objectives document background information • course outlines (2) background information • program form from traditional teacher preparation program background information and triangulation • roles and responsibilities of site coordinator and liaison document background information • roles and responsibilities of collaboration committee document background information • ue option presentation to potential candidates at pharr university background information • ue intern quantitative survey triangulation • literature triangulation researcher memos (thoughts after interviews and observations— initial, rudimentary analysis jotted in margins of interviews and field notes; insights as data analysis progressed) analysis; audit trail; used to establish credibility/ trustworthiness researcher log audit trail; used to establish credibility/ trustworthiness participant selection purposeful sampling, considered to be the most appropriate sampling strategy in qualitative research, was employed. based on the assumption that the investigators want to discover, understand, and attain insight into the phenomenon under study, they need a sample from which the most can be learned (merriam, 2009). for the focus group interview, purposeful sampling was employed. six of the eight ue interns consented to be a part of the focus group interview. using maximum variation sampling, three participants from the focus group were selected for individual interviews. in maximum variation sampling, the researcher seeks common patterns that emerge from a great variation of the phenomenon under study (patton, 2002). the criteria for selection were confirming and disconfirming or negative experiences. one participant was selected because she offered negative comments about the operation of the program; another because she was so positive about her experience; and one because she did not seem to be an integral part the group. 34   a. terry interviews guided, in part, by flexibly worded questions, the focus group interview used an exploratory, semi-structured format. for example, the interns were asked to describe their experiences in the ue program, including successes and challenges; exciting and not-so-exciting moments; and unexpected experiences or moments. the individual interviews provided insight into important issues. the final question “you are interviewing with a principal for a teaching position in an urban school after graduating. what would you say to the principal when asked: ‘how has your teacher preparation program prepared you to teach in this school?’” provided a wealth of data. the interviews varied in length from 30 to 50 minutes. data analysis all interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. the constant comparative method was used in the analysis of the data. the constant comparative method of data analysis involves comparing one segment of data to another segment to ascertain similarities and differences and then grouping related segments, organizing them into categories or themes (glaser & strauss, 1967). atlas.ti software aided in the management and analysis of the data. coding, a system for organizing and managing data by assigning shorthand designations to various aspects of the data in order to retrieve specific pieces of it (merriam, 2009), was employed starting with open coding. axial coding followed, identifying categories that cut across all sets of data. the categories were then merged, and a newly defined, experimental logic diagram with four themes emerged. trustworthiness/validity and limitations the applied nature of inquiries in education makes it imperative that researchers can exhibit confidence in the results of a particular study. determining the trustworthiness or validity of a qualitative study involves examination of its component parts (merriam, 2009), particularly in how well they answer the questions “how do these research findings match reality?” and “how trustworthy are the findings?” these questions speak to the meaning the researcher makes of the reality he or she observes. multiple strategies were employed to enhance trustworthiness during this study including the following: triangulation using multiple methods of data collection; maximum variation sampling; member checks; peer review by members of the research academy; and the maintenance of a clear audit trail through research memos, researcher log, and the utilization of atlas.ti in managing the data and analysis. a major limitation included being unable to interview collaborating teachers who worked with the interns in the field due to the school system research approval process. although interviews were conducted later for a follow-up grounded theory study, these data are not included in this study. reflexivity the concept of reflexivity directly relates to the integrity of the researcher(s) in conducting the research. in qualitative research, the researcher is the lens, the instrument, through which the study is filtered (merriam, 2009). one author in this study serves as a high school mathematics teacher and worked as a graduate assistant to the other researcher. prior to the study, she had neither involvement with any teacher preparation program nor the participants. urban education program impact 35 the other author worked as a member of the research academy for the overall program and in that role was involved in all aspects of research for the program, although not involved in all studies conducted in the pds. although involved in the traditional teacher preparation program earlier in her career, for the past five years her involvement has been at the graduate level. neither researcher was involved in the development of the program, had any vested interest in the program, and had ever met the ue interns prior to the study. since the purpose of this study was to provide preliminary feedback to the middle grades teacher preparation program in order to plan for the next cohort of interns, there was no pressure from any stakeholder to influence the results in any way. findings four themes emerged from the analysis of the data: commitment (stated by the students as “commitment now, success always”); challenges (“they call us pioneers; we feel like guinea pigs”); perceived benefits (“so i think it is very much preparing me for the career that i set out to do”); and self-efficacy, teacher efficacy, pride, overconfidence (“i am going to have on my [graduation] cap: “i have made it! i am one little black girl…”). the ue program design led to commitment, enhanced self-efficacy, and fostered early development of teacher efficacy among its students, which it appears transformed into overconfidence in the ue interns (figure 1). readers should note that these findings have been extrapolated from the early stages of the ue program and that research is ongoing. these interns will be followed for two more years in order to determine the ultimate impact of the urban education program on these interns through their first year of teaching. figure 1. middle grades intern development model for 1st year of ue program 36   a. terry commitment “commitment now, success always!”: the ue interns voiced deep commitment to the ue program. underlying that commitment is value, the value the participants have for the program. although the implementation of the newly designed program was not seamless in its first year, the participants, from the interns to the professors and liaison, recognized the value of the program. they show clear commitment to improving the program for themselves and future interns. as part of this commitment, a strong sense of community emerged. as was noted during the class observation, “i am observing a community of learners.” both the collaborating teachers and their students treated the interns as co-teachers; they felt this attitude empowered them to have more authority in the classroom, specifically in terms of classroom management. one participant stated, “i believe in the ue program.” another added, “it’s not just another campus organization that you can just drop in once a month; you have commitment…” student 5: it’s go hard or go home. that’s it! student 4: it’s go home. if we hadn’t stuck together and… student 3: that’s pretty much what this is, for real. student 4: just... student 3: you rearrange your whole life. i have two kids… student 4: a job, and this program. student 3: commitment now; success later. they eventually converged on the slogan: commitment now, success forever. (focus group interview) commitment of ue interns to each other and middle grade students. the ue interns developed a strong bond to each other as evidenced by their comments during the focus group interview: “so it’s kind of like we get to go through it together. like instead of doing this one big giant step by ourselves, you feel you’re backed and you have support by, you know, your other classmates.” another added, “…and i think the only ones who understand the pain we’re going through is each other. we help each other get through this period.” this commitment to one another was noted during the observation: “but they are solidly behind each other, in support of one another. they seem to respect one another even if their personalities are not the same.” and they check on each other when one doesn’t show up for class. you know, because if we don’t [come to class], we’re going to get at least 3-4 text messages of “where are you? aren’t you coming to class today? what happened? are you okay?” it’s like, if i miss a class, that’s what happens. or if someone else misses a class, i’m typing, “where are you at? are you okay? do you need a ride to school? what’s the problem?” (individual interview) commitment to urban education students and the middle school. the ue interns are clear in their commitment to the middle grade students as well. although they enjoyed working with elementary students during the spring of their first year of the program, the experience in the elementary school seemed to especially deepen their commitment to middle grade students. according to one intern during an individual interview, “i’ve learned a lot just observing, you know, their behaviors; and i mean, it is beneficial to be in a middle school and an elementary school even though i’d rather be in the middle school the whole time.” though not criticizing urban education program impact 37 the elementary school where they were placed spring semester, they made it clear that they were ready to return to urbana middle school in the fall, to return home. though not all of these factors were goals of the program, together they created more intense commitment. as one student articulated, “i’m just happy that we’re going back to [the middle school] where they knew us.” challenges “they call us pioneers; we feel like guinea pigs”: communication issues. like any new program, rough edges exist. things need to be polished and refined as the ue program develops. this seemed particularly irritating to the ue interns. it is like when dealing with your first year teaching because there are so many different curve balls you’re going through. with the [ue] program, i feel like we started out— very unorganized. like ‘you need to do 15 hours’ and then at the end of week, ‘you need to have 50 hours!’ (individual interview) another student remarked during the focus group interview, “i feel like sometimes they have expectations, and they want us to do something, and we do it. but then we get it back, and they say, ‘well, that’s not good enough.’ well, then, what do they really want?!” another added, “there’s no congruence between what’s expected and what’s occurring.” after articulating all their frustrations about communication, the students came around in support of the program. as one student later remarked during an individual interview, the program has to have some serious changes, from the numerous night classes to the unknown answers to questions, these things need to be addressed and fixed for the future of this program. but being that [it] is a new program, they have to work all the clinks [sic] out. for a new program, it is good, but it could be great. this intern’s comment illustrates the ue interns’ resolute commitment to the program regardless of its shortcomings. programmatic issues. new programs often have issues to work out during their infancy? the ue teacher preparation program is no exception. the interns struggled meeting the demands of coursework combined with increased time commitment in the field. the interns were very outspoken about their perceived programmatic problems in the ue option. they seemed to understand, on one hand, how difficult it is to start a new program; but on the other hand, they were frustrated. as one student remarked, “the stress level, it’s high. but, it’s like the slogan, ‘commitment nowsuccess forever,’ in the beginning it was kind of unorganized a little bit, and i don’t think it was necessarily unorganized. i think it was just wasn’t thought from a student’s perspective.” the program differs from the traditional teacher education program at pharr university, but the students seemed unclear as to how, which caused stress. the students were convinced it was nine additional hours, when that is not the case, as evidenced by program documents examined. because the hours are divided differently from the traditional program, it appeared to the students that more hours were included in the middle grades ue program when, in fact, there were not. 38   a. terry other challenges. in addition to programmatic and communication issues, some general challenges emerged as well such as time. the pharr professors and the urbana middle school teachers co-teach the education content courses at the urban school campus. finding the time to plan for the classes proved problematic. with urbana middle school teachers teaching in their own classrooms all day, collaborative planning for the weekly content courses for the ue interns was difficult, often impossible. this sometimes impacted the course instruction, which was set up to be a collaborative program design. because middle grade certification includes grades 4-8, it was important to offer the interns an experience at the elementary level. this requirement created challenges for the pharr university personnel participating on the collaboration team. they had to continue their work with urbana middle school, preparing for the remainder of the interns’ experience the following year. meanwhile the interns were at another school for a semester-long internship at the elementary level without the support they had become accustomed to at the middle school. coordinating two collaborating teams, one with the middle school and one with the elementary school, was not feasible. therefore the interns’ experience was not as rich as it was during the first semester. they felt they had been “dropped off” without the support to which they had become accustomed. it is important to note, however, that these interns received much more support, even during their elementary experience, than their counterparts in the traditional program. other challenges included travel expenses for the interns, specifically gas for their vehicles. with the rising cost of gasoline, a hardship was experienced since the program requires more hours of field experience than the traditional program, and their education classes are on site, which was between 15-20 miles from the university campus. two concerns loom large but lie further down the road. first, building capacity may become a challenge as the program grows, as more interns come into the program and two cohorts are operating simultaneously. second, sustainability of the program after funding may also be a challenge. currently, school district personnel who are serving as supervisors to our interns as a part of the collaborating team, in addition to those working to develop and maintain the program, are paid with grant monies. the hope is that, once the program is established and the pds is solidly established, the amount of time and effort on the part of the school district personnel will be lessened. perceived benefits “so i think it is very much preparing me for the career that i set out to do”: even though the program is in its infancy, all proclaimed the benefits of the program. the interns expressed that their best experience in the program was time spent in the classroom. according to one intern, “the classroom experiences have really help [sic] me gain a clear understanding about what teaching at different grade levels will be like.” another added, “the field experience in the classroom and working with the ct [collaborating teacher] has been the most beneficial part of the program.” another intern added, “i received excellent ct's that took time to work with me and understood what i needed to become a successful teacher.” the interns admitted being pushed out of their comfort zone by having to both create and teach lessons. one stated "even though you don't have everything, they supplied you with what you need." they recognized the benefits of connecting the theory they were learning in the university classroom to the real world in the middle school classroom. according to one intern, urban education program impact 39 the assignments that we do, the lesson plans we develop, lesson plans just like the regular ed [sic] students, but we have to implement them. that’s pushed us out of our comfort zone now because it’s like, you know, you really want us to stand up there and teach this? y’all really trust me. (individual interview) another intern added, i think this has expanded my understanding ‘cause [sic] i had an understanding from a student’s point of view. and you get that understanding from your teacher’s point of view is totally different. so i think it is very much preparing me for the career that i set out to do. (individual interview) the interns expressed the benefits of viewing education from a student's point of view and a teacher’s point of view, as well as looking at the family and the community. they loved working with the urban students in the schools. and they especially valued the small education classes as well as building relationships with their cohort group. ue interns are aware of whom to approach with a problem, unlike students in the traditional program. according to the interns, they have learned how to teach “life-long lessons,” not “year-long lessons.” in addition, they also see this experience as enhancing their resume, making it easier to attain employment after graduation. what seemed most beneficial to the interns were the relationships they established with each other. one stated that she believed without the bond between ue interns, some might not be able to make it through the program. self-efficacy, teacher efficacy, pride, overconfidence “i am going to have on my [graduation] cap: ‘i have made it!’ i am one little black girl…”: the interns expressed their pride in the program, pride for being selected for the program, and pride for sticking it out. according to one intern during the focus group interview, “i am going to have on my cap [graduation], ‘i have made it!’ i am one little black girl...” self-efficacy, an individual’s belief about his or her capabilities to produce designated levels of performance that exercise influence over events that affect his or her life (bandura, 1994), was also evident. self-efficacy beliefs are future-oriented beliefs. considering they are only in the first year of the teacher preparation program, this heightened sense of self-efficacy was unexpected. the interns have neither taken the methods block of instruction in the semester prior to student teaching nor have student taught; yet their perception of their ability to teach effectively is pronounced. they seem excessively confident to point of overconfidence. according to one intern, they all see me no matter what grade level it was—they all saw me as a teacher. even, um, when they knew i was from pharr university. i was still the teacher there. you know? um, there was an instance…there were two substitutes and just me, and they [students] didn’t give any attention to the substitutes. it was me. they look at you like an adult; they’ll talk to you like an adult. i said to her [student], “you know, you are a child; you have to respect her [the teacher]. imagine how you’d feel if you’re an adult and some child talks to you like that? she’s the teacher. you’re not. you’re here to learn 40   a. terry something. it doesn’t matter if she likes you are not. you are to be respectful and do what you are supposed to do. (individual interview) during the class observation, the following was noted while observing the students during their pharr university class instruction on the elementary school campus: students are chatty, exhilarated, empowered. all students are responsive—a bit silly at first, reflecting strong community spirit and acceptance. the response level is strong, especially for the time of day. the inquiry method the professor is using is pulling the students into the lesson well. students share openly. teachers give positive reinforcement… my thought: how much ownership of a program by the interns becomes dangerous for the program? they think they know best…but do they? how do you manage this as a teacher or coordinator? my field notes … reflect what i had observed although, at the time, didn’t understand: the students feel ownership for the program, too, and want to be acknowledged for what they know. they want their ideas to be valued. is this empowerment? is this community only? is this ‘we survived’? it somehow seems bigger to me than even empowerment, just not sure what it is yet. the external evaluator of the program surveyed the ue interns after their first year. in a portion of the evaluation, interns were asked to respond to the following questions: “where would you rate yourself at this point in your program in relationship to the characteristics of an effective urban education program?” and “how well prepared are you in each of the following categories: culturally-responsive pedagogy, literacy, family engagement, technology integration, differentiated instruction for specific student populations targeted by the ue program, classroom management, working with english language learners, and working with students with disabilities?” the results of the survey for seven of the eight ue interns reflect the overconfidence of these pre-service teachers at this stage in the program. all the middle school ue interns thought they were well to very well prepared in the areas of literacy and differentiated instruction. in terms of classroom management and technology integration, 86% of the interns rated themselves as being well to very well prepared. seventy-two percent of the interns thought they were well to very well prepared to work with students with disabilities and to address culturally-responsive pedagogy. the category in which the interns felt least efficacious was in working with english language learners with only 57% feeling well to very well prepared. it is important to note that none of the students felt unprepared or poorly prepared in any of the categories. since there were so few interns, the external evaluator did not seek to determine the significance of these findings compared to the high school and elementary intern surveys, instead only reported percentages. in general, according to the ratings, the middle school interns seemed more efficacious than the other two groups. discussion this study investigated the early impact of the newly developed, middle grades urban education program at pharr university. the results of this study demonstrate the complexities involved with the implementation of a new program and the effects different components of the urban education program impact 41 program have on those involved. teacher efficacy is “the teacher’s belief in his or her capability to organize and execute courses of action required to successfully accomplish a specific teaching task in a particular context” (tschannen-moran, woolfolk-hoy, & hoy, 1998, p. 233). the authentic experiences in which the ue interns participated provided a platform to strengthen beliefs about their ability to teach. findings from this study revealed interns, early in their program of study, who are very confident in their ability to teach. this confidence evolved into overconfidence for the middle grade interns, findings that are consistent with the literature on self-efficacy and overconfidence. one study found overinflated self-views of college students, when 68% of the time, the students gave themselves higher marks than their teachers (falchikov & boud, 1989). bandura (1997) asserted that in order to accurately judge one’s ability to perform a task, one must have accurate knowledge of what is involved to meet the demands. early into a task, it is difficult for people to recognize the complexity of the cognition required to complete the task. the most common form of judgment disparity is when efficacy beliefs exceed performance. the interns could have been unaware of the complexities involved in teaching due to the supportive environment of the pds. positive appraisals of beliefs do not necessarily mean the interns have inflated views of themselves. rather, the disparities may stem from lack of knowledge of the task demands or lack of understanding on how the social system works (bandura, 1997). why is overconfidence of concern? being overconfident could place the interns in situations they are unprepared to handle, situations that could be deleterious to them, the students they teach, and/or the school or university. it is important to note that the early childhood and high school studies did not find overconfidence in their interns. the program participants in the three studies, primarily differed by ethnicity and gender. most of the middle grade interns were black; while all participants in this sample were black. participants in the high school and early childhood studies were not as diverse as the middle grade participants, all reflecting the make-up of program participants. the high school study included one white male participant. there were no male interns in either the middle school or early childhood programs. stankov and lee (2008) found gender and ethnic differences in confidence, with men and african americans showing higher overconfidence bias than women and whites or hispanics, respectively. although the findings from that study are not consistent with other findings in the literature, they present one possible explanation as to why the middle grade interns in this study emerged as overconfident. implications after the conclusion of this study, the collaborating teachers were interviewed, and preliminary findings suggest that the collaborating teachers who were not a part of the collaborative teams have perceived misconceptions about the ue interns and the program. even though the teachers were given information on the program, they perceived that the interns were in the final stages of their program, either in the methods block or student teaching phases of their program. as a result, their expectations of the interns’ capabilities were inflated, both from a pedagogical and content point of view. some required the interns to create lesson plans and teach them. considering these interns had not yet learned how to write lesson plans, this was surprising. it helps to explain why the interns emerged as overconfident in this study. this 42   a. terry additional finding indicates that consistent and explicit communication is needed to ensure fluidity with the expectations when implementing any new teacher preparation program. why would the teachers think these students were further along in their program of study than they were? it is understandable how this could happen when these schools are involved with other teacher preparation programs, not just the one at pharr university. in the past, teachers experience with interns this immersed in the schools was in their final phase of teacher preparation. with so much on the plates of teachers today, especially ones in underperforming schools such as these, it is understandable that they may not have read the entire booklet explaining the particulars of the program. however, according to ncate (2008) and cochransmith and ziechner (2005), partnerships between school systems and universities must create expectations that are not only agreed upon but are also communicated to all parties involved including the community surrounding the schools. additionally, the nine essential characteristics of a pds stipulate that roles and responsibilities must be clearly defined for all parties (napds, 2008). as the pds between pharr university and this cluster of schools becomes more entrenched, expectations should become better understood, which may eliminate the overconfidence of the ue interns in the future. the findings of overconfidence from this study indicate that checks should be put in place at all levels to ensure that interns are not put in positions where their decisions could, not only jeopardize the program, but also jeopardize their futures as teachers. studies have found that teacher efficacy increases during student teaching and then falls during the first year of solo classroom experience (sahin & atay, 2010; wolfolk-hoy & spero, 2005). it remains to be seen whether these interns will experience the same type of fluctuation. with the intense two-year immersion in the field in urban school settings, it is possible these interns will not experience the decline in teacher efficacy during their first year of teaching. in fact, after working with these interns, i will be surprised if they experience anything but profound teacher efficacy during their first year of teaching and thereafter. as one intern expressed, i have no doubt that i won’t be nervous when i walk into a [my own] classroom. i think the idea will still be fascinating to me but as far as doing what i have been taught to do, i think, um, so far i have been well-trained to do it. there’s still growth there. but i think we’ve been well trained to do it so i won’t be nervous about my performance. this study was supported by a teacher quality partnership (tqp) grant from the u.s. department of education. urban education program impact 43 references bales, b. l., & saffold, f. 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(1999). development of knowledge, attitudes, and commitment to teach diverse student populations. journal of teacher education, 50, 94-105. woolfolk hoy, a. & spero, r. b. (2005). changes in teacher efficacy during the early years of teaching: a comparison of four measures. teaching and teacher education, 21, 343356. zeichner, k. (2003). the adequacies and inadequacies of three current strategies to recruit, prepare and retain the best teachers for all students. teachers college record, 105(3), 490-515. microsoft word 01-jm.docx vol. 1, no. 1, august 2012, pp. 3-4 u.s. department of education’s teacher education reform: how does your program rate? james e. marshall, paul l. beare, and patrick newell california state university, fresno u.s. department of education’s teacher education reform: how does your program rate? secretary of education arne duncan and president barack obama’s plan for teacher education reform and improvement was described in the document our future, our teachers (2011). the rationale for reform is that “many of our teacher preparation programs fall short” (p. 5). the measures of this are stated as “only 23% of all teachers come from the top third of college graduates,” “only 50% of current teacher candidates receive supervised clinical training,” and “more than three in five education school alumni report that their education school did not prepare them for classroom realities’ (p. 5). an added criticism is the teacher work force does not reflect the communities they teach. it was reported that 14% of the teachers come from diverse groups while 38% of students do so. in other venues, secretary duncan has repeatedly stated that the majority of teachers say their university preservice education left them unprepared for the classroom and added that 67% to 82% of principals say they are dissatisfied with the preparation their teachers have received through university programs (u.s. department of education, 2011). the recommendations of the report to “reform” teacher education include performancebased indicators of quality, tracking job placement and retention rates, surveying program graduates and their principals, and examining academic growth of elementary and secondary students taught by program graduates. while the evidence presented for the need of reform may be questionable and misleading, as will be explained, the recommendations have potential worth. we posit that the other “reforms” are largely standard operating procedure and the attacks on teacher preparation “credential mills” should be separated by the department of education from attacks on the field in general. j. marshall, p. beare, p. newell 4 criticisms by department of education top performing university students do not enter credential programs since fall 2010, 877 applicants have been admitted into one of the three main teaching credential programs at california state university, fresno. students are admitted after obtaining a bachelor’s degree and documenting subject matter competence by either obtaining an approved content area bachelor’s degree or passing a high-stakes content-knowledge standardized test administered by the state. california does not offer undergraduate degrees in education, thus all admitted candidates come from fields other than education. for ay 10-11, the mean gpa of the 877 teacher candidates, prior to taking education courses, was 3.25. campus-wide, the 3551 bachelor’s degree recipients had an average gpa of 3.09. the eight undergraduate schools and college gpas ranged from 2.98 (agriculture) to 3.21 (health and human service) thus all were lower than the credential student mean. teacher education at fresno state gets excellent candidates. percent teachers and principals rating teachers as prepared beginning with the 2000-2001 academic year, the california state university (csu) has conducted an annual evaluation of teacher preparation termed the systemwide evaluation of professional teacher preparation programs (septpp). the purpose of the evaluation is to monitor the effectiveness of the california state university system’s 22 colleges and schools of education and to provide data to help programs make needed improvements in the preparation of teachers. each campus annually sends to the csu chancellor’s office (co) center for teacher quality (ctq) a list of former teacher candidates at that campus who, during a prior 12-month period, met the standards for state certification as k-12 teachers. the co enlists the assistance of state agencies to identify the school sites of the completers, ultimately resulting in the identification of approximately 85% of program completers (ctq, 2009). the septpp consists of separate but parallel 110-item surveys for each of three credentials (elementary, secondary, and special education). one survey for each credential type is given to program graduates after their first year of teaching, and the second survey form is given to their employment supervisors. the instruments were designed to collect information about the extent to which the teachers perceived the effectiveness of their program to prepare them for important teaching responsibilities and the extent to which their program coursework and fieldwork were professionally valuable and helpful to them during their initial year of teaching (ctq, 2009). ratings were indicated on a four-point likert-type scale with the following choices: well prepared, adequately prepared, somewhat prepared, and not at all prepared. each campus receives data on their own graduates and the system’s performance overall every year. each education program uses the data for program improvement and evaluation; its reliability and validity has been supported by a number of external studies (beare et al, 2012). system-wide responses from a total of 8575 program completers and 6101 employment supervisors of 200910 graduates were recently released. the percent of respondents in each of three credential categories who rated the overall effectiveness of the credential program as either well or adequately preparing the graduate for the rigors of teaching in the schools appear in table 1. usde teacher education reform 5 table 1 number of respondent program completers and employment supervisors (and percentage) rating the teacher as being either well or adequately prepared for the classroom by the csu teacher preparation program for three teaching credentials. program completers employment supervisors credential number % well /adeq number % well /adeq prepared prepared elementary education 4744 77% 3365 86% secondary education 2774 73% 2034 81% special education 1057 74% 702 86% this data dramatically contradicts secretary duncan’s statements that 60% of teachers report they are inadequately prepared for teaching and 67% 82% of principals saying the teachers were unprepared for the schools. the csu data shows that a mean of 75% of the teachers rate their preparation in the “well prepared or adequately prepared” range. a mean of 84% of supervisors so rate the first year teachers. these are widely disparate numbers, not possibly explained by some small error of measurement. job placement and retention the administration stated that programs should be rated on the placement rate of their graduates and the years the graduates are retained in jobs. almost a priori, job placement depends in large part on the economy, particularly the economy in the region in which a program is located. our university is located in the city identified as number one in urban poverty by the brookings institute (metropolitan policy program, 2008). population growth in a region and competition from other teacher preparation institutions in the area also directly affect the placement rates of programs. teacher preparation was found to be a minor variable in teacher retention in california in a comprehensive examination by ken futernick (2007). futernick’s survey’s of 6000 teachers showed poor preparation programs to be the 32nd most highly mentioned reason for leaving teaching teaching, mentioned by only 10% of dissatisfied teachers who quit positions. the highest rated reasons for leaving, named by over half the respondents, were bureaucratic impediments and poor district supports, closely followed by unsupportive principals and poor pay. nearly 40% of those who left the profession stated they disliked the negative public image of teachers. given this information, the impact of the administration’s statements about teaching and teacher preparation would seem to be a much greater cause of teachers leaving the profession than the quality of a preparation program. j. marshall, p. beare, p. newell 6 recommendations by the administration teacher performance assessment the members of the renaissance group [trg] teacher education consortium, as well as researchers in oregon and elsewhere studied and developed teacher work samples over 15 years ago. these evolved into what is now commonly termed a teacher performance assessment [tpa] (torgerson, macy, beare, & tanner, 2010). california requires a state approved, valid teacher performance assessment be passed by any teacher wishing to be credentialed (california commission on teacher credentialing [cctc], 2006). while torgerson et al. found the tpa to be useful in program approval efforts, other research has found a poor relationship with traditional supervisor evaluations and question its use as a high-stakes assessment (sandholtz & shea, 2012). this is neither a new nor a revolutionary suggestion. surveys of graduates and principals as stated, all schools in the california state university already do this, and have done so for over a decade (beare et al., 2012). teacher preparation programs accredited by ncate have been advised to do this for decades. one of the authors of this manuscript was assigned this task in the 1980s at his university. again, this demand for reform is one that is standard operating procedure for virtually all state universities, colleges, or accredited schools. tracking k-12 achievement associated with teacher preparation this recommendation is perhaps the most interesting. teachers are an important variable in student learning, perhaps the most important (darling-hammond, 2006). research by the ctq has indicated that by using careful value-added methodology, one can determine an effect size from different models of teacher preparation. these effects may exceed the effects of other variables traditionally considered important, such as student socio-economic level or english learner status (wright et al, 2012). the effects are however small compared to the effect of prior learning. however, certain findings are clear. for example, csu prepared teachers obtain significantly higher math and language arts achievement than teachers not prepared in the csu (young & wright, 2012). even with the complete collaboration of five large school districts in the state, it has taken the ctq multiple years to develop even preliminary analyses of the effect of certain teacher preparation variables on achievement. states (or the federal government) need to provide tools and resources to teacher preparation institutions should they seriously expect them to develop accurate methodology to determine program effects on k-12 achievement. there needs to be accessible systems for tracking teachers accurately to determine the effect size of different teacher education programs and/or approaches. summary the administration bases its rationale for reform on false information or information gathered from the worst programs, likely for-profit, non-traditional programs. it claims that poor students go on to be teachers, that graduates and administrators condemn preparation programs, and that the programs have responsibility for teachers leaving the field. the data indicate these claims are patently false when referencing schools such as those in the renaissance group. in addition, the suggested reforms are already largely in place in such institutions. usde teacher education reform 7 conclusion secretary duncan and the department of education attack the entire field of education and blame it for the nation’s woes. the entire profession of teacher education has become “the usual suspects.” in reality, all trg institutions and almost all public university programs are reputable and engaged in serious, self-initiated improvement efforts. there are, of course, forprofit schools that are irresponsible and execrable. most of us have experience with teachers who were products of these programs. the authors have had conversations with graduates of such programs who state, “i learned nothing in the program and completed most courses in a weekend. it would have been bad if i didn’t already know how to teach,” and “i just owed it to my family to take the easy route.” while many districts will not hire graduates of these programs, others end up in classrooms, failing our students. mr. duncan should begin to differentiate between this type of disgrace and legitimate teacher preparation. j. marshall, p. beare, p. newell 8 intentionally blank usde teacher education reform 9 references beare, p., marshall, j., torgerson, c., tracz, s., & chiero, r. (2012). toward a culture of evidence: factors affecting survey assessment of teacher preparation. teacher education quarterly, 39, 159-173. california commission on teacher credentialing. (2006). summary of commission responsibilities for major provisions of sb 1209. retrieved from http://www.ctc.ca.gov/educator-prep/ sb1209/default.html california commission on teacher credentialing. (2009). alternative pathways to certification (intern) program: program report. sacramento, ca: author. darling-hammond, l. (2006). assessing teacher education. journal of teacher education, 57, 120-138. futernick, k. (2007). a possible dream: retaining california’s teaches so all children can learn. sacramento, ca: california state university. metropolitan policy program. (2008). the enduring challenge of concentrated poverty in america: case studies from communities across the u.s. richmond: federal reserve bank and the brookings institute. sandholtz, j. m., & shea, l. m. (2012). predicting performance: a comparison of university supervisors' predictions and teacher candidates' scores on a teaching performance assessment. journal of teacher education, 63, 39-50. torgerson, c., macy, s., beare, p., & tanner, d. (2009). fresno assessment of student teachers: a teacher performance assessment that informs practice. issues in teacher education, 16, 62-82. j. marshall, p. beare, p. newell 10 united states department of education. (2011). teacher preparation strategy [online presentation]. retrieved from http://www.dartep.org/misc/usdoe_teacher_ed_brief_deck_110930.pptx united states department of education (2011). our future, our teachers: the obama administration’s plan for teacher education reform and improvement. retrieved from http://www.2ed.gov/inits/ed/index/html wright, d., beare, p., hovda, r., spagna, m., grenot-scheyer, m., & young, b. (2012). systemwide assessment of teacher preparation programs and graduates’ ability to effect k-12 student achievement. paper presented at the american association of colleges for teacher education annual conference, chicago, il. young, b., & wright, d. (2012). annual teacher education evaluation: csu effects on k-12 student learning. presentation to the csu board of trustees, may 8, 2012. long beach, ca. microsoft word 4hartnett-final.docx vol. 3, no. 1, dec 2014, pp. 33-54 a work in progress: unraveling the lessons learned in a co-teaching pilot mary joanie hartnett, ann mccoy, rahila weed and nicole nickens university of central missouri abstract colleagues at a midwestern university implemented a multi-semester co-teaching pilot for student teaching, and based on the data collected, are moving toward full implementation in the spring of 2015 for all pre-service teachers in the college of education (coe). part of the study replicated work conducted by st. cloud university (bacharach & heck, 2011) and utilized that university’s evaluation instruments. however, the lessons learned in the pilot reveal some of the still “unanswered” questions as to how to ensure the quality and effectiveness of the coteaching model during student teaching. researchers share results and insights, and suggest action steps for full implementation of the co-teaching model. 34   m. hartnett, a. mccoy, r. weed & n. nickens   what is co-teaching? the idea of teachers collaborating and partnering to support the learning of students is not new. models of co-teaching have been used for some time by general education teachers and special education teachers working together to meet the needs of students in the least restrictive environment possible (cook & friend, 1995; friend, 2000; friend & cook, 2006; murawski & dieker, 2004). co-teaching is defined as “two teachers (teacher candidate and cooperative teacher) working together with groups of students; sharing the planning, organization, delivery, and assessment of instruction, as well as the physical space” (bacharach, heck, & dank, 2004, p. 7). the application of the co-teaching model to student teaching transforms teacher preparation to better prepare future teachers and impact students they work with in the classroom (perl, maughmer, & mcqueen, 1999; villa, thousand, & nevin, 2004). there are seven co-teaching strategies. these strategies allow both teachers (teacher candidate and cooperating teacher) to be actively engaged in the learning: one teach, one observe; one teach, one assist; station teaching; parallel teaching; supplemental teaching; alternative or differentiated teaching; and team teaching (bacharach, heck, & dahlberg, 2010). why co-teaching? the st. cloud state university’s teacher quality enhancement project studied and evaluated the co-teaching model with 826 pairs of co-teachers in 34 pre-k classrooms; 601 elementary (k-6) classrooms; 120 secondary (5-12 & 7-12) classrooms, and 71 special education classrooms over a four-year period. reading and math proficiency gains were significantly higher in classrooms where there was a co-teaching model. the impact on reading and math achievement of students from poverty (free/reduced lunch eligibility) was significantly increased in classrooms that were co-taught (bacharach & heck, 2011). beyond test scores, students who were given appropriate assignment and the instructional scaffolding to succeed, displayed stronger motivation to learn. district cooperating teachers report that because candidates become competent in a short time, class instruction quickly becomes more productive. individual and whole class objectives are met more easily. the positive effect of co-teaching on teachers’ attitudes has also been studied, showing that teachers have more job satisfaction and their teaching is energized and more fun (murawski, 2010; bacharach & heck, 2011). teacher candidates in the co-teaching classrooms show improved classroom management skills and increased collaboration skills (heck & bacharach, 2010). confidence and excitement about their new careers are lifetime benefits of a successful co-teaching experience. in the coteaching model, student teachers experience an apprenticeship in teaching which prepares them for a collaborative environment in schools and gives them the skills to work with other adults in the classroom to meet the needs of students (darragh, picanco,tully, & henning (2011). students benefit from the co-teaching model in academics, attitude, and opportunity for engagement. the student to teacher ratio is cut in half and student needs are met more efficiently and quickly. the in-service teacher has a renewed sense of purpose and the teacher candidate develops skills necessary for a collaborative classroom, better suited to meet the diverse needs of children. co-teaching pilot 35 implementing the co-teaching pilot the mid-western university’s college of education (coe) team piloted the co-teaching model in the 2012-2013 school years with 18 teacher candidates; 20 cooperating teachers; 12 university mentors, and administrators from 6 participating school districts (rural, suburban, and urban settings) in the fall 2012 semester. for the spring 2013 semester, 76 students in more than 21 school districts were placed, more than quadrupling the number in the fall pilot. in the upcoming fall 2014 semester, all teacher candidates will be placed in co-teaching partnerships for student teaching. data collection weekly reflective journal the co-teaching team met weekly to monitor and review ongoing data collection. a weekly reflective journal (adapted from bacharach & heck, 2011) was filled out online by the cooperating teacher and the teacher candidate. the results were reviewed by the team and examined to pinpoint areas needing attention or improvement, as well as noting the strengths and weaknesses of the implementation of the co-teaching model. the weekly reflective journal asked participants to share what co-teaching strategies were used in instruction during the week. the pair of teachers (candidate and host teacher as noted above) reflected on the successes and challenges together, and shared one example of a co-teaching lesson. end of experience survey an end of experience survey (adapted from bacharach & heck, 2011) was administered to cooperating teachers; teacher candidates; university mentors, and building administrators. questions focused on which of the co-teaching strategies were challenging and which were utilized most frequently. it also invited participants to rate their experiences, to identify benefits to the triad and the impact on children p-12. the results were used to identify patterns and make recommendations for changes to the processes used to implement the co-teaching model. results weekly reflective journal use of multiple co-teaching strategies. over the span of the semester, both cooperating teachers and the teacher candidates reported using multiple co-teaching strategies as shown in table 1. the reporting for both participants each week was also consistent for the reported co-teaching strategies used in lessons. it is interesting to note that there is a significant dip in the use of co-teaching strategies during week eight to nine. an examination of journal entry reflections for these weeks revealed an overemphasis on preparation for mid-term grades and parent conferences. 36   m. hartnett, a. mccoy, r. weed & n. nickens   table 1. use of multiple co-teaching strategies comparison of implemented strategies. week one co-teaching strategies . each week, the strategies selected for implementation were analyzed to see which strategies were chosen. journal reflective entries were reviewed to identify patterns that might relate to the chosen strategies. in table 2, the first week that participants reported the strategies, one teach, one observe and one teach, one assist was used more than any other strategies reported for that week. this comment is typical of what many participants shared in the first week, “megan and i did the one teach, one assist method for the first week of school. megan is still learning how i go about instructing and did a lot of assisting me in my teaching while she observed. during one class, megan would assist students in drawing and staying on task while i did the main instruction. she also would pass out materials and check to see that students understand during work time.” 0   10   20   30   40   50   60   70   80   90   100   1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10   11   12   pe rc en t  o f  r es po ns es   week  of  semester   use  of  multiple  co-­‐teaching  strategies   cooperating  teachers   teacher  candidates   co-teaching pilot 37 table 2: co-teaching strategies utilized-week 1 week five co-teaching strategies. by week five, the researchers noted that all teams were using multiple strategies as shown in table 3. the first month of school was completed and routines and procedures for classrooms had been established, contributing to a readiness to explore more co-teaching strategies. one participant reported, “our successes with co-teaching this week was the actual act of changing, multiple times, the different types of co-teaching in one class period depending on the type of class.” another participant stated, “co-teaching is going on the majority of the time in my classroom. most of that time, we do team teaching. however, this week we did several station teaching lessons in social studies. 0   10   20   30   40   50   60   70   80   90   100   pe rc en t  r ep or ti ng  u se   co-­‐teaching  strategy   co-­‐teaching  strategies  utilized  -­‐  week  1   teacher  candidate   cooperating  teacher     38   m. hartnett, a. mccoy, r. weed & n. nickens   table 3. week 5 co-teaching strategies week eight co-teaching strategies. during week eight, the researchers noticed a distinct change in the pattern of reported strategies used by teams. (see table 4). this was nearly halfway through the pilot semester. when journal reflections were reviewed, it was clear that time had been limited during this period to plan for co-teaching strategies. mid-semester demands for grade reporting and conducting parent-teacher conferences had increased. stress levels seemed high. one co-teacher shared, “not enough time for planning.” another co-teacher said, “this week we have been getting stuff ready for our parent teacher conferences. i feel that i have not been a huge part of this process which is a little upsetting. . . “ 0   10   20   30   40   50   60   70   80   90   pe rc en t  r ep or ti ng  u se   co-­‐teaching  strategy   co-­‐teaching  strategies  utilized  -­‐  week  5   teacher  candidate   cooperating  teacher     co-teaching pilot 39 table 4. week 8 co-teaching strategies week ten co-teaching strategies. by week ten, the co-teaching pair once again began indicating the use of multiple strategies in instruction. (see table 5). this pattern persisted through weeks eleven and twelve. the pairs reported finding a comfort level and confidence with their ability to work together to meet the needs of students. the following comment is typical of week ten, “i think we're finding a good rhythm with team teaching. it's almost like the lessons become conversations. we ask questions and build on the information each of us provides. these conversations create a less formal environment in the classroom and model thinking-out-loud/questioning for students.” 0   5   10   15   20   25   30   35   pe rc en t  r ep or ti ng  u se   co-­‐teaching  strategy     co-­‐teaching  strategies  utilized  -­‐  week  8   teacher  candidate   cooperating  teacher     40   m. hartnett, a. mccoy, r. weed & n. nickens   table 5. week 10 co-teaching strategies co-teaching strategy trends. the researchers analyzed the data for trends, patterns, and differences between the teacher candidate and the cooperating teacher’s reported use of co-teaching strategies. in tables 6-11 (see appendix) it is interesting to note that the pairs are parallel in their reporting of what strategies were used consistently throughout the semester. this may indicate that pairs talked about when and how to use the strategies and is an indication of strong planning. table 12 (see appendix) shows that there was more discrepancy in how the pairs reported the use of station teaching compared to their reporting related to any of the other strategies. this raises some questions as to how the pairs are defining and operationalizing the station teaching strategy in the classroom. a review of the open-ended questions in the weekly reflective journal entries provided more insight into this discrepancy. for example, one candidate described a strategy as parallel and station, when it would most likely be categorized as parallel. examining when training and mentoring pairs, the use of this strategy will be clarified and implementation in future research may help to understand this discrepancy. open-ended responses. a random sampling of the open-ended responses from the weekly reflective journal was coded based on three criteria. the first was whether the candidate’s reflection was positive, negative, or neutral in regards to co-teaching. the second code indicated whether the response addressed student engagement, instructional strategies, or classroom management. finally, the researchers looked for statements regarding personal efficacy, teacher efficacy, or commitment to the profession (chan, lau, nie, lim, & hogan, 2008; ebmeier, 2003). an analysis of teacher candidates’ responses to the weekly reflective journal questions showed some trends. many 0   10   20   30   40   50   60   70   80   90   100   pe rc en t  r ep or ti ng  u se   co-­‐teaching  strategy   co-­‐teaching  strategies  utilized  -­‐  week  10   teacher  candidate   cooperating  teacher     co-teaching pilot 41 candidates reflected on the relationships formed during co-teaching, both with their cooperating teacher and their students. a majority of responses were positive about the relationships developed, and discussed students’ perceptions of both as teachers. the results indicate that coteaching promotes a generally positive and successful partnership between the teacher candidate and the cooperating teacher. end of experience survey data for the end of experience survey was collected in the spring 2013 semester after an initial trial survey was completed with the first pilot group of 16 participants, fall 2012. nine building administrators, 24 university mentors, 40 cooperating teachers, and 33 teacher candidates responded to the survey. co-teaching strategies. all four levels of participants in the co-teaching pilot were asked to identify the most comfortable and the least comfortable strategy for partners to implement in the classroom. team teaching was identified as being the most comfortable strategy for all participants as seen in table 13. this was also noted in table 14 as the one co-teaching strategy most observed by both the university mentor and the administrator when watching lessons in the classroom. one teacher candidate summed up the experience of team teaching with the following comment, “there was a great flow between the two of us. it was a constant give and take and felt very natural.” table 13. most comfortable strategy usage co-teaching strategy 0   5   10   15   20   25   30   35   40   45   50   teacher  candidate   cooperating  teacher     university  mentor     bld  admin   pe rc en t m os t c om fo rt ab le s tr at eg y u sa ge 42   m. hartnett, a. mccoy, r. weed & n. nickens   table 14. reported opportunity to observe strategies percent of reported opportunity to observe strategies by university mentors/building administrators co-teaching strategy university mentor building administrator parallel teaching 67 44 team teaching 88 89 one teach, one observe 67 67 one teach, one assist 92 78 station teaching 50 44 supplemental 7 8 alternative differentiated 26 25 there was no identifiable strategy that stood out from the others as least comfortable for the co-teaching partners [table 15 in appendix ]. this may be due in part to the fact that participants were asked to try all seven strategies by the end of the semester. benefits to p-12 students. participants specified many benefits for p-12 students, including the quality of instruction for students in the co-teaching classroom. the university mentor (63%), classroom teacher (56%), teacher candidate (67%), and building administrator (56%) reported that the quality of instruction was better in the co-teaching model compared to the traditional student teaching setting. on additional survey questions, participants rated the statements with most important 1 to 5 least important. the greatest benefit reported with a rating of 1 or 2 was more individual attention given to students (56%-86%) as shown in table 16. teachers building off each other (69%-79%) also showed a significant benefit to the children in the classroom. one teacher candidate stated, “the ratio of teachers to students allowed for more small group time and to further differentiate their needs…” this was echoed by the comments from a cooperating teacher, “students got more one on one attention and help from teachers.” one administrator shared, “[i] thought there were amazing benefits to having two teachers in a classroom with students….more immediate feedback is available and instructional time is maximized.” co-teaching pilot 43 table 16. benefits to p-12 students benefits to classroom teachers/cooperating teachers. the survey asked the pilot group to respond to statements regarding the benefits of the co-teaching model to classroom teachers/cooperating teachers with the same scale of most important 1 to least important 5. there were many benefits identified, including more help for children with special needs, cooperating teachers not having to give up or leave their classroom, and enhanced relationships with the teacher candidate as noted in table 17 below. comments from cooperating teachers support these identified benefits. one classroom teacher stated, “[i] get more time to learn individual students learning styles in depth and can offer more help to both students and the teaching candidate. administrators rated not giving up their classroom with 89% most important to important as a benefit to cooperating teachers. the following statement by an administrator illustrates this benefit; “my master teachers felt like it was a great time for true reflection as they worked side by side with their teacher candidates. intervention could be taking place frequently within the classroom without jeopardizing the core instruction.” 0   10   20   30   40   50   60   70   80   90   100   individual   attention     heard  2   perspectives   2  teaching   styles   teachers   more   engaged     teachers   build  off  each   other     teacher  candidate   university  mentor   cooperating  teacher     building  administrator     pe rc en t r at in g of 1 o r 2 benefit 44   m. hartnett, a. mccoy, r. weed & n. nickens   table 17. benefits to classroom teachers/cooperating teachers benefits to student teachers/teacher candidates. the survey asked participants to respond to a series of statements regarding the benefits to the student teacher/teacher candidate using the scale of most important 1 to least important 5. benefits to the teacher candidate included increased collaboration skills and confidence, more exposure to expert modeling, and an increased awareness of classroom management strategies shown in table 18. it is interesting to note that the teacher candidate and the cooperating teacher both rated the opportunity to ask questions and reflect as less important. this may be related to the strong relationship between the partners and the trust they had built throughout the partnership as reported by this teacher candidate, “it was great to have mrs. p’s advice and help instead of just being thrown into a situation with kids you have not built relationships with yet. it made the process more productive and educational rather than just getting through it alone.” the following comment by a cooperating teacher also speaks to the benefits to the teacher candidate. “they [student teachers] have a chance to get to know the students and the teacher better. also, this gives them time to build up their confidence without the pressure of just jumping in.” 0   10   20   30   40   50   60   70   80   90   100   more  help   for  children   with  special   needs     mutual   learning     enhanced   energy  for   teaching     better   relationship   to  teacher   candidate   not  give  up   classroom     teacher  candidate   university  mentor   cooperating  teacher     building  administrator     pe rc en t r at in g of 1 o r 2 benefit co-teaching pilot 45 table 18. benefits to student teachers/teacher candidates drawbacks to the co-teaching model. although there were many noted benefits to the co-teaching model, some drawbacks were identified by participants (see table 19). the building administrators reported that the coteaching model took too much time and that the peer relationship encouraged by the model could be uncomfortable for the cooperating teacher. the administrators rated the need for the teacher candidate to have more time teaching with 0% or with no importance as a drawback to the coteaching model. the following comment by a building administrator relates to this rating. ”for those who say that there isn’t enough teaching time for the candidates, i believe that they need as much time with a master teacher as possible. they will have 30 years of alone time. we need to maximize the learning experience during their student teaching block.” although not evident in the ratings on the survey questions relating to drawbacks, there were additional identified drawbacks or concerns in some of the comments shared in the openended portions of the survey. this statement by an administrator shows the concern that the coteaching model may not benefit the pre-service teachers. “the co-teaching model has great benefit during the school year. however, not as effective for the growth and development of a pre-service teacher.” another building administrator shared this concern. “individual preparation is still necessary for teacher candidates. co-teaching should not allow for a teacher candidate to be ill-prepared for class. too much leaning on the classroom teacher was done.” one cooperating teacher shared, ”behavior changes when the lead teacher is not in the classroom though, and i felt like i couldn’t give the teacher candidate a real chance to fly solo in regards to managing behavior as often as i wanted.” a teacher candidate makes similar remarks when they talk about the need for more practice on their own, “ [i] think it does not help us with classroom management, as the supervising teacher does more of the lead, more out of habit. 0   10   20   30   40   50   60   70   80   90   collaboration   skills   classroom   management   more   exposure  to   modeling   conmidence     opportunity   to  ask?  remlect   teacher  candidate   university  mentor     cooperating  teacher     building  administrator     pe rc en t r at in g of 1 o r 2 benefit 46   m. hartnett, a. mccoy, r. weed & n. nickens   this provides us with a great example, but something that young teachers need to practice and get comfortable doing.” table 19. drawbacks to the co-teaching model planning and doing co-teaching again. planning is an essential part of the co-teaching process, ensuring successful implementation of the co-teaching strategies. participants were asked if the pairs had planning time of sufficient length. overwhelming, all of the respondents indicated “yes” with percentages 71% (cooperating teacher), 75% (teacher candidate), 88% (university mentor) and 100% (building administrator). when asked if they would participate in a co-teaching model again respondents positively reported, “yes” with percentages that ranged from 88% to 100% (teacher candidate/88%; building administrator/89%; cooperating teacher/94%; and university mentor /100%). both the amount of effective planning for the co-teaching model and the willingness to participate in a partnership of co-teaching affirms that the implementation of a co-teaching model would provide more benefit than drawbacks to all members of the co-teaching partnership. what did we learn? many of the benefits that were reported by the st. cloud university study (bacharach & heck, 2011) were also evident in the data collected in the pilot study at this university. in the self-reported instruments used (end of experience survey and the weekly reflective journal) the researchers found similar results to those of st. cloud university. p-12 students benefited from having two individuals in the classroom, making it possible to better differentiate the instruction for learners. communication skills were enhanced between the cooperating teacher and the 0   10   20   30   40   50   60   70   teacher  candidate   university  mentor     cooperating  teacher     building  administrator     pe rc en t r at in g of 1 o r 2 benefit co-teaching pilot 47 teacher candidate. the teacher candidates were supported in their developing skills in management and instruction. the evidence served as support for the decision to transition commit to full implementation of the co-teaching model for all coe in the spring of 2015. a work in progress: looking beyond the data to action steps the two instruments provided researchers with the data they needed to answer the research questions. results supported the decision to fully implement of the co-teaching model for student teaching at this university. it might seem that the researchers could relax and be assured that the implementation of the co-teaching model would go smoothly, but additional questions began formulating almost immediately, and new, unanswered questions now loomed as the date for full implementation approached. first, student teaching observations and journal entries indicated that the co-teaching training team had not fully recognized the importance of the university mentor in the success of the co-teaching model. the university mentor must be adept at helping co-teaching teams form the relationships necessary to maximize the benefits of co-teaching. he or she must have the knowledge and skills necessary to help the cooperating teacher and teacher candidate work through issues that arise in the partnership. the team has learned that it is essential for the university mentors to receive specialized training that goes beyond the basics of co-teaching and instead focuses on the creation, facilitation, and support of co-teaching partnerships. such training will be provided for the university mentors in the future. next, the team also underestimated the importance of buy-in from all programs on campus. some teacher education programs on campus supervise their own teacher candidates while others rely on adjuncts to provide supervision. the co-teaching training team quickly learned that faculty in those programs relying on adjuncts must still be very knowledgeable about co-teaching. the idea of co-teaching must be included in the courses education majors take early in their programs as well as in later methods courses. thus, it is essential that all faculty who work with teacher education candidates be trained in co-teaching. in addition, the researchers continue to struggle to understand and identify the type of data to collect to really determine if co-teaching is successful. the research team collected quite a bit of data from numerous sources, but there is still the question of whether or not the model is working successfully in terms of the intended roles for cooperating teachers, university supervisors, and student teachers. the researchers are currently working on creating a plan for data collection that includes measures of fidelity for implementation of the model. such data should provide information on the extent to which the model is truly being implemented, and will be valuable in helping the research team better assess the success of the model. finally, the structural organization of the training process for co-teaching has been revised, based on observational and journal data. the new model will include a coordinator from the university to oversee all training and data collection, as well district liaisons who will serve in the role of mentors, coaches, and trainers within individual districts. this will help facilitate the fidelity of the implementation of the model across different districts in the state. a walkthrough observation tool will be developed that will document evidence of co-teaching strategies utilized within p-12 classrooms. it should collect data on the effectiveness of coteaching partnerships at the building level and address the reporting concerns related to coteaching strategies. the district liaison will be responsible for the collection and sharing of walkthrough data. this observation tool will provide an opportunity to collect data at all levels of co-teaching. resulting data will help researchers evaluate the successful implementation of 48   m. hartnett, a. mccoy, r. weed & n. nickens   the co-teaching model. data will also be used in making programmatic decisions, based on evidence from the field. it will ensure that accountability measures are put into place at the building level site and are coordinated with the university to implement a co-teaching model. the program coordinator for co-teaching will also facilitate the identification of achievement data and data gathering tools that can assess the impact of co-teaching in p-12 classrooms. this will be done in partnership with area districts accepting student teachers for the co-teaching model. finally, training will be tailored to the specific teaching levels and disciplines in which the cooperating teachers and teacher candidates are placed, appreciating the unique benefits and challenges that each one offers (berry & van dreil, 2013). future research the area that has been least studied is the use and effect of co-teaching in the secondary and k-12 levels, and in specific content areas (eick, ware, & williams 2003). future research will include the implementation of a more targeted study, focusing on co-teaching at these levels, as well as a longitudinal study on the long-term effects of co-teaching. the following questions provide a foundation for future research: 1. how can the fidelity of the model’s implementation be measured? 2. in what ways can specific content areas and k-12 and secondary co-teaching models be supported and studied? 3. how can the impact on p-12 student achievement be measured and planned for with partner districts? conclusion in the spring of 2015, more than three hundred student teachers from this midwestern university, in all settings (rural, urban, suburban) and across the state will be co-teaching as their culminating experience. these new student teachers will help the co-teaching training team envision the future of the co-teaching model. data collection methods from the pilot will continue to be used, with minor adjustments. the weekly reflective journals will be done bimonthly instead of weekly due to the large number of student teachers, but remains an informative data piece about the “true” implementation of the co-teaching model. the end of experience survey will continue to be used to provide information about the benefits to the coteaching model for the university and partner districts. in addition, the changes listed in the previous section will help determine the future of the program. references bacharach, n, & heck, t. (2011). mentoring teacher candidates through co-teaching: train-thetrainer workshop handbook. st. cloud, mn: st. cloud state university, teacher quality enhancement center. bacharach, n., heck, t., & dahlberg, k. (2010). changing the face of student teaching through co-teaching. action in teacher education, 32(1) 1-13. co-teaching pilot 49 bacharach, n., heck, t. & dank, m. (february, 2004). co-teaching in student teaching: a case study. paper presented at the annual meeting of the association of teacher educators, dallas, texas. chan, w. y., lau, s., nie, y., lim, s., & hogan, d. (2008). organizational and personal predictors of teacher commitment: the mediating role of teacher efficacy and identification with school. american educational research journal, 45(3), 597-630. cook, l. & friend, m. (1995). co-teaching guidelines for creating effective practices. focus on exceptional children 26(3), 1-16. ebmeier, h., (2003). how supervision influences teacher efficacy and commitment: an investigation of a path model, journal of curriculum and supervision, 18(2), 110-141. eick, c., ware, f., & williams, p. (2003). coteaching in a science methods course: a situated learning model of becoming a teacher. journal of teacher education, 54 (1), 74-85). friend, m. (2000). myths and misunderstandings about professional collaboration. remedial & special education, 21(3), 130-132. friend, m. & cook, l. (2006). interactions: collaboration skills for school professionals (5th ed.). boston, ma: allyn & bacon. heck, t. & bacharach, n. (2010). mentoring teacher candidates through co-teaching: collaboration that makes a difference. st. cloud, mn: st. cloud state university. murawski, w. (2010). collaborative teaching in elementary schools: making the co-teaching marriage work! thousand oaks, ca: corwin. murawski w. & diker, l. (2004). tips and strategies for co-teaching at the secondary level. teaching exceptional children 36(5), 52-58. perl, m., maughmer, b., & mcqueen, c. (1999). co-teaching: a different approach for 50   m. hartnett, a. mccoy, r. weed & n. nickens   cooperating teaches & student teachers. paper presented at the annual meeting of the association of teacher educators, chicago. villa, r., thousand, j., & nevin, a. (2008). a guide to co-teaching: practical tips for facilitating student learning (2nd ed). thousand oaks, ca: corwin press. co-teaching pilot 51 appendix table 6 one teach, one assist table 7 supplemental 52   m. hartnett, a. mccoy, r. weed & n. nickens   table 8 one teach one observe table 9 alternative/differentiated teaching table 10 parallel teaching co-teaching pilot 53 table 11 team teaching table 12 station teaching 54   m. hartnett, a. mccoy, r. weed & n. nickens   table 15. least comfortable strategy usage strategies 0   5   10   15   20   25   30   teacher  candidate   cooperating  teacher     university  mentor     bld  admin   pe rc en t l ea st c om fo rt ab le s tr at eg y u sa ge microsoft word 3-usf-sp final.docx vol. 1, no. 2, january 2013, pp. 103-110 sunbay digital mathematics: a scalable collaboration vivian fueyo and george roy university of south florida st. petersburg phillip vahey sri abstract by leveraging the strengths and commitments of each of the partners, a university, a private nonprofit, and a middle-sized urban school district, collaborated to impact student learning of key concepts in middle-grade mathematics and to change mathematics teaching. the project targeted middle grades mathematics because success in it is the greatest predictor of later school achievement. in well-researched learning modules, students visualize, interact with, and analyze mathematical representations connected to dynamic simulations of real-life phenomena in a curricular learning system comprising dynamic technologies, curriculum replacement units, and professional development. through planned professional development, teachers have the technological skills, pedagogical skills and mathematical content knowledge required to engage their students in an interaction between the software, the curriculum materials, and the mathematics. student learning gains and changes in teacher pedagogical, technological, and mathematical content knowledge provide evidence of the project’s continued success after three years. concomitant institutional changes in each of the partnering organizations attest to the project’s sustainable impact. 104 v. fueyo, g. roy and p. vahey sunbay digital mathematics: a scalable collaboration sunbay digital mathematics (sunbay math) represents a unique public-private collaboration among sri international (sri), the usf st. petersburg college of education (usfsp), and the pinellas county schools (pcs). designed to address the national crisis of young people with insufficient mathematics skills unable to enter or complete college or attain high-paying, high-value jobs, this partnership has been positively impacting student learning of key concepts in middle grades mathematics since 2009. by engaging teachers in a coherent sequence of professional development, sunbay math has also been changing how middle grades mathematics is taught. leveraging the strengths and commitments of each, the partners embraced the opportunity to create the first implementation site for a research-based project on middle grades mathematics, since sri completed a year-long random-control study in texas, with results showing learning gains for all students in the treatment group (roschelle, et al., 2010). as a result of the success of the yearlong randomized control group research project, sri was seeking a site in which to assess the viability of the project in a non-controlled research setting. during the 2009-2010 school year, the project, now known as sunbay math, was implemented in pcs, the 25th largest school district in the us (sable, plotts, & mitchell, 2010), following a series of engaged conversations among the ceo of sri international, the president of st. petersburg’s downtown partnership, the pcs school superintendent, and the dean of the usfsp college of education. sunbay math began as a pilot project with all volunteer teachers in seven middle schools with 13 teachers and 246 middle grades students. the project team modified a set of technology-based algebra materials and related assessments used in texas to meet the needs of pinellas county and provided ongoing professional development to all of the teachers in the effective use of these materials (roy, vanover, fueyo, & vahey, 2012). in a personal communication, sri’s ceo curt carlson asserted the preeminence of the digitallyenhanced mathematics project for sri (carlson, personal communication, 2009). only by dramatically revamping how we teach mathematics can we prepare more students to succeed in and contribute to our emerging innovation economy. the importance of our children’s education cannot be overstated; indeed, the sunbay education program is the most important endeavor at sri. in 2010-2011, the project developed a second track of professional development for those teachers wanting the opportunity for deeper professional growth. usfsp initiated a graduate certificate in middle grades digitally-enhanced mathematics education (mgdeme) to more fully engage sunbay teachers in both the pedagogy and the mathematics required to teach innovative, digitally-enhanced mathematics (mishra & koehler, 2006). in 2011-2012, sunbay math was implemented in nine middle schools, with 25 teachers and more than 2000 middle school students in the pinellas county schools. since its inception in 2009, the project has served 11 middle schools, 39 middle grades mathematics teachers, and more than 3000 pcs middle grades students.   sunbay digital mathematics 105 what is sunbay math? within a curricular activity system (roschelle, knudsen, & hegedus, 2010) represented in figure 1, sunbay math systematically integrates curriculum modules tied to mathematics content standards, technology-based dynamic representations that deepen mathematics learning, and teacher professional development. students build mathematical meaning by thinking critically to solve complex problems and understand rate, proportionality, and linear functions in a connected and coherent way. by leveraging technology, students visualize, interact with, and analyze mathematical representations (i.e., graphs, tables, algebraic expressions, verbal descriptions, and pictorial representations) connected to dynamic simulations of real-life phenomena. through a planned sequence of professional development, teachers are engaged in mastering essential knowledge and skills in mathematics. as a result, when teaching the learning modules, the teachers have the knowledge and skills to engage their students in this interaction between the software, the materials, and the mathematics that lead to increases in student learning (vahey, roy, and fueyo, in press). curricular alignment and replacement modules there are currently three sunbay math replacement learning modules for grades six through eight: managing the soccer team, a module on rate and proportionality; captured in st. petersburg, a module on geometric similarity; and designing mobile games, a module on linear functions. the mathematics content of the units aligns with both the next generation sunshine state standards (florida department of education, n.d) as well as common core state standards for mathematics (national governors association center for best practices & council of chief state school officers, 2010). the methods of instruction in the learning modules align equally well with the mathematical practices called for in the common core. in addition, the sunbay learning modules are also carefully aligned with the fcat 2.0 reporting categories. the project’s goal is to develop two replacement modules for each of the middle grades--two for sixth, seventh, and eighth grades. 106 v. fueyo, g. roy and p. vahey because of the project’s goal of sustainable change, the modules are designed as replacement units. sunbay is neither interested in developing nor seeking to develop a textbook series. as replacement units, the sunbay modules can be used with a district’s adopted textbook series to teach mathematics in the middle grades. it is the teachers, all of whom have been engaged in extensive professional development, who will select which sections of the existing mathematics textbook to replace with the sunbay learning modules. the timing and curricular coherence is determined by the professional teacher who knows best his or her students. the project’s intent is to provide well-researched and proven methods and materials and leave it up to the teachers when best to implement the modules. sunbay’s wellresearched learning modules and teacher professional development directly address carnine’s lament: “education is the only profession in which its professionals are not guaranteed the effectiveness of the tools they have been given to work with” (1992, p. 13). pilot results in 2009-2010 in 2009-2010, the project’s pilot year, the sunbay team showed the effectiveness of the sunbay digital mathematics approach across a range of teachers, topics, and student characteristics in the pinellas county schools. the team recruited and trained 13 middle school mathematics teachers from pinellas county, and each has had significant and ongoing participation in the program. table 1 shows the classroom mean gain scores for all the teachers who participated in florida, as well as all the teachers who participated in sri’s earlier successful experiment in the state of texas. this graph shows that students of teachers using the sunbay intervention, in both texas and florida, to teach the key mathematical topics of proportionality and rate showed consistently higher learning gains than students in control classrooms who were taught by more traditional means. table 1: the spread of mean classroom student gains shows the consistent effectiveness of the sunbay approach in both florida and texas our analysis also shows that learning gains were consistent regardless of prior math sunbay digital mathematics 107 achievement and student ethnicity, providing evidence that the sunbay digital mathematics materials can be effective for the wide range of students and teachers found in pinellas county. the approach was also found to be effective for a new geometry unit developed to meet the needs of pcs. the sunbay team is currently analyzing results for 2011-2012, comprising both preand post-test gains and comparison scores for non-sunbay teachers and students on the state’s high stakes assessment. sustainable institutional changes each of the partners has implemented institutional changes to sustain the impact and viability of this educational intervention known as sunbay digital mathematics. usfsp created a graduate certificate in middle grades-digitally enhanced mathematics education to serve the teachers' needs for more in-depth learning. to ensure the opportunity was available to as many teachers as possible, usfsp engaged a long-standing, community partner, the progress energy foundation, to provide funding for the teachers' tuition. since 2010, this public-private partnership continues to support the graduate certificate in middle grades-digitally enhanced mathematics education, the enhanced teacher development component of sunbay. the local school district also demonstrated its institutional commitment to sunbay math by making it one of its strategic priorities for the middle grades strategic plan. the third partner, sri international, has invested more than a decade of research into the development of the learning modules; and sunbay remains a strategic initiative for sri. the partners continue to seek external funding to support the needed research to develop the remaining learning modules and evaluate the most effective teacher professional development models. our shared goal is to develop a comprehensive “package,” comprising the learning modules, the professional development, and the dynamic technology, to offer interested districts in florida and throughout the united states. as a result of this remarkable, synergistic partnership, sunbay digital mathematics is closer than ever to achieving its goal. 108 v. fueyo, g. roy and p. vahey references carnine, d. (1992). expanding the notion of teachers’ rights: access to tools that work. journal of applied behavior analysis, 25(1) 13-19. florida department of education (n.d.). next generation sunshine state standards: mathematics. retrieved march 14, 2010, from http://floridastandards.org/standards/flstandardsearch.aspx national governors association center for best practices & council of chief state school officers. (2010). common core state standards for mathematics. washington d.c.: national governors association center for best practices, council of chief state school officers. mishra, p., & koehler, m. j. (2006). technological pedagogical content knowledge: a framework of teacher knowledge. teachers college record, 108(6), 1017-1054. roschelle, j., knudsen, j., & hegedus, s. (2010). from new technological infrastructures to curricular activity systems: advanced designs for teaching and learning. in m. j. jacobson & p. reimann (eds.), designs for learning environments of the future: international perspectives from the learning sciences (pp. 233-262). ny: springer. roschelle, j., shechtman, n., tatar, d., hegedus, s., hopkins, b., empson, s., & gallagher, l. (2010). integration of technology, curriculum, and professional development for advancing middle school mathematics: three large-scale studies. american educational research journal, 47(4), 833-878. roy, g. j., vanover, c., fueyo, v., & vahey, p. (2012). providing professional support to teachers who are implementing a middle school mathematics digital unit. contemporary sunbay digital mathematics 109 issues in technology and teacher education, 12(2). retrieved from http://www.citejournal.org/vol11/iss3/mathematics/article1.cfm sable, j., plotts, c., and mitchell, l. (2010). characteristics of the 100 largest public elementary and secondary school districts in the united states: 2008–09 (nces 2011301). u.s. department of education, national center for education statistics. washington, dc: u.s. government printing office. vahey, p., roy, g., & fueyo, v. (in press). sustainable use of dynamic representational environments: toward a district-wide adoption of simcalc-based materials. in s. hegedus & j. roschelle (eds.), democratizing access to important mathematics through dynamic representations: contributions and visions from the simcalc research program. new york, ny: springer. 110 v. fueyo, g. roy and p. vahey author note vivian fueyo, college of education, university of south florida st. petersburg; george roy, college of education, university of south florida st. petersburg; phil vahey, sri international sunbay digital mathematics 2011-2012 was supported by a grant from educause provided by the next generation learning challenges. the authors would also like to acknowledge the considerable contributions of zafer unal, charles vanover, nicole collier, and susan holderness at usf st. petersburg; all our partners at sri international; and laurel rotter, rose mack, and all the sunbay teachers and students in the pinellas county schools. without them, this work would not have been possible. correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to vivian fueyo, college of education, university of south florida st. petersburg, 140 7th avenue south, st petersburg, fl 33701. e-mail: vfueyo@mail.usf.edu 02-jm vol. 1, no. 1, august 2012, pp. 11-25 the chronicles of the renaissance group michael j. giovannetti, executive director the renaissance group ( 2008-present) california state university, fresno abstract the renaissance was a cultural movement initiated in florence, italy, during the late middle ages and later spread to the rest of europe, focusing on the improvement of various disciplines through a revival of ideas from antiquity. the influence of the renaissance movement affected art, literature, philosophy, politics, science, religion, and other aspects of intellectual inquiry. what does the renaissance movement of fourteenth century italy have to do with the renaissance group (trg) of 21st america? the times and places may be very different, but as we review trg’s contributions to teacher education from the 1980s to the present (a time during which the renaissance group laid a strong foundation to shape this national consortium of colleges, universities and professional organizations) we may discover more similarities between the two than imagined. m. giovannetti 12 the chronicles of the renaissance group background the renaissance group: who are its members? visionaries, dreamers, educational leaders? the renaissance (french for “rebirth”; italian, rinascimento, from re “again” and nascere -“to be born”) was a cultural movement initiated in florence, italy, in the late middle ages and later spread to the rest of europe, encompassing periods from the fourteenth to the seventeenth century. this time was focused on the improvement of various disciplines through a revival of ideas from antiquity, by employing creative approaches to thinking and doing. the influence of the renaissance movement affected art, literature, philosophy, politics, science, religion, and other aspects of intellectual inquiry. what does the renaissance movement of fourteenth century italy have to do with the renaissance group (trg) of 21st america? the times and places may be very different, but as we review trg’s contributions to teacher education from the 1980s to the present (a time during which the renaissance group laid a strong foundation to shape this national consortium of colleges, universities and professional organizations) we may discover more similarities between the two than imagined. i have been a member of the renaissance group since july 1, 2008, as the organization’s executive director. because my tenure with this incredible group of educational leaders has been relatively short, i must resort to presenting trg’s life through the eyes and experiences of a fairly new observer, as i interpret information availed to me by colleagues, through reviews of organizational files, as well as from my direct observations and experiences during the past four years. however, in order to relate a fairly complete story, i must first take us back in time, approximately 25 to 30 years, and briefly revisit the state of public education during those initial years up to the present. by examining the educational challenges and reform movements of the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, one can easily extract from local, state, and national news media unfavorable, highly critical messages about america’s p-20 public school systems. for a number of years, active criticism of our schools has been on the front burner of public debate, allowing schools to be seen as one cause for what is considered to be “wrong” with modern-day america. during those challenging years, a nation at risk: the imperative for educational reform was published in 1983, as part of president ronald reagan’s national commission on excellence in education’s efforts to improve the academic performance levels of american high school students. approximately two decades later, in 2001, the no child left behind legislation targeted the improvement of student achievement levels by raising academic standards for all p-12 students. race to the top in 2009 challenged all educators to implement and enforce rigorous standards and assessments for all students. recently, the common core state standards have taken center stage for the educational rebirth of america’s p-20 institutions, serving as a forceful reminder that achievement standards need to be seriously addressed in all corners of the country if the u. s. hopes to regain a prominent place in world leadership. the public schools of our nation have always exhibited one unique characteristic: all students who enter their schoolhouse doors will be accepted and served, regardless of needs and abilities. perhaps it is this concept of absolute inclusion that that has lead the citizenry of the chronicles of the renaissance group 13 america to conclude that the ailments expressed within our neighborhoods must be caused by or somehow associated with our public schools, their teachers, their staff, or their administrators. who else could be held responsible? after all, these individuals do influence our youth each and every day they attend classes. although i present this discourse with a strong dose of cynicism, it is precisely this form of expression that has motivated our elected leaders to fuel the numerous educational reform movements of the past and the present. the early years the renaissance group consortium was conceived during the spring of 1989, a time of increased expectations for schools and for teacher education programs in colleges and universities. the world encountered issues not much different from those we experience today, and not all that different from 14th century europe, if we consider and reflect upon the increased expectations for the leaders, educators, artists and scholars of that era. criticism of teacher preparation programs has been the focal point of national debate since i can remember. the university presidents, provosts and deans who first gathered at the university of northern iowa in the spring of 1989 (see figure 1), and those who joined them in a series of meetings that figure 1. the renaissance group leadership planning session. followed, were motivated to embark on a rebirth movement in order to try to bring new life to educator preparation programs. the educational leaders of the late 1980s, representing the top m. giovannetti 14 leadership of some the finest higher education institutions in the country, were visionary in their belief and firm in their conviction that the education of teachers must become an all-campus responsibility. they were clearly the leonardos and the michelangelos of the 20th century (see figure 2)! figure 2. renaissance-style celebration and meeting. the university of northern iowa was the first home of the executive offices of the renaissance group, with dr. william callahan as executive director. emporia state university was the second home. these were most critical times for the young, yet experienced and energetic, leadership team of trg; times during which a solid organizational foundation was being shaped and new members identified and invited to strengthen the educational settings where teachers were being prepared. according to dr. tes mehring, provost and vice president for academic affairs at emporia state university, one of the early leaders of trg, this was also a period of connectivity with major education organizations, such as the american association for state colleges and universities, the american association for colleges of teacher education, the national board for professional teaching standards, and the national school board association, to mention only some of the best known. additionally, it was during this time that the renaissance group and the u.s. department of education initiated meaningful discussions in support of teacher preparation programs. nationally recognized speakers often delivered the keynote addresses at conferences held in the washington, dc area during their fall annual meetings. throughout these very important foundational years, the initial joint meetings with trg and the teacher education council of state colleges and universities (tecscu) also the chronicles of the renaissance group 15 took place. the renaissance group has always been committed to quality programs for the preparation of teachers, counselors, and administrative leaders for our nation’s schools. the initial meeting held in iowa by a handful of university presidents and education deans was followed by a quick succession of meetings at the university of northern colorado, western kentucky university, california state university, san bernardino, and at emporia state university. as trg added more member institutions, provosts and arts and science deans were included as key members of trg (see figure 3). this core group of university presidents, figure 3. meeting at california state university, fresno. provosts, arts and science deans, and education deans from member institutions continues to be represented on the renaissance group board of governors today (http://www.csufresno.edu/renaissancegroup/). the founders and leaders of trg have spent their time and resources for the past 23 years focused on the organization’s belief that with the right kind of campus infrastructure, and with continuing support of key campus administrators, teacher education will remain a university priority at trg member institutions (see figure 4). m. giovannetti 16 figure 4. trg founders/leaders at the annual fall conference, arlington, va. oral history research initiative and the twentieth anniversary celebration/conference during my review of archived documents, i uncovered some additional insights about the early development of trg. these findings were confirmed in 2009, through extensive conversations with founding leaders of the organization including dr. thomas switzer (see figure 5), dean emeritus of the judith herb college of education at the university of toledo, member of trg’s board of governors for a number of years, and one of the principal founders and developers of the renaissance group. dr. switzer was instrumental in organizing the oral history research initiative that prominently kicked off the 20th anniversary celebration and conference held in october 2009 in arlington, va. this event was designed to be a time of reflection, celebration and rebirth, and it truly was! his ingenious idea generated a respectable collection of anecdotes and insights about the beginnings and initiatives of the renaissance group, as presented by a number of the organizations’ founders and leaders. the oral history research initiative, the 20th anniversary conference agenda, and pictures of participants may be experienced by visiting trg’s website at http://www.csufresno.edu/renaissancegroup/. the chronicles of the renaissance group 17 figure 5. dr. switzer – recipient of the first trg annual leadership award. i was most fortunate to be able to conduct many of those interviews. one story of particular interest and importance relates to the origin of the organization’s name, the renaissance group, which others and i initially believed to be named after the european renaissance movement. after all, trg’s primary principle that the preparation of educators be an all-campus responsibility was a type of educational rebirth. however, as exciting and romantic as that notion might be, the truth of the matter is that during one of their early meetings, in july of 1989, trg’s leaders were enjoying the peace and beauty of estes park, colorado, the host site for one of their early planning sessions. this very prominent event happened to take place in the renaissance room of a local lodge, hence the name the renaissance group (see figure 6). m. giovannetti 18 figure 6. one of the early planning meetings – estes park, co, the renaissance room. twenty-three years have naturally seen many changes in the membership and leadership of trg. the original leaders have reached or are approaching the end of their professional careers. sadly, some of them have already passed away. thanks to the oral history research initiative of 2009, accounts of some of the work and reflections of these innovators exist today and some of the knowledge gained from their individual and collective efforts to develop quality programs for the preparation of teachers is not lost to future generations. the oral history research initiative attempted to capture the rich knowledge and wisdom of those educational leaders and mentors whose exemplary work is reflected today in trg institutions throughout the country. the oral histories were completed with the assistance of modern information technology from various universities, particularly from western kentucky university, capturing both voice and video of some of the renaissance group founders and leaders. approximately 30 past and present leaders of trg were initially identified as potential participants. the university of toledo, under the leadership of dr. thomas switzer, dean of the judith herb college of education, was the home base for the oral history research initiative. western kentucky university, under the leadership of dr. barbara burch, provost and vice president for academic affairs, and mr. david brinkley, senior producer, director and writer of educational television services, continued the work initiated by dr. switzer and supported it to its completion. the video presenting the first 20 years of trg’s life may be viewed on the organization’s website at www.csufresno.edu/renaissancegroup. the chronicles of the renaissance group 19 the middle years members of the board of governors and all member institutions of the renaissance group continuously renew their commitment to improving teacher preparation programs by reflecting on past practices, celebrating accomplishments, embracing present and future educational challenges, and by sharing strategies and promising practices designed to improve local, regional, and national learning environments. the membership has grown over the past 20 years, attracting 35-40 member institutions during its development. for several years, the executive office of the renaissance group was located at emporia state university, emporia, kansas. there, thanks to the outstanding leadership of dr. kay schallenkamp, president, dr. tes mehring, provost and vice president for academic affairs, and dr. leo pauls, executive director, trg grew and significantly strengthened its original foundation (see figure 7). figure 7. emporia state university, spring conference. today, more than ever, all trg members proudly support the tradition of strong commitment for the preparation of educators as a campus-wide effort and are pleased to announce that a significant number of teachers successfully prepare for the profession at trg institutions. in keeping with past practice, tradition, and the belief that supporting educator m. giovannetti 20 preparation programs and initiatives is the best investment our nation can make, the renaissance group continues to provide each year, as it has done annually since its inception, unique opportunities for educators to celebrate their successes and recommit their individual and collective research, talents, and resources for the preparation of outstanding educators for america’s schools. those who believe that excellent teaching translates into more successful students have supported and continue to support the efforts of this unique organization. by doing so, the educational leadership of our country contributes to the much-needed rebirth of our nation’s schools, positively influencing national policy and practices relative to the design and implementation of outstanding teacher preparation programs. the organization’s vision, principles and strategic plan, reflected on the following tables, have always guided the work of the renaissance group. the renaissance group vision leadership in the exemplary preparation of educators through full campus commitment, in collaboration with p-12 school districts, for the transformation of education to meet societal needs. the renaissance group principles (september 2009) the renaissance group: universities working to improve the quality of educator preparation. • the education of teachers is an all-campus responsibility undertaken in collaboration with p-12 school personnel. • the university values and models teaching excellence. • teacher preparation is integrated across the curricula of general education, in-depth subject matter content, and professional studies in both general content and specific teaching methodologies. • the education of teachers incorporates extensive and sequenced field and clinical experiences in various settings with effective supervision. • the university meets and exceeds national and state standards for the preparation of school personnel. • the university assesses learner outcomes in order to monitor its program effectiveness and assure teacher quality. • pre-service teachers and faculty members reflect our pluralistic society and are committed to the education of all students in diverse schools. • the continuing professional development of teachers is the shared responsibility of the individual, the university faculty, and other professional educators. • the university provides learning experiences and mentoring that develop teachers who are creative and innovative leaders. • the university integrates technology throughout its teacher preparation program. the chronicles of the renaissance group 21 strategic plan update (december 2010) the renaissance group, building from two decades of leadership in teacher education, seeks to provide relevant and meaningful service to our members and partners. as we embrace the changes of the 21st century, trg will endeavor to achieve its mission and vision through a strategic focus on three goals. i. trg will provide enhanced benefits for member institutions. measures of performance • develop a timely and relevant “signature project”. • facilitate a process whereby member institutions collaborate in the collection and sharing of relevant legislation, data, grant ideas, best practices, etc. • represent the membership in a strengthened alliance with department of education. • provide pre-ncate reviews for member institutions. • facilitate communication between member institutions and p-12 programs to ensure congruence with current educational demands. • re-evaluate the conference structure and content to provide greater incentive for involvement by university presidents, legislators, school superintendents, and other stakeholders. ii. trg will develop a common set of standards that define a trg teacher education program graduate and guide trg institutions in decision-making. measures of performance • identify quantity, quality, and nature of the expectations for graduation such as academic field preparation, clinical/classroom based experiences, practicum/student teaching experiences, internship, and graduation requirements across institutions. iii. trg will create a broader marketing plan to increase visibility across multiple educational communities. measures of performance • clarify and strengthen the mission and vision statement to reflect the evolving purpose of the organization. • create appropriate media that will be versatile and highly visible such as publications, dvds, social networking, brochures, etc. • partner with affiliate members to have a common voice in educational policy development. m. giovannetti 22 signature projects over the years and as presented in the 2010 strategic plan update, signature projects initiated by trg members have provided guidance, direction and courageous leadership at local, state and national levels to inspire change, to guide policy and to improve all aspects of educator preparation programs on college and university campuses in america. 1999 teacher work samples perhaps one of the best examples of innovation and accountability relative to the preparation of educators is the development of the teacher work samples, authored in 1999 by dr. roger pankratz, professor and assistant to the dean of education and behavioral sciences, western kentucky university, in collaboration with eleven trg member institutions. the renaissance partnership for improving teacher quality program (1999-2005) is the result of a title ii federally funded project with offices at western kentucky university, and with its director, dr. roger pankratz. the eleven renaissance partnership project sites included california state university fresno; eastern michigan university; emporia state university; idaho state university; kentucky state university; longwood university; middle tennessee state university; millersville university; southeast missouri state university; university of northern iowa, and western kentucky university. thanks to the renaissance teacher work samples, today many colleges and universities across the country have developed effective, reliable measures to evaluate the preparation levels of the teachers they graduate. additionally, results from the teacher work samples assessments are utilized to inform faculty and administrators relative to needs and improvements for their teacher preparation programs. 2011 co-teaching model a second, equally important partnership was formed in 2011 with saint cloud state university, member of trg since 2000, when they offered their co-teaching model for teacher candidate preparation as a trg signature project. dr. nancy bacharach and dr. teresa heck, faculty at st. cloud state, developed the co-teaching model with funding from a federal grant. there is a growing demand for teacher preparation institutions to develop highly effective teachers. the goal of this project is to reform teacher preparation through the implementation of a research-based model of co-teaching in student teaching at teacher preparation institutions across the country. because very little data exist connecting success in a student teaching experience with student learning outcomes, more studies would be extremely beneficial to p-20 education. co-teaching is not a new phenomenon; however, its application in the student teaching experience is a new area of study. this student teacher preparation model is designed to assist both the cooperating teacher and teacher candidate in collaboratively planning, organizing, delivering, assessing, and sharing the physical space of the classroom. co-teaching allows the classroom teacher to partner with the teacher candidate rather than give away responsibility. four years of research conducted on a co-teaching model of student teaching has demonstrated a statistically significant increase in academic performance for elementary learners in co-taught classrooms. the quantitative and qualitative data support co-teaching as an exemplary practice that has the potential to reform teacher preparation and student teaching, as we know it today. the renaissance group applied for a federally funded multi-million dollar grant in 2011. the grant proposed to expand the co-teaching model initially developed at st. cloud state the chronicles of the renaissance group 23 university and included specific plans to provide the training and support necessary for other teacher preparation institutions across the nation to successfully implement this model. the 13 institutions identified to participate in the proposal collectively produce over 4100 teachers each year and work with over 800 school partners. one hundred percent of these institutions work with high needs schools and all of them place students in classrooms where adequate yearly progress (ayp) has not been met. in fact, almost 85% of the placements made are in identified high needs schools. a comprehensive plan for assessing the impact of this model was also included in the application, and the results of this work would be disseminated to state, regional, and national audiences. this train-the-trainer model is not only sustainable, but can also produce a cadre of individuals capable of national implementation. in spite of this commendable effort, the grant was not funded. however, trg will not stop trying to contribute to the improvement of teaching and learning, and will undoubtedly explore future funding opportunities for the expansion of this and other promising practices. an additional significant effort of the renaissance group is the development of the following educational journal. started in 2011, educational renaissance is a publication sponsored by the renaissance group. educational renaissance is to be published twice a year to facilitate communication among professional educators and those whose research focuses on teacher preparation as well as those committed to the improvement and reform of education locally, regionally and nationally. manuscripts submitted to educational renaissance should conform to the language, style, and a modified format of the publication manual of the american psychological association (6th ed., 2009). all manuscripts should be submitted electronically to the editor through the open access journal system at: http://educationalrenaissance.org/. once received by the editor, manuscripts will be anonymously peer-reviewed by at least two reviewers. potential authors are encouraged to contact the editor to discuss ideas for contributions, or determine if their manuscript is suitable for publication in educational renaissance. dr. paul beare, dr. jim marshall and dr. patrick newell, at california state university, fresno, the lead trg member institution for educational renaissance, as well as a number of reviewers from trg member institutions, lead this project. trg today the renaissance group moved its executive office in 2005 from emporia state to california state university, fresno, (fresno state) in the heart of california. in its new home, dr. john welty, president; dr. paul beare, dean of the kremen school of education and human development; mr. rich firpo, executive director (2005-2008); and, in keeping with trg’s tradition of excellence, the entire university faculty and staff welcomed and embraced this national educational consortium dedicated to the enhancement of teaching and learning. the outstanding support and commitment by fresno state, not unlike the contributions made by the university of northern iowa, emporia state university, and all of trg’s leadership, has made it possible for the renaissance group to continue its original journey and to stay the course for the improvement of educator preparation programs (see figure 8). m. giovannetti 24 figure 8. 20th anniversary conference, arlington, va. the past seven years have experienced a small decline in membership, nothing serious enough to dampen the spirit of the renaissance group. thanks to the outstanding leadership and dedication of dr. john counts, president emeritus of western new mexico university and president of trg’s board of governors for the past seven years, and to all past and present members of trg’s board, annual conferences designed to showcase the very best educator preparation programs have been offered in the washington, dc area. additional meetings have also been held at member institutions to address the present needs and interests of members and guests. finally, with strong support from mr. otto benavides, associate professor and director of the instructional technology and resource center at the kremen school of education and human development at california state university, fresno, the utilization of video teleconferencing has offered a significant level of assistance to help conduct all other trg business and planning sessions. in 2011, the renaissance group also renewed its partnership, initially formed when trg was housed at emporia state university, with a national organization of similar purpose, dedication and interests, the teacher education council of state colleges and universities (tecscu). together, these educator preparation program architects and developers, representing higher education institutions preparing approximately 78% of america’s teachers, have designed and delivered one successful joint conference in the fall of 2011 and are currently planning a second meeting to be offered during the fall of 2012. dr. mary gendernalik-cooper, education dean at the university of mary washington, and dr. michael giovannetti, executive director of the renaissance group serve as co-chairs of this joint conference. the fall 2012 event, with the theme of the proof of effective partnerships: educators meeting the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century is scheduled for september 29 to the chronicles of the renaissance group 25 october 2 in arlington, virginia. the 2012 joint meeting of tecscu and trg will examine the evidence of resilient partnerships in teacher and education leadership preparation, by examining and discussing richly diverse models of collaboration. conclusion i realize the story i have shared only begins to scratch the surface of the treasure chest of significant contributions made by a number of outstanding educational leaders to one unique national organization and to p-20 education in america. clearly all who deserve to be included in these chronicles were not, and for all omissions, the author extends his most sincere apology. hopefully these accounts will serve as a reminder that when the renaissance group was formed 23 years ago by a group of educational leaders dedicated to the improvement of teacher preparation programs, their mission was clear: this national consortium of colleges, universities and the national board of professional teaching standards has always known that in order to prepare the finest educators to effectively serve all of america’s students, they must do so as an all-campus responsibility, in conjunction with its p-12 school district partners. i am confident the invaluable contributions made by trg will continue to benefit p-20 education into the future, thanks to the leadership, dedication, and commitment of all past and present members. criticism about our profession will more than likely continue, but i firmly believe that when persons of good will work together and persevere, amazing things will continue to happen. the preparation of the chronicles of the renaissance group was made possible thanks to the documentation (paper, electronic and video), collected since 1989 by the founders and leaders of the renaissance group, stored in the organization’s archives. m. giovannetti 26 intentionally blank microsoft word 07-jm.docx vol. 1, no. 1, august 2012, pp. 49-61 voices from the field: multiple perspectives on a co-teaching in student teaching model nancy bacharach and teresa washut heck saint cloud state university, saint cloud, minnesota abstract the goal of this project is to reform teacher preparation through the implementation of a research-based model of co-teaching in student teaching at teacher preparation institutions across the country. four years of research conducted on a co-teaching model of student teaching has demonstrated a statistically significant increase in academic performance for elementary learners in co-taught classrooms. co-teaching is designed to assist both the cooperating teacher and teacher candidate in collaboratively planning, organizing, delivering, assessing, and sharing the physical space of the classroom, allowing the classroom teacher to partner with the teacher candidate rather than give away responsibility. the renaissance group (trg), a national consortium of teacher preparation institutions, proposed to take the co-teaching model initially developed at saint cloud state university and provide the training and support necessary for teacher preparation institutions across the nation to successfully expand it. the 14 institutions involved in this proposal collectively produce over 2,500 teachers each year and work with over 600 school partners. one hundred percent of these institutions work with high needs schools and all of them place students in classrooms where adequate yearly practice (ayp) has not been met. during the 2011-12 academic year, trg applied to the us department of education for a thirteen plus million dollar grant on behalf of its member universities to expand the co-teaching model. although the proposal was not funded, the co-teaching model has become a high priority and practice in educator preparation institutions across the country. n. bacharach, t. washut-heck 50 voices from the field: multiple perspectives on a co-teaching in student teaching model while many aspects of teacher preparation have been studied over the years, student teaching itself has experienced little change since the 1920’s (guyton & mcintyre, 1990). student teaching is generally considered to be the capstone experience in the journey to becoming a “real teacher,” the time when methods and theories are transferred and applied in actual classroom situations. traditionally, student teachers begin their experience as a passive observer, eventually taking on the role of the cooperating teacher and finally left alone to take over the entire classroom. this model of learning to teach in isolation, however, is no longer best practice for preparing new teachers. linda darling-hammond (2006) asserted that the clinical side of teacher education has traditionally been somewhat haphazard and frequently disconnected from theoretical teachings. she advocated for the development of stronger models of teacher preparation and urged schools of education to design programs that would help prospective teachers “understand deeply a wide array of things about learning, social and cultural contexts, and teaching” (p. 3). such an approach would move teacher preparation away from clinical experiences, where prospective teachers practice the art of teaching with little guidance, toward clinical experiences that allow candidates to “learn from expert modeling of practice” (p. 8) alongside teachers who can show them how to teach in ways that are responsive to learners who have a wide range of learning needs. a key report by the national council for accreditation of teacher education (2010) critically studied the role of clinical preparation and agreed with darling-hammond’s assertions. the blue ribbon panel examined the status of clinical preparation nationwide and found it to be “poorly defined and inadequately supported” (p. 4). they reported that clinical experiences were the most highly valued element of preparation for teachers, and in many programs, the most ad hoc part of teacher education. field experience directors across the country experience increasing difficulty in securing high quality student teaching placements, with cooperating teachers wary of exiting the classroom especially during the term in which state-mandated no child left behind (nclb) tests are given (ellis & bogle, 2008). the number of placement requests coming from teacher education programs are not always matched by the number of receptive school sites or willing cooperating teachers (goodlad, 1994; ladson-billings, 2001; sinclair, dawson, & thistletonmartin, 2006; zeichner, 2002). often, the institution's immense need for cooperating teachers is so overwhelming that they fall back on cooperating teachers who are willing to host teacher candidates, but do not model effective teaching practices for them. as a result, during the most impressionable time in the preparation program, future teachers often work with cooperating teachers who are ill-prepared for their role (grimmett & ratzlaff, 1986; lewis, 1990), have unrealistic expectations (sparks & brodeur, 1987), and are tentative about the feedback they give (morehead & waters, 1987). st. cloud state university’s co-teaching model in an effort to strengthen the teacher preparation program, overcome the challenges of placing teacher candidates, and maximize the human resources in the classroom, st. cloud state university adapted the work of special educators cook & friend (1995), applying the concepts and strategies of co-teaching to the student teaching experience. while co-teaching is not a new voices from the field: multiple perspectives 51 phenomenon, its application in the student teaching experience is a new area of study. coteaching in student teaching provides two professionally prepared adults in the classroom, actively engaged with students for greater periods of time than does the traditional model of student teaching. this co-teaching model of student teaching allows children increased opportunities to get help when and how they need it. it affords teachers an opportunity to incorporate co-teaching strategies, grouping and teaching students in ways that are not possible with just one teacher. through a teacher quality enhancement grant from the u.s. department of education, st. cloud state university (scsu) in minnesota has studied the impact of shifting from a traditional to a co-teaching model of student teaching. both quantitative and qualitative data were collected on the impact of a co-teaching model of student teaching on teacher candidates, cooperating teachers and the students in the classroom. scsu’s co-teaching model of student teaching has been recognized as a promising practice by the ncate blue ribbon panel on clinical practice (2010). in addition, this innovative initiative received the 2008 american association of colleges of teacher education (aacte) best practice award for research in teacher education, and the 2007 american association of state colleges and universities (aascu) christa mcauliffe award for excellence in teacher preparation. the quantitative results gathered on this co-teaching model have been previously reported (bacharach, heck & dahlberg, 2010). however, a brief summary of the quantitative results follow. the focus of this paper will be to share the qualitative data collected on the scsu co-teaching model. quantitative results data collected on the co-teaching model of student teaching focused on academic performance for elementary students in reading and mathematics as the result of being in a cotaught environment. the original research study on co-teaching utilized two independent measures of student academic performance over a four year period. the two measures employed were the minnesota comprehensive assessment (mca) and the research edition of the woodcock johnson psychoeducational battery, (wjiii-re). the mca is a standardized test administered every year in the state of minnesota to measure students’ performance toward meeting state standards. the mca complies with the no child left behind (nclb) act of 2001, and is aligned with what students are expected to know and do in a particular grade. this test is used to determine levels of proficiency and the degree to which the student is on track to pass the required minnesota basic skills tests in later grades. the study also employed wjiiire tests of academic achievement (mcgrew & woodcock, 2001). the wjiii-re is individually administered, has been normed for all grade levels, and can be used as a preand postintervention measure. pretesting occurred in september and post testing occurred in may, using the same test. results from the mca and the wjiii-re were analyzed separately and yielded very similar results regarding the effect of co-teaching on achievement. in each of the four years studied, the mca indicated a statistically significant increase in academic performance in reading and math proficiency for students in a co-taught classroom as compared to students in a non co-taught classroom. the wjiii-re showed a statistically significant gain in all four years in reading and in two of the four years in math. n. bacharach, t. washut-heck 52 while the results comparing the achievement of students in co-taught classrooms to the achievement of students in non co-taught classrooms is convincing, possibly the most compelling data lies in the comparison between the academic achievement of students in three different types of classrooms. using the mca data, students in a classroom that utilized the coteaching model of student teaching statistically outperformed their peers in classrooms that were taught by either a single teacher or a cooperating teacher and teacher candidate using a traditional model of student teaching in both reading and math. qualitative results while these quantitative results are notable, it was important to gather qualitative data on the impact of co-teaching on stakeholders involved in the co-teaching model of student teaching, including teacher candidates, cooperating teachers and the students in the classrooms. teacher candidates as is typical in most universities, teacher candidates at st. cloud state university are observed multiple times during their student teaching experience by both their university supervisor and their cooperating teacher. at the end of the student teaching experience, the university supervisor completes a summative assessment based on the observed performance of the teacher candidate. this summative assessment is based on the ten interstate new teacher and assessment support consortium (intasc) standards for new teachers, plus one standard measuring professional dispositions—and was scored on a four-point likert-type scale. cumulative data showed that candidates in co-taught settings had equal or higher average ratings on each of the ten intasc standards (table 1). co-teaching candidates outscored their peers at a level that nears statistical significance in two areas that are hallmarks of co-teaching, reflection and professional development, and partnerships. there were no statistically significant differences in the remaining standards which voices from the field: multiple perspectives 53 table 1 teacher candidate summative assessment (2005-2008) standard co-teaching mean score n=408 not co-teaching mean score n=728 p subject matter 3.37 3.36 .55 student learning 3.32 3.28 .39 diverse learners 3.09 3.09 .95 instructional strategies 3.31 3.29 .68 learning environment 3.28 3.28 .94 communication 3.32 3.32 .98 planning instruction 3.35 3.34 .98 assessment 3.06 3.06 .82 professional develop. 3.47 3.40 .08 partnerships 3.40 3.33 .08 prof. dispositions* 3.61 3.51 .01 is not surprising since these categories focus on knowledge attained in coursework prior to student teaching and all candidates, whether they co-taught or not, completed the same coursework. professional dispositions is the one area where teacher candidates involved in cotaught classrooms statistically out-performed their peers in non-caught classrooms. professional dispositions include such things as enthusiasm, reliability, responsibility, initiative, and sensitivity and responsiveness to the needs of students and staff. candidates completing a co-teaching student teaching experience were asked to complete an end-of-experience survey and were invited to participate in a focus group. end-of-experience surveys were completed by 249 teacher candidates and 195 teacher candidates participated in focus groups. on the end of experience survey, teacher candidates reported many benefits from their participation in co-teaching (table 2), including increased classroom management skills, heightened collaboration, and deeper understanding of the curriculum. n. bacharach, t. washut-heck 54 table 2 benefits of co-teaching to teacher candidates (n=249) teacher candidates indicated that co-teaching led to: improved classroom management skills 92.4% increased collaboration skills 92.0% more teaching time 90.0% deeper understanding of the curriculum through co-planning 89.2% more opportunities to ask questions and reflect 88.6% increased confidence 88.4% teacher candidates participating in focus groups were asked to discuss the pros and cons of the co-teaching model of student teaching. overwhelmingly, candidates discussed how important it was that students saw them as a “real teacher.” candidates co-teaching were introduced as a “teacher candidate” or “co-teacher” and were expected to be actively engaged with students from the very first day. as one teacher candidate said, “being active in the lessons right away (through co-teaching) is better than observing. you feel more comfortable.” another candidate reported, “the strong bond you have with your co-teacher is just amazing. you truly do feel that you are a second teacher in the room, not a student teacher.” teacher candidates consistently cited a number of key elements that led them to feel like a real teacher. these elements have been organized into three main themes: sharing resources, mutual support and learning, and equal partnership. sharing and managing resources including human resources many candidates noted that through the co-planning process they became much more aware of the resources available to them and much more confident about using and managing them. they also discussed how they were mentored to become the instructional leader where they were responsible for directing other adults in the classroom, including the cooperating teacher and paraprofessionals. one teacher candidate said: looking back on it, i’m so glad that i did co-teaching because now i have more skills when it comes to working with people. when i go out there and i have paraprofessionals in my room or maybe on my own team, we’ll have four teachers that need to work together. i know that i can handle that now. i don’t think i could have done that nearly as comfortably before co-teaching. another candidate added: i like that my cooperating teacher helped me along with planning. at the beginning we sat down and planned together, but now that it’s coming towards the end, i’m in charge and i’m telling her what i want to do. it’s really great with my teacher because she gives me so much freedom. she’s says, ‘this is your time. tell me what you want me to do. you be in charge and let me be your assistant.’ i really like that. voices from the field: multiple perspectives 55 mutual support and learning when co-teaching, both the teacher candidate and cooperating teacher share ideas and strategies. as a result, both partners benefit from the support and collaboration developed through the experience. as one cooperating teacher noted: a highlight of this co-teaching experience for me was watching how my teacher candidate started implementing some of my techniques in her teaching style and then realizing how i was implementing some of her techniques into my strategies. we really grew together! equal partnership candidates felt they shared leadership, ownership, and responsibility for teaching and classroom management. co-teaching pairs are provided with specific strategies and activities enabling them to openly discuss the power differential that exists between a cooperating teacher and teacher candidate. the goal in co-teaching is for both teachers to be involved in all aspects of the classroom, with no consistent “leader” or “assistant.” one candidate described it this way, “my teacher includes me in everything. she always finds a way to incorporate my name so kids know it’s both of us.” public school students since academic achievement data was not available for grades 7–12, students in cotaught classrooms were surveyed to gather insight about their experiences with teacher candidates. the survey was administered over four years to 1,686 students. the survey listed the most frequent benefits and drawbacks of co-teaching based on a review of co-teaching literature. students were asked whether in their current co-teaching experience a benefit happened more, the same, or less than in their previous student teacher experiences. likewise, possible drawbacks were listed, and students were asked to identify whether they had experienced these individual drawbacks in their current co-teaching experience. most students stated that they received more help with questions in co-teaching classrooms than they did in settings that did not include co-teaching (table 3). students in coteaching classrooms also reported they enjoyed the different styles of teaching and appreciated more individual attention. only 4% of the almost 1,700 students surveyed found no benefits to being in a classroom where the teacher candidate and cooperating teacher were co-teaching. table 3 benefits of co-teaching (2004-2008 n=1,686) benefits of co-teaching percent responding more help with questions 79.7 different styles of teaching 68.9 more individual attention 66.4 n. bacharach, t. washut-heck 56 get two perspectives 65.8 teachers build off each other 60.3 more creative lessons 51.2 assignments graded and returned faster 50.9 more energy between teachers 46.1 better discussions 45.0 more in-depth knowledge 43.1 no benefits 4.0 although very few drawbacks were identified by secondary students (table 4), some found two explanations confusing while others were unsure about which teacher they should go to for answers to questions or for help with issues. table 4 drawbacks to co-teaching (2004-2008 n=1,686) drawbacks to co-teaching percent responding no drawbacks to co-teaching 47.6 confusing with two explanations 18.8 confusing who to go to 13.5 grading issues 13.0 contradicting information 11.6 teachers interrupt each other 8.8 candidate too dependent 8.3 less material covered 7.1 survey participants also cited differences between their co-teaching experience and previous student teaching experiences (table 5). secondary students, most of whom had experienced a teacher candidate in a traditional student teaching setting, noticed clear differences between traditional student teaching and co-teaching. almost 80% of secondary students surveyed indicated that co-teaching should be used more often in student teaching. voices from the field: multiple perspectives 57 table 5 differences between co-teaching and traditional student teaching (2004-2008, n=1,686) differences in student teaching experiences percent responding cooperating teacher and teacher candidate worked more as a team 62.1 teacher candidate was more involved with the lessons 59.1 teacher candidate was more ready to teach 56.1 teacher candidate was more prepared for class 50.8 teacher candidate brought in more new ideas and methods 50.5 cooperating teacher was more involved with the class 42.3 over 540 students in grades 1-12 were interviewed in focus groups over the course of the fouryear project. students overwhelmingly identified increased engagement and available help when they needed it as the biggest benefits to co-teaching. they described the benefits of co-teaching in the following terms: • increased opportunities to work in small groups • more individual attention • questions answered faster • papers and grades returned more quickly • better behavior by fellow students • fewer classroom disruptions students noted they spent less time waiting in class and more materials were covered when coteaching was used. in addition to getting help when they needed it, students in all focus groups appreciated the two different styles of teaching, and they enjoyed being able to do a variety of activities that were not possible with just one teacher. furthermore, students indicated that they felt more connected to school and looked forward to going each day. cooperating teachers cooperating teachers who participated in the co-teaching model of student teaching were invited to complete an end-of-experience online survey. the 279 cooperating teachers completing the survey reported experiencing a variety of benefits as the result of participating in co-teaching (table 6). cooperating teachers indicate that co-teaching led to the ability to reach more students, particularly those with high needs. one teacher noted, “the students in my n. bacharach, t. washut-heck 58 classroom love the attention they are given by an additional teacher. the opportunities to extend, review, repeat, and individualize lessons to meet student needs is extremely valuable.” table 6 benefits of co-teaching to cooperating teachers (n=279) cooperating teachers indicated that co-teaching led to: more help for students with high needs 94.5% a better relationship with their teacher candidate 92.3% professional growth through co-planning 90.5% enhanced energy for teaching 89.0% ability to host candidate without giving up classroom 87.1% cooperating teachers felt they had a better relationship with their teacher candidate than they did with candidates they hosted who did not co-teach. another benefit reported by cooperating teachers was the emphasis on continued professional growth. one teacher noted, “i liked it because most curriculum we’ve had a long time. she’d see it with a fresh look and make suggestions. it was nice to hear new ideas.” cooperating teachers overall agreed that the co-teaching experience provided richer learning opportunities for candidates. one teacher said: teacher candidates get a better experience of what teaching is truly about. they end up spending more time working with students either one on one, in small groups, or as a whole classroom. their experience is closer to a true classroom.” yet another cooperating teacher stated: i believe my teacher candidate received far more teaching experience in planning, instruction, and management from the very beginning—becoming engaged in the teaching of lessons right away (as compared to candidates who have gone through a traditional student teaching experience with me.) in addition to the end-of-experience survey, 107 cooperating teachers participated in focus groups. cooperating teachers who co-taught agreed that they completed projects more successfully, found class time to be more productive, modeled and participated in effective teamwork, and believed their teacher candidates became competent more quickly. one cooperating teacher summed it up by saying: watching my teacher candidate grow in all aspects of the teaching job was rewarding. teaching is no longer a solo job so learning how to delegate and use her resources is so essential! the co-teaching model gives candidates an opportunity to grow in all aspects of the job. voices from the field: multiple perspectives 59 partnerships universities and their school partners have noted a number of benefits as they shifted to the co-teaching model. school districts partners reported feeling more valued and indicated they had a closer connection to the teacher preparation process. as one cooperating teacher stated, “i learned so much about how to help a student teacher myself. this has never been addressed before. somehow we were just supposed to know what we were doing. it was very helpful, supportive, and enjoyable.” district administrators also supported the implementation of the co-teaching model. one middle school principal said “the results are proven as far as i’m concerned we have better student teachers, we have better cooperating teachers, so it’s the best of both worlds for me.” the impact of co-teaching at the university has been significant. the largest impact has simply been on the ability to make placements. prior to the implementation of co-teaching, little was done to prepare cooperating teachers to host a candidate; there was no formal preparation, and the information about the program was expected to be delivered by university supervisors. with the advent of cooperating teacher workshops, the number of teachers interested in and willing to host a candidate rose dramatically. according to the coordinator of student placements at scsu “the use of a co-teaching model of student teaching has made placing student teachers so much easier!” in fact, in some areas, we now have more cooperating teachers willing to host than there are available candidates. conclusions teacher preparation programs face continued scrutiny, and to address these concerns it is imperative that teacher educators examine all aspects of their current preparation programs. the student teaching experience serves as a critical component in teacher preparation and must undergo careful review. the scsu co-teaching model provides a proven alternative to the traditional student teaching experience. this model not only strengthens university/school partnerships but also has the ability to provide benefits for all stakeholders. teacher candidates who co-teach with their cooperating teachers do so in an environment where they are guided and mentored as they learn the art of teaching. cooperating teachers experience professional growth and find it easier to meet the needs of the students in their classrooms. students receive more individual attention and get their questions answered faster. the qualitative data reported in this paper coupled with the quantitative data reported early (bacharach, heck & dahlberg, 2010) provides a persuasive argument for colleges and universities to adopt a co-teaching model of student teaching. teacher preparation institutions adopting a co-teaching model of student teaching can strengthen their partnerships and better prepare teachers for tomorrow’s classrooms. in the words of one assistant superintendent: … the compelling evidence is clear. traditional student teaching is not conducive to maximizing educational benefits for our students. co-teaching, however, has transformed the student teacher and teacher relationship. instead of throwing a student teacher into the complexities of teaching, without a lifeline, student teachers are coached as they practice the art of teaching. teaching is rocket science, and co-teaching is the power source! n. bacharach, t. washut-heck 60 intentionally blank voices from the field: multiple perspectives 61 references bacharach, n., heck, t., & dahlberg, k. 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(2002). beyond traditional structures of student teaching. teacher educationquarterly, 29(2), 64. microsoft word 1. barker-dec 2016.docx vol. 5, no. 1, dec 2016, pp. ?-? leadership development of doctoral students in a carnegie project on the education doctorate affiliated ed.d. program nan barker and daniel r. ayala california state university, fresno abstract educational practitioners in the 21st century must respond to the availability of a wide array of data relating to student outcomes and student achievement. to make effective use of this data as well as be able to respond to the growing needs of the field, educational practitioners must be able to apply the knowledge they gain in the graduate preparation programs. in this article, the authors reflect on the role of a signature pedagogy grounded on inquiry-based learning in their leadership development, and how an ongoing emphasis on action research throughout their doctoral program was invaluable in their professional and academic growth. as a result, the authors recommend that action research should strongly supplement traditional, theory-driven graduate pedagogy in education. 4   n. barker & d. ayala   introduction effective educational leadership, regardless of the individual practitioner’s setting, requires an ongoing focus on improving student learning outcomes while adjusting to the demands of national policy and legislation at regional and local levels. more fundamentally, leadership involves an understanding of the indirect and decentralized nature of relationships within educational organizations, as well as the relationships between stakeholders in the overall system (bolman & deal, 2008). as the goal of improving student achievement is adopted throughout all levels of public education, there is a need for effective leadership that can address national and state priorities (wahlstrom, 2008). to this end, leithwood (2012) found that collective leadership can exert its influence through reciprocal, highly interactive relationships among individuals working within educational organizations, creating greater capacity and powerful motivation to meet ever more demanding goals. with the rising general awareness of education as a driving force of national economic growth and competitiveness (zumeta, breneman, callan, & finney, 2012), the need for meaningful articulation between all levels of publicly funded education is of increasing importance. irrespective of historical understandings of the distinct responsibilities of each level of the education system, the interdependence of these structures is increasingly apparent as changes in one component of the system influence other segments. publicly funded education is an example of systemic complexity that will require change and enhanced coordination of the processes among the interrelated organizations (senge, 2006). the collection and analysis of longitudinal student data in k-16 systems is a primary example of meaningful application of systems level leadership and a representation of dynamic complexity within public education. leaders in preschool through twelfth grade (p-12) systems, as well as systems of public higher education, frequently have a desire to answer questions about individual or aggregate student populations (mandinach & gummer, 2015). this use of longitudinal data to address larger questions of system performance has brought into question the very notion of separate educational structures, which have historically been based on nothing more than the age of students. a growing body of evidence suggests that the process of achieving long-term learning outcomes is complex and not confined to specific age categories (fullan, 2013). given the positive impact that education has on the increasingly knowledge-centered economies of the 21st century (tucker, 2011), institutional and state policy that is responsive to societal change is necessary in order to ensure the relevance and service of education. the model of publicly supported colleges and universities, which function virtually autonomously in regards to the development of curriculum, instruction, and student outcomes, has had the unintended consequence of isolating these institutions from wider reaching p-12 educational systems. as a result, promising practices developed in one system very rarely cross into another system. it is the task of contemporary leadership programs to bring practitioners together, and emphasize the consistent application of action research across publicly-funded education, with a goal of increasing the scholarship of teaching and learning and improving student outcomes (darlinghammond & bransford, 2005; shulman, 2005). doctoral programs in educational leadership occupy a unique position in providing a shared vision of state and national educational needs. with the support of the carnegie project on the education doctorate (cped) initiative to develop professional practitioners committed to improving student outcomes (perry & imig, 2010), doctoral programs in educational leadership have strengthened the degree with a greater focus on developing practitioners that can blend doctoral student leadership 5 theory with effective practice (shulman, golde, bueschel, & garabedian, 2006). by preparing doctoral students, working in both p-12 and higher education, with the knowledge, analytical tools, and organizational awareness necessary for reform, the intended goal is for these leaders to serve as catalysts for effective change in the organizations that characterize contemporary education (slater, brown-welty, cohn, & rodriguez, 2009). in recognition of the many goals of leadership preparation programs, cped provides guidelines and best practices as it relates to the development and implementation of graduate programs serving this purpose. to accomplish this, cped recommends that leadership preparation program adopt one of several signature pedagogies, all of which are grounded on inquiry-based learning and action research, to assist practitioners in effective reform. the purpose of this paper is to reflect and analyze how the particular signature pedagogy of the doctoral program in educational leadership at fresno state (dpelfs), embedded fieldwork, influenced the leadership development and preparation of the authors as professional practitioners. the analysis will be framed by senge’s open systems theory and leithwood’s (2012) framework for evaluating effective leadership in the p-12 system. the doctoral program in educational leadership at fresno state the designers of dpelfs integrated the foundations of the cped initiative into the program curriculum. dpelfs leaders sought to prepare doctoral students for service as practitioners who can carry out local research and evaluation that will ultimately shape practice at all levels of the educational system. this close integration of scholarship with practice in both p-12 and higher education settings requires the practitioner to be capable of high levels of organizational awareness in addition to being able to carry out multi-dimensional problem solving (shulman et al., 2006). cped and its member institutions established several emphases for its member institutions’ graduate programs, “(a) the scholarship of teaching, (b) the identification of a signature pedagogy, (c) the creation of laboratories of practice that undertake best evidence analyses, and (d) the development of new capstone experiences in which ed.d. candidates demonstrate their proficiencies in scholarship.” (browne-ferrigno & mceldowney jensen, 2012, p. 408.) these guidelines impact the attitudes and behaviors of the individuals working within the doctoral program and become the foundation of every decision that is made. furthermore, these guidelines ensure a consistent basis for pedagogy, student assessment, and evaluation, all of which tie into concrete behaviors that are identifiable in every graduate. dpelfs has the pedagogical orientation and curriculum design of coursework based on the principles of inquiry-based learning, a primarily student-driven process. inquiry-based learning can be characterized by three principal components: (1) problem-based learning, (2) the integration of contextualized field studies and case studies into the general curriculum, and (3) a research-based approach to developing analytical framework and conducting educational evaluation (donovan, bransford, & pellegrino, 2000). the greatest strength of this pedagogical orientation is in its emphasis on having learners identify organizational problems, develop research questions, and determine the optimal means by which to address those questions. a deeper element to signature pedagogies is that they address and redefine some of the traditional assumptions about how to convey knowledge of the profession to learners. the third and final dimension of signature pedagogies is the underlying expectations of attitudes professionals should hold as norms and the convictions one should act upon (donovan et al., 2000). 6   n. barker & d. ayala   the adopted signature pedagogy of dpelfs, embedded fieldwork, allows doctoral students to design studies relating to school practice and theory, as well as apply collaborative effort in group projects intended to develop individual leadership skills (slater, brown-welty, cohn, & rodriguez, 2009). the goal is to develop highly skilled scholar-practitioners to effect reform in their local educational contexts by creating a bridge from the theoretical knowledge gained through lecture to its application in the field. as a result of a programmatic focus on applied research, students are able to immediately enact and disseminate their findings to improve the effectiveness of their current educational environment; thus, embedded fieldwork distinguishes itself from other, more theoretically-oriented pedagogical strategies through the immediacy of its application in the field (golde, 2007). according to their work examining graduate education in relation to embedded fieldwork, sappington, baker, gardner, and pacha (2010) found that the application of the content of coursework outside of the classroom setting allowed doctoral students to explore a problem holistically. doctoral students participating in action research are able to return to their local contexts with knowledge of an approach that is necessary for catalyzing positive reform. as part of dpelfs coursework, doctoral students are given the opportunity to work with local educational systems to conduct evaluations in a client-evaluator format. leaders of local organizations contact dpelfs faculty with organizational problems they are having that could use a research-based analytical framework to determine solutions. students are tasked with developing an evaluative framework, collecting data, and delivering an evaluation to stakeholders. these projects support the programmatic goals for doctoral students to develop visionary leadership skills to execute concrete educational reform focused on instructional practices and policies, curriculum, campus cultures, school-community relations, and home and school learning environments. this includes developing the capacity within practitioners to build cooperative teams of practitioners and researchers in schools, as well as the research capabilities necessary for the implementation of educational policy and practices that are based on the effective use of data (mandinach & gummer, 2015). doctoral student experiences with projects connected to course curriculum the authors participated in three embedded fieldwork projects as part of the dpelfs implementation of its signature pedagogy. each project was designed to apply the theoretical learning from a specific course to address a problem of practice in an educational setting with which they were not directly involved. each embedded fieldwork assignment required recommendations to the client for action. in the process of analyzing the problem and developing a literature review, the team learned to prioritize possible actions based on principles of change leadership. recognizing opportunities for action that would bring about immediate change was a skill that developed over the course of several fieldwork projects. the first project was assigned in a second semester course, conceptual curriculum perspectives for educational leadership, and focused on the philosophical and cognitive skills necessary to analyze curriculum theory and practice across educational systems. the purpose of the project was to examine curriculum from an external organization and evaluate progress relative to the criteria for meeting programmatic excellence. research, data collection, and analysis using appropriate design methods and instruments were all essential elements of the project. central elements of the course included in the project were system-wide educational doctoral student leadership 7 reform, data-driven decision-making, school and campus cultures, collaborative management, and student development and learning. the second project was conducted during a third term course, educational reform. the purpose of the course was to provide doctoral students with a broad perspective on change in education settings in the context of organizational theory, structure, and culture. change leadership was emphasized in the course. the project required a doctoral student team to meet with a client to discuss the client’s reform project. the team then researched comparable reform implementations, developed recommended strategies to effect the reform, and provided the client with an abbreviated literature review and an executive summary. the third project was a program review of data analytics infrastructure preparedness and use at the university campus, assigned in a fourth term course, educational evaluation, assessment, and planning. the team met with university administrators to define the scope of the project and determine project goals. interviews of leaders on the local campus, as well as participation in a group meeting of leaders from two other campuses who were ahead in their deployment of data analytics infrastructure and software, supplied the data for the project. other doctoral candidates in the cohort selected projects that were varied in topic, scope, and type of client (see figure 1). teams were formed based on interest in the projects suggested by the faculty. each project required an extensive review of the literature, an in-depth written summary of the project for the professor, an abbreviated written report for the client, and a meeting with the client to discuss the findings and recommendations. by performing each of these tasks, the students were able to gain an organizational perspective on the problems of practice in educational environments, which is a necessary precursor to effective leadership. figure 1. sample embedded fieldwork projects course title project title client conceptual curriculum perspectives for educational leadership examination of a curriculum or course design: in-depth case study of an external organization public high school english 9 ab curriculum review suburban pk-12 school district an analysis of curriculum alignment between the first-year writing program and general education courses in the social sciences university: fresno state educational reform development of a reform plan to increase the diversity of an educational law firm educational law firm el dorado park to fresno state: creating an educational pipeline charter high school the international student experience at fresno state university president 8   n. barker & d. ayala   educational evaluation, assessment, and planning evaluation of the total educational systems support (tess) rural pk-12 school district examination of key components of the english language learner programs: indepth case study of merced county schools two rural elementary school districts model character education programs in secondary settings bonner center at fresno state progressing toward analytic maturity: a road map for fresno state university: fresno state becoming change agents as educational leaders leithwood (2012) developed a comprehensive framework for evaluating effective leadership within the context of the school site as well as at the district level. while this framework was originally intended to describe p-12 systems, it has value in the assessment of leadership effectiveness in higher education. the dpelfs program goal of developing visionary leaders who can implement change is supported by the basic premises of the model for evaluating leadership skills, particularly through assessment of what leithwood identifies as one of the more prominent means by which a leader can be assessed, the extent to which a leader can demonstrate what is termed problem-solving expertise. this problem-solving expertise is a set of skills that allows an individual to identify structural challenges and problems and address them with solutions that are supported by research. according to leithwood (2012), such a problem is narrowly defined as when, “(a) there is a gap between some current state of affairs and a preferred future state of affairs and (b) the means required to reduce the gap requires thought” (p. 44). leithwood further identified three types of unstructured problems that require solutions and approaches beyond conventional approaches: those that are historical and persistent, those that are unique, and those that can be addressed with recent developments in research. the expertise in solving problems is not based solely on intellectual skills, but on leadership that can address the particular situation. leithwood’s framework identifies the personal resources that effective leaders develop in three dimensions: cognitive, social, and psychological. according to this framework, the most important characteristics to develop in individuals who are training to be future educational leaders are the skills necessary to envision a better future, understand a given context, and bridge the present with that desired future. as a result of the fieldwork projects, dpelfs students developed their ability to identify problems in educational practice and to apply their skills and knowledge in these external problems to exercise and gain expertise in practice. part of the process involves identifying functional or organizational constraints and creating solution processes to address and overcome them. doctoral student responses after completing the doctoral program, the authors reflected on their leadership learning through embedded fieldwork utilizing the components of the cognitive personal resources framework designed by leithwood (2012). the greatest leadership learning came from the interactions with clients and the application of theory to unstructured problems facing the clients. doctoral student leadership 9 with each project, the team’s understanding of the scope of possible outcomes from the action research increased. the topics of the projects were not similar; however, the doctoral program team applied leadership skills learned in previous projects to each new project. the doctoral student team deduced the principles and values of the clients through interviews and reviews of documents provided by the client and available through organization web sites. in the period of time for the projects, the team found vastly different perceptions among stakeholders in the issues studied for two of the three projects. in contrast, the client for one of the projects was a university president who clearly articulated his principles and values related to the project at the initial meeting. each embedded field work project required collaboration among doctoral students working together on teams. although each team member brought individual strengths to the project, no one member possessed all of the leadership characteristics needed to complete the project. working in stressful situations where there is not a clear, known route to solve the problems forced the doctoral students to learn to respect the individual work styles of their peers and to contribute their strengths and interests to the overall project. learning to control emotional responses to problems in the group work environment is a leadership skill that was greatly needed. strong emotional responses to a problem and what was required to solve it limited flexibility in thinking about ways to solve the problem. summary of reflections learning to work within constraints and envisioning plausible leadership actions in circumstances with multiple, complex issues were the most difficult aspect of the embedded fieldwork projects. however, this was a central feature of the pedagogy of the doctoral program, and the one that had the longest-lasting impacts on student learning. the insight and guidance of faculty was foundational to the success of the team projects. faculty mentoring through both successful outcomes and unsuccessful components of the projects provided valuable learning for the team. preparing the presentations for clients required in-depth study of the problem with an extensive literature review for each project, developing a plan for data collection and analysis, and presenting ideas for solutions through recommendations for the client. this process reinforced the importance of leaders understanding problems from many different perspectives before attempting to carry out a solution. effective teaching practices, at any level of education and in any subject matter, rely upon ongoing reinforcement of learning such that it becomes cemented in long-term practice. in the case of dpelfs and its student learning outcomes, it was clear that leadership skills were developed through the processes of the curriculum and embedded fieldwork. conclusion in conclusion, the embedded fieldwork projects in the doctoral program provided learning that incorporated theory and practice. the variety in the format of the projects and the stated purpose of the projects allowed for both broad learning and learning specific to individual client’s needs. the strongest leadership learning came from presenting the results of the fieldwork projects to the clients. as graduate students presenting a well-prepared project to top administrators on the campus, the team gained a vision of themselves as future leaders. participating in discussions regarding the recommendations presented gave doctoral students feedback about the feasibility of implementing suggestions. 10   n. barker & d. ayala   as a result of these experiences, the authors strongly recommend that graduate pedagogy in educational leadership should supplement traditional instruction with action research. the application of theoretical learning to everyday problems faced by leaders in the field 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(2012). financing american higher education in the era of globalization. cambridge, ma: harvard education press. bkpapertitl bkauthoraffil bkauthor bkabstract educational renaissance vol. 10 (2021) special educat or self -ef f icacy: the im pact of training and exper ience sarah robbie johnson, edd. school of education, fresno pacific university email: sarah.johnson@fresno.edu david r. jones, phd. school of education, fresno pacific university email: david.jones@fresno.edu feature article across the united states, a teacher shortage plagues special education. the shortage dates from the end of the previous century (fideler et al., 2000; müller & markowitz, 2003) and continues to the present (sutcher et al., 2016). in 2010, the national attrit ion rate for special educators reached 13.5%, 9% of whom exited the profession within their first year of teaching (fish & stephens, 2010). in california, 13.4% of special educators left the profession or state between the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 school years (ondrasek et al., 2020). attempts to stem and reverse the shortage of special educators in california have manifested as providing extra support, increasing salaries, improving job satisfaction, fostering job commitment, enhancing educator motivation, outlining alternate certification pathways, and increasing self-efficacy of teachers (california commission on teacher credentialing [cctc], 2015; canrinus et al., 2012; fall, 2010; thornton et al., 2007). special educators? burnout and their resulting departure from the profession result from many factors, with stress representing a abst ract in california, the longstanding insufficiency of special educators has compounded since the 2013-2014 academic year. districts and state legislators have relied on the issuance of substandard permits (i.e., provisional intern permits, short-term staff permits, and intern credentials) to counteract the shortage. however, the effectiveness of this approach has limited evaluation. this study evaluated differences between pre-service and in-service special educators? self-efficacy ratings. special educators serving in california?s central valley on substandard permits or valid teaching credentials (i.e., preliminary and clear credentials) completed the teachers? sense of efficacy scale. differences were assessed across several variables using independent t-tests and one-way anovas. significant differences emerged in special educators? self-reported levels of self-efficacy as a function of credential status, favoring those with valid credentials. the findings indicate a correlation between special educators? credential status (a proxy for training) and self-reported self-efficacy. the results of this study add to the research on special educators? self-efficacy by exploring the phenomenon among a newly emerged group of california-based special educators: substandard permit holders. keywords: self-efficacy, special education, substandard authorization, pathways to teaching mailto:sarah.johnson@fresno.edu mailto:david.jones@fresno.edu mailto:david.jones@fresno.edu mailto:david.jones@fresno.edu mailto:david.jones@fresno.edu johnson & jones| special educator self-efficacy dominant factor. stress experienced by special educators leads to chronic burnout, which can include feelings of powerlessness, depersonalization, and exhaustion (maslach, 1982). additional sources of stress and teacher burnout for special educators include lack of advancement opportunities, excessive paperwork, unsuccessful administrative meetings (roach, 2009), high workload and poor teaching conditions (whitaker, 2001), and insufficient certification (miller et al., 1999)? factors which contribute to lower self-efficacy. teachers with lower self-efficacy reported commensurately low levels of job satisfaction (klassen et al., 2009) and greater job-related stress (betoret, 2006). teachers with lower self-efficacy demonstrated a greater tendency to exit teaching compared to teachers with higher self-efficacy (wasburn-moses, 2005). teacher shor t ages and self -ef f icacy teacher efficacy represents a motivational belief or confidence teachers hold about themselves and their capabilit ies to influence student learning (klassen et al., 2011). klassen and durksen (2014) report that pre-service teachers with higher self-efficacy have a higher commitment to teaching at the end of their teacher preparation programs. chestnut and cullen (2014) found a significant and positive correlation with preservice teacher self-efficacy and commitment to the profession. chestnut and cullen (2014) also found that emotional intelligence and satisfaction with expectations of future work environment related to self-efficacy and that both factors accounted for 3.53% of the variance in educators? commitment to remain in the field. teacher self-efficacy relates to positive teacher behaviors such as enthusiasm, persistence, instructional behavior, and commitment, as well as teachers? willingness to try new instructional strategies (berman et al., 1977). teachers? self-efficacy relates to improvements in student motivation (scherer et al., 2016; tschannen-moran & hoy, 2001a), student self-efficacy, and student achievement (tschannen-moran & hoy, 2001a). additionally, teacher self-efficacy relates negatively to the frequency of student referrals for special education services (coladarci, 1992; meijer & foster, 1988; podell & soodak, 1993). california special education teaching credentials in california, the education specialist (a.k.a. special education) credential represents a two-tiered preparation and licensing process, beginning with the preliminary and culminating in the clear credential (cctc, 2016). however, the shortage of credentialed teachers prompted the state licensing agency? the cctc? to create two alternate certifications (short-term staff permits and provisional intern permits) to address anticipated and acute staffing needs for special education classrooms (cctc, 2015). an overview of california special education credentials and authorizations appears in table 1. the alternate certifications allow individuals to work as teachers in the classroom prior to earning a valid teaching credential. the alternate credential pathways benefited the state in the 2015-2016 academic year, increasing the special education workforce by more than 4,000 educators (carver-thomas & darling-hammond, 2017). however, the issuance of preliminary credentials has not maintained pace with the number of substandard authorizations issued annually. in the 2011-2012 academic year, approximately 60% of special educators in california held a preliminary credential. in the 2017-2018 academic year, conversely, the number of special educators employed on substandard authorizations increased to 65% (ondrasek et al., 2020). table 2 illustrates that new, underprepared special educators in california vastly outnumber those individuals who are fully credentialed (cctc, n.d.). darling-hammond et al. (2016) noted that broadening the pathway to a teaching credential fills empty classrooms but fails to stabilize the supply of credentialed teachers. teachers hired on substandard permits exit from the profession at rates two to three times higher than those who 2 johnson & jones| special educator self-efficacy have comprehensive preparation prior to entering the classroom (sutcher et al., 2016). high turnover costs not only in fiscal terms and inconvenience but in student achievement as well (sutcher et al., 2016). during the 2014?2015 academic year, the number of emergency credentials issued in lieu of the unavailability of a fully credentialed teacher nearly tripled, from approximately 850 to over 2,300 (sutcher et al., 2016). table 3 illustrates the increase of those employed in special education classrooms on pips and stsps from 2015-2020 in california (cctc, n.d.). 3 credent ial type descr ipt ion requirem ent s clear valid credentials issued after two years of teaching with a preliminary credential have successfully taught for two years with a preliminary credential; completed advanced professional development. prelim inary valid credential issued after completion of a professional (usually post-baccalaureate) teacher preparation program holds a baccalaureate or higher degree from a regionally-accredited university or college satisfied the basic skill requirement provided verification of subject matter competency passed the reading instruction competence assessment (rica) passed an exam or completed a course from a regionally accredited university or college on the principles and provisions of the u.s. constitution completed a commission-approved teacher preparation program in a specialty area (credential type) passed the california subjects examination test (csets) int ern substandard permit issued after sufficient (but not entire) study and preparation in a professional teacher preparation program holds a baccalaureate or higher degree from a regionally-accredited university or college passed the california basic skills (cbest) examination passed the subject matter competence (cset) examination passed an examination or completed a course in the principles and provisions of the u.s. constitution (from a regionally-accredited university or college) provisional int ern perm it (pip) or shor t -term st af f perm it (stsp) substandard permit issued by a school district or local education agency, in the event of the unavailability of other qualified or eligible applicants holds a baccalaureate degree or higher from a regionally-accredited university or college satisfied the cbest requirement year n subst andard perm it s percent age prelim inary credent ials percent age 2015-2016 6,406 3,535 55.2 2,871 44.8 2016-2017 7,469 4,156 55.6 3,313 44.4 2017-2018 7,849 4,624 58.9 3,225 41.1 2018-2019 8,463 5,238 61.9 3,225 38.1 2019-2020 8,828 5,336 60.4 3,492 39.6 table 2: new, underprepared special education teachers in california table 1: overview of credential types johnson & jones| special educator self-efficacy table 3: increase of special education pips and stsps each year from 2015-2020 in california self -ef f icacy tschannen-moran, et al. (1998) defined self-efficacy as teachers? beliefs in their ability to organize and execute courses of action necessary to bring about desired results. teacher self-efficacy relates to positive characteristics such as more innovative adoptions and time spent teaching; organization and planning (allinder, 1994); improved classroom management strategies, student motivation, and teacher competence; school climate; commitment to teaching; and deferred referrals of students to special education (berman et al., 1977; chestnut & cullen, 2014; klassen & durksen, 2014; klassen et al., 2011; ). zee and koomen (2016), in a meta-analysis from 162 articles, found that teachers with high self-efficacy cope effectively with a range of problem behaviors, use student-centered classroom behavior strategies, use student-centered classroom practices, act proactively, and establish relationships that are less conflictual with students. high teacher efficacy is directly related to numerous positive educational outcomes for both the student and teacher. teachers? self-efficacy has been heavily researched. teacher self-efficacy shapes the teacher, subject matter, and student attitudes (zee & koomen, 2016). woolfolk and hoy (1990) found that students reported greater interest in school and rated content as more important when the teacher had higher general teacher efficacy. self-efficacy and commitment to the field teachers? self-efficacy relates positively to teachers? psychological well-being (skaalvik & skaalvik, 2016; zee & koomen, 2016), job satisfaction and commitment to the field (zee & koomen, 2016)? factors which contribute to or contend against teacher burnout. additionally, teachers with high self-efficacy are less likely to experience emotional exhaustion and burnout. conversely, teachers with high self-efficacy demonstrate greater commitment to the profession (coladarci, 1992; zee & koomen, 2016). high self-efficacy similarly associates with greater commitment among pre-service teachers (bruinsma & jansen, 2010). however, self-efficacy itself demonstrates malleability in response to the conditions of teaching. for example, skaalvik and skaalvik (2016) found that a lack of shared values between the teacher and school negatively associated with teacher self-efficacy. on the other hand, engagement and teacher self-efficacy related negatively to leaving the teaching profession. to this list of influences, coladarci (1992) added that school climate and teacher-to-student ratios associated inversely with self-efficacy and teaching commitments. canrinus et al. (2012) found that high levels of relationship satisfaction, teacher motivation, and occupational commitment associated with high levels of teacher self-efficacy. a more complex relationship emerged among self-efficacy, benefits and salary, and positive relationships, indicating that the higher a teachers? self-efficacy, the less satisfied they are with fringe benefits and salary than with positive relationships that reduce pressures to remain in the field (canrinus et al., 2012). pre-service teachers pre-services teachers? self-efficacy points to several indications about their commitment to their future careers. klassen et al. (2014) reported that pre-service teachers with higher self-efficacy have a greater commitment to teaching at the end of 4 year n stsp pip 2015-2016 1,690 1,139 551 2016-2017 2,316 1,354 962 2017-2018 2,521 1,538 983 2018-2019 2,873 1,623 1,250 2019-2020 3,016 1,752 1,264 johnson & jones| special educator self-efficacy their teacher preparation programs. other researchers have found a positive association between pre-service teachers? efficacy and their commitment to the teaching profession (chestnut & cullen, 2014; wasburn-moses, 2005). hoy and spero (2005) found more optimism and less stress mediated the relationship between self-efficacy and the commitment to the first year of teaching. thus, self-efficacy provides indications about future teacher supply. comparing preand in-service teachers putman (2012) compared preand in-service teachers to explore how self-efficacy differed as a function of expertise by analyzing responses from 484 participants drawn from a convenience sample of graduate and undergraduate candidates enrolled in teacher preparation programs in the midwest of the united states. the sample consisted of four groups: preservice teachers prior, post and in-service teachers, novice teachers, and experienced teachers. self-reports from pre-service and novice teachers demonstrated significantly lower efficacy than the group of experienced teachers, suggesting that teachers with more experience and time in the field have higher self-efficacy ratings (putman, 2012). bet and erg (2015) found similar results in the differences of teacher self-efficacy beliefs between preand in-service preschool teachers. pre-service preschool teachers scored lower on self-reports of self-efficacy than in-service preschool teachers. purpose the cctc?s effort to stem the teacher shortage included broadening the pathway to teacher credentialing. however, the benefit of that decision has not yet been fully realized as many of the candidates following the new pathway leave the field at higher rates than seen among credentialed special educators. the researchers suggest that identifying and bolstering key traits of substandard authorization holders might expedite the effort to reverse the teacher shortage by optimizing the efficiency of the alternative credential pathway. teacher self-efficacy represents an industry standard for gauging the potential of educators and represents an unexplored facet of those who hold substandard credentials. this inquiry collected and analyzed self-reported ratings to determine variance in teacher self-efficacy as a function of certification status. the researchers hypothesized the following: intern special educators will describe higher self-efficacy ratings than those teaching on other substandard permits (i.e. pips, stsps). credentialed (preliminary or clear) special educators will describe higher self-efficacy ratings than those teaching on substandard permits, including intern credentials. met hods in order to explore the self-efficacy ratings of those following alternate pathways to special educator credentialing, researchers collected and analyzed self-reported self-efficacy ratings, attending to variations that resulted from different credential statuses. design and methodology this study used a quantitative non-experimental correlational survey design. an institutional review board and the administration of two school districts reviewed and approved the parameters of the study before the collection of data. individuals? rights were diligently protected during and after the study. teacher sense of efficacy scale (tses) the tses, ?the predominant measure of teacher efficacy throughout the world? (duffin, french, & patrick, 2012, p. 827), has strong validity and reliability (duffin et al., 2012; klassen et al., 2011; tschannen-moran & woolfolk hoy, 2001b). participants report their ability to effect outcomes on a likert scale, with scores ranging from 1 (nothing) to 9 (a great deal) (fives & buehl, 2009). tschannen-moran and hoy (2001b) found evidence of the internal consistency of the tses as 5 johnson & jones| special educator self-efficacy both a three-factor and a one-factor measure, ranging from 0.91 for the instructional strategies subscale, 0.87 for the student engagement subscale, and 0.90 for the classroom management subscale. on the 24-item tses version (the long form), cronbach?s alpha measured 0.94 (tschannen-moran & hoy, 2001b). the tses measures a larger range of self-efficacy of teaching tasks compared to other measures of the same construct. the tses also provides specificity of tasks for comparison of teachers across contexts, subjects, and levels (hoy & spero, 2005). the tses collects self-reported efficacy and has been used among in-service and pre-service teachers. the long form version of the tses is recommended for use with pre-service teachers (tschannen-moran & woolfolk hoy, 2001b). sample the researchers used convenience sampling by capitalizing on existing partnerships within the central valley of california in order to recruit participants employed as special educators on substandard authorizations or preliminary and clear credentials. participants were employed in one of two large school districts, central valley a or central valley b. these two districts were selected because they serve a large geographical area of the central valley. procedure an invitation to complete the tses was emailed to all special educators employed in the two participating school districts. the survey was emailed to 103 special education teachers in central valley a and 108 special education teachers in central valley b. additional questions were added to the end of the tses to capture demographic information such as credential status, gender, age, prior experience, and years taught. the survey also gauged if respondents had previous experience as a special education para-educator or substitute teacher. the survey was administered electronically through surveymonkey. the electronic administration of the tses was in alignment with current research that supports the reliability and validity of the tses (duffin et al., 2012; klassen et al., 2011; tschannen-moran & hoy, 2001b). data were analyzed using the statistical packages for social sciences (spss). the analysis included procedures for descriptive and inferential statistics. data analysis data were analyzed with independent t-tests and one-way analyses of variance (anovas) to determine if a difference of mean manifested in the dependent variable (i.e. self-efficacy) as a function of varying credential statuses. an initial data review included an analysis for homogeneity of variances (leard statistics, 2015). after confirmation that the data did not meet the assumptions for running a standard multiple regression, one-way anovas were conducted. researchers investigated differences across the three subscales of the tses? student engagement, instructional strategies, and classroom management. result s the researchers received 107 responses (51% response rate), of which seven were significantly incomplete and, therefore, excluded from the subsequent analysis. among the 100 remaining responses, one set represented an outlier. this constituted a threat to the integrity of the data analysis as it was an outlier on all scale scores; its inclusion would unnecessarily skew the data. therefore, it was also excluded. of the 99 responses, three respondents scored slightly lower but were kept for analytical purposes. overall, the study analyzed data from 99 respondents. participant demographics table 4 provides an overview of participants? self-reported credential statuses. most respondents held a clear credential (59.6%). 6 johnson & jones| special educator self-efficacy table 4: credential statuses (n = 99) self-efficacy ratings as a function of credential status results from the one-way anova appear in table 5. the homogeneity of the levene results indicated that the distribution in the groupings? variances are comparable to the distribution in the general population. table 5: test of homogeneity of variances for tses scales x certification status subscale comparisons by credential status. special educators? self-efficacy ratings by certification status are illustrated in table 6. those employed on substandard permits? pip or stsp and intern credentials? scored lowest across the three subscales of the tses, although those with intern credentials had a higher mean score on the three subscales. highest mean scores belonged to those with clear credentials on the instructional strategies (m = 59.72) and classroom management (m = 58.69) subscales, and to those with preliminary credentials on the student engagement subscale (m = 56.64). table 7 illustrates the results of the one-way anova analysis of special educators? self-efficacy ratings by credential status. among those on substandard authorizations, including those on pip/stsp authorizations, intern credentials, as well as those with intern and preliminary credentials no significant differences emerged distinguishing special educators? self-efficacy ratings on the subscale of student engagement (p=0.0001). differences emerged among special educators? self-efficacy ratings as a function of certification status on the student engagement subscale between those with pip/stsp authorizations and those with preliminary credentials. differences also emerged between the groups of pip/stsp authorization and clear credential holders. on the instructional strategies subscale, differences emerged between those with pip/stsp authorizations and preliminary credential holders (as well as between those with pip/stsp authorizations and clear credential holders. additionally, a significant difference emerged between the groups of clear credential holders and interns. no differences characterized special educators? self-efficacy ratings as a function of certification status on the classroom management subscale (p=0.0006). table 8 demonstrates the post-hoc results from the games-howell analysis, including significant differences for special educators? self-efficacy ratings as a function of credential status. significant differences emerged in comparisons of the pip/stsp authorization and preliminary credential groups (p = 0.014), pip/stsp authorization and clear credential groups (p = 0.036), and intern and preliminary credential groups (p = 0.027). discussion the research reported herein addresses a lack of research regarding efficacy among a new subset of teachers: those with pips and stsps. the results supported the hypotheses that intern credential holders would demonstrate greater self-efficacy than those employed on substandard 7 demographics frequency percent pip or stsp 11 11.1 intern credential 12 12.1 preliminary credential 17 17.2 clear credential 59 59.6 tses factors levene statistic df1 df2 p student engagement 1.77 3 95 0.157 instructional strategies 1.04 3 95 0.375 classroom management 1.30 3 95 0.276 johnson & jones| special educator self-efficacy8 n m sd se 95% confidence lower upper student engagement pip/stsp 11 44.81 9.99 3.01 38.10 51.53 intern 12 48.33 7.93 2.29 43.29 53.37 preliminary 17 56.64 5.62 1.36 53.75 59.53 clear 59 54.89 9.17 1.19 52.50 57.28 instructional strategies pip/stsp 11 47.45 11.12 3.35 39.97 54.93 intern 12 49.91 7.19 2.07 45.34 54.48 preliminary 17 57.58 5.95 1.44 54.52 60.65 clear 59 59.72 8.96 1.16 57.39 62.06 classroom management pip/stsp 11 50.09 12.34 3.72 41.80 58.38 intern 12 51.16 9.41 2.71 45.18 57.15 preliminary 17 58.35 6.20 1.50 55.16 61.54 clear 59 58.69 9.28 1.20 56.27 61.11 table 6: descriptive statistics for tses scales x pip/stsp, intern, preliminary or clear ss df ms f p* student engagement between groups 1428.50 3 476.16 6.39 0.0001 within groups 7075.57 95 74.48 total 8504.08 98 instructional strategies between groups 2045.93 3 681.97 9.20 0.000 within groups 6039.42 95 74.09 total 9085.35 98 classroom management between groups 1128.69 3 376.23 4.40 0.0006 within groups 8116.96 95 85.44 total 9425.65 98 table 7: anova results for tses scales x credential status notes.* significance p= 0.5 johnson & jones| special educator self-efficacy authorizations, but that those with valid credentials (preliminary or clear) would report the highest self-efficacy ratings. the differences in self-efficacy as a function of credential status was not surprising as comparable differences emerged in studies comparing preand in-service teachers (bet & erg, 2015; sak, 2015), a pattern which suggests that training and experience inform improvements in self-efficacy. however, the disparity uncovered in this analysis proved troubling because those reporting lower self-efficacy were already serve as teachers, pointing to poor outcomes (chestnut & cullen, 2014; coladarci, 1992; hoy & spero, 2005; klassen & durksen, 2014; meijer & foster, 1988; podell & soodak, 1993) involving those employed with substandard authorizations. limitations this research study had notable limitations including the low representation of those working under substandard authorizations. a smaller group of substandard authorization holders may fail to demonstrate the range and degree of characteristics of the larger group. the recent emergence and overwhelming reliance of substandard authorization holders accentuates the need to include more of those teachers and to remain attentive to longitudinal changes in characteristics. the small sample size limits generalization to teachers across the region or state but may still inform future and larger research. future research besides devising future research endeavors to address the limitations listed above, a number of additional questions present themselves, two of which follow. previous research suggests a malleability in teacher self-efficacy in the context of professional preparation programs, but a dearth of evidence limits understanding of the prospects of those who may not be engaged in a professional preparation program. while it stands 9 comparison md se p 95% confidence lower upper student engagement pip/stsp intern -3.51 3.78 0.790 -14.15 7.12 pip/stsp preliminary -11.82 3.30 0.014 -21.43 -2.22 pip/stsp clear -10.08 3.24 0.036 -19.56 -0.59 intern preliminary -8.31 2.66 0.027 -15.82 -0.80 intern clear -6.56 2.58 0.088 -13.88 0.75 preliminary clear 1.74 1.81 0.770 -3.09 6.59 instructional strategies pip/stsp intern -2.46 3.94 0.0923 -13.68 8.76 pip/stsp preliminary -10.13 3.65 0.064 -20.77 0.50 pip/stsp clear -12.27 3.55 0.020 -22.77 -1.79 intern preliminary -7.67 2.52 0.030 -14.72 -0.61 intern clear -9.81 2.38 0.003 -16.51 -3.10 preliminary clear -2.14 1.85 0.660 -7.12 2.84 table 8: games-howell for tses scales x credential status johnson & jones| special educator self-efficacy to reason that substandard authorization holders may demonstrate improved self-efficacy comparable to pre-service teachers and subsequent to training, the need to appraise the extent and conditions of that improvement remains. another research need related to this topic includes demonstrating the impact of training on the self-efficacy of substandard authorization holders. the pursuit of this inquiry reflects the understanding that desirable outcomes such as improved student learning and teacher retention also result from efficacy enhancements. future research that explores shortand long-term outcomes of self-efficacy improvements will serve to validate the attention to efficacy among substandard authorization holders and advance research on that topic. conclusion an intention of pursuing this inquiry included the aspiration to identify a means of improving the efficacy of the broadened pathway to a teaching credential, namely enhancing the abilit ies of those participating in the pathway to persist to success. the results of this study suggested that, as a group, those employed on substandard authorizations reported lower self-efficacy. fortunately, teacher self-efficacy can improve, especially among those nascent to the field (bandura, 1997; swan, 2015; winters, 2012). the use of the tses in approaching this inquiry proved helpful by identifying three particular domains in which interventions might initiate: student learning, classroom environment, and instructional strategies. it follows that improving self-efficacy of those on substandard authorizations might improve their retention in teaching careers (swan, 2015). broadening the pathway to a teaching career potentially serves schools, aspiring teachers, and students. however, a pathway that only collects more individuals to staff classrooms will exacerbate rather than remediate issues in education. this inquiry intended to demonstrate ways in which the broader pathway to a teaching credential can be optimized. while teacher preparation programs face no onus to provide support to individuals employed on pips or stsps and districts face relatively litt le external pressure to do so (sandy, 2016), all stakeholders? teacher preparation program administrators, school administrators, district administrators, and the teacher who holds a substandard authorization? benefit form collaboratively addressing the low efficacy reported among teachers employed on substandard authorizations. 10 johnson & jones| special educator self-efficacy references allinder, r. m. 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(2016). teacher self-efficacy and its effects on classroom processes, student academic adjustment, and teacher well-being: a synthesis of 40 years of research. review of educational research, 86(4), 981?1015. https://doi.org/10.3102 /0034654315626801 13 https://www.ctc.ca.gov/docs/default- source/educator-prep/intern/files/2016-01- employer-responsibilities.pdf?sfvrsn=f0eb3cfe _0 https://www.ctc.ca.gov/docs/default- source/educator-prep/intern/files/2016-01- employer-responsibilities.pdf?sfvrsn=f0eb3cfe _0 https://www.ctc.ca.gov/docs/default- source/educator-prep/intern/files/2016-01- employer-responsibilities.pdf?sfvrsn=f0eb3cfe _0 http://journals.plos .org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone. 0150829 http://journals.plos .org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone. 0150829 http://journals.plos .org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone. 0150829 http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/ce.2016.713182 https://doi.org/10.1177/002246699302700105 https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/ coming-crisis-teaching https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/ coming-crisis-teaching https://doi.org/10.3200/tchs.80.5.233-238 https://doi.org/10.1016/s0742- 051x(01)00036-1 https://doi.org/10.1016/s0742- 051x(01)00036-1 https://doi.org/10.3102 /00346543068002202 https://doi.org/10.3102 /00346543068002202 https://digitalcommons.uncfsu. edu/dissertations/aai3464552/ https://digitalcommons.uncfsu. edu/dissertations/aai3464552/ https://doi.apa.org/doi/10.1037/0022-0663.82.1 .81 https://doi.apa.org/doi/10.1037/0022-0663.82.1 .81 https://doi.apa.org/doi/10.1037/0022-0663.82.1 .81 https://doi.apa.org/doi/10.1037/0022-0663.82.1 .81 http://review of educational research, 86 http://review of educational research, 86 http://review of educational research, 86 http://review of educational research, 86 http://review of educational research, 86 https://doi.org/10.3102 /0034654315626801 https://doi.org/10.3102 /0034654315626801 johnson & jones (2021) page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 page 9 page 10 page 11 page 12 page 13 educational renaissance vol. 10 (2021) percept ions and underst andings of low lit eracy am ong developing teacher candidat es johannah baugher , edd. school of education, northwest missouri state university email: jbaugher@nwmissouri.edu everet t singlet on, phd . school of education, northwest missouri state university email: esingleton@nwmissouri.edu research article the purpose of this study was to examine developing teacher candidates? perceptions and understandings of low literacy through an intersectional lens. an additional goal of this research was to frame environmental stimuli that these candidates identify as contributing factors of low literacy. the findings from this research study will be utilized to better understand future teachers? action plans for confronting low literacy. research questions 1. how do teacher candidates define low literacy? 2. what perceptions influence teacher candidates? understanding of low literacy and persons with that background? 3. what prevalent factors impact teacher candidates? beliefs about low literacy? theoret ical fram ework this study was based on and informed by crenshaw?s (1989) theoretical construct of intersectionality. crenshaw, (1989) defines intersectionality as a unit of beliefs that describes the way individuals see the world. crenshaw (1989) posited that overlapping and interconnected aspects of a person?s identity should be considered when seeking to understand their perceptions, experiences, and beliefs. these aspects include education, substance use, class, socioeconomics, family support, mental health, foster care, and physical disability, as well as age and other forms of identity. however, intersectional theory is not just about personal identity in a vacuum, but the ways in which it is affected and, to some extent, defined by systems of oppression, discrimination, and privilege. like intersectionality, literacy research and language arts pedagogies attempt to hold accountable historical elements that create inequities. grant and zwier (2017) noted that abst ract while a great deal of research is available to inform the definition of low literacy, its impact on local, state, national, and global levels, as well as commonalities that exist among those comprising this population, litt le is publicized about the perceptions held of this population by members of the general public. yet, despite this identified gap in literature, one set of themes remain: individuals of low literacy are often a marginalized population, susceptible to socioeconomic vulnerability, and disadvantaged in matters of assimilation within many social constructs (flynn et al., 2011; martinez & fernandez, 2010). through this study, attempts will be made to formulate perceptions and understandings of low literacy among teacher candidates. mailto:jbaugher@nwmissouri.edu mailto:esingleton@nwmissouri.edu baugher & singleton| perceptions and understandings of low literacy intersectional research within the scope of education has given attention to both theory and practices, though their emphasis is on the importance of practical application in the classroom setting. scholastic research to date has found the direct correlation between intersectional theory and classroom methods to be limited but evolving (grant & zwier, 2017), a promising conclusion that also indicates a more in-depth reach is needed to effectively address gaps. compton-lilly et al., (2017) examined the way in which immigrant youth negotiated the intersecting categories of their unique identities and how they made sense of these identities through literacy development over a period of time. their findings also confirmed that attending to students? intersectional identities is vital with regard to literacy development. it is important to note that theories of intersectionality are complex, interconnected, and overlapping, and they debunk the notion that categories such as race, class, culture, and language are independent of one another. ?intersectionality reveals the complexities of children?s identities and the ways in which literacy learning overlaps with, interacts with, and entails multiple ways of being that cannot be untangled? (compton-lilly, et al., 2017, p. 136). clearly, classroom practices based on intersectionality could be used to enhance literacy development among students. as intersectionality has a theoretical orientation and is not an established method with confined boundaries, it provides room for open dialogue, in-depth reflection, and real-life action for change. using this theory as a guide, teachers of reading and writing can create lessons and curricula that give attention to the various aspects of their students? identities; they can also extend lessons to illuminate the voices of groups not physically present in the classroom, but vital to cultural awareness. for example, language arts teachers could use introduce common reading pedagogies, such as reading aloud, to ensure that students are provided with opportunities to consume stories about people whose cultural backgrounds are very different from their own. ?by including these readings as part of larger text sets around particular topics, such as refugees, diverse families, and homelessness, teachers can encourage students to pose critical questions about their own schools and classrooms? (brochin, 2018, p. 173). concealment of low literacy often referred to as invisible members of society, those of low or limited literacy background commonly opt to fall under radar so-to-speak, avoiding any potential feelings of embarrassment or shame (flynn et al., 2011; roman, 2004). skills of low literacy are often hidden in full camouflage, as individuals avoid making known any deficiencies for fear of being harshly labeled, isolated, or traumatized (mangro, 2008; melia, 2008). falling victim to marginalization and others? active prejudice, many persons incur low literacy as life?s outcome, not of their own choosing. perceptions of those who identify of low literacy are formed no differently when compared with impressions or judgments made of other populations. driven by an observance of common traits, background experience, and context, person perception engages cognition to construct conclusions about an individual person, or population (cherry, 2020). deductions made of a person or population (accurate or otherwise) can influence subsequent categorizations and stereotypical behaviors (cherry, 2020). these active forces have the potential to influence the future outlook for those of low literacy. in the same way, necessitating an awareness of trauma-informed instruction when working with individuals and family of low literacy background. trauma-informed pedagogical practice research shows that students of color, as well as those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds and their families, often deal with direct and indirect traumas that appear in ?problem behaviors? commonly resulting in incarceration. trauma can manifest from a single traumatic experience caused by an accident or death of a family 15 baugher & singleton| perceptions and understandings of low literacy member, or several continuous traumatic experiences, such as violence or mental, physical, or sexual abuse (cook & newman, 2014). overlooked and subtle trauma in youth can lead to the cradle-to-prison-pipeline. the ?cradle-to-prison-pipeline,? funnels students out of school and into the streets, depriving them ?of meaningful opportunities for education, future employment, and participation in our democracy? (tyner, 2014, p. 1). there appears to be a direct correlation between trauma and educational achievement, specifically rates of low literacy, as well as behavioral challenges, and detainment. the numerous ramifications of undealt trauma can bring into existence adverse situations for students inside and outside of school causing challenging like predicaments for those same students (blodgett, 2015). particularly, students who have endured at least two or more traumatic occurrences were almost three times more likely to be left behind a grade, more likely to have increased absenteeism, and far less likely to be involved in school (bethell, et al., 2014). white-cummings (2016) provides ways that reading and writing can be used as a form of self-expression to help students cope with trauma at school. writing can be used to help students process thinking, manage challenges, and understand emotions. additionally, reading can also be an integral part of the healing process. understanding the struggle of others through reading can help students validate their feelings, through individuals and characters that face similar struggles. being able to see themselves reflected in stories can help them overcome adversity and build resilience (nicholas-frazer, 2019). literacy and the school-to-prison pipeline the role of education and school attendance cannot be underestimated as a powerful tool in counteracting adjudication and incarceration. providing a quality education to students can create an essential, protective element against delinquent involvement in the juvenile justice system (development services group, 2015c); furthermore, education and school attendance is instrumental in the rehabilitation of incarcerated youth. research concludes that further purports that ?? 75% of state incarcerated individuals did not complete high school, or can be classified as low literate? (as cited by harlow, 2003, p. 1 in proliteracy, 2020). further research shows that 43% of adults are reading at an eight grade level or lower in the united states. essentially 29% are reading at eighth grade level, while 14% percent comprehend materials at or lower than a fifth grade level (zoukis, 2017). these reading deficits usually start in the early years and increase as students move through later grades. in order to reduce crime and narrow the cradle-to-prison pipeline, it?s crucial to tackle the issue of widespread illiteracy in this country (zoukis, 2017). research design and met hodology this study used a grounded theory approach, along with analyses of qualitative and quantitative data sources. the researchers examined teacher candidates in one educator-preparation program in a rural, midwestern university to determine perceptions and understandings of low literacy among teacher candidates. the goal was to provide an in-depth description and analysis of a single case or multiple cases (merriam, 2009). this approach, which entailed compiling in-depth information collected via survey (creswell, 2014; fink, 2013), allowed the researchers to explore a specific subject, within the field of education, in real-life settings and hopefully gain an understanding of the different aspects of low literacy as perceived by teacher candidates (mccombes, 2020). first, we used multiple survey questions to draw on teacher candidates? perceptions. next, we analyzed survey data and the teacher candidates? feedback, as their perceptions could provide valuable information in understanding various aspects of low literacy and the impact it has on 16 baugher & singleton| perceptions and understandings of low literacy teacher motivation to confront barriers of low literacy in the classroom. finally, we used emerging themes from the data to determine how teacher candidates perceived and made meaning of low literacy within the context of their own experiences. we also used this information to extract meaning and understand the impact of low literacy and how it could be used to inform literacy instruction. the researchers employed merriam?s (2009) technique of purposeful sampling, which builds on the premise that investigators seek to uncover, understand, and formulate new knowledge by evaluating a relevant sample. par t icipant s and set t ing northwest missouri state university in maryville, missouri has an enrollment of 6,000 undergraduates, and is located in a very rural, geographically remote, isolated area. maryville has a population of 11,972. the moderately selective university enrolls approximately 1,025 students with education majors comprising 658 elementary teacher candidates and 367 secondary teacher candidates, primarily from a four-state region; each state is within 50 miles of the university. each year, approximately 23% of the teacher candidates are pell grant eligible. the vast majority, 96%, identify as white, while 2% identify as latin(x) and 2% identify as multiracial; 36% of teacher candidates are the first in their family to attend college. for the purposes of this research study, 60 students were afforded the opportunity to participate in a five-question survey, with a total of 56 responses collected. all students surveyed were in the course, multiculturalism in education, which is a requirement of all education majors. students enrolled in this course are generally upperclassmen (junior and/or senior status) and have participated in a variety of field experiences across other program coursework. key findings and result s from the five-question survey administered to teacher candidates enrolled in the course, multiculturalism in education, 56 responses were collected. from those respondents, the following themes were extracted, per question, as outlined in the paragraphs that follow. survey question 1 asked: what does low literacy mean to you, and what personal experiences influenced your perspective? four themes extracted from survey results were identified that suggest teacher candidates interpret low literacy to mean an obstacle, outcome, level of performance, or a relative degree of achievement. survey question 2 asked: how do you perceive individuals of low literacy backgrounds? four themes extracted from survey results were identified that detail teacher candidates attach no judgment to persons of low literacy. additional themes suggested that teacher candidates perceive individuals of low literacy backgrounds to be disadvantaged in some way, whether at school, home, quality of health, poverty, etc. these factors share a commonality in that they are all situationally-defined, specific to the individual person. teacher candidates also held the common perception that individuals of low literacy backgrounds share in conditions of absence, be it effort, opportunity, or systems of support. the last theme identified specific to this question is that the presence of low literacy is independent of outcome. in other words, teacher candidates majorly agreed that individuals of low literacy could and should not assume full responsibility for such an outcome. when given a listing in excess of 15 potentially-influential factors which contribute to low literacy as an outcome, teacher candidates? responses identified the following leading factors. of 56 respondents, 52 or 93% indicated their belief that presence of a disability could be a contributing factor to low literacy as an outcome. conditions of poverty was also believed to be a contributing factor for low literacy as 51 respondents or 91% of candidates surveyed marked such on their completed survey. next, patterns of poor school attendance was acknowledged as an influential factor for low 17 baugher & singleton| perceptions and understandings of low literacy literacy to result by 50 survey respondents or 89%. the fourth factor believed to influence low literacy as an outcome was homelessness. forty-nine teacher candidates or 88% of those surveyed checked this factor as significant. lastly, three factors tied in fifth place. they include: lack of support, mental health challenges, and school attrit ion. eighty-two percent of those surveyed (46 respondents) acknowledged these factors equitably play a contributing role in low literacy as an outcome. by the same token, teacher candidates identified five factors to be least impactful in their contribution to the outcome of low literacy. specifically, 23 of the 56 survey responses, or 41% believed teen pregnancy to be a contributing factor for outcomes of low literacy. forty-three percent or 24 of the 56 responses believe life as a single parent weighs heavily upon low literacy as an outcome. experiences in the foster care system are believed to influence occurrences of low literacy by approximately 53%, or 30 survey respondents. fifty-nine percent of those surveyed, or 33 of 56 responses, believe bullying to play a significant role in low literacy resulting. lastly, family challenges were perceived by 68% to be impactful in influencing low literacy as identified by 38 of the total 56 respondents. this information is further captured in the following visual. survey question 4 asked: how do you plan to confront barriers of low literacy as a future educator? four themes were extracted based on candidates? responses. they include: a) act, respond, and intervene; b) invest in students; c) connect with families; and d) equalize educational opportunity and access to resources. the value of relationships and power of connections were also noted repeatedly. discussion and im plicat ions from the findings, an interesting perception surfaced. as detailed above, 88% of survey respondents believed homelessness to be an influential factor for low literacy to result. according to findings from voices of youth count (2017), ?one in ten young adults ages 18 to 25 endure some form of homelessness in a year? (p. 1). moreover, the millennial generation sadly leads in the number of households in poverty, when compared with other generations? household data (fry, 2017). given that the majority of survey respondents would fall into this age bracket, it is difficult to dismiss the influence that group norms might have played into the formation of this perception (johnson, 2006; levi, 2013). further research might illuminate the prevalence of low literacy as it exists within the ecological systems of the teacher candidates surveyed (bronfenbrenner, 1979). opportunities for further research have potential to inform the validity of the presumption above, in addition to revealing patterns of homelessness as 18 figure 1: factors believed to contribute to the outcome of low literacy baugher & singleton| perceptions and understandings of low literacy it exists in type: chronic, episodic, transitional, or hidden (jaggi, 2019). jaggi (2019) further details the lead differentiator between these four layers of homelessness lies in the frequency of the pattern. in other words, chronic reflects persistent, ongoing patterns of homelessness that exists for up to and beyond a year?s time. episodic is considered to reflect up to three instances of homelessness within a span of 12 months. transitional seasons of homelessness result because of significant changes or interruptions in life patterns and/or catastrophic events. lastly, hidden homelessness is just that because of an absence of documentation or reporting pattern. jaggi (2019) further likens the layer of hidden homelessness to couch surfers, being very fluid and spontaneous in their arrival, length of stay, and departure. given this unexpected theme which emerged from the survey data, continued research is justified, working to further investigate the correlation between rates of low literacy and homelessness (on any level) among millennial, college students. this factor was an overarching theme that emerged from the data set uniquely as homelessness was not found to be a predictor of low literacy in other cited research. thus, making it an important theme to examine within the context of our research study. sum m ary while litt le is known of the perceptions held by members of the general public toward persons of low literacy background, this research study worked to inform a subset of those perceptions as held by developing teacher candidates. additionally, this study sought to more concretely frame contributing and non-contributing factors which this same population believed influenced occurrences of low literacy. anchored in the concept of intersectionality (crenshaw, 1989), this study collected and analyzed 56 survey responses which yielded informative themes that further defined low literacy as an obstacle, outcome, level of performance, or degree of achievement. teacher candidates further demonstrated an understanding that conditions of low literacy were often situationally-defined as those persons were commonly disadvantaged in some way. candidates? responses further purported their action plan in confronting low literacy in their classroom was founded upon these verbs: act, invest, connect, and equalize. in educator preparation programs, it will be important to create opportunities for developing teachers to notice predictors of low literacy in order to guide an appropriate response. authentic opportunities to share this information with students and the university community alike will help create an awareness of low literacy and the shackles it can place on individuals for a lifetime. though this study alone is not comprehensive or absolute in its 19 figure 2: non-factors believed to contribute to the outcome of low literacy baugher & singleton| perceptions and understandings of low literacy findings, it does help to inform a step of the journey that will lead to a more accurate understanding of the perceptions held of low literacy and its many, influential tentacles. references bethell, c. d., newacheck, p., hawes, e., & halforn, n. 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https://www.american bar.org/groups/gpsolo/publications/gpsolo_ ereport/2014/june_2014/the_emergence_of_the_ school-to-prison_pipeline/ https://www.american bar.org/groups/gpsolo/publications/gpsolo_ ereport/2014/june_2014/the_emergence_of_the_ school-to-prison_pipeline/ https://www.american bar.org/groups/gpsolo/publications/gpsolo_ ereport/2014/june_2014/the_emergence_of_the_ school-to-prison_pipeline/ https://www.american bar.org/groups/gpsolo/publications/gpsolo_ ereport/2014/june_2014/the_emergence_of_the_ school-to-prison_pipeline/ https://voicesofyouthcount.org/wp-content/ uploads/2017/11/chapinhall_voyc_1-pager_final _111517.pdf https://voicesofyouthcount.org/wp-content/ uploads/2017/11/chapinhall_voyc_1-pager_final _111517.pdf https://voicesofyouthcount.org/wp-content/ uploads/2017/11/chapinhall_voyc_1-pager_final _111517.pdf https://ourselvesblack.com/journal /2016/9/27/reading-writing-and-traumatic-stress -helping-kids-cope-during-the-school-year https://ourselvesblack.com/journal /2016/9/27/reading-writing-and-traumatic-stress -helping-kids-cope-during-the-school-year https://ourselvesblack.com/journal /2016/9/27/reading-writing-and-traumatic-stress -helping-kids-cope-during-the-school-year https://www.huffpost.com/entry/basic-literacy-a- crucial-tool-to-stem-school-to-prison https://www.huffpost.com/entry/basic-literacy-a- crucial-tool-to-stem-school-to-prison baugher & singleton (2021) final page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 microsoft word 3. coy-dec 2016.docx vol. 5, no. 1, dec 2016, pp. 27-36 post-secondary educators can increase educational reach with universal design for learning kimberly coy california state university, fresno abstract meeting the needs of a variety of learners in college and university settings is of vital importance. by designing courses infused with universal design for learning (udl) principles, guidelines and checkpoints; professors and instructors create environments targeted toward meeting the educational needs of a wider variety of students. udl works most effectively at the design stage. this paper aims to support learning environment design by presenting ten specific strategies for infusing udl within post-secondary courses at the university level. these strategies will include: identifying barriers to learning, alternatives for participating during class time, effective alternative assessments based on construct relevance and udl meta cognitive goals and transparency. 28   k. coy   introduction college and university instructors have an increasingly diverse student population attending a wide variety of classes including first generation students, students in poverty and students with learning disabilities. with a large variety of learners entering post secondary settings the challenge of capturing the talents of this group is often a struggle (rose, harbour, johnston, kaley & abarbanell (2006). harnessing the instructional design power of universal design for learning (udl) is an instructional design lens that has the potential to provide access to rigorous curriculum (meyer & rose, 2005). the purpose of this paper is to highlight a focus on planning and designing university curriculum to enable learning that is inclusive. this paper will provide a path to designing postsecondary courses using the udl guidelines. due to the increased online and blended course offerings, this paper addresses face-to-face, blended, and fully online learning environments. relevant and concrete examples for using udl in post-secondary and university course design and implementation will be given throughout the paper. this is not a complete compilation of ideas by any stretch. the content delivered here is to start a conversation, to begin ideas, and to give direction for providing continued access to rigorous content for all learners. the term universal design for learning refers to a scientifically valid framework for guiding educational practice that – (a) provides flexibility in the ways information is presented, in the ways students respond or demonstrate knowledge and skills, and in the ways students are engaged; and (b) reduces barriers in instruction, provides appropriate accommodations, supports, and challenges and (c) maintains high achievement expectations for all students, including students with disabilities and students who are limited english proficient (20 u.s.c. 1003(24)). table 1 uses the cast principles, guidelines and checkpoints by making the language actionable. that is, when using a framework of learning where student’s are assumed to hold a vast amount of variability, this table provides specific objectives professors, instructors and course designers can practice to create access to rigorous curriculum for a wider student assembly. table 1. actionable udl provide multiple means of engagement to encourage purposeful, motivated learners provide multiple means of representation to encourage resourceful, knowledgeable learners provide multiple means of action and expression to encourage strategic, goaldirected learners provide options for recruiting interest by optimizing individual choice and autonomy optimizing relevance, value and authenticity minimizing threats and distractions providing options for perception by offering ways of customizing the display of information offering alternatives for auditory information offering alternatives for visual information providing options for physical action by varying the method for response and navigation optimizing access to tools and assistive technologies provide options for sustaining effort and provide options for language, mathematical provide options for expression and post-secondary udl 29 persistence by heightening salience of goals and objectives varying demands and resources to optimize challenge fostering collaboration and community increasing masteryoriented feedback expressions and symbols by clarifying vocabulary and symbols clarifying syntax and structure supporting decoding of text, mathematical notation, and symbols promoting understanding across languages illustrating through multiple media communication by using multiple media for communication using multiple tools for construction and composition building fluencies with graduated levels of support for practice and performance providing options for selfreflection by promoting expectations and beliefs that optimize motivation facilitating personal coping skills and strategies developing selfassessment and reflection provide options for comprehension by activating or supplying background knowledge highlighting patterns, critical features, big ideas, and relationships guiding information processing, visualization, and manipulation maximizing transfer and generalization provide options for executive functions by -guiding appropriate goalsetting supporting planning and strategy development facilitating managing information and resources enhancing capacity for monitoring progress path #1: identify barriers inherent in all learning environments are barriers. these barriers can be unique to individual settings, students, or a product of the technology. instructors can begin by taking specific inventory of the physical environment and notice the all too often barriers provided in many classrooms. from the overhead lighting that reduces most humans to one-dimensional versions of themselves, to the desks that were not built to accommodate laptops or power up any devise. what can be done to overcome these barriers? advocating for a change of classroom might work. another options may include having students group desks together to form makeshift tables, letting students sit on the floor, brining in alternative lighting, or turning off the overhead lights all together. students who have hearing impairments often have sign language interpreters to support overcoming the language barrier, but what about the student with dyslexia? providing materials that can be read with a screen reader will support those students when visually reading text can become a barrier to the content. online courses come with barriers that instructors should inventory as well (burgstahler & cory, 2013). one may be the online learning platform (ols) the university provides. a particular ols may be new to the institution or overly complicated. a way to break down this barrier is to create or use and existing tutorial for the specific ols. allowing a tutorial to be the beginning part of the online course, with course credits or points, helps to mitigate this barrier. 30   k. coy   important to remember with a barrier inventory is that learners should be expected to contribute to this process. what is a perceived barrier for one learner is not for another. a robust discussion of barriers and their eliminations are an important part of any course. path #2: provide options for recruiting interest course objectives and the assignments connected to those objectives need to be presented with transparency. an example of this would be “the learner will demonstrate knowledge of issues in school reform, restructuring, and the role of inclusive education in these efforts.” the assessment relates specifically to the course objective: “create a representation of a california school reform, and/or restructuring that include the role of inclusive education.” the rubric is connected to both: “accurate representation of the reform and restructuring elements and specifically contains the role of inclusive education.” this process gives transparency for learners to the process of the relevance, value, and authenticity of each assignment or assessment. in both face-to-face and online environments learner choice on how to express their knowledge is important. examples can include meeting the objectives through an essay, an interactive poster, or using free resources such as powtoon, animoto, or powerpoint with voiceover. path #3: provide options for sustaining effort and persistence provide specific places to get help (grabinger, 2010). the lines between face-to-face and digital course delivery definitely blur with this specific path. office hours for access to the instructor can, and should, have options for both face-to-face and digital communications. to further encourage options professors should have some face-to-face hours each week, some synchronous options with a delivery system such as skype or zoom, as well as a place to put questions asynchronously, usually email. in order to foster collaboration and communication all of the preceding options can be open to group participation. undoubtedly some learners may prefer to be one on one with their instructor for some questions, and in a group for other questions or content discussions. encourage idea sharing by providing a back channel where learners can make comments and pose questions to each other as an ongoing part of course communications. for face-to-face or synchronous delivery this can be a community chat using padlet, or a shared google document. for asynchronous delivery this could be a closed facebook page, twitter hashtag, and again a google document. path #4 provide options for self-regulation support strategies in executive functions. students take and post class notes on class website on a rotating basis. students can self-grade their own online discussions when a rubric is provided. the instructor can ask for a midterm check for learner understanding and mastery of course objectives (i.e., survey monkey). this data provided allows for the learners to self-check where they are in understanding the class objectives, and allows for the instructor to customize learning. communicating frequently with the whole class by sending a weekly email helps reduce stress and encourage thinking and self-reflection on course progress. path #5: provide options for physical action even in the digital world there is physical action. for example, learners need to be able to physically navigate a laptop, tablet or smart phone to be able to express their ideas and thoughts post-secondary udl 31 through these devices. instructors need to make sure learners are able to use these devices without physical barriers. in addition instructors need to assure that students are not lacking information to be able to navigate devides. for example, if assignments are in one form only, like a traditional paper, this may provide students a narrow way to demonstrate understanding of the goal. by providing alternatives for participation during class time and study time instructors are more likely to get a better response toward the educational goal. in face to face classrooms during lectures, presentations, or class discussions teachers might encourage students by providing alternatives to joining in whole group discussions. learners could choose to chat in small groups or with one other student, or even to journal privately. accessing technology to provide the ability for students to text, voice, video, email, facebook message, skype etc. in distance learning specific examples for student options might include: • encouraging students to make a short video for an assignment using imovie • teaching students how to create a voki. then giving voki as an assignment alternative. • asking students to give a tour of their study area during a synchronous lesson or meeting using the video option. path #6: provide options for expression and communication strive for effective alternative assessments based on goals and objectives. one type of expression is not equally suited to every student, or every goal. the current free or low cost opportunities for learners to demonstrate understanding or ask questions is practically unlimited. as an instructor or educational designer do not assume students know how to use enough of these options to make deep choices. provide new resources for expression and teach learners how to use the specific resources. for example use viemo, youtube, prezi, powerpoint with voiceover, or glogster. so instructors are up-to-date of the technologies learners use, ask students to generate resources to share with the class. instructors should provide consistent communication to students specifically addressing how the course objectives are being addressed during the quarter, semester, or year. face-to-face class sessions can be designed to address this progress on a rhythm. for example once a week at the beginning of a class period the instructor can specifically address progress on course goals and objectives. in a digital environment the instructor should send out a weekly email addressing progress to course objectives. learners should have an opportunity to reflect on their own progress as well. this allows students to take steps to course correct themselves if necessary. path #7: provide options for executive functions use the udl metacognitive goals with transparency by explaining and pointing out instructor thinking around the choices of content and assessment. as when telling a story to illustrate a concept, make a point of telling the students that story telling is an option for multiple means of representation. instructors should use meta-cognitive goals with transparence by explaining and pointing out instructor thinking around the choices of content and assessment. for example, when telling a story to illustrate a concept, make a point of telling the students that story telling is an option for multiple means of representation. the digital world offers almost too many choices in new applications and programs. students need a way to judge what options work for them, a way to match the application with the assignment. teachers need to provide instruction to support learner choices. this does not mean that the teacher needs to have mastery of each option, but instead is willing to learn along side students in making judgments. one 32   k. coy   specific example could involve offering a class three choices for an assignment that reflects on interacting with new content, i.e., a book chapter, journal article or lecture: imovie, powerpoint with voiceover, or voki. included in the assignment is a reflection piece on the effectiveness of their choice of expression. share the reflections with the whole class. path #8: provide options for perception start with the syllabus! syllabus considerations include presenting the course syllabus in a variety of ways, placing information for support systems and accessibility at the beginning of the syllabus and making the introduction to the course personal and friendly. the instructor should present the syllabus in accessible digital form so that a screen reader may be used. this is helpful for both face-to-face and online courses. make a video recording out of the syllabus. an excellent example is from the on campus website developed with cast: http://udloncampus.cast.org/home#.ve6ccrcf9vk path #9: provide options for language, mathematical expressions, and symbols set students up for success by assuming that they will need individual clarification around different concepts (coy, marino, & serianni, 2014). teach students how to use accessible options for the web platform. just because every students does not need that level of accessibility doesn’t indicate that they should not be able to use these features. it’s empowering for all and included in most common resources such as google and word. path #10: provide options for comprehension use the power of webcasts and web-based conferencing. explore and understand the visual, audio, and interactive features of webcasts. use web conferences to engage students in an alternative form to check comprehension. • use zoom (www.zoom.com) for planned synchronous instruction. this is a low cost interactive tool that participants join through a website, and students can see each other’s facial expressions. • google hangouts. if pope francis can run a google hangout, so can you. construct relevance constructs are the knowledge, skills, or abilities that are measured by assessments. instructors should continually evaluate the assessment required of students and consider that irrelevant factors may impede accurate assessment of individual student knowledge, skills and abilities. for example, differences in organization and time management, or background skills and knowledge could result in inaccurate measurement of student’s abilities on course objectives. traditional discussions are an identifiable barrier for many students in post secondary online courses. because peer-to-peer learning is so important in university work it is necessary to reduce this barrier. plan for a variety of ways for student’s to interact. here are some specific ideas: • create a facebook page that is open only to the students in the course. assign postings, (written, images, videos, graphic organizers) based on reaction to content, encourage and then assign students to comment on each others posts. • gifs. go to facebook, message a friend, click on gif button, type in the idea “have a good day” and you can send an expression immediately. better yet, have students create post-secondary udl 33 their own gif’s to send to each other or the instructor to express ideas and reactions to content. table 2 provides specific example of each path in both face-to-face and digital learning environments. once again, these examples begin the conversation. professor’s deep content knowledge will propel rigorous ideas that meet the lens of udl, opening doors to content important for learners to master on their way to success. table 2. guidelines with udl plan with universal design for learning face to face example digital example identify barriers check the physical environment for lighting, power sources, group work spaces. online learning systems provided by the institution that are overly complicated, new to the students, or professors. provide access to tutorials. provide options for recruiting interest connect course objectives to assignments with transparency. offer choices for assignments including an essay, a group presentation, or an illustrated book chapter. give learners choices whenever possible when interacting with both objectives and content. examples include using udlbookbuilder, animoto, powtoon, and working as individuals or groups. provide options for sustaining effort and persistence encourage sharing ideas by providing a back channel where learners can make comments and pose questions to each other as an ongoing part of course communications. padlet, google docs, closed facebook group, twitter hashtag. provide specific places to get help. office hours can be accessed faceto-face, skype, zoom, google hangout, instant messenger, twitter chat. provide options for selfregulation support strategies in executive functions. students take and post class notes on class website on a rotating basis. students self-grade their own online discussions. use survey monkey to check learner understanding of class objectives. use this data to allow for student self-check. 34   k. coy   provide a rubric provide options for physical action allow for alternatives for participation during class time, and study time accessing technology to provide the ability for students to text, voice, video, email, facebook, twitter etc. in addition to speaking during class discussions, permit learners to write journal reactions or share in smaller groups. allow students to make short videos for assignments. students can use imovie. teach students how to use voki, and use voki’s as an assignment alternative. provide options for expression and communicati on use technology choices to provide specific resources for choice. i.e., viemo, you-tube, prezi, powerpoint with voiceover. ask students to generate resources to share with the class. do not assume students have mastery of these alternatives. strive for effective alternative assessments based on construct relevance. ask students to generate resources to share with the class to increase options. this allows for the instructor to be aware of new resources, and to understand the resources students find most accessible. provide options for executive functions use the udl meta cognitive goals and transparence by explaining and pointing out instructor thinking around the choices of content and assessment. provide instruction on how to analyze the digital options available to students. provide options for perception present the course syllabus in a variety of ways: digitally, recorded explanation, word and pdf. access the on campus website developed by cast http://udloncampus.cast.org/home#. ve6ccrcf9vk provide options for language, mathematical expressions, and symbols set up students for success by assuming that they will each need clarification around different concepts. teach students how to use accessible options for the web platform, as well as other resources: google and word. post-secondary udl 35 provide options for comprehensi on explore and understand the visual, audio and interactive features of webcasts. use web conferences to engage students in an alternative form to check comprehension. use zoom (www.zoom.com) for planned synchronous instruction. 36   k. coy   references burgstahler, s. e. & cory, r. c. (eds). (2013). universal design in higher education. massachusetts: harvard education press. coy, k, marino, m.t., & serianni, b. (2014). using universal design for learning in synchronous online instruction. journal of special education technology, 29(1), 63-74. grabinger, s. (2010). a framework for supporting postsecondary learners with psychiatric disabilities in online environments. electronic journal of e-learning, 8(2), 101-110. meyer, a. & rose, d. h. (2005). the future is in the margins: the role of technology and disability in educational reform. in d. h. rose, a. meyer & c. hitchcock (eds.), the universally designed classroom: accessible curriculum and digital technologies (pp. 1335). cambridge, ma: harvard education press. rose, d. h., harbour, w. s., johnston, c. s., daley, s. g., & abarbanell, l. (2006). universal design for learning in postsecondary education: reflections on principles and their application. journal of postsecondary education and disability, 19(2), 17. u.s. department of education (2012). higher education opportunity act – 2008. retrieved from http://www2.ed.gov/policy/highered/leg/hea08/index.html microsoft word 1. stobaugh-dec 2015.docx vol. 4, no. 1, dec 2015, pp. 3-18 technology-infused instructional framework: improving pre-service teacher lesson planning rebecca stobaugh, margaret maxwell, janet tassell western kentucky university abstract the focus of this research is to examine the impact of an instructional instrument to improve the quality of pre-service teachers’ lesson plans. the heat instrument focuses on four components essential to high-quality lesson plans: higher-order thinking, engaged learning, authentic learning, and technology. the research study examined a) data from elementary education classes for two semesters to measure the impact of the heat instrument on instructional planning during the semester and b) these pre-service teachers’ subsequent performance on the teacher work sample compared to a control group of student teachers to measure the impact of the instrument on pre-service teacher performance. in the treatment group, pre-service teachers’ scores on the heat instrument were lower each successive semester of the study; however, during the student teaching semester the teacher candidates had higher scores on the teacher work sample which measured the four components embedded in the heat instrument. keywords: lesson plans; bloom’s taxonomy; teacher education; cognitive complexity; higher-order thinking; technology integration; authentic learning; engaged learning 4   r. stobaugh, m. maxwell & j. tassell   with state teaching standards requiring technology integration and schools spending thousands of dollars on technologies, there are increasing pressures on teacher candidates to become more proficient in technology integration. however, oftentimes technologies are simply used in basic ways to present information or to capture students’ attention. educators are looking for meaningful ways to integrate educational technology to advance student learning. districts are concerned that technology is too expensive to not make an impact on learning, and teachers feel the pressure to use the technologies in meaningful and impactful ways. the international society for technology education established standards for teachers (iste, 2008) and for students (iste, 2007). these standards promote students using technology to be creative, communicate, collaborate, and think critically. similarly, the partnership for 21st century skills promotes students working collaboratively to create media products while engaging in critical thinking. in the framework for 21st century teaching, the partnership for 21st century skills (2009) stated that a learning experience should be one that “enables innovative learning methods that integrate the use of supportive technologies, inquiryand problem-based approaches and higher order thinking skills” (p. 8). these new expectations indicate higher student competence when using technology to collaborate with students on higher-cognitive learning tasks about real-world topics. this inclusive view of technology—one where technology integration is linked to higher-level thinking, authenticity, and engagement—is the basis of the heat instrument. the heat instrument moersch (2002) originally developed the heat instrument and the researchers have made revisions to clarify wording to teach lesson plan design and to assess the quality of lesson plans. the heat instrument includes components: higher-order thinking, engaged learning, authentic learning, and technology. higher-order thinking the 21st-century learner is expected to be a problem solver and critical thinker. anderson and krathwohl (2001) define higher-order thinking as “the mental processes that allow students to develop factual, conceptual, and metacognitive knowledge within the creative and critical domains.” bloom (1956) defined and quantified six levels of student thinking: knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation levels. the model designates foundational knowledge (knowledge and comprehension) as important to developing higher levels of thinking (application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation). krathwohl (2002) better defined the cognitive processes within each level, expanding upon bloom’s work. the updated levels include: remembering, understanding, applying, analyzing, evaluating, and creating (krathwohl 2002). liu ru-de (2010) investigated the importance of leveraging higher-order thinking. her study found students who were able to understand at a deep level were able to construct their own rationalizations, explanations, and extrapolations (ru-de, 2010). in marzano’s research about delivering high-quality teaching and learning in the 21st-century classroom, cognitive thinking skills were identified as a critical element (marzano, 2010). the learning target or objective of a lesson can be raised to higher levels of cognitive thinking. as teachers raise the learning target of a particular lesson, it can be argued that instruction has improved. when objectives, activities, and assessments are properly aligned at higher levels of cognitive thinking, not only has instruction improved but also student learning improves (raths, 2002). technology-infused instructional framework 5 engaged learning today’s 21st century learners need to move to the center of learning process as they utilize new technological tools, search for credible information, make meaning, and create new products. this leads to a changing role of teachers as they coach and guide student learning. prensky (2010) calls this partnering—a 21st century method of students and teachers working and collaborating together to produce and ensure student learning while preparing them for a new and different future. instead of telling information, the teacher designs a variety of interesting, open-ended, thought-provoking questions or problems to be answered. partnering teachers find that the process involving students more in the learning leads to higher engagement. utilizing students’ passions and interests are the perfect routes and filters through which partnering teachers create individualized learning—learning that will stick in their minds, be valuable in their lives, and make them want more (prensky, 2010). bogaert, pressley, and hawkins (2006) collected artifacts from ten sixth grade classrooms and categorized teachers into either highlyengaging, moderately-engaging, or low-engaging. results indicated the teachers with the most variety of instructional strategies coupled with providing support for student independence and choice were the most engaging. this higher level of engagement with choice and more studentdirected tasks is expressed in the level 3 and higher on the heat framework. authentic learning splitter (2008) makes a case for educational authenticity being referenced from the earliest philosophical writings of plato and rousseau. certo, conley, moxley, and chafin (2008) reported students stated “un-authentic” assignments include completing worksheets or taking notes. authentic learning has recently been clearly defined by prensky (2010). marc prensky (2010) makes a sharp demarcation between relevance and real. relevance means that students can relate to the learning to something they know. in other words, the context is familiar to the students. prensky articulates that relevance is that it does not go far enough. real means that there is a clear connection by the students between what they are learning and their ability to use that learning to do something useful in the world. real learning connects content to current or future issues and also involves making an impact on those current issues or events. making education real goes beyond teaching content just because it is required in the curriculum. instruction and content should relate to the students’ world in a real (not just a theoretical) way. further, learning should also involve changing and improving their world. students need to relate math not to real-world or relevant math word problems but to “real” experiences actually taking place such as a bridge collapsing or being built (computing forces or stress), an election that’s taking place (probability, percentages, statistics), a space launch (trajectories, fuel consumption, rates of speed and acceleration), golf tournament (parabolas), baseball or football (statistics), or a song being recorded (timing, notes, compression, sampling rates (prensky, 2010). teachers can help students make real-world connections with workers, practitioners, and outside “experts” as possible. these community or field experts can serve as models, guide in research, and assist with problem solving (prensky, 2010). technology little research exists on the combined impact of technology integration with higher-level thinking. while researchers continue to make the case for the positive correlation between higher-order thinking skills and integration of technology (agnew 2002; lee 2002; thomas 2002), making the exclusive connection remains difficult (sherry & jesse 2000; trucano 2005). 6   r. stobaugh, m. maxwell & j. tassell   the international society for technology in education (iste) published the national education technology standards (nets) for students in 2007. these standards support the holistic view of technology found for the heat instrument by calling attention to: creativity and innovation; communication and collaboration; research and information fluency; critical thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making; digital citizenship; and technology operation and concepts. these standards have pieces that are directly related to the heat instrument document. related to higher-order thinking, a connection to standard 1, creativity and innovation, is that students “created original works as a means of personal or group expression.” another is “apply existing knowledge to generate new ideas, products, or processes. also related to higher-order thinking, in standard 3, research and information fluency, a connection to the heat framework t column for technology integration is “process data and report results.” related to engaged learning, in standard 2, communication and collaboration, a connection to the technology integration on the instrument is made with “contribute to project teams to produce original works or solve problems.” also, related to engaged learning, from standard 5, digital citizenship, the heat document connects with “exhibit a positive attitude toward using technology that supports collaboration, learning and productivity.” related to authentic learning, from standard 4, critical thinking, problem-solving, and decision-making, three components relate to technology component on the heat framework: “identify and define authentic problems and significant questions for investigation,” “plan and manage activities to develop a solution or complete a project,” and “collect and analyze data to identify solutions, and/or make informed decisions.” as a pure technology integration connection, from standard 6, technology operations and concepts, the heat framework includes the essence of “select and use applications effectively and productively.” it appears that standard 6 is what technology in the past would have encompassed. an interesting observation one can make from the consideration of the nets for students (2007) is that standard 6 has been and is still readily the only standard being utilized and addressed in the classroom by many teachers at all levels. the hope is that the heat instrument can push the thinking of how technology can bolster student learning through all areas of higher-order thinking, engaged learning, and authentic learning (international society for technology in education, 2007). heat framework levels the heat instrument incorporates six levels of performance for each component: higher-order thinking, engaged learning, authentic learning, and technology (see table 1 for heat framework). the levels are as follows: 0 = non-use, 1 = awareness, 2 = application, 3 = exploration, 4 = integration, 5 = expansion, and 6 = refinement (see table 1 for heat instrument). a target level of 3 or higher on the heat instrument was established because students are using higher-level thinking (analyzing or higher), engaging in project-based learning with more choice in their projects, simulating the real world, and creating technology products even if they are an add-on to the lesson (see table 2 for heat example). at higher levels of heat, students are more responsible for their own learning, beginning to think like experts, planning their own learning experiences while learning is embedded in the real world, and technology is seamlessly integrated and a necessary part of the learning experience. in the technology component student use of technology is emphasized, not teacher use of technology. several overarching themes began to influence the development of this heat framework. one technology-infused instructional framework 7 significant theme is whether the instruction is teacher-directed or student-directed. this is the separating line between levels 3 and 4 through all components. as pre-service teachers are exposed to heat instrument and design lessons around these components, the hope is that teacher candidates should possess greater abilities to integrate technology in a research-based framework that will positively impact future lesson planning as they develop their teacher work sample. teacher work sample through the renaissance partnership, a consortium of 11 universities designed the teacher work sample (tws). the tws purpose was to measure the abilities of pre-service teachers along with assessing their ability to impact student learning (the renaissance partnership for improving teacher quality, 2010). through this performance-based assessment tool, pre-service teachers can demonstrate the ability to plan, deliver, and assess a standardsbased instructional sequence, analyze student assessment, and reflect on their own instruction and student learning to improve teaching practice. the goal was that the tws would promote higher expectations of teacher candidate performance during student teaching semester. the tws has been adapted from the western oregon university teacher work sample methodology (schalock, schalock, & girod, 1997). the original tws assessed pre-service teacher preparation on seven critical teaching processes to improve p-12 instruction and student learning: contextual factors, learning goals, assessment plan, design for instruction, instructional decision-making, analysis of student learning, and reflection and selfevaluation (denner, norman, salzman, pankratz, & evans, 2004). after years of using the tws as a culminating or capstone performance project, one university developed a task force to revise the tws to better align with state teacher standards, improve the reliability of the assessment, and refine tws sections. the revised tws included five sections: • contextual factors: determining the student and classroom context to design instruction • learning goals and assessment plan: establishing learning goals and developing pre-, post-assessments to measure and learning results • design for instruction: designing a plan for instruction for all students that addressed unit learning goals and were aligned with concepts and processes assessed • analysis of student learning: reporting and analyzing learning results for all students • reflection and self-evaluation: reflecting and evaluating on the teaching and learning within in the unit one noticeable refinement was in the design for instruction section. in the original tws, for teacher candidates to score be proficient on the technology indicator within the design for instruction section, a pre-service teacher had to explain how they incorporated technology in their unit or offer a strong rationale for not using technology. with the increasing expectations that teacher candidates integrate technology, the tws task force felt there needed to be higher expectations of technology use. in the revised tws, for a proficient rating in technology, the pre-service teacher must, “demonstrate technology integration in planning and instruction and how p-12 student use of technology will be integrated in unit for higher level thinking activities and in a real-world context” (tws, 2011, p. 16). the revised tws requires several new elements for technology incorporation including: (a) student use of technology, (b) technology used for higher-level thinking tasks, and (c) technology embedded in real-world contexts. first, technology integration centers on students in the p-12 classroom using technology. in the 8   r. stobaugh, m. maxwell & j. tassell   previous studies at the university, primarily pre-service teachers were using the technology to plan lessons and present information (stobaugh, mcdonald, & tassell, 2010). for teacher candidates to be proficient, the p-12 students in the classrooms must be using the technology for learning. another requirement in the revised tws is that technology must be utilized to engage students in critical thinking. technology should not simply be used as an attention-getting device, but rather as a way to enhance student learning. finally, the indicator requires students to utilize the technology in a real-world context. the revised tws aligns closely with the heat components of higher-level thinking, engagement, authentic connections, and technology integration. purpose through teaching pre-service teachers to utilize the heat instrument to design higher quality lessons, the authors believe they can positively impact pre-service teacher performance on the teacher work sample where these pre-service teachers implement the lesson plans in teaching and assessing students. this research will provide data on whether this instrument can help better train teacher candidates to develop high-quality lessons. research questions this study examined the heat of lesson plans and the tws created by pre-service teachers from two semesters in teacher education courses at a southeastern university. the research questions are as follows: 1. what percentage of lesson plans prepared by pre-service teachers score at a level 3 or higher in higher-order thinking activities? 2. what percentage of lesson plans prepared by pre-service teachers score at a level 3 or higher in engaged learning activities? 3. what percentage of lesson plans prepared by pre-service teachers score at a level 3 or higher in authentic learning? 4. what percentage of lesson plans prepared by pre-service teachers score at a level 3 or higher in technology activities? 5. is there a significant difference in the tws scores of the pre-service teachers who learned to plan lessons with the heat instrument and pre-service teachers who did not learn to plan lessons with the heat instrument? methodology the authors believe that pre-service teachers can design lessons at a heat level of 3 or higher. this section will discuss the participants, instruments, procedures, and data analysis. participants the participants for the heat group included pre-service teacher education students in two undergraduate elementary education methods courses in the spring 2010 and fall 2010 semesters. the students randomly selected themselves when they registered for sections of the methods courses with the researchers or sections with other instructors. the students had no prior knowledge of the heat framework or that it would be used in these particular methods course sections. technology-infused instructional framework 9 the participants for the non-heat group included pre-service teacher education students in undergraduate elementary education methods courses in the spring 2010 and fall 2010 semesters that were taught by instructors other than the researchers. one course was eled 465 elementary education senior project and the second course was eled 405 teaching mathematics in the elementary school. the participants in the eled 405 and eled 405 course were the same students during the respective semester and both courses were taught face-to-face. the participants in the non-heat group were located at different locations and taught via instructional television equipment. the numbers of students can be found in table 1. table 1 participants in heat study from spring 2010 and fall 2010 group course # sections spring 2010 # sections fall 2010 heat eled 405 1 22 1 24 eled 465 1 22 1 24 nonheat eled 405 4 58 5 82 eled 465 4 58 5 82 there were 144 students in eled 490 student teaching in the fall 2010 who completed the course and submitted a completed tws. this included 21 students from the spring 2010 courses that used the heat instrument in lesson planning and 123 students from other sections of eled 405 and eled 465 from previous semesters. there were 95 students in eled 490 student teaching in the spring 2011 who completed the course and submitted a completed tws. this included 21 students from the fall 2010 courses that used the heat instrument in lesson planning and 74 students from other sections of eled 405 and eled 465 from previous semesters. the number of students in the eled 405 and eled 465 is different from the number of students reported in the eled 490 student teaching because students sometimes skip a semester between their prior coursework and student teaching for various reasons. the reasons may be placement issues, submission of paperwork by the due dates, or personal reasons. some students received a grade of incomplete and were not counted in the study. only students who completed student teaching within the semester and submitted a final tws were counted in the study. instruments the heat framework and the teacher word sample instrument that are described above were used in this study. procedures teaching procedures the participants in the courses that were introduced to the heat instrument were required to develop lesson plans as part of the typical course requirements. the pre-service teachers in eled 465 area were required to design one lesson plan that embedded the heat components. in the eled 405 course, the pre-service teachers were required to design a problem-solving lesson. in the classes, model examples of heat lessons at a level 3 were showcased, professors and peers provided formative feedback to initial heat lesson plan ideas, 10   r. stobaugh, m. maxwell & j. tassell   and finally peers critiqued lessons prior to submission for additional feedback. a portion of the grade for the assignment was based on the students meeting all the 3 level heat indicators at a level 3. teacher candidates were given a score and written comments. after the first year of introducing the heat instruction, the professor and research team met and discussed their successes and improvements needed, their understanding of the heat framework, and ways to improve both the heat framework and their instruction in the second year. the team did revise some wording within the heat framework and instruction for the elementary methods courses were discussed. the same professors taught the courses the next year; therefore, there was consistency in the professors and course content. the participants in the other sections of eled 405 and eled 465 were taught the same content but were not introduced to the heat framework for lesson planning. scoring procedures forty-two pre-service teachers’ lesson plans from the spring 2010 and 46 plans from the fall 2010 semester from the two courses were assessed with the heat instrument. student names were removed from the lesson plans, numbered, and randomly divided. next, blind scoring was conducted by the researchers and trained scorers using the heat instrument. the scores were recorded in excel spreadsheet files. in total, six evaluators rated the lessons – three were the researchers, two were assistant superintendents from local school districts (both were familiar with the heat instrument and used the instrument in their school districts), and one was an instructional designer (who had taught the heat instrument in graduate courses) at the same institution. the researchers trained the three other scorers on the use of the heat framework for the scoring of the lesson plans. a main focus of the training was on calibration of the scoring of the evaluators. to establish the calibration, the researchers chose four anchor lessons with agreed upon ratings, and trained and discussed these in detail for scoring calibration of the application of the instrument. the new members of the scoring team each scored the “training” lesson plans, shared and discussed their ratings for each of the four heat components. at this point in the study, the calibration goal was to score two consecutive lessons with heat component ratings no more than one level apart on each component from the score set by the researchers. after three training lessons, the calibration goal was met. after the calibration was established, three teams of scorers were paired together with one researcher in each of the pairs. the lesson plans were randomly distributed among the three scoring teams. a scoring team evaluated the same set of lessons – giving every lesson in the study two sets of scores. the ratings were recorded on spreadsheets. the scores were averaged when the scorers did not agree upon a score, which will explain why the ratings chart includes some scores containing “.5”. for example, scores of 2 and 3 would average to give a score of 2.5 on the tables 2-6 as seen in the results section. the tws data were collected in fall 2010 and spring 2011, the subsequent semesters after the pre-service teachers completed the methods classes and were student teaching. all student teachers in the elementary program submitted a tws at the end of the semester as their capstone project. using analytic scoring rubrics developed by the renaissance partnership institutions, faculty score each component and associated indicators of the tws based on a scale of 1 = beginning, 2 = developing, and 3 = proficient, and 4 = exemplary. the education program faculty deems a score of two on the four-point scale to be considered mastering the component or associated state teacher standard. for a beginning rating, pre-service teachers would use minimal technology in their planning and instruction. to be classified as developing, technology-infused instructional framework 11 pre-service teachers would utilize some technology in planning and instruction. a proficient rating could be achieved if students demonstrate technology integration in planning and instruction with students utilizing technology for higher-level thinking tasks and in real world contexts. an exemplary rating would indicate students demonstrated skills beyond proficient with minimal assistance and on the first attempt. professors of the student teacher class assess pre-service teachers’ abilities to meet the technology requirements as well as the other tws indicators. data analysis pre-service teachers that were taught to use the heat instrument in lesson planning were compared to other elementary education pre-service teachers in student teaching who took the same methods classes with other instructors, but were not trained to use the heat instrument in lesson planning. for research questions 1-4, frequencies and percentages were calculated for each component of heat. a t-test was used to determine if there was a significant difference in the tws mean scores of the heat group and the non-heat group for research question 5. results and discussion analysis of heat levels of pre-service teacher lesson plans in this section, the results are provided where the lesson plans were double scored by the scoring team. when the double scores were not in agreement, the two scores were averaged together. the range of scores could span 0-6. with the possibility of the average between the two scorers, the increments increase by 0.5. tables 1-4 depict the results of the data analysis for each of the heat components to be discussed in detail below, while table 5 depicts the scores on the heat framework as a holistic score. research question 1. what percentage of lesson plans prepared by pre-service teachers score at a level 3 or higher in higher-order thinking activities? table 1: frequencies and percentages for higher-order thinking using the heat instrument average rating spring 2010 fall 2010 n % n % 0 .5 1.0 2 5 5 10.0 1.5 1 2.1 2.0 13 31 16 34.7 2.5 20 43.4 3.0 27 64 4 8.7 3.5 4.0 mean 2.6 2.1 n-size 42 46 ratings >=3 27 64 4 8.7 12   r. stobaugh, m. maxwell & j. tassell   for the higher-order thinking component, the pre-service teachers’ assignment was to plan instructional tasks with “students learning at an analyzing, evaluating, or creating levels of bloom’s taxonomy” (bloom, 1956) with “teacher-directed questioning and instruction” at higher level thinking. the undergraduate frequency scores for spring 2010 and fall 2010 ranged from 1.0 and 3.0 with a target of 3.0. in the spring 2010 semester mean scores were 2.6 with a decline to 2.1 in the fall of 2010. sixty-four percent of the students achieved a score of 3 in spring 2010 compared to 8.7% in the fall 2010 with a decrease of 55.3%. research question 2: what percentage of lesson plans prepared by pre-service teachers score at a level 3 or higher in engaged learning activities? table 2: frequencies and percentages for engaged learning using the heat instrument average rating spring 2010 fall 2010 n % n % 0 .5 1.0 3 7 7 15.2 1.5 5 10.8 2.0 33 79 25 54.3 2.5 7 15.2 3.0 6 14 2 4.3 3.5 4.0 mean 2.1 1.9 n-size 42 46 ratings >=3 6 14 2 4.3 for the engaged learning component, the pre-service teacher frequency scores for spring 2010 and fall 2010 ranged from 1.0 and 3.0 with a target of 3.0 for the engaged learning component of heat. to achieve a 3, the lesson plan had to include: “student choice for projects or to solve a problem posed by teacher”; “students are engaged in projects based on preferred learning styles, interests or passions”; “used multiple instructional strategies.” in spring 2010 the mean was 2.1 compared to the mean score of 1.9 for fall 2010 semester. only 14% of the pre-service teachers (n=6) achieved a score of 3 in spring 2010 compared to 4.3% (n=2) in the fall 2010 showing a decrease of 9.7%. research question 3: what percentage of lesson plans prepared by pre-service teachers score at a level 3 or higher in authentic learning? technology-infused instructional framework 13 table 3: frequencies and percentages for authentic learning using the heat instrument average rating spring 2010 fall 2010 n % n % 0 1 2 .5 1.0 12 29 4 8.7 1.5 7 15.2 2.0 24 57 29 63.0 2.5 5 10.8 3.0 5 12 1 2.1 3.5 4.0 mean 1.79 1.9 n-size 42 46 ratings >=3 5 12 1 2.1 the authentic learning component of heat measures if “learning may be relevant to the real world or the past”; “learning occurs in a simulated real-world situation such as a class store.” the pre-service frequency scores for spring 2010 and fall 2010 ranged from 1.0 and 3.0 with a target of 3.0. in the spring 2010 semester the 2.0 frequency was the highest rating with 57.0% of the scores and 73.8% of the scores with a 2.0 or 2.5 rating. there was a noticeable decrease in the number of 1 scores with 29% (n= 12) in spring 2010 to 8.7% (n=4) in fall 2010. there were 12% (n=5) of the pre-service students achieving a 3 rating in the spring 2010 and 2.1% (n=1) achieving a 3 rating in fall 2010 showing a decrease 9.9%. research question 4: what percentage of lesson plans prepared by pre-service teachers score at a level 3 or higher in technology activities? table 4: frequencies and percentages for technology using the heat instrument average rating spring 2010 fall 2010 n % n % 0 6 14 2 4.3 .5 1 2.1 1.0 20 48 11 23.9 1.5 2 4.3 2.0 7 17 14 30.4 2.5 9 19.5 3.0 9 21 7 15.2 3.5 4.0 mean 1.45 1.8 n-size 42 46 ratings >=3 9 21 7 15.2 14   r. stobaugh, m. maxwell & j. tassell   for the technology component, to obtain a level 3 score, the lesson plan needed to include: "technology use appears to be an add-on or alternative—not essential for task completion”; “technology is used for higher-order thinking tasks such as analysis and decisionmaking." in fall 2010 and spring 2011, there was a large percentage of students that were below the target score of three. however, the level 3 scores were higher than any other component (except the spring 2010 higher level thinking) with 21% (n=9) and 15.2% (n=7) in the fall 2012. only 15.2% achieved a 3 in fall 2010 and 21.6% achieved a 3 or above in the spring 2010 semester with a 5.8% decrease. table 5. percentage scoring a three or above average rating undergraduate spring 2010 fall 2010 % % h 64 8.7 e 14 4.3 a 12 2.1 t 21 15.2 for each of the heat components there was a decrease in heat scores from spring to fall 2010. there was a 55.3% decrease in the higher-level thinking component. the lowest decrease was for technology component (5.8%). analysis of teacher work sample mean scores of heat and non-heat groups research question 5: is there a significant difference in the tws scores of the pre-service teachers who learned to plan lessons with the heat instrument and pre-service teachers who did not learn to plan lessons with the heat instrument? table 6. ratings on the teacher work sample by pre-service teachers from the heat group and the non-heat group average rating heat non-heat heat non-heat fall 2010 spring 2011 n % n % n % n % beginning 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 developing 7 33.3 32 26.0 2 9.5 9 12.2 proficient 9 42.9 67 54.5 7 33.3 54 72.9 exemplary 5 23.8 24 19.5 12 57.1 11 14.9 total 21 100 123 100 21 99.9 74 100 twenty-one elementary education students who were used the heat instrument in the spring 2010 semester completed the tws in the fall 2010 semester. another 21 students who used the heat framework in the fall 2012 semester completed the tws in the spring 2011 semester. for the control group of elementary education pre-service teachers who were not exposed to the heat instrument, 123 completed the tws in fall 2010 and 74 in spring 2011. technology-infused instructional framework 15 in both semesters, all elementary education pre-service scores ranged between the developing, proficient, and exemplary categories. in fall 2010, the number of pre-service teachers instructed with the heat framework had 23.8% (n=5) score at an exemplary rating compared to the 19.5% (n=24) in the control group who had not been instructed with the heat framework. however, in the spring 2011, the heat group had 57.1% (n=12) compared to 14.9% (n=11) of the non-heat group scoring exemplary. that is a 42.2% difference between the heat and the control group’s percentage scoring exemplary. this group was the second group exposed to the heat framework. table 7. mean tws data from fall 2010 and spring 2011 group fall 2010 spring 2011 heat 2.9048 3.4762 non-heat 2.9350 3.0270 table 8. t-test using combined data from fall 2010 and spring 2011 tws group n mean sd non-heat 197 2.9695 0.6220 heat 42 3.1905 0.7726 t-value -2.00; probability 0.0468 the t-test was used to determine significant differences between the heat and nonheat groups because this statistical test can account for different sample sizes. the data from the two semesters were combined for this calculation for two reasons: the different sample sizes in the groups and to combine the effects of the heat instruction over two semesters. the purpose was not to test the differences between the two semesters but to test the differences between the two groups over the 2010-2011 academic year. there was a significantly higher score for the heat group, t(239) = -2.00, p <0.05, on the teacher work sample than the nonheat group (see table 8). this indicates that pre-service teachers who used the heat instrument for lesson planning performed better on the teacher work sample than pre-service teachers who were not exposed to the heat instrument for lesson planning. conclusions the four components of the heat instrument provide a means for teachers to conceptualize how to improve the instructional quality of their lessons. when teachers design lessons that “raise the heat,” instruction is engaging, cognitively complex, authentic, and embedded with technology. the combination of the heat elements ensure that technology is integrated in a research-based method to increase the quality of lessons that meet 21st century expectations. the higher-order thinking component was the highest scoring component (64%) in the spring 2010 semester with the technology component as the second highest (21%). the payoff is reflected in the increased percentages of pre-service teachers who scored exemplary (57.1%) on the tws the next semester compared to 14.9% of the other pre-service teachers who were not exposed to the heat instrument. the heat implementation in methods courses significantly improved the pre-service teachers’ performance on the tws. therefore, we can conclude that 16   r. stobaugh, m. maxwell & j. tassell   when pre-service teachers use the heat instrument to design higher quality lessons, it does impact their lesson design and performance; i.e., implementation or teaching the lesson. this increase in quality lessons and instruction for students can positively impact k-12 student learning. implications for future research a version of the heat instrument will continue to be used to score pre-service and advanced teachers’ lesson plans in our coursework. the authors will continue to refine the instrument and collaborate on how to use the heat framework in pre-service and advanced teacher courses. if pre-service and advanced teachers are consistently designing instruction at a level 3 or higher on a framework such as this, the goal is to prove that these high quality lessons can positively impact k-12 student learning. the teacher work sample capstone project has provided this research study with an end product study opportunity that is quite opportune to capture and consider. the heat instruction for the lesson plan application for the pre-service teachers takes place typically in the semester immediately before the tws semester. what would then be interesting for future study is to follow these same participants as they progress into the field as teachers and/or graduate students. as teachers, it would be of utmost interest to continue the study as to whether or not heat framework lesson plan design is continues to impact their ability to design high-quality lessons. however, a larger concern is whether or not the heat lesson is actually being implemented or taught at the level that the lesson written or designed. in other words, oftentimes what is seen in the research during the lesson plan instruction semester, pre-service teachers have the opportunity to deliver or teach the lesson. what is observed happens to be at a lower level of cognitive complexity in many cases than the lesson was designed. when the lesson is not taught with appropriate rigor, students are not learning to their potential. another research concern is to examine how pre-service and practicing teachers are designing the assessments for their students to exhibit their learning in regard to their heat lesson. what is initially found in the lesson plans tends to be of good quality. however, when the lesson plan designer is asked to create a model student product and score it with their rubric, many issues surface regarding their depth of understanding of assessment. a misalignment of objectives, instruction, and assessment is observed when the pre-service teachers design this model student product and attempt to score it with their rubric for the lesson. there appears to be a disconnect between the quality and expectations in the lesson plan in comparison to the product that the students are to complete to show their learning from the lesson. another angle to achieve this research is to require the pre-service teachers to submit a student assessment product that is directly from their heat lesson plan and develop a scoring plan. the hope in the entire conversation regarding assessment is that pre-service teachers will better see the lesson as a complete cycle with the assessment included. technology-infused instructional framework 17 references anderson, l.w., & krathwohl, d.r. (2001). a taxonomy for teaching, learning and assessing: a revision of bloom’s taxonomy of educational objectives. new york: addison wesley. bloom, b. s. (1956). taxonomy of educational objectives. philadelphia: david mckay publishing company. bloom, b.s., englehart, m.d., furst, e.j., hill, w.h., & krathwohl, d.r. (1956). taxonomy of educational objectives: the classification of educational goals. handbook 1: cognitive domain. new york: david mckay. dener, p. r., norman, a. d., salzman, s. a., pankratz, r., & evans, s.e. (2004). the renaissance partnership teacher work sample: evidence supporting score generalizability, validity, and quality of student learning assessment. in e.m. guyton, & j. r. dangel (eds.), research linking teacher preparation and student performance, (pp. 23-55). dubuque, ia: kendall/hunt publishing company. driscoll, m. (2000). psychology of learning for instruction. needham heights, ma: allyn & bacon. herrington, j., & oliver, r. (2000). an instructional design framework for authentic learning environments. educational technology research & development, 48(3), 23-48. international society for technology in education (2007). the national educational technology standards for students. eugene, or: international society for technology in education. retrieved from http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-students.aspx international society for technology in education (2008). the national educational technology standards for teachers. eugene, or: international society for technology in education. retrieved from http://www.iste.org/standards/nets-for-teachers.aspx 18   r. stobaugh, m. maxwell & j. tassell   jones, b., valdez, g., nowakowski, j., & rasmussen, c. (1994). designing learning and technology for educational reform. oak brook, il: north central regional educational laboratory. marzano, r. j. (2010). teaching inference. educational leadership, 67(7), 80-81. moersch, c. (2002). measures of success: six instruments to assess teachers’ use of technology. learning & leading with technology, 30(3), 10-18. partnership for 21st century skills (2009). p-12 framework definitions. retrieved from http://www.p21.org/storage/documents/p21_framework_definitions.pdf the renaissance partnership for improving teacher quality. (2010). teacher work sample: performance prompt, teaching process standards, scoring rubrics. retrieved from http://www.uni.edu/itq/rtws/. schalock, h. d., schalock, m., & girod, g. (1997). teacher work sample methodology as used at western oregon state college. in j. mcmillan (ed.), grading teachers, grading schools: is student achievement a valid evaluation measure? (pp.15-45). thousand oaks, ca: corwin press. school of teacher education. (2011). teacher work sample. bowling green, ky: western kentucky university. siemens, g. (2004). connectivism: a learning theory for the digital age. retrieved from http://www.elearnspace.org/articles/connectivism.htm stobaugh, r.s., mcdonald, m. l., & tassell, j.l. (2010). student teacher use of technology to facilitate teaching and learning. in c. maddux (ed.), research highlights in technology and teacher education 2010, (pp. 43-52). chesapeake, va: society for information technology & teacher education (site). degner (2017) final.pdf educational renaissance vol. 6 (2017) a syst em s-wide approach t o universal design for learning im plem ent at ion joni l. degner , udl facil i t at or , cast professional learning cadre & bartholomew consolidated school corporation email: jonidegner@gmail.com universally designed leadership: applying udl to systems and schools by katie novak and kristan rodriquez $34.99, paperback (isbn: 9781930583627) $34.99, epub (isbn: 9781930583634) book review in the book universally designed leadership: applying udl to systems and schools authors katie novak and kristan rodriquez apply a universal design for learning framework to educational leadership. novak and rodriguez begin by reminding readers of cast?s suggested model of udl implementation which includes five phases: explore, prepare, integrate, scale, and optimize. universally designed leadership is intended to support schools and districts in the first three phases (explore, prepare, and integrate) with a promised forthcoming second volume to support the final phases (scale and optimize). in true udl fashion, novak and rodriguez explicitly state the goal of their work: ?our goal is to help education leaders learn why udl is important, what groundwork needs to be laid to implement udl, and how to start to build the system? (novak & rodriguez, 2016, p. x). ?chapter 1: building your understanding? begins by activating or supplying udl background knowledge for readers and helping leadership understand the necessity of ?minimizing the threat of adopting ?another? initiative? (novak & rodriguez, 2016, p.1). in this chapter, novak and rodriguez masterfully apply the metaphor of gravity to leadership: ?like gravity, great leaders are a force that can pull together their colleagues to create a highly universal design for learning (udl), an instructional framework based in neuroscience, optimizes teaching and learning by supporting learners through three overarching principles: multiple means of engagement, multiple means representation, and multiple means of action and expression (?about universal?). these principles and the subsequent framework that grew out of the work of cast co-founders and framework co-creators dr. david rose and anne meyers has become greater than the sum of its parts. practitioners who have even dabbled in universal design for learning have likely come to the understanding that udl is a student-centered value system of flexibility, accessibility, and high standards for all students; indeed, the goal of universal design for learning is to create learning environments where students grow to be experts in their own learning. the every student succeeds act (essa) defines and endorses universal design for learning as the framework for designing learning experiences that support the success of all learners. mailto:jonidegner@gmail.com degner | a systems-wide approach to universal design functional system? (novak & rodriguez, 2016, p. 2). no time is wasted in articulating that leaders themselves must be expert learners as they navigate the phases of udl implementation. universally designed leadership provides a look into one district?s thinking, engagement of stakeholders, and self-reflective practices that led them to the phases of udl implementation. armed with their own mission and the endorsement of udl in essa, they set forth in creating a shared vision for the district, resolving to do the following: ?design an inclusive plan, implement the plan, monitor progress, and refine the strategy? (novak & rodriguez, 2016, p. 7). one of the highlights of universally designed leadership is that it features many tools, graphics and tables (multiple means of representation) that help readers understand how these critical components of district or school-wide udl implementation align to the udl framework. for instance, on the table that aligns the steps of creating a shared vision to the udl framework, the step design a plan for shared vision aligns to these udl components provide multiple means of engagement by optimizing relevance, value, and authenticity as you consider all stakeholders and their involvement. provide multiple means of action and expression by guiding appropriate goal-setting and planning for strategy development. the table aligns each part of the shared vision to actionable udl steps, and it is just one of several alignment tools to guide leadership in their thinking, reflecting, and strategizing through the explore and prepare phases of implementation. perhaps one of the most helpful alignment tools in universally designed leadership is the one that shows the crosswalk between udl and multi-tiered systems of support (mtss), positive behavior interventions and supports (pbis), new curriculum standards, and educator evaluation. this alignment tool will be pivotal for schools and districts who are seeking to eliminate random acts of school improvement, improve student outcomes, and organize the meaningful work they are already doing. for readers who are fans of novak?s udl now, they probably loved her teacher translation of the guidelines. in universally designed leadership, novak and rodriguez bring that same clarity and functionality to administrators in a version that articulates the ?big ideas of each guideline and its implications for administrators? (novak & rodriguez, 2016, p. 8). great udl leaders will be dog-earring, highlighting, and referring to these pages of universally designed leadership. this understanding of the guidelines as they apply to administrators will move them through the critical conversations about data, data-collecting, and data-based decision-making, all detailed, aligned, and supported in the explore phase of universally designed leadership, a phase the authors liken to readying the site upon which to pour a foundation for a home. novak is a master of udl analogy, and there?s no shortage of that in this book. novak and rodriguez skillfully thread the analogy of building a house throughout the pages of universally designed this movement toward udl has brought forth inspiring leaders and advocates like katie novak. novak?s work in udl as a veteran teacher and now administrator in massachusetts, and her passion for bringing udl to the masses is evident in her first tit les udl now: a teacher?s guide for applying udl in today?s classroom and udl in the cloud. in one of her latest books, katie novak teams up with seasoned administrator kristan rodriguez to bring us universally designed leadership: applying udl to systems and schools (from cast professional publishing), a book that leverages their collective expertise in a system-wide approach to udl implementation. universally designed leadership bears the appealing and even endearing hallmarks of much of novak?s work: practical and functional knowledge, masterful analogy, and a trusted, authentic teacher voice. 45 degner | a systems-wide approach to universal design leadership which provides the reader with a cohesive vision to the work of udl implementation outlined in the text: in our role as leaders, we are tasked with building the foundation for our schools to flourish. a foundation alone, however, will not result in high-performing districts. it?s the house that we build upon our foundation that will define us as leaders(novak & rodriguez, 2016, p. 41). calling on the work of curtis and clay?s strategy in action: how school systems can support powerful teaching and learning, the authors again share their own example in using the logic model, ?a tool to plan, implement, and evaluate district improvement strategies and initiatives? (novak & rodriguez, 2016, p. 42). true to udl flexibility, the authors also remind readers that if a school or district has an existing action-plan template, the components of the logic model can be easily overlaid and connected to that work. one of the hallmarks of udl is that it focuses on students becoming expert learners, and novak and rodriguez keep that goal at the forefront of universally designed leadership: for so many years, we created plans based on the actions of adults and not the outcomes of our students. we had action steps about professional development, and the success measures were defined by us completing the task. we never asked ourselves whether it had any meaningful impact on achievement. logic models hold us accountable for student outcomes(novak & rodriguez, 2016, p. 46). one of the strengths of this book is how the text itself models the udl framework. this section about data-based decision-making and the logic model is cerebral, especially for a reader who may not be an administrator dealing with this work on a regular basis, but the text circles back at just the right times to solidify understanding, call on prior knowledge, and ready its readers for movement through the phases of implementation. one of the greatest triumphs for teachers comes from ?chapter 6: professional development that models udl.? in this prepare phase of implementation, administrators are called on to provide universally designed professional learning for teachers. collaborating with staff to define a pd calendar and pd initiatives goes a long way to increasing engagement. our professional development choice offerings have been a great success because they are based on evidence, involved multiple stakeholders, and celebrated and elevated our teachers to increase engagement. (novak & rodriguez, 2016, p. 71) this chapter delivers 10 steps for designing a high-quality pd system for udl along with their district?s example of celebrating teacher leaders, utilizing a multipart series approach to pd, and supporting the people designing and delivering pd (outlined in table 6.1 applying the udl guidelines to professional development). the 10 steps and the example of their district?s work around universally designed pd, what they refer to as critical parts of ?the foundation for success for all learners? will have teachers cheering and celebrating their administrators and saying, ?atlast! udl for us!? universally designed leadership concludes by offering leaders the possibility of an unencumbered evaluation process. true to form, this section scaffolds this process through an examination and udl alignment of the massachusetts model system for educator evaluation, sample rubrics from bartholomew consolidated school corporation, a district that explicitly included udl into its teacher success rubric, and two case studies. returning to the analogy that great leaders are like the force of gravity, katie novak and her works have been a force of leadership, innovation, and inspiration for the field of education and universal design for learning. her partnership with kristan rodriguez and the work that resulted in universally designed leadership are defined by a true modeling of the udl framework, a call on leaders to be expert learners, engaging all stakeholders, leveraging udl as a district-wide decision-making tool, and focusing on student outcomes. 46 degner | a systems-wide approach to universal design universally designed leadership is a must-read for educational leaders seeking to create highly functional systems that value all stakeholders and focus acutely on student outcomes. references about universal design for learning. (n.d.). retrieved february 2, 2018, from: http://www.cast.org/our-work/about-udl.html novak, k., & rodriguez, k. (2016). universally designed leadership: applying udl to systems and schools. wakefield, ma: cast. 47 http://www.cast.org/our-work/about-udl.html microsoft word 1foster-commentary.docx vol. 3, no. 1, dec 2014, pp. 3-6 commentary teacher travelers in jamaica: using study tours as field-based experiences karen foster university of central missouri in his article titled “why we travel,” pico lyer (2000) clarified a clear distinction between travelers and tourists with “travelers” leaving their assumptions behind and “tourists” complaining that “nothing is the same way it is at home.” when a group of six undergraduate students and one faculty member from the university of central missouri (ucm) spent a week teaching 125 students a day in an at-risk youth camp in petersfield, jamaica in july, 2013, we were immersed in the local culture enabling us to experience jamaica more as teacher “travelers” than “tourists” in many ways. home stays. the fact that we stayed in host family homes encouraged the “traveler” experience. rather than living in a hotel or club med environment, this group lived with local host families. chosen very carefully for their gracious attitudes, an extra bedroom and bathroom for visitors, proximity to the campsite, and good cooking skills, these women and their homes were definitely a strength of the program. we picked fruit for breakfast from the trees in the backyard and walked three to five blocks to school viewing the local neighborhoods up close and personally. part of these daily trips was walking past metal roofed food vendors, a local bar, and cattle or goats in the front yard of houses. additionally, cold showers and living without air conditioning were integral to this immersion into a small town in jamaica. camp teaching. working as a lead teacher for a group of 25 or more jamaican students discouraged feeling like a tourist. because this trip was a “service learning” trip organized through amizade (www.amizade.com), ucm students planned and implemented four and a half days of lessons for a designated age group from kindergarten to high school. with the theme god loves all the children of the world, each college student picked one country to write an all day integrated lesson using library books, original reading materials written with www.glogster.com, and art. “foldable” notebooks, reading logs with teacher conferences, and fab four cards put on pipe cleaner rings (predicting, questioning, summarizing, & clarifying) were also included in the lessons. (see picture below). the middle school/high school group emphasized writing original math story problems related to the topic each day. after six weeks of finding and revising materials, these six undergraduate students became the lead teacher for their age group. however, each ucm student had at least one experienced local teacher or high school student assisting her. this interaction with the local people both for planning and teaching became a strong bond. a large group “reflection” was held at the end of each day as well as individual conferences with their ucm professor conveying what happened in class that day and what was planned for tomorrow. there was a lot of growth as flexible and realistic teachers from monday to friday of our week of camp school. indeed, this week of teaching in jamaica added an additional practicum experience to each preservice teacher’s program of study. 4   k.  foster   activities. the types of extracurricular activities encouraged up-close local interaction. all tour groups have planned activities, but the activities in petersfield, jamaica focused on being with local teens and young adults “off the beaten path.” on the first day, the group plucked thirty six chickens to be cooked and served that week in camp as well as gong to a very natural local beach with picnics packed by host mothers. we also went on a cave tour stopping to pick sugar cane in route and to jimmy buffet’s margaritaville beach in negril, jamaica. (see picture below). the first night each person was individually introduced at a special welcome dinner at the association of club’s (aoc) building. later in the week, the host mothers staged a creative cooking class featuring local specialties enticing our taste buds. being present at the weekly aoc thursday night meeting was another community touch, and they asked us to pledge teacher travelers 5 allegiance to the u.s. flag to close the meeting. finally, two farewell parties combined with a 21 year old birthday party promoted rum punch, local music, and dancing to round out the week’s extracurricular activities. socialization. at each activity and hour of teaching, these ucm students were communicating with local people and negotiating the local english dialect. far beyond a conversation with a waitress or desk clerk, we made friends, exchanged e-mail address, and fielded children’s questions. we were entrenched with the running of the aoc camp school from feeding them to teaching them. although english was spoken with a british dialect, patois (“pat-wa”) was also heard at school and during social interactions outside of camp. patois is an informal language from the descendants’ african roots. weather. because we walked to our camp school, taught outside, and stayed in un-air conditioned houses, the students from the u.s. had to adjust to the heat and humidity of this tropical region. drinking lots of water, wearing wet shammy cloth rags around our necks, and taking frequent cold showers kept us hydrated and healthy. conclusion. in conclusion, six pre-service teachers and one professor flew from the middle of the united states to jamaica to lead students of all ages in an at-risk youth camp for a week. thematic units around a country were written, materials made, and lessons implemented. flexibility and adaptability were key attributes practiced. indeed, this adventure added an additional practicum experience to programs of study for these junior level pre-service teachers. in retrospect, we were much more like travelers than tourists as we stayed in local homes, planned and implemented lessons in the aoc at-risk camp for four and half days, participated in local recreational activities, negotiated verbally with the local dialect, and endured the tropical weather without air conditioning. in route from the kansas city airport to our college campus in warrensburg, missouri upon our return, one student sighed, “oh, it is so nice to be on roads without any potholes!” our perspectives have been forever changed. references amizade: global service-learning. www.amizade.com. lyer, p. (2000). “why we travel.” reprinted with permission from salon.com in amizade’s journal, p. 3-21. 6   k.  foster   this page is intentionally blank microsoft word 4-winthrop final.docx vol. 1, no. 2, january 2013, pp. 111-120 winthrop university – school partnership network lisa johnson and jennie rakestraw winthrop university we are very excited to be able to partner, share, and learn not only with a university, but also with partner schools that will help us reach our potential using the wonderful teachers and resources that are available. ~ partnership network school teacher l. johnson and j. rakestraw 112 winthrop university – school partnership network john goodlad, in his book a place called school (1984), suggested that, in order to improve schools and the work of teachers, a relationship had to exist between institutes of public education and teacher preparation programs. today goodlad’s message continues to hold significant bearing on whether or not all students receive a high quality, equitable education. the agenda for education in a democracy, formulated by goodlad and the national network for educational renewal over twenty years ago, promotes simultaneous renewal of p-12 education and educator preparation, advocating equity in schooling and engagement in nurturing pedagogy to meet the diverse needs of students. the winthrop university-school partnership network is a dynamic, diverse, and growing partnership of educators from nine school districts, thirty schools, and winthrop university. as a network, we are emulating goodlad’s vision of shared responsibility for student achievement through clinically-based teacher preparation, sustained collaborative professional learning, and inquiry and research-based practice. moving from an “i” to a “we” perspective, our work is a model of how to not just blur, but to remove the lines between university and school for the purpose of supporting learners. partnership mission the various participants in our network have individual missions that differ according to contextual factors, affording the partnership wide-ranging perspectives, needs, and inputs. while celebrating each partner’s strengths and contributions, we maintain a shared purpose: simultaneous renewal of schools and educator preparation with a focus on p-12 student learning through the engagement of collaborative learning communities involving district and university students and faculty. using the mission as our foundational cornerstone, the network partners collaborate to meet four specific goals: (1) improve p-12 student learning; (2) improve professional learning for district and university faculty and teacher candidates; (3) improve quality of teacher preparation; and (4) increase support for new teachers. shared governance through structured roles as with any diverse organization, we have established a system of shared governance in the partnership network to promote regular, active engagement of all partners. the “nine essentials” of a professional development school partnership developed by the national association of professional development schools (napds, 2008) informed elements of our shared governance model. a network management team (nmt) guides implementation to meet our four shared goals and includes representatives from three colleges at winthrop university (education, arts and sciences, and visual and performing arts) and the nine participating school districts. the nmt oversees the ongoing work of the partnership network, conducts needs assessments and facilitates professional development activities, informs the redesign and continuing improvement of the teacher preparation curriculum, and regularly analyzes assessment data to determine impact of network initiatives. the partnership advisory council (pac) directs the implementation of the partnership network at the school level. the pac consists of a school liaison from each of the 30 school school partnership network 113 sites, nine winthrop faculty in residence (wfir), and university and district representatives from the nmt who meet monthly. members of the pac review and select new schools to join the partnership network and are involved in the selection of mentor teachers to support teacher preparation and beginning teacher induction. school liaisons and winthrop faculty-in-residence serve as conduits between university and school to support collaborative professional development, determine research needs, encourage qualified teachers to serve as mentor teachers and support their work with teacher candidates and beginning teachers, serve as adjunct instructors and guest speakers, facilitate work between school and university faculty to ensure alignment between course content and sound pedagogical practices, and assist in networking participants. partnership network structure and communication a four-tiered approach to our partnership network acknowledges the diverse needs and varying perspectives coming to the table. the organizational design of the partnership network is dynamic and developmentally flexible. where one school may be poised and ready for a significant level of engagement, others that recognize the advantage of the partnership may have limited capacity at the time to participate. in true university-school partnership fashion, stakeholders from all entities met extensively to construct a network structure that would allow for and facilitate public school participation at four differentiated tiers – professional development schools, partner schools, content area assemblies, and satellite schools. table 1. four-tiered network structure professional development school (pds) the primary qualification of a pds is its high commitment to this collaborative endeavor with the majority (2/3) of the school’s teachers committed to the shared mission and willing to support teacher candidates. a significant university presence exists at the school with a university faculty member serving as a winthrop faculty-in-residence for approximately 50% of their workload. pds faculty members engage in the university through course instruction, partnership governance processes, and special events. the pds has an identified school liaison (teacher or school leader) to help facilitate partnership-related activity. partner schools partner schools are committed to collaboration; however, there is not necessarily a majority staff commitment to the mission. nevertheless, there is high interest and the school is in the process of building capacity or may be in waiting to become a pds. this school has similar benefits as the pds but will not necessarily have site-based university presence. a university partnership coordinator serves as liaison to the partner schools and helps facilitate the networking of the partner schools with each other, the professional development schools, and the university. each partner school has a designated school liaison (teacher or school leader) to help facilitate the partnership-related work. content area assembly (caa) a caa consists of faculty within a high school department or faculty representing a p-12 certification area across schools and districts. this tier of partnership network membership provides an opportunity for group membership in the network based specifically on a teaching discipline. the content area assembly applies solely to secondary or p-12 certification fields that may experience challenges to gaining the necessary commitment of the entire school l. johnson and j. rakestraw 114 community required for pds or partner school tiers. satellite schools satellite schools are sites in a partnering school district where individuals (teachers, school leaders) engage in activities related to partnership network goals but school-wide commitment to the partnership collaboration is not possible for various reasons. this tier of the partnership network is designed to include individual teachers or school leaders who have a desire to be involved, have contributions to make, but are not situated in a school that is ready or able to commit to ongoing partnership work. the partnership coordinator facilitates communication and networking opportunities for individuals in satellite schools. although the four tiers are distinctive, the intent with this structure is to ensure each remains strongly tied to a network of partners versus a singular relationship between one school and the university as indicated in the following figure. figure 1. partnership network structure “mini-networks” form through shared interests in inquiry-based projects, challenges faced, and/or explorations of innovative practices. professional development schools (pds) form the hub of the mini-network because of the significant commitment of the school to the partnership and the university faculty member (wfir) dedicated to the school. these faculty members orchestrate the workings of the mini-network with additional support offered by school and university administrators. partner schools and content area assemblies that share similar goals and objectives affiliate themselves with a specific pds. satellite schools, as indicated above, can participate in any of the partnerships through opportunities such as professional development and teacher induction programs. in order to formalize the relationship between network partners, a tier-specific memorandum of understanding (mou) is signed by school, district, and university administrators. the network management team annually examines the mous and decides if changes are needed. communication between our governing bodies is facilitated through our partnership network website (https://www2.winthrop.edu/netscope/) that also houses all key information, including mou documents and meeting records. professional development offered by the various schools, school districts, and university is publicized with an online registration portal. details on how to join the partnership network and information on becoming a mentor teacher, school partnership network 115 available mentor training, and the mentoring process are also on the website. a quarterly newsletter also sustains ongoing communication and the sharing of best practices across partnership sites. collaborative professional learning intensive, high-quality professional development for both new and current classroom teachers is shown to be crucial in transforming schools and improving student academic achievement (darling-hammond et al., 2009). creating professional learning communities that are focused on data-driven, research-based practices for educators is a shared responsibility of our partnership network. working collaboratively, educators in the network assist each other in professional development, incorporating approaches that have been identified as critical in ensuring teachers are knowledgeable about student learning, academic content, instructional skills, and working with diverse learners, resulting in student learning gains (yoon, duncan, lee, scarloss, and shapley, 2007). needs assessments of school and university faculty, as well as professional development goals within school improvement plans, define the direction and opportunities necessary to improve student learning. facilitation of collaborative learning across the partnership network occurs through the professional learning opportunities page on the network website (http://www2.winthrop.edu/netscope/professional_learning.htm). when professional development is scheduled at a partnering school site or at the university, participation is extended to the entire partnership network through an online notification and registration system. sessions that have been piloted at individual sites and proven effective in meeting specific challenges are often replicated at other sites with additional partners. participants can also specify needs through the online system and prompt new opportunities for all partnership members. finally, a comprehensive opportunity for sharing successful practices, innovative strategies, and collaborative research findings occurs at the annual partnership conference for educational renewal. the conference highlights advancements made through the active engagement of administrators, faculty, teachers, and students in the partnership network. scientifically-based research and data-driven decision making, foundational to the partnership work, is promoted through a partnership network research and inquiry grant program. the grants support collaborative efforts of classroom teachers and university faculty to solve teaching/learning problems and investigate educational innovations to improve student learning. collaboration is mandatory for these grants with options including winthrop teacher candidates as co-investigators, faculty from any of winthrop’s colleges, or other network school partners. submitted proposals are reviewed and selected by a subcommittee of the network management team using a published rubric. the nmt as a whole monitors and supports the project implementation and reviews final data for effectiveness and inclusion in overall partnership network evaluation. professional learning in our schools and in the university classroom benefits greatly from the use of teachscape reflect systems, a technology tool that allows mentor teachers and teacher candidates to capture video of lessons from a 360◦ perspective (providing a unique opportunity for teacher reflection on instructional strategies and student engagement). with 15 systems in place across the partnership network sites, teachscape has proven to be a valuable tool for professional learning communities and collaborative action research. according to one of our school liaisons, “teachscape videos have allowed us to expand reflective practice. l. johnson and j. rakestraw 116 teachers tape common lessons, first in one class and then another; then they reflect individually and share reflections. clips can also be made and shared in departments as teachers seek input on how to tweak lessons and improve student learning.” transformed teacher preparation curriculum since 2009, the winthrop university-school partnership network has been working to develop a transformational teacher preparation program that is clinically-based. the program involves a dramatic redesign of the 30 semester credit-hour education core curriculum. the purpose of the core is to provide field-relevant pedagogical content and practical experiences that serve as a foundation to all of our teacher education programs, from early childhood education to secondary and p-12 certification fields. the education core plays a key role in consistently and purposefully developing the competencies that we collectively intend to cultivate in all teacher candidates. with clinical experiences beginning in the freshman year and occurring each and every semester thereafter, the program culminates in a year-long senior internship. the education core curriculum requires extensive time in p-12 schools with diverse learners applying concepts learned in coursework. content of the courses is “wrapped around” a sequence of well-designed and targeted clinical experiences that will occur in the school settings of our partnership network under the tutelage of carefully selected and well-trained mentor teachers, many of whom were involved in the creation of the curriculum. having multiple voices and varied perspectives as part of the curriculum development process has proved most beneficial as there is a shared understanding and responsibility for educating the next generation of teachers. our work in transforming winthrop’s teacher education curriculum is fully aligned with the recommendations of ncate’s report of the blue ribbon panel on clinical preparation and partnerships for improved student learning (ncate, 2010) that called for the education of teachers in the u.s. to be “turned upside down.” the report challenges universities to move to programs that are “fully grounded in clinical practice,” providing “varied and extensive opportunities for candidates to connect what they learn with the challenge of using it while under the expert tutelage of skilled clinical educators” (p. ii). because of the complexity and importance of the internship experiences, the partnership advisory council crafted a model for mentor teachers that would not only be better aligned with mentoring for beginning teachers but would explicitly outline the guidelines and compensation for working with teacher candidates during various levels and experiences. as seen in the model, part of the work of mentor teachers is the participation in curriculum and benchmark processes. school partnership network 117 figure 2. mentor teacher model specifically, the year-long internship experience allows candidates to follow the school and not the university calendar. as candidates begin the school year with their mentor teachers in partnership network schools, they are afforded a unique opportunity to serve as “junior faculty members” for an entire school year alongside master educators. the year-long internship is also rewarding for our mentor teachers and of real benefit to our partnership network schools – having two capable adults for an entire year to support diverse learning needs. although sites build a supportive environment in different ways, small acts such as posting the candidate’s name on the outside of the classroom door, giving the candidate a school t-shirt to wear on spirit days, and providing a district email account highlight a willing and eager approach by the school to embrace their role in teacher preparation. we are continuously assessing the year-long experience for its benefit to each partner. survey evaluations and annual focus groups provide an opportunity to share the successes and challenges of implementation. data are then shared with the partnership advisory council and network management team for continuous program improvement. overall, the experience has resulted in overwhelmingly positive feedback. additional information on assessing partnership effectiveness is described in the following section. measuring effectiveness and reflective practice the partnership network utilizes an annual performance template to measure the effect initiatives are having towards achieving the four network goals. partnering schools develop measurable objectives that address needs within their individual sites that are then collectively pooled to measure the impact of the partnership network as a whole. at the end of each school year, data is reported relative to each goal and objective with supporting analyses regarding how to move forward. l. johnson and j. rakestraw 118 figure 3. winthrop university – school partnership: school-based goals, objectives and outcomes as plans are collected, information on specific “focus areas” is added to the partnership network website to facilitate communication and collaboration. partners within the network can identify others working in similar domains and share resources to accomplish common goals. university faculty can search sites appropriate for collaborative, field-based research or engage in service activities with schools in need of specific expertise. finally, assistance can be offered to schools beginning a new focus that others have been exploring and addressed successfully. other reflective practices include gathering and analyzing internship survey data and teacher candidate (interns), mentor teacher, and university supervisor focus group feedback. the data from these various sources are compiled and used for program improvement through the network management team (nmt), partnership advisory council, and university committees on which school liaisons and administrators play a role. additionally, the nmt annually examines achievement data as a reflection on past initiatives and a source of information for future work, maintaining a network focus on p-12 student learning. conclusion from the onset, our desire is to demonstrate the significant value in having multiple voices contributing to the conversation with the shared commitment to improving teaching and learning in p-12 schools. whether on the topic of teacher preparation, student achievement, mentoring new teachers, or supporting administrators, understanding and embracing diverse perspectives results in stronger teachers and, consequently, improved student learning. although difficult at times, moving from an “i” to a “we” mentality has resulted in several noteworthy accomplishments and achievements. • transformed teacher preparation curriculum including a year-long internship; • 4-tiered partnership network structure with shared governance and defined roles; • a multi-leveled mentor teacher program; • collaborative professional development built upon expertise within the partnership; • collaborative inquiry to inform educational practice; and • an elaborate and ongoing assessment system for determining impact. school partnership network 119 in spring 2012, winthrop university received national recognition from the national council for accreditation of teacher education for work in field and clinical experiences and assessment practices. such acclaim is due in no small part to the work of the winthrop university-school partnership network. and, where the national recognition is invigorating and affirming, there is yet another accomplishment of which we are most proud: improved student learning. for example, a project-based learning implementation with 251 elementary students resulted in 40% gains shown on standards-based pre/post assessments. a reading initiative for struggling learners found statistically significant increases in student achievement on standardized measures. as a result of implementing the co-teaching model with general and special education teachers at a partnering middle school, reading and math standardized test scores of co-taught students (including students with disabilities) showed significantly higher growth than comparison groups. as the number one shared goal in our partnership network, the improvements we see in student learning through the dedication and innovation of collaborative partnership is the accomplishment of which we are most proud. l. johnson and j. rakestraw 120 references darling-hammond, l., wei, r.c., andree, a., richardson, n., orphanos, s., & the school redesign network at stanford university. (2009). professional learning in the learning profession: a status report on teacher development in the united states and abroad. dallas, tx: national staff development council. goodlad, j. (1984). a place called school: prospects for the future. new york, ny: mcgraw hill book co. national association for professional development schools. (2008). what it means to be a professional development school. columbia, sc: national association for professional development schools. national council for accreditation of teacher education. (2010). transforming teacher education through clinical practice: a national strategy to prepare effective teachers. washington, dc: national council for accreditation of teacher education. yoon, k. s., duncan, t., lee, s. w.-y., scarloss, b., & shapley, k. (2007). reviewing the evidence on how teacher professional development affects student achievement (issues & answers report, rel 2007–no. 033). washington, dc: u.s. department of education, institute of education sciences, national center for education evaluation and regional assistance, regional educational laboratory southwest. retrieved from http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/edlabs microsoft word 06-jm.docx vol. 1, no. 1, august 2012, pp. 47-48 addressing america’s current and future educational challenges: the renaissance group president’s perspective john counts, president emeritus western new mexico university addressing america’s current and future educational challenges: the renaissance group president’s perspective experience informs us that, after parents and guardians, educators have the greatest level of influence on children of all ages. these are the educators we prepare on our university campuses every semester, year after year, for whom the act of teaching is much more than a monthly paycheck. for them, teaching is rather a very special calling. higher education institutions began the noble and much respected work of preparing professional educators in the well-known normal schools, which have expanded their offerings and programs over the years to form the many excellent public colleges and universities of today. the united states of america has been preparing these dedicated professionals for generations, and for a significant number of years other nations have looked to america for mentoring, guidance, and leadership. countries have closely examined and imitated our programs, and we have served as a role model for the rest of the world. today, if student test scores are any indication, the nations we helped build, particularly during the decades after ww ii, have surpassed their role model. parents, whose children are taught by the teachers and administrators our universities prepare, typically praise their local schools, teachers, administrators and support personnel. however, when we move beyond these familial educational settings, the general level of criticism directed toward our public schools and schools of education has never been higher. when compared to other world educational leaders, we usually rank toward the bottom relative to our students’ academic preparation. the message is very clear: our public is generally not satisfied with our educators and our educator preparation institutions. the challenges we face are well defined and cannot be ignored. although i am pleased with the advancement of education systems in other countries, i am also convinced our future position in the world depends more than ever on the degree of knowledge and skills our citizens possess. at this critical juncture in our nation’s history, as a matter of highest priority, we must strengthen and enhance our system of education, particularly programs that produce professional educators. in this regard, our colleges and universities have the critical responsibility to support and advance the preparation of educators at all levels. in so doing, the professionals we prepare can effectively guide and restore our nation’s schools. j. counts 48 in my opinion, the best place for this “rebirth’ to take place is with the renaissance group (trg) member institutions. these are the colleges, universities, and the national board of professional teaching standards, which for the past 23 years, have dedicated their talents and resources to address the preparation of educators as an all-campus responsibility by working in close collaboration with their k-12 partners from local school districts. the renaissance group is the only national, higher education consortium where university presidents, provosts, deans of education, and deans of arts and sciences have joined forces to effectively carry out this important mission. education clearly holds the formula for rebuilding our nation. we cannot be distracted by criticism. we must stay the course and seriously support the recruitment and preparation of the very best educators at local, state, and national levels. we have always had the knowledge, the skills, and the experience to address this most important field. our educator preparation programs were once praised and imitated throughout the world. we simply need to realize that potential again and to stand beside our teachers, counselors, and administrators whose teachings and leadership greatly influence and shape the lives of students in all of america’s schools. microsoft word 1. murley-feb 2014.docx vol. 2, no. 2, feb 2014, pp. 3-18 examining the reliability of a culminating teacher education assessment and discovering areas for reform lisa d. murley, rebecca stobaugh, pamela jukes, janet tassell western kentucky university abstract the purpose of this article is to provide an overview of the process used to examine the inter-rater reliability of the teacher work sample (tws) scoring rubric involved with the senior culminating experience for teacher candidates used at a large comprehensive university. the study compared holistic and analytic scores reported by student teacher seminar course instructors to those of trained participants to determine the consistency of ratings between the two groups. the study resulted in several clear areas for revising the tws for reliability and created a foundation for future revisions. what may prove to be the most important finding of the study, however, is the need to examine the differences among scoring practices of raters because scoring varies among people. common errors include misinterpretation of scoring rubrics, prompts, the teaching and learning process, and even concepts such as revised bloom’s taxonomy. this finding could be generalized to other universities as all education programs utilize scoring prompts and rubrics to measure teacher candidate performance and most all use revised bloom’s taxonomy in the teaching and learning process. 4   l. murley, r. stobaugh, p. jukes, j. tassell   the national council for accreditation of teacher education (ncate 2000) required teacher preparation programs to document the success of teacher candidates with the intent of affecting a “…paradigm shift from a focus on the teaching process to learning results and connecting teacher performance to student learning” (pankratz, 2000, p. 1). one instrument used by universities across the nation to measure teacher candidate ability to impact p-12 student learning and teacher candidate preparation and performance on teaching process is the teacher work sample (tws). developed by the renaissance partnership, a consortium of 11 universities, the tws as defined by kohler, henning, and usma-wilches (2008, p. 2109), is a “…performance-based assessment tool that enables teacher education programs to provide evidence of student teacher ability to meet state and national teaching standards” (as cited in girod, 2002; mcconney, schalock, & schalock, 1998; schalock & myton, 1988; the renaissance partnership for improving teaching quality, 2001). many teacher education programs adopt performance-based assessments to measure candidate performance against professional standards that require reflection and evaluation of the candidate’s own practice based upon a set of standards (darling-hammond & bransford, 2005). the tws engages candidates in this type of rigorous performance assessment by using state teacher standards as the criteria for the measurement of proficiency. the scoring rubric is used to measure teacher candidate performance in the following teaching processes believed to be important in the teaching and learning process (tassell, stobaugh, & mcdonald, 2013): • contextual factors: identifying relevant contextual factors and exploring how these factors may affect the teaching-learning process. • learning goal & pre/post assessment: creating and justifying learning goals for the unit; designing and pre/post assessment to monitor student progress toward learning goals. • design for instruction: analyzing student performance on pre-assessment; constructing a unit overview that addresses learning goals and student needs; describing instructional strategies and formative assessments that include a technology component. • analysis of student learning: representing, analyzing and communicating assessment data for all students and significant subgroups; analyzing decisions made regarding the instruction and assessment to determine the success of instruction. • reflection: reflecting on performance as a teacher and linking the performance to student learning results and state teaching standards; evaluating the performance and identifying future actions for improved practice and professional growth. a scoring rubric is used to score the candidate’s tws. the tws analytic scoring rubric is based on a 4-point scale (1= beginning; 2= developing; 3 = proficient; 4 = exemplary). in addition, each tws is assigned a holistic score using the same scale (school of teacher education, 2011). one large, comprehensive university was a charter member of the renaissance tws group committed to using tws as a tool for instruction and as a performance assessment of teacher candidates. the university piloted the tws in 2001 and beginning in 2003 required teacher candidates to submit a completed tws for grading in a student teaching seminar course scheduled for the last semester of the candidate’s undergraduate teacher preparation program. the tws requires the candidate to demonstrate the capacity to positively impact student learning as they plan, deliver, and assess a standards-based unit of instruction, analyze the results curriculum redesign 5 of student assessments, and reflect on the effectiveness of instruction and student learning to improve instruction. due to the data analysis of teacher candidate scores to determine strengths and weakness of the tws, the education faculty formed a tws task force committee in january 2010 charged with the task to revise the teacher work sample with a targeted implementation date of fall 2010. the tws task force was comprised of education and content area university faculty as well as p-12 teachers who supervise the teacher candidate student teaching experiences in the p-12 classrooms. after reviewing the strengths and weaknesses of the tws, the task force decided upon the following goals as the primary focus for the work: • align the tws more fully with the state teacher standards (kentucky department of education, 2008). • improve the tws components which include the prompt and scoring rubric. • clarify and streamline prompts and scoring rubrics. • increase rigor and promote higher levels of performance. • increase scoring consistency to promote reliability (nitko & brookhart, 2010; popham, 2009). based on these goals, the tws task force revised the tws components, prompts, and scoring rubrics to reflect the needed improvements. the revised tws was implemented into practice in the fall 2010 academic term. additional tws data collection continued throughout that same term from students, faculty, and p-12 practitioners to determine any further changes that needed to be made. the tws was revised and the full implementation began the spring 2011 academic term. the task force met at the end of the semester after one year of full implementation to decide if revisions should be made. examination of the recently collected teacher candidate data helped the task force determine that further exploration of the tws prompt and scoring rubric was needed (stobaugh, tassell, & norman, 2012). purpose and research questions as a part of the revision process, the tws task force focused on tws scorers’ interrater reliability of the tws in an effort to glean insights related to the prompts, scoring rubric, and learning processes. therefore, the purpose of the study was to examine the inter-rater reliability of the tws scoring rubric after the implementation of the revised tws in the spring 2011 academic term. the research questions for the inter-rater reliability study were: 1. how do university student teacher seminar course instructors’ tws scores, both holistic and analytical, compare to scores of a mixed group of tws trained university faculty and p-12 practitioners trained specifically for the tws scoring session? 2. what do qualitative data collected from scoring participant comments reveal about the tws scoring prompts and rubrics? method teacher work sample submissions were selected for examination from all those submitted by the teacher candidates during the spring 2011 academic term. to ensure the samples represented the appropriate percentage of teacher candidates from each program area (e.g., elementary, middle, secondary), 100 samples were randomly selected across program areas to correlate with the enrollment of teacher candidates in each program area. thus, for example, the largest number of samples came from elementary education because the program area has 6   l. murley, r. stobaugh, p. jukes, j. tassell   the largest number of teacher candidates. table 1 presents the number of student teachers in each program area in spring 2011 and the number of tws samples randomly selected within each program area from that semester. table 1 distribution of number of samples by program area program area semester total (n=182) sample (n=100) early elementary p-5 95 52 middle grades 5-8 25 14 early childhood p-k 8 4 agriculture 5-12 2 1 art p-12 6 3 business 5-12 6 3 family and consumer science 5-12 8 5 music p-12 12 7 physical education 5-12 10 6 spanish 5-12 2 1 english secondary 6 3 history secondary 2 1 pre-scoring training prior to the scoring sessions, two samples were selected for quality control and tws scoring training purposes. these samples were purposefully selected by the researchers to represent a “proficient” and “developing” typical tws. the researcher requested the work samples from an instructor of the student teacher seminar course. the instructor was asked to remove all identifiers such as the teacher candidate and school names and to send the work samples electronically to the researchers. study participants who had not received tws scoring training prior to the study, along with all other participants who had received the training through other scoring experiences, were required to score the two selected tws submissions before the tws training session and submit the ratings to the researchers electronically. the researchers compiled a comprehensive chart of the results depicting the holistic score along with the analytic score from each of the scoring rubric indicators. training session at the training session of the research study the participants discussed the pre-training results which included discussion of score deviations of three or more levels from one of the samples. some biases were exposed such as one participant stated that since the tws student product was better than previous semesters when she had scored, she determined this created a bias which had inflated the scores. the trainers provided more clarification of the expectations of the tws scoring rubric and addressed any questions related to scoring or scoring procedures. participants had opportunity to become familiar with the levels for scoring listed at the top of the tws rubric: beginning, developing, proficient, and exemplary. individual scoring after the training session, each participant received a cd with ten tws and a score sheet. participants individually scored each tws sample and returned score sheets to the curriculum redesign 7 researchers prior to the second meeting of participants so the scores could be compiled and analyzed. participants were given a comments page to record concerns, questions, or feedback about each indicator when scoring the tws. data collection both quantitative and qualitative data were collected at the scoring session to answer the research questions. the data were comprised of the tws scores as well as the qualitative data collected during the scoring session. descriptive statistics were used to summarize the tws scores and determine their differences. study participant scores for each tws holistic score and analytic scores given for the indicators on the scoring rubric were compared to the scores assigned by the student teacher seminar course instructors for spring 2011. qualitative data included participant comments about the scoring process and specific scoring rubric indicators. participants submitted ideas on a comments page about each indicator after scoring the tws. in addition, a follow-up discussion occurred in which scores and areas of disagreement were shared. data analysis the participant scores were compared to scores assigned by the spring 2011 student teacher seminar course instructors. statistics for differences, including standard deviation per indicator, were determined to identify those indicators whose scores differed by more than two performance levels: 1 = beginning, 2 = developing, 3 = proficient, and 4 = exemplary. the frequency and percentages of differences of scores for each indicator were also determined. results the results from the data collection are presented in table 2. the standard deviation for the holistic score and each indicator are shown of the scored samples. parts with the greatest standard deviations included learning goal and pre/post assessment plan indicators 2, 4, 6, and 9; design for instruction indicator 4; and reflection of teaching practices indicator 3. indicators with the smallest standard deviations included the first indicator in both the learning goal and pre/post assessment and reflection on teaching practices sections. table 2 also provides the number of times scores differed by more than two score levels, that is, how many times participant scores and student teacher seminar course instructor scores had a difference of two or more performance levels on a given indicator. the results suggest that holistic scores tend to be fairly consistent (sd=0.75) overall. both university course instructors and trained project participants scored within one point of each other across the teacher work samples. these results suggest that the tws scoring rubric may be somewhat reliable when used holistically. 8   l. murley, r. stobaugh, p. jukes, j. tassell   table 2 standard deviation and holistic score different by more than two levels rubric indicator standard deviation score different by more than two levels holistic score 0.75 11 contextual factors (cf) cf1 school information 0.80 11 cf 2 classroom information 0.78 11 cf 3 student characteristics 0.85 10 learning goal pre/post assessment (lg) lg 1 list 2 to 3 learning goals 0.67 5 lg 2 lg levels 0.92 17 lg 3 lg alignment to standards 0.81 12 lg 4* lg appropriateness 1.05 21 lg 5 lg mastery levels 0.71 6 lg 6* pre-post assessment : lg 1.05 20 lg 7 pre-post assessment: modes 0.85 13 lg 8 modes of assessment 0.71 9 lg 9* assessment scoring criteria 1.19 14 design for instruction (dfi) dfi 1 results of pre-assessment 0.50 6 dfi 2 unit overview 0.80 9 dfi 3 integration of technology 0.86 11 dfi 4* instructional strategies 0.97 16 dfi 5 formative assessments 0.85 10 analysis of student learning (asl) asl1 visual representations 0.90 6 asl2 performance analysis 0.77 4 asl 3 instructional implications 0.87 9 asl 4 individual student 0.79 8 reflection of teaching (rot) rot 1 self-assessment 0.58 2 rot 2 teaching strengths 0.77 6 rot 3* professional development 0.98 15 *largest standard deviations these results suggest that data for five indicators surface as cause for concern. we focused on sd levels that neared or exceeded 1.0. scores for five indicators tended to be less consistent (sd=1.04, 1.04, 1.19, 0.97, 0.98). a discussion follows of each of these indicators with the inclusion of the qualitative data collection from the scoring participant comments in an effort to delve deeper in the overall data collection of the research study. curriculum redesign 9 learning goal and pre/post assessment: indicator 4 (lg 4) the fourth indicator in the learning goal and pre/post assessment section had a high standard deviation of 1.05. the indicator states, “clear and logical justification in the 4 required areas for learning goal appropriateness: student prior knowledge, student learning needs and/or developmental appropriateness, authentic real world, and other relevant connections” (school of teacher education, 2011, p. 12). table 4 displays the indicator cells from the tws scoring rubric. table 4 tws scoring rubric indicator learning goal 4 (lg4) indicator beginning developing proficient exemplary lga 4 appropriateness of learning goals justification is missing for two goals or 2 or more justifications of the required areas in the prompt justification is missing for one goal or 3 or more justifications of the required areas in the prompt clear and logical justification in the 4 required areas for learning goal appropriateness: student prior knowledge, student learning needs and/or developmental appropriateness, authentic real world, and other relevant connections. achieves the proficient level with minimal assistance on the first attempt and demonstrates above and beyond the proficient level. for this indicator all four required items are necessary for a teacher candidate to obtain a proficient score: (a) student prior knowledge, (b) student learning needs and/or developmental appropriateness, (c) authentic real world, and (d) other relevant connections. teacher candidates often included some of the four items, but not all of them. scorers may inconsistently score this section because they fail to check for all four items. the developing level states, “justification is missing for one goal or 3 or more justifications of the required areas in the prompt” (school of teacher education, 2011, p. 12). a participant scorer questioned which category to mark if a justification was inappropriate or inaccurate. several participant comments from the qualitative data indicated problems with the rubric: (a) areas should be listed, (b) no direction if an inappropriate or inaccurate justification listed, (c) many samples received lower scores because all four areas were not justified, and (d) wording in cell one and two need attention. the rubric could instead state, “justification is missing for one goal or three or more appropriate justifications of the required areas in the prompt.” the “appropriate” language could also be included in the beginning level description with “justification is missing for two goals or less than three appropriate justifications of the required areas in the prompt.” 10   l. murley, r. stobaugh, p. jukes, j. tassell   learning goal and pre/post assessment: indicator 6 (lg 6) a third area in the learning goal and pre/post assessment section with a high degree of variability of a 1.05 standard deviation was the sixth indicator. the indicator states: “all assessment items are clearly and appropriately aligned to specific learning goals, correct level of revised bloom’s, and content standard” (school of teacher education, 2011, p. 12). see table 5 for the excerpt from the tws scoring rubric of this indicator. table 5 tws scoring rubric indicator learning goal 6 (lg6) indicator beginning developing proficient exemplary lga 6 pre/post assessment blueprint: learning goals all assessment items are not aligned to specific learning goals, correct level of bloom’s, and content standard. all assessment items are clearly and appropriately aligned to 2 of the following: specific learning goals, correct level of bloom’s, and content standard. all assessment items are clearly and appropriately aligned to specific learning goals, correct level of bloom’s, and content standard. achieves the proficient level with minimal assistance on the first attempt and demonstrates above and beyond the proficient level. the indicator brings up the challenge of the correct level of revised bloom’s which was an issue with learning goal and pre/post assessment second indicator. if participant scorers misunderstood the revised bloom’s taxonomy, the ratings for this indicator might also be inaccurate. the qualitative data reveal lack of direction and information in the rubric such as “the word ‘incorrect’ should be used in cell one, not correct” and “include the number of test items per goal in the rubric.” learning goal and pre/post assessment: indicator 9 (lg 9) a fourth indicator in the learning goal and pre/post assessment section with the highest standard deviation of 1.19 was indicator nine. the indicator states: “scoring procedures are explained, assessment items or prompts are clearly written, mastery levels defined, directions and procedures are clear to students. scoring key and/or rubrics are attached and include all required components” (school of teacher education, 2011, p. 12). table 6 illustrates an excerpt from the tws scoring rubric of this indicator. curriculum redesign 11 table 6 tws scoring rubric indicator learning goal 9 (lg9) indicator beginning developing proficient exemplary lga 9 pre-post assessment blueprint: scoring criteria scoring procedures are not explained; assessment items or prompts are not written for student understanding; mastery levels are not defined; directions and procedures are not clear to students. scoring key and/or rubrics are incomplete. scoring procedures are not well explained; assessment items or prompts are not clearly written; mastery levels are not clearly defined; directions and procedures are not clear to students. scoring key and/or rubrics are attached but do not include all required components. scoring procedures are explained, assessment items or prompts are clearly written, mastery levels defined, directions and procedures are clear to students. scoring key and/or rubrics are attached and include all required components. achieves the proficient level with minimal assistance on the first attempt and demonstrates above and beyond the proficient level. the indicator includes five components (see table 6) and it may be an issue for scorers to check for all five items. the developing and beginning level descriptors for the indicator state: “scoring procedures are not well explained; assessment items or prompts are not clearly written; mastery levels are not clearly defined; directions and procedures are not clear to students. scoring key and/or rubrics are attached but do not include all required components” (school of teacher education, 2011, p. 12). the beginning descriptor states, “scoring procedures are not explained; assessment items or prompts are not written for student understanding; mastery levels are not defined; directions and procedures are not clear to students. scoring key and/or rubrics are incomplete” (school of teacher education, 2011, p. 12). participants struggled to decide if teacher candidates had mistakes in two of the required components would they score in the developing category, or would two mistakes cause them to receive a beginning rating? scoring participant comments supported this finding as one participant noted that the rubric should include a list and require a certain number instead of using language like “not well explained.” if instead the rubric specified, “assessment appropriately includes five of the required items” and the beginning level descriptor could be, “assessment appropriately includes four or fewer of the required items.” by quantifying how many are expected, it is clearer to the scorer of what is required. design for instruction: indicator 4 (dfi 4) the only indicator within the design for instruction section with a high standard deviation (.97) was the fourth indicator. the proficient indicator states: “thorough and clear description of two instructional strategies from different learning goals that includes: 12   l. murley, r. stobaugh, p. jukes, j. tassell   identification of appropriate content related strategies to meet learning goals and revised bloom’s levels; instructional strategies meet student needs through appropriate adaptations and differentiated instruction based on pre-assessment data. real world connections; discussion of materials/technology” (school of teacher education, 2011, p. 14). table 7 illustrates the tws scoring rubric of this indicator. table 7 tws scoring rubric indicator design for instruction (di 4) indicator beginning developing proficient exemplary di 4 instructional strategies provides a limited description of two instructional strategies from different learning goals for 2 of the following criteria in unit overview: identification of appropriate content related strategies to meet learning goals and revised bloom’s levels; instructional strategies meet student needs through appropriate adaptations and differentiated instruction based on pre-assessment data. real world connections; discussion of materials/technology. provides an adequate description of two instructional strategies from different learning goals for 3 of the following criteria in unit overview: identification of appropriate content related strategies to meet learning goals and revised bloom’s levels; instructional strategies meet student needs through appropriate adaptations and differentiated instruction based on pre-assessment data. real world connections; discussion of materials/technology. thorough and clear description of two instructional strategies from different learning goals that includes: identification of appropriate content related strategies to meet learning goals and revised bloom’s levels; instructional strategies meet student needs through appropriate adaptations and differentiated instruction based on pre-assessment data. real world connections; discussion of materials/technology. achieves the proficient level with minimal assistance on the first attempt and demonstrates above and beyond the proficient level. in order to meet the proficient rating teacher candidates must complete several parts: (a) identification of strategies to meet the learning goals and revised bloom’s levels, (b) appropriate adaptations and differentiation, (c) real-world connections, and (d) discussion of materials and technology. scoring participant comments had much to say about this indicator and rubric. for example, “this seems to be a weak area for students as they don’t connect to pre-assessment data. i think the prompt does not include this specific connection.” one scorer curriculum redesign 13 simply summed it up with this comment, “too much information is expected.” additionally, with this section assessing alignment to revised bloom’s taxonomy, similar problems with the second and ninth indicator in the learning goal and pre/post assessment would also be issues and may well indicate a misunderstanding of the applications of the taxonomy. a scoring participant comment supported this finding: “if bloom’s is wrong in the learning goal section, then bloom’s is off here, too.” reflection of teaching practices: indicator 3 (rot3) the third indicator in the reflection of teaching practices section had a high standard deviation of .98. the proficient description for the indicator states: “appropriate, logical, detailed discussion of 2 of teacher’s needs for improvement as related to self-evaluation of kentucky teaching standards. clearly describe 2 to 3 priorities for your own professional development based on specific data from self-assessment and student performance. include a specific plan for growth” (school of teacher education, 2011, p. 24). table 8 depicts the tws scoring rubric of this indicator. table 8 reflection of teaching practices (rot 3) indicator beginning developing proficient exemplary r3 identify areas of professional development discussion of teacher’s needs for improvement is not related to self-evaluation of kts or only one improvement is discussed. description of one or more priorities for your own professional development is vague and not clearly based on specific data from selfassessment and student performance. include a specific plan for growth. discussion of one or more of teacher’s needs for improvement as related to selfevaluation of kts may not be clear, logical, or appropriate. description of one or more priorities for your own professional development is not clearly based on specific data from selfassessment and student performance. include a specific plan for growth. appropriate, logical, detailed discussion of 2 of teacher’s needs for improvement as related to selfevaluation of kts. clearly describes 2 to 3 priorities for your own professional development based on specific data from selfassessment and student performance. include a specific plan for growth. achieves the proficient level with minimal assistance on the first attempt and demonstrates above and beyond the proficient level. one potential problem with the indicator is the explicit instructions in the prompt are not included in the rubric. the prompt states, “based on the data from the self-assessment and 14   l. murley, r. stobaugh, p. jukes, j. tassell   student performance on this unit, identify two areas on which you need improvement. discuss at least two types of professional development for each identified area of need” (school of teacher education, 2011, p. 23). thus, the prompt calls for two types of professional development for each area whereas the rubric does not indicate the specification for two types of professional development for each identified area to improve. some scorers might score the work as proficient if only one professional development experience is included, due to the lack of specificity in the rubric. in addition, participant scorers noted that expectations for teacher candidate responses should include more than a statement of “i will meet with a teacher.” one scoring participant stated, “i interpret specific to mean that the student has done some searching to find some resources, websites, strategies, or self-help resources, but something besides just, ‘i will ask my colleagues or go to a pd on this topic’ and yet with the wording on this indicator, what they typically list must be counted as correct.” the scorers felt that the tws prompt and rubric need to clarify what type of professional development would be considered acceptable to alleviate confusion on this point. implication for practice and future research some clear areas for revising the tws emerged from the study, the first of which was to move from personal meaning of educational terms and constructs to shared understanding. two indicators surfaced as a direct misunderstanding for how to apply revised bloom’s taxonomy in planning and implementing instruction. the university faculty, teacher candidates, and research study participants need a common understanding of the application of revised bloom’s taxonomy (anderson et al., 2001). some university faculty have participated in training focusing on the cognitive process identified for each of the revised bloom’s taxonomy levels, but not all faculty. with new understanding, these faculty and scorers found that instruction and assessment often considered higher-level thinking processes are actually lower-level understandings. for example, in the revised taxonomy, “comparing” is listed as a cognitive process in the understanding level and not considered on the analyzing level (stobaugh, 2013). some scorers incorrectly evaluated learning goals involving comparisons on the analyzing level. the study unveiled internal problems in the tws scoring process due to a lack of understanding of the hierarchy of the revised bloom’s levels and how those verbs are to be correctly used in the teaching and learning process. therefore, a valuable initiative for all faculty and scorers would be to participate in trainings and learning opportunities focused on the revised bloom’s taxonomy “cognitive processes” and learning levels. in several areas the rubric needs to be adjusted with quantifiable words to indicate level of performance. words like “somewhat” need to be removed and replaced with more quantifiable terms with the number of components that are required. for example, contextual factor 1, the school information indicator, is an example of the use of quantifiable language: “characteristics of school described clearly at a substantive, accurate, and unbiased level in all of the five required areas. school information provided includes the five required areas and at least one additional area” (school of teacher education, 2011, p. 21). through indicating the exact number of expected skills to be demonstrated at each level on the indicator, teacher candidate responses can be more reliably scored. finally, one indicator included several categories to be assessed in the current tws document making it difficult to determine a teacher candidate’s strengths and weaknesses on key skills. course instructors have often indicated that differentiation has been a relatively weak area for teacher candidates. participants in the study stated a specific desire to assess differentiation within the design for instruction section as its curriculum redesign 15 own indicator providing a clearer picture as to whether teacher candidates can appropriately meet the diverse need of their students when planning for instruction. future tws reliability research will select fewer samples that are scored by the four different groups to more closely examine the inter-rater reliability. this research indicates the need to examine differences among scoring practices of various raters: university faculty teaching the student teacher seminar, professors in the education department, professors in other departments including content areas associated with tws, and p-12 practitioners. various groups may interpret the rubric in different ways. to maintain quality of scoring by professors of the student teacher seminar class, a regular training is needed followed by a quality control scoring session. this ensures all instructors have common expectations when scoring and rubric expectations are clearly understood. a new research study could examine the impact of the training on tws scoring reliability. other professional education units may want to simulate this process to improve their culminating performance for pre-service teachers. as universities seek to maintain a low cost and research-based culminating performance for teacher candidates, other professional education units may want to assess the reliability of their performance assessment for teacher candidates. conclusion the overall interesting piece of this research is the continuing issue of face validity versus construct validity. in line with face validity, faculty found that while tws scorers agreed on the holistic score, there was a large variance on indicator scores. this led to a revision in the tws prompts and rubrics as well as a desire to continue to improve the rubrics and assess the reliability of the document particularly by examining the indicators. what may prove to be the most important finding of the study, however, is the need to examine the differences among scoring practices of raters because scoring varies among people. yet, even deeper is the concern with construct validity where faculty make common errors that include misinterpretation of scoring rubrics, prompts, the teaching and learning process, and even concepts such as revised bloom’s taxonomy due to lack of shared meaning of educational terms and constructs. this finding could be generalized to other universities as all education programs utilize scoring prompts and rubrics to measure teacher candidate performance and most all use revised bloom’s taxonomy in the teaching and learning process. as institutions drive toward ensuring performance assessments are reliable, faculty must develop consensus around key educational concepts. city, elmore, fiarman, and teitel (2009) term this as a “culture-building process.” to build consistency in the instruction and assessment across faculty, critical conversations need to occur to build understanding and agreement around these concepts. although this institution had begun the process of having conversations and making revisions to the teacher work sample, it is clear that the dialogue needs to continue and keep striving forward in the difficult task of shared-meaning building. just as teacher candidates are required to “…collect and analyze data related to their work, reflect on their practice, and use research and technology to support and improve student learning” (ncate, 2008, p. 19), university faculty must do the same to prepare teacher candidates for 21st century classrooms. by looking at the tws data beyond the face reliability 16   l. murley, r. stobaugh, p. jukes, j. tassell   perspective, institutions can pave a path for what they can discover with construct validity research that can potentially lead to meaningful and deeper change. curriculum redesign 17 references anderson, l., krathwohl, d., airasian, p., cruikshank, k., mayer, r., pintrich, p., raths, j., & wittrock, m. (2001). a taxonomy for learning, teaching, and assessing. new york: addison wesley, longman. city, e. a., elmore, r. f., fiarman, s. & teitel, l. (2009). instructional rounds in education. harvard, ma: harvard education press. girod, g. (2002). connecting teaching and learning: a handbook for teacher educators on teacher work sample methodology. washington, dc: aacte publications. kentucky department of education (2008). kentucky teaching standards. retrieved from http://www.kyepsb.net/teacherprep/standards.asp. kohler, f., henning, j., & usma-wilches. (2008). preparing preservice teachers to make instructional decisions: an examination of data from the teacher work sample. teaching and teacher education, 24(8), pp. 2108-2117. mcconney, a., schalock, m., & schalock, h. (1998). focusing improvement and quality assurance: work samples as authentic performance measures of prospective teachers’ effectiveness. journal of personnel evaluation in education, 11, pp. 343-363. national council for accreditation of teacher education. (2008). professional standards for the accreditation of teacher preparation institutions. washington, dc: author. nitko, a. j. & brookhart, s. m. (2010). educational assessment of students (6th ed.). upper saddle river, nj: pearson merrill/prentice hall. popham, w. j. (2009). all about assessment: unraveling reliability. educational leadership, 66(5), pp. 77-78. the renaissance partnership for improving teacher quality (2001). teacher work sample: 18   l. murley, r. stobaugh, p. jukes, j. tassell   performance prompt, teaching process standards, scoring rubrics. retrieved from http://fp.uni.due/itz/projectactivities/index.htm schalock, h. & myton, d. (1988). a new paradigm for teacher licensure: oregon’s demand for evidence of success in fostering learning. journal of teacher education, 39(6), pp. 8-16. school of teacher education. (2011). teacher work sample. bowling green, ky: western kentucky university. available: http://www.wku.edu/teacherservices/ student_teaching/ documents/teacher_work_sample. stobaugh, r. (2013). assessing critical thinking in elementary schools. meeting the common core. larchmont, ny: eye on education. stobaugh, r, tassell, j., & norman, a. (2012). improving preservice teacher preparation through the teacher work sample: exploring assessment and analysis of student learning. action in teacher education, 32(1), pp. 39-53. tassell, j., stobaugh, r., & mcdonald, m. (2013). math and science teacher candidates’ use of technology to facilitate teaching and learning during student teaching. educational renaissance, 2(1), pp. 17-28. singleton (2021) final educational renaissance vol. 10 (2021) cradle-t o-pr ison pipeline: im pact on black , hispanic, and indigenous st udent s everet t singlet on, phd. school of education, northwest missouri state university email: esingleton@nwmissouri.edu essay youth who experience academic failure are at a greater risk for involvement in delinquency. studies have revealed a myriad of both structural and societal factors for such failure, impacting youth of color, those living in poverty, and those whose primary language is not english (mitchell & leachman, 2014). structural issues include institutions, polices, and practices that govern and control our society. within the realm of education such policies include get tough and ?zerotolerance? polices that contribute to a phenomenon known as the cradle-to-prisonpipeline (ctpp), which creates systematic barriers for youth of color in schools and pushes them towards the juvenile justice system (milner et al., 2018). the ctpp is one of the most pressing issues facing our schools and, by extension our society, today (tuzzolo & hewitt, 2006). in fact, it has been described as one of the greatest threats to civil rights issues of our time (samel et al., 2011). i can personally attest to this, having served as a counselor, teacher and principal in the juvenile correctional system for eighteen years. indeed, for the vast majority of the youth i worked with the path from early childhood to incarceration was disturbingly straightforward. it also robbed them of opportunities to obtain employment and be productive members of society. their stories and lived experiences left an indelible mark on me both personally and professionally, and made me even more aware of the urgent need to address structural racism within the educational arena. as dr. king famously wrote in 1963 after being arrested during a non-violent protest, ?i am here because injustice is here? (king, 1994). in his letter from a birmingham jail, dr. king also noted that, ?injustices anywhere is a threat to abst ract youth who experience academic failure are at a greater risk for involvement in delinquency. while studies have revealed a myriad of factors for such failure, the perceptions of these youth regarding their educational experiences have proven to be one of the most valuable resources regarding the systematic barriers to academic achievement. the purpose of this essay is to examine how youth of color are overwhelming affected by a phenomenon known as cradle-to-prison pipeline. several school districts in the u. s. employ harsh discipline practices that inevitably push students out of classrooms, on the streets, and in the juvenile justice system at an astounding rate. students of color experience higher rates of suspensions, expulsion, truancy, retention, and academic failure in schools. harsh discipline polices, along with bias and discrimination have a direct or indirect impact on their academic journey, including feeling of inferiority due to their academic shortcomings. mailto:esingleton@nwmissouri.edu singleton| cradle-to-prison pipeline justice everywhere." we are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality tied in a single garment of destiny. whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly? (king, 1994, p. 2-3). these powerful words written over fifty years ago still speak truth to systemic injustices inflicted on the overwhelmingly disproportionate number of young black men who become victims of the cradle-to-prison pipeline. any serious attempt to dismantle the cttp must include an examination of best practices around strategies, research, equality, and equity initiatives for marginalized youth. understanding the educational experiences of youth of color can yield valuable information regarding the complexities of the pipeline. for example, issues such as disengagement, suspensions, expulsion, truancy, academic failure, substance abuse, systemic inequities, school violence, poverty and parental neglect are all significant contributors and predictors of dropout and delinquency. furthermore, youth?s personal challenges, including feelings of inferiority, also have a direct and/or indirect impact on their academic journey, including an increased likelihood that this journey will end in, or be disrupted by, incarceration (henry et al., 2012). background currently, approximately 48,000 youth, ages 13 to 18, are confined in correctional facilit ies in the united states, which exposes them to greater risk of assault and other abusive treatment (prison policy initiative, 2019). ?at a cost of approximately $90,000 per juvenile in a facility per year, this is both a massive waste of taxpayer funds and an unconscionable waste of the potential of thousands of young people? (carter, 2018, p. 373). additionally, an office of juvenile justice and delinquency prevention (2020) report showed that 43,580 youth had been remanded to residential facilit ies during 2017, inevitably at a cost to states (office of juvenile justice and delinquency prevention (ojjdp), 2020). perhaps most concerning is the overrepresentation of black, latino, and indigenous male youth housed in detention facilit ies and the clear link between these groups and academic failure. it is estimated that more than half of adolescent male youth attending urban high schools fail to obtain a diploma (lynch, 2017). of the dropouts, nearly 60 percent will go to prison at some point via a phenomenon known as the ?school-to-prison-pipeline,? which funnels ?students out of school and into the streets and the juvenile correction system,? depriving them ?of meaningful opportunities for education, future employment, and participation in our democracy? (tyner, 2014, p.1). historical influences pipeline this disturbing trend follows the historical treatment of african american youth in the u.s., namely a racial caste system of institutional slavery, the jim crow era, the convict lease system, and racial profiling (alexander, 2010). during colonial times, juvenile offenders were subject to the same punishments as adults, and they usually lived in inhumane conditions (bartollas & miller, 2001). youth of color were disproportionately affected by this, as slavery was the law of the land, rendering black people the property of white slaveholders and thus ineligible for basic rights afforded to ?human beings? (bell, 2017), including due process. although legislation in 1804 brought an end to slavery in the north, the institution would persist in the south until the civil war and eventually evolve into the system of jim crow (bell, 2017). as noted in michelle alexander?s book, the new jim crow: mass incarceration in the age of colorblindness, after losing the war and the institution of slavery upon which their economic system was based, southern whites needed to create ?a new racial order? (alexander, 2010, p. 28) of control. in the 1890s, the southern states enacted notorious ?black codes? (p. 28), or vagrancy laws designed to establish a new system of forced labor (alexander, 2010). these laws affected youths and adults alike, and though in the mid-1800s penalties for juveniles decreased and the government established separate facilit ies to house delinquent youth, youth of color were 49 singleton| cradle-to-prison pipeline still denied equal access to the services their white counterparts were afforded. disproportionate representation during a single year, an estimated 744,451 thousand youth under the age of 18 are arrested in the united states, with delinquency cases reaching juvenile courts each year (sickmond et al., 2020). equally alarming is the vastly disproportionate numbers of children who are poor and members of racial and ethnic minority groups who populate the delinquency system. the data show that disparities are particularly pronounced among youth of color, who have a greater likelihood of being incarcerated than their white counterparts (sawyer, 2019). the disproportionate numbers of african american youth in the justice system, moreover, reflect the harsh reality that society imposes unequal and discriminatory treatment upon poor children of color (sawyer, 2019). pathway to delinquency by the time most juveniles enter the justice system, they have already displayed a downward trend in most areas of their life (rider-hankins, 1992). they likely began to express delinquent behavior at an early age and are defiant, hostile, resentful, and frustrated. much of this is exacerbated by ?structural, systemic, institutional and societal challenges and barriers that produce inequity, inequality, racism and various other forms of discrimination? (milner et al., 2018, p. 33). since the 1970s, the number of suspensions involving black high school students have grown to eleven times that of whites, and currently black students are almost four times more likely than their white counterparts to be suspended. those students who receive suspensions during their freshman year of high school are twice as likely to drop out of high school altogether. furthermore, there is strong evidence that young men who experience discipline in k-12 schools through suspension and expulsions are at greater risk for ending up incarcerated later in life, and in fact nearly 68 percent of all adult men in federal prison have never earned a high school diploma (lynch, 2017). what we need to understand is that most youth entering the system have been traumatized both physically and emotionally. delinquents have frequently expressed feeling that they are victims of society (rider-hankins, 1992), most notably in our schools. our black males do not enter a domain that represents their community. the textbooks that are used, the authors that are esteemed, the art on the walls, and the ideas that are embraced are those that emanate from a system that sustains itself by requiring the participation of black males as ?workers,? members of the ?underclass,? and ?prisoners". (woods, 2018, p. 5). studies have demonstrated that the incarceration rate in the united states is one of the highest in the world, with a strong correlation to racial discrimination experienced by african american youth in schools (walmsley, 2015) that hinders their ability to establish healthy social bonds and impedes their opportunities to pursue educational dreams, goals, and aspirations (unnever & gibbidon, 2011). research shows that a black male growing up in the united states faces a one-in-three chance of entering the prison system during his lifetime, a latino male has a one-in-six chance, and a white male has a one-in-seventeen chance. it is important to note that racially disproportionate distributions also play out among females, with black females having had a one-in-seventeen chance of going to prison in her lifetime, a latina female has a one-in-forty-five chances (the sentencing project, 2017). approaches and st rat egies for dism ant l ing t he pipeline classroom management has tremendous influence on student success, an influence considerably greater than social standing, drive and determination, or student intellect (weinstein et al., 2004). effective classroom management remains one of the most challenging tasks facing 50 singleton| cradle-to-prison pipeline educators in schools (rose & gallup, 2002) and is directly connected to learning and academics. the goal of effective classroom management is to decrease negative disruptive behaviors and increase time spent on academic engagement. teachers possessing effective skills in classroom management are able to provide a safe space conducive to teaching and learning. furthermore, effective classroom management can be used to prevent unnecessary disciplinary referrals that lead to suspension or expulsion, and protect academic learning time (milner, 2013). research shows, ?the disproportionate office referrals of students of color, those with learning differences, and those who live below the poverty line" (girvan et al., 2017; skiba et al., 2011, p. 11). thus, culturally responsive classroom management (crcm) practices are essential for teaching in today?s diverse schools and classrooms. crcm requires educators to recognize one?s own culture and prejudices; acknowledge the cultural backgrounds of students; and understand the broader social, economic, and political context that encompass the lives of students. culturally responsive educators must have the skills, readiness, and commitment to employ culturally relevant strategies to foster and sustain caring classroom environments (weinstein et al., 2004). cult urally responsive managem ent approaches research based in crcm protocols that could be used to address discipline problems include fostering positive relationships, culturally responsive classroom management, and family communication: fostering caring relationships with students is an important element in the teaching and learning process. research shows the relationships that teachers and stakeholders forge with students can bridge disconnections and nurture academic and social achievement, which is vital to classroom success (noguera, 2003). weinstein et al. (2004) noted that a student?s perception of care for their well-being was significant in determining if they chose to cooperate or resist teacher expectations. it is important for students to know that teachers genuinely care about them through action (bondy et al., 2012). students are more academically empowered, and more likely to behave in more pro-social ways, when teachers invest in them (weinstein et al., 2004). crcm practices, which encompass culturally relevant pedagogy (ladson-billings, 1995) and culturally responsive teaching (gay, 2000), help teachers cultivate the awareness, ability, and the appropriate attitude to address issues with students from a variety of backgrounds. at some point all teachers will deal with conflicts in the classroom, despite the best protocols put in place to handle them. ?culturally responsive classroom managers reflect on the kinds of behaviors they judge to be problematic? (irvine, 1990, p. 274). communicating and working with family members is essential to addressing issues and changes in students? behaviors. teachers should provide a safe, supportive, and caring space for family members to come and discuss issues. the goal is to actively listen to their advice and concerns, foster relationship-building and resolution (whitbourne, 2012), and use the ?funds of knowledge,? expertise, and experiences of family members to inform current and future management practices (moll, et al., 1992). additionally, teachers can use the cultural experiences of students and families to filter perceptions based on different cultural views. this does not necessarily mean changing every practice to satisfy the parent and child, but rather seeking to understand how the role of family culture, context, and interactions play in classroom behavior management. 51 singleton| cradle-to-prison pipeline ?when the teacher is culturally aware, the conflict between systems is minimized, and there is formulation of strategies to work around differences? (larocque, et al., 2011, p. 120). long-term recom m endat ions practicum and observation phases are valuable aspects of the preparation of teacher candidates and preservice teachers; thus, they should be restructured to ensure that candidates are aware of disparities that place some students at risk for incarceration. it is important to address the disproportionate rates at which students, particularly males, of color experience the school-to-prison pipeline and other systemic issues present in k?12 settings. undoubtably, the academic and social conditions of black boys can get better if the majority of their time is spent inside the classroom rather than outside classroom spaces (howard, 2014; wright & ford 2016), for example, due to suspensions and expulsions. it is essential therefore that white k ? 12 educators evaluate and change their disciplinary measures. this shift will not only dramatically decrease the dehumanization of black boys but create opportunities for teacher candidates to observe fair and restorative practices being used to address student behavior in the classroom. the potential here is to produce teachers who come to value black males and set examples for white students who might otherwise spend years of watching white teachers mistreat black males in classrooms (bryan, 2017). recom m endat ions a national study is needed to assess the effectiveness and rigor of educational programs in juvenile correctional settings and determine how these programs can be improved. most programs in juvenile settings have been designed to provide minimal services to youth. educators within these settings are bound by outdated pedagogy, limited technology, poorly trained teachers, and a transient student population. this is compounded by administrative issues such as the transfer of previous school records and multiple school placements. a large percentage of incarcerated youths have been diagnosed with some type of mental health issue that requires other specialized services; and, if they are to successfully transition back into their respective communities, correctional facilit ies must look beyond preventing recidivism and toward preparing them for employment and other aspects of daily life. it should be noted that one positive aspect of many of these programs is mandatory attendance and participation, which eliminates the truancy issue and presents a real opportunity to effect change. also necessary is the identification of interventions that improve juveniles? educational, employment, and recidivism outcomes in less restrictive settings such as alternative and traditional schools. evidence shows that incarceration in and of itself may hinder educational achievement and increase the likelihood of recidivism, as opposed to placements in less restrictive settings (aizer & doyle, 2013). a current positive trend shows a decline in the number of juveniles incarcerated in correctional facilit ies in the united states; in fact, between 1997 and 2011 the number of youths apprehended, redirected, or committed in this country dropped from 105,000 to 61,000. while it must be acknowledged that incarceration is often necessary for violent and serious crimes, one can make the argument that juvenile correctional facilit ies should be reserved for the most dangerous youthful offenders. perhaps more importantly a determination must be made with regard to effective methods, strategies, and decision-making around race-based disparities in the juvenile justice system. while crimes being committed by youth appear to be similar regardless of race, social class, and environment, it appears that youth of color have higher rates of incarceration than their white counterparts. data revealed that in 2010 youth of color comprised of 17 percent of juveniles committed to facilit ies, but accounted for 52 singleton| cradle-to-prison pipeline only 31 percent of total arrests (puzzanchera & hockenberry, 2013). there has been litt le to no change in this rate from previous decades; however, the data with regard to ethnic disparities appears to be limited (puzzanchera & hockenberry, 2013). we do know that their issues usually begin in school, with higher rates of truancy, suspensions and expulsion far exceeding those of white youth. examining these disparities could reveal more concise information regarding the racial and ethnic makeup in the juvenile correctional populations. conclusion the information presented in this paper affirms the need to address structural issues that create barriers for marginalized students of color in schools across this country. chief among these issues is the disproportionate targeting of black, latino, and indigenous youth for subjective behavioral infractions and the imposition of extreme disciplinary measures. indeed, an overreliance on suspension and expulsion in response to normal classroom behaviors feeds the perception of youth of color as criminals, thus perpetuating the cradle-to-prison pipeline responsible for increased incarceration rates among these populations. a key component in reducing these rates is gaining a deeper understanding of the various insidious complex and often interlocking aspects of this pipeline and tackling them in culturally responsive and empowering ways. references aizer, a., & joseph j. d. 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(2016). this litt le light of mine: creating early childhood classroom experiences for african-american boys prek-3. journal of african american males in education, 7(1), 15?35. 55 https://www.americanbar.org/groups/gpsolo/ publications/gpsolo_ereport/2014/june_2014/ the_emergence_of_the_school-to-prison_ pipeline/ https://www.americanbar.org/groups/gpsolo/ publications/gpsolo_ereport/2014/june_2014/ the_emergence_of_the_school-to-prison_ pipeline/ https://www.americanbar.org/groups/gpsolo/ publications/gpsolo_ereport/2014/june_2014/ the_emergence_of_the_school-to-prison_ pipeline/ https://www.americanbar.org/groups/gpsolo/ publications/gpsolo_ereport/2014/june_2014/ the_emergence_of_the_school-to-prison_ pipeline/ http://prisonstudies.org/sites/default/files/ resources/downloads/world_prison_poulation_ list_11th_edition_0.pdf http://prisonstudies.org/sites/default/files/ resources/downloads/world_prison_poulation_ list_11th_edition_0.pdf http://prisonstudies.org/sites/default/files/ resources/downloads/world_prison_poulation_ list_11th_edition_0.pdf https://www.doi .org/10.1177/0022487103259812 https://www.doi .org/10.1177/0022487103259812 https://www.psychologytoday.come/blog/fulfill ment-any-age/201203-ways-active-listening-can -help-your-relationships https://www.psychologytoday.come/blog/fulfill ment-any-age/201203-ways-active-listening-can -help-your-relationships https://www.psychologytoday.come/blog/fulfill ment-any-age/201203-ways-active-listening-can -help-your-relationships singleton (2021) final page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 microsoft word 5. stobaugh-dec 2016.docx vol. 5, no. 1, dec 2016, pp. 53-73 co-teaching practices during student teaching rebecca stobaugh and margaret gichuru western kentucky university abstract accrediting organizations and regulations have compelled teacher preparation programs to establish partnerships with pk-12 schools to produce quality educators by utilizing effective teaching approaches such as co-teaching. the study examined co-teaching survey completed in the middle of student teaching. data was collected from cooperating teachers and student teachers at different grade levels. the survey assessed participants' use of co-teaching strategies and the number of planning hours in each week. pearson correlations measured the relationship among the co-teaching strategies and the relationship between the co-teaching strategies and planning time. results suggest there were more correlations among the co-teaching strategies for elementary student teachers. three relationships were found in the middle school cooperating teachers data. additionally, no correlations were found between any co-teaching strategies from either high school cooperating teachers or student teachers. the amount of planning time was shown to have no significant differences between any of the co-teaching strategies. keywords: co-teaching, teacher education, student teaching 54   r. stobaugh & m. gichuru   introduction teacher preparation programs are continually refining their programs to improve teacher candidate quality. as student teaching is the culminating experience for teacher candidates, research has been conducted on ways to increase the quality of this experience (darlinghammond, 2010). moreover, teacher preparation programs are compelled to find connections between coursework and clinical practice during student teaching (darling-hammond & bransford, 2005). one study that focused on finding ways to enhance the quality of the student teaching experience was carried by the blue ribbon panel (2010) commissioned by the national council for accreditation of teacher education (ncate). the study investigated how to prepare effective teachers and cited the co-teaching model at st. cloud state university as showing success in linking teacher candidates’ academic preparation and course work to schoolbased clinical experiences. co-teaching is the sharing of roles and responsibilities between a cooperating teacher and a student teacher (friend, et al., 2010). according to cook and friend (1995), co-teaching is defined as “two or more professionals working together to deliver instruction to a diverse, or blended, group of students in a single physical space” (p. 14); this is the most acknowledged definition of co-teaching in the literature. nonetheless, st. cloud state university modified the definition of co-teaching to fit the student teaching context. it is defined as two teachers, a cooperating teacher and a teacher candidate, working together in a classroom with groups of students; sharing the planning, organization, delivery and assessment of instruction, as well as the physical space (heck, bacharach, mann, & ofstedal, 2005, n.p.). co-teaching in k-12 settings is enhanced by having the knowledge about one’s partner approach to teaching (keefe, moore, & duff, 2004; murawski, 2003), determining preparedness to co-teach (murawski & dieker, 2004), clarifying roles, duties, and expectations (friend & biirsuck, 2002; murawski & dieker, 2004), scheduling joint planning time (friend & cook, 2002), and using effective communication that leads to problem solving and practical and productive discussions (wood, 1998). according to cramer, liston, thousand, and nevin (2010), the co-teaching model of student teaching when applied effectively, allows teachers to integrate a variety of co-teaching strategies and group student candidates in ways that are not possible with just one teacher. this demonstrates that more explicit preparation for teachers who co-teach maximize the benefit of co-teaching opportunities (cramer, et al., 2010). with this in mind, the following literature review explores the meaning of co-teaching strategies; the benefits and challenges experienced during co-teaching; collaborative planning during co-teaching; and the implementation of co-teaching during student teaching. this study brings forth an understanding of the variance at different grade levels in the use of co-teaching strategies and how collaborative planning influences the employment of the different strategies. co-teaching strategies co-teaching strategies include: one teach, one observe; one teach, one assist; station teaching; parallel teaching; supplemental teaching; alternative or differentiated teaching; and team teaching. in one teach, one observe, either the teacher candidate or the cooperating teacher leads the instruction while the other observes for a specific behavior like questioning skills. in one teach, one assist, one teacher leads instruction while the other assists, an example might be that the one assisting would address student questions or prompt students to stay on-task. in station teaching, students are divided into two groups and each teacher leads a co-teaching practices during student teaching 55 segment of instruction and then the groups rotate. parallel teaching involves the teachers dividing the students in half and presenting the instructional material using the same teaching methods to increase student engagement in the lesson. supplemental teaching involves the two teachers dividing students based on their assessment data in order to provide further challenge or remediation. alternative teaching involves the two teachers designing two different approaches to teaching the same information adapting to learning preferences of the students. the final strategy is team teaching. during application of this strategy the teacher candidate and the teacher candidate naturally share the responsibilities for leading instruction (bacharach, et al., 2010). see appendix 1 for a chart defining the co-teaching strategies. through the use of the various co-teaching strategies instruction can be differentiated, scaffolded, and presented in a variety of ways of supporting both teachers monitoring students learning and engaging students in continuous learning (dugan & letterman, 2008). benefits and challenges in implementation of co-teaching strategies with studies continually investigating methods to enhance field experiences through collaborative approaches, research indicates several positive effects of co-teaching practices (martin, snow, & torrez, 201; bacharach, et al., 2010; kamens, 2007). studies that used surveys and summative assessments show co-teaching as having significant outcomes in teachers employing greater flexibility, increasing instructional time and responsiveness, focusing better on individual students' needs and applying differentiated instruction more regularly. also noted is that co-teaching has an effect on improved classroom management skills, increased collaboration skills, enhanced understanding of the curriculum, increased confidence among teachers, and added opportunities to ask questions and reflect (bacharach, et al., 2010; santagata & guarino, 2012; salk, frank & beniek, 2004). using co-teaching during clinical experience increases the cooperating teacher and student teacher’s skills with collaboration and integration of the co-teaching pedagogy within the classroom with the objective of providing unlimited opportunities for students’ learning (bacharach, et al., 2010; kamens, 2007). additionally, other co-teaching benefits identified by the blue ribbon panel (2010) include; teacher candidates and cooperating teachers work as equal partners, teacher candidates receive guidance throughout the clinical experience, and both teachers have an understanding of the value for collaborative planning. studies show implementation of co-teaching provides opportunities for teacher candidates to develop advanced collaboration dispositions and skills (cochran-smith & zeichner, 2005; darling-hammond, 2005). on a different level, the co-teaching approach promotes the building of stronger networks between universities and schools, provides more opportunities for placements, supports professional development for cooperating teachers, and meets the needs of p-12 students (bacharach et al., 2010). despite studies showing the value of collaborative approaches, wong and glass (2011) pointed out that research on the relationship between student learning and collaborative approaches such as co-teaching in clinical practice is limited. notwithstanding the evidence of the importance of applying co-teaching strategies, studies show that teachers have concerns with the effective implementation of the co-teaching approach due to a lack of training (mastropieri et al., 2005); absence of administrative support (dieker, 2001; rea, 2005); and a lack of equal status in the classroom [dieker & murawski, 2003; spencer, 2005). studies suggest the need for more precise preparation for teachers in order to implement collaborative skills more effectively (santagata & guarino, 2012; bacharach; salk, frank, & beniek, 2004). therefore, 56   r. stobaugh & m. gichuru   co-teaching research inquiry must take over because of limited literature (murawski & swanson, 2001; mowbray, holter, teague, & bybee, 2003). co-teaching and collaborative planning to discuss this further, co-planning requires the involvement and contribution of all coteachers. regular weekly co-planning sessions among co-teachers requires much effort because all teachers reflect upon their lessons, program objectives and goals, align the learning goals to standards, and provide input on assessments (scantleburya, et al., 2008). scantleburya, et al., (2008) viewed co-planning as a professional development activity because it provides a platform to share ideas, reflect on the past experiences and have a common understanding of the classroom to improve practice. scheduling joint planning time is a critical component in co-teaching (friend & cook, 2002; murawski, 2005; scantleburya, gallo-foxa, & wassell, 2008). (dieker, (2001) observes that it is better to plan more than plan less in new situations. vaughn, schumm, and arguelles (1997) suggested that to have a successful co-teaching experience, teachers require a minimum of 45 minutes planning time each week without interruption. another suggestion made by several teachers is to set aside a day or a half-day every six to eight weeks for planning time. during this time, the teachers will collaboratively plan and discuss the students’ achievements as well as ways to modify instructional practices (vaughn, et al., 1997). according to tobin (2006), without co-planning, teachers will not have common understanding of the classroom they are teaching. conversely, if co-planning is not implemented, then student teachers are consigned to marginal roles, for example, grading papers, and checking student work instead of undertaking central responsibilities and sharing an instructional role (tobin, 2006). with the cooperating teacher having an authoritative position, the planning allows for a time to discuss the division of workload and teaching roles (scantleburya, et al., 2008). cochran-smith and zeichner (2005) led the american educational research association panel on the study of teacher education and indicated that more data are needed on the impact of student teaching on p-12 learners. moreover, there is lack of research that investigates the impact co-planning has on the use of more advanced co-teaching strategies and the commonly used co-teaching strategies by student teachers and cooperating teachers at different grade levels (santagata & guarino, 2012). co-teaching and student teaching student teaching is typically the capstone experience for teacher preparation programs in the united states. therefore, the student teaching experience is viewed by teacher educators as having a great influence on one’s professional growth (feiman-nemser & buchmann, 1987). dee (2012) pointed out that improving student teaching is imperative for teacher education programs and requires a partnership between higher education and p-12 institutions. collaboration and development of formalized university and school partnerships to meet accrediting organizations requirements and regulations compel teacher education programs educators to improve the clinical practice experience for teacher candidates (dee, 2012). researchers continue to investigate strategies that can improve clinical practice through collaboration (martin, snow, & franklin torrez, 2011).collaboration during clinical practice enhances student learning (blue ribbon panel, 2010). more-over, an in-depth qualitative study, goodnough et al. (2009) observed four pairs of student teachers and found that student teachers co-teaching practices during student teaching 57 placed in clinical practice with another peer gained professional experience through collaboration. additionally, a report completed by the council of chief state school officers (ccsso) task force on educator preparation and entry into the profession members (2012) discussed that one of the teacher preparation programs requirements was to address the nature and quality of clinical practice experiences such as co-teaching. the report focused on the learner-ready teacher who is well prepared to teach at the first appointment and who can model and develop students’ knowledge and skills and foster success. to accomplish this, the teacher would aim to support students to think critically and creatively, to problem solve, to be well-versed with the curriculum, collaborate with peers, and to have ownership of their education. st. cloud state university (scsu) as the leading university that directed a co-teaching program had pairs of cooperating teachers and student teachers making decisions on when to use co-teaching strategies to better improve student learning (bacharach et al., 2010; tobin & roth, 2006; tobin, zurbano, ford, & carambo, 2003). based on research conducted at st. cloud on co-teaching, students who were co-taught out-performed students taught by a single teacher or by a supervised student teacher using a non-co-teaching model (bacharach et al., 2010). additionally, co-teaching addressed concerns during student teaching such as power struggles between cooperating and student teachers. other challenges experienced during student teaching that can be resolved by a coteaching approach include; the idiosyncratic nature of student teaching, attention to classroom management, and inadequate prospects for student teachers to link theory and practice (smith, 2005). co-teaching is an alternative approach in student teaching to support reforms in teacher education programs and provide additional and improved clinical experiences for teacher candidates (bacharach, heck, & dahlberg, 2008). moreover, u.s. secretary of education arne duncan (2009) viewed co-teaching as having an opportunity to improve partnerships between higher education and k-12 and increase student achievement (mcdiiffie, mastropiere, & scruggs, 2009).studies have discussed the rationale and implementation for co-teaching in various teacher education programs (roth, tobin, carambo, & dalland, 2004). besides, few studies discuss the responsibilities of cooperating teachers and teacher educators in preparing teachers (clift & brady, 2005). however, co-teaching strategies when introduced into a teacher preparation program and conceptualized as important in addressing education reforms can promote collective teaching, respect, and responsibility within classrooms. purpose and research questions the teacher preparation program that provides the context for this study is a four-year bachelor program at a public u.s. university. at the end of the fourth year, students are placed in different neighboring k-12 schools for student teaching. in this placement, student teachers complete their final semester of coursework in teacher education prior to receiving their teaching certificate. cooperating teachers are their mentors who provide a classroom for the student teachers to refine their teaching skills. since research has shown the positive impacts of coteaching, this study employed a survey to assess the level of co-teaching strategies used in elementary, middle and high schools. therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine student teachers’ level of implementation of co-teaching strategies in relation to planning time as reported by student teachers and cooperating teachers in the fall 2012 academic term. the research questions for this study were: 1. what co-teaching strategies according to student teacher reports were commonly used by 58   r. stobaugh & m. gichuru   most student teachers during student teaching? 2. what are the differences and similarities according to the student teacher survey data among elementary, middle, and high school teacher candidates in the use of the various co-teaching strategies as reported by student teachers? 3. based on teacher and student teacher survey data, what co-teaching strategies are used more frequently by student teachers at various levels (i.e., elementary, middle, and high)? 4. how do cooperating teacher and student teacher perceptions on the use of co-teaching strategies vary? 5. how does the quantity of planning time affect the use of co-teaching strategies? method during the middle of the student teaching semester, cooperating teachers (ct) and student teachers (st) were asked to complete a survey about the co-teaching experience (see appendix 1 and appendix 2 for the survey). participants identified their certification level, e.g., elementary, middle, or high school. the survey asked participants to identify the number of hours student teachers and cooperating teachers planned together per week from one to six hours. finally, participants were asked to assess the percentage of time they spent engaging in each of the seven co-teaching strategy from zero to 100%. to remind the participants, the co-teaching strategies were defined at the bottom of the survey. the participants in the study included student teachers and cooperating teachers from elementary, middle, and high schools. the student teachers were enrolled in a large university in an urban area of the u.s. from the elementary program, 61% of cooperating teachers (n=54) and 62% of student teachers (n=55) completed the survey. in the middle grades program 95% of cooperating teachers (n=21) and 91% of student teachers (n=22) completed the survey. in the high school program, 46% of cooperating teachers (n=12) and 53% of student teachers (n=14) completed and returned useable surveys. see table 1 for a summary of the sample. results should be considered in light of the small sample size. table 1 cooperating teacher and student teacher sample ct st population usable surveys returned population usable surveys returned ele 89 54 (61%) 89 55 (62%) ms 22 21 (95%) 22 20 (91%) hs 26 12 (46%) 26 14 (53%) co-teaching practices during student teaching 59 data analysis to analyze the data, mean scores and standard deviations were computed on planning time and the seven co-teaching strategies: one teach, one observe; one teach, one assist; station teaching, parallel teaching, supplemental teaching; alternative teaching; and team teaching. analysis of variance (anova) and pearson correlations were also computed to analyze the relationships between data points. an anova was used to examine the differences of time spent on the strategies and planning time among the three groups—elementary, middle, and high school. in addition, a t-test was used to assess the variance between cooperating teacher and student teacher perceptions on the use of co-teaching strategies. pearson correlations measured the associations between the various measures. results research question1: what co-teaching strategies according to student teacher reports were commonly used by most student teachers during student teaching? elementary student teachers (st) reported a large percentage of their time on one teach, one assist (26%) followed by team teaching (20%). alternative teaching (5%) and parallel teaching (9%) strategies were used infrequently. for middle school student teachers, 30% noted that they mainly engaged in the team teaching and one teach, one assist co-teaching strategies. the next highest proportion of time was with one teach, one observe which accounted for 23% of their time during student teaching. similar to elementary student teachers, alternative teaching (5%) and parallel teaching (10%) were the some of the lowest percentages of time for student teachers. in addition, student teachers had a limited time engaging in station teaching (9%). for high school student teachers, the highest percentage of time was one teach, one assist (36%). the next highest percentage was for one teach, one observe (31%). similar to the elementary and middle school student teachers, high school student teachers noted that a negligible portion of their time was involved parallel teaching (5%), alternative teaching (2%), and station teaching (3%). see table 2 for these descriptive statistics. table 2 portion of time spent by student teachers on the co-teaching strategies level observe assist station parallel supplemental alternative team n % % % % % % % ele 55 16 26 14 9 13 5 20 ms 14 23 30 9 10 15 5 30 hs 20 31 36 3 5 9 2 19 60   r. stobaugh & m. gichuru   research question 2: what are the differences and similarities according to the student teacher survey data among elementary, middle, and high school teacher candidates in the use of the various co-teaching strategies as reported by student teachers? because the elementary sample size was much larger than the middle or high school sample causing a disproportionate sample size, the researchers sought to achieve a more balanced sample size for the anova. thus, the researchers randomly selected 14 teachers from each level (e.g., elementary, middle, high). sass procedure surveyselect was used to facilitate sample selection. to examine differences an anova was run. there were no significant differences found between any of the co-teaching strategies or time spent planning. see table 3 for means and standard deviations for each variable. table 3 mean and standard deviations among co-teaching strategies and planning time level n observe assist station parallel supplemental alterna tive team planning ele 14 0.157 (.128) 0.236 (0.134) 0.118 (0.107) 0.054 (0.050) 0.150 (0.116) 0.054 (0.050) 0.261 (0.162) 4.714 (1.069) ms 14 0.218 (0.202) 0.336 (0.145) 0.086 (0.135) 0.082 (0.211) 0.168 (0.196) 0.068 (0.138) 0.364 (0.250) 4.357 (1.336) hs 14 0.314 (0.188) 0.300 (0.124) 0.029 (0.047) 0.050 (0.076) 0.093 (0.073) 0.021 (0.043) 0.193 (0.121) 3.857 (2.316) note. standard deviations appear below the means. research question 3: based on teacher and student teacher survey data, what co-teaching strategies are used more frequently by student teachers at various levels (i.e., elementary, middle, and high)? for elementary student teachers, there were many correlations among the co-teaching strategies. based on elementary cooperating teacher data, relationships were found between one teach, one observe and the following strategies: one teach, one assist (r = -.34, p. < .05), supplemental teaching (r = .45, p. < .05), and alternative teaching (r = .58, p. < .05). a positive relationship was found between one teach, one assist and supplemental teaching, r = .43, p. < .05. station teaching was positively related to three co-teaching strategies as identified by elementary cooperating teachers: parallel teaching (r = .48, p. < .05), supplemental teaching (r = .73, p. < .0001), and alternative teaching (r = .87, p. < .0001). additionally, elementary cooperating teachers noted a relationship between parallel teaching and supplemental teaching (r = .52, p. < .05) and parallel teaching and alternative teaching (r = .85, p. < .001). finally, supplemental teaching was related to alternative co-teaching practices during student teaching 61 teaching (r = .81, p. < .0001) and team teaching (r = .49, p. < .05). based on data from elementary student teacher responses, there were several positive connections between the co-teaching strategies. one teach, one observe was positively related to one teach, one assist (r = .31, p. < .05) and alternative teaching (r = .65, p. < .05). there was a positive relationship also between parallel teaching and alternative teaching (r = .87, p. < .0001) three relationships were found in the middle school cooperating teacher data. one teach, one observe was positively correlated to one teach, one assist (r = .56, p. < .05). in addition, station teaching was related to supplemental teaching (r = .89, p. < .05) and alternative teaching (r = .95, p. < .05) the data from the middle school student teachers produced many correlations. one teach, one observe was related to all the other strategies: one teach, one assist (r = .61, p. < .05), station teaching (r = .78, p. < .05), parallel teaching (r = .96, p. < .001), supplemental teaching (r = .66, p. < .05), alternative teaching (r = .92, p. < .05), and team teaching (r = .65, p. < .05). station teaching was correlated to parallel teaching (r = 1.00, p. < .001), supplemental teaching (r = .96, p. < .001), alternative teaching (r = .99, p. < .001), and team teaching (r = .63, p. < .05). correlations also emerged between supplemental teaching and several of the other co-teaching strategies including: parallel teaching (r = .80, p. < .05), alternative teaching (r = .89, p. < .05), and team teaching (r = .60, p. < .05). finally, alternative teaching was related to team teaching (r = .94, p. < .05), one teach, one assist (r = .85, p. < .05), and parallel teaching (r = .97, p. < .05). there were no correlations found between any of the co-teaching strategies from either high school cooperating teachers or student teachers. research question 4: how do cooperating teacher and student teacher perceptions on the use of co-teaching strategies vary? a t-test was conducted but not significant differences were found between cooperating teachers and student teachers at any of the three levels (e.g., elementary, middle, high) for any of the variables. table 4 depicts mean and standard deviations for cooperating teachers and student teachers for time spent on co-teaching strategies and time spent planning. table 4 mean and standard deviations for cooperating teachers and student teachers for time spent on co-teaching strategies and time spent planning level n observe assist station parallel supple mental alter native team planning ele st 55 .16 (.13) .55 (.16) .14 (.13) .09 (.12) .13 (.11) .05 (.09) 20 (.19) 4.45 (1.51) ct 54 .15 (.13) .54 (.26) .16 (.17) .09 (.12) .17 (.17) .04 (.08) .23 (.21) 4.45 (1.37) ms st 14 .23 (.16) .36 (.15) .9 (.13) .10 (.23) .15 (.18) .05 (.12) .30 (.24) 4.05 (1.39) ct 12 .21 (.16) .33 (.16) .9 (.12) .05 (.09) .17 (.20) .06 (.12) .26 (.21) 4.29 (1.27) 62   r. stobaugh & m. gichuru   hs st 20 .31 (.19) .30 (.12) .03 (.05) .05 (.08) .09 (.07) .02 (.04) .19 (.12) 3.86 (2.32) ct 21 .24 (.16) .34 (.14) .05 .05 .05 (.08) .08 (.07) .03 (.05) .21 (.13) 3.92 (2.31) note. standard deviations appear below the means. research question 5: how does the quantity of planning time affect the use of co-teaching strategies? the amount of planning was shown to negatively relate to one teach, one assist as reported by elementary cooperating teachers (r = -.40, p. < .05). elementary student teachers also confirmed this negative relationship between these two variables (r = -.41, p. < .05). similarly, high school cooperating teachers responded that planning time was negatively related to one teach, one observe (r = -.90, p.<.001). no correlations emerged between any of the coteaching strategies and planning time for middle school student teachers. implications and conclusion kloo and zigmond (2008) emphasized that focus should be directed on the way teachers implement co-teaching practice with the aim of varying co-teaching strategies and utilizing more advanced co-teaching strategies such as team teaching. team teaching is the most effective strategy when a classroom teacher and a student teacher collaborate and consequently share information, learn from one another, take risks, and progress as professionals (murawski, & dieker, 2008). in this study, the survey results about co-teaching experience by student teachers and cooperating teachers during the middle of student teaching revealed several implications related to commonly used co-teaching strategies, effect of planning time on implementation of co-teaching strategies, and what co-teaching strategies are used more frequently by student teachers at different levels. first, the student teacher reports showed that high school student teachers remotely used other co-teaching strategies beyond one teach, one observe and one teach, one assist; with evidence of some moderate use of team teaching strategy. the study also showed frequent use of one teach, one assist co-teaching strategies in elementary school with moderate application of one teach, one observe and team teaching strategies. conversely, middle school student teachers engaged more frequently in one teach, one assist and team teaching with moderate use of one teach, one observe. precisely, there was evidence of greater use of team-teaching at middle school and moderate application of the same at high school and elementary school. notable application of team teaching that applies higher degree of collaboration at all the grades levels could be associated with the initial co-teaching training the student teachers and cooperating teachers received before student teaching. mastropieri et al., (2005) underscored the importance of training co-teachers to increase the implementation of more advanced co-teaching strategies, such as team teaching. even though the results indicated high school teachers had moderate use of team teaching, studies have shown co-teaching to be challenge at high school level because of teachers lack of knowledge or experience in a subject’s content and absence of training in coteaching practice (linz, heater, and howard, 2008; murawski & dieker, 2008). therefore, to increase the implementation of more advanced co-teaching strategies, such as team teaching, which was extensively utilized at middle school in this study, training must take precedence (mastropieri et al., 2005). in addition, current findings underscore the use of the co-teaching co-teaching practices during student teaching 63 approach by student teachers in terms of planning and organizing instruction and also in delivering and assessing learning experiences as evidenced from the bacharach, heck, & dahlberg (2010) study. improvement in the effectiveness of applying co-teaching strategies by student teachers would require better preparation in the clinical model prior to student teaching without limiting it to one training. team teaching in middle school is observed when both teachers assume active and passive instructional roles (mastropieri & scruggs, 2007). on the part of students, team teaching is beneficial because lesson instruction is carried out by both teachers who support students’ discussion and are actively engaged in the management of the lesson and classroom behavior (murawski, & dieker, 2008). to have ongoing support of co-teaching training in schools, administrators must be educated about the practice in order to provide required material resources and have a better schedule that allows cooperating teacher to be well prepared to work together with a student teacher and instill critical collaborative skills required in co-teaching. second, even though the study showed no significant differences between any of the coteaching strategies or time spent planning, studies have shown that the most important issue for many educators related to co-teaching is planning time (dieker, 2001; keefe & moore, 2004). limited planning time have student teachers engage in more passive roles of observing and assisting (nierengarten & hughes, 2010). in addition, co-teaching requires more planning time compared to a solo-taught class (graziano & navarrete, 2012). planning by co-teachers allow self-reflection on how the co-teaching relationship is operational and assess how particular strategies are implemented to ensure effective application of co-teaching (friend & cook, 2007; magiera et al., 2005; mastropieri et al., 2005; scruggs et al., 2007). so, while there is agreement that planning time is critical for effective co-teaching, it is important for both co-teachers to have equal investment and have equal standing in the classroom. furthermore, collaboration during planning time allows the use of advanced co-teaching strategies because two individuals rather than one improves creativity and implementation of co-teaching strategies (bacharach, heck, & dahlberg, 2010). third, results showed correlations of the different co-teaching strategies. for elementary student teachers, there were more correlations among the co-teaching strategies; as evidenced in the greater use of a variety of co-teaching strategies. three relationships were found in the middle school cooperating teachers data. however, there were no correlations found between any of the co-teaching strategies from either high school cooperating teachers or student teachers. elementary student teachers seem to engage in more co-teaching strategies as they differentiate lessons based on abilities and learning preferences and provide more small-group instruction. in high school classes, often there is less differentiation and teaching in small groups, preventing student teachers from implementing a variety of co-teaching strategies. even with some studies suggesting that well-implemented co-teaching does benefit students (rice & zigmond, 2000; walther-thomas, 1997); there is need for research that further and examine the many variables that could affect the implementation of co-teaching strategies that will result to potential effective use of the practice (friend, et al, 2010). however, some states have passed guidelines increasing the number of field hours required by all teacher candidates (kentucky administrative regulation, 2013). increasing high school field hours may help to address this disparity and increase school teacher candidates’ skills in teaming prior to student teaching. 64   r. stobaugh & m. gichuru   limitations one of the reasons for limited studies by researchers is lack of clear definition of coteaching that would ensure the practice is implemented across the co-teaching studies in a consistent and defensible manner (mowbray, et al, 2003). this concern was addressed in this study by making sure the teachers were trained about the different co-teaching strategies and the co-teaching strategies were defined at the bottom of the survey as a reminder. although this study took place during the middle of student teaching, all the cooperating teachers and student teachers for different grade levels completed the survey despite a small size of participants; 45 cooperating teachers and 47 student teachers. even with the small groups, findings suggest that planning had no influence on the use of a variety of co-teaching strategies. in addition, the ideas explored in this article indicate that teachers may have had exposure to different co-teaching strategies influencing the frequent or moderate use of advanced team teaching strategy. future research this research shows differences across program levels and a need to provide more training on the use of the different co-teaching strategies to increase the use of advance coteaching strategies. in addition, further research is needed to examine the underlying causes for the variances among program areas in implementing co-teaching strategies. as teacher preparation institutions examine ways to improve teacher quality, co-teaching provides a model to enhance teacher collaboration skills that would prepare teacher candidates to obtain and apply new knowledge and skills that would increase student achievement and growth. today, teacher preparation programs are expected to prepare teacher candidates who are professionally ready and can demonstrate mastery of subject content and effective instructional approach that meets the needs of all diverse learners and holds the learners to high expectations (council of chief state school officers, ccsso, 2012). 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(2011). professional development schools and student learning and achievement. national society for the study of education, 110(2), 403-431. co-teaching practices during student teaching 71 appendix 1 wku co-teaching mid-point checkpoint: student teacher form wku co-teaching mid-point checkpoint student teacher form student teacher’s name: _____________________________ school name: _______________________________ level: (preschool, ele, ms, hs) _________________ how many hours a week do you co-plan with your teacher? circle the number of hours below. 1 hour 2 hours 3 hours 4 hours 5 hours 6 or more hours turn in completed form to wku university supervisor. what percentage of the time are you engaged in each of the co-teaching strategies? make sure your total amount of time equals 100%. for example, 50% team teaching and 50% alternative (50 + 50 = 100). one teach, one observe 0 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% one teach, one assist 0 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% station teaching 0 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% parallel teaching 0 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% supplemental 0 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% alternative 0 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% team teaching 0 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% 72   r. stobaugh & m. gichuru   appendix 2 wku co-teaching mid-point checkpoint: cooperating teacher form co-teaching mid-point checkpoint: cooperating teacher form student teacher’s name: _____________________________ school name: _______________________________ level: (preschool, ele, ms, hs) _________________ how many hours a week do you co-plan with your teacher? circle the number of hours below. 1 hour 2 hours 3 hours 4 hours 5 hours 6 or more hours turn in completed form to wku university supervisor. what percentage of the time are you engaged in each of the co-teaching strategies? make sure your total amount of time equals 100%. for example, 50% team teaching and 50% alternative (50 + 50 = 100). one teach, one observe 0 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% one teach, one assist 0 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% station teaching 0 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% parallel teaching 0 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% supplemental 0 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% alternative 0 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% team teaching 0 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% co-teaching strategies one teach, one observe – one teacher has primary instructional responsibility while the other gathers specific observational information on students or the (instructing) teacher. one teach, one assist – an extension of one teach, one observe. one teacher has primary instructional responsibility while the other assists students’ with their work, monitors behaviors, or corrects assignments. station teaching – the co-teaching pair divide the instructional content into parts –each teacher instructs one of the groups, groups then rotate parallel teaching – each teacher instructs half the students. the two teachers are addressing the same instructional material and presenting the material using the same teaching strategies. co-teaching practices during student teaching 73 supplemental – this strategy allows one teacher to work with students at their expected grade level, while the other teacher works with those students who need the information and/or materials extended or remediated. alternative – alternative teaching strategies provide two different approaches to teaching the same information. the learning outcome is the same for all students however the avenue for getting there is different. team teaching – well planned, team taught lessons, exhibit an invisible flow of instruction with no prescribed division of authority. using a team teaching strategy, both teachers are actively involved in the lesson. from a students’ perspective, there is no clearly defined leader – as both teachers share the instruction, are free to interject information, and available to assist students and answer questions. microsoft word 6powell-final.docx vol. 3, no. 1, dec 2014, pp. 65-81 stoking the fire: what makes a teacher inspirational? ann powell-brown, dawna lisa buchanan butterfield, and yuankun yao university of central missouri abstract this essay uses qualitative elements to examine characteristics of inspirational teachers through the eyes of teacher candidate autobiographical essays. based on narratives written by 35 college students, three teacher educators examined the responses through several lenses, including: the characteristics the inspirational teachers had in common, and the impact the teachers had on the students. seven emerging themes indicate that truly inspirational teachers go beyond the normal call of their duties, sometimes in intangible ways. also indicated is the notion that knowledge and instructional strategies are not sufficient for making a teacher inspirational. implications for teacher education are discussed. 66   a. powell-brown, d. buchanan butterfield, & y. yao   introduction some years ago, one of the authors of this article taught in an urban elementary school that was undergoing demographic changes. mrs. adams, a seasoned teacher who was nearing retirement, was having a great deal of trouble adjusting to the raucous fifth grade boys who were assigned to her classroom that year. her main frustration involved three little guys who were basically non-readers. energetic and “rascally,” they led mrs. adams on a merry chase that made her days frustrating and ineffective. a reading teacher who taught down the hall from mrs. adams struck a deal to take the three mischievous students for the entire afternoon every day. with a bit of tweaking, she tried to meld the boys’ abilities and interests with the activities and lessons they needed. fortunately, the children responded well to being included in the new reading class. the boys settled down, developed confidence, and all three of them learned to read before the year was over. several years later, the teacher heard that one of the boys, sam (now almost ready for high school) had developed a melanoma and consequently much of his right arm had been surgically removed. struck with grief for the young man, she went to the hospital to visit him. she was not sure whether the boy would remember her as clearly as she remembered him. when she entered his hospital room, she saw sam propped up in his bed, one arm bandaged around the elbow. she could see that he had been reading a book. the boy glanced in her direction, and his face lit up as he grinned. the conversation went something like this: sam: “i was just thinking about you!” teacher: “you were thinking about me?” sam: “sure. i was thinking about that guy you dated in college. remember him? the one who had one arm?” teacher, surprised and confused: “what?” sam, ignoring her expression, “you know, the guy who could sing so well? he played semi-pro football for a while, and he worked construction in the summer. remember? he could do anything he put his mind to. don’t you remember him??” teacher, hesitant: “of course i remember him. i just don’t remember telling you about him.” sam: “well, you did. –and i figure if he could do those things, i can learn to do them too.” that is when the teacher noticed the book sam was reading. it was the guinness world book of records, and the boy was thumbing through it to find all of the athletic records broken by disabled athletes, who had not let their handicaps stop them from doing what was important to them. the teacher wondered why sam still remembered that particular, seemingly random, story several years after it was told. most of us have had the experience of running into a former student who told us that they remembered us and what we taught them, or remembered something specific that stuck with them. some of us have had students call or write us years later to tell us something we said or did that had a personal impact on their lives. we teachers say many things to children over the time we have them in class, and in retrospect, we hope they were positive statements. often, we don’t remember those comments. still, those comments sometime stick with students in extraordinary ways. could it be that almost all teachers have inspirational teaching moments…. moments we may not remember ourselves, but flashes of inspiration that affect our students forever? do we sometimes unknowingly change our students’ stoking the fire 67 lives in ways we could never imagine? what makes a teacher inspirational? can we, through our own hard work and attitudes, become inspirational teachers most of the time? can inspirational abilities be defined, let alone taught? questions like these prompted three teacher educators in a midwestern university to carefully examine an assignment that was completed by 35 college students in a course offered by the university’s teacher education program. theoretical framework “inspirational” is one of those slippery, descriptive terms that is frequently overused. in fact, in the united kingdom, so many advertisements for teachers contained the word “inspirational,” it has been suggested that the term may have lost meaning (warnes, 2006). yet it is the very word “inspirational” that keeps popping up in when people describe the teachers who made a difference in their lives. the word appears in a multitude of written tributes, speeches, obituaries and essays that attempt to describe the essence of a great teacher. such a teacher provides that often intangible “something” that influences students, and sometimes creates a shelter for the soul and a passionate blueprint for living. it is also the “something” that may change the lives of students. the past decade has been one in which the acquisition of specific knowledge, and how assessment determines appropriate instruction, has been well addressed by many well respected educators (marzano, 2009; fountas & pinnell, 2010; dorn & soffos, 2011). the common core standards (corestandards.org) encourage incorporating a variety of text topics into english language arts curriculum. the disciplinary literacy movement is strong and positive (shannahan, 2014). clearly, students, assessments and instructional approaches are very important to our endeavors to move children forward academically. nevertheless, despite those important academic foci, it is just as important that teachers think about how to encourage and motivate students’ desire to learn the material and go beyond it (miller 2010; keene & zimmerman, 2007; atwell (2007); donalyn, 2014). cloninger (2006) states that standardized testing can assess neither the students’ worldviews nor their passions; yet these are fundamental forces in learning. he illustrates this by pointing out einstein’s comment about his genius, when he said, “the only real valuable thing is intuition.” besides being instructional leaders, if we teachers can support and encourage the development of students who are inspired and eager to learn and create, we will have done our jobs, and done them well. what makes a good teacher? good teachers know how to help children learn. nearly every workshop that one hears about today seems to be about how data, but there currently appears to be a dearth of workshops that deal with the inspirational part of teaching. it is generally agreed that a teacher’s skills and knowledge alone may not be sufficient to allow the teacher to be as effective as he or she could be. in fact, the teacher may have fine academic attributes, but his/her personality may not allow those attributes to be properly implemented or shared. what is often suggested as the missing piece is the notion of teacher dispositions (penn state, 2013; l’allier, elish-piper, & young, 2007; thornton, 2006). johnson & reiman (2007) defined dispositions as "characteristics of a teacher that represent a trend of a teacher's judgments and actions in ill-structured contexts"(p. 677). jung & rhodes (2008) distinguished dispositions as related to personal traits, not just dispositions related to professional competencies and suggested that both types of dispositions should be assessed in 68   a. powell-brown, d. buchanan butterfield, & y. yao   teacher education. not only do we need “teachers who are certainly morally and ethically disposed as well as good citizens and effective persons,” but “more importantly… [teachers who] possess the dispositions to be highly competent in a variety of spectra...” (jung & rhodes,p. 656). osguthorpe (2008) contends that the scope of a teacher’s dispositions should be broadened to include “all matters of the classroom life and teacher effectiveness.” thornton (2006) suggested that it was more important to study dispositions "beyond personality traits and minimal behavior expectations ... toward … how they manifest themselves through the actions teachers subsequently take in the classroom" (p. 56). his study found that the teachers who had a lasting impact on students “were those who exhibited key dispositions that impacted, even determined, how content knowledge and pedagogical skills came to life within the classroom” (p. in a similar vein, sanger (2008) argued for a clear articulation of the moral nature of the teachers’ work. he distinguished between three types of moral work. the first pertains to a teacher’s activities or behaviors that are of moral value. the second kind of moral work consists of a teacher’s practice that contributes to the moral development and functioning of his or her students. “a teacher may be a moral saint and have little positive influence on students’ moral development…” (p. 175). the other type of moral work that a teacher can produce is to “instantiate discourse and practice that is moral in form or function” (p. 178). the differentiation helps to illustrate the need for teachers to go beyond doing something moral in nature, so that it makes a difference in the students. desirable teacher dispositions may vary across areas. miranda (2012) found that urban science teachers do well when they possess teaching dispositions that include “professionalism, a passion for science and teaching, and a dedication to student learning.” l’allier et al (2007) focused on the assessment of dispositions for teacher candidates in an advanced literacy program. they developed a list of seven dispositions to be targeted for evaluating candidates in this program: collaboration; reflection; openness and flexibility; professional ethics; oral and written communication; diversity, and commitment to learning and profession. a growing number of educators and educational theorists are making the argument that dispositions can be taught and cultivated. ritchhart (2002), for instance, considered dispositions acquired patterns of behavior that can be achieved through learning. thornton (2006) suggested that the teachability of dispositions can be found in dewey’s work, which “emphasizes the importance of the acquisition and development of dispositions, differentiating them from innate characteristics, traits or temperament” (p. 67). according to carroll (2007), teacher education programs play an important role in shaping the developing dispositions of teacher candidates: “a candidate’s dispositions are influenced implicitly and explicitly by the interactions she has with other persons and the institutional character of teacher education” (para. 17). for a similar reason, schussler (2006) encouraged teacher education programs to tailor their courses and experiences to develop dispositions for the candidates. the argument for dispositions to be teachable has been receiving empirical support in the research literature. for instance, cummins & asempapa (2013) studied whether teaching interventions in a course changed the knowledge and understanding levels of students related to dispositions. the study concluded that “knowledge and understanding related to professional dispositions can change through the experiences candidates have during their training” (p. 110). brewer, lindquist, & altemueller (2011) used the case study method to examine how teacher candidates with problematic dispositions improved their dispositions using a special intervention process. the process was shown to be effective in addressing the candidates’ problematic dispositions. stoking the fire 69 what makes a great teacher? when discussing the effectiveness and the impact of a teacher, it is important to differentiate a good teacher from a great teacher. in a discussion of what makes teachers of gifted students great( instead of merely good), hargrove (2005) mentioned the creation of critical learning environment, the provision of challenge for students, setting high expectations, and the willingness to help students outside of class. a truly great teacher often inspires students. inspiration represents a kind of motivation that “gives those who are inspired reason to act in a particular way” (van der zee & de jong, 2009, p. 12). van der zee & de jong made the following comment on the nature of inspiration: inspiring someone does not mean that the person will act or choose in precisely the same way as the person inspiring him, although it does prompt a similar kind of action or choice. what is peculiar to inspiration, however, is that it motivates very powerfully and very positively because of the remarkable character of its source, at least in the eyes of those who are inspired by it. (p. 12) in spite of the powerful energy or fire that may be ignited in students by their inspiring teachers, the teachers do not necessarily know that they have made such an impact on the others (thompson, 2007). thompson also points out that students who have been inspired do not think every day about the people or things that have given them the inspiration. one key element of teacher disposition that could make a teacher inspirational is the love a teacher has for students and for the job. bullough & pinnegar(2009) suggested that there is a strong relationship between loving and learning. "when students know that we love them they do, in fact, reveal themselves...they clearly remember how they felt, how they were treated and how we interacted" (p. 251). “…being loving ought not to be forgotten nor taken-for-granted, that loving is at the center of what teachers do and are.” (p. 252). the importance of a teacher’s love for the job and for the students is also echoed by van manen (1986), who postulated that truly successful teachers are those who embody learning, and who model not only a love for subject matter but how that subject has moved the teacher to share what is so beautiful about it in his/her life. he also stressed the need for teachers to be thoughtful and tactful: thoughtfulness, tactfulness, is a peculiar quality that has as much to do with what we are as with what we do. it is a knowledge that issues from the heart as well as the head....and unfortunately (or fortunately) there are no rules that will ensure the right kind of thoughtfulness and tact. pedagogic thoughtfulness is sustained by a certain kind of seeing, of listening, of responding. out of this basis of thoughtfulness, tact in our relationship with children may grow. (p. 15). the types of qualities or behaviors that make a teacher inspirational to the students, however, have seldom been documented in the literature except in a few selected areas such as church-related schools (van der zee & de jong, 2009); the gifted class (hargrove 2005); the class for students at risk (mitchell & jacob, 2011); in music education (ingle, 2005), or in journalism (bliss 1985). it is not clear what characteristics or behaviors of teachers inspire and ignite the powerful energy in students in the regular k-12 classroom. the identification of those characteristics or modes of behavior has important implications for the preparation of teachers. method of study 70   a. powell-brown, d. buchanan butterfield, & y. yao   as an assignment and a prerequisite to a classroom conversation about teaching, a group of 35 pre-service teaching candidates were asked to go home and write about what they remembered about their teachers before they were in college. the students were to write about any teachers who may have inspired them when they were in elementary, middle and high school. they were just asked to “take a little trip down memory lane,” and they were not given specific parameters except to write from their hearts about what they remembered. students had several weeks to think about past teachers and put their thoughts on paper. they were told that they should speak freely and they were assured that the names of teachers, schools and towns would not be revealed to anyone. indeed, when the assignment was first given, it was simply a way to spur conversation in class about inspirational teachers and teacher dispositions. it was never meant to be more than that. the papers that were submitted, however, cried for sharing. they were so rich in detail and commentary that the professor who had assigned the paper asked the students if it might be shared with colleagues. students couldn’t wait to share what they remembered, and they said it was a fascinating time for them. they remembered things they had no idea were still in their minds. the students readily agreed to share their work with others outside the class, and at that point the papers were examined to make sure there was no identifying information re: the students, or their subjects, school or locations. the professors submitted a proposal to the human subjects committee at the university for permission to read, parse information and learn from the papers, and to possibly publish any important findings. the qualitative approach the assignments were written by 35 undergraduates enrolled in a night class of a content area reading course. they were all caucasian females, and their ages ranged from twenty one to over fifty. the professors did not attempt to approach the analysis of these papers from the viewpoint of systematic research. it was apparently that the writing was not done with the idea of it serving as research, and it was not controlled or quantifiable. since the writing was rich and autobiographical, the professors viewed the papers through “qualitative eyes” of teacher educators who wanted to see what these long remembered teachers had in common with each other, what they did that made the students remember them so well, and what types of long-term impact they have on the students. the coding procedure several coding templates were developed to try to capture similar traits, activities, or intangible “things” that the students wrote about each teacher. they began with four categories, but later developed five, and finally finished with eight categories in an effort to more accurately categorize the remembrances into themes. the final template consisted of the following eight coding categories: 1.) non-disposition related instructional strategies; 2.) disposition related instructional strategies; 3.) disposition related teacher personality; 4.) relationship outside of the classroom environment; 5.) physical attributes; 6.) teacher expectations; 7.) general impact; 8.) specific impact. the eight categories were selected because the researchers felt they were adequate to summarize the discourse students used about their inspirational teachers. summaries of the writings were shared in subsequent meetings in an attempt to identify themes that help to answer the research questions. from the responses on the template, seven themes were eventually identified. results of study stoking the fire 71 the refinement of the eight coding categories, along with the repeated readings and sharing of analyses of students’ writings about their inspirational teachers, led to the identification of seven themes that seemed to define the characteristics of inspirational teachers. the seven themes were: strategies, attitude, nurturing, passion, personal relationship, expectations, and legacy. strategies...those things we often preach and teach in teacher education programs most teachers perceived as inspirational in the study employed instructional strategies that made a lasting impact on their students. some of the teachers were described as artistic, inventive, and alert to multiple modes of learning. for instance, a teacher was remembered as having made test review questions into a game for the students while they traveled from gymnasium to restroom and back to the classroom. one student, kelly, recalled a teacher bringing audio tapes of multiplication songs to class. it made learning multiplication tables fun and easier for her. “even now in my college level classes, i find myself singing the songs”, she said. students also seemed to value teachers who used creative instructional strategies to keep students engaged. for example, averie had a favorable impression of her fourth grade teacher: "one thing i liked about her class was that when we would talk about science, we got to read articles in the newspaper and then act them out so the class learned about them too." other engaging strategies mentioned by students included using graphic organizers; asking students to wear pajamas to read on certain days; decorating classrooms with appealing student artwork, posters, mobiles and “found” objects. some teachers created inviting spaces for children to read, work, play and study, such as a big bubble in which to read, or creating an egyptian “town” while studying the history of that culture. memories incorporated the employment of creative, cooperative learning strategies, such as using catchy and odd vocabulary words to look up and use in conversation. several students pointed out that their inspirational teachers employed strategies that aligned learning to real world experience. the teachers provided such authentic learning experiences as field trips to places the children had never been and taking children outside to look at the environment in their own communities. they remembered teachers inviting public speakers who were expert in content areas, and using authentic materials to support student observation, such as chicks in an incubator, or butterflies hatching in special nets in the classroom. they remembered building models of habitats that reflected multiple cultures and time periods, and they appreciated those teachers who noted a student’s strength and encouraged an extension of abilitysuch as suggesting that a student join the yearbook club, or marching band. there were also students who mentioned their inspirational teachers using strategies to accommodate learning. they cover such strategies as differentiated instruction, differentiated assessment, and opportunities for students to expand on their strengths. the teachers engaged in making adjustments in assignments and offering choices for students. attitude ....that all important disposition... “attitude” was the second theme that emerged from the study. although the personality traits of the inspirational teachers varied widely (some were relatively quiet, while others could be quite dramatic) they exhibited some common attitudes about and towards their students. 72   a. powell-brown, d. buchanan butterfield, & y. yao   students fondly remembered teachers who showed respect for students while also expecting respect from students, and who showed genuine interest in student opinions. many respondents posited that the positive attitudes of their inspirational teachers contributed to their comfort and success in the classrooms. as one student pointed out, "…attitude sets the mood for the day. i want my class to experience that too,” she said. some of the descriptions used by respondents that reflect the attitude of their inspirational teachers included, “when she had to redirect a child, she did it very gently;” “…he was a very enthusiastic man;” and “…made us feel super intelligent… i remember that she taught me the word ‘chutzpah,’ and that she certainly had a lot of it herself!” passion...what really ignites interest... the passion inspirational teachers demonstrated about their subject area ignited curiosity and interest in their students. the passion might be for a specific subject, or the love of teaching in general. “he was the first teacher that inspired me because you could tell that he loved teaching”, one student said. “she showed us her love of reading”, remembered another. a third student recalled: “she inspired in me her passion for science.” passion for the subject can be a contagious, consuming love that can inspire students to develop a new avocation, if not a vocation. several students suggested that the passion their teachers showed for a subject, and/or for teaching, had a profound impact on them. over one third of the students said the fervor of their inspirational teachers made them want to be teachers themselves. one student said, “i want my students to fall in love with the material. i want to see my students’ eyes sparkle when they put the pieces together. i want to hear them discuss and debate with peers, and watch their projects turn into passionate hobbies. students wrote a great many examples of their teachers’ passions for their subject areas. they included comments such as, “she was a music teacher, and she was so passionate about it that everyone who had contact with her knew it. … i pray that i have as much passion for my students as she did... her passion made most other students have the same passion.” one teacher was fascinated by her history teacher, “mr. d. was a passionate teacher who loved history and loved teaching. i feel if a teacher is passionate and interested in the subject, it rubs off onto the students.” even a teacher who was not especially accessible to his students was mentioned, “mr. m. was a 5th grade teacher who was not warm and fuzzy, but he loved math and history. he made history come alive for me! … i owe mr. m. my gratitude for my love of history. nurturing ... still needed at all ages... another theme that emerged from the study is the nurturing and support provided by inspirational teachers to help students grow and develop, especially during difficult times. jane remembered having an accident during recess (wetting her pants) and being upset and embarrassed. the teacher comforted her by sharing that as someone who had been teaching for a long time, she had seen a lot of first graders have bathroom accidents. she assured jane that it was nothing to worry about. alicia recalled missing three months of her second grade due to a leg injury. her teacher would go to her house every week to help her catch up on the class work. felicia noted that her teacher made it a priority to help a friend of hers, who had recently been put into foster care, and who was having trouble fitting into the class. the teacher even spent time after school with both the student and her friend, inviting them to her vacation bible school, and spending extra time with them. rachel recalled having a hard time in her 7th grade, and her teacher being supportive. stoking the fire 73 the teacher provided her with “memorable comments and encouragement”. “he made me feel special [during] that difficult year”, she said. some teachers really went out of their way when providing support and nurturing to their students, for which their students would feel forever grateful. ashley recalled a teacher who visited her when she was hospitalized for bronchitis and pneumonia. the teacher visited the student the second day she stayed at the hospital, bringing “all my lessons for the entire week and then some extra fun projects for me to do.” she got another visit from the teacher the day before her hospital release a week later. jane had a high school guidance counselor whose door “was always open for students who had trouble in their lives”. after the death of a close friend, the student went to the counselor’s office for comfort. “she allowed me to come get a hug from her…sit in her office and get composed before going back to class….her office was truly a refuge for me.” personal relationship ...the memories that last personal relationship is a theme that stands out when students recalled their inspirational teachers. it refers to the type of relationship that exists between the instructor and the student outside of the classroom and school. beth said one of her teachers would stay before and after the normal school hours in case her students needed help. helen said one of her teachers lived several streets up from where she lived. she would go to the teacher’s house with her sisters to “have tea cookies and hot tea on her white wicker coffee table.” “to this day i can remember seeing her big white beautiful house with its big huge porch,” she said. jane had a high school home economics teacher who attended many student activities, such as ball games and concerts. students consider this type of personal relationship important. beth said that her teacher, who went above and beyond by staying at school before and after school, was not just a teacher, but a friend. “if i had any problems or was upset, she would try and comfort me. she was not only an amazing teacher, but an amazing woman,” she said. susan really enjoyed being with her teacher outside of school. “this way i was able to tell that teachers were actually real people, and they could actually relax.” helen remembered that it was a lot of fun for her to join the tea party on her teacher’s front porch. allie noted that her high school history teacher had her babysit her kids. she said this was the first time “that someone gave me that kind of responsibility.” “thinking back, this meant the world to me that someone thought that much of me,” she said. she was later invited to the teacher’s wedding. she said to this day, the teacher was like a mother to her and a best friend. another student, ashley, said this of her teacher: “the thing that had amazed me the most was that this teacher cared enough about me to take extra time out of her day to get all of this together for me and personally visit with me at the hospital that was an hour from her home and family and where she taught… this teacher …went above and beyond to make sure one of her students was receiving the best education she could provide for her even outside of the classroom.” expectations ... the key to excellence.... an impressive number of respondents reported that their favorite teachers explicitly held them to high expectations, and urged them to do more than they believed they could achieve. high expectations were mentioned by several students in the study: “[the teacher] was never afraid to challenge our class demanded that students be hard workers.” 74   a. powell-brown, d. buchanan butterfield, & y. yao   “she had to hear the right sounds as we sang and if not, then we had to repeat the song over and over again. she was the teacher who wanted to hear the best of the best.” “mr. o encouraged me not to give up... [he] helped me break out of my comfort zone.” “there was no messing around in her class. she demanded excellence when turning in anything written.” “i had a baby when i was in high school. one of my teachers came to the hospital to visit me. ignoring the fact that i was an unwed teenage mother, she asked me what i planned to do with my life and when i was going to apply for college. that was a turning point for me.” the high expectations of teachers made students realize their full potential, for which they seemed to be thankful. several students suggested this in their narratives. “[he] taught me to push myself beyond my limits. [it] turns out [that] my limits weren't as tight as i thought. he instilled mental toughness [in me].” “she was demanding ... [we found out] we could do more than we thought we were capable of...." the high expectations that the inspirational teachers set for their students were also coupled with the support that students needed to successfully meet expectations. this is evidenced by the following comments the students made of their teachers: “the teacher had high expectations but also put strong efforts into helping students reach those expectations.” “[the teacher had] high expectations, but made learning enjoyable pushed us to do our best and expected our best; wanted us to be prepared for college and the [state] test.” legacy ....the impact for a lifetime legacy is a theme from the study that refers to the long lasting impact the inspirational teachers had on the students. the impact ranges from specific inspirations such as the way to treat other people or regained confidence in oneself, to more broad influences such as career choice. there are several examples where the legacy of a teacher came in the form of some specific inspiration or impact. for instance, kim, who was a very quiet student, was facing some challenge when she moved to a different state in the first grade. her teacher made her feel comfortable in the new classroom. “this meant the world to me when i was younger,” she said. the legacy carried to the later stages of her life. “as i grew older mrs. smith’s actions have continued to influence me, not only in my daily life but in my work as a prospective teacher as well.” a similar inspiration was recalled by isabella, who considered herself “a very average student” until she met her fifth grade teacher. “after the year with her i knew i was capable of more than what i had been doing before.” sometimes the legacy came from special challenges and high expectations from a teacher. for instance, jennifer found inspiration in her gifted class teacher who constantly challenged her class: “i believe the challenges and experiences she presented broadened my horizons. her class really inspired me to do the same in my classroom.” christy considered her college prep teacher as “one of the most bizarre teachers.” the teacher would pull his hair if one of his students did not answer the question correctly. this very teacher, said christy, inspired her “to not take anything less, but the best from my students and to never give up on them.” the legacy may also take the form of long term interest and career choice due to the passion that the students witnessed in their teachers for their subject, their job, and their students. stoking the fire 75 iris said that she had a love for history due to her teacher’s passion for the subject in high school. in the case of allie, three high school teachers who showed care and kindness towards their students made a lasting impact on her. “with the combination of the three teachers who impacted me so much through high school, i believe i am a well-rounded educator. i know what kindness can do for a person.” kim considered her high school biology teacher as the person who “has inspired me the most and greatly influenced my decision to become a teacher.” noni said that the teachers who cared about their job and their students were the reason why she wanted to a teacher. conclusions and discussions the identification of the seven themes from the study helps to shed light on the making of an inspirational teacher. the repeated mentioning of innovative strategies by the students when recalling their inspirational teachers points clearly to the importance of pedagogy in the preparation of teachers, which has been a traditional focus in teacher education. while students emphasized the importance of pedagogical strategies, they also enthusiastically talked about other characteristics that did not fall under the pedagogical domain. the themes of attitude, passion, nurturing, personal relationship, and expectations fall clearly under the dispositional field. some of these characteristics have been found to be associated with effective teaching in the literature. for instance, in the thornton (2006) study teachers who were perceived as more effective were those who demonstrated "enthusiasm for learning" and that those who were perceived as less effective "while not attributed to personality differences...were attributed to a lack of commitment" (p. 61). based on the individual themes and the rich descriptions of the students regarding their k12 inspirational teachers, the researchers were able to identify two overarching themes from the study. first of all, inspirational teachers go above and beyond the expectation. this was evident not only when a teacher spent time with students after school was over, or when a teacher traveled back and forth for more than a year to visit a student in hospital, but also at moments of more traditional student/teacher interactions, such as when a teacher urged a student not to give up. it is during those moments that the care and passion of a teacher shine through; it is during those moments that a teacher leaves a permanent impact on a student; it is during those moments when a teacher becomes inspirational. those moments are not easy to dispose of in the mind of the students, although they may be forgotten by the teacher herself. the second overarching theme from the study is that positive dispositions are indispensable to the making of an inspirational teacher. the following account given by one student could ring true of many inspirational teachers: “the memory i still have of [this teacher] is the softness of her spirit and the kindness of her touch. if there is a section in heaven for loving teachers, she is there with many awards…she was not a yeller, she was not one to humiliate children; her room was well organized and students enjoyed the learning experience…” although inspirational teachers vary greatly in terms of their temperaments, looks, and strategies, they invariably display such “softness” and “kindness” when dealing with their students. it is true that the pedagogical knowledge and skills still make a big difference. however, without the care, the passion, the personal relationship, and the high expectations, a teacher would not leave a permanent legacy with a student. 76   a. powell-brown, d. buchanan butterfield, & y. yao   two things struck the professors as being of major importance when reading these papers. one is that passion, which can be the love of teaching, and/or the passionate love of a specific topic, turned some students from reluctant learners into people who later developed either a vocation or an avocation related to the passion of the teacher that was remembered. the other powerful force that was clear in the elicited memories was that of a direct, personal connection that developed between the teacher and the student. it was an intangible emotion that the students often feel even today. students remembered teachers’ long dead who made a direct connection with them that still “sticks with them”. the combination of passion for a topic and the direct personal connection with a student seemed to provide an incredibly powerful synergism that could be life changing. the findings from the current study confirmed the importance of teacher dispositions for teacher education programs. traditionally, teacher preparation focuses its attention on pedagogical knowledge and skills, and only relatively recently have we started to pay closer attention to dispositions. current efforts are mostly directed at defining and assessing dispositional attributes of teacher candidates through surveys. few efforts have been made in terms of incorporating the dispositions into the curriculum of teacher education programs, nor has there been much focus on how dispositions can be taught to or enhanced for pre-service teachers. varella &veronesi (2004) suggested that teachers' values and knowledge that directly affect the quality of experience they bring with them into a classroom are formed during their pre-service years. this assumption has significant implication for teacher education. a 2012 extensive literature review by vishal arghode found that “empathy plays a role in instruction; students feel connected with instructors if they receive support and encouragement….and instructor’s empathy skills are crucial” (p. 128). based on multiple studies arghode examined, a definition of empathy was “a caring and nurturing attitude…a concern for student progress and…ability to accurately communicate feelings and understanding of students’ perspectives” (pg. 130). the author cautions, however, that “evaluating empathy skill is difficult to assess and measure” (p. 132). the overarching theme of the essay is that instructors who are empathetically skillful do not judge. van manen (1986) long ago identified the importance of relationship between adult and students, commenting “by knowing this child, a teacher can hold back superficial judgment about him or her. the word “observing” has etymological connections to “preserving, saving, regarding, protecting.” (p. 19) van manen’s ideas about the importance of tact in the teaching/learning relationship ties into arghode’s observations, but arghode suggests that empathy cannot be taught, although it can be modeled as a tool. van manen maintains the importance of a teacher’s passion for his or her subject, noting “there is a deep truth in the statement “you are what you teach.” (pg. 45). it may also be important to note that teacher educators themselves can model the dispositional attributes for the teacher candidates, just as the teachers recalled in the study modeled for the pre-service teachers when they were younger. if dispositions that really matter receive the same amount of attention as pedagogical knowledge and skills, more of our teacher candidates will be inspired. van manen (1986) remarks: “there is much to be learned from what students say about outstanding teaches they have had. or from hearing them describe the teachers they learned best from, the ones they would like to be themselves. certain themes will being to emerge, themes hidden behind stoking the fire 77 stories and anecdotes that easily lead to generalizations about such teachers being fair, patient, able to communicate, keeping good discipline, having a sense of humor, being interest in and knowing children, knowing what to teach.” (pg. 46). as these inspired candidates leave teacher education programs and enter their own classroom, they will more likely to ignite the fire in their students and make a profound impact on their lives. recommendations for teacher educators the authors of this paper have a number of recommendations for teacher educators across this nation as we prepare effective teachers. the recommendations particularly pertain to the incorporation of dispositions in teacher education. 1. incorporate discussions of the importance of dispositions into teacher preparation courses whenever possible. read articles about dispositions, and make sure that the pre-service teachers understand the impact of teacher dispositions upon children. 2. use autobiographical assignments, such as the one described in this article, to help preservice teachers review their own experiences with former teachers. ask them to record which teachers made a difference in their lives and why. 3. review the teacher disposition forms that are used at your teacher institution. use those forms at least once a year for pre-service self-evaluation, and for student and faculty conferences to review which dispositions are currently exhibited, and which ones need additional attention. 4. closely monitor all students in field placements for dispositions as well as for instructional strengths and challenges. ask them to notice dispositions of their mentor teachers in dealing with their students. discuss both dispositions and instruction, relative to student engagement and achievement, with pre-service teachers on a regular basis. 5. most cooperating teachers are good, strong teachers but it is unlikely that most of them are exceptionally inspirational. as often as possible, colleges should place pre-service teaching candidates with teachers who have the reputation of being inspirational. that is a difficult task for an institution with many students. even if the cooperating teachers are not especially inspirational, it is possible that pre-service teachers who have already been exposed to the concept of inspirational teaching will be more inclined to note the importance of becoming nurturers who show a passion for teaching, have high expectations and work to develop personal relationships with students. 6. if our goal is to help create inspirational teachers, teacher educators should pay close attention to what may create the dispositions that inspire others. more research on this topic is needed if we want to know how much influence teacher educators and collaborating teachers may have in helping pre-service teachers develop these dispositional traits, and whether those traits can really be taught. 7. in addition, more research is needed to see which inspirational teachers learned their dispositions from their own teacher models, and which ones developed their traits from their own personalities and belief structures. perhaps their role models were their parents, rather than their teachers. on the other hand, it is possible that some inspirational teachers never had a truly inspirational model at all, but instinctively knew what would make a difference for students. these and other facets of inspirational teaching are ripe for research and important for teachers and teacher education programs. 78   a. powell-brown, d. buchanan butterfield, & y. yao   references arghode, v. 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(2006). proactive, self-motivated, inspirational….whatever. times educational stoking the fire 81 supplement, 5/5/2006, issue 4684, special section, 21. caballero et al. 2021 final educational renaissance vol. 10 (2021) special educat ion teachers in residence: new teachers for t he prair ie mar j bock , edd. special education department, emporia state university email: mbock1@emporia.edu mar i caballero, phd. special education department, emporia state university email: mflake@emporia.edu kelly o'neal-hixon, phd. special education department, emporia state university email: koneal@emporia.edu research article in september of 2017 the kansas state school board learned that there were 82 special education teacher vacancies across the state. approximately 25% of the state?s 286 school districts reported teacher shortages. these teaching vacancies occurred in certain areas throughout the state (bisaha, 2018). they clustered in southwestern kansas, south central kansa (two remote, rural kansas regions), and two urban school districts (wichita and kansas city). a survey of school superintendents found that the main reason positions remained unfilled was lack of applicants. seven out of 10 positions remained vacant either because there were no applicants, or the applicants did not meet the state standards (bisaha, 2018). further, there had been a flat growth rate in new teacher licenses and endorsements from 2016 to 2018 (bisaha, 2018). consequently, schools had increased reliance on waivers to hire teachers who did not meet state standards. from 2016 through 2018 the numbers of waivers issued by the kansas state department of education increased from 161 to 353 (bisaha, 2018). mischel miller, the state teacher licensure and accreditation director identified fully staffing kansas rural schools as the hotbed issue for the abst ract rural schools face unique challenges recruiting teachers. rural school administrators report difficulties finding qualified applicants. unique challenges rural special education teachers face, e.g., working with a more diverse group of students including those with significant disabilit ies, heighten the difficulties rural administrators experience when recruiting and retaining qualified special education teachers. leveraging university/rural school partnerships, e.g., resident teacher university/school partnerships, can help rural schools recruit and retain qualified special education teachers. this article reports a self-study of teachers college special education fellowship program (tcsefp), a virtual residency in teaching program. the data support the benefits of the tcsefp for special education teacher recruitment and teacher training for first year special education teachers teaching with a provisional endorsement. the data also support the development of virtual university/school partnerships. mailto:mbock1@emporia.edu mailto:mflake@emporia.edu mailto:koneal@emporia.edu caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence kansas department or education (deines, 2017). the shortage of special education teachers is not unique to kansas. nationally, in 2020-2021, 48 states reported special education teacher shortages (buttner, 2021). this shortage is fueled by high special education teacher turnover rates of 12.3%, twice that of general education teacher turnovers (buttner, 2021). lambert (2020) cited three reasons special education teachers leave the field: (a) overwhelming workload, (b) litt le support for high needs students, and (c) demanding parents. an additional factor contributing to the special education teacher shortage is the decrease in teacher education programs throughout the nation (gonzalez, 2020). rural schools, i.e., schools with fewer than 600 students located in towns with less than 2500 people located at least five miles from an urbanized area (rural school and community trust, 2013), face unique challenges when recruiting teachers. as berry, petrin, gravelle, and farmer (2012) note, rural school administrators throughout the nation report difficulties finding applicants or finding qualified applicants. thus, kansas? rural administrators? experiences conform to the national norms. berry et al. (2012) note several other contributing factors: (a) rural special education teachers work with a more diverse group of students, e.g., students with autism, students with learning disabilit ies, students with emotional and behavioral disorders, students with intellectual disabilit ies, students with visual impairments; (b) rural special education teachers often work with students in multiple settings, e.g., inclusive classrooms, resources rooms, self-contained classrooms; and (c) rural special education teachers often work with fewer support services personnel, e.g., additional special education teachers, occupational therapists. consequently, there are unique challenges related to recruitment of rural special education teachers. however, it is not all about recruitment. retention is of equal importance. again, rural schools experience unique challenges related to retention of special education teachers. because rural special education teachers often function as generalists who need to work with a wide range of students in a wide range of settings and are often hired while working on a waiver without meeting state standards, professional development is a key component related to their retention. berry et al. (2012) identified several professional development areas of need for rural special education teachers: (a) working with paraprofessionals and parents, (b) working with students with low incidence disabilit ies, (c) working with students with emotional and behavioral disorders, (d) skills in classroom management, (e) skills in collaboration and inclusion practices, and (f) curriculum content area instruction. how do rural schools respond to the aforementioned? sindelar, pua, fisher, peyton, brownell and mason-williams (2018) identified several strategies rural schools could use to address special education teacher shortages: (a) leverage teacher preparation programs, (b) optimize teacher supports through technology, and (c) promote smarter incentives. they note that rural schools prefer local over out-of-area or out-of-state applicants perhaps because the local candidates understand the community and the ?rural culture.? in addition, applicants tend to look for teaching positions close to where they went to high school or where they student taught. sindelar et al. (2018) note that by leveraging partnerships with teacher preparation programs, rural schools can serve as field experience sites for university students. this gives the university student and the rural school a chance to ?test run? the teaching situation to see if it is a fit. in addition, university/rural school partnerships, e.g., residency in teaching partnerships (guha et al., 2017a; guha et al., 2017b; han & doyle, 2013) bring university resources to the rural school. this can be very helpful for novice special education teachers who benefit greatly from quality mentoring programs during their early careers. similarly, these partnerships help university teacher preparation programs better understand rural issues. this will lead to curriculum revision to better meet the teacher preparation needs of 33 caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence rural schools. these partnerships will flourish via distance technologies. and finally stronger incentives include higher salaries, tuition for university coursework, reduced housing costs, moving expenses, and so forth. purpose and research questions the purpose of this article is to report a self-study of the teachers college special education fellows program (tcsefp), an 11-month, virtual graduate special education program developed to prepare special education teachers to work in rural schools throughout kansas. the self-study questions included: (a) will participants in an accelerated, virtual special education teacher preparation program develop the requisite knowledge and skills to support the educational performance of k-12 students with high incidence disabilit ies? (b) will an 11-month residency in teaching program lead to higher rates of special education teacher recruitment and retention in rural schools? and (c) how satisfied are participants after program completion? met hods design this study used a qualitative research methodology, the self-study methodology (alan, 2016). when conducting self-studies, university professors explore and analyze their practice through ongoing, systematic data collection, analysis, and reflection. the authors selected self-study methodology for this study to evaluate the overall efficacy of an 11-month virtual residency in teaching program for first year special education teachers with general education teaching licenses who were hired to teach special education as they completed the high incidence special education endorsement. participants twenty-two first-year special education teachers, i.e., the fellows, participated in this study. each had a general education teaching license at the elementary, middle school, or secondary level. three had prior general education teaching experience. however, none had recent teaching experience. two taught in an elementary general education classroom 12 to 15 years before study participation. one taught in a secondary general education classroom 33 years prior to study participation. the remaining 19 had recently graduated from an undergraduate teacher education program. the state department of education issued each a provisional special education teaching endorsement in october as they began teaching special education. twenty-one participants had a gpa of 3.0 or hither (mean of 3.87, range of 3.0 to 4.0 on a 4.0 scale) on the final 60 credit hours of undergraduate coursework. one participant had an undergraduate gpa of 2.42 on the final 60 credit hours of undergraduate coursework; however, this participant had a significant hearing impairment and achieved this undergraduate gpa with no disability supports. consequently, university faculty admitted the participant into the program based upon the participant?s interview, their special education director?s recommendation, and the university?s disability support center. the faculty expected that with appropriate disability supports, this applicant would meet the academic rigor of the tcsefp. the participants included two males and 20 females, two latino and 20 caucasian, who ranged from 22 to 62 years of age. teachers college special education fellows program the key components of the teachers college special education fellows program (tcsepf) (bock & o?neal-hixson (2016), a residency in teaching program, included: (a) virtual program delivery, (b) accelerated coursework, (c) virtual and on-site mentors, (d) tuition stipends, and (e) virtual university/school partnerships. virtual program delivery the tcsefp relied solely on virtual delivery. university faculty met with partner administrators, mentors, and fellows virtually throughout the program via video conferencing. university faculty completed practicum supervision and 34 caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence observations in real time via video conferencing. fellows completed all graduate coursework via an online course platform. all other communication occurred via email and phone. accelerated coursework our 24-credit-hour graduate high incidence special education endorsement program includes eight 3-credit-hour courses including two 3-credit-hour practicums. the fellows completed this program in 11 months rather than the typical 24-30 months. they completed four of the eight endorsement courses during the summer term before they began teaching. they completed the four remaining courses during their first-year teaching, i.e., two courses during the first half of the year and two courses during the second half of the year. summer courses included: (a) characteristics of students with high incidence disabilit ies, (b) seminar in behavior management, (c) promoting literacy in students with high incidence disabilit ies, and (d) assessment in schools. fall semester courses included: (a) strategies for students with high incidence disabilit ies and (b) high incidence practicum i (i.e., either elementary or secondary level). spring semester courses included: (a) consultation/collaboration and (b) high incidence practicum ii (i.e., either elementary or secondary level). they began coursework in mid-june and completed it in mid-may. virtual and on-site mentors the tcsefp provided two mentors for each fellow. university faculty served as mentors for each fellow. their mentoring focused on advisement, professionalism, and career goals. this mentoring occurred virtually. in addition, each fellow had an on-site mentor, an experienced special education teacher. the on-site mentors had a special education endorsement and a minimum of five years special education teaching experience. school district administration nominated experienced special education teachers to serve as on-site mentors. university faculty approved and trained them. on-site mentors provided on-the-job mentoring for the fellows. they helped fellows: (a) set up their classrooms, (b) review individual education plans (ieps) for all students on their caseloads, (c) administer assessments, (d) develop lesson plans derived from iep goals and objectives, (e) prepare for and participate in iep meetings, (f) complete functional behavioral assessments (fbas), (g) implement and evaluate behavior intervention plans (bips), (h) supervise paraeducators, and (i) adhere to school building policies and procedures. in addition, the on-site mentors served as liaisons between the university and the school to assure ongoing communication and close coordination between both partners. on-site mentors received a $1,000 stipend paid by the university. each fellow paid a $125 access for each of the eight courses they completed. this access fee paid the mentor stipends. [for more information about the tcsefp mentor model, see bock, caballero, and o?neal-hixson (2020).] tuition stipends the tcsefp provided tuition stipends for each fellow. the tuition stipends paid graduate tuition for the endorsement courses as well as the $125 access fee for each course. these stipends came from three sources: (a) kansas teacher education grant (bock & o?neal-hixon, 2016), (b) federal teach grant (u.s. department of education, 2021), and (c) emporia state university (esu) special education scholarships. the grants paid tuition for seven of the eight courses and the access fee for all eight courses. the esu special education scholarship paid tuition for one course. virtual university/school partnerships as a residency in teaching program (coffman & patterson, 2014), the tcsefp relied upon strong university/school partnerships. working together, university faculty and school administrators: (a) created the on-site mentor handbook and training modules, (b) aligned practicum activities with special education teaching activities, (c) identified potential program participants, (d) identified potential on-site mentors, (e) evaluated program efficacy, and (f) revised the tcsefp as needed. in addition, university faculty provided resources and 34 caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence virtual consultation support for k-12 students with challenging learning problems, e.g., dyslexia, challenging behaviors, e.g., self-injurious behavior, or complex disabilit ies, e.g., autism spectrum disorder. program assessments this self-study utilized regular high incidence accreditation program assessments (bock, 2020): (a) praxis ii special education: core knowledge and mild to moderate applications (0543/5543) (educational testing service, 2021), (b) final practicum evaluation rating scale, (c) iep lesson plan activity, (d) direct instruction/universal design for learning literacy lesson plan project, (e) functional behavioral assessment/behavior intervention plan project, and (f) family and community engagement project. praxis ii special education: core knowledge and mild to moderate applications (0543/5543) preservice or inservice teachers who plan to teach students with mild to moderate disabilit ies at any grade level from preschool through grade 12 complete the special education: core knowledge and mild to moderate applications (0543/5543) test. it addresses five content areas: development and characteristics of learners (approximately 14%), planning and the learning environment (approximately 17%), instruction (approximately 17%), assessment (approximately 14%), and foundations and professional responsibilit ies (approximately 13%. the 90 multiple-choice questions assess the knowledge and understanding of principles and practices related to provision of special education services for students with mild to moderate disabilit ies. it also contains three constructed-response questions that assess knowledge of students with mild to moderate disabilit ies as related to instruction and assessment, learning environment and classroom management, and collaboration. score range for this test is 100 to 200 (educational testing service, 2021). final practicum evaluation rating scale this rating scale contains 32 items clustered into eight categories. these are tightly aligned with the kansas state department of education special education teacher preparation program standards. each item is rated on a scale from 1 to 5: (a) level 1 unsatisfactory (litt le or no skill development), (b) level 2 beginning (minimal knowledge and skills), (c) level iii developing (below proficiency standards), (d) level 4 proficient (meets standards), and (e) level v exemplary (exceeds standards). levels 4 and 5 are passing scores. the fellow?s mentor and building principal completed the rating scale and as the fellows completed supervised practicum ii and submitted them to the university practicum instructor who averaged them to create a composite score. each fellow must earn a composite score of 4 or higher to pass the practicum. iep lesson plan activity fellows completed the iep lesson plan activity during sd 708/709 supervised practice i, high incidence (elementary or secondary level, respectively). for this activity, they develop, implement, and evaluate a lesson plan aligned to one of their student?s individual education plans. this activity is evaluated using a scoring rubric closely aligned with the correlating kansas department of education high incidence special education training program standard. passing scores for this activity fall within the ?acceptable? or ?target? ranges of 80 to 94% or 95 to 100%, respectively. direct instruction/universal design for learning literacy lesson plan project fellows completed the direct instruction/universal design for learning (di/udl) literacy lesson plan project (parts a, b & c) during sd 808 supervised practice, elementary high incidence ii or sd 809 supervised practice, secondary high incidence ii after completing the 75% or more of the high incidence endorsement courses. this project is divided into three parts: part a reading and writing literacy, part b mathematics literacy, and part c content area literacy. all are assessed in content area instruction. for this project, fellows 35 caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence completed the following six interrelated activities: (a) identification of students, (b) baseline data collection, (c) di/udl literacy lesson plan development, (d) di/uld literacy lesson plan implementation, (e) di/udl literacy lesson plan progress monitoring report, and (f) professional reflection paper. this activity is evaluated using a scoring rubric closely aligned with the correlating kansas department of education high incidence special education training program standard. passing scores for this activity fall within the ?acceptable? or ?target? ranges of 80 to 94% or 95 to 100%, respectively. functional behavior assessment/behavior intervention plan project fellows completed the functional behavior assessment/behavior intervention plan (fba/bip) project during sd 802 seminar in behavior management. for this project, candidates will complete a functional behavior assessment, develop a behavior intervention plan that includes positive behavioral interventions and supports (pbis) within the multi-tier system of support (mtss) framework that demonstrates cultural sensitivity and promotes the self-determination skills of the student, write a professional quality report, and write a 2-page reflection with the following sections: (a) functional behavior assessment, (b) behavior intervention plan, (c) evaluation, and (d) reflection. this activity is evaluated using a scoring rubric closely aligned with the correlating kansas department of education high incidence special education training program standard. passing scores for this activity fall within the ?acceptable? or ?target? ranges of 80 to 94% or 95 to 100%, respectively. family and community engagement project fellows completed the family and community engagement project during sd 799 consultation/collaboration. for this project, fellows worked with a family that includes a child with a high incidence disability. candidates will complete the following three activities for this project: (a) family observation during iep meeting, (b) family interview following iep meeting, (c) write family and community engagement paper. this activity is evaluated using a scoring rubric closely aligned with the correlating kansas department of education high incidence special education training program standard. passing scores for this activity fall within the ?acceptable? or ?target? ranges of 80 to 94% or 95 to 100%, respectively. participant satisfaction surveys to solicit participant satisfaction evaluation data for the tcsefp, university faculty and school administrators created three surveys: (a) tcsefp fellows? evaluation survey, (b) tcsefp mentors? evaluation survey, and (c) tcsefp administrators? evaluation survey. each has 12 items rated using a 5-point likert scale (i.e., strongly disagree, disagree, neutral, agree, and strongly agree). participants completed the survey once month following program completion. result s tcsefp self-study results evaluate fellows? knowledge and skill development, participant satisfaction with the tcsefp, and the effect of tcsefp on recruitment and retention of special education teachers for rural k-12 schools. the following instruments or assessment projects evaluated fellows? knowledge and skill development: (a) praxis ii special education: core knowledge and mild to moderate applications (0543/5543) (educational testing service, 2021), (b) iep lesson plan activity, (c) di/udl literacy lesson plan project, (d) fba/bip project, and (e) family and community engagement project. in addition, the final practicum evaluation rating scale assesses fellows? skills working with k-12 students with high incidence disabilit ies. further, the following instruments evaluated participants? satisfaction with the tcsefp program: (a) fellow tcsefp evaluation survey, (b) mentor tcsefp evaluation survey, and (d) special education director tcsefp evaluation survey. knowledge and skills assessments praxis ii special education: core knowledge and mild to moderate applications (0543/5543). the praxis ii 36 caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence (0543/5543) data provided in figure 1 indicate that 100% of the 2016-2020 fellows passed all praxis ii (0543/5543) subtests. see table 1 for means and ranges for each subtest 2016-2020. of note, during 2016 through 2020, 24 out of 24 (100%) esu mean subtest scores were higher than national mean subtest scores. 13 out of 24 (54.17%) esu mean subtest scores were higher than state mean subtest scores. final practicum evaluation rating scale. from 2016-2020, school district administrators and tcsefp mentors completed a final practicum evolution rating scale for 22 fellows as they completed the second practicum. this form contains 32 items aligned with eight program standards. refer to table 2 to see mean scores and ranges for each standard from 2016 through 2020. overall, 22 of 22 fellows (100%) scored in the target range for each of the kansas state department of education high incidence program standards. iep lesson plan activity. fellow performance on this assessment activity indicates that 100% of the fellows score in the target range from 2016-2020 based on mean and range of 98.67 (range 95-100), 98.71 (range 95-100), 98.50 (range 96-100), and 99.26 (range 97-100) for 2016-2017, 2017-2018, 2018-2019, and 2019-2020, respectively. di/udl literacy lesson plan project. fellow performance on this assessment activity indicates that 100% of the fellows score in the target range from 2016-2020 based on mean and range of 97.84 (range 95-100), 98.86 (range 96-100), 98.50 (range 96-100), and 98.75 (range 96-100) for 2016-2017, 2017-2018, 2018-2019, and 2019-2020, respectively. fba/bip project. fellow performance on this assessment activity indicates that 100% of the fellows score in the target range from 2016-2020 based on mean and range of 99.33 (range 97-100), 99.43 (range 98-100), 98.75 (range 96-100), and 99.25 (range 97-100) for 2016-2017, 2017-2018, 2018-2019, and 2019-2020, respectively. family and community engagement project. fellow performance on this assessment activity indicates that 100% of the fellows score in the target range from 2016-2020 based on mean and range of 98.17 (range 96-100), 99.29 (range 97-100), 100.00 (range 100-100), and 100.00 (range 100-100) for 2016-2017, 2017-2018, 2018-2019, and 2019-2020, respectively. participant satisfaction assessments fellow tcsefp evaluation survey. twenty-two fellows completed a 12-item fellow program evaluation survey. overall, 18 of 22 fellows (82%) strongly agreed with each item on the survey. of these items, 22 of 22 fellows (100%) strongly agreed with 3 of 12 (25%) items; (a) i had adequate support from my mentor in the program, (b) my mentor was available and easy to work with, and (c) the program was well structured regarding course sequence. one of 22 fellows (5%) rated 3 of 12 items (25%) as neutral: (a) my courses provided me with useful and relevant information for my field, (b) professors were up to date with new developments in the field, and (c) i received useful feedback on my assignments throughout my courses. nevertheless, 21 of 22 fellows (95%) either strongly agreed or agreed with each survey item thereby supporting their satisfaction with the residency in teaching program, the tcsefp. mentor tcsefp evaluation survey. sixteen mentors completed a 12-item mentor program evaluation survey. overall, 13 of 16 mentors (81%) strongly agreed with each item on the survey. of these items, 16 of 16 mentors (100%) strongly agreed with 6 of 12 (50%) items; (a) requirements for mentors were made clear and provided to me in verbal and written form, (b) professors/faculty in the program were available and easy to work with, (c) i had adequate support from program faculty/professors, (d) the mentor handbook provided all required forms, (e) the program was well structured in regard to training and program professors/faculty support, and (f) i was satisfied with the overall mentor program structure and workload. two of 16 mentors (13%) rated 2 of 12 items (12.5%) as neutral: (a) the mentor canvas website was easy to navigate and (b) the mentor 37 caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence 2016-2017 (n=6) 2017-2018 (n=7) 2018-2019 (n-5) 2019-2020 (n=4) esu mean range esu ave % correct state ave % correct nat?l ave % correct esu mean range esu ave % correct state ave % correct nat?l ave % correct esu mean range esu ave % correct state ave % correct nat?l ave % correct esu mean range esu ave % correct state ave % correct nat?l ave % correct asubtest i: development and characteristics of learners 12.58 (10-15) 83.33 79.42 77.25 11.34 (6-15) 78.87 79.64 76.96 11.64 (8-15) 80.57 81.40 78.28 12.00 (8-15) 85.37 83.16 79.76 bsubtest ii: planning and the learning environment 15.62 (15-19) 83.57 79.66 75.90 13.28 (9-18) 77.90 80.03 75.99 13.41 (16-19) 78.78 79.84 75.94 13.87 (10-16) 80.57 79.00 76.03 csubtest iii: instruction 14.78 (10-18) 80.88 79.03 77.67 13.00 (7-18) 78.38 81.27 77.38 14.29 (8-18) 81.80 80.71 77.38 14.20 (10-18) 81.27 80.83 76.96 dsubtest iv: assessment 10.84 (9-14) 77.63 74.59 71.33 10.74 (5-14) 77.40 75.59 72.35 10.27 (6-14) 75.36 74.84 71.90 10.79 (7-14) 72.24 72.54 71.03 esubtest v: foundations and professional responsibilit ies 1171 (8-16) 78.49 79.06 75.02 11.06 (6-16) 78.38 81.27 77.38 12.18 (4-16) 80.04 77.90 75.10 12.08 (10-15) 80.35 81.99 78.99 fsubtest vi: integrated constructed response questions 10.76 (7-18) 66.82 67.81 65.52 11.82 (6-18) 69.29 69.96 65.98 11.96 (6-15) 68.53 69.58 66.48 12.54 (9-17) 68.67 67.00 65.66 table 1 fellows? praxis ii special education: core knowledge and mild to moderate applications (0543/5543) sub scores asubtest i assesses ksde hi standard 1: the special educator understands the historical and philosophical foundations of special education, the characteristics of the disability, the impacts of the disability on education, and the legal parameters appropriate for each learner 's educational needs. bsubtest ii assesses ksde hi standard 4: the special educator uses a variety of evidence-based instructional strategies; including effective adaptations, learner performance, and transitions; to promote learning and improve learner outcomes. csubtest iii assesses ksde hi standard 3: the special educator uses individual educational programs (ieps), learning environments, individual learner characteristics, assessment, teacher knowledge of subject matter, and technology for effective instructional planning and implementation. dsubtest iv assesses ksde hi standard 2: the special educator uses a variety of assessment instruments, procedures, and technologies for learner screening, evaluation, eligibility decisions, instructional planning, progress monitoring, and technology considerations. esubtest v assesses ksde hi standard 5 the special educator demonstrates effective communication skills to enhance collaboration and consultation among school professionals, to improve learner outcomes while planning for and implementing effective instruction and services; to implement the iep, deliver instruction, and evaluate iep implementation; and, to plan for and implement effective transition services. fsubtest vi assesses ksde hi standard 6 the special educator understands the critical elements of language and literacy; identifies and uses evidence-based interventions to meet the instructional needs specific to reading, writing, math, and other content areas; and includes the principles of universal design for learning and the use of technology to support literacy and to make data-based decisions. 38 caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence 2016-2017 (n=6) 2017-2018 (n=7) 2018-2019 (n=5) 2019-2020 (n=4) esu mean range esu ave % target esu ave % accept esu ave % unaccept esu mean range esu ave % target esu ave % accept esu ave % unaccept esu mean (range) esu ave % target esu ave % accept esu ave % unaccept esu mean range esu ave % target esu ave % accept esu ave % unaccept btotal 97.47 (95-100) 100 0 0 97.56 (95-100) 100 0 0 97.92 (95-100) 100 0 0 98.03 (95-100) 100 0 0 standard 1 characteristics legal historical philosophical 98.13 (96-100) 100 0 0 98.71 (96-100) 100 0 0 98.52 (96-100) 100 0 0 98.25 (96-100) 100 0 0 standard 2 assessment 98.59 (96-99) 100 0 0 98.59 (96-100) 100 0 0 99.13 (97-100) 100 0 0 98.96 (97-100) 100 0 0 standard 3 instructional planning & implementation 96.81 (95-100) 100 0 0 97.03 (95-100) 100 0 0 97.89 (96-100) 100 0 0 98.29 (96-100) 100 0 0 standard 4 evidencebased instructional interventions 96.03 (95-98) 100 0 0 96.43 (95-99) 100 0 0 96.75 (95-99) 100 0 0 96.25 (95-99) 100 0 0 standard 5 communication collaboration 98.17 (96-100) 100 0 0 98.29 (96-100) 100 0 0 98.57 (97-100) 100 0 0 99.07 (98-100) 100 0 0 standard 6 language & literacy 95.79 (95-98) 100 0 0 95.39 (95-98) 100 0 0 96.17 (95-99) 100 0 0 97.03 (95-100) 100 0 0 standard 7 pbis mtss fba/bip 99.07 (98-100) 100 0 0 98.90 (97-100) 100 0 0 99.03 (97-100) 100 0 0 99.29 (97-100) 100 0 0 standard 8 family & community engagement 97.19 (95-100) 100 0 0 97.13 (96-100) 100 0 0 97.29 (95-100) 100 0 0 97.13 (95-100) 100 0 0 table 2 resident teachers? afinal practicum evaluation rating scale aligned with kansas state department of education high incidence program standards acompleted by two school district administrators as a final evaluation during sd 808 or sd 809 supervised practice, high incidence (elementary or secondary, respectively). bpercent correct at target: 95-100, acceptable: 80-94, & unacceptable level: below 80 39 caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence 2016-2017 (n=6) 2017-2018 (n=7) 2018-2019 (n-5) 2019-2020 (n=4) esu mean range esu ave % target esu ave % accept esu ave % unaccept esu mean range esu ave % target esu ave % accept esu ave % unaccept esu mean range esu ave % target esu ave % accept esu ave % unaccept esu mean range esu ave % target esu ave % accept esu ave % unaccept iep lesson plan activity 98.67 (95-100) 100 0 0 98.71 (95-100) 100 0 0 98.50 (96-100) 100 0 0 99.25 (97-100) 100 0 0 di/udl literacy lesson plan project 97.83 (95-100) 100 0 0 98.86 (96-100) 100 0 0 98.50 (96-100) 100 0 0 98.75 (96-100) 100 0 0 fba/bip project 99.33 (97-100) 100 0 0 99.43 (98-100) 100 0 0 98.75 (96-100) 100 0 0 99.25 (97-100) 100 0 0 family & community engagement project 98.17 (96-100) 100 0 0 99.29 (97-100) 100 0 0 100.00 (100) 100 0 0 100.00 (100) 100 0 0 table 3 resident teachers? project assessment data note:percent correct at target: 95-100, acceptable: 80-94, & unacceptable level: below 80 canvas website was up to date. nevertheless, 14 of 16 mentors (88%) either strongly agreed or agreed with each survey item thereby supporting their satisfaction with the residency in teaching program, the tcsefp. special educator director tcsefp evaluation survey. eight special education directors completed a 10-item special education director program evaluation survey. overall, 4 of 8 special education directors (50%) strongly agreed with each item on the survey. of these items, 8 of 8 special education directors (100%) strongly agreed with 6 of 10 (60%) items; (a) overall, the residence in teaching programs teachers college special education fellows program (tcsefp) is well organized, (b) on-site mentoring for the fellows is a key component of the residence in teaching program, (c) virtual mentoring provided by professors/faculty for the fellows is a key component of the residence in teaching program, (d) virtual university/school partnerships are a key component of the residence in teaching program, (e) virtual university consultation for low incidence disabilit ies (e.g., autism) is a key component of the residence in teaching program, and (f) overall, the residence in teaching program meets the need to provide highly qualified special education teachers for high needs regions in kansas. one of 8 (12.5%) rated 1 of 10 items (10%) as neutral: (a) the residence in teaching program helped me retain special education teachers. nevertheless, 9 of 10 special education directors (90%) either strongly agreed or agreed with each survey item thereby supporting their satisfaction with the residency in teaching program, the tcsefp. 40 caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence questions strongly agree agree neutral disagree strongly disagree i had adequate support from professors/faculty in the program 91% 9% my faculty advisor was available and easy to work with 91% 9% i had adequate support from my mentor in the program 100% my mentor was available and easy to work with 100% my courses provided me with useful and relevant information for my field 86% 9% 5% professors were up to date with new developments in the field 82% 13% 5% i received useful feedback on my assignments throughout my courses 86% 9% 5% general program requirements were made clear to me 91% 9% requirements for practicum/internship were made clear and provided to me in verbal and written form 91% 9% the program was well structured in regard to class sequence 100% my course workload was manageable 86% 14% i was satisfied with the overall program structure and course load 91% 9% table 4 fellows? tcsefp evaluation survey data (n=22) questions strongly agree agree neutral disagree strongly disagree requirements for mentors were made clear and provided to me in verbal and written form 100% i had adequate training from professors/faculty in the program 94% 6% professors/faculty in the program were available and easy to work with 100% i had adequate support from program faculty/professors 100% the mentor canvas website was easy to navigate 81% 6% 13% the mentor canvas website provided useful and relevant information 94% 6% the mentor canvas website was up to date 81% 6% 13% the mentor handbook made mentor activities clear 94% 6% the mentor handbook provided all required forms 100% the mentor program was well structured with regard to training and program professors/faculty support 100% my mentor workload was manageable 94% 6% i was satisfied with the overall mentor program structure and workload 100% table 5 mentors? tcsefp evaluation survey data (n=16)a a1 mentor worked with 3 fellows, 4 mentors worked with 2 fellows, 11` mentors worked with 1 fellow 41 caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence recruitment and retention as of october 2021, 18 out of 22 (81.82%) former fellows continue to teacher special education in rural k-12 kansas schools (bock, 2021). two have transferred from special education to general education teaching positions in their school districts. the other two have retired. discussion the data indicate that, yes, the tcsefp prepares highly qualified special education teachers to work with k-12 students with high incidence disabilit ies in rural school districts throughout kansas. all fellows, i.e., 100%, passed the praxis ii special education: core knowledge and mild to moderate application (0543/5543) (education test service, 2021) earning a score of 155 or higher. in addition, esu fellows? average percentage correct per subtest is higher than the state average percentage correct per subtest for 54.17% of the subtest completed in 2016-2020. further, esu fellows? average percentage correct per subtest is higher than the national average percentage correct per subtest for 100% of the subtests completed in 2016-2020. thus, fellows? performance on this assessment underscores their knowledge and skill as relates to working with k-12 students with high incidence disabilit ies. fellows? performance on four program area assessments further supports their knowledge and skill as relates to working with students with high incidence disabilit ies. all fellows, i.e., 100%, achieved ?target? performance on the following program area evaluation projects: (a) iep lesson questions strongly agree agree neutral disagree strongly disagree overall, the residence in teaching program (teachers college special education fellows program, tcsefp) is well organized 100% tuition funding for the fellows is a key component of the residence in teaching program 75% 25% on-site mentoring for the fellows is a key component of the residence in teaching program 100% virtual mentoring provided by professors/faculty for the fellows is a key component of the residence in teaching program 100% fellows? completion of the high incidence endorsement in 11 months is a key component of the residence in teaching program 88% 12% virtual university/school partnerships are a key component of the residence in teaching program 100% virtual university consultation for low incidence disabilit ies (e.g., autism) is a key component of the residence in teaching program 100% the residence in teaching program helped me recruit new special education teachers 88% 12% the residence in teaching program helped me retain special education teachers 50% 25% 25% overall, the residence in teaching program meets the need to provide highly qualified special education teachers for high needs regions in kansas 100% table 6 special education directors? tcsefp evaluation survey data (n=8)a a2 special education directors sponsored 5 fellows, 2 special education directors sponsored 3 fellows, 2 special education directors sponsored 2 fellows, and 2 special education directors sponsored 1 fellow. 42 caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence plan activity, (b) di/udl literacy lesson plan project, (c) fba/bip project, and (d) family and community engagement project. consequently, fellows? performance on these evaluation projects attests to their abilit ies to plan, implement, and evaluate a variety of learning and social/behavioral activities to support the performance of students with high incidence disabilit ies in rural schools throughout kansas. these activities demonstrated the fellows? abilit ies to plan effective, individualized instruction tied to iep objectives. these lessons incorporated content standards to assure that all students with mild to moderate disabilit ies on their caseloads had access to and made progress on content area curriculum. further, while some of these evaluation activities occurred in special education resource rooms, the majority occurred in inclusive general education classrooms thereby underscoring the fellows? abilit ies to collaborate with general education teachers. similarly, 100% of the fellows achieved ?target? level performance on the final practicum evaluation rating scale. of importance, mentors and building principals completed this evaluation independent from university faculty. thus, this evaluation corroborated university faculty evaluation of fellow performance on these activities: (a) iep lesson plan activity, (b) di/udl literacy lesson plan project, (c) fba/bip project, and (d) family and community engagement project. in addition, on-site evaluators who work with and observe the fellows daily complete the final practicum evaluation rating scale enhancing the validity of this evaluation. consequently, fellow performance on all evaluations, i.e., praxis ii, iep lesson plan activity, di/udl literacy lesson plan project, fba/bip project, family and community engagement project, and final practicum evaluation rating scale, strongly support our conclusion that the tcsefp prepares highly qualified special educators to work with k-12 students with high incidence disabilit ies in rural schools throughout kansas. however, it?s not all about preparing highly qualified special education teachers. after completion of the tcsefp, how do the fellows, their mentors, and administrators rate the tcsefp? overall, 21 of 22 (95%) fellows strongly agreed or agreed with each item on a 12-item program evaluation survey completed after finishing their residency. one fellow (5%) rated three items on the fellow tcsefp evaluation survey as neutral. each of these items targeted teaching. one item provided feedback on how useful and relevant this fellow found course materials and activities. another item provided feedback on how up to date this fellow considered university faculty. the final item provided feedback regarding the comments this fellow received from university faculty on course assignments. interpretation of these responses is straightforward given the focus of each item. of note, by the third year, i.e., 2018-2019, university faculty began providing training for mentors related to various field assignments, e.g., di/udl literacy lesson plan project. this training updated mentors on universal design for learning (udl) (rao & meo, 2016) and the research supporting its benefits. mentors commented on how beneficial they found this training. they indicated that this was new information for them. thus, it is possible that one fellow thought their mentor was current and university faculty were not when, in fact, the mentor was outdated, i.e., had not had training specific to udl or other current topics. similarly, 87% (14 of 16) mentors strongly agreed or agreed with each item on a 12-item program evaluation at the end of the residency year. two of 16 mentors rated two items as neutral. both items related to the mentor canvas website. these mentors rated the navigability of the website as neutral. they also indicated that the website was not updated during the second semester of the residency year. as we worked with the mentors, we found that they had difficulty accessing the website, i.e., setting up their userids and passwords. while we provided university technology support, this issue, unfortunately, remained problematic for some mentors from 2016-2020. because so many mentors had trouble accessing the mentor 43 caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence website, university faculty tended not to rely as heavily on the website during the second semester of the residency. thus, the mentor website was only updated for spring semester during the first two years, i.e., spring semesters 2017 and 2018. in addition, 75% (6 of 8) special education directors strongly agreed or agreed with each item on a 10-item program evaluation survey completed at the end of the residency year. two of 8 (25%) special education directors were neutral as to whether the tcsefp helped them retain special education teachers. follow-up conversations with the special education directors provided more understanding regarding this response. some of the directors define retention as five years or longer whereas the others define retention as two years or longer. thus, those who rated this survey item as neutral may not have had enough longevity data to determine whether the tcsefp helped them retain special education teachers. in conclusion, survey data from the fellows, their mentors, and their special education directors support their positive evaluation of the tcsefp. this data together with fellow evaluation data strongly support the overall worth of the tcsefp for fellows, their administrators, and their mentors. in addition, this data captured the emergence of virtual university/k-12 school partnerships throughout rural kansas, even in remote rural regions of the state. through distance technologies, partnerships evolved. by 2018-2019, university faculty cheered as they saw improved k-12 student performance in partner schools. meanwhile, mentors and building administrators often asked about how ?doable? a practicum modification would be for the university. our vocabularies changed. we spoke the same language and used the same acronyms. we understood funding constraints each partner experienced. our k-12 partners celebrated university faculty constantly highlighting the strengths they saw. the university faculty gained a heightened respect for teachers and administrators working to support the needs of students with high incidence disabilit ies in rural settings. faculty no longer made disparaging comments about the many and varied unusual ways rural schools modified delivery service models to meet the needs of students with disabilit ies despite a paucity of resources. university faculty began to understand the unique challenges rural schools face providing special education services for students with disabilit ies. university faculty came to value the ?can do? spirit and innovation of their colleagues working in rural schools. meanwhile, our partners took full advantage of the ongoing access they had to university faculty and resources. they eagerly learned new evidence-based practices (epbs). they sought outside expertise for students with complex learning needs. transformation for both our partners and the university special education program began and continued throughout the partnership. conclusion this article reports a self-study of the teachers college special education fellows program (tcsefp), an 11-month, virtual graduate special education program developed to prepare special education teachers to work in rural schools throughout kansas. the self-study questions included: (a) will participants in an accelerated, virtual special education teacher preparation program develop the requisite knowledge and skills to support the educational performance of k-12 students with high incidence disabilit ies? (b) will an 11-month residency in teaching program lead to higher rates of special education teacher recruitment and retention in rural schools? and (c) how satisfied are participants after program completion? the self-study data support the benefits of this virtual residency in teaching teacher preparation model. participants demonstrated ?target? level performance on program assessments evaluating the development of the knowledge and skills needed to support the learning and social development of students with high incidence 44 caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence disabilit ies. similarly, the data support that all participants found the virtual residency in teaching program to be beneficial. the virtual residency in teaching program enhance improved recruitment of special education teachers to work in k-12 rural schools. eighteen of 22 special education teachers who participated in this residency in teaching program continue to teach special education; however, it is too early to evaluate the impact of this model on teacher retention. an unexpected strength of the virtual residency in teaching model is the quality of university/school partnerships it supports. through virtual technologies geography is no longer a barrier to establishing university/school partnerships. virtual technologies bring the university and its resources to rural schools located in remote, rural regions. in addition, virtual technologies provide ready access for all partners. no longer do partners need to wait 1=2 weeks to facilitate on-site meetings related to various partnership activities, e.g., resolving a challenging practicum supervision issue. aut hor not e the kansas board of regents provided funding ($452,661: 5-year grant, 2016-2021) in support of this program through the kansas teacher education competitive grant program of kansas board of regents, topeka, ks. 45 caballero, bock & o'neal-hixon| special education teachers in residence references alan, b. 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(2018). the demand for special education teachers in rural schools revisited: an update on progress. rural special education quarterly, 37(1), 12?20. thorpe, r. (2014). residency: can it transform teaching the way it did medicine? phi delta kappan, 96(1), 36?40. 47 caballero et al. 2021 final page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 page 9 page 10 page 11 page 12 page 13 page 14 page 15 page 16 page 17 microsoft word 4. guise-dec 2016.docx vol. 5, no. 1, dec 2016, pp. 37-51 from pre-service to employed teacher: examining one year later the benefits and challenges of a co-teaching clinical experience megan guise and krystal thiessen california polytechnic state university, san luis obispo abstract the research study described in this article is an extension of a yearlong mixed methods study of eight co-teaching pairs (four english and four science) and their implementation of coteaching during the clinical experience. a year after these eight pre-service teachers participated in the co-teaching research study while enrolled in a teacher education program, they were interviewed at the conclusion of their first year of employed teaching with the goal of exploring the impact that the co-teaching experience had on their development as a teacher. findings reveal that co-teaching during the clinical experience provides an opportunity to shape pre-service teachers to be collaborative, reflective practitioners who seek out opportunities to collaborate and position themselves as lifelong learners. however, teacher education programs that implement co-teaching during the clinical experience have a responsibility to ensure that co-teaching occurs with fidelity and that pre-service teachers are supported to transition to full-time employment where the day-to-day co-teaching opportunities may be more limited. 38   m. guise & k. thiessen   introduction as teacher education programs continue to explore alternative models for preparing beginning teachers, the focus of reform has turned to the clinical experience. several key teacher educators advocate for a reconceptualization of fieldwork, stressing the importance of an extended, collaborative experience that partners a beginning teacher with a practicing teacher, reflecting collaboratively on practice (cochran-smith 1991; darling-hammond, pacheco, michelli, lepage, & hammerness, 2005; zeichner 2002). building off of these recommendations, departments of education and other education stakeholders propose coteaching during the clinical experience as a productive model for supporting beginning teachers to learn how to teach, moving beyond the model of traditional student teaching that has often been viewed as a “sink or swim” model with little active mentoring of the beginning teacher (the national council for the accreditation of teachers, 2010; california commission on teacher credentialing). although research on co-teaching during the clinical experience has shown a positive impact on the development of the beginning teacher (for examples, see authors; badiali & titus, 2010; murphy & carlisle, 2008; scantlebury, gallo-fox, & wassell, 2008), the students (for examples, see bacharach, heck, & dahlberg, 2010; hang & rabren, 2009), and even the cooperating teacher (for an example, see authors), few studies have examined the long-term effects of co-teaching on the development of the beginning teacher (for an exception, see beers, 2009). the research study described in this article is an extension of a yearlong mixed methods study of eight co-teaching pairs (four english and four science) and their implementation of coteaching during the clinical experience. a year after these pre-service teachers participated in the co-teaching research study while enrolled in a teacher education program, they were interviewed at the conclusion of their first year of employed teaching with the goal of exploring the impact that the co-teaching experience had on their development as a teacher. this longitudinal research study addresses the current gap in co-teaching research and speaks to some of the concerns voiced by those opposed to implementing a co-teaching model for the clinical experience. in the sections that follow, we provide a brief review of previous research on co-teaching before describing the methodology of the year-out research study. in the findings section, we present the primary themes that resonated from the data, noting both co-teaching benefits and challenges that the research participants provided when reflecting on their experience in the teacher education program and during their first year of teaching. finally, we conclude the article with implications for teacher education programs, providing recommendations on how to capitalize on the benefits of co-teaching and address co-teaching concerns. throughout the article, we posit that co-teaching during the clinical experience provides an opportunity to shape pre-service teachers to be collaborative, reflective practitioners who seek out opportunities to collaborate and position themselves as lifelong learners. however, teacher education programs that implement co-teaching during the clinical experience have a responsibility to ensure that coteaching occurs with fidelity and that pre-service teachers are supported to transition to full-time employment where the day-to-day co-teaching opportunities may be more limited. from pre-service to employed teacher 39 background on co-teaching drawing on the work of badiali and titus (2010) and bacharach et al. (2010), we define co-teaching as the following: both cooperating teacher and pre-service teacher are engaged in student learning at all times through daily co-planning, co-instructing, and co-assessing. in this definition, we communicate that co-teaching is more than just implementing coinstructional strategies (e.g., one teach/one observe, team teaching) and includes collaborative, reflective planning and assessment. although co-teaching has its origins in the field of special education with pioneers such as friend and cook, in the 1980s teacher education programs began to appropriate the practice of co-teaching as a model for the clinical experience (darragh, picanco, tully, & henning, 2011). since then, research on co-teaching has found positive gains for the learning of k-12 students as well as the learning of pre-service teachers. for learning gains of k-12 students, researchers have documented gains on high-stakes exams in co-taught classrooms versus non-co-taught classrooms (bacharach et al., 2010; hang & rabren, 2009). additional benefits to k-12 students in co-taught classrooms include additional support for individual students as a result of a lower student-to-teacher ratio and differentiated instruction (hartnett, mccoy, weed, & nickens, 2014; heckert, strieker, & shaheen, 2013). research on co-teaching has also examined the affordances for pre-service teachers and their cooperating teachers. researchers have concluded that by engaging in all facets of coteaching (coplanning, instructing, assessing, reflecting), co-teachers have an opportunity to reflect on a shared experience and grow professionally through collaboration (beers, 2008; scantlebury et al., 2008). furthermore, research has shown that co-teaching can facilitate the development of critical reflection skills (murphy & carlisle, 2008). methodology the research study described in this article was an extension of a yearlong mixed methods study that occurred during the 2014/2015 school year of a yearlong post baccalaureate credential program. pre-service teachers who enrolled in the credential program simultaneously completed three quarters of coursework and a yearlong clinical experience that gradually increased from a practicum experience (consisting mainly of observing, assisting, and tutoring in a secondary classroom) to a co-teaching placement (teaching side-by-side with a cooperating teacher, first part-time – half days – and then full-time -full days). for the yearlong research study, participants included eight single subject pre-service teachers (four english and four science) and their cooperating teachers. the focus of this yearlong research study was to investigate the implementation of co-teaching and identify pre-conditions for and barriers to success. data collected for the yearlong study included weekly reflections (including both quantitative and qualitative prompts), which asked the pre-service teacher to reflect on his/her 40   m. guise & k. thiessen   experience implementing co-teaching, denoting experiences with co-planning, co-instructing, and co-assessing. data collected also included three semi-structured interviews conducted separately with both the pre-service teacher and cooperating teacher. these interviews allowed the research team to gain more insight into what co-teaching looked like for each of the eight pairs, exploring co-teaching successes and challenges. interview data were transcribed and coded prior to the second and third interviews, and member checking occurred at these interviews (carspecken, 1996; emerson, fretz, & shaw, 1995). finally, bi-monthly classroom observations conducted by the university supervisor occurred for six months of the yearlong program, and the university supervisor was also interviewed at the conclusion of the experience with the goals of capturing what co-teaching looked like in action and triangulating the data. data presented in this article were collected a year after the pre-service teachers were enrolled in the teacher education program. the data collected in the year-out extension of the original study included an interview with the pre-service teacher – now a practicing teacher – at the conclusion of his/her first year of employed teaching. this interview included a series of questions that asked the participant to reflect on the affordances and limitations of co-teaching during the clinical experience now that he/she was concluding his/her first year of employed teaching (see appendix a for the interview protocol). from the eight pre-service teachers who participated in the original study, six pre-service teachers were interviewed and participated in the follow-up study. when coding the interview data, we first separated the data into episodes – “a series of turns that all relate to the same topic or theme” (lewis & ketter, 2004, p. 123). once these episodes were demarcated, open coding occurred to explore ideas and themes related to teaching and co-teaching (emerson et al., 1995). a core set of codes were established based on this open coding, with focused coding occurring in order to identify patterns and sub-themes related to teaching and co-teaching (emerson et al., 1995). all data was double coded and inter-rater reliability was found to be above 85%. the agreed-upon codes for the data set were then put into nvivo for additional analysis. we recognize that a limitation of this year-out study on co-teaching was that the data collected and analyzed were entirely self-reported. for example, if the beginning teacher described how co-teaching enhanced her ability to collaborate with others, we did not collect observation data or evidence from a performance evaluation to confirm whether the teacher was, in fact, collaborative during her first year as an employed teacher. however, we feel that the selfreported interviews provide insight into co-teaching successes and challenges to explore in future research studies and are an informative start to research currently not conducted on co-teaching. findings in the yearlong study that occurred during the 2014/2015 academic year, one finding of the study of the implementation of co-teaching was that there was variety in the degrees to which co-teaching was implemented by the eight pairs. we posited that a continuum of co-teaching implementation exists with some pairs aligning more with notions of traditional student teaching (e.g., differential in power dynamic between pre-service and cooperating teacher, extended periods of solo teaching) while others collaborated even when one teacher was in the lead. from pre-service to employed teacher 41 knowing where each of the pairs lived in terms of the co-teaching continuum, we kept this in mind when interviewing them a year later because for some, co-teaching might have not impacted their first year of employed teaching since they did not fully experience the model during their teacher education program. see table 1 for a description of each pre-service teacher (all names are pseudonyms) and appendix b for a description of the continuum categories. table 1: description of pre-service teacher and school site pre-service teacher classes taught grade(s) description of school site continuum identification elliot biology & life science 7th & 8th suburban traditional student teaching grace environmental science & ap biology 9th 12th urban traditional student teaching molly english 7th & 8th urban forward momentum carol english 11th suburban/rural forward momentum john physics 11th & 12th suburban/rural scaffold & grow lexie english 7th urban scaffold & grow in the sections that follow, we present our findings from the year-out study, organizing these findings thematically around the affordances and challenges of how the yearlong coteaching clinical experience impacted the practices of pre-service teachers one year after the experience. affordances of a co-teaching clinical experience when learning to teach collaborative and reflective view of the profession. three of the six first-year teachers interviewed for this year-out study expressed an appreciation for co-teaching during the clinical experience because of its alignment with the field of education that embraces collaboration and continual learning. when asked whether the teacher education program should continue to implement co-teaching as the model for the clinical experience, molly explained, i would say yes just because i think that’s the way education is going anyway. it’s becoming a much more collaborative experience. it’s not just a teacher in that classroom kind of doing their thing. it’s much more of a community effort. and i think that the sooner we [pre-service teachers] get into that mentality, especially just starting out as student teachers, the more we will be able to improve and grow. in these comments, molly posits that co-teaching during the clinical experience could impact the mindset of a beginning teacher, encouraging him/her to collaborate and become part of a 42   m. guise & k. thiessen   “community effort” if afforded the opportunity to do so when enrolled in a teacher education program. similarly, carol also expressed that participating in a co-teaching model to the clinical experience reiterated the importance of teachers being life-long learners and learning through collaboration. carol stated, “co-teaching is something that is ideal in terms of being a positive environment for both new teachers and for more experienced teachers to be able to learn and to grow. and for me, that’s a huge core value – continuing to learn and continuing to grow. it’s one of the reasons why i became a teacher in the first place.” although molly and carol posited that co-teaching was in line with their desire for collaboration and continual learning, the interviews also revealed that the beginning teachers’ views of feedback had been shaped by the co-teaching experience. for example, when reflecting on her co-teaching experience and the subsequent year of employed teaching, lexi explained, “that a lesson plan should always go through another person first – like, that seems really normal to me now because that's what co-teaching taught me – that the more feedback is always better.” working in a collaborative school environment for her first year of employed teaching, lexie often sought out the advice of her colleagues when planning her lessons, perhaps a receptiveness to feedback established because of the collaborative feedback experienced from her clinical experience. influenced by cooperating teacher’s practice. another common finding across the six interviews was that for those beginning teachers who experienced co-teaching during the clinical experience, the yearlong experience allowed them to learn side-by-side their cooperating teacher and a year later had identified numerous practices that they now implemented in their own classroom that they attributed to their cooperating teacher. for example, john explained that the greatest benefit to him when learning how to teach was to observe and teach with an effective teacher, something that could not have occurred if the cooperating teacher allowed him extended periods of solo time where the cooperating teacher was not in the room: i think i really got lucky because my collaborating teacher – he's like the dumbledore of teachers. he's really funny, and so i learned a lot just watching him. he's a very masterful teacher. i mean, very good at all the different aspects of teaching with regards to delivering instruction, and assessing, and reflecting, and developing performance in students. and so picking up on all that, i think that's just really helped me. john’s comments stress the importance of what can be learned by “watching” and “picking up on” the practices of an effective teacher. similarly, lexie expressed that she learned a lot from the co-teaching clinical experience by working with a cooperating teacher who was strong in classroom management. in addition, lexie implemented instructional strategies, graphic organizers, and other techniques that she had learned from her cooperating teacher during her first year of teaching. desire to collaborate with others. the beginning teachers interviewed who experienced co-teaching during the clinical experience reported that they sought out opportunities to collaborate with colleagues at their new school because they learned the value of collaboration from pre-service to employed teacher 43 during the clinical experience. molly explained how she goes “to other members of [her] english department regularly and asks them for contributions, to see what they’re doing in their class,” with molly arguing that “the more information and ideas [she has], the more to choose from, and the better to enhance [her] teaching with.” lexie also expressed how the school in which she works is “really collaborative” and how that during her first year she was able to “collaborate all the time” recognizing that she was really used to collaboration since she “worked with [her] coteacher so well” the previous year. similar to molly and lexie, carol saw opportunities to collaborate with another teacher when planning for instruction. missing being able to work with a co-teacher like carol had done the previous year, carol explained: a coworker and i have essentially decided to co-teach. we’re teaching the same course. and so we’re not necessarily co-teaching in the sense that we are in the same room at the same time and we can do co-instructional strategies….we’ll co-plan it of course. and so using lesson plans and developing them together, which will relieve a lot of the stress of planning and developing good activities. not only did carol intend on co-planning with a colleague, but she recognized that co-reflection could occur since she and her colleague would be teaching the same lessons. carol elaborated that the impetus for the co-planning and co-reflecting was a result of her colleague also having “co-taught before and had enjoyed the experience.” in john’s first year of employed teaching, he was the only physics teacher at his school site, so there was not an opportunity to collaborate with another teacher who was teaching the same content like carol. during the interview he explained how this was good and bad for it “gave [him] the freedom to kind of do what [he] wanted but [he] also didn’t have anyone to bounce ideas off of.” desiring an opportunity to collaborate with others and looking ahead to next year, john reached out to a math teacher: one of the major issues i had with my students this year was their lack of preparedness in math for physics. and so i'm going to be working alongside another teacher next year, and we're going to try align our curriculums so that they're working on the techniques in math that they're going to need in physics. and we're also going to give them a preassessment that he's going to help me write. although participating in a co-teaching clinical experience may not be the sole reason why john sought out this collaboration possibility, having an opportunity to collaborate when learning to teach perhaps made john more open to this approach to planning curriculum. challenges of a co-teaching clinical experience when learning to teach transition to non-co-taught classroom. although the four participants interviewed who experienced high levels of co-teaching during the clinical experience identified aspects of the experience that set them up for success during their first year of employed teachers, these participants also identified challenges. one challenge in particular was the transition from coteaching in a supportive, collaborative environment to one where there perhaps was less support 44   m. guise & k. thiessen   and collaboration. during her interview, carol communicated that one challenge she faced with this transition was specific to planning: “i really struggled with planning properly in a sense that i didn’t have someone to bounce ideas off of.” john also echoed carol’s sentiments and found the biggest challenge his first year of teaching was planning, for “it can be hard to plan without somebody” because he had grown accustomed to collaboratively planning with his cooperating teacher. although carol and john both faced challenges when it came to planning during their first year of employed teaching, both sought out the help of colleagues with carol creating a coplanning relationship with another teacher since they were teaching the same course. this shows that the value seen in this collaboration enabled carol and john to find a solution to not being in a co-teaching environment. in addition to challenges with transitioning to solo planning, the participants also mentioned needing help in having a realistic understanding of what the level of support might look like their first year of employed teaching. for example, carol stated that when comparing her first year of employed teaching to the clinical experience, “[she] just didn’t have that same support to the extent that [she] did as a co-teacher.” it is vital that pre-service teachers feel supported throughout the clinical experience and that when learning to teach, it is important to have strong role models and someone with whom to collaborate and reflect. in order for teaching decisions to be transparent, this collaborative reflection is essential. however, more support does need to be provided in helping the pre-service teachers to transition to more of a leadership role toward the end of their clinical experience as well as the following year as an employed teacher. carol, specifically, struggled with the “freedom and a lot more independence” that her first year of employed teaching provided, and teacher education programs need to prepare pre-service teachers for this transition. implementing co-teaching with fidelity. a second challenge associated with the coteaching model was in regards to the fidelity to which the co-teaching model was implemented. the pre-service teachers who when reflecting on their clinical experience recognized that they did not, in fact, co-teach, felt like they missed out on an effective approach to preparing beginning teachers, especially when they saw co-teaching implemented at their school site during their first year of employed teaching. elliot, having had experienced more of a traditional approach to student teaching, reflected in the year-out interview on the benefits and drawbacks to this approach when learning to teach. elliot stated, “we never did co-teaching anyway...i guess last year kind of prepared me for what it was to kind of be on my own….i would say maybe doing it individually like we did do it kind of was better for my first year as a teacher because it was kind of more realistic.” elliot seemed torn, however, when he reflected on his first year of employed teacher and recognized the value in collaboration, commenting “we [teachers at his school site] really got to collaborate a lot and work together, so that made my experience as a first-year teacher so much easier.” he elaborated and described how co-teaching was implemented at his school site with a special education teacher paired with a general education teacher, and he felt like the co-teaching model during the clinical experience was “kind of cool because they’re [his current school site] doing it.” elliot in particular felt like he “signed up to from pre-service to employed teacher 45 co-teach, and then just didn’t get it” during his clinical experience. reflecting on this experience a year later, he wished that “there was follow through” on the part of the university that “we [elliot and his cooperating teacher] weren’t actually doing it.” lexie expressed similar sentiments to elliot when reflecting on the members of her credential cohort who did not implement co-teaching to the extent that she and her cooperating teacher did. lexie attributed this difference in co-teaching implementation to the dispositions of the cooperating teachers and their motivation for hosting a pre-service teacher. lexie stressed the importance of properly screening cooperating teachers if implementing co-teaching with fidelity was the goal: “having them [cooperating teachers] interview just so you can see if they are a naturally collaborative person….even people who are just naturally outgoing or have warm personas….or even maybe asking them, ‘what is your intention on having a co-teacher?’” in addition, the year-out data revealed that there was confusion about the co-teaching model and the extent of collaboration and solo time. this was revealed in the interview with grace who explained: pretty much at the end when we were supposed to mostly take over and do more of our individual teaching, it was very difficult that quarter because we were basically teaching on our own. we still had the co-teacher with suggestions and everything in there for support, but we had to do all the lesson plans, and all the teaching, and all the grading. the difficult part was going back to [the university] to take the night classes.” grace’s comments reveal a misunderstanding of the co-teaching model for during the times when she was taking evening classes at the university, she was in the part-time portion of the clinical experience (phase #2). this portion of the experience was not meant to be extended solo time, and her description of her experience aligns more with traditional student teaching. in addition, there was little collaboration evident in grace’s description of her experience, and one characteristic of co-teaching is to have collaboration even when one teacher is in the lead. grace’s comments solidify the importance of a teacher education program clearly articulating the co-teaching model and ensuring that all co-teaching pairs understand how to implement coteaching and are able to recognize when their approaches to mentoring a beginning teacher misalign with this model. implications although the case studies presented in this article provide further support as to the benefits of the co-teaching model when learning to teach, it is important for future research and teacher education programs to investigate and address these challenges in order to strengthen the co-teaching model and its potentially positive impact on beginning teachers. two key areas of concern include the transition from a collaborative co-teaching clinical experience to solo, employed teaching in addition to how teacher education programs can intervene when a coteaching pair is not implementing co-teaching with fidelity. for the first challenge, pre-service teachers need to be scaffolded to understand the realities of teaching beyond the teacher education program. for a pre-service teacher like carol, 46   m. guise & k. thiessen   she was surprised when teachers at her school site did not collaborate or did not see opportunities for collaboration. elliot, however, taught his first year at a school site where collaboration was encouraged and a part of the school culture. it is important for teacher education programs to expose their pre-service teachers to the different levels of collaboration that may be enacted at a school site. engaging in conversation about these possibilities by inviting local teachers and alumni of the program to speak at a seminar class session could be a useful first step. a next step could be to prepare school scenarios and have the pre-service teachers brainstorm what they might do in that particular context. for example, pre-service teachers could be given a prompt to identify one aspect of teaching in which they would like to collaborate (e.g., planning). then, they could be given a teaching scenario and be asked to determine how they might overcome a collaboration obstacle and achieve the desired level of collaboration. this activity could invite a rich discussion about how to negotiate tensions at a school site while maintaining a personal philosophy of teaching and how to advocate for oneself. for the second challenge of how teacher education programs can support pairs to implement co-teaching with fidelity, as elliot expressed in his interview a year after he completed the teacher education program, he wished that there was an intervention by the teacher education program to ensure that he had an opportunity to co-teach during his clinical experience. if co-teaching is a model that a teacher education program implements, it is important that guidance is provided to co-teaching pairs in order to encourage this type of mentoring. one way would be for a teacher education program to have co-teaching pairs complete a co-teaching self-assessment at different times in the co-teaching experience. this self-assessment could be shared with a university supervisor, and the university supervisor could facilitate a conversation on how to move beyond the current co-teaching implementation. beyond an assessment that gauges co-teaching implementation and identifies when support is needed, providing co-teachers with a clear sense of the co-teaching model is essential in order to be able to implement the model with fidelity. supporting co-teachers to understand the model could occur in face-to-face workshops, bi-monthly co-teaching newsletters, a co-teaching website, and other repositories for resources. in addition, future research exploring the impact of co-teaching during the clinical experience on the practices of beginning teachers could be enhanced by collecting observation and performance evaluation data during the first year of employed teaching. knowing where the research participant falls on the continuum of co-teaching implementation that occurred during the clinical experience and comparing this to the observation-based performance data in addition to self-reported data, more conclusive claims about the impact of co-teaching on beginning teacher practices and dispositions could be achieved. conclusion findings from the yearlong and year-out studies suggest that co-teaching during the clinical experience is beneficial to the professional growth of a beginning teacher, primarily in regards to developing beginning teachers who are collaborative, reflective, and prepared for the from pre-service to employed teacher 47 first year of teaching. there is a need, however, to address the concerns of educators who posit that a co-teaching model of the clinical experience might negatively impact a beginning teacher. the year-out data shows that the transition to employed teaching can be challenging, and that the pre-service teachers may not have a realistic view of the extent to which they relied on their cooperating teacher during the co-teaching experience. therefore, it is important for teacher education programs to be transparent about how the co-teaching experience can prepare beginning teachers for that first year while also identifying and discussing the challenges that may be faced when on their own. according to john and others interviewed, “co-teaching got [him] really ready for that first year as a teacher.” john’s comments further support the notion that co-teaching can be an effective model to the clinical experience, but with any model, it is important that it is implemented with fidelity and that teacher education programs realistically assess and address challenges that may result from the model. 48   m. guise & k. thiessen   references bacharach, n., heck, t. w., & dahlberg, k. (2010). changing the face of student teaching through coteaching. action in teacher education, 32(1), 3-14. badiali, b., & titus, n. (2010). co-teaching: enhancing student learning through mentor intern partnerships. school university partnerships, 4(2), 74-79. beers, j. (2008). negotiating the transition between different teaching contexts through shared responsibility and shared reflection. cultural studies of science education, 4(2), 443-447. california commision on teacher credentialing (2016). preliminary multiple subject and single subject credential program standards. sacramento, ca: author. carspecken, p. (1996). critical ethnography in educational research. new york, ny: routledge. cochran-smith, m. (1991). reinventing student teaching. journal of teacher education, 42(2), 104-118. darling-hammond, l., pacheco, a., michelli, n., lepage, p., & hammerness, k. (2005). implementing curriculum renewal in teacher education: making organizational and policy change. in l. darling-hammond & j. bransford (eds.), preparing teachers for a changing world (pp. 442-479). san francisco: john wiley. darragh, j. j., picanco, k. e., tully, d., & henning, a. s. (2011). when teachers collaborate, good things happen: teacher candidate perspectives of the co-teach model for the student teaching internship. the journal of the association of independent liberal arts colleges of teacher education, 8(1), 83-109. emerson, r.m., fretz, r.i., & shaw, l.l. (1995). writing ethnographic field notes. from pre-service to employed teacher 49 chicago, il: university of chicago press. hang, q., & rabren, k. (2009). an examination of co-teaching: perspectives and efficacy indicators. remedial and special education, 30(5), 259-268. hartnett, m.j., mccoy, a., weed, r., & nickens, n. (2014). a work in progress: unraveling the lessons learned in a co-teaching pilot. the renaissance group, 3(1), 33-54. heckert, j., strieker, t., & shaheen, m. (2013). kennesaw sate university collaborative clinical practice. the renaissance group, 1(2), 83-96. lewis, c., & ketter, j. (2004). learning as social interaction: interdiscursivity in a teacher and researcher study group. in r. rogers (ed.), an introduction to critical discourse analysis in education (pp. 117-146). mahwah, nj: erlbaum. murphy, c., carlisle, k. (2008). situating relational ontology and transformative activist stance within the “everyday” practice of coteaching and cogenerative dialogue. cultural studies of science education, 3, 493-506. scantlebury, k., gallo-fox, j., & wassell, b. (2008). coteaching as a model for preservice secondary science teacher education. teaching and teacher education, 24, 967-981. the national council for the accreditation of teachers (2010). transforming teacher education through clinical practice: a national strategy to prepare effective teachers. washington, dc: author. zeichner, k. (2002). beyond traditional structures of student teaching. teacher education quarterly, 29(2), 59-64. 50   m. guise & k. thiessen   appendix a year-out co-teaching interview protocol 1. tell me about your first year of teaching including successes and challenges? 2. when you were an employed first-year teacher, what aspects of planning, instructing, assessing, and/or reflecting were challenging to do without a co-teacher? 3. when you were an employed first-year teacher, did you seek out another teacher and/or resource to fill any of the roles filled by your cooperating teacher? why or why not? 4. how did the co-teaching experience help you when you were employed your first year of teaching? 5. are there ways that the co-teaching model made your first year of teaching more difficult? 6. now that you have a year of experience, do you think the teacher education program should continue to implement the co-teaching model? why or why not? 7. what suggestions do you have for improving the co-teaching model at the teacher education program in which you were enrolled? 8. if you could change an aspect of your co-teaching experience, what would it be and why? from pre-service to employed teacher 51 appendix b co-teaching implementation continuum categories traditional student teaching ● planning primarily done individually (either the pre-service teacher or the cooperating teacher took the lead) ● co-instructional strategies primarily used included one teach/one observe and one teach/one assist in addition to solo time ● pre-service teacher received feedback on his/her teaching from the cooperating teacher blended experience: co-teaching guidance needed ● planning, instructing, and assessing occurred individually and in collaboration with the cooperating teacher ● co-instructional strategies primarily used included one teach/one observe, one teach/one assist, and team teaching ● pre-service teacher received feedback on his/her teaching from the cooperating teacher forward momentum: lessons learned from prior co-teaching experience ● co-teachers implemented various approaches to co-planning, co-instructing, and coassessing ● co-teachers were strategic with when to implement co-teaching and when to implement solo time ● co-teachers reflected on lessons collaboratively, moving beyond feedback on just the pre-service teacher’s practice scaffold and grow: teacher educators & lifelong learners ● co-teachers implemented various approaches to co-planning, co-instructing, and coassessing ● co-teachers were strategic with when to implement co-teaching and when to implement solo time ● co-teachers reflected on lessons collaboratively, moving beyond feedback on just the pre-service teacher’s practice ● the cooperating teacher showed openness to new ideas and was learning alongside the pre-service teacher 52   m. guise & k. thiessen   page intentionally blank microsoft word 3mckenna-final.docx vol. 3, no. 1, dec 2014, pp. 21-32 motivations for learning: mastery experiences in a low socio-economic middle school corey mckenna whitworth university abstract the purpose of this multi-case study was to discover the causes of low self-efficacy for math for a group of historically low-performing 7th grade students at a high-poverty urban middle school based upon bandura’s (1986) social cognitive theory, specifically the concept of self-efficacy. qualitative methods were used to collect data, including structured one-on-one interviews and classroom observations. in addition, a student survey provided data on student self-efficacy and offered further insight into individual student perceptions. the cross-case analysis surfaced evidence for each of the four sources of self-efficacy. the findings of this study can provide educators with insights into the causes of low self-efficacy for students at the middle grade level and allow researchers to theorize about a broader set of cases related to learning math. keywords: middle school mathematics, self-efficacy, urban middle school, high-poverty 22   c. mckenna   introduction the topic of mathematics achievement in the united states is a sum of many parts. of special concern within this issue is that of minority students from high-poverty urban schools. a crucial juncture in the k-12 experience rests in the middle school years where the success or failure in mathematics courses often proves a substantial gatekeeper to higher-level mathematics content and the prospect of achieving a high school diploma (balfanz & byrnes, 2006). for some students at the middle school level, previous deficiencies in arithmetic skills accrued over the years of elementary school exacerbate the complexity of introducing algebra at this stage. a focus on national math achievement recurs in both research studies and policy recommendations (national mathematics advisory panel, 2008; provasnik, gonzales, & miller, 2009). results from naep in recent years demonstrate some growth in math achievement in both 4th and 8th grade, yet only 40% of 4th grade students and 35% of 8th grade students scored proficient or above in math in 2011 (nces, 2011a). for urban districts, results on naep reveal even lower levels of achievement in math (nces, 2011b) while other measures of math achievement in urban schools show consistently alarming results (rowan, hall, & haycock, 2010; ysseldyke, spicuzza, kosciolek, teelucksingh, boyes & lemkuil, 2003). the preponderance of minority students who have achievement gaps upon entering highpoverty middle schools typically see their achievement gap widen by the end of their middle school experience (balfanz & byrnes, 2006). it is during these critical middle school years that students will formulate judgments about their own interest in math and their ability to learn math, and once entrenched, these judgments will shape the life-long opportunities available to these students (nctm, 2000). a student’s lack of confidence in their ability to succeed in math can contribute to a discouraging attitude toward math in the middle grades when the study of math transitions from a focus on concrete sequential procedures to abstract algebraic reasoning (mcneil, grandau, knuth, alibali, stephens, hattikudur, & krill, 2006). a history of low performance can promote low self-efficacy for math. identifying the causes of low self-efficacy for math may provide educators with strategic means of supporting students at the middle-grade level. self-efficacy, according to bandura, “refers to beliefs in one’s capabilities to organize and execute the courses of action required to produce given attainments (1997, p. 3). bandura theorized that what is foundational in forming one’s level of motivation, as well as their emotional status and what they act upon is based more on their beliefs about themselves rather than what is objectively true. “unless people believe they can produce desired efforts by their actions, they have little incentive to act. efficacy belief, therefore, is a major basis of action. people guide their lives by their beliefs of personal efficacy” (bandura, 1997, p. 3). these beliefs play a powerful decision-making role in the lives of students. a latent hazard of low self-efficacy beliefs for mathematics formed early during the middle school years may cause students to avoid taking challenging academic courses in the future if they doubt their abilities. the more immediate hazards of low self-efficacy for math can be seen in how these beliefs impede their day-to-day interaction with the math instruction and curriculum. with increased attention on math achievement and the stubborn resistance to improvement represented in substantial numbers of students, knowing what is happening with students who lack the inner belief that they can succeed in math could produce helpful insight. employing the lens of bandura’s (1986) social cognitive theory as a theoretical framework can discern the sources of low self-efficacy for students. by recognizing the four sources of self motivations for learning 23 efficacy 1) mastery experience, 2) vicarious experience, 3) social persuasion, and 4) physiological states, exploring the causes of low self-efficacy can identify means of responding to these students that influences increases in self-efficacy for learning math. a history of low performance contributes to low self-efficacy and educators who serve these students encounter the conundrum of responding to students’ academic deficiencies while attempting to meet grade level standards. the contributing factor of poverty and the urban context of the school provide a distinguishing perspective for this study. resilience in challenge, an outcome desired in math instruction and a vulnerable attribute for children living in poverty (downey, 2008; spencer, cole, dupree, glymph, & pierre, 1993) illuminates aspects of this study. identifying the causes of low self-efficacy for math may provide educators with strategic means of supporting students at the middle-grade level. the purpose of this multi-case study was to discover the causes of low self-efficacy for math for a group of historically low-performing 7th grade students at a high-poverty urban middle school. at this school, 85% of the students lived in poverty. by selecting four students for cross-case analysis, this study sought to gain a richer understanding of how students judge their ability to engage in learning math within a context of poverty. from this analysis we can hold a better position for offering remedy to students at this level who struggle to learn math. the following research question guided the study: what are the causes of low self-efficacy in math mastery experiences for historically lowperforming students at a high-poverty urban middle school? review of literature this review of literature builds upon the complementary notions of self-efficacy by exploring the understanding of the concept of self-efficacy, then a presenting a discussion of self-efficacy beliefs among cross-cultural contexts. a concise examination of motivation for learning provides a broader consideration for our study. the context of middle school and the influence of poverty further inform the review of literature as these factors frame the context and design of our study. self-efficacy a key component of the social cognitive theory is the concept of self-efficacy (zimmerman, 2000). self-efficacy has received considerable attention from educational researchers as relating to how students approach learning and the construct of classroom experiences. others have drawn distinction to how students encounter learning mathematics (usher & pajares, 2009; williams & williams, 2010). usher and pajares’ (2008) review of literature on self-efficacy in schools confirmed self-efficacy beliefs as, “the critical determinants of human motivation and behavior” (p. 791). when considering learning experiences for students, recognizing these elements of motivation and behavior provides an elaborate backdrop for discerning the influences upon the teaching and learning processes. bandura identified four types of behaviors or processes regulated by self-efficacy beliefs. the processes, which include cognitive, motivational, emotional, and choice, are critical to achievement in academic settings, namely a school classroom (pajares, 1996). variability of selfefficacy exists among students establishing criteria of high and low self-efficacy. students with high self-efficacy are more likely to: engage in higher order thinking; show greater effort and persistence; demonstrate an affect of curiosity and eagerness; and broaden their consideration of 24   c. mckenna   what goals to set for themselves and what activities to participate in (snowman, mccown & biehler, 2012). contrastingly, students with low self-efficacy are likely to disengage from learning experiences or avoid the academic demands in an attempt to relieve themselves from the recurrence of failure or emotional distress (zimmerman, 2000). self-efficacy beliefs beliefs about one’s abilities reveal differentials that can introduce inaccuracies between beliefs and actual abilities. williams and williams (2010) used the 2003 pisa to explore the cross-cultural effect of self-efficacy and math performance. their findings affirmed that selfefficacy is a concept that applies to students in many cultures. their model was a “good fit to the data in 30 nations and was supportive of reciprocal determinism in 24 of these, suggesting a fundamental psychological process that transcends national and cultural boundaries (p. 453).” interestingly, their study also identified that the influence of external agency (the expectation of significant others) influences the self-efficacy of girls across cultures. girls everywhere, it seems, underrate their capabilities in mathematics relative to boys with the same degree of mastery. in a similar way, girls evidence lower levels of self efficacy with respect to mathematics, along with higher levels of anxiety, helplessness, and stress” (williams & williams, 2010, p. 463-464). the accuracy of student self-efficacy can contribute to their beliefs about their prospective outcomes. this applies to performance in math as noted in studies by chen (2003) and chen and zimmerman (2007). such impact on math can influence middle school students’ perspective on their performance and their effort judgment with implications for both students and teachers. from chen’s study, the direct effect of self-efficacy on math performance influenced the amount of efforts students invested in learning math. recommendation from this study for math teachers suggested: teachers should recognize that calibration accuracy is an important dimension of their students’ math self-efficacy beliefs. as a group, seventh-grade students overestimated their math capabilities, but their inaccuracies did not relate to the strength of their selfefficacy beliefs. both high and low self-efficacy students were overly optimistic about their performance. although such over-optimism may enhance their motivation to improve future performance, students’ underlying math skill also significantly factored into their academic success (chen, 2003, p. 90). chen and zimmerman (2007) found this incongruity between self-efficacy beliefs and performance in math when considering students from cross-cultural contexts. when comparing middle school students from taiwan and the united states, they found that students from taiwan demonstrated a higher degree of accuracy than the american students. this inaccuracy presents a challenge for teachers to contemplate and to determine the need for alignment between beliefs and performance. bringing students’ self-efficacy into congruity with performance is suggested by other researchers (campillo, zimmerman, & hudesman, 1999; zimmerman, bonner, & kovach, 1996). thus consideration of the accuracy of students’ self-efficacy needs to interface with the measured levels of particular students, such as psychometric test scores. when supporting students who have a history of low-performance in math, as our study endorses, addressing the discrepancy of self-efficacy and performance introduces another contingency for re-engaging students in learning math. motivations for learning 25 motivation for learning when supporting students who have a history of low-performance in math, the matter of motivation for learning surfaces as a critical factor in overcoming the barriers to academic success in math. zimmerman (2000) suggests that self-efficacy serves as indicator of motivation. “self-efficacy beliefs have also shown convergent validity in influencing such key indices of academic motivation as choice of activities, level of effort, persistence, and emotional reactions” (p. 84). for students such as those in this study, effort, persistence and emotional reactions can contribute to revealing respective levels of self-efficacy. zimmerman highlighted to notions of effort—rate of performance and expenditure of energy (2000). although these illustrate indicators of self-efficacy, it is important to remember that these are merely predictors of motivation. considering the placement of motivation for learning as intrinsic through curiosity or interest, middle school students at-risk of school failure represent an intersection of influences in schools (anderman & maehr, 1994; dweck & leggett, 1988). at-risk indicators, such as delayed academic skill development, poverty, concentration of poverty within an assigned school, and race highlight gaps in the development of intrinsic motivation associated with school-structured activity. niehaus, rudasill, and adelson (2012) drew connection between selfefficacy and academic outcomes for latino middle school students concluding consistent findings with prior studies “suggesting that academic self-efficacy is an important contributor to positive academic outcomes for latino students” (p. 129). these researchers found that students possessing intrinsic motivation for learning directly correlated to their academic achievement as measured by grade point average. recognition of the role of motivation for student learning can expose a related factor to self-efficacy, assuredly beyond the scope of this study yet in accordance with this line of inquiry. method this study utilized a multi-case study design to discover the causes of low self-efficacy for math. yin (2005) endorses the use of case study to descriptions that enhance awareness and analytical insight that promotes knowledge. each selected student represents a separate bounded case. by bounding the cases to individual students, gaining understanding of their distinct conditions will provide opportunity for analysis (stake, 2000). qualitative methods were used to collect data, including structured one-on-one interviews and classroom observations. in addition, a student survey provided data on student self-efficacy and offered further insight into individual student perceptions. this study utilized a cross-case analysis of four students who demonstrated varying degrees of self-efficacy. the four students selected for case study were participants in a larger year-long study involving 24 students conducted at an urban middle school in a western state. the research design represented a convergence of practitioner research and empirical study in which participants enrolled in a math class for 90 minutes each day. three researchers contributed in distinct ways: one researcher served as the classroom teacher and collected assessment data, a second researcher served as the principle investigator and provided daily instructional support within the classroom and documented observational data, and the third researcher administered the surveys and conducted the one-on-one structured interviews with students. 26   c. mckenna   data sources the students participating in this study attended a historically underperforming middle school (grades 6-8) where over 85% of the students lived in poverty. all participating students had demonstrated a history of low-performance in math and over 50% were english learners. therefore, the context of this study provides a valuable perspective for exploring the roots of low self-efficacy for math. sample selection. the larger, year-long study included 24 students purposefully selected to match the demographics of the school. the selected students represented 80% latino, 10% african-american, and 10% caucasian with equal number of male and female students. although all 24 students were historically low-performing in math, the four students selected for analysis in this study represent a contrast within the larger group. two of the students (one male and one female) demonstrated higher levels of achievement while the other two students (one male and one female) demonstrated lower levels of achievement. the four students revealed varying degrees of self-efficacy for math and responsiveness to efforts to change. data collected. data was collected from four sources involving all three researchers. one researcher conducted one-on-one interviews with participating students and administered a survey to help determine their level of self-efficacy for math. the structured interviews utilized a protocol to ensure consistency in data collection among participants. the survey instrument was developed based upon a study conducted by usher (2009) to determine sources of self-efficacy for math among middle school students. the instrument asked questions to mine responses revealing the four sources of self-efficacy discussed in the theoretical framework. the interviews and survey administration were conducted early in the school year. assessment data were collected by the researcher serving as the classroom teacher. such data included in-class and homework assignments, formative and summative assessments, and district-sanctioned benchmark exams. the researcher providing instructional support gathered daily classroom observations, including individual and small-group interactions. data analysis a narrative was constructed for each case to incorporate the data collected into a story to depict illustration of the cogent concepts aligned with the theoretical framework guiding the study. establishing validity within each case marked the first step in building trustworthiness in the study. the multiple data sources provided for triangulation within each case, which involved a “process of using multiple perceptions to clarify meaning, verifying the repeatability of an observation or interpretation” (stake, 2000, p. 443). participants the cases of the four selected students are portrayed in concise format. more extensive cases of each student were constructed for analysis purposes. these cases emerged from a compilation of classroom observations, review of assessment data, interviews, and student responses to the survey instrument. the presentation of the four cases—maria, manuel, missy, and bobby—provides descriptive data for analysis. pseudonyms have been used to mask the identity of the students. the first two students portrayed, maria and manuel, demonstrated higher levels of achievement and revealed fluctuating levels of self-efficacy (i.e., selectively low one time and malleable the next time). missy and bobby demonstrated lower levels of achievement motivations for learning 27 and persistently low levels of self-efficacy. each case provides evidence of the causes of selfefficacy analyzed through the theoretical framework of this study. findings bandura’s (1986) social cognitive theory and component self-efficacy provided a lens for determining the causes of low self-efficacy for the students in this study. the cross-case analysis conducted after composing the four individual cases surfaced evidence for each of the four sources of self-efficacy that yielded a set of findings that may provide a way of theorizing about a larger collection of cases, or particularly other students similarly situated (stake, 2008). mastery lack of, or inconsistent mastery experiences contributed to varying levels of self-efficacy for math among these students. usher and pajares (2006) concurred with bandura (1986) that students’ perceived mastery experience serves as a contributing predictor of self-efficacy. as mastery learning is such a critical source of self-efficacy, when students fail to experience mastery learning the recurrence of failure compounds their agency for self-efficacy. since the nature of learning mathematics relies so heavily upon prior knowledge, the developmental design of math instruction exposes the gaps in students’ previous learning experiences. in each of the four students, previous assessment results (low or inconsistent levels of achievement) indicated that many math concepts had not been mastered in preparation for 7th grade. bandura (1986) asserted that mastery experience was the most influential source of efficacy as individuals can relate to their authentic experiences, rather than contrived or externally imposed (and possibly inauthentic) information. accordingly, successful experiences raise efficacy while failures lower efficacy. analysis of the four students revealed an exception in maria from the other three students. for maria, she drew upon her successes and reflected upon her failures to promote new mastery experiences. this additive notion of mastery experiences enhanced her overall self-efficacy. for manuel, the inconsistency of his experiences did not seem to deter his approach to learning math, yet the mix of success with failure inhibited his growth in self-efficacy, perhaps repressing to some extent his potential for learning. missy’s inaccuracy of abilities influenced her perception of mastery experiences perhaps obscuring her own awareness and masking her view of self. meanwhile bobby’s trend of decreasing achievement since 5th grade revealed that fewer mastery experiences may have contributed to his low self-efficacy and perhaps to his resistance to efforts to enhance his self-efficacy for math. discussion the challenges of math achievement facing schools are not new nor are decrees for reform to math instruction. research and policy proposals have outlined the need for increased emphasis on math and have provided startling data analyses while prescribing the steps to improve outcomes for students. yet the deficiencies in math achievement persist. as set forth at the outset of this paper, the critical juncture of the middle grades exposes a host of issues affiliated with learning math. for consideration in this study, the self-efficacy for math of historically low-achieving students in an urban middle school provides a context for exploring the influences that impede deep engagement in math. 28   c. mckenna   balfanz and byrnes (2006) showed the widening of achievement gaps for minority students enrolled in high-poverty middle schools. it is our assertion that the self-efficacy for math of students contributes to their willingness and readiness to engage in the abstract, logical mathematics, which comprises much of the standards-based curriculum of middle schools. discerning the causes of low self-efficacy for students can inform decision-making related to instruction, course offering, and strategies to re-engage students during this critical stage in the educational experience. approaches to instruction teachers can influence the self-efficacy of students by addressing the four multiple sources of these beliefs. beyond a repertoire of instructional strategies based upon pedagogically sound teaching techniques, teachers that serve students with low self-efficacy for math will also need to utilize strategic motivation, to form a nurturing classroom environment, and to employ feedback mechanisms that reflect an awareness of students’ low self-efficacy. effort is an important component in the process of learning math. as teachers observe students with low self-efficacy, they may likely conclude that these students merely refuse to put forth effort. zimmerman (2000) asserts that self-efficacy beliefs predict student effort by illustrating the rate of performance and the expenditure of energy. such beliefs also influence persistence, a related manifestation of self-efficacy. therefore, understanding the causes of low self-efficacy can inform teachers’ perspective on student effort. additionally, understanding the indicators of low self-efficacy could aid instructors in the classroom. as with the students in this study, effort was usually reflective of their beliefs in their ability to succeed. teachers who can discern these beliefs can reconsider their conclusions about similar students and address the sources of self-efficacy through their instructional practices. re-engagement students with low self-efficacy for math require intense and recurring re-engagement strategies to counter their own beliefs about math. one such strategy involves the use of feedback. the binary nature (“correct” or “incorrect”) of a traditional approach to solving math problems leans toward poignant responses to student-generated answers. students with low selfefficacy have experienced recurrence of failure due to a lack of, or inconsistent frequency of, mastery experiences. the form and approach to feedback in these mastery experiences plays an important role in re-engaging students. for students living in poverty, failure and the obstacles to success present frequent reminders that teachers must help them overcome. when a teacher possesses an awareness of students’ low self-efficacy, they can construct feedback mechanisms that encourage students toward accurate mathematical thinking. william (2011) distinguishes between ego involving feedback and task involving feedback with clear implications for students with low self-efficacy. ego involving feedback, such as grades or praise, is rarely effective and can actually lower student achievement. rather, task involving feedback identifies for students what they need to do to improve and provides clear explanation of how to go about the process of improvement. for students with low self-efficacy for math, the recurrence of low grades or the absence of praise from their teacher further erodes their willingness to engage in the learning process, thus the need for feedback that promotes learning by helping students move forward in their learning (heritage, 2010). usher (2009) asserts that students’ personal beliefs in their skills and abilities can impact their level of engagement in learning math, therefore the type of feedback a teacher provides can motivations for learning 29 either considerably enhance or further entrench those beliefs. with an awareness of the levels of self-efficacy among their students, a purposeful approach to feedback will provide an opportunity to support students toward overcoming the obstacles to learning math. conclusion if we can recognize the causes of low self-efficacy for math, then changes can occur to combat the debilitating results of these beliefs among students. the four sources of self-efficacy identified by bandura (1986) provide a framework for discerning the behaviors, responses, and feelings of students as they encounter math. the four students portrayed in this multi-case study provide a glimpse at the causes of low self-efficacy. according to bandura and others, levels of self-efficacy can be influenced through personal context and derived outcomes, thus an awareness of these causes can inform educators regarding approaches to utilize to serve students. for students at the turbulent stage of middle school, this intersection of past and future illuminates a critical juncture as their past years of schooling and experiences have shaped their beliefs about their own abilities and can impact their judgments about the future. this study considered the causes of low self-efficacy for students in a high-poverty school. the tenuous conditions of poverty may intensify the influence of the sources of self-efficacy. therefore strategic responses from educators to engender resilience in students provide an approach to addressing low self-efficacy for math. altering the trajectory of students such as those in this study will require purposeful attention to the sources and how they influence students in the precarious middle school years. references anderman, e.m., & maehr, m.l. 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(2010). self-efficacy and performance in mathematics: reciprocal determinism in 33 nations. journal of educational psychology, 102(2), 453-466. ysseldyke,j., spicuzza, r., kosciolek, s., teelucksingh, e., boyes, c., & lemkuil, a. (2003). using a curriculum-based instructional management system to enhance math achievement in urban schools. journal of education for students placed at risk, 8(2), 247-265. yin, r.k. (2005). introducing the world of education: a case study reader. thousand oaks, ca: sage publications. zimmerman, b.j. (2000). self-efficacy: an essential motive to learn. contemporary educational psychology, 25, 82-91. zimmerman, b. j., bonner, s., & kovach, r. (1996). developing self-regulated learners: beyond achievement to self-efficacy. washington, dc: american psychological association. educational renaissance vol. 10 (2021) maint aining fidelit y in teacher educat ion program s dur ing covid-19 chr ist opher thom as dague, phd. zucker family school of education, the citadel email: christopher.dague@citadel.edu tam m y graham , phd. presbyterian college email: tjgraham@presby.edu soo joung kim , phd. zucker family school of education, the citadel email: skim4@citadel.edu feature article teacher education programs across the country have been pressed to adapt and implement emergency plans of action. the citadel is unique because it is a military college that also has a variety of graduate programs across campus. at the time of this writing, we have approximately 3500 students in total. at the citadel, applying emergency protocols, predominantly in reaction to natural disasters, has become almost customary in recent years ? given our location in charleston, south carolina. that being said, implementation of such strategies for acute weather conditions has proven drastically different than having to consider all of the facets and uncertainties of trying to effectively prepare our candidates in the face of the seemingly chronic existence of covid-19. the purpose of this essay, told from the perspectives and experiences of three teacher education professors (see table 1), is to detail our individual, professional foci and the strategies each of us employed, all in an effort to maintain and strengthen the integrity and fidelity of our teacher education program. fidelit y of inst ruct ion this first narrative comes from christopher dague. christopher is an assistant professor of teacher and social studies education at the citadel, where he has worked for three years. prior to coming to the citadel, christopher worked as a high school history teacher and head baseball coach in north carolina. pivoting our instructional habits as a result of the ramifications of covid-19 caused an immediate quick-acting review of our instructional design. face-to-face instruction was nullified due to the pandemic, and a shift toward online teaching caused many concerns for each of us. one of the abst ract three teacher education professors describe their respective professional experiences surrounding the effects of the covid-19 pandemic. each detail how their professional experience and foci led them to make changes to best serve the students at their institution. this article intends to serve teacher educators by striking a balance between theory and practical application while candidly addressing successes and areas for improvement. mailto:christopher.dague@citadel.edu mailto:tjgraham@presby.edu mailto:skim4@citadel.edu dague, graham, & kim| maintaining fidelity in teacher education programs during covid-19 table 1: professional experience and focus of teacher education faculty critical challenges was finding methods by which to make instructional activities meaningful and worthy of students? time. our significant years of experience in the classroom ? both k-12 and in higher education ? allowed us to better leverage our new instructional reality. prior to coming to our institution, i served as a high school history teacher and head baseball coach for thirteen years in north carolina. i begin with this because it speaks to how i still see myself professionally ? as a teacher. instead of teaching the finer points of the french revolution, i now support candidates? understandings of student motivation and classroom management as well as contemporary approaches to teaching social studies. regardless of the change in content and professional tit le, at the very front of my mind is always the betterment of my students ? now and for their future professional endeavors. when it became apparent that hybrid or remote learning was a possibility due to covid-19, my focus turned to ensuring that my students would not lose out on vital information. with the help of colleagues, i took up the challenge to make sure that my students would not miss a step, irrespective of circumstances. during the spring semester i was teaching two courses ? one a comprehensive methods course and the other a social studies methods course (both graduate courses). additionally, i served as a content supervisor for our social studies student teachers. with over a decade of classroom experience, and as someone who researches the intersections of motivational theory and instructional practices, i felt confident that i could provide beneficial experiences to my students ? even if in a remote fashion. my initial confidence was somewhat thwarted when i realized that i would need to rely on technology with which i had limited, or no, exposure. moreover, my greatest concern was maintaining the connections and personal relationships which had led to many positive experiences in previous face-to-face class meetings. after much consideration, i realized that in order to maintain the expectations that were previously developed, i needed to focus on three facets of the teaching and learning process that could transcend barriers placed on my classes and students, 1). intentional planning, 2). clear communication, and 3). genuine relationship-building. intentional planning in evaluating potential issues within my courses, i first looked at my courses? infrastructure. i recognized that students? familiarity with the ?interactive notebook (inb)? i created at the beginning of the semester could provide students with a discernible advantage in navigating subsequent weeks. the inb, operated through a cloud-based system, housed all student work, and contained the majority of resources (i.e. links, scholarship, etc.) students would need to complete tasks and assessments. students also utilized the inb to submit assignments. feeling secure about the infrastructure, i began to amend the course schedule ? based in part on the carroll model of school learning (see figure 1). 23 facult y mem ber , rank, and exper ience k-12 exper ience professional foci christopher dague , assistant professor, 3 years teacher, 13 years, public high school fidelity of instruction planning, communication, and relationship-building soojoung kim, visiting assistant professor, 4 years teacher, 4 years, public middle school fidelity of remote learning student connection, student participation, and engaging module design tammy graham, professor, 13 years teacher, educational diagnostician, special education coordinator, 17 years, public elementary, middle, and high schools fidelity of clinical experiences adaptability, teamwork, and guidelines dague, graham, & kim| maintaining fidelity in teacher education programs during covid-19 figure 1: the carroll (1963) model of school learning after completing my initial evaluation and creating tentative adjustments, the next step tasked me with asking students directly about their needs. inquiring about students? needs was necessary to allow for students to experience agency in their own education. with such agency in the decision-making process, i was attempting to serve their needs while also modeling the sheer importance of supporting students? autonomy ? a lesson i hope they will take with them professionally moving forward (stefanou et al., 2004). in our initial video conference, i made my recommendations and explained how such amendments might impact them. after intently listening to students? questions and concerns, the one thing i realized in my post-conference reflection was that i simply could not afford to deviate from my pedagogical philosophy. students? work must maintain its rigor and challenge without simply increasing in the number of assignments and materials. the students and i agreed that quantity would not serve as an adequate substitute for quality. in fact, i took out several assignments while i consolidated others. i felt better about holding to my conviction when one of my social studies methods students wrote, ?when everything went online this semester and my other classes were all messy trying to figure out the school operating platforms, this class was seamless. honestly when all my other classes became more complicated? this one maintained its integrity? based on this and other evaluations, i feel confidently that intentional planning coupled with allowing students to share their voice and assert their agency proved valuable. clear communication and genuine relationships i made it a point to make sure that the exchange that routinely occurred between students and me did not solely focus on content and assignments. communicating and developing a clearer understanding of students? personal lives during such unsettling times was critical to maintaining the fidelity of the courses. over the course of the remaining eight weeks of the semester, my students and i met weekly via video conference. while each class session was not as long as it would have been in our original format (i.e. face-to-face), usually lasting less than two hours, it was key for students to know that our time together was still important. while some sessions bore more fruit than others, our remote class sessions served as an opportunity to make sure that we were all in lockstep relative to scheduling and pacing as well as expectations. at times, for me at least, it brought a sense of normalcy and purpose. with so much uncertainty surrounding us all, the class sessions served as temporary relief from the chaos. of course, after a few weeks of remote learning, it became apparent that students? response rate to email was slowing down dramatically. as a result, i knew i had to be more strategic with my communications via email or our learning management system (lms). in some cases, i would simply set up a telephone conference call with individual students to try and create an even more personal touch to our learning experience. on a fixed-interval schedule of sorts, i would reach out to specific students weekly in an effort to check-in and maintain students? sense of relatedness to the course and to me. this leads to my final focus ? maintaining teacher-student relationships. the magnitude of building positive teacher-student relationships in learning environments is evident ? not only in the literature (see davis & dague, 2020; maulana et 24 dague, graham, & kim| maintaining fidelity in teacher education programs during covid-19 al., 2013; newberry, 2010) but as experienced in my own professional life. while the importance of teacher-student relationships is evident, our interactions became even more critical with the increasing physical disconnect. for me, modeling the vitality of such relationships began by focusing on the messages i was delivering to my students. because i did not know all of the details of students? personal lives, i had to try to naturally re-cultivate connections with my students (wubbels et al., 1997). we know that when teachers or professors ?respond to students in ways that are responsive to student needs, are emotionally warm, and provide for student autonomy, students tend not only to feel more motivated in the classroom, but also to achieve at higher rates? (davis & dague, 2020, p. 153). now more than ever it was imperative that students witnessed my responsiveness to their respective needs. while i would like to say that every student was able to see the process through, i did have some students who really struggled to create a work-home life balance ? so much so that one of my students did stop showing up for our weekly class sessions and failed to turn in the prescribed assignments. despite not having a 100% ?success rate,? i am proud of the work that was accomplished in spite of the challenging conditions that so many of my students were facing. not only was maintaining fidelity of instruction of the upmost importance in our teacher education programs, an additional area of concern as we faced new pandemic regulations was ensuring fidelity of online learning for students. when courses that were traditionally taught in a face-to-face or hybrid format moved completely online, we aspired to help students learn as much in the online environment as they would have learned in the more traditional classroom environments. fidelit y of rem ot e learning the second narrative comes from soojoung kim. soojoung is a visiting assistant professor of teacher and literacy education at the citadel, where she has worked for four years. prior to coming to the citadel, soojoung worked as a middle school teacher in seoul, korea. with the sudden shift of teaching methods from in-person to online due to the covid-19 pandemic, my colleagues and i had to readjust quickly to help students succeed. in my role as a visiting assistant professor, i teach foundational education courses that introduce the american education system and learners? development. i emphasize fundamental knowledge and also focus on the growth of my students' critical thinking, problem-solving, and decision making as preservice teachers. as students learn best when they actively participate in their learning (bloom, 1984; chickering & gamson, 1987), i use cooperative learning strategies, hands-on activities, pair or group discussions, and a group project to promote their higher-level thinking and professional disposition. when i heard about the change of situation due to covid-19, i had one thing on my mind ? how to maintain the continuity of instruction. since students who succeeded in face-to-face courses might not be as successful in online courses (cheung & kan, 2002; tucker, 2001), i needed to consider practical ways to help my students effectively adapt to a new situation. it is challenging to convert a face-to-face course into an online format because developing an online course requires careful planning and specific training (khan et al., 2017). i had experience teaching online, so i felt confident in changing my courses to online versions. to have a smooth transition and to keep the integrity and fidelity of my courses, i considered two aspects, keeping a connection with students to encourage participation and designing practical modules for balanced work. connection with students to encourage participation being connected with students encouraged students? participation. students were more actively involved in their activities when they 25 dague, graham, & kim| maintaining fidelity in teacher education programs during covid-19 interacted with their classmates and me online. i provided three individual conferences or group meetings at the beginning, in the middle, and at the end of semester during my previous online courses. these meetings were different from virtual office hours. students gave positive feedback stating that they enjoyed their discussion posts more when they met with their classmates and me. interactions create a sense of community for participation and assist each student?s learning while discussing their ideas (lowenthal et al., 2017; poll et al., 2014). i blended both asynchronous and synchronous formats to create interactive discussions using different tools such as online discussion threads and real-time video conferencing. advantages of the asynchronous format are more flexibility for students and more reflective and thoughtful responses from students, while the pros of synchronous discussion are greater spontaneity and more social interaction (rudestam & schoenholtz-read, 2010). i wanted to take full advantage of both formats. first, i created an asynchronous discussion board and asked students to write a post and two responses of classmates? thoughts. then, i offered a once-a-week real-time synchronous meetings during the regular class hour, since live-conferencing assists students in their learning during the synchronous sessions and also helps them enjoy their asynchronous activities (lowenthal et al., 2017). during weekly meetings, students summarized their discussions and reflected on their thoughts. most students reported that they enjoyed both formats. however, one student complained about too much writing, and another student commented on the repetition during both discussions. for my future online courses, i will utilize cooperative learning activities, ?think-pair-share? or ?jigsaw,? by using a particular group allocating function, breakout rooms, that allows an instructor to assign each student to a pair or a group and allocate the pairs or groups to different rooms (peachey, 2017). after a short discussion in each group's room, students can come back to share their thoughts as a whole group. individual interaction was helpful to students who were struggling. one student who did well before covid-19 did not participate in online activities. two other students stopped coming to the weekly meetings. i contacted them to offer assistance because an instructor 's concern can help troubled students overcome rough times and help them continue completing work (chickering & gamson, 1987). while some students reported that their troubles were related to technical difficulties, sickness, and family business, one of them honestly expressed his laziness and procrastination. after providing individual contact, these students showed some effort to make-up incomplete work. effective module design designing active modules for students? learning is critical to creating a successful online course. students were going through a stressful situation, and in order to adjust into the new online learning situation, i did not want to over-burden my students with additional assignments. as such, i tried to keep the workload reasonable. i also did not want my students to become lazy or procrastinate, so i tried to design practical modules by changing some assignments and assessments. i changed the format and length of objective quizzes. instead of taking lengthy quarterly written quizzes (40-50 questions), students took quick weekly online quizzes (10 questions). i intended to check students? learning more often in a less inundating manner. i gave them three attempts if they were not satisfied with their previous grades. students recounted a fondness of the short online quizzes and an appreciation for several opportunities to complete quizzes. this aligns with the findings of several studies. students prefer online multiple-choice tests to paper-and-pencil quizzes because they spend less time taking a quiz and receive feedback faster (segall et al., 2005). retaking quizzes until satisfactory scores are achieved can help students 26 dague, graham, & kim| maintaining fidelity in teacher education programs during covid-19 improve their learning (rice, 2003) and increase students' motivation to learn (nicol, 2007). i adjusted class activities and projects because teachers need to consider their students' diverse situations when they prepare online lessons (darby, 2020). since writing takes more time than just speaking to some students, i reduced the number of topics in asynchronous discussion. i changed the grouping and technology options for group projects because some students are tech-savvy and well-equipped with high-performance devices, while others do not the same access or skills (darby, 2020). another alteration of activities was students' field experiences. since the closure of public schools, students could not have onsite visits. instead, students watched pre-recorded teaching videos, interviewed teachers and students on virtual platforms, and joined the virtual classrooms offered by local schools. as an instructor of foundational education courses in higher education, i focused on continuity of instruction in this sudden instructional mode shift due to the covid-19 pandemic. to maintain my courses' fidelity and integrity, i considered two things. i actively interacted with my students to promote students' virtual participation and designed practical modules to facilitate students' balanced work. although there were some challenges, most students responded positively to the changes and demonstrated a mastery of course learning outcomes and goals. while maintaining fidelity of instruction and learning was imperative as we faced pandemic-related restrictions on campus, they were not the only areas that had to be considered. each teacher education course at our institution has multiple hours of field experience requirements. we ensure that our students visit rural, urban, and suburban schools during their time in the program. during their final semester, our students complete an internship for a minimum of 60 full days. as such, we quickly had to devise a plan for maintaining fidelity of clinical experiences. fidelit y of clin ical exper iences this third and final narrative comes from tammy graham. tammy is a professor of teacher and special education at the citadel, where she has worked for thirteen years. prior to coming to the citadel, tammy worked as a teacher, educational diagnostician and special education coordinator. being in the field of education for 30 years, i have seen many trends and many challenges. admittedly i have never experienced anything like our current pandemic. while serving as an associate professor and coordinator of our teacher education division, i found myself utilizing strategies that i learned early in my career as an educator: being adaptable and working as a member of a team, following guidelines while being mindful of creating meaningful experiences for students, and sharing information with stakeholders. adaptability and teamwork while we adjusted to this ?new normal,? i communicated often with my dean, the director of field experiences and internships, and other teacher education faculty members to determine needs and to brainstorm relevant ideas for meeting these needs. it was very important to consider the stress that other teacher education faculty members might be experiencing, but it was also important to share leaderships responsibilit ies with capable team members to ensure trust and motivation (fernandez & shaw, 2020). one area of concern for my colleagues and me was field experiences; undergraduate and graduate students expressed concern as well. how could students complete their required field experience hours when schools were participating in distance learning? to assist with professor and student anxiety, it was determined that a staff member with k-12 teaching experience would be responsible for researching and vetting virtual field experience opportunities, thus lessening the stress for everyone involved. 27 dague, graham, & kim| maintaining fidelity in teacher education programs during covid-19 another area of apprehension for professors and students that required flexibility and teamwork was student-teaching internships. internship candidates are expected to complete a minimum of 60 full days of internship. would that even be possible when schools were participating in virtual learning, and if so, how could interns teach their students and assist their cooperating teachers? how could they be effectively evaluated by college supervisors and cooperating teachers? it was determined that the director of field experiences and internships, with support and input from me, would draft a plan for completion. effectively completing field experiences and student-teaching internships would not have been possible for our students if we had refused to adapt to the situation and work together as a team. while it was necessary for us to be flexible and work together, we also realized the importance of modeling these traits for future educators. we want our students to be flexible team members when they are teachers, as adaptability has been related to resiliency, well-being, and organizational commitment of teachers (collie & martin, 2017), as well as teacher effectiveness (collie & martin, 2016) guidelines and integrity in addition to increasing our adaptability, it was imperative that our programs continued to meet all requirements from our state department of education, the council for the accreditation of educator preparation (caep), the various specialty program associations (spas), and our institution. it was equally important that our students had the opportunity to complete meaningful experiences that facilitated learning and reflection. staying informed of any state regulation changes for testing requirements, field experience hours, and internship guidelines was non-negotiable. while the state department of education graciously allowed quality virtual field experiences, ensuring our students completed the required number of field experience hours while also having meaningful experiences was challenging. some students observed the real-time virtual classrooms of teachers to whom they were previously assigned; however, that was not an option for all students. those who were unable to participate in real-time experiences participated in the virtual videos that were vetted by our staff member. the staff member checked with each professor to see what types of experiences were relevant to his or her course, searched meaningful experiences meeting the professors? criteria, matched the experiences to indicators in our state?s assessment rubric, organized the experiences by subject area and grade level, and listed the approximate length of each video. students were provided the opportunity to reflect on their experiences via video sessions, online discussion boards, and field experience presentations or narratives. ensuring our student-teaching interns received a relevant internship experience was also a challenge. thankfully, the internship candidates had opportunities to deliver face-to-face instruction before the pandemic. once all schools went to distance learning, i communicated with the director of field experiences and internships on an almost daily basis as she drafted the previously mentioned plan for interns while we waited for guidance from our state department of education. once we received instructions from the state, we compared the draft plan to state guidelines to see if changes were needed. finding no areas of needed revision, we proceeded with the plan. interns adhered to state requirements by following the same schedules and protocol as their cooperating teachers. this experience was unique for each intern, with guidelines depending on their assigned school and school district. candidates assisted teachers as they planned online lessons, prepared video-taped lessons, created and administered appropriate activities and assessments, checked enrollment, and provided feedback to students. weekly internship seminars hosted by the director of field experiences and internships were moved to a 28 dague, graham, & kim| maintaining fidelity in teacher education programs during covid-19 virtual format. while the seminars provided extra pedagogical, planning, and management support to interns, the interns also had the opportunity to discuss any concerns about their virtual teaching experiences. cooperating teachers and college supervisors worked together to effectively rate intern lessons and provide valuable feedback. while i realize there is always room for improvement, when anecdotally rating our field experiences and internships, i am comfortable that we provided the best experiences possible at the time by following state, accreditation, and institutional guidelines while being mindful of providing experiences from which the students could learn and apply to their future careers. stakeholder support during a crisis it is essential to communicate effectively and regularly with all stakeholders (fernandez & shaw, 2020). arranging the numerous changes for field experiences and internships was crucial, and it was also important to communicate these changes to students, faculty, and school partners. not only did we need to provide support to students enrolled in our courses and interns placed in local schools, it was also necessary to share the information with cooperating teachers and educators who paired with us for dual credit courses. when thinking through the changes, we realized everyone was likely to become overwhelmed if receiving multiple emails from different people. as such, a thoughtful process was employed. professors shared altered field experience guidelines with their students, while the director of field experiences and internships communicated internship changes to student-teaching interns and their cooperating teachers and college supervisors. the professor partner for dual credit courses shared field experience information with partnering high school teachers, to ensure high school students participating in these courses had the same opportunities as our college students and to hopefully help lessen the stress level of the teachers. while multiple people were involved in the planning process, a purposeful select few participated in the communication process. the covid-19 pandemic has presented many challenges to teacher education programs at institutions of higher education (ihes). in this situation and in all others, it is essential that we employ adaptability and teamwork while following regulations, maintaining the integrity of our programs, and providing support to our stakeholders. conclusion did every plan we implemented work? of course not. while we recognize there is always more that could have been done, we are pleased with how we responded and worked together to best support our students in such an incredible time of crisis. in reading the words that detail our experiences, there is an evident theme ? we put the needs of our students at the very front of decision making. this speaks volumes to exactly what teachers and teacher educators do daily ? they put their students first. in part, our hope is that our ?student-first mentality? was modeled effectively enough that our candidates will carry that torch in their future classrooms. based on our experiences in this new instructional reality, there are several aspects of the teaching-and-learning process that we will carry with us moving forward. be both systematic and flexible in course planning: just as we would teach our candidates to plan and even over plan for their future classes, we found it was even more important to do so in these unsettling times. additionally, it was imperative to create avenues for flexibility when students demonstrated a need. with this in mind, we recommend that teacher educators rely on the cornerstones of effective planning ? to include ?the nature of the subject matter, the learners, the context, and the teacher?s role? (darling-hammond et al, 2005, p. 184). focus on the whole student: as we would teach candidates to consider all of the 29 dague, graham, & kim| maintaining fidelity in teacher education programs during covid-19 needs of their learners, we recommend that teacher educators focus even more intently on student engagement. in higher education, it is easy to fall into a pattern of being over reliant of direct instruction and lecturing. while the ?sage on the stage? might prove efficient when covering content, we also know that the ?banking model? described by freire (2009) can impede student participation and engagement. thus, utilizing more authentic, student-centered practices can promote ?students? sense of intellectual control? (davis, 2003, p. 213). be an effective team member: during a crisis, it is ineffective for one person to micromanage and try to have an answer to all problems without seeking assistance. it is time for teamwork, thinking ?outside of the box,? and delegation. while a leader may initially identify major problems and priorities, it is important for him or her to then delegate and share leadership responsibilit ies with capable team members (fernandez & shaw, 2020). as such, it is imperative that everyone be willing to be an effective member of the team to benefit the whole. references bloom, b. s. (1984). the 2-sigma problem: the search for methods of group instruction a effective as one-to-one tutoring. educational researcher, 13(6), 4?16. carroll, j. b. (1963). a model of school learning. teachers college record, 64, 723-733. cheung, l., & kan, a. 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(2001). distance education: better, worse, or as good as traditional education? journal of distance learning administration. http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/winter 44/tucker44.html wubbels, t., levy, j., & brekelmans, m. (1997). paying attention to relationships. educational leadership, 54, 82-86. 31 https://doi.org/10.1002/jls.21684 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2006.06.006 http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/winter 44/tucker44.html http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/winter 44/tucker44.html daugue, graham, & kim (2021) final page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 page 9 page 10 nerren (2017) final .pdf educational renaissance vol. 6 (2017) def in ing and measur ing excellence in t he changing wor ld of higher educat ion: case st or ies f rom five colleges of educat ion jannah ner ren, phd, sam houst on st at e universit y email: jannahnerren@shsu.edu chr ist ina sinclair , phd, st ephen f. aust in st at e universit y email: sinclaircd1@sfasu.edu nan barker , edd, california st at e universit y, fresno email: nanb@csufresno.edu mark reid, phd, texas a&m com m erce email: mark.reid@tamuc.edu gina anderson, edd, texas wom an's universit y email: ganderson@twu.edu abst ract this paper presents a collection of case stories from five educator preparation programs (epps) within colleges of education, four from institutions in texas and one from california, to present a micro cross-sectional narrative interpretation of what constitutes excellence in educator preparation. the broad framework utilized in this interpretation focuses on the individual approaches used by each institution for creating and sustaining positive cultures of data-informed decision-making, with the ultimate objective of continuous program improvement, while also meeting the accreditation expectations of each institution. research article teacher preparation is integral to most public institutions? missions, as an educated society is dependent upon quality teachers. however, defining and measuring the quality of educator preparation programs has grown more complex and challenging as the context in which these programs operate have encountered increased scrutiny and shifting expectations (aascu, 2017). how are quality and excellence defined in the changing world of higher education? this collection of case stories from five educator preparation programs (epps) within colleges of education, four from institutions in texas and one from california, presents a micro cross-sectional narrative interpretation of what constitutes excellence. more specifically, individual approaches used by each institution for creating and sustaining positive cultures of data-informed decision-making with the ultimate objective of continuous program improvement is the broad framework utilized in this interpretation. in this paper, the authors have adopted the term ?data-informed? rather than ?data-driven,? not to de-emphasize the importance of collecting and utilizing meaningful data to inform decisions, but rather to recognize the importance of valuing the mailto:jannahnerren@shsu.edu mailto:sinclaircd1@sfasu.edu mailto:nanb@csufresno.edu mailto:mark.reid@tamuc.edu mailto:ganderson@twu.edu mailto:ganderson@twu.edu nerren, sinclair, barker, reid & anderson | defining and measuring excellence in the changing world expertise and input of stakeholders in analyzing and deriving usable information from the data. the institutions represented recognize the importance of institutionally-defined excellence, rather than accreditor-defined excellence. while there are state and national expectations for excellence defined by accrediting agencies, not all programs elect to pursue these accreditations. the variation in these stances are explored, as the authors detail how and why each approach and definition of excellence was adopted, utilized, and measured, and how each invests stakeholders, faculty, and staff in the process of achieving their defined excellence. additionally, continuously raising expectations and implementing self-assessment, and the empowerment of faculty, staff, and students in the process are discussed. sam houst on st at e universit y sam houston state university is a comprehensive regional university located in huntsville, texas. the university is uniquely situated, located within an hour?s drive to houston, but also surrounded by smaller rural districts. the college of education produces approximately 500 texas teachers each academic year, and candidates receiving their teacher preparation at shsu have the opportunity to gain field experience in rural, suburban, and urban school settings. the college embarked on a strategic planning process in the fall of 2016, and central to this process was defining college excellence and the belief statements that support that. the plan expresses the college?s core values, with individualization by units. the college arrived at a definition of excellence focused on preparing teacher leaders who are prepared to impact a diverse and evolving world, and supported by the following belief statements: -what we all do matters; -innovation fosters creativity, critical thinking, and passion; -relevant experiences promote growth and inspire change; -strength is found in valuing diversity; -positive relationships influence success. this definition of excellence was further supported by the following goals for the college: -thinking critically about the current educational system, especially regarding curriculum standards, instruction practice, and student assessment; -serving as leaders of other educators, communities, and students; -serving as agents of positive change in the current educational system; -exhibiting creativity and innovation; -collaborating across communities and other systems to build a common purpose; -aligning experiences across departments to enhance the student experience; -partnering with future-minded organizations to enhance impact; -valuing diversity and a variety of viewpoints; -seeking alternative solutions to the dilemmas faced in pk-12 education. the shsu college of education employs the following strategies to fulfill the mission set forth in the strategic plan to measure self-defined excellence: -annual data day / program review; -ncate / caep accreditation; -signature assessments (e.g. capstone portfolio for initial certification candidates); -sacs accreditation; -texas education agency accreditation; -state reporting (asep, title ii). 37 nerren, sinclair, barker, reid & anderson | defining and measuring excellence in the changing world the shsu college of education employs the following strategies to fulfill the mission set forth in the strategic plan to invest stakeholders: -ships (sam houston invested partner schools); -epac (education partners advisory committee); -inclusion in strategic planning. the shsu college of education employs the following strategies to fulfill the mission set forth in the strategic plan to invest faculty and staff in the continuous improvement process: -enhanced communication: monday message; -committee structure; -professional development: data day; -additional resources. at sam houston state university, defining excellence is not taken lightly. as an institution whose teacher production is consistently in the top quartile of texas educator preparation programs, it is critical that those graduates are well-prepared to impact the future. this underscores the multi-dimensional meaning in the adopted belief statement ?what we all do matters.?every faculty and staff member in the shsu college of education is a component of the quality of education received by shsu teacher candidates, who in turn impact every texas schoolchild that passes through their classrooms. these school children, respectively, can impact the future of the state, the nation, and the world. st ephen f. aust in st at e universit y sfasu is a comprehensive university with a breathtaking campus nestled among the tall pines of deep east texas in historic nacogdoches. the university provides transformational learning experiences as means to prepare students for the challenges of living in a global community. the perkins college of education (pcoe) prepares approximately 400 teachers each academic year offering graduates field experience opportunities across the state of tx. through collaborative strategic planning that included faculty, students, and administrators pcoe defines excellence as competent, successful, caring and enthusiastic professionals from diverse backgrounds dedicated to responsible service, leadership, social justice and continued professional and intellectual development. in addition to a clear but unique definition of excellence, pcoe is committed to the following core values: -academic excellence through critical, reflective, and creative thinking; -life-long learning; -collaboration and shared decision-making; -openness to new ideas, to culturally diverse people, and to innovation and change; -integrity, responsibility, diligence, and ethical behavior; -service that enriches the community. pcoe measures and supports a culture of excellence in the following ways: -evidence informed improvement; -planning, collecting, and analyzing evidence that promotes meaningful changes in programs and processes; -21st century data management utilizing the livetext product. -effectiveness; -collection of meaningful data that have a target goal of informing actions to produce improvement; -annual data day and program review; 38 nerren, sinclair, barker, reid & anderson | defining and measuring excellence in the changing world -current accreditations : ncate / caep, sacs, tea. -invests stakeholders; -partner schools across tx; -educator preparation advisory council/program advisory boards. -invests faculty and staff in the process; -movement away compliance and toward a focus on effectiveness; -faculty and staff central to the work of specific initiatives drive those processes and practices; -efficiency--simple, manageable, flexible processes. calst at eteach calstateteach (cst), is a school-based statewide online teacher education program, that prepares teachers to use innovation, reflection, and technology for effective teaching and learning to meet the needs of all learners (mishra, koehler, & henrikson, 2011). established in 1999 by california state university (csu), cst focuses on teacher candidates in rural, remote, and urban areas of california where other programs are not easily accessible. teacher candidates have local field experience with cst faculty supervision and an onsite mentor in addition to online peer and faculty interactions through asynchronous online learning. the program administrative team has a statewide director in the office of the chancellor, regional directors at two host csu campus, and specialists in curriculum, technology, and systems programming. in fall 2017, cst had more than one thousand teacher candidates enrolled and faculty to serve all 58 california counties. the goal of excellence, ?teachers who are prepared to be creative, collaborative and reflective for california's future? is achieved by: -integrating technology into daily classroom routines and lessons; -using technology to complete academic coursework; -considering brain rules (medina, 2014) in lesson planning; -providing explicit examples of universal design for learning in lesson planning and teaching; -demonstrating reflective practice in academic work and field placement. cst is accredited by the california commission for teacher credentialing (cctc) and gathers data for continuous improvement similar to all csu teacher education programs. data collected include digital candidate work artifacts with faculty comments, customized data retrieval from the program learning management system, feedback from school site partners, advisory board input, statewide credential program surveys of candidates and employers, program research studies, teacher performance assessment, other cctc required assessments, and candidate evaluation of faculty. the cst program invests stakeholders by remaining in contact with alumni for several years after program completion, faculty collaborations with school districts, statewide calstateteach advisory board meetings, conference presentations, faculty outreach sessions in all areas of the state, and administrative team contact with local school leaders. faculty and staff are directly involved in the program improvement process through annual two-day statewide faculty development meetings, regional face to face faculty meetings, and regularly scheduled video conference meetings. the curriculum is designed by faculty committee and updated based on 39 nerren, sinclair, barker, reid & anderson | defining and measuring excellence in the changing world current research and input from candidates, site mentors, and faculty. data-informed decision making is critical to maintaining this effective teacher education program (chiero, r., tracz, s., marshall, j., torgerson, c. & beare, p., 2012). texas a&m universit y ? com m erce texas a&m university-commerce (tamuc) began as east texas normal college in 1889. in 1996, the university joined the texas a&m system and became tamuc. this regional, state university serves over 12,000 students with its main campus in commerce, texas and satellite campuses in dallas, corsicana, mesquite, and mckinney. each year the college of education and human services (coehs) produces approximately 500 new teachers and 300 other educational professionals. coehs employs its mission statement as a method to strive for high quality and to define excellence. the statement reads: coehs ?provides excellence driven programs that prepare student-scholars to become scientists, teachers, administrators, and practitioners who proactively address the transformational challenges of a complex digital environment and global society. we promote instructional engagement, responsive research, quality service, and active partnerships with external constituencies.? the push for excellence stems, in part, from the legacy of tamuc?s beginnings as a ?normal? school. the university?s reputation of quality and success as a producer of teachers and administrators for public education still resonates significantly with the public. the mission statement also points to the need for graduates to address transformational challenges. the administration at tamuc recently noted that it would be ideal if every employee of the university when asked what they do, would reply, ?i transform the lives of students.? two significant facts point to excellence for coehs. there are currently 21 local school districts with teaching staffs compromised of more than 50% tamuc graduates. all of those districts have recently had successful ratings from the state. also notable, eighty-six percent of teachers produced by tamuc are still teaching after the first five years. coehs invests in their stakeholders in multiple ways. the state education agency requires school district representatives meet regularly with teacher preparation faculty and staff. this serves as a venue for communication and collaboration. in addition, coehs has recently increased collaboration with the local school district, commerce independent school district (cisd). this initiative is called aspire (a school partnership for innovative, recreation, and education). in the first year of the aspire implementation, the university and cisd have collaborated on a summer camp, aspire summer experience, that brings elementary age students to campus for encounters with educational activities such as robots, the university radio station, and more. aspire?s early efforts have also included collaboration with the local boys and girls club for an after-school program, and the introduction of an avid program at the middle school. coehs recognizes the need to invest in faculty and staff. the yearly planning and assessment cycle provides a platform for faculty to address program weaknesses through data collection and analysis. the college recently implemented an online database platform to enhance data collection for certification programs. finally, the college has been conducting a pilot of several platforms for storing video of student teachers that allows collaboration with university and public school mentors. texas wom an?s universit y texas woman?s university is a co-educational 40 nerren, sinclair, barker, reid & anderson | defining and measuring excellence in the changing world university in denton, texas, with two health science center branches in dallas and houston. it is one of only four other public universities that is not affiliated with any of texas? public university systems. while males are accepted into every course of study offered at twu, it is known as the nation?s largest public university primarily for women. denton is located at the top of the ?golden triangle? with the oklahoma state line 35 miles to the north, fort worth 35 miles to the southwest and dallas 40 miles to the southeast. twu?s college of professional education (cope) educator preparation program (epp) produces approximately 360 teachers each academic year, and these teachers predominantly serve schools in denton, dallas, and fort worth isds. twu?s newly developed strategic plan and purpose, mission, vision, core values, and principles inform the college?s definition of excellence. moreover, twu?s cope mission and vision instills a common understanding of excellence for the college: vision: we change lives. cope programs are the foundation on which twu was built and form the basis for all professions. we develop leaders who advance knowledge through teaching, research, and service. our collective work fosters thriving families, schools, and communities. mission: the college of professional education at texas woman?s university is committed to increasing and affirming the prestige and value of all professionals in our disciplines. our graduates are pioneers in the fields of teacher education, reading education, family sciences, and library and information studies who shape the future of a global society. we inspire a quest for life-long learning; we improve the quality of life for individuals in a variety of settings; we prepare reflective leaders and advocates for children, families, and communities. through the use of evidence-based practices and experiential learning; we advance knowledge through conducting and disseminating research; we connect diverse populations with information in accessible ways; we collaborate in civic engagement and service to support and strengthen communities. further, cope?s epp refers to the standards and framework as outlined by the council for the accreditation of educator preparation (caep) and the association for advancing quality educator preparation (aaqep), as a goal is to pursue national accreditation for the educator preparation program in the future. high standards and continuous improvement underscore the objectives of enhancing the quality and reputation of the college. other programs in twu?s cope with national accreditation include counseling & development, family therapy, and library and information studies. currently, the cope?s epp employs the following strategies to fulfill the university?s and college?s mission and to measure excellence: -annual institutional effectiveness reports; -periodic program reviews; -sacs accreditation; -tea (state of tx) accreditation, including associated accountability measures; -state reporting (asep, title ii); -performance analysis for colleges of education (pace) data; -course evaluations; -performance review process. 41 nerren, sinclair, barker, reid & anderson | defining and measuring excellence in the changing world further, the cope?s epp at twu employs the following strategies to invest stakeholders: -advisory councils (internal and external); -40+ active partnerships & initiatives; -grants, including 4.3 million from the u.s. department of education. finally, the twu cope epp employs the following strategies to invest faculty, students, and staff in the continuous improvement process: -enhanced communication: dean?s wednesday?s words weekly newsletter; -support for advocacy participation; -internal advisory council; -recognition via awards, grants, and release time; -student course evaluations; -peer review within performance review process. when all is considered, excellence and quality at twu?s cope are exemplified through the unique history and mission, underscored by the value of the epp, and evidenced by the depth and breadth of stakeholder investment. twu has a long history of preparing women who are leaders in the field. teachers who complete their educator preparation at twu have the highest retention rate in the dallas/fort worth metroplex, and this legacy continues because of the investment of faculty, staff, and students as well as authentic relationships developed with community partners. conclusion and im plicat ions some commonalities as well as notable differences emerged as we examined each system?s approach. clearly, the strategies for creating and sustaining positive cultures of data-informed decision-making for continuous program improvement used by the five educator preparation programs (epps) varied, with each taking a unique approach. the most visible commonalities were the use of a college strategic plan to define and guide the pursuit of excellence. additionally, each program was fully engaged in supporting faculty and staff in the process, and in exploring, creating, and utilizing mechanisms to build capacity and increase investment in the process. standing out as a critical difference was the variance of approaches regarding national accreditation. while all epps are beholden to state agencies, the necessity and value of national accreditation by agencies such as the now defunct national council for the accreditation of teacher education (http://ncate.org), the council for the accreditation (http://caepnet.org), or the newly formed association for advancing quality in educator preparation (https://www.aaqep.org) is questioned by some. implications from examining the similarities and differences in these case studies are: -it is critical to involve faculty and staff in defining our own excellence at the program and college levels, rather than allow accrediting bodies to do that for us; -we can use the accreditation process as an opportunity to showcase institutionally-defined excellence; -defining, employing, and showcasing excellence centers on a culture that implements continuous self-assessment, motivated by improvement, not meeting accreditation demands; -it is critical to continuously seek to empower and build capacity for faculty, students, and staff in the continuous improvement process; -we can learn from each other new and improved ways to do this. in summary, this examination of institutionally 42 nerren, sinclair, barker, reid & anderson | defining and measuring excellence in the changing world defined excellence by five educator preparation programs underscores the importance of considering program faculty, staff, students, partner schools and community stakeholders in defining, creating, and sustaining excellence in educator preparation programs. if we are to have ownership as institutions over our own definition of excellence, advocacy participation is an urgent cause to consider. references american association of state colleges and universities. (2017). preparing teachers in today?s challenging context:key issues, policy directions, and implications for leaders of aascu universities. retrieved from https://www.aascu.org/academicaffairs/teacheredreport.pdf. mishra, p., koehler, m. j., & henriksen, d. (2011). the seven trans-disciplinary habits of mind: extending the tpack framework towards 21st century learning. educational technology, 11(2), 22-28. chiero, r., tracz, s., marshall, j., torgerson, c., & beare, p. (2012). learning to teach: comparing the effectiveness of three pathways. action in teacher education 34, 368-380. 43 microsoft word 2. dietrich-dec 2015.docx vol. 4, no. 1, dec 2015, pp. 19-26 clinically based models of teacher preparation: a snapshot of three systems sylvia l. dietrich, nancy hulan, gail kirby, sam evans western kentucky university abstract a teacher preparation institution critically reviewed current programs and began moving toward a clinically based model. one focuses on middle grades/secondary math and science, another focuses on secondary english language arts, and a pilot project focuses on elementary with a minor in either english/language arts or stem (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). keywords: teacher education, clinical practice, and clinical teacher preparation 20   s. dietrich, n. hulan, g. kirby & s. evan   introduction america’s classrooms have evolved and changed, while teacher preparation programs have not, leaving future teachers unprepared. almost a third of america’s teachers leave the field in their first three years (national center for education statistics, 2011). reasons cited include lack of knowledge and skills related to classroom management, teaching diverse students, and general lack of preparation. to better prepare teachers for the classroom, we share lessons from the past, and current best practice in teaching. we highlight efforts underway at a southeastern regional university to move all areas of educator preparation to a clinically based model. three preparation programs are discussed: middle grades/secondary math and science, secondary english language arts and social studies, and a pilot project to prepare elementary teachers with a minor in either english/language arts or stem (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). a troubling trend by many measures, our k-12 students are falling behind their peers in countries around the world (ripley, 2013; tucker, 2011; wagner, 2008). in addition, an achievement gap exists in the united states (ravitch, 2010) and by various measures, students with special needs and those in high poverty schools are not achieving at their fullest potential (dwyer, 2007), resulting in a negative impact on the economic growth and overall economy of the united states (friedman, 2005; friedman & mandelbaum, 2011). schools tend to reflect the community and state in which they are located, and it is at the local and state level where such gaps are felt the hardest. since the publication of the national commission of excellence in education report in 1983, the passage of the kentucky education reform act of 1990, and the national commission on teaching and america’s future report in 1996, numerous attempts have been made to address the challenges faced by schools in kentucky. the rate of poverty in kentucky in 2012 was 18.6 percent, compared to the 14.9 percent rate of poverty in the united states (spees, 2014). highly qualified teachers can only combat this high poverty through rigorous, standards-based instruction. historically, attempts have been made to train high quality educators for kentucky’s schools. however, gaps persist and as a country we continue to fall behind. the u.s. carries the responsibility to provide a quality education for all students. we must focus on “improving the teaching force, limiting student testing to a necessary minimum, placing responsibility and trust before accountability, and handing over school-and district-level leadership to education professionals” (sahlbert, 2011, p. 5). new academic expectations clash with old conceptions of teaching and outmoded approaches to teacher practice, specifically the market model (stone, 2002). in previous decades, teachers were expected to prepare only a small minority for ambitious, intellectual work; whereas today teachers are expected to prepare virtually all students for higher order thinking and performance skills which were once reserved for a few (tucker, 2011). to make the shift to the new mission, teaching practice has to change. research is clear that the teacher is the number one variable in student learning (metlife inc., 2013; rice, 2003; sanders, 1998; sanders & rivers, 1996). clinical based models of teacher preparation 21 a clinically based model of teacher preparation the classroom teacher is the most important predictor of a student’s success (sanders & rivers, 1996), due to their knowledge, skillsets, and abilities (anderson, hiebert, scott, & wilkinson, 1985). ripley (2013) suggests that experiences within classrooms occur early in teacher preparation programs, coupled with meaningful feedback on ways to improve. additionally, “for good or for ill, teachers’ initial classroom experiences, especially in the first one or two years, are consistently a predictor of teacher effectiveness” (rowan, correnti, & miller, 2002). within a clinical model of teacher preparation, teacher candidates have meaningful, rather than passive, teaching experiences. they observe effective teachers, analyze the craft of teaching, plan and engage in teaching, reflect on outcomes, and change practice based on outcomes. pre-service teachers in a clinical model have the opportunity to reflect on the practice of teaching rather than on student learning (darling-hammond & bransford, 2005). not only do they learn about the craft of teaching, but also about working within various populations of students. such experiences will encourage teacher candidates to become what hammerness, darling-hammond, & bransford (2005) call “adaptive experts” (p. 359). an increasingly diverse range of student skills and needs often challenge teachers’ abilities to complete their responsibilities (darling-hammond & mclaughlin, 1995; hawley & valli, 1999; stein, smith, & silver, 1999). quality teaching is a reciprocal process: the teacher’s content and pedagogical choices are determined by the instructional needs of the students, and the teacher needs a vast knowledge base to differentiate accordingly (darlinghammond, 2006). it takes more than desire to be a quality teacher today. it takes effective planning, instructional knowledge, teaching skills, and extends to the teachers’ dispositions and the ways beliefs and attitudes are displayed by actions (ros-voseles & moss, 2007). challenging assumptions in teacher preparation historically, variables used in the process of admitting students to education programs have not been highly predictive of teacher performance (heller & clay, 1993). admissions are based upon our assumptions about what makes a good teacher candidate, including the notions that success is based on higher expectations and accountability testing, individual candidate knowledge and skills, a perfect curriculum exists, culture and working environment don’t matter, and parent involvement cannot be improved (gordon, 2006). such assumptions must be rejected to lead to a selection process that identifies candidates with the talent to positively impact student learning (gordon, 2006). here we share several models of teacher preparation that support teachers for success early and throughout their careers. these include the following: 1) meaningful experiences in school settings, 2) purposeful assignments linked to experiences in school settings, 3) regular teaching experiences coupled with constructive feedback, 4) high standards for entrance into the teacher preparation program, and 5) on-going support once a teacher has gained employment. these models are in various stages of implementation and development. the evolution of clinically based teacher preparation models skyteach (southern kentucky teach) this nationally recognized teacher preparation program prepares middle grades and secondary math and science teachers. skyteach is a unique collaboration between the college of education and behavioral sciences and college of science and engineering, and is modeled 22   s. dietrich, n. hulan, g. kirby & s. evan   after the highly successful uteach program at the university of texas at austin. skyteach includes partnerships with 10 school districts in a regional educational cooperative. the skyteach teaching team consists of college professors and master teachers (all former high school teachers). college professors deliver a majority of the content, theory, and instruction; master teachers provide critical feedback and support on designing and implementing lessons and experiences with middle and high school students. teacher candidates begin their education coursework during their first semester in college, providing the opportunity to engage in k-12 settings in a meaningful and intentional manner. clinical experiences and practices in teaching (cept) the ncate blue ribbon report (2010) panel indicated, “teacher preparation education must shift away from a norm which emphasizes academic preparation and course work loosely linked to school-based experiences. rather, it must move to programs that are fully grounded in clinical practice and interwoven with academic content and professional courses.” (p ii). in response, the college of education, college of arts and letters and two local high schools collaborated to develop the cept model, designed to prepare secondary english language arts and social studies teachers. the council on postsecondary education (cpe) provided initial funding for cept. for two semesters prior to student teaching candidates spend two full days a week in a high school setting. the candidates receive instruction, feedback, guidance and mentoring from professors in the school of teacher education, departments of history and english, and content area high school teachers. instruction is delivered in the clinical setting and is based on concepts of a teaching hospital where candidates engage in table rounds, instructional rounds, and guided observations among many other effective clinical practices. all course outcomes are clearly connected with a set of clinical experiences. instruction is based on teacher preparation, common core, and content standards. candidates are evaluated using the danielson framework for effective teaching (danielson, 2007). the cept model signifies a paradigm shift from a minimally field-based model of individual secondary methods courses taught over multiple semesters, to a cohesive twoconsecutive semester classroom-based clinical model. the model provides a cohort of teacher candidates the benefit of working within a team of education professionals integrating content and pedagogy through a variety of clinical experiences (ncate, 2010). pilot – hilltopper educator preparatory academy (topprep) in countries where students perform the best academically, teachers typically come from the top 25 percentile of students. in the unites states, teachers tend to be the lowest academic performers (bottom third), especially in elementary education (kentucky council on postsecondary education, 2013). to address this issue the topprep academy is based on the following objectives: 1. recruit high-performing students; 2. increase standards for admission to and exiting the program; 3. increase expectations relative to mastery of subject matter; 4. provide clinical experiences for teaching mastery admission is multi-phased and incorporates multiple measures for candidates to demonstrate their ability and commitment to the field and craft of teaching, including the use of test scores, dispositions, and interviews. ongoing feedback to candidates is provided throughout the program from school-based and university-based personnel. clinical based models of teacher preparation 23 the five-year topprep academy for elementary education teachers requires a bachelor’s degree in education and an integrated minor in either stem or ela/ss. candidates participate in a clinical seminar culminating in a total of 280 hours of clinical experience at the end of the undergraduate program. the fifth year requires residency in a school. each semester, students take major, minor, and seminar coursework connected to clinically based experiences. the fifth year is a residency that stretches from the beginning of summer one to the end of summer two. in summer one, students participate in a study away or study abroad experience comparing us schools with those abroad/away and identifying promising practices or problems of focus. summer classes are held in partnership with local schools. collaborative “academies” are offered for struggling learners. teacher candidates in the second half of summer one and the full summer two work and learn in these academies. from assessment data, candidates design and implement differentiated instruction with various learners, specifically english language learners, children with special needs, and high ability learners. throughout the academic year, candidates engage in classes hosted at local school sites following teaching hospital methodologies. the teacher candidates are evaluated via the danielson framework and implement action research throughout the residency year. conclusion two of the models shared here (skyteach and cept) are successful on several fronts: teacher candidates are more prepared for the classroom, are hired more rapidly, and are effective upon entry into the classroom. the third model presented, topprep, has not been implemented, but holds great promise for elementary schools and students as recipients of topprep teachers. while these models present positive gains for the teaching profession, there are also limitations. for one, the demand on personnel from the university and school levels is much greater. professors and cooperating teachers have on-going collaboration and “boots on the ground” through these programs. this presents a significant paradigm shift for university faculty, and poses challenges to leaders of teacher preparation programs to hire personnel interested in working in such models. funds to support such positions must be secured. it is critical that all stakeholders’ voices are heard and respected within such a model—a true collaboration requires nothing less. the rate of attrition of new teachers, changes in the make-up of schools, and the on-going challenge to compete in a global economy require that schools of teacher education adapt and modify the ways we prepare teachers. we want our teacher candidates to be proficient at adapting to the needs and requirements of the students in their classrooms. in order to get them to that point, schools of teacher education must also be “adaptive experts” (hammerness, darlinghammond, & bransford, 2005, p.359) and change when what we’re doing isn’t working. 24   s. dietrich, n. hulan, g. kirby & s. evan   references anderson, r.c., hiebert, e.f., scott, j.a., & wilkinson, i.a.g. (1985). becoming a nation of readers: the report of the commission on reading. washington, dc: the national institute of education. danielson, c. (2007). enhancing professional practice: a framework for teachers. alexandria, va: ascd. darling-hammond, l. (2006). constructing 21st century teacher education. journal of teacher education, 57(3), 1-15. darling-hammond, l., & bransford, j. (2005). preparing teachers for a changing world: what teachers should learn and be able to do. san francisco, ca: jossey-bass. darling-hammond, l., & mclaughlin, m. w. (1995). policies that support professional development in an era of reform. phi delta kappan, 76(8), 597-604. dwyer, c. a. (ed). (2007). america’s challenge: effective teachers for at-risk schools and students. washington, dc: national comprehensive center for teacher quality. friedman, t. l. (2005). the world is flat: a brief history of the twenty-first century. new york, ny: farrar, straus and giroux. friedman, t. l., & mandelbaum, m. (2011). that use to be us: how america fell behind in the world it invented and how we can come back. new york, ny: farrar, straus and giroux. gordon, g. (2006). building engaged schools: getting the most out of america’s classrooms. new york, ny: gallup press. hammerness, k., darling-hammond, l., bransford, j. (2005). how teachers learn and develop. in l. darling-hammond & bransford, j. (eds.) preparing teachers for a changing world. san francisco, ca: jossey-bass. hawley, w. d., & valli, l. (1999). the essentials of effective professional development: a new consensus. in l. darling-hammond & s. sykes (eds.). teaching the learning profession: handbook for policy and practice (pp. 127-150). san francisco, ca: josseybass. heller, h. w., & clay, r. j. (1993). predictors of teaching effectiveness: the efficacy of various standards to predict the success of graduates from a teacher education program. ers spectrum, 11(1), 7-11. clinical based models of teacher preparation 25 metlife, inc., (2013). the metlife survey of the american teacher: challenges for school leadership. new york, ny: author. national commission on teaching and america’s future. (1996).what matters most: teaching for america’s future .new york, ny: author. ravitch, d. (2010). the death and life of the great american school system: how testing and choice are undermining education. new york, ny: basic books. rice, j. (2003). teacher quality: understanding the effectiveness of teacher attributes. washington, dc: economic policy institute. ripley, a. (2013). the smartest kids in the world: and how they got that way. new york, ny: simon & schuster. ros-voseles, d., & moss, l. (2007). the role of dispositions in the education of future teachers. young children, 62(5), 90-98. rowan, b., correnti, r., & miller, r. (2002). what large-scale, survey research tells us about teacher effects in student achievement: insights from the prospects study of elementary schools. philadelphia, pa: university of pennsylvania graduate school of education. sahlbert, p. (2011). finish lessons: what can the world learn from educational change in finland? new york, ny: teachers college, columbia university. sanders, w. (1998). value-added assessment. school administrator, 55(11), 24-27. sanders, w., & rivers, j. (1996). cumulative and residual effects of teachers on future student academic achievement. knoxville, tn: university of tennessee value-added research and assessment center. spees, m. (2014 february 19). kentucky lags behind nation. park city daily news, pp.1a, 6a. stein, m. k., smith, m. s., & silver, e. a. (1999). the development of professional developers: learning to assist teachers in new settings in new ways. harvard educational review, 69(3), 237-269. stone, d. (2002). policy paradox: the art of political decision making. new york, ny: w. w. norton and company, inc. tucker, m.s. (2011). researching other countries’ education systems. in m. s. tucker (ed.), surpassing shanghai: an agenda for american education built on the world’s leading systems (pp. 1-18). cambridge, ma: harvard education press. wagner, t. (2008). the global achievement gap. new york, ny: basic books. 26   s. dietrich, n. hulan, g. kirby & s. evan   intentionally blank microsoft word 3. strieker-jan 2016.docx vol. 4, no. 1, jan 2016, pp. 27-39 the evolution of promising practices for university supervisors of candidates in yearlong clinical experiences toni strieker, lee langub, marcia wright kennesaw state university abstract this paper describes the exploration of a team of university supervisors and faculty who were charged with identifying effective practices for university supervisors who evaluated teacher candidates enrolled in yearlong co-taught clinical experiences. the paper discusses the need for greater collaboration in reflective dialogue among the candidate, the collaborating teacher and the supervisors. in addition, the paper discusses the exploration of grow, a candidate goal-setting structure, as well as 3-way conversations and video-elicited reflections as promising practices for university supervisors. note: this paper summarizes the content of the co-authors’ presentation at the annual meeting of the the renaissance group in san antonio, texas, in october of 2015. 28   t. strieker, l. langub & m. wright   introduction over the past five years, calls for improvements in teacher effectiveness (lewin, 2011) have resulted in changes to the accreditation standards (council for the accreditation of educator preparation (caep), 2015), particularly in terms of restructuring clinical experiences by means of school-university partnerships. the most recent draft of caep standard 2.1 requires school-university partners to establish “….mutually agreeable expectations for candidate entry, preparation and exit; ensure that theory and practice are linked; maintain coherence across clinical and academic components of preparation; and shared accountability for candidate outcomes” (caep, 2015, p.1). at kennesaw state university, members of the faculty representing various teacher education programs (e.g., english education, secondary and middle grades education, elementary and early childhood education, and educational leadership) formed an interdisciplinary research team to examine the effectiveness of new approaches to yearlong clinical experiences (gray, stockdale, & williams, 2011; williams, gray, & monti, 2010); preservice co-teaching (heckert, strieker, & shaheen, 2012) and instructional coaching (strieker, shaheen, hubbard, digiovanni, & lim, 2014). these approaches were aligned with the common variables of highly effective teacher education programs reported by darling-hammond (2000), including a common vision of teaching and learning, carefully crafted field experiences, theorization and justification of practice, focus upon the needs of the students, reflection on active pedagogy, engagement of collaborating teachers as lifelong learners, and collaboration with colleagues. while the literature provides definitions of various forms of effective co-teaching during clinical experiences, there is limited research on the pedagogy and practices of university supervisors who evaluate the performance of candidates during their co-taught experiences. thus, the purpose of our exploration is to explore the pedagogical practices of university supervisors situated in a collegial and reflective model of supervision, developed by, and for, teacher educators and university supervisors who support teacher candidates enrolled in a yearlong, co-taught, clinical experience. our journey since 2008 our university has employed a continuous cycle of program design, implementation, evaluation and research, and revision and refinement by university faculty and school leaders. the redesign of clinical experiences, funded by our teacher quality partnership (tqp) grant (2013, 2014), occurred in three stages (figure 1). promising practices for university supervisors 29 stage 1: school-university partnerships & yearlong clinical experiences since 2008, school-university teams have developed various levels of partnership agreements that determine the parameters of our yearlong clinical experiences as well as the roles and responsibilities for collaborating teachers and candidates. for example, faculty in elementary education established memorandums of understanding (mous) with elementary schools based upon specific themes of stem, global education, and/or social justice. similarly, faculty in english education and science education formed a variety of partnerships with secondary schools to enlist their former graduates of their programs to serve as collaborating teachers. later, members of our university faculty, led by our dean, co-authored successful application for funding through a teacher quality partnership (tqp) (u.s. department of education, teacher quality partnership grant, 2009) with a neighboring school district. the overarching goal of this grant was to develop an urban education (ue) option for initial certification that would ultimately lead to improved k-12 student achievement in high-need schools. the funds from this grant were used to support faculty who engaged in the transformation of clinical experiences over the next five years. stage 2: pre-service co-teaching and co-teaching coaches pre-service co-teaching. in 2011, teams of faculty and administrators at the university and the local schools began to design, develop and research our new approach to pre-service coteaching for candidates enrolled in yearlong clinical experiences. like other university-based coteaching models (bacharach, heck, & dahlberg, 2010; badaili & titus, 2012), our approach allowed the certified teacher to remain in the classroom with the candidate throughout the placement. thus, both the collaborating teacher and the teacher candidate served as an integral part of planning, instruction, assessment and reflection. early on, the focus of our research was to better understand how co-teaching in preservice teacher education was different from traditional co-teaching, conducted by two certified teachers (friend, 1995). in the end, while our new approach was informed by friend’s original 30   t. strieker, l. langub & m. wright   model, it was also heavily influenced by the work of roth and tobin (2012) who researched preservice co-teaching in advanced high school science classes and described co-teaching as copraxis (or a shared experience) that ultimately fosters co-generative dialogue through reflection in practice and reflection on practice. in 2012, we ultimately named our model, pre-service coteaching: a mentor-model approach (center for educational placements and partnerships, 2012-2015). also in 2012, we reported the benefits of pre-service co-teaching as vehicles for: (a) shifting the power in the classroom from the classroom teacher to the candidate, (b) supporting differentiated instruction, (c) conducting classroom management, and (d) increasing student engagement and learning (heckert, strieker, & shaheen, 2012). finally, in 2013, we explored ways to align our emerging framework of pre-service co-teaching with that of edtpa; and ultimately, to intentionally support our candidates in demonstrating mastery of the competencies on assessed edtpa (strieker, shaheen, hubbard, digiovanni, & lim, 2014). co-teaching coaches. from 2011-2012, we also explored ways to situate a specialized form of instructional coaching (coaching co-teaching) to support our candidates and collaborating teachers during their clinical experiences. at that point, all members of our cadre of co-teaching coaches were faculty or former teachers and administrators who were recommended by our local district partners with formal mous. our co-teaching coaches were explicitly employed to offer job-embedded professional development to our candidates and their collaborating teachers. our co-teaching coaches never evaluated candidate performance. our epp did employ university supervisors who were charged with evaluating the teacher candidates based upon a series of observations the supervisors conducted each semester in the yearlong placement. with funding through tqp, our approach to coaching co-teaching was implemented and researched for approximately three years. during that time, we established that our goal-setting framework (adapted from whitmore, 2002) was effective in guiding our candidates in establishing their personal-improvement goals related to differentiated instruction, classroom and behavior management, and improvement of student learning and/or engagement (strieker, et al., 2014). our approach to candidate goal-setting was intentionally designed to support the candidate’s development of the metacognitive skills inherent in reflective practice, theorization of practice, and justification of data-based decision making. in large part, this approach was part of our attempt to align our program with the new caep standards and to provide opportunities for our candidates to demonstrate their skills on state and national performance assessments, like edtpa (figure 2). promising practices for university supervisors 31 figure 2. grow framework for establishing candidate goals stage 3: emergence of developmental supervision after several years of study, we realized that while the methods used by coaches were extremely valuable, coaching was not sustainable at our university for a number of reasons. first of all, the logistics of deploying cadres of university supervisors and co-teaching coaches was confusing and difficult to manage. in some cases, the departments were not able to find enough qualified people to serve in both roles, so the same individuals served as coaches in some schools and as supervisors in others, leading to role confusion on the part of the new coaches as well as the administrators in the schools, the collaborating teachers, and the candidates. second, without external funding the university had difficulty finding resources for both coaches and university supervisors. we discussed blending the two functions, but felt that there were crucial differences between the two that precluded combining coaching and supervision (tschannen-moran, & tschannen-moran, 2011; tschannen-moran, & woolfolk-hoy, 2001). in the end, our team decided to protect the integrity of coaching and supervision by selecting one approach. given the difficulties in the logistics and in resourcing coaching, and the fact that our institution is accountable for the state and national assessment of the effectiveness of our candidates, our team prioritized supervision. once that decision was made, our research team shifted its focus to reforming our traditional model of clinical supervision to better meet the needs of candidates enrolled in co-taught, yearlong clinical experiences. to that end, a task force, comprised of faculty and former school administrators, was convened to explore the potential of developmental supervision (glickman, 1981; glickman and the association for supervision and curriculum development, 2002; glickman, gordan-ross, & ross, 2014). according to glickman (1981), developmental supervision is a collegial, collaborative and developmental approach to clinical supervision that has evolved over the past 35 years into a 32   t. strieker, l. langub & m. wright   highly effective, democratic approach to supervising teachers in p-12 schools (glickman et al., 2014). developmental supervision provides supervisors with a model for adjusting his or her communication and behavioral approaches (ranging from directive to non-directive) to meet the developmental needs of the teacher. based upon this understanding, our task force felt that developmental supervision held promise for implementation in teacher education programs engaged in implementing new models of clinical experiences that incorporated yearlong placements and co-taught instruction. the increased interest in developmental supervision was based upon the perception that candidates need a collaborative and developmental approach to supervision as they develop into mature, effective teachers. the need for collaborative approaches was based, in large part, upon our experiences in moving to yearlong clinical placements, where teacher candidates and collaborating teachers co-taught in the same classrooms for an entire year, and the candidates were supported and evaluated by the same supervisor throughout that year. given the expanded length of the placements, we felt that all candidates needed a developmental approach to support the trajectory of their growth throughout the yearlong clinical. developmental approaches appeared to be particularly important for traditional candidates who were in the early stages of adult development and in need of supervisors who were able to adjust their communication and behavioral approaches to support the candidates’ developmental needs. our move to a model of pre-service co-teaching also seemed to complicate the supervision and evaluation of the candidates. first of all, it appeared that the very nature of our co-teaching cycle, which included co-planning, co-instruction, co-assessment and co-reflection (center for educational placement and partnerships (2015) created difficulties for supervisors using our original model of supervision. while our supervisors were charged with evaluating the performance of the candidate, they were not charged with evaluating the collaborating teacher who co-taught with the candidate. furthermore, because the candidate and collaborating teachers co-taught throughout the day, nearly every day, the collaborating teacher knew as much (or more) about the candidate’s performance than the supervisor did. although bullough & draper reported in 2004 that triangulation was common among supervisors, collaborating teachers and candidates, we felt a growing need to create a more collaborative, if not collegial model of supervision that would provide the opportunity to access the resources and maximize the contributions of the collaborating teachers in supporting the growth and development of the candidates. finally, we felt that developmental supervision had the potential to increase the coherence of our teacher education programs by supporting our candidates as they applied the knowledge, skills and dispositions that they had learned in university coursework to their pedagogical practices in schools. because of the collegial and collaborative nature of developmental supervision, we felt that it provided a model for supervisors to adjust not only their approaches, but also their roles. with developmental supervision, the supervisors have the flexibility to move in and out of expert and facilitator roles based upon their perceived developmental needs of the candidate. for example, if the candidate demonstrates high needs for information, the supervisor assumes the role of expert and directs the candidate, telling him or her what task to perform, when and how to perform the task and why the task is beneficial to the p-12 students. conversely, during co-reflection on video, the supervisor has the freedom to assume a facilitation role, guiding 3-way conversations between him or herself, the collaborating teacher, and the candidate. during these sessions, the candidate has the opportunity to actively promising practices for university supervisors 33 engage in a dialogue with two experienced professionals and co-generate answers to complex problems of practice. in the end, three new pedagogical practices emerged from our first two years of exploring ways to adjust and adapt glickman’s developmental supervision to a university setting, including the following: • 3-way conversations among the candidate, the collaborating teacher, and the supervisor who facilitates the group; • grow: candidate goal-setting instrument; and • video-elicited reflections. promising practices in supervision of teacher candidates in co-taught placements because teaching is a complex activity, the evaluation of teaching and the supervision of teacher candidates are exceedingly complex. to be effective, supervisors must have a broad repertoire of teaching and assessment practices, possess excellent communication and facilitation skills, and understand a myriad of connections that can, and do, occur in the teaching and learning process between the teacher and student. in the current era of accountability, indicators of teacher effectiveness are nearly always based upon student performance and/or engagement in challenging tasks. therefore, it is incumbent upon the supervisor to use the most efficacious methods of observing student performance. according to scholars in coaching and supervision (knight, 2014) student work can be studied in two ways: by examining student products, such as writing samples or science projects, and by examining video recordings of the teaching and learning processes. because our faculty had already devoted a great deal of time and attention to the analysis of student work products, our research team began to explore new and creative ways to use video to evaluate the effectiveness of our candidates, specifically in terms of student performance and/or engagement (sewall, 2009). during the 2013-2014 academic year, our second author, then a university supervisor, used pre-post video observations as alternatives to traditional classroom observations. during the final co-reflection on the videos, both the university supervisor and the candidate experienced a significant breakthrough. when the videos of two observations were displayed simultaneously on a split-screen, the differences in the engagement of students became obvious. one video showed merely compliance on the part of the elementary students as they worked quietly at their desks, following the examples of the candidate as she solved math problems on the board. the second video showed the same students, actively engaged, as they worked in teams to solve problems related to various math games. in the second video, the candidate and the collaborating teacher were also actively engaged as they interacted with the small groups of students to foster their problem solving. thus, when the two video clips, viewed side by side, clearly illustrated the growth of the candidate’s skills over that period of time, highlighted the development of the coteaching partnership between the candidate and the collaborating teacher, both of which seemed to increase student engagement in the lesson. had this lesson not been recorded, it is possible that this growth and professional learning may have gone largely unnoted. through this real-life experience, the co-teachers as well as the university supervisor began to understand the real power of video in supporting candidates. to share this information with a broader audience, langub (2014) engendered discussions among members of the epp faculty, former coaches, supervisors, and administrators served as a catalyst for today’s effort to increase the use of video to record teaching and learning processes. in addition to creating a 34   t. strieker, l. langub & m. wright   record of the candidate’s professional growth and development, our experimentation with video increased our understanding of how video can be used effectively to benchmark student engagement, particularly in terms of time on task, ratios of interactions, opportunities to respond, and other aspects of the teaching process that are difficult to capture during real-time instruction (sprick, knight, reinke, skyles, & barnes, 2010). when video is used to benchmark, the candidate has the advantage of concrete examples to use in the assessment and monitoring of student engagement and learning. these approaches have the potential to assist candidates in improving the engagement of students from simply attending to a task, to compliance, to engagement in challenging tasks. our efforts to increase the frequency of, and improve the effectiveness of, video-elicited reflections are based upon the research of numerous scholars, including schon (2009); sewall (2009); calandra & brantley-dias (2010); lokey-vega & brantley-dias (2006); and knight (2014). our experiences and understandings are consistent with sewall (2009) in that we find (anecdotally) that our candidates’ reflections on video are more consistent with those of the collaborating teachers and the supervisors. specifically, it appears that when the candidates reflect upon their own experiences, without the benefit of video, their reflections are neither as nuanced nor as deep as reflections that are elicited from video. video not only provides the candidate with deeper understanding, it also provides the candidate with the gift of time because the candidate can watch the video repeatedly to observe the responses of his or her students to the pedagogical and classroom management practices used during instruction. overall impact and future directions over the past year, members of a professional learning community of experienced university supervisors have worked closely with the first author to improve their craft and practice as developmental supervisors. throughout the year, these individuals expanded their repertoires of communication, behavioral, and interpersonal approaches. for example, some of our supervisors found their candidates to be somewhat immature in the fall of their senior year, and that this immaturity forced the supervisor to assume the role of an expert, with a directive approach of literally telling the candidate what to do and when to do it. however, as the candidates matured, the supervisors shifted their approaches to a more collegial role by facilitating co-reflection and co-generative dialogue with the collaborating teacher. toward the end of the first year spent in developmental approaches, our supervisors reported that they no longer needed to use directive approaches and that most of the time they facilitated three-way conversations with the candidate and collaborating teachers. the supervisors also reported that they were very comfortable using non-directive approaches, letting the candidate guide his or her own professional learning by means of specific goal-setting and progress-monitoring of selfimprovement. during that same time, the supervisors also worked closely with the first author as well as with the candidates and collaborating teachers, to revise and refine their facilitation of candidate goal-setting, progress monitoring, video observation, and co-reflection. based upon our experiences in developing and piloting our epp’s approach to developmental supervision, we feel that this approach to supervision shows great promise for supporting our b-12 candidates in this era of high accountability and assessment. through developmental supervision, our candidates engage in ongoing goal setting and progress monitoring, collaboration and co-teaching, co-generative problem solving, and video-elicited coreflection by the teacher candidate, the collaborating teacher and the university supervisor. promising practices for university supervisors 35 in the summer of 2015, our university supervisors (wright, klinger-maffet, peterson, thompson, & langub) were invited to relate their experiences with the practices described in this paper to a group of current and potential collaborating teachers. specifically, they stated the following benefits of our model: 1. goal-setting improves the candidates’ focus and increases professional development in areas identified by the candidate, creating greater commitment to his or her personal growth. the university supervisor and the collaborating teacher can then support the candidate in these specific areas, moving to new goals as the year progresses. 2. collaborative approaches, particularly 3-way conversations, create a forum for co-reflection and cooperative dialogue. the expertise of the classroom teacher and the university supervisor is developed along with the candidate’s, in a mutually supportive environment. the candidate has an equal voice. 3. the use of video and virtual observations provides a record of the candidate’s growth and a platform for reflective dialogue on concrete, observable behaviors. the evaluations of the co-teacher and the university supervisor are thus more objective and beneficial to the candidate. based upon our supervisors’ positive perceptions of the new approaches, our future plan is to continue to engage our developmental supervisors in monthly sessions of their professional learning communities where the experienced supervisors will work closely with new ones to: (a) adjust their communication and behavioral approaches to the developmental needs of the candidates; (b) improve the practice of video observation; (c) facilitate candidate goal-setting and progress monitoring; as well as (d) increase student engagement and learning. 36   t. strieker, l. langub & m. 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(2015). the promise of developmental supervision. 1st annual clinical collaboration conference, kennesaw state university, kennesaw, ga. educational renaissance vol. 9 (2020) desperat e measures: how teacher preparat ion program s can engage and ret ain black male teacher candidat es ernest black , edd. calstate teach, california state university email: eblack@calstate.edu ed rice, phd. calstate teach, california state university email: erice@calstateteach.net case story there are a myriad of social implications involved with being black and male in the american educational system. the intersection of blackness and maleness creates a construct in education that is informed by more than race alone (hicks tafari, 2018). bianco et al. (2011) explained the complexity of being black and male in education and the impact on the teaching profession as follows: the history and experiences of discrimination, segregation, and exclusion of many african american males in public schools helps provide context for understanding their potential resistance to enter the teaching field and, therefore, may create one more challenge for teacher recruitment. in order to disrupt the educational inequities faced by african american males, the need for well-prepared, culturally responsive teachers, regardless of race or gender, is great; however, the need for well-prepared, culturally responsive african american male teachers is desperate. (p. 369) currently, only two percent of all u.s. teachers are black males (kena et al., 2016). this leads to the overburden or expected subsequent roles of black male teachers. there is a need for black male teachers, but there are few resources and even fewer opportunities exist to support them. while an abundance of research exists on the need for black male teachers, there remains a abst ract black male teachers are less than two percent of all current teachers in the united states. however, there has been an effort to recruit and retain black men into the teaching profession for a number of reasons. all students benefit when they have a black male teacher. black boys, in particular, have markedly higher test scores and improved discipline when they have a black male teacher. black male adults in educational settings is essential for enhancing black boys? academic and social development. there is a need for black male teachers in education. even with nationwide recruitment efforts like my brother 's keeper, the numbers of black male teacher remain small. additionally, black male teachers leave the profession at a higher rate than other subgroups. this paper will examine one teacher preparation program's effort to increase retention of black males in the teacher preparation program and the teaching profession.  mailto:eblack@calstate.edu http://erice@calstateteach.net black & rice | desperate measures void of information on how to support them. the demand for black male teachers remains great, while the supply remains low. this demand makes a strong case for recruitment of black males, but the lack of support for black male teachers does litt le for retention. this creates an opportunity for increased recruitment and support of black men into the teaching profession. there is a need, but there is also a desire. black male teachers have stated a desire to teach because of their commitment to impact the lives of black children (goings & bianco, 2016; lewis, 2006; lynn, 2006). programs like black male educators for social justice and call me mister inspire and recruit black men into the teaching profession. these programs have garnered successful media coverage and increased numbers. however, black male teachers are still more likely to leave their schools at higher rate than other subgroups (bristol, 2018). so, black male teachers remain underrepresented in the teacher workforce (milner, 2016). percept ion of black males as teachers black male teachers often face the same stereotyped behavior that black male students face at the school site. black male teachers may enter hostile work environments and encounter colleagues who will both covertly and overtly treat them as social outcasts (goings, 2015). black male teachers face a cacophony of discrimination, not only because they are black and male in america, but also because their career of choice is dominated by white middle-class women (ferguson 2001; howard & reynolds 2013; lewis & toldson 2013). the practice of designating the black male teacher into the box of disciplinarian and role model without the development of engaging teaching practices offers the black male teacher with few pedagogical skills to teach children and an inability to access those needed skills. teacher quality matters more than curriculum and more than physical environment. most teacher preparation programs prepare teacher candidates for teaching jobs in schools that differ greatly in terms of resources, student demographics, climate, leadership, and teacher community (kuriloff et al., 2019). black teachers are significantly more likely to be placed in schools with large populations of children of color and children in poverty or schools characterized as struggling (d?amico et al., 2017). there is not a differentiated curriculum in teacher education that prepares teacher candidates for employment in different types of schools or districts. in order to adequately prepare candidates, teacher preparation programs, must deviate from traditional mono-cultural approaches to teaching that reinforces westernized models of teaching. (utley et al., 2014). in essence, most teacher preparation programs do litt le to prepare teacher candidates for the type of environment where many black male teachers find employment. it is in these environments that the black male teachers often act as a father figure, disciplinarian and role model. however, there is litt le in teacher preparation coursework that prepares them for the reality of the classroom. the reality manifests itself in an ability to gain employment, but not being sufficiently prepared to teach students (pabon, 2014). it is unfair to expect black male teachers to take on the responsibility of ?saving? an educational system that is deeply fractured, flawed, and dysfunctional (milner, 2016). the ?saving? becomes an expectation that the black male teacher has not been effectively prepared to be successful. the saving mantra continues to play a role in the black male teacher?s effectiveness, but it also plays a role in their retention. black male teachers find themselves in perpetual negotiation as they seek to reconcile their own individual lived experiences with prescribed societal expectations and limitations (howard & reynolds, 2013). race plays a major role in our educational system and influences our teacher preparation programs (green & jor?dan, 2018). faculty expectations can have a significant impact on the educational achievement of black college students (bowden, 2014). these expectations play a role in the success of the black male teacher candidate. in order to be successful in a teacher preparation 16 black & rice | desperate measures program, some black male teacher candidates feel that they had to culturally assimilate to the dominant groups? culture, language, behaviors and norms within the classroom (green & martin, 2018). there has been litt le research devoted to where minority teachers tend to be employed, what happens to minority teachers once they are employed, or to the role of the employing organizations in teacher staffing problems (ingersoll et al., 2019). what does persist, however, is that the black male teacher must master all of these other duties, but he is reviewed using the same rubrics that are applied to other teachers. black male teachers get less support and are typecast into nonacademic roles. many of black male teachers speak of feeling isolated. when administrators and colleagues did engage them, they only wanted to discuss disciplinary enforcement (griffin & tackie, 2016). therein, lies the discrepancy of what it expected for black male teachers versus what is required to be successful as a black male teacher. a prevalent discourse among educational stakeholders has suggested that black male teachers are the key to helping black male students in urban schools and, in particular, develop skills to succeed by acting as role models (brown, 2012). this is the foundation of ?saving? an educational system. the belief is that the presence of black male teachers can erase education inequities that exist in schools and school districts. this rhetoric suggests that by standing in for absentee black fathers and acting as exemplars of black manhood, black male youth will adopt the resilience, grit, and determination to achieve in school (pabon, 2016). this rhetoric has emerged without regard to persistent racial inequality in urban public schools that creates challenging conditions for teaching and learning (pabon, 2016). the racial inequity continues with the hiring process. when black candidates are hired, they were disproportionately placed in schools with large populations of children of color or children in poverty (d?amico et al., 2017). however, when the racial inequities persist, the black male teacher is thought of as ineffective as a role model and disciplinarian, and therefore, ineffective as a teacher if there is not a change in the academic achievement of the black male youth. the black male teacher, hired to close the opportunity gap for black children, is thought ineffective if those opportunity gaps remain. black males and ot her dut ies as assigned currently, two percent of america?s public school teachers are black men (u.s. department of education, 2016). in spite of this, black male teachers perform multiple roles at the school site. each subsequent role is in addition to their identified role as classroom teacher. however, each subsequent role often takes precedent and immediate importance over the identified role. for example, there is a higher priority placed on the black male teacher?s ability to discipline students than developing his understanding of pedagogical abilit ies or teaching practices (bristol, 2018). black male teachers often navigate the roles of father figures, disciplinarians and role models for all students, but in particular, black boys (brockenbrough, 2015). these subsequent roles very quickly become part of the job description for black male teachers. they are part of the ?other duties as assigned.? however, these duties are not part of the teacher contract, but become a part of the black male teacher experience. there is no training or preparation for the subsequent roles that many black male teachers find themselves participating at their respective school sites. while teacher preparation programs provide teacher candidates with foundational skills and pedagogy to reach the majority of school-aged children, many new teachers struggle with classroom management (headden, 2014). teachers often need support to implement comprehensive classroom management plans consistently (fallon et al., 2019). often coursework in the teacher preparation program lacks relevancy to the urban school context in which many black male teachers are employed (pabon, 2016). black male teachers and teacher candidates have a great deal of extended duties when it comes to being a disciplinarian and role 17 black & rice | desperate measures model for students. however, litt le has been done to create curriculum or provide training to give black male teachers the tools to be immediately successful in their subsequent roles as father figures, disciplinarians and role models or their primary role as classroom teacher. for the black male teacher, there is the added responsibilit ies of mentoring and dealing with discipline for many of the students at the school site. both new and experienced black male teachers struggle to adopt the authoritarian disciplinary personas that others expected of them based on the perception that black male teachers are well-suited disciplinarians for predominately black urban schools (brockenbrough, 2015). program det ails the program, calstateteach, is a system-wide online multiple subject teacher preparation program that is part of the california state university system. the program has students in rural and remote parts of the state and densely populated urban areas. the program is not housed on one particular campus. instead, there are two regional centers on two separate university campuses and a central center located in the administrative offices of the california state university system. because much of the coursework is delivering online, the program is categorized as an alternative certification program. minorities are represented in the teaching force to a greater extent in states with genuine alternative certification than in other states (peterson & nadler, 2009). the program is no exception. for the fall 2019 term, approximately 30% of enrolled students identified as minority (american indian, asian, black/african american, hispanic/latino). while the program boasts a sizable minority population, only 20 out of 893 preliminary credential students identified as black/african american. for the fall 2019 term, there were only four black/african american male students enrolled. in comparison, approximately 45% of all enrolled teacher candidates in the state of california for the 2017-18 academic year identified as minority. however, only 1,170 identified as black/african american with less than 2% of that population being black/african american male students (california commission on teacher credentialing, 2019). the administrative staff of the program noticed low application numbers, enrollment and retention with black male teacher candidates. originally, the administrative staff sought to provide additional resources including mentorship to black male teacher candidates. however, many of the faculty resisted this change and requested that all men be including in the project. as a result, the program created a ?men in teaching? panel during the teacher excellence institute, a one-day professional development opportunity for program faculty, staff and students, in the fall of 2017 to offer additional support to male candidates and better understand their experience in the program. all enrolled men were invited regardless of ethnicity. at the ?men in teaching? panel, male faculty offered ways to fully engage in the profession including offering ways to navigate a system that is white female dominated. men in teaching following the ?men in teaching? panel it became evident there was an interest (and need) among candidates to continue the conversation among male teacher candidates regarding their role in the classroom. in response to the need, male faculty members created a monthly meeting of male teacher candidates where participants could ask questions, receive advice and interact with other professional male educators. the participants in the men in teaching group were a mix of firstand second-year teacher candidates. all the participants were either student teachers or interns. student teachers are volunteering in the classroom to complete required clinical hours while interns are teachers of record, hired by the school district, but have not yet earned a teaching credential. the meetings provided an opportunity for the men in the program to interact with their other male colleagues and establish a support network as the candidates navigated the teaching 18 black & rice | desperate measures profession and furthered their educational endeavors. an additional purpose of the meetings was to provide a relationship between the program and male students to retain them as teacher candidates and increase the number of male teachers in the education profession. over time, we found that the group became a monthly safe space for male candidates to discuss their challenges, exchange ideas, share best practices and learn from veteran male educators. each meeting was, at minimum, one hour. however, the one hour time period was often exceeded when there was continued conversation on a particular topic. in year one (2017), approximately 10 participants met monthly online using video conferencing for an hour each month. during the initial year of the group, all participants were men. the participants changed with each meeting. however, there were several participants who participated in every meeting. in general, the group consisted of 3 white men and 5-7 men of color; 2-3 african american and 4-7 latinx. the group discussed topics such as lesson planning, classroom management, career planning and financial management. we discovered through participant?s conversations, suggestions, and surveys that in addition to the professional development and pedagogical support provided, the participants desired the mentorship and peer conversation as much, if not more, than the academic support. it became evident early on, that participants were eager to talk and wanted a forum to freely dissect their experiences as pre-service candidates. through dialogue with the teacher candidates, a few key observations were noted. they were: 1. discipline. not all men are disciplinarians. most of the men in the group complained regularly about being the go to person for discipline problems on their campuses. many of the men, especially the first-year teachers and interns, struggled with classroom management but were routinely either given challenging students or expected to discipline students, especially the boys. 2. money. money was a big concern, all of the men expressed angst regarding the ability to care for themselves and their families on a teacher?s salary. many requested support identifying more advanced career paths or other opportunities in education. several of the teacher candidates had second jobs while they were working or pursuing their careers as teachers. 3. peer group. one of the most important aspects of the group was the camaraderie and support among the group participants. the participants in the group spoke frequently about the importance of having a space to interact with other male educators who either related to their challenges or shared the same experience. 4. role models. introducing the group to other successful, veteran male educators helped eased fears about the ability to have professionally fulfilling and financially stable careers. the participants, also appreciated knowing that there was a blueprint for their success, which they could access. based on a survey of the participants from 2017, all of the men in the group found the group beneficial and all year one participants indicated they would participate in the group in year two. while no additional students were added for year two, 100% of year one participants returned to the program in year two. oppor t unit ies for addit ional suppor t in addition to the retention and engagement strategy we implemented in our program, we also acknowledge additional engagement strategies for recruitment and retention of black male teacher candidates. some of those strategies are: establish a career pathway and planning guide/sheet for teachers establish mentorship and support groups throughout the school district encourage other male teachers to promote the school/district at university events and career fairs provide professional development opportunities for candidates 19 black & rice | desperate measures identify opportunities for supplemental income and host a spring job fair to make candidates aware of potential summer jobs partner with local businesses/universities to identify seasonal (especially summer job opportunities) for teachers identify networking events for candidates to attend suggest professional education organizations for candidates to join conclusion more male educators are needed to further diversify the education workforce. additionally, there is an even greater need for black male educators in today?s classroom. lewis (2006) indicates that, the need for african american male teachers is clear and urgent. by representing only 2% of the national teaching force chances are that most students will never have an african american male teacher at any point in their 13 years in the public-school system. their presence in classrooms is critically needed not only for african american young men and women but also for all students.? (as cited in bianco et al., 2011, p. 368) in order to create classrooms that are more reflective and fully equipped with the cultural competency required to support all the students that we serve, we must first engage and retain male educators of color. while the strategies employed in our program were developed to support all male candidates in the program, there are implications from our work that can be utilized to more effectively retain and support black male teachers and teacher candidates. as previously mentioned, due to such small numbers in the profession and an overburden of the expected subsequent roles, black male teachers possess a great need for support and few resources exists dedicated to their support. based on our program, support tools such as mentorship programs, peer groups and career pathways are effective strategies however they may require additional research to determine their effectiveness with this population. in an effort to better understand this population and increase our ability to recruit and retain them in our program, we are currently gathering data through surveys and focus groups from current and past calstateteach students. the goal is to gain more insight on their experience as students and teachers to inform our practices and increase our ability to attract and retain black men in the teaching profession. our initial efforts to support our candidates revealed an even greater need among our students and the research we are currently conducting is our attempt to address that need. 20 black & rice | desperate measures references bristol, t. 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(2014). infusing culturally and linguistically responsive instruction in stem programs. in s. l. green (ed.), stem education: how to train twenty-first century teachers. nova science publishers. 22 http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch https://www2.ed.gov/rschstat/eval/highered/rac ial-diversity/state-racial-diversity-workforce.pdf https://www2.ed.gov/rschstat/eval/highered/rac ial-diversity/state-racial-diversity-workforce.pdf black & rice (2020) proof print page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 microsoft word 5. transforming-feb 2014.docx vol. 2, no. 2, feb 2014, pp. 39-62 transforming clinical practice in teacher education through pre-service co-teaching and coaching toni s. strieker, maria shaheen, daphne hubbard, lee digiovanni & woong lim kennesaw state university abstract teacher preparation programs on a national level have been called to change, focusing on clinical practice as a primary focus of teacher education rather than course work. concurrently, performance based assessment is becoming the tool to measure candidate capacity to plan and instruct. this study highlights one teacher education program and the pre-service co-teaching model (psct), which utilizes instruction in co-teaching models, co-teaching internships, and instructional coaching as a means for teacher development. forty-three pairs of co-teachers and 14 coaches participated in this study. each coach, collaborating teacher, and teacher candidate participated in professional development to better understand co-teaching models, as well as coaching techniques. each co-teaching pair had a coach to observe and debrief the implementation of co-teaching models in classrooms for the purpose of planning, assessment, and instruction. goal setting, conference notes, coaching reflections, as well as focus group interviews served as data. analysis indicated that co-teaching strategies from the professional development were used primarily to facilitate differentiated instruction as well as classroom management. analysis also indicated that coaches had a tendency to be more prescriptive regarding classroom management and have a more open-ended conversation when the focus was on differentiated instruction. keywords: teacher education reform, clinical practice, pre-service co-teaching, instructional coaching 40   t. strieker, m. shaheen, d. hubbard, l. digiovanni & w. lim   as teacher educators, our capacity to educate competent, effective p-12 teachers who are prepared to meet the challenges of 21st century schools has been called into question due, in part, to low graduation rates and high teacher attrition rates (darling-hammond, 2010a). according to the alliance for excellent education (2004), nearly 30% of new teachers leave the profession within the first two years, and 50% leave in the first five years of practice. new teachers frequently cite stress as the key reason for leaving their chosen profession. stress often causes them to obsess over the needs of their students, as well as the constant and ever-changing demands of their schools. even more troubling is that teachers who appear to be the most academically proficient are the ones most likely to leave the profession (smith, 1993). high teacher turnover is costly to schools and even more costly to the p-12 students who lose their most proficient teachers to stress and frustration (national commission on teaching and america’s future, 2003). in response to these chronic issues, the national council of accreditation in teacher education (ncate) created a blue ribbon panel on clinical preparation and partnerships for improved student learning to study and recommend changes to teacher preparation on a national level. in 2010, the panel issued its final report stating that teacher preparation must be “turned upside down” (p.2) focusing on clinical practice rather than course work. as the emphasis on clinical preparation has increased, there has also been an increased recognition that performance-based assessment is an effective tool to measure teacher candidates’ capacities for planning and instructing. similarly, when performance-based assessment data is used systematically to inform teacher preparation programs, it provides clarity in designing and measuring the effectiveness of clinical preparation. the current study addressed teacher education reform, particularly related to preparing pre-service teachers to work with their collaborating teachers and grow into novice teachers. the broad intent of this study was twofold. first, we briefly described our collaborative approach that includes interactive seminars, instructional coaching, goal-setting sessions, observations and feedback, reflections, and reporting. second, we reported the findings of a pilot study on the impact of our collaborative approach on the pedagogical practices of 43 pairs of teacher candidates and their collaborating teachers in elementary classrooms. specifically, the research questions that guided this study were: 1. what, if any impact does the goal-setting process have upon the development of the pre-service teachers’ pedagogical practices? 2. what, if any, impact does our collaborative approach have upon the co-teachers’ selection of the psct models to support classroom instruction and management? 3. what, if any, impact does our collaborative approach have upon teacher candidates’ use of co-teaching during assessment, planning, and instruction of students in their p5 classrooms? theoretical framework darling-hammond (2005) reported that teacher education was often characterized as highly theoretical, loosely connected to practice, fragmented, incoherent, and lacking a shared vision of teaching and learning. given this characterization, teacher education has the urgent responsibility of transforming its curriculum, pedagogy, structure, and delivery. substantive change is necessary to better prepare pre-service teachers to negotiate the changing landscape of educational policies that shape the daily practices of teachers in k-12 classrooms (boyle-baise & transforming clinical practice 41 mcintyre, 2008; darling-hammond, 2010a). this study is grounded in theory and research on teacher education reform and describes our approach to transform clinical practice by means of collaboration, pre-service co-teaching, and instructional coaching. teacher education reform during the 1990s, teacher educators engaged in meaningful reform efforts to create preparation programs that were more coherent and situated in classroom practice (hammerness & darling-hammond, 2002). with these reforms, the focus shifted from developing teachers who could implement a variety of strategies and techniques to developing teachers who were thoughtful and able to improve student learning by critically analyzing and resolving complex problems of classroom practice. in 2000, darling-hammond reported on a study conducted by the association of american colleges for teacher education (aacte) to identify the characteristics of teacher education programs that had been recognized as exemplary in terms of preparing teachers to educate an increasingly diverse student body. results of that study indicated six common characteristics of highly effective teacher education programs, including the following: (a) coherent vision of teaching and learning; (b) translation of theory to practice; (c) carefully crafted field experiences; (d) active pedagogy that includes modeling and reflection; (e) focus on the needs of diverse students; and (f) collaboration with colleagues. to further extend the discussion, darling-hammond (2010b) called for the creation of a set of systematic, valid and reliable teacher performance assessments that could be used to evaluate beginning teachers, to monitor the progress of practicing teachers; and ultimately, determine the effectiveness of teacher education programs. this call is based upon the need for using multiple data sources to measure not only teachers’ planning with various teaching strategies and techniques but also teachers’ analysis and reflection of instruction and assessment practices. a byproduct of this assessment system would be the creation of a systematic collection of evidence that could be placed upon a continuum to describe the performance of effective teachers at various stages of career development. currently, edtpa, an assessment developed by researchers and teacher educators of the stanford center for assessment, learning, and equity (scale) at stanford university, is being implemented nationally as such a program (american association of colleges for teacher education, 2013). thus far, 28 states and the district of columbia have adopted edtpa as the preferred method of evaluating the classroom teaching of teacher candidates. pre-service preparation on collaboration according to griffin, jones, and kilgore (2006), less than 1/3 of all pre-service teachers enrolled in elementary, middle or secondary programs are provided with content related to collaboration. there are numerous reasons for the dearth of preparation in this critical area. according to friend (2002), many members of the education faculty assume that collaboration is intuitive, and therefore, do not see the need for formal preparation and instruction in collaborative methods. in other cases, faculties value the content in collaboration, but feel constrained by accreditation requirements (ross & blanton, 2004). these individuals often elect an infusion model, which embeds the content on collaboration into existing coursework. infusion is used when the faculty feels that content does not necessitate the development of a complete course, or that the curriculum is already too packed with content required for accreditation purposes (cook, 2002). even though the infusion method may solve immediate problems, it has been criticized as highly ineffective (cook, 2002; stayton & mccollum, 2002). 42   t. strieker, m. shaheen, d. hubbard, l. digiovanni & w. lim   pre-service preparation in co-teaching co-teaching in the united states emerged in the early 1970s (trump & miller, 1973) but did not begin to proliferate until the late 1980s and early 1990s when co-teaching became a preferred administrative arrangement to support inclusion of student with disabilities (cook & friend, 1995). cook and friend (1995) recommended six models of co-teaching that general education and special education teachers could employ to co-instruct large and small groups of students, including (a) one-teach/one observe; (b) one teach/one assist; (c)alternative teaching; (d) parallel teaching, (e) station teaching, and (f) team teaching. while co-teaching in inclusive classrooms has been widely supported in policy and practice, there is little information on the effectiveness of co-teaching in improving the outcomes of students with disabilities (zigmond & mariera, 2001). since 2000, co-teaching has been employed at the university-level to model co-teaching practices in preparing general and special educators to include students with disabilities in p-12 classrooms (alverez-mchatton & daniel, 2008; york-barr, j., bacharach, n., salk, j., frank, j. & beniek, b., 2004). most recently, co-teaching has been used at the pre-service level to prepare student teachers to co-teach with their collaborating teachers during their clinical practice (bacharach, heck, & dahlberg, 2010; badiali & titus, 2012). these authors argued that preservice co-teaching has the potential to be a highly effective vehicle for teacher preparation because it removes many of the challenges associated with traditional student teaching. furthermore, bacharach, et al., (2011), found that pre-service co-teaching resulted in improved outcomes of p-12 learners on statewide assessments. these results held for students growing up in poverty, those with disabilities as well as those who were english learners. our model of pre-service co-teaching emerged from two separate bodies of literature, one in science education and the other in special education. in the late 1990s, a group of canadian researchers explored the benefits of co-teaching and how it supported the teaching and learning of such complex subjects as nuclear physics (roth & boyd, 1998; roth, bowen, boyd, & boutonne, 1998). their work described three types of teacher learning, including (a) learning-inpractice; (b) learning to talk about (or theorize) practice; and (c) learning by applying theory to practice. roth and tobin (2002) found that as teachers co-instructed, their co-participation entwined with their own understanding of theory and applying theory to their daily practice. when analyzing co-teaching between pre-service and practicing teachers, these researchers found that co-teaching was co-learning for both individuals, not just for the inexperienced teacher. they described co-teaching as an appropriate vehicle for both pre-service preparation as well as professional development of practicing teachers (roth & boyd, 1999). program context the collaborative approach used in this study was designed, developed, implemented, and reviewed by faculty who teach in a large public state university in the southeastern united states. at this institution, the college of education annually prepares approximately 960 prospective teachers in early childhood, elementary, middle and secondary education, special education, and instructional technology. the unit has met all of ncate’s accreditation standards, as well as those by all related professional fields. teacher preparation in elementary education provides the context for the present investigation. it is projected that by the spring of 2015, all teacher education programs in this unit will use edtpa to measure teacher candidates’ preparation to teach in classroom. the tasks involved transforming clinical practice 43 are similar to those required in the program’s student teaching, and the three tasks of the assessment align with the vision of pre-service co-teaching. the elementary education programs are making changes to their course work in an effort to incorporate activities that are consistent with knowledge and skills in the edtpa framework. even though edtpa has been mandated at the state level, the teacher candidate’s scores will not affect their eligibility for certification until a later time when the state requires full implementation. the teacher candidates who consented to participate in this study enrolled in two-semesters of field experiences during their senior year and were observed and provided feedback from university supervisors who evaluated the candidates’ progress in meeting the professional standards (american association of colleges for teacher education, 2013). preparation of prospective elementary and early childhood teachers our teacher education program emphasizes high expectations for knowledge and skills as well as positive attitudes for educating an increasingly diverse student body in p–5 schools. the teacher preparation program is couched in the constructivist philosophy and emphasizes the integrated nature of the curriculum and the importance of collaboration with colleagues. traditionally, during the fall semester of their senior year, pre-service teachers enroll in a methods block comprised of four courses, one of which is a 135-hour (minimum) field experience. over the course of the semester, the teacher candidates assume increasing responsibility for instruction, ultimately taking control of the class for a unit of study that they prepared with guidance from professors and within their field experience. throughout this field experience, the collaborating teacher and a university supervisor evaluate the teacher candidate’s performance on institutional and professional standards. if the teacher candidates adequately demonstrate the required competencies, they are recommended to student teach the following semester. in the spring semester of 2012, 328 teacher candidates graduated with a b.s. in elementary or early childhood education. of those graduates, approximately 276 self-reported as white, non-hispanic; 26 as black, non-hispanic; 13 as hispanic; three as asian; four as multi-racial; three as hawaiian or pacific islander; and five were undeclared. in 2011, faculty within our college of education rallied to the national call to transform clinical practice. to that end, members of an interdisciplinary team reviewed the literature, and ultimately developed a new collaborative approach that was aligned with the common variables of highly effective teacher education programs reported by darling-hammond (2000), including a common vision of teaching and learning, carefully crafted field experiences, theorizing and justifying practice, focusing upon the needs of the students, reflecting on active pedagogy, engaging teachers as life-long learners, and collaboration with colleagues. the following figure illustrates how the theoretical framework is directly related to our model pre-service coteaching and learning. 44   t. strieker, m. shaheen, d. hubbard, l. digiovanni & w. lim   coherent vision of teaching and learning figure 1. a model of pre-service co-teaching this collaborative approach was designed, developed, implemented, and evaluated by an interdisciplinary team of university faculty and school officials who, collectively, had expertise in elementary education, early childhood education, special education, and middle level education. all members of the interdisciplinary team shared a common vision of constructivist teaching and learning. all substantively agreed upon how pedagogical content related to collaboration and co-teaching could be successfully embedded throughout the cycle. furthermore, the use of performance-based assessment (i.e., edtpa) presented the opportunity to examine how our approach impacts teacher candidates’ performance in the critical areas. in particular, the edtpa portfolio has three specific tasks: (a) planning, (b) instruction, and (c) assessment (american association of colleges for teacher education, 2013). these tasks coincide with the vision of pre-service co-teaching. each task also requires the candidate’s capacity for analysis and reflection, which can be supported by collaborative dialogue. throughout the clinical experience, the co-teachers engage in collaborative dialogue as they co-plan instruction, co-assess student engagement and performance, co-reflect upon teaching and learning, and co-generate solutions to problems of practice. psct provides the vehicle for classroom teachers to act as mentor models for teacher candidates; thereby, providing continuous, and often, instantaneous feedback and modeling of teaching, assessment, and classroom management strategies. the mentor modeling approach allows the classroom teachers to maintain greater control over the quality of their classroom instruction, instead of merely being a host. according to our model, effective psct is comprised three components (e.g. coplanning, co-assessment and co-instruction) that are essential to the teaching and learning of the transforming clinical practice 45 teacher candidate as well as the p-12 students. these crucial components are supported by the classroom teachers by means of on-going mentor modeling and the on-going dialogue with the instructional coach via the partnership principles. co-planning. one fundamental concept that underlies our approach is freedom and flexibility within form (knight, 2013). teacher candidates are encouraged to use a districtapproved lesson plan format to frame their co-taught lessons. in addition, co-teachers are encouraged to use the prevailing state standards as well as the common core and p-12 student performance data to plan their lessons. throughout the process the collaborating teachers use think aloud procedures to model critical thinking about all aspects of the lesson, including classroom management, formative and summative assessment, and differentiated instruction. to co-create responsive lessons, co-teachers continuously theorize their practice, making conscious decisions about how they can use psct to support the learning and behavioral needs of their students. co-assessment. because this is an evidence-based model, co-assessment is central to its effectiveness. as noted in other sections, this model focuses upon performance assessment to measure student engagement and academic learning. in addition, the co-teachers are encouraged to use multiple forms of pre-assessments to measure academic language, background knowledge, student interest and learning styles in preparation for differentiated or responsive instruction. co-instruction. co-instruction is the heart of pre-service co-teaching because this where the teacher candidates literally teach at the elbow of the of the collaborating teachers, who model best practice as they employ high leverage strategies to increase student engagement and learning (badiali & titus, 2012).with this model, the collaborating teachers act as a safety nets for the teacher candidates until they are ready to teach solo. the execution of co-teaching is at the discretion of the co-teachers as they engage in on-going formative assessment, classroom management, and differentiated instruction. instructional coach. an instructional coach who is a specialist in co-teaching supports a team of co-teachers, comprised of a teacher candidate and a collaborating teacher. according to knight (2012), effective instructional coaches use active listening, questioning, and relationship building strategies to help teachers improve practice. what distinguishes knight’s model from other approaches is that instructional coaches teach others how to learn very specific, evidencebased teaching practices such as formative assessment (stiggins, arter, chappuis, & chappuis, 2009). teachers who work with a coach report that that they are four times more likely to implement new strategies when working with a coach, as opposed to attending a traditional workshop (knight, 2007). coaches have an abiding respect for teachers and intentionally seek to develop partnerships by employing the principles established by knight (2007) that include equality, choice, voice, dialogue, reflection, praxis and reciprocity. all members of the collaborative team (the teacher candidate, collaborating teacher, and co-teaching coach) understand the partnership principles and use them as a common language to discuss and develop their relationships with one another. similarly, all coaches, teacher candidates, and collaborating teachers learn the partnership principles and apply them to their relationships with their colleagues, parents and students as well as instances where they are attempting to resolve complex problems of practice. carefully crafted field experiences. while many universities define their clinical experiences as collaborative, ours is unique in that the teacher candidates are supported their yearlong clinical experience through pre-service co-teaching (psct) and instructional coteaching coaching. when psct and coaching are combined, they create the infrastructure to 46   t. strieker, m. shaheen, d. hubbard, l. digiovanni & w. lim   ensure that the teacher candidate is able to meaningfully apply his/her knowledge and skills to classroom practice. for these purposes, psct is defined as a systematic approach to clinical practice for teacher candidates who are supported by collaborating teachers who serve as on-going mentormodels and share all responsibilities for the teaching and learning of a group of p-12 students. throughout the experience, the teacher candidate and mentor teacher establish a fully functioning co-taught classroom in which they share instructional space, materials and other resources. psct is an evidence-based approach that focuses simultaneously upon the development of the teacher candidate and the learning of p-12 students. throughout the clinical experience, co-teachers are encouraged to co-reflect upon the teaching and learning process, engage in co-generative dialogue to find creative solutions to complex problems of classroom practice. psct differs dramatically from traditional student teaching where collaborating teachers host student teachers that take over the control of the class within a few weeks of entering the classroom, and teach alone for the duration of the semester. with psct, the shift of control in the classroom happens more gradually, when the teacher candidate is ready, rather than withdrawing the school support rather immediately. as noted above, our approach deploys a cadre of instructional coaches who specialize in co-teaching. in addition the university supervision, these individuals provide an extra layer of support as the teacher candidate and his or her mentor teacher, co-plan, co-assess, and co-instruct. in summary, our collaborative approach is designed to maximize all of the human resources available to better meet the needs of the teacher candidate; and ultimately, of the students. theorizing and justifying practice researchers of science education have repeatedly found that pre-service co-teaching is highly effective in learning to teach complex subject matter (roth, 1998; roth, et al., 1998). in conducting their research, these authors defined three types of constructivist teacher learning, including: (a) learning during practice; (b) learning to justify their practice with research and theory; and (c) increasing their ability to apply theory to practice. in our model, the instructional coaches, who specialize in co-teaching, facilitate dialog and teacher reflection on how to use coteaching and other research-based practices to improve the learning of the teacher candidate as well as the p-5 students. focus on the needs of diverse students according to recent research (heckert, strieker & shaheen, 2013), one benefit of our systematic approach is the increased ability of co-teachers to meet student needs. by its very nature, having two teachers in the classroom increases the ability to meet the needs of a diverse group of students, particularly those in need of individualized instruction or behavior management. psct also provides opportunities for p-5 students to benefit from teachers with different teaching styles and pedagogical preferences. thus, our overarching goal is to prepare a teacher workforce with the knowledge, skills and dispositions to effectively educate and increasingly diverse population of p-5 learners. reflection upon active pedagogy our systematic approach provides the collaborative infrastructure for classroom teachers to model research-based practices for teacher candidates, thereby providing continuous, and transforming clinical practice 47 often, instantaneous feedback. collaborating teachers and teacher candidates literally “teach at the elbow” of one another, which allows the collaborating teacher to step in and provide support or mentoring immediately (roth & tobin, 2002). the partnership between the co-teachers provides comfort and support to the teacher candidates as they become more confident with their abilities in the classroom and increases the collaborating teachers’ confidence in the teacher candidates’ abilities as well. with increased confidence, the collaborating teacher and the teacher candidate begin to take more creative, pedagogical risks. as the teacher candidates increase their own self-efficacy, the collaborating teacher also feels more comfortable implementing new strategies. as the co-teaching partnership evolves, the co-planning of lessons and co-generation of ideas becomes commonplace (heckert, strieker, & shaheen, 2013). teacher candidates and collaborative teachers report a smooth transition and shift of power as the prospective teacher assumes an increasing leadership role in the classroom. the ongoing, mentoring found in the psct model increases the self-efficacy and confidence of teacher candidates because the p-12 students perceive them as another teacher with co-authority in the classroom and not a traditional or typical student teacher (heckert et al., 2013). this model recognizes co-reflection as an on-going process that occurs as teacher candidates and collaborative teachers co-plan new lessons, co-instruct, and co-review student performance data. this cycle of co-reflection provides multiple and ongoing opportunities for co-teachers to engage in co-generative dialogue and bring their knowledge and experience to bear in solving unique problems of practice relative to their own students and their particular teaching environment. it is during these times, the co-teaching coaches facilitate meaningful conversations that provide opportunities for the teacher candidate to understand and articulate how theory translates to practice, and conversely, how practice must be explained by theory. professional development for teacher candidates and collaborating teachers to ensure that all of the participants have a common understanding and language, the coteaching coaches, collaborating teachers and teacher candidates participate in a hybrid course created by an interdisciplinary team of faculty and school district representatives, entitled a partnership approach to pre-service co-teaching, which addresses the foundations of the partnership principles and relationship development, pre-service co-teaching and coaching, as well as ways to use psct to maximize student engagement and learning through assessment, differentiated instruction, and classroom management. during the opening seminar, the coteachers were taught ways to establish their co-taught classroom as well as the specific models of pre-service co-teaching and how they can be used to support assessment, differentiated instruction, and classroom management. while the co-teachers are encouraged to use co-teaching during their daily practice of co-teaching, co-assessment, co-instruction, and co-reflection, they are not required to co-instruct all day, every day. the co-teachers were encouraged to employ all of the co-teaching models based upon the learning needs of the teacher candidate as well as those of their k-5 students. it is important to note that the teacher candidate was required to teach solo at various times during the student teaching experience so that the university supervisor could evaluate the candidate’s ability to meet the all of the professional standards. professional development for instructional coaches all of the instructional coaches attend a minimum of two, full-day interactive seminars, which include personality and communication assessments, as well as readings on cognitive, executive, and instructional coaching. in addition, they watched video on the teacher channel 48   t. strieker, m. shaheen, d. hubbard, l. digiovanni & w. lim   that demonstrated effective coaching practices and made decisions about how those practices could be embedded into their approach. one of the team leaders attended six days of professional development at the instructional coaching institute at the university of kansas in lawrence, kansas. the approach to instructional coaching, particularly knight’s partnership principles were adopted by the coaches and embedded in all of our work. collaboration with colleagues: the coaching process the instructional coaches met with the co-teaching teams a minimum of four times during the semester. at the initial coaching session, the instructional coach used the discussion protocol grow to facilitate a collaborative conversation to establish team goals and a simple action plan. specifically, the grow protocol frames a discussion on the following: (a) the current reality; (b) a goal for the teacher candidate or the co-teachers; (c) options to reach the goal; and (d) a potential course of action, including who will do what in co-teaching. given that all of the co-teaching teams had successfully completed the professional development, a partnership approach to pre-service co-teaching, the practices presented were considered as part of the goal setting and action planning process. once the goals were established, the instructional coach observed each team and then facilitated a reflective conversation on the impact of their instruction. based upon the conversations, the co-teaching teams were free to change or establish new goals (knight & van nieuwerburgh, 2012). over the course of the semester, each instructional coach conducted a minimum of three additional site visits per team. the purpose of each session was twofold. first, the instructional coach observed a lesson that was designed to demonstrate the co-teaching team’s progress in meeting their stated goal. for example, if the co-teachers established a goal to use flexible groups to manage student behavior, the coach might observe the pre-assessment, regrouping, and station teaching. during each observation, the coach chronicled the co-teaching model(s) employed to support the instruction, the level of student engagement and learning as well as other notations. based upon the observation, the coach facilitated a reflective dialogue to consider all aspects of the instruction and its impact. throughout the process, the coaches provided non-threatening, supportive feedback and provided the co-teaching teams with a safe environment to engage in honest conversation. in that regard, the coaches encouraged the coteaching teams to theorize their practice and discuss how co-teaching could be used to support research-based practices in assessment, instruction, and management. these discussions gave the collaborating teacher the opportunities to model their thought processes for selecting, and employing, specific instructional and assessment practices. the coaches also encouraged and supported purposeful experimentation of the psct models that created the safety net for the coteaching teams to move outside their comfort zones. the grow (whitmore, 2002) and the observation form were used to document the events and conversations that occurred in each coaching session, and were ultimately, submitted to the university research team. at the close of this conversation, the co-teaching team determined whether they would continue working on this goal or establish another one. at the completion of the semester, all co-teaching teams participated in focus group interviews to discuss their experiences with psct, coaching, and student teaching in general. the data were quantitatively and qualitatively analyzed to determine efficacy of instructional coaching in assisting teacher candidates and collaborating teachers in applying their learning to their daily practice in terms of using psct to improve their planning, assessment, and instruction. each instructional coach was required to reflect upon each team’s progress on a transforming clinical practice 49 monthly basis. these reflections were also submitted to the university research team. it is important to note that all of the co-authors in this study are also coaches, but only the second and third authors are coaches of elementary co-teaching teams. method self-study in teacher education research according to grossman (2005) and loughran (2007), self-study is being widely accepted in teacher education research. this study responds to this call by situating the present research in the larger research programs on teacher education reform, particularly as it relates to clinical practice through collaboration, pre-service co-teaching, coaching, and mentor-modeling. the aim of this study was to examine the impact of the psct collaborative approach, particularly the instructional coaching in rich detail. the researchers specifically intended to examine this complex process from the perspective of the instructional coaches; therefore, qualitative case study research was chosen as the methodology for this study. in this study, each case consisted of multiple teams of co-teaching teacher candidates, collaborating teachers, and instructional coaches. using case study methodology, there were a total of 43 instructional coaching cases examined in this study. participants the teacher educator research team requested and received institutional review board permission from the university to conduct the research. from the fall of 2011 through the spring of 2012, 43 elementary pre-service teachers, along with 43 collaborating teachers and 14 coaches participated in this study. instructional coaches. the team of elementary coaches was comprised of 14 females, five were retired elementary school principals, and nine were university faculty. all of the coaches were caucasian. all of the coaches hold at least a master’s degree and two-thirds hold doctoral degree. according to their self-reporting, all coaches were white females with a distribution of ages between the early thirties and to the mid-sixties. all of the coaches met the prevailing state guidelines for certification in elementary education, leadership, social studies, math, language arts, science and/or special education. all of the coaches were selected based upon their experiences as coaches, co-teachers, and/or working with new teachers in the induction process. the retired principals had an average of 25 years of experience supervising co-teachers and assisting new teachers with induction. one of the former administrators had extensive experience in providing professional development in collaboration and co-teaching. all of the former administrators had completed professional development in cognitive coaching that was offered by their school districts. two members of this group also worked for the college of education as a university supervisor. all of the coaches who were also members of the university faculty had experience (average of five years) coteaching at the university or classroom levels. three of them had either taught classes or professional development on collaboration and co-teaching. all of the faculty had prior relationships with the student teachers in some capacity, typically as a former instructor. all of the elementary coaches had completed approximately twenty clock hours of professional development on coaching that focused upon the tenants of instructional coaching and how to use this approach with co-teachers. two of the co-authors in this study served as elementary coaches during the specified time frame. 50   t. strieker, m. shaheen, d. hubbard, l. digiovanni & w. lim   teacher candidates. during the spring semester, 14 co-teaching coaches met with the 43 elementary teacher candidates, along with their collaborating teachers, in fourteen elementary schools. of the 43 candidates, 41 were female and caucasian. two of the candidates were male: one male was black and the other white. the average age of the elementary teacher candidates was 22. all of the teacher candidates were in the second semester of their senior year and had completed all of the required coursework for their elementary degrees and were ready to begin student teaching. these students had all completed a survey course in special education that had included content, readings and assignments on collaboration and co-teaching. elementary collaborating teachers. of the 43 teachers, 40 were female and three were male. of the total number of elementary collaborating teachers, 38 were caucasian and five were african american. all of the collaborating teachers were certified in elementary education according to the prevailing state guidelines had at least three years of teaching experience. nearly all of the teachers had previously earned at least one ceu in collaboration and coteaching by their local school district. data analysis the data for this study consisted of three sets of data sources: coaching documents, observation notes, and focus group interviews. documents completed by the instructional coaches included the following: (a) the grow form, (b) observation form (one for each of the three required observations); and (c) coaching reflection. in addition to documents, observations were completed a minimum of four times per team throughout the semester and observation notes were collected each time using a consistent coaching observation form. finally, focus group interviews were conducted with the coaches and the interviews were recorded and transcribed. all three sets of data sources were used for triangulation during the qualitative analysis. during data analysis, data from individual cases were coded and a cross-case analysis was conducted using an ongoing, recursive process. data analysis occurred in several stages including summarizing data, generating and refining themes, and ensuring trustworthiness. two authors independently coded the data and then compared and revised themes to reach agreement. finally, two additional researchers provided independent support for the final themes (denzin & lincoln, 2008). results goals over the course of the semester, our 43 teams identified a total of 153 goals on the grow form, all of which were aligned with the content of the professional learning series. sixty-two of the goals addressed increasing the type and number of psct models to support their practices. as time progressed, 37 teams identified additional goals that addressed how co-teaching could be used to differentiate instruction. these goals were tailored to the needs of the co-teachers, as well as those of the k-5 students. another 20 goals addressed assessment and how it could be used to differentiate instruction. another 20 addressed classroom management. it was interesting to note that the majority of classroom management goals were established for the teacher candidate and not the co-teaching team. in addition, the planning goals emerged from discussions on how off task behavior often resulted from instruction that was not carefully planned. transforming clinical practice 51 figure 2. goals established by co-teaching teams co-teaching goals these findings suggest that, as the semester progressed, the co-teachers tended to focus the majority of time in their coaching sessions addressing one of two broad practices: differentiated instruction and classroom management. it was interesting to note that the coaching approach to assisting the teacher candidate was strikingly different from the approach used with the co-teaching teams. when the goal was differentiation, it was stated for the two teachers; assessment goals were often embedded within or tightly connected to the instructional goal, and the coaches typically approached the reflective dialogue with open-ended questions. for example, one coach asked questions regarding how groups were formed for station-teaching, and the candidate and co-teacher provided evidence of assessment to determine groups. when the goal was classroom management, it was usually stated solely for the teacher candidate, at which point, the coach became much more dominant force, providing a great deal of specific feedback and detailed recommendations, tailored to the needs of the teacher candidate’s planning, instruction, and management. as examples, one coach specifically reminded the candidate about the importance of scanning the room on a regular basis. another coach specifically addressed the importance of body position when teaching, as opposed to asking open ended questions about the management practices. it was also interesting that two of the three planning goals seemed to emerge from the discussions on management. differentiated instruction. for the purposes of this study, differentiated instruction was defined in terms of tomlinson (2005) model of content, process, product, and culture. when one coach observed a first grade co-teaching team, she noted: materials were not tiered based on the students’ approximate levels of functioning. all students did all the same assignments since they rotated through all three groups. groups were not purposefully comprised of like ability students. this would have allowed the teachers to tailor the activities based on student ability. coaches guided the discussion with open-ended questions. in this situation, the co-teaching teams were often asked several things, including: (a) would grouping students based on specific needs help with differentiation? (b) would tiered assignments assist with groups of students at different levels? (c) what psct models would best support these groups of students? following the conversation, the team set goals that addressed the following: (a) using specific co-teaching models (parallel or station teaching) that would allow them to better differentiate instruction, and (b) exploring ways to tier the same assignment to fit the needs of students at various levels of ability. through this conversation, the teacher candidate gained a richer understanding of the necessity of differentiated instruction to meet the needs of her students. assessment. assessment was cited as a goal by 20 teams and focused on ways to use assessment to differentiate instruction. most observation reports threaded assessment throughout the narratives. for example, coaches noted the following in relation to assessment: differentiated instruction classroom management assessment 52   t. strieker, m. shaheen, d. hubbard, l. digiovanni & w. lim   1. coaches asked questions to prompt discussion related to assessment (example: how might you use assessment data to differentiate instruction for center placement?; how do you ensure readiness levels?) 2. coaches also noted ongoing assessment within the observation (i.e. differentiated center groups based on assessment data; daily assessments to place students; choosing co-teaching model based on assessment data). 3. in a few cases, the coaches made specific recommendations for the co-teaching teams in relation to assessment (i.e. ensure content is based on readiness levels; use pretest/post-test for differentiation; assess daily for differentiation). it should be noted that throughout the instructional coaching reports, the researchers identified a tendency of the coaches to recommend strategies and offer suggestions, rather than to ask questions and facilitate the dialogue in ways that elicited responses for the co-teaching teams. classroom management. as previously noted, many teacher candidates requested that their coaches assist them in developing their classroom management skills. while the collaborating teachers were always part of the process, in these instances our coaches routinely made very specific recommendations, exclusively to the teacher candidates. in most of these situations, the coaches made recommendations to increase appropriate behavior, in some instances the coaches were able to assist the teacher candidates in obtaining a deeper understanding of the complex nature of the classroom. for example, a fourth grade coach noted that, over the course of the semester, one teacher candidate needed to work on four behavior strategies that spanned management and instruction, including the following: (a) effective use of flexible groups; (b) planning engaging lessons; (c) preparing and implementing effective student transition strategies; (d) preparing and using a variety of guided reading approaches. the impetus for these recommendations was a lack of classroom management, but resulting dialogue required the teacher candidate to think deeply about the connections between student behavior, planning, and instruction. in cases such as this, the collaborating teacher served as constant mentor and model of appropriate, research-based practices as well as a sounding board during the conversations on complex problems of practice. in cases where specific recommendations were not necessary, the coaches were able to guide the conversations by asking more open-ended questions for the teacher candidate to ponder: as students finish, engagement issues start to come into play. what are some strategies to keep students engaged when others are still focusing on the activity? how do you balance the attention that students need as well as ensuring engagement of others? how does engagement impact classroom management? our coaches often assisted teacher candidates by conducting assessments of student engagement during the observation. one first grade coach offered to observe the class and take data on the number of students who were off-task, at 5-10 minute increments, after the teacher candidate gave the class instructions for completing the assignment. once the teacher candidate realized how many students were and were not engaged, she was able to adjust her instruction to increase attention to task. it should be noted that when the teacher candidates were exclusively in need of support in developing classroom management techniques, the coaches clearly became much more directive, offering highly specific recommendations that were tailored to the needs of the students and the teacher candidates. during this situation, the coaches worked closely with the ct who was asked to make her classroom management strategies transparent and explicit. transforming clinical practice 53 psct models utilized to support instruction during the seminar series, six models of co-teaching were discussed and analyzed for potential use within the elementary classroom instruction. according to the coaches’ observation data for 43 teams, the following breakdown of psct models demonstrated that they were explicitly used and stated within the coaches’ documentation. table 1. psct models employed during student teaching one teach/one assist 27 team teaching 38 parallel teaching 19 station teaching 47 alternative teaching 12 combination 19 (specified previously) one of the concerns at the outset of the pilot study was that teachers may tend to use only co-teaching models with which they are the most comfortable, typically one teach/one assist, and not necessarily the models that best suit the needs for differentiating p-5 student instruction. in analyzing the reports from the coaches, our co-teachers utilized the psct models that they felt worked well for the content that they were teaching, indicating intentionality in choosing strategies to best meet the needs of students. teachers in the lower grades showed a tendency for more station teaching, mirroring the center approach that is pedagogically sound for developmentally appropriate teaching. in analyzing this data further, it appeared that there was intentionality in implementing a variety of co-teaching models. of the 43 teams, only seven used one model during the course of each observation, while 17 teams used two models and 19 used three or more models at some point during their three observations. extended use of the models demonstrated greater fluidity between the co-teachers and sophistication of their use of the pedagogical practices. reflective dialogue of primary interest was the content of the reflective dialogue between the coaches, collaborating teachers and teacher candidates that typically followed the coach’s observations. during these sessions, all three participants had a chance to co-reflect on the co-teaching, and “just in time” pedagogical discussions were held directly related to coach observations. pedagogical questioning and recommendations fell into very specific categories (general coteaching approaches, classroom management strategies, and content-specific learning strategies/ general learning strategies). psct models. our coaches facilitated a great deal of conversation that focused on ways to better utilize the various models for instructional purposes. for example, coaches helped teams focus not only on the importance of purposefully choosing and planning specific models to differentiate instruction, but also emphasized how the physical location of station teaching might lead to improved student outcomes. additionally, the conversation addressed the use specific 54   t. strieker, m. shaheen, d. hubbard, l. digiovanni & w. lim   models of psct to increase their ability to differentiate instruction, and to increase students’ participation, independence, and engagement in the lesson. classroom management. as mentioned previously, many of our teacher candidates established goals that addressed classroom management. the subsequent observations and feedback sessions resulted in discussions on a wide range of research-based classroom management strategies, ranging from more general strategies (such as purposeful, flexible grouping, proximity of the co-teachers to students, and use of positive reinforcement) to more specific strategies (such as breaking down oral directions for individuals students, making material more manageable for struggling students, and having extensions available for advanced students). additionally, our co-teachers regularly engaged in dialog related to using the ct’s behavior management system to control students with disruptive behavior. behavior management strategies were highly varied and were dependent on each teacher candidate’s specific situation. behavior management strategies suggested by the coaches ranged from simple strategies (i.e., non-verbal cues; wait time; planning engaging lessons; matching lessons to ability level; decreasing transition times; positive language; etc.) to more specific strategies (reviewing behavior plans with teacher candidates and offering suggestions; offering seating charts and checklists to monitor specific students off-task during lessons for the purpose of targeting strategies at specific students; etc.). through these discussions, the teacher candidate’s became more knowledgeable about how to apply research-based strategies to manage their classrooms. in addition, the candidates increased their ability to justify their instructional decisions to increase student learning. while the instruction provided to the teacher candidate may have been necessary and productive, the coaches in this situation did not appear to be engaged in practices consistent with those emphasized in their professional development. content specific strategies/general learning strategies. in addition to facilitating dialogue related to employing the co-teaching models to manage their classrooms, the coaches led discussions on a wide variety of topics related to improving student learning. the researchbased strategies discussed ranged from general learning strategies (such as using teachable moments, setting expectations prior to the assignment, focusing more time on various portions of the lesson, and introducing one strategy at a time) to more content-specific strategies (i.e., using specific graphic organizers, guided reading strategies, pre-teaching vocabulary, strategies for struggling readers, and using assessment to inform instruction). the focus of these conversations was directly and intentionally related to the specific needs of each co-teaching team, specifically the teacher candidate. conclusions and implications of the study as noted in the introduction, teacher education is under intense scrutiny and is being asked by national accreditation agencies to essentially to turn teacher preparation “upside down” and focus on providing high quality clinical experience. to that end, colleges of education are developing more intentional partnerships with local school districts to provide yearlong clinical experiences, but with those more collaborative and extensive clinical experiences, come the need for additional and different types of resources to support the teacher candidates and the collaborating teachers. one of the major implications of this study is that instructional coaching is a potentially promising practice for supporting not only the teacher candidate, but also the collaborating teacher. while coaching is new to pre-service education, it has been used effectively for many years as a form of professional development for practicing teachers (knight, 2008). transforming clinical practice 55 our results indicate that with the support of this model, our teacher candidates were capable of assessing the current reality of their teaching, and establishing their own professional goals to guide their development as a teacher, particularly in the area of differentiating instruction. fostering teacher efficacy in this manner is unique within the context of a standardsbased teacher education environment where teacher candidates are routinely evaluated against a detailed set of professional standards. instructional coaching of pre-service teachers allows them to take risks and try new strategies in a safe space that is highly developmental. the developmental nature of the coaching was seen frequently when teacher candidates needed assistance with classroom management. pre-service teachers were highly transparent and seemed to know that the coach was there to provide assistance and frame their thinking about managing and skills in classroom management, rather than to provide a graded evaluation of their competence. results of this study also indicated that the instructional coach’s approach to coaching, and the collaborating teacher’s role in co-teaching, both changed rather dramatically when the teacher candidate required assistance in managing the classroom. at that point, the coach seemed to assume the roles of a clinical supervisor rather than a facilitator. when necessary, the coach focused exclusively upon the candidate and provided detailed direction, pointed out direct connections between instruction, engagement, and student behavior. similarly, the collaborating teacher seemed to assume a position of instructor and role model, making her practices and thinking more explicit. while these results certainly demonstrated the flexibility of our coaches in tailoring their practices to the needs of the teacher candidates, these approaches seem more closely aligned with clinical supervision than instructional or cognitive coaching (knight, 2008). when teacher candidates are under stress due to issues related to classroom management, the coaches and collaborating teachers are encouraged to remain in role and support the teacher candidate’s reflection and problem-solving. future research will need to address ways to support the coaches in increasing their facilitation and communication skills. in conclusion, these finding support the national movement for a more evidence-based approach to teacher education such as the implementation of edtpa. while these findings are preliminary, our pre-service co-teaching model seems to have the potential to assist teacher candidates in mastering the metacognitive aspect of the analysis of their teaching in a developmental way. in particular, the edtpa assessment asks candidates to identify evidence to justify their teaching decisions and strategies. in the narrative piece of the edtpa portfolio, it recommends that candidates use research and theory in understanding children’s learning behaviors or formulating action plans to improve instruction. through the cycle of psct, coaches can help teacher candidates align theory to practice as they grapple with complex problems of practice related to academic language, differentiation, assessment, and management. through the use of intentional goal setting strategies, teacher candidates can also monitor their own learning, reflect upon their growth, and devise personal plans of action to improve their practices. the instructional coaching approaches described in this paper, clearly mirror the edtpa process of assessing student learning, choosing pedagogical strategies that best match content and students, and analyzing teacher effectiveness. the effectiveness of using coaching as a means to support pre-service teachers with edtpa is an obvious next step in our research. for example, examining how collaborative dialogue impacts pre-service teachers’ responses in their narratives of edtpa and how co-teaching models may correlate with specific skill sets categorized within the edtpa tasks merit further research. 56   t. strieker, m. shaheen, d. hubbard, l. digiovanni & w. lim   limitations and future directions a major limitation of the study was the sample was one of convenience in that everyone who participated in the psct initiative was asked to participate in the study, and the researchers served as coaches or presenters in the professional development seminars. as previously noted, two of the researchers are also faculty in the department of elementary education and coached ten teacher candidates and their collaborating teachers. in the future, researchers in elementary education will research secondary programs and vice versa. the second limitation is that research participants are from elementary and early childhood teacher education program in a particular region in the united states, which reduces external validity of the study. to reach higher levels of external validity similar studies must be conducted in other colleges or universities in other parts of the united states. transforming clinical practice 57 references alliance for excellent education. 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(2007). researching teacher education practices: responding to the challenges, demands, and expectations of self-study. journal of teacher education, 58(1), 12–20 mckenzie, r. g. (2009). a national survey of pre-service preparation for collaboration. teacher education and special education: the journal of the teacher education and special education, 32(4), 379-393. national commission on teaching and america’s future. (2003). no dream denied: a pledge to america’s school children. washington, dc: author. national council for accreditation of teacher education (ncate). (2010). transforming teacher education through clinical practice: a national strategy to prepare effective transforming clinical practice 59 teachers. report to the blue ribbon panel on clinical preparation and partnerships for improved student learning. washington, dc. retrieved from www.ncate.org/publications roth, w.m., & tobin, k. (2002). at the elbows of another: learning to teach through co teaching. new york: ny: peter lang. roth, w.m., & boyd, n. (1999). coteaching, as colearning, as praxis. research in science education, 29(1), 51-67. roth, w.m., bowen, g.m., boyd, n., & boutonne, s. (1998). coparticipation as mode for learning to teach science. in w. liedke (ed.) connections. victoria, bc: university of victoria. roth, w.m., & boyd, n. (1998). science teaching as knowledgeability: a case for knowing and learning during co-teaching. science education, 82, 357-377. ross, d. d., & blanton, l. (2004). inquiry communities in special education teacher education. teacher education and special education, 27, 15-23. smith, r.d. (1993). mentoring new teachers: strategies, structures, and successes. teacher education quarterly, 20(4), 5-18. stayton, v.d., & mccollum, j. (2002). unifying general and special education: what does the research tell us? teacher education quarterly, 25, 211-218. stiggins, r., arter, j., chappuis, j., & chappuis, s. (2009). classroom assessment for student learning: doing it right using it well. new york, ny: allyn & bacon. tomlinson, c.a. (2005). differentiated instruction. theory into practice, 44, 185-273. trump, j., & miller, d. (1973). secondary school curriculum improvement. boston: allyn & bacon. york-barr, j., bacharach, n., salk, j., frank, j., & beniek, b. (2004). team teaching in teacher education: general and special education faculty experiences and perspectives. issues in teacher education, 13, 73-94. whitmore, j. (2002). coaching for performance: growing people, performance and purpose (3rd ed.). london: nicholas brealey. zigmond, a., & magiera, k. (2001). current practice alerts: a focus on co-teaching: use with caution. alerts, 6, 1-4. 60   t. strieker, m. shaheen, d. hubbard, l. digiovanni & w. lim   transforming clinical practice 61 appendix a pre-service co-teaching models the models listed below provide a framework for co-teachers to improve student learning. the models help co-teachers to determine instructional roles and responsibilities, how to group students, and meet diverse student needs. there is flexibility in the way students are grouped according to the models. co-teaching models description one teach-one observe • one co-teacher instructs whole group, and the other co-teacher observes teacher modeling/behaviors. • co-teachers set systematic targets for observation at periodic intervals including: questioning strategies, interaction patterns with students, classroom management, and instructional strategies. • through observation and note taking, one co-teacher takes data on checking for understanding. • systematic collaborative dialogue between ct and teacher candidate should take place to reflect and plan for instruction. one teach-one assist • one co-teacher takes the lead in instruction with whole group and the other co-teacher provides “on purpose instruction” when ready by providing: short lessons/support to individuals, teams, or small groups of students -follow-up to whole group instruction -correctives or positive feedback as needed -visuals, charts, examples, and add-in comments • both co-teachers stay tuned in to the progression of the lesson and anticipate where students may have difficulty. • systematic collaborative dialogue takes place between ct and teacher candidate. team teaching • whole class instruction, both teachers synchronously teaching. • instructional partnership with shared responsibilities. • both teachers are active, working with the class as a whole. • present content together building upon each other’s comments spontaneously. • can involve some short-term grouping of students with both teachers acting as facilitators. • systematic collaborative dialog between ct and teacher candidate should take place to reflect and plan for instruction. 62   t. strieker, m. shaheen, d. hubbard, l. digiovanni & w. lim   parallel teaching • class is divided into 2 approximately equal heterogeneous groups. • the same content is taught, but the content may be presented in different ways. • with smaller teacher to student ratio, some students respond more to class discussion than in a whole group situation. • provides more opportunities to differentiate. • systematic collaborative dialog between ct and teacher candidate should take place to reflect and plan for instruction. alternative teaching • based upon assessment results, the class is divided into a larger group and a smaller group for a short period of time. • different content/activities occur in each group based upon student needs. • the same students are not grouped each time – frequent assessments determine grouping strategies. • provides more opportunities for re-teaching, additional practice, as well as extension activities to challenge learners close to or at mastery of standards. • systematic collaborative dialog between ct and teacher candidate should take place to reflect and plan for instruction. station teaching • the class is divided into 3 or more stations with each co-teacher manning one of the stations and one or more independent stations. • stations (or centers) are designed around a standard with a breakdown of skills/knowledge. the lesson is segmented into important parts. • each student goes through the stations (although the stations can be spread out over several days, not just one class session). • there is a lower teacher-student ration allowing for more individualization and the independent stations can encourage student responsibility and cooperative learning. • teachers purposefully plan student groupings and consider many factors such as learning styles, abilities, student strengths, and weaknesses. • systematic collaborative dialog between ct and teacher candidate should take place to reflect and plan for instruction reflect and coproblem solve. miller 2022 educational renaissance vol. 11 (2022) teacher educat ors as cr it ical st oryt ellers: ef fect ive teachers and windows and mir rors libbi r. mil ler , edd. school of education, cal poly humboldt email: elizabeth.miller@humboldt.edu review of teacher educators as critical storytellers: effective teachers and windows and mirrors edited by: antonio l. ellis, nicholas d. hartlep, gloria ladson-billings, david o. stovall $90.00, hardback (isbn: 9780807765159) $29.95, paperback (isbn: 9780807765142) $29.95, ebook (isbn: 9780807779460) book review in their book, teacher educators as critical storytellers: effective teachers and windows and mirrors, editors antonio l ellis, nicolas d. hartlep, gloria ladson-billings and david o. stovall curated a collection of stories that pushback against the dominant and historical narratives that ?good? teachers are young, white and female (haberman, 2012). through the use of personal stories, the book successfully contributes to a broader, inclusive and culturally sustaining narrative of teaching and education related professions. the book includes professional and personal narratives from highly accomplished educators, educational researchers and leaders who were invited to tell the story of their most memorable teacher using indigeneity, race, and/or ethnicity lenses. the book draws on style?s (1996) ?windows? and ?mirrors? as a framework for disrupting the single story of teachers and teaching. through this framework, effective educators serve as both ?windows? and ?mirrors? for students. students must see themselves reflected racially and culturally through the mirror of the teaching population. while at the same time, students must be able to look through the windows of their teachers and their experiences to see opportunities beyond their current contexts. style (1996) contends that context influences education in a way that is impossible to disentangle. abst ract teacher educators as critical storytellers: effective teachers and windows and mirrors is a collection of curated of stories that pushback against the narratives that define a ?good? teacher. told through through critical storytelling methodology, the book draws on the ?windows? and ?mirrors? framework to invite multiplicies into the understanding of teachers. the book successfully contributes to a broader, inclusive and culturally sustaining narrative of teaching and education related professions and can be implemented as a text for learning with both preservice and inservice teachers. m iller| review: teacher educators as critical storytellers ?windows? and ?mirrors? recognize and validate this relationship between meaning-making and context, which allows for participants to then engage in larger dialogues between themselves and the world. the ?windows? and ?mirrors? of this collection invite multiplicies into the definition(s) of a ?good? teacher. these multiplicies broaden and complicate the discourse around who is the ideal teacher. through deeply rich and personal stories, the authors included in the book employ ?critical storytelling? methodology to explore the intertwined experiences of race, gender, lived and learned experiences in schools. critical storytelling is a form of auto-ethnography that creates a space for participants to tell their stories and validate their experiences (bolen, 2015). the storytelling aspect of this methodology invites reflexivity, which progresses movement towards social justice (fasset & warren, 2007). bolen (2015) notes that risks and vulnerability are associated with critical storytelling, but contends that there are also risks with silence. the risk of silence is particularly present in stories such as these that have traditionally been kept out of social science inquiry. teacher educators as critical storytellers: effective teachers and windows and mirror is divided into four parts: 1) african american perspectives: toward ?demographic? and ?democratic? imperatives, 2) asian american perspectives: beyond blackness and whiteness, 3) native american perspectives: indigeneity is not race, and 4) latinx perspectives: the latinization of education. in the collection, authors tell descriptive stories of their experiences with educators who maintained high standards while also acknowledging the strengths, experiences and funds of knowledge (moll et al., 1992) that the students brought with them to the learning environment. a critical component of the book is its position that optimism in itself will not lead to social change, but change requires critical interrogation of the systems that oppress which includes educational systems and spaces. each story in this book interweaves an analysis that draws on research in education, psychology and human development. throughout the text, the authors employ research and theoretical frameworks to explore their experiences from a broader perspective, while maintaining personal elements of their story. for example, author antonio ellis explores their experience with their high school music teacher, mr. mccloud, through the lens of ladson-billings (2009) ?dreamkeepers?. judy alston analyzes their teacher sister mary regis as a ?tempered radical? (meyerson, 2001) and a ?refined revolutionary? (alston, 2018). nicholas hartlep shares the story of their school counselor, mr. smith, through lenses of ?primary needs? (maslow, 1943), ?gentle teaching? (haberman, 2008), ?presentism? and ?active listening.? the storytelling component humanizes and brings to life educational research in a way that allows the reader to become immersed and, while limited by positionality, deepen their understanding of the experience. the intended audience of this collection is a broad range of educators including preservice and prospective teachers, inservice educators and administrators in both k-12 and higher education, teacher education scholars and researchers, as well as those working in educational policy. this text is highly recommended for use in educator preparation programs with preservice teachers and leaders, as well as inservice mentors. sections of the text provide short lists of recommendations for preservice and inservice teacher development. this book has potential to be highly impactful for preservice and inservice teachers, as they are able to read and engage with the text to develop recommendations and/or next steps in collaboration with their own community of practice. 42 m iller| review: teacher educators as critical storytellers references alston, j. (2018, february). #timesup: stepping out of the boat to lead. moving from tempered radical to refined revolutions [lecture]. mach iii: building on resilience lecture series at prairie view a& m university, prairie view, tx. bolen, d. m. (2015). critical stories, critical imaginations, and critical possibilit ies. in hartlep, n. d., & hensley, b. o. (eds.). critical storytelling in uncritical times. (pp. xi xv). springer. fassett, d. l., & nainby, k. (2017). critical communication pedagogy. in handbook of instructional communication (pp. 248-259). routledge. haberman, m. (2008). gentle teaching in a violent society. educational horizons, 86(4), 238-246. haberman, m. (2012). the myth of the ?fully qualified? bright young teacher. american behavioral scientist, 56(7), 926-940. ladson-billings, g. (2009). the dreamkeepers. successful teachers of african american children. jossey-bass. maslow, a (1943). a theory of human motivation. psychology review, 50(4), 370-396. meyerson, d. e. (2001). tempered radicals: how people use difference to inspire change at work. harvard business school. moll, l. c., amanti, c., neff, d., & gonzalez, n. (1992). funds of knowledge for teaching: using a qualitative approach to connect homes and classrooms. theory into practice, 31(2), 132-141. style, e. (1996). curriculum as window and mirror. social science record, 33(2), 21-28. 43 miller 2022 page 1 page 2 page 3 yun & bennett (2017) final .pdf educational renaissance vol. 6 (2017) shar ing t he responsibil i t y for teacher preparat ion: collaborat ive design of a teaching observat ion rubr ic cat hy yun, phd, california st at e universit y, fresno email: cyun@csufresno.edu lisa bennet t , phd, california st at e universit y, fresno email: lbennett@csufresno.edu research article based on current research and literature, scholars, experts, and school districts are calling for transformative change in how teachers are prepared toward programs built around a strong clinical practice model in partnership with school districts (grossman, 2010; national research council, 2010). the national center for teacher residencies (nctr, 2015) identified three necessary shifts for moving toward a clinically orientated teacher preparation program: 1) restructure clinical experiences, emphasizing competency-based assessments aligned to district and/or state measures; 2) revise courses to include more theory-to-practice connections and opportunities for simulations and rehearsals; and 3) build authentic and substantive collaborations with schools and school districts. the ongoing rubric work described in this proposal addresses all of these three shifts. the first shift is toward focus on clinical experiences in the field, with meaningful feedback, as a critical part of learning for novice teachers. many traditional models of teacher preparation privilege coursework and position fieldwork as a place where candidates have the option to try out coursework learning. recent critiques of such traditional models call for the clinical experience to be the central component, with prolonged time in the field, multiple opportunities to practice in authentic contexts, and intentional guidance or scaffolding (grossman, 2010). the rubric was created to help coaches focus on specific action-oriented competencies aligned to both district and state standards. the rubric provides a ?common language,? vetted by multiple stakeholders, supporting consistency and helping to prevent mixed messages or misinterpretations of jargon. using the rubric, various constituents can provide specific feedback and next steps for strengthening candidate practice. abst ract this case story describes the collaborative development and use of a teaching observation rubric to support and scaffold evidence-based changes in the focal educator preparation program (epp). the case highlights the power of epp-district collaborations for improving the teaching and coaching practices for both stakeholders while strengthening trust. additionally, this case demonstrates how the focal epp worked with districts to ease preservice-to-inservice transitions for novice teachers, through development of a feedback instrument that spans the transition, thereby decreasing teacher attrit ion within the first three years on the job. mailto:cyun@csufresno.edu mailto:lbennett@csufresno.edu yun & bennett | 2 sharing the responsibility for teacher preparation the second shift is toward stronger theory-to-practice connections, with rehearsal opportunities. a new course (?inquiry and puzzles of practice?) provides a structured safe space for candidates to engage in their own inquiries. within this course, candidates will become familiar with the rubric, use it to guide curriculum design, and practice with it as they observe each other. this course will continue throughout the program so as candidates grow in their practice and gain experience with the rubric, they will be able to internalize what ?good teaching? looks like and self-monitor development across different competencies. the third shift is toward building authentic and substantive partnerships with schools and school districts. the collaborative rubric work has fostered deeper relationships between the two ihes and three partner districts based on shared vision and trust. the rubric was developed by synthesizing existing district observation tools, and aligning this synthesis to the new state standards. because the school districts have committed to using the rubric through induction for new teachers, program completers will have a more seamless entry into the local workforce (nctr, 2015). the rubric will support not only better prepared first year teachers but also new teacher retention by easing the preservice-to-inservice transition. in order for feedback to bridge the worlds of preservice and inservice, it must be relevant to the intersecting standards and goals of epps and partnering districts. maintaining relevance to a dynamic policy landscape can be challenging for epps as state and national standards for curriculum, preservice teacher performance, and inservice teacher performance continue to evolve. partnering with school districts can help epps remain relevant to practitioners and smooth the transition into the field for novice teachers. for school districts, partnering with epps can provide access to resources and cutting-edge evidence-based practices. frequently, school and district administrators struggle to operationalize ?good teaching? and to provide meaningful feedback to classroom teachers that will help improve their practice in non-threatening ways. the collaborative process described in this case story resulted in development of an observation feedback instrument that explicitly bridges the preservice-to-inservice transition, aligns to both preservice and inservice teacher state standards, operationalizes evidence-based pedagogical practices, and provides consistent language for action-oriented constructive feedback throughout the novice to expert continuum. addressing puzzles of pract ice rubric development emerged as a solution that could address multiple ?puzzles of practice? for the case epp which leveraged these puzzles to initiate conversations with regional partners. the epp was facing newly revised preservice state standards, a need to update candidates? clinical experiences, and a campus initiative to reduce fees for students -all while remaining responsive to regional needs. in response to these puzzles of practice, the case epp chose to locally develop a standards-aligned, research-based teaching observation instrument for providing meaningful feedback to candidates in the field. to develop as reflective practitioners, preservice candidates require consistent high-quality, standards-based feedback and opportunities for facilitated next-steps planning that builds toward effective instruction. many traditional models of teacher preparation privilege coursework and position fieldwork as a place where candidates have the option to try out coursework learning. recent critiques of such traditional models call for the clinical experience to be the central component, with prolonged time in the field, multiple opportunities to practice in authentic contexts, and intentional guidance or scaffolding (grossman, 2010). various feedback instruments are available; however, most are aligned to national rather than state standards (e.g., intasc), and they frequently require usage fees that are passed along to candidates (e.g., danielson, 2013). such fees are problematic for regions with high yun & bennett | 3 sharing the responsibility for teacher preparation poverty rates and epps with food-insecure candidates (jargowsky, 2015). to address these puzzles related to state-specific standards alignment and equitable access for teacher candidates, and based on recommendations in the extant literature, the epp developed the continuum of reflective, engaging, and accessible teaching rubric (create rubric) in partnership with another epp and three school districts. this case story describes the collaborative process of these two epps and three school districts in developing a common rubric to provide action-oriented formative feedback for new teachers while they are teaching in the field. the rubric focuses on specific action-oriented competencies aligned to both district and state standards, and provides a ?common language,? vetted by multiple stakeholders, supporting consistency and helping to prevent mixed messages or misinterpretations of jargon. using the rubric, various constituents can provide specific feedback and next steps to strengthen practice for any teacher along the novice to expert continuum. furthermore, because each competency is represented in the rubric as a separate continuum, the rubric can help identify each teacher?s individual zone of proximal development (vygotsky, 1978) and help teacher educators provide tailored and targeted scaffolding. thus, the rubric provides a way to create practice profiles across multiple competencies that can help document teacher development over time. collaborat ive par t ners and cont ext the create rubric was developed over a period of 18 months in collaboration with a second epp (epp-2) and three of the major area school districts. the focal epp leveraged existing relationships to engage program coordinators from both epps and high-level district administrators from the three districts in this collaborative process. the focal epp is a regional comprehensive university in the western united states and is one of the largest epps in the state. the region that the epp serves is lingusticallylinguistically and culturally diverse but is challenged by high poverty rates (25.5%) and low educational attainment (19.7% have a ba or higher) (fc economic development corporation, 2017). create rubric development was launched in concert with other initiatives and innovations at the focal epp, which were all part of a comprehensive program revision and rebranding effort. incorporating rubric development into a larger strategic plan and vision for the epp allowed the focal epp to use resources and leverage existing relationships in creative ways to accomplish the work. rubr ic developm ent rubric development began with close examination of the new state standards. the focal epp first met with each school district team and the epp-2 team separately to carefully review the new preservice standards. each team analyzed the six standards and 45 substandards to identify those that are critical for novice teachers and could be directly observed in a classroom setting. the selected observable standards were compared and synthesized across teams, with nearly 100% consensus across all constituents regarding which observable standards should be represented on the rubric. from this analysis, 14 rubric items were developed, aligned to 17 preservice substandards. next, extant district inservice rubrics were synthesized and incorporated into create so that it could be aligned and used across districts as a continuum of development from novice to expert teacher. different districts? inservice rubrics varied in regard to complexity and explicitness of how inservice standards were operationalized. these three district inservice rubrics were coded and synthesized to develop evidence-based language for common ?look-fors? as descriptive anchors in the more advanced performance categories of create. based on the analysis and synthesis of the three inservice district rubrics, seven performance categories were developed for create: five (unobserved, attempting, exploring, emerging, developing) spanning the expected developmental trajectory of preservice teachers and two (skillful, yun & bennett | 4 sharing the responsibility for teacher preparation masterful) extending teacher development into inservice practice. integration of the district inservice rubrics into create explicitly bridges the instrument from preservice to inservice. once the structure of create was built, the most recent literature and evidence in teacher preparation was consulted in operationalizing the practices and strategies associated with culturally sustaining pedagogy (paris, 2012), developmentally appropriate practices (bredekamp, 1997), and universal design for learning (meyer, rose, & gordon, 2014; hall, meyer, & rose, 2012; meyer, rose, & gordon, 2014). these three frameworks were operationalized based on evidence-based practices, theoretical foundations, and language woven throughout the preservice and inservice state standards. research on rubric development and testing was also consulted during initial development. for example, in a comprehensive review of published empirical research on rubrics jonsson and svingby (2007) outlined five major considerations of reliable rubrics: 1. benchmarks increase agreement, but should be chosen with care (denner, salzman, & harris, 2002; popp, ryan, thompson, & behrens, 2003); 2. analytical scoring is preferable (johnson, penny, & gordon, 2000; johnson, penny, & gordon, 2001; penny, johnson, & gordon, 2000a; penny, johnson, & gordon, 2000b); 3. training is necessary but not sufficient for inter-rater agreement (stuhlmann, daniel, dellinger, denny, & powers, 1999; weigle, 1999); 4. topic-specific rubrics are more generalizable and dependable than generic rubrics (deremer, 1998; marzano, 2002); 5. careful consideration should go into the number of levels on the rating scale. these research-based recommendations were used as guidelines to ensure development of a reliable and valid instrument. rubr ic st ruct ure the create rubric includes 14 items, aligned to preservice and inservice state standards. the 14 items are organized into four sections: positive environment, instructional design and implementation, rigorous and appropriate content, and reflection-in-action. each of the 14 items is rated along a seven-point developmental continuum with the following rating categories: unobserved, attempting, exploring, emerging, developing, skillful, and masterful. each rating category has an anchor descriptor that operationalizes each of the 14 items with action-oriented, observable ?look-fors.? table 1 summarizes the 14 items. district partners and epps participated in initial create testing and refining through joint classroom visits and debriefing sessions. district administrators, epp teacher educators, and classroom teachers completed surveys to provide expert feedback on each item. after this initial round of field testing in spring 2017, each rubric item was revised based on feedback data. during fall 2017, the create rubric was piloted on a small scale, with data and feedback loops regarding training, calibration process, and usability (including time, costs, challenges). the create rubric is currently undergoing reliability and validity testing. rubr ic test ing create is currently undergoing a rigorous testing and vetting process. multiple sources of data are being used to evaluate the validity, reliability, and practice-based value of create. in the initial design, construct validity was addressed through alignment of the rubric anchor descriptors to theory, evidence-based practices, local district standards, and state standards. internal consistency will be explored using cronbach?s alpha and exploratory factor analysis. content validity can be addressed through careful selection of items (anastasi & urbina, 1997) as well as expert feedback. for every item on the rubric, experts (e.g., teacher educators, school administrators, classroom teachers, fieldwork coaches) complete a short researcher-developed feedback survey (foxcroft, paterson, le roux, & herbst, 2004) to yun & bennett | 5 sharing the responsibility for teacher preparation rate: 1) extent to which the item is observable, 2) degree of alignment between rubric item/indicator and standard, 3) degree of face validity, and 4) extent to which the item and indicator reflect positive teaching practices. criterion validity will be examined through comparing candidate scores on rubric items with qualitative observation notes, course grades, teacher performance assessment scores, and post-completion employer ratings. inter-rater reliability is being established through rigorous initial training and paired observation sessions, comparing observer rubric ratings with those of the rubric developers. observers will be required to recertify annually. throughout the validation process, rubric data usability will be examined for tracking individual candidate growth, providing targeted just-in-time scaffolds for candidates, fostering reflective practice in candidates, and tracking overall program efficacy. in addition to previously mentioned comparisons, usability analyses will utilize data from semi-annual focus groups, candidate exit surveys, and district administrator feedback. im plicat ions decontextualized, summative teacher observation protocols do not foster engagement in cycles of reflective practice and continuous improvement. development and adoption of the create rubric across epps and partner districts has the potential to support evidence-based practices at multiple levels for multiple constituents (i.e., candidate, coaches, program, regional) and will provide both qualitative and quantitative evidence to inform practice on a system-, and potentially, statewide level. create rubric adoption will provide data for monitoring progress of candidates and for guiding epp continuous improvement efforts. in addition to the innovation of the rubric itself, the development process has deepened the level of collaboration and understanding between epp and district stakeholders. in developing, testing, revising, and validating the create rubric, it has been necessary to have difficult conversations around pedagogy, equity, curriculum, and standards. these conversations have fostered growth and new understanding for all involved parties. district stakeholders have had to acknowledge that every teacher (even star veteran teachers) has potential to grow; epp stakeholders have had to recognize the need to more substantively model and require rigor, pedagogical content knowledge, and inclusive culturally sustaining pedagogical practices. future collaborative work also includes alignment of create to other standards and frameworks (e.g., ngss; intasc) to increase usability. development of the rubric and buy-in of partner districts and epps to utilize it are examples of the kinds of work that can be accomplished through the research-based practice of working in partnership with the larger community. this case story demonstrates an example of how collaboration between epps and districts can result in powerful initiatives that can inform the field. by sharing our work in progress, we hope to encourage other ihes to consider the potential impact of similar collaborations within their own contexts. yun & bennett | 6 sharing the responsibility for teacher preparation table 1 create rubric items and item description section & item item description a. positive environment 1: caring community implementation of systems and routines for behavior intervention, restorative justice, and conflict resolution 2: inclusive learning environment classroom climate including considerations regarding physical safety, psychological safety, tone, peer interactions, and inclusive practices 3: high expectations classroom includes scaffolded high expectations for all learners, opportunities for students to practice self-regulation, differentiated instruction based on the learners in the context. 4: positive behavior expectations routines, procedures, and norms established and maintained in the classroom 5: reflection, assessment, & self-assessment a culture of reflective practice, which includes self-assessment, teacher assessment with high quality feedback, opportunities for revisions based on feedback, a culture of intellectual risk-taking, and encouragement of metacognitive thinking about engagement, learning, and behavior. 6: funds of knowledge familiarity with and leveraging of students? funds of knowledge b. instructional design & implementation 7: student motivation, engagement, & active learning engagement and motivation of students through design and implementation of a range of instructional activities that incorporate the needs and interests of the learners in the classroom. 8: varied strategies use of multiple developmentallyappropriate strategies and resources, technology, principles of udl, tiered support and scaffolds, and differentiation 9: research-based instruction for emergent bilinguals and students with special needs use of research-based instructional approaches to provide a supportive learning environment for first and/or second language acquisition and student with special needs. c. rigorous & appropriate content 10: critical & creative thinking opportunities for students to engage in critical and creative thinking 11: subject matter knowledge teacher application of subject matter knowledge, standards, and frameworks 12: content accessibility supports and scaffolds to ensure curriculum and content are accessible to all students 13: interdisciplinary integration subject specific pedagogy, integration across content areas, and incorporation of visual and performing arts d. reflection-in-action 14: monitoring student learning & adjusting instruction teacher monitoring of student learning, instructional modifications, and differentiation yun & bennett | 7 sharing the responsibility for teacher preparation figure 1 sample item from create rubric (yun & bennett, 2017) yun & bennett | 8 sharing the responsibility for teacher preparation references anastasi, a., & urbina, s. (1997). psychological testing (7th ed.). upper saddle river, nj: prentice-hall. bredekamp, s. (1997). naeyc issues revised position statement on developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood programs. young children, 52(2), 34-40. retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/42727311 danielson, c. (2013). the framework for teaching: evaluation instrument. princeton, nj: danielson group. denner, p. r., salzman, s. a., & harris, l. b. (2002, feb.). teacher work sample assessment: an accountability method that moves beyond teacher testing to the impact of teacher performance on student learning. paper presented at the 54th annual meeting of the american association of colleges for teacher education, new york, ny. deremer, m. l. (1998). writing assessment: raters' elaboration of the rating task. assessing writing, 5(1), 7-29. foxcroft, c., paterson, h., le roux, n., & herbst, d. 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(2015). architecture of segregation: civil unrest, the concentration of poverty, and public policy. washington dc: the century foundation. retrieved from https:// tcf.org/assets/downloads/jargowsky_arc hitectureofsegregation.pdf johnson, r. l., penny, j., & gordon, b. (2000). the relation between score resolution methods and interrater reliability: an empirical study of an analytic scoring rubric. applied measurement in education, 13, 121-138. johnson, r. l., penny, j., & gordon, b. (2001). score resolution and the interrater reliability of holistic scores in rating essays. written communication, 18, 229-249. jonsson, a., & svingby, g. (2007). the use of scoring rubrics: reliability, validity and educational consequences. educational research review, 2, 130-144. marzano, r. j. (2002). a comparison of selected methods of scoring classroom assessments. applied measurement in education, 15, 249-268. meyer, a., rose, d. h., & gordon, d. 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(2017). continuum of reflective, engaging, and accessible teaching (create) rubric [rubric and manual]. unpublished instrument. fresno, ca: fresno state. educational renaissance vol. 9 (2020) suppor t ing teacher candidat es dur ing covid-19: lessons learned char lene at k ins, phd. university of central missouri email: catkins@ucmo.edu angela danley, edd. university of central missouri email: danley@ucmo.edu case story when the 2020 spring semester started in january, instructors at the university of central missouri were prepared to continue delivering instruction in a face to face setting. additionally, the supervised clinical practicum for elementary and early childhood education majors had been coordinated and confirmed with eight school districts. teacher candidates (tcs) were entering their final semester of undergraduate coursework, including embedded clinical practicums, in preparation of the subsequent fall student teaching assignment. face to face interactions are extremely valuable when preparing tcs for the student teaching experience. this in-person contact allows course instructors and practicum supervisors opportunities to support student growth while providing tcs opportunities to build the knowledge and confidence necessary for success in the student teaching placement to follow (collopy & arnold, 2009). each tc, at this institution, was scheduled to complete two, seven to eight-week, clinical practicum experiences in a k-12 school building. tcs were prepared to work with pre-determined cooperating teachers in early childhood and elementary classrooms two full days each week. the practicum allows the tcs to build relationships with in-service teachers and elementary students while gaining a strong understanding of the school community?s culture by working side by side with two cooperating teachers. one of these two practicum placements later becomes the student teaching placement for the following semester. the clinical practicum is a critical component of the educator preparation program because it allows tcs the opportunity to apply what they have learned in their undergraduate courses to the elementary and early childhood classrooms (symons et al., 2020). by mid-march, approximately eight weeks into the semester, the tcs at this missouri university were abst ract this article provides the personal account of two professors who reflect on the challenges of teacher education preparation due to covid-19. they discuss the swift transition from face to face instruction to virtual learning and teaching including inequities faculty and teacher candidates faced during remote learning, obstacles surrounding state requirements for practicums and certification along with the social emotional impact. suggestions for moving forward, based on the lessons learned, include additional supports for teacher candidates. as this was a new experience faced by teacher education programs in the united states, relevant literature is limited. mailto:catkins@ucmo.edu mailto:danley@ucmo.edu atkins & danley| supporting teacher candidates during covid-19 already in a comfortable routine, completing thirteen credit hours of face to face undergraduate coursework while working side by side with their cooperating teacher in the first 8week placement. tcs were actively engaged with university instructors completing assignments in communication arts integration, curriculum design and assessment in mathematics, curriculum and assessment, and classroom management courses. during the first 8-week placement, tcs developed and implemented required lessons receiving feedback from both their cooperating teacher and university instructor. the tcs had the opportunity to conduct a number talk and implement a launch, explore, summarize lesson for their curriculum design and assessment in mathematics course along with a vocabulary mini lesson and comprehension lesson for communication arts integration. tcs were eager to begin their second placement after spring break and understood the expectations for completing a writing lesson to analyze authentic student work in communication arts integration, a science or social studies lesson in curriculum and assessment, and additional mathematics lessons for curriculum design and assessment in mathematics. tcs also understood the rigor and relevance surrounding each of these field embedded assignments. all of this came to a halt in mid-march 2020 as they entered their spring break week. on march 16, 2020, tcs received notification that clinical practicums were being canceled for the remainder of the spring semester. partner school districts were also notified of this, while they too were facing cancelations due to the circumstances the nation was experiencing with covid-19. considering the health of our students, instructors, classroom students, and field experience supervisors, senior university administrators made the decision to end all field experiences, regardless of whether our partner districts returned to face-to-face classrooms. tcs were also notified that their undergraduate education classes would all be delivered completely online for the remainder of the semester. university instructors were provided one week following spring break to transition to a virtual teaching and learning format. instructors and tcs had access to blackboard, a learning management system, and access to zoom, a virtual meeting host, to make the transition easier despite other challenges. in the weeks that followed, the authors took advantage of opportunities to reflect on the online delivery of instruction, challenges that instructors and tcs faced while attempting to replicate the practicum experience, and the need to collaborate with other instructors to provide meaningful experiences preparing tcs for virtual teaching and learning in the future. this time also brought to light the need for additional resources for tcs along with training in culturally responsive teaching and trauma informed care. cont ext of t he challenges due t o covid-19 across the nation, teacher education programs were faced with challenges similar to the challenges school districts faced with transitioning to a virtual learning environment. transitioning a traditionally face to face class to an online platform, in a very short time frame, created a state of distress for both tcs and instructors. anxiety was heightened due to the unknown of what the remainder of the semester would look like before heading into student teaching in fall 2020. this was supported by the thoughts of delamarter and ewart (2020), ?for many of our candidates, the normal fears and anxieties that surround student teaching have been magnified to the point of that even our most promising student teachers feel overwhelmed and panicked? (p.1). just as delmarter and ewart (2020) pointed out in their article, instructors of teacher education programs were faced with how to address the tcs? fears and anxieties in a way that would still afford opportunities to facilitate their growth. students expressed anxieties over completion of their education program, meeting state required observation hours, their personal health, struggles with online learning and successful course 32 atkins & danley| supporting teacher candidates during covid-19 completion, and staying connected with instructors and peers. becoming a teacher requires being flexible and responding to unfamiliar situations, such as the above mentioned anxieties. though being faced with these situations can help facilitate personal and pedagogical growth (christie et al., 2015; fulford, 2016), the challenges educators faced due to covid-19 also lead to panic, exhaustion, and virtual conferencing fatigue (skylar, 2020). the nation?s teachers scrambled to manage new challenges when rushed to provide virtual learning (gewartz, 2020). challenges faced dur ing t he ear ly st ages of t he pandem ic in this article, two professors of education at the university of central missouri provide an overview on the impact of covid-19 which includes discussion of the obstacles related to moving to virtual learning and replacing the valuable clinical practicum. challenges focused on modifications made for field embedded lessons, inequity issues faced by faculty and tcs, state requirements for education preparation, and the social emotional impacts of unexpectedly moving to distance education formats. additionally, the authors provide suggestions for moving forward during the pandemic or in the event of any emergency which results in virtual learning and teaching. modifications to field embedded lessons the authors were charged with not only adapting face to face cooperative learning structures to online delivery, but with designing activities to replicate the experiential learning that takes place in the elementary and early childhood classroom during the clinical practicum. both authors share examples of adjustments made to course curriculum and implementation strategies along with their personal challenges. the authors also share observations of student morale as a result of the quick transition to virtual learning, in the following paragraphs. in the curriculum design and assessment in mathematics course, students were initially required to develop and teach a three-phase mathematics lesson. this expectation was designed to provide students the opportunity to not only develop a high-quality lesson involving a launch, exploration and summary, but also to experience teaching this lesson to elementary students. teaching the lesson would allow the tcs to practice and strengthen their instructional skills while providing an opportunity for the cooperating teacher to observe and provide feedback. tcs would also have been able to analyze the student work collected to practice their assessment skills. in place of this practicum expectation, tcs were asked to watch a quality classroom teacher implement a mathematics lesson via video and to complete an observation, including an analysis and reflection, of this lesson. though the tcs were still able to think critically about the lesson design and implementation, they were not able to experience first-hand the interaction with elementary and early childhood students nor were they able to assess student work from this particular task or receive feedback from, their cooperating teachers, on instructional strategies employed. for the communication arts integration course, tcs were to develop a writing lesson to teach in their second placement. tcs would then take the writing samples collected and analyze the class set of writing. tcs were to also develop a rubric, create instructional strategies and activities on moving the students forward with their writing. this project provides the tcs the opportunity to analyze data and make informed instructional decisions. due to the cancellation of the practicum experience, an alternative assignment connected to the original writing lesson was given. tcs were given a selection of first grade samples to analyze on either narrative, informational, or opinion writing. the tcs were asked to develop a rubric to score the samples and make informed instructional decisions based on the results. this alternative assignment provided the tcs the opportunity to experience the work they would have done in the classroom, but they were not afforded the opportunity to learn from the 33 atkins & danley| supporting teacher candidates during covid-19 implementation phase and observation feedback. the authors found it challenging to develop alternative lessons, tasks and assignments given the short time frame of moving to virtual instruction. this required the authors to create new scoring rubrics, seek appropriate videos and writing samples, modify the course schedule including due dates of assignments, plan and schedule virtual class meetings, and develop online instructional materials. these challenges have served as unique learning experiences for both students and instructors. even though the authors were able to develop appropriate and successful alternative assignments, the challenge of providing field experiences remains a concern. students? anxieties appeared to lessen as more virtual class meetings occurred. even though practicum requirements had been waived, students did express disappointment surrounding the lack of in-person field experience with elementary and early childhood students and mentor teachers. additionally, students shared that they missed being able to interact with instructors and peers in-person. inequities in tcs experience with virtual learning prior to the transition to distance learning, tcs were in a routine to attend face to face classes one day a week from 8:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and were placed in the elementary and early childhood classrooms completing their clinical practicum two full days a week. while tcs were in the elementary and early childhood classrooms, they worked side-by-side with a mentoring teacher. this provided opportunities for co-teaching and implementing course required lessons while receiving immediate feedback from both the mentoring teacher and the university supervisor. this also provided university supervisors first-hand experience of tcs dispositions. as public school districts began to close, across the state of missouri, tcs were informed teaching and learning would take place virtually for the remainder of the spring semester. some university instructors held synchronous online courses while others offered asynchronous formats. in place of weekly face to face course meetings for both communication arts integration and curriculum design and assessment in mathematics, students began attending weekly synchronous virtual class meetings. all tcs had the means to access the learning management system, blackboard. however, tcs had limited exposure to best practices in educational technology built-in to their program of study. students previously completed a one-credit hour technology course, which focused on tools and resources but did not include other valuable elements of distance education. this course allowed students many opportunities to learn about and practice using educational applications with a focus on integrating technology in a face to face course. a one-credit hour course does not allow time devoted to additional areas of importance such as etiquette and equity, course development, and online organization. out of concern for student access, the university provided hot spots and devices, such as laptops and ipads, for students who did not have adequate equipment available. however, several students were unable to attend virtual course meetings as a result of limited access to high-speed internet. tcs were also accustomed to weekly face to face interactions with peers and instructors. these interactions were an integral part of learning opportunities. when moved to virtual learning, there was litt le time to prepare faculty or students on how to maintain those established relationships. some faculty had prior experience in delivering instruction online and hosting virtual conferences, while others lacked the level of experience and confidence of their colleagues. there were some faculty who previously completed the university?s mandatory training for delivering online instruction, yet others had not yet had the opportunity to do so. faculty who participated in the quality matters (qm) training and/or the association of college and university educators (acue) training volunteered to be a point of contact for colleagues who requested assistance with delivery of instruction and troubleshooting (2020). qm, a non-profit quality assurance organization, instills a culture focused 34 atkins & danley| supporting teacher candidates during covid-19 on effective delivery of instruction (association of college and university educators, 2020). acue focuses on effective teaching practices centered on building a community of learners to ensure each student receives a meaningful educational experience. according to heitner and jennings (2016), ?a lack of understanding about culturally responsive issues and practices to meet the needs and expectations of online learners can lead to miscommunication, mistrust, poor guidance, frustration, attrit ion, and delayed program completion? (p. 2). inequities in online instruction occur when only a few faculty are trained and when students are not exposed to what it means to be in a distance education setting. inadequate accessibility to necessary tools and equipment along with limited training creates barriers for both students and faculty. practicum experiences and state certification requirements requirements of the state department of education are critical components of teacher preparation programs, to ensure each tc obtains certification after successful completion of student teaching and required state-level assessments. in the state of missouri, mid-level tcs are expected to have a minimum of 45 clock hours of practicum experience (missouri department of elementary and secondary education, 2014). additionally, the missouri department of elementary and secondary education (2020) requires successful completion of the missouri content assessment (moca). tcs must score a 220 on the 100 300 scale as well as score 42 points on the missouri educator evaluation system (mees). on april 7, 2020, the missouri state governor responded to the challenges universities were facing regarding practicum experiences and tc certification. the governor issued a waiver on practicum experiences, student teaching, and qualifying scores for the state and educator evaluation system. this eliminated some students? level of apprehension for the 2020 spring semester, but still left concern for the fall 2020 semester. social emotional impact while students and instructors struggled to overcome the challenges surrounding field embedded lessons, inequity issues, and state certification requirements, it became clear that some students and instructors were also struggling with the social and emotional impact of business closures and social distancing guidelines. though many of our students and instructors regularly participated in social media activities prior to the pandemic, many more became frequent users of platforms such as facebook, instagram, and twitter during the period of isolation. to combat the symptoms of depression and inspire good mental health and mindful practices, faculty at this university came together to develop engaging and motivating activities for students and instructors. for example, many instructors created short video clips, shared via social media, to send positive messages for all education majors reminding them that we were all in this situation together and recommending students take advantage of the unexpected opportunity to get outdoors, practice self-care, start a new hobby, and increase communications with instructors, classmates, friends and family. one of the authors has shared her personal video for tcs and faculty, which can be accessed via youtube. tcs were encouraged to build team videos and challenge students of other programs to do the same. mindful messages from the trauma informed care team were sent daily to encourage positive thinking and promote active communication. instructors reached out to their students more frequently and at new levels to promote student engagement with classmates and teachers. one example of a mindful message shared with students and faculty was the suggestion of keeping a weekly gratitude journal. students and faculty received the following mindful message: at the end of each day this week, write down a few things that you appreciate. this could be actual things, like your favorite sneakers. or it could be something that happened, or a place where you felt comfortable, or someone who was nice to you. students responded with 35 atkins & danley| supporting teacher candidates during covid-19 positive comments stating that they enjoyed the mindful messages so these continued into the 2020 summer and fall semesters. sum m ary of t he challenges initially, students and faculty were faced with multiple unexpected challenges and obstacles including removal from clinical practicums, alterations to field embedded lessons, inequity issues, uncertain impacts on state requirements for certification, and the emotional waves of these challenges along with the additional anxiety created by social distancing practices. eventually, the challenges mentioned above and identified obstacles became problem-solving opportunities and learning experiences. faculty learned new instructional strategies for virtual teaching while students developed online learning skills. tcs developed a deeper understanding for trials classroom teachers might face and the need to be flexible and remain positive even in extremely difficult situations. instructors also identified areas of strengths and weaknesses in the current educator preparation program. the value of educational technology and distance education platforms came to light for many who thought they would never encounter such a situation. the importance of quality communication, collaboration and cooperation at all levels was amplified during this unprecedented time. moving forward reflecting on this sudden shift in education allowed instructors an opportunity to identify areas of strengths and weaknesses in the current educator preparation program. specifically, areas that need to be improved in order to better prepare tcs for a smooth transition to virtual teaching and learning in the event this type of situation should reoccur. areas to focus on include best practices in virtual learning and teaching, resources for tcs to use in their own learning and future teaching, substitutions for practicum experiences, culturally responsive teaching in a virtual learning format, and trauma informed care. focusing on these areas will ensure a successful experience for tcs in the distance education environment. the authors elaborate on these specific areas in the following sections. virtual learning and teaching module one area immediately identified was the lack of distance education preparation for virtual teaching and learning environments. this gap in student knowledge and skills will be addressed by the development and implementation of a principles of virtual teaching and learning module. this module was created by a task force composed of university professors of educational technology and instructors of elementary education courses. content of this learning module includes topics related to ethics, etiquette, and equity, along with curriculum design and implementation, assessment strategies, communication, organization and time management, and tips for learning as an online student. module lessons include short videos, informational text, web-links, and self-assessments. the module will be available to tcs as a blackboard community so that tcs will be able to complete the module at their own pace. once students have successfully completed each section of this module, they will earn a completion badge. once all badges are earned, students will receive an e-certificate. this certificate will be included as an additional requirement to be met before approval to student teach is granted. this learning module will be beneficial for tcs delivering online instruction to k-12 students during practicums and student teaching experiences. it will also serve to prepare tcs as online students of distance education, should they return to an online classroom in the future. this module also serves as a stepping stone for the later development of a full course on distance education. due to the short time between the end of the spring semester and the beginning of the fall semester, along with the current uncertainty of what the fall semester may bring, a module was preferred to a full course creation at this time. a full course creation must be vetted through the university curriculum process which can take up to one year, however a learning module can begin to 36 atkins & danley| supporting teacher candidates during covid-19 bridge the gaps while a full course is in the development phase. resources for teacher candidates when tcs transitioned to online learning, the need for equipment and resources increased. providing a variety of resources such as technology tools and recommendations for teaching online became imperative. in preparation of this or any similar situation happening again, a resource document for technology support was developed for tcs with information on how to obtain a laptop and hotspot. as some tcs will be returning to in-person practicums, the college of education will be providing additional equipment, such as ipads, swivls, and headsets, for tcs who will need to live stream their lessons or record lessons for their university supervisors to evaluate. this informational document will be sent to the tcs in a timely and efficient manner to make the transition to virtual learning as smooth as possible. information regarding the availability of equipment will also be shared with student teachers and their university supervisors during virtual team meetings. additionally, as a future teacher, tcs will need simple and clear access to information on the state?s certification and assessment requirements. tcs will need to have a clear understanding of changes in state exam policies and of any waivers put in place. substitutions for practicum experience practicum experiences are a vital part of the teacher education preparation program. when k-12 schools were canceled across the region, cooperating teachers were unprepared to best serve tcs in their practicum experience. it is imperative for instructors at all levels to collaborate and communicate regarding resources available, such as model teaching videos for tcs to continue to reflect on teaching practices. additionally, collaborating with district administrators on virtual observation opportunities is also needed to ensure proper protocol is put into place to allow this type of online field experience. in a study conducted by karchmer-klein (2007), results indicated the virtual practicum experience created opportunities to focus on the instructional issues. however, karchmer-klein stated that the virtual practicum experience does not replace time in the classroom, but does compliment a traditional teacher education program. when considering virtual practicum experiences in the future, the following questions karchmer-klein (2007) addressed in her study can be used: how does a virtual practicum create opportunities to learn ways to manage technology integration in the classroom? how does a virtual practicum create opportunities to learn ways to integrate technology into literacy instruction? how does a shared practicum experience allow preservice teachers to engage in class discussions and problem-solve issues confronted in their host classrooms? ( p. 122) having an alternative plan for practicum experiences means planning ahead and working with school partnerships which will ensure a successful experience for all involved. additionally, it will be imperative to work with the state education department on any changes made to teacher certification requirements. culturally responsive teaching in a virtual learning format due to the unique characteristics each student and instructor brings to the course, a virtual classroom can present challenges that can impact the efficacy of teaching and student learning (heitner & jennings, 2016). the need to provide faculty professional development on culturally responsive teaching practices is necessary to make the online experience successful for all participants. providing faculty professional development on the importance of maintaining learning partnerships is imperative so students feel valued. mahmood (2020) stated, ?building trusting learning relationships is a cornerstone of culturally responsive instruction? (para 7). hammond (2015) suggests making lessons which 37 atkins & danley| supporting teacher candidates during covid-19 involve social interaction and utilizing gamified opportunities supports communal learning. heitner and jennings (2016) affirmed, ?faculty who teach online who understand and value culturally responsive pedagogy and have the knowledge and skills to implement best practices in meeting the needs of diverse learners will enhance both teaching and learning? (p. 68). providing faculty the opportunity to engage in critical conversations centered around culturally responsive teaching would allow for an online learning experience supportive of all students. this particular area of challenge opens the door for additional action research. trauma informed care it is necessary for trauma informed care resources to be in place whether or not classes meet in-person or virtually. pandemics, like covid-19, can trigger post traumatic events or anxiety. processing prolonged stress and trauma can be physically and emotionally demanding (brewin, 2003). having a trauma informed care team at the university level who have received training in trauma and stress would be a valuable resource for faculty and students. faculty need to be supported and have a strong understanding of the behaviors that may be associated with trauma as outlined by hoch et al. (2015), which include the following: difficulty focusing, attending, retaining, and recalling; tendency to miss a lot of classes; challenges with emotional regulation; fear of taking risks; anxiety about deadlines, exams, group work, or public speaking ; anger, helplessness, or dissociation when stressed ; withdrawal and isolation; involvement in unhealthy relationships. davidson (n.d) stated, ?colleges are systems, and creating a trauma-informed climate requires the entire campus community...to deepen its shared understanding of trauma?s impacts on learning and agree to a campus wide approach? (p. 14). davidson also affirmed that all members of the campus community need to collaborate and share responsibility in the academic, physical, emotional, and social well-being of each student. additionally, adopting strategies on how to promote mindfulness is also imperative for faculty to engage students when providing instruction. participating in trauma informed care and mindfulness training is crucial for faculty well-being and to supporting each student across the campus. providing this type of resource and support will also help prepare tcs to be trauma informed as a future classroom teacher. next st eps the authors? personal accounts have inspired the opportunity to engage in research centered around the impact of covid-19 on teacher education. creating a survey for teacher candidates to complete on virtual learning is worth considering. engaging tcs in a focus group to gather their perceptions on their preparedness to student teach would also provide the teacher education program areas to improve in the event if another pandemic occurs. additionally, a survey given to faculty in teacher education programs on resources for virtual learning and teaching would also be of value in order to create a strong and meaningful teacher education program that can be moved to online in the event we are unable to continue face to face teaching and learning environments. conclusion at the beginning of 2020, public schools and universities were in session and teacher education programs were providing practicum experiences to prepare tcs for the classroom. this came to a halt in march 2020 as the spread of covid-19 entered our state?s institutions of education. universities and k-12 schools were forced to eliminate face to face contact, leaving teacher education programs to rethink how field experiences could continue and what substitutions might support tcs during the transition. reflecting on current practices and 38 atkins & danley| supporting teacher candidates during covid-19 planning ahead in the event tcs are placed in virtual learning and teaching experiences will ensure tcs are given the instruction and support needed to be successful teachers in the future. lambert (2020) stated, ?extensive student teaching is required to earn most teaching credentials, and it is generally regarded as an essential part of a teacher?s training before getting his or her own classroom? (para 4). however, when faced with a pandemic, this created a dilemma because the opportunities are limited. this has required a shift in thinking because teacher education programs needed to adapt the curriculum to a virtual format while engaging tcs in conversations on how to problem solve during a pandemic or crisis. revising the teacher education programs and collaborating with the state department of education has been critical moving forward. for fall 2020, sophomore and junior level teacher candidates will complete required practicum and observational hours through asynchronous online video evaluations. senior level teacher candidates will complete their practicum and student teaching experience following their placement districts? protocol, whether it be online, face-to-face or hybrid instruction. the pandemic continues to present challenges and obstacles for everyone involved. this situation has forced educator preparation programs to invest in virtual learning professional development opportunities and revise the education program by preparing teacher candidates to offer their future students a quality education regardless of the instructional delivery format. ? references association of college and university educators (2020). changing lives. https://acue.org/about/faculty brewin, c. r. (2003). posttraumatic stress disorder: malady or myth? yale university press. christie, m., carey, m., robertson, a., & grainger, p. (2015). putting transformative learning theory into practice. australian journal of adult learning, 55(1), 9?30. collopy, r., & arnold, j. (2009). to blend or not to blend: online-only and blended learning environments. issues in teacher education. https://ecommons.udayton.edu/cgi/viewconten t.cgi?article=1014&context=edt_fac_pub davidson (n.d). trauma informed practices for secondary education: a guide. education northwest. https://educationnorthwest.org delamarter, j. & ewart, m. (2020). responding to student teachers' fears: how we're adjusting during the covid-19 shutdowns. northwest journal of teacher education,15(1), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.15760/nwjte.2020.15.1.3 fulford, a. (2016). education: expectation and the unexpected. studies in philosophy and education, 35(4), 415?425. gewartz, c. (2020). exhausted and grieving: teaching during the coronavirus crisis. education week, 39(30), 1-10. hammond, z. (2015). culturally responsive teaching and the brain: promoting authentic engagement and rigor among culturally and linguistically diverse students. corwin: a sage company. heitner, k. l. & jennings, m. (2016). culturally responsive teaching knowledge and practices of online faculty. online learning, 20(4), 54-78. hoch, a., stewart, d., webb, k., & wyandt-hiebert, m. a. (2015, may). trauma-informed care on a college campus. presentation at the annual meeting of the american college health association, orlando, fl. 39 https://ecommons.udayton.edu/cgi/viewconten t.cgi?article=1014&context=edt_fac_pub https://ecommons.udayton.edu/cgi/viewconten t.cgi?article=1014&context=edt_fac_pub https://educationnorthwest.org https://doi.org/10.15760/nwjte.2020.15.1.3 atkins & danley| supporting teacher candidates during covid-19 karchmer-klein, r. (2007). reexamining the practicum placement: how to leverage technology to prepare preservice teachers for the demands of the 21st century. journal of computing in teacher education, 23(4), 120-129. lambert, d. (2020, april 17). unable to complete student teaching requirements, prospective teachers may soon get reprieve. edsource. https://edsource.org/2020/unable-to-completestudent-teaching-prospective-teachers-may-get -reprieve/629318 mahmood, r. (2020). online teaching can be culturally responsive. teaching tolerance. https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/online-tea ching-can-be-culturally-responsive missouri department of elementary education and secondary education (2020). coronavirus (covid-19) information. https://dese.mo.gov/ communications/coronavirus-covid-19-informa tion missouri department of elementary and secondary education (2014). https://dese.mo. gov/sites/default/ files/initial-field-clinical-exper iences.pdf quality matters (2020). retrieved from https://www.qualitymatters.org/ skylar, j. (2020, april 24) zoom fatigue is taxing the brain: here?s why that happens. national geographic. https://www.nationalgeographic.com symons, c., anderson, b., & ward, a. (2020). teacher candidate?s perspectives on the value ofa site-based methods course. the teacher educator. https://doi.org/10.1080/08878730.2020.178756 9 40 https://edsource.org/2020/unable-to-complete- student-teaching-prospective-teachers-may-get -reprieve/629318 https://edsource.org/2020/unable-to-complete- student-teaching-prospective-teachers-may-get -reprieve/629318 https://edsource.org/2020/unable-to-complete- student-teaching-prospective-teachers-may-get -reprieve/629318 https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/online-tea ching-can-be-culturally-responsive https://www.tolerance.org/magazine/online-tea ching-can-be-culturally-responsive https://dese.mo.gov/ communications/coronavirus-covid-19-informa tion https://dese.mo.gov/ communications/coronavirus-covid-19-informa tion https://dese.mo.gov/ communications/coronavirus-covid-19-informa tion https://dese.mo. gov/sites/default/files/initial-field-clinical-exper iences.pdf https://dese.mo. gov/sites/default/files/initial-field-clinical-exper iences.pdf https://dese.mo. gov/sites/default/files/initial-field-clinical-exper iences.pdf https://www.qualitymatters.org/ https://www.nationalgeographic.com https://doi.org/10.1080/08878730.2020.1787569 https://doi.org/10.1080/08878730.2020.1787569 atkins & danley (2020) proof print page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 page 9 page 10 easley (2018) proof w/ author edits confirmed 2.pdf educational renaissance vol. 7 (2018) a way forward toward professionalizing teacher educat ion: a response t o t he aascu teacher educat ion task force survey jacob easley ii, phd. touro college, graduat e school of educat ion email: jacob.easley@touro.edu commentary the 2016 american association of state colleges and universities? (aascu) teacher education task force undertook a survey of member presidents, provosts, and their deans of education to better understand the state of the profession. all participants represent public institutions of higher learning. the results inform recommendations for university-based, teacher preparation programs. the report recognizes that the national context of teacher education has grown in complexity, alongside an onslaught of scrutiny. even still, the authors concomitantly suggest that programs are not meeting the mark for transforming the profession. this sentiment is not new. in fact, it has become part and parcel of the critique ushered by the pantheon of educational reformers. heeding the critique, a way forward toward professionalizing teacher education is needed.  four of the task force?s recommendations: 1. bolster clinical experiences, 2. ensure strong university-school partnerships, 3. step up recruitment into preparation programs, and 4. build agreements with community colleges are not dissimilar from the standards that inform national accreditation by the council for the accreditation of educator preparation (caep). abst ract amid countless challenges faced by teacher education, public universities, preparing a large share of the nations? teachers, are called upon to a lead the charge of moving the field forward. the american association of state colleges and university?s teacher education task force sought to examine current conditions among member institutions. presidents, provosts and deans of education responded to a survey with their assessment of the current status of teacher education. the results yielded six recommendations for quality teacher education programs. the latter of which stresses professionalizing the field. further examination of the recommendations reveals gaps between the current landscape and the recommendations. it is through these gaps that a strategic means to advance the professionalization of teacher education is put forth. advancing the professionalization of teacher education is a collaborative effort of leadership. the process demonstrates and builds momentum from positive impact on communities and the profession itself. it is undergirded by an ethical imperative. mailto:jonidegner@gmail.com easley| a way forward in fact, the relationship among these recommendations can be easily reduced to dyads, whereby partnerships with school districts and clinical experiences comprise one pair and student recruitment with community colleges constitute another. the components of each dyad function together, though not wholesale, as mechanisms for strong clinical experiences and meeting program recruitment aims.    these dyadic recommendations are significant given that of the 187 deans surveyed, 128 responded to the question regarding national accreditation status. of these 128, 80.4% indicated that their programs are currently accredited by a national agency, nacte, teac and/or caep. some 25,000 education preparation programs nationwide undergo accreditation or state review for quality assessment (sawchuk, 2015). today, nearly half of all programs are nationally accredited (sawchuk, 2016; aascu, n.d). given that the dyadic recommendations are addressed vis-a-vis the caep standards, it can be easily understood that a great number of teacher education programs are responding accordingly (see figure 1). figure i. aascu recommendations and dyadic relationships with caep.   however, the final two recommendations: 5. actively participate in policy discussion about teacher preparation and 6. develop a broad strategy for professionalizing teacher education, suggest that even the path toward national accreditation falls short of transformative practice for continuous improvement. this omission also underscores a gap, a critical correspondence (easley, 2011; robertson, 1996). critical correspondence can be understood by the contradiction or flaw in the theory of action guiding a particular reform, that when made explicit, can drive social change.  this paper addresses a means for the professionalization of teacher education by mechanizing these critical correspondences. these are fodder for a way to elevate the profession, structurally, socially, and politically. advancing the professionalization of teacher education is a collaborative effort of leadership. the process demonstrates and builds momentum from positive impact on communities and the profession itself. it is undergirded by an ethical imperative. moreover, professionalization is iterative and is an investment in continuous renewal. examining accreditation as a critical correspondence, it is assumed that the policies and processes surrounding national accreditation of teacher education will yield a stronger profession. unfortunately, accreditation is acted out one program at a time. even when the results are positive and affect the home institution and p-12 partners equally well, these results tend to rest at a local level. it is an unlikely story of a single program?s accreditation altering teacher preparation nationwide. the social process for professionalization requires more. a way forward to be fair, national accreditation is one strategy to convey program quality to future candidates, policy makers, and the community at large. yet, the limited one program at a time approach offers a new critical correspondence. through the recognition of its limitations, a new way forward may be offered. to advance the latter two recommendations of the aascu task force, we must embrace the interconnectivity of the first 30 easley| a way forward four to achieve greater professionalization of teacher education.   similarly, engagement in policy discussion is inherently required for maximum professionalization. teacher educators and even teachers themselves must accept the charge of advocacy and become agents of change to shape policy for the cause of professionalization. yet, the development of strategies for ongoing engagement in policy work is complex and requires systemic and networked action. educator preparers will need to leverage the merits of their programs for micro level policy within their individual institutions and their collective networks across programs for shaping state and national policies. as a way forward, educator preparers have at their disposal the vantage of networked leadership for policy work and program development, the ability to leverage institutional research, and the moral imperative of equity work. taken together, the development of these levers extends the mechanisms of standards and accountability that define program approval and accreditation acted out one program at a time for broad range professionalization of teacher preparation.      net worked leadership  network leadership, as defined by easley & tulowitzi (2017), encompasses the practice of convening leader stakeholders at all levels to work collaboratively and democratically. within these networks educational leaders are tasked with fashioning systems of educational effectiveness and continuous improvement that inform professionalization through the auspices of policy, research, and practice. though leadership itself engenders a hierarchical structure, the democratizing effect of networks levels hierarchy for shared learning and decision making. according to the authors, the positionality of influence is shifted within networks, which includes state leaders, ?to leverage responsive and equity policy for practice? (p.16). according to the aascu survey, 40% of deans indicate that state departments of education do not regularly consult their peers across the state on policy issues. the same group reports that when consulted, feedback is infrequently used to shape state policy. this is particularly telling given that state policy guides teacher licensure and an inordinate number of program elements. though varying across states, state policy drives program approval processes, accountability, credit hours, curriculum content, and much more.  networked leadership is a means for addressing the uneven relationships across programs with state departments of education. in fact, the new england board of higher education?s commission on higher education and employability (2017) recommends that higher education intuitions, employers, data providers, and other stakeholders launch collaborations to address common concerns. though their agenda rests with the employability of college graduates, their proposal engenders the value of networked leadership. within the same region of the nation, the connecticut association of public schools and superintendents (capps) advances a 2018 public policy agenda for fostering equity, excellence, and innovation. not all agenda items are commutable to teacher education. yet, networked leadership is largely possible when institutions coalesce on common ground. one priority of capps is to address state government?s unfunded mandates and the resulting, unintended consequences. this is one priority familiar to teacher preparation programs within the state. the american association of colleges for teacher education (aacte) state chapter of deans and directors has begun to develop networked leadership with capps and the connecticut state department of education to address policy in a coordinated manner, thereby advancing a way forward through networked leadership.     leverage program im pact for public good    we must be honest. there are mixed feelings 31 easley| a way forward among the public about the value of a college degree. entangled within the debate is another line of argumentation that questions the quality of traditional, university-based teacher preparation programs. lynn pasquerella (2016), president of the association of american colleges and universities, penned a washington post opinion asserting by tit le that ?higher education should be a public good, not a private commodity.? debates like these challenge the professionalization of teacher preparation, calling for a meaningful and inspirational response? one that is deemed merit worthy both for the public and profession. pasquarella urges, ?it is important, now more than ever, to respond to accusation from politicians that college education? . . . ? has become irrelevant and illegitimate.?  similar to networked leadership that is applied via a systems approach, teacher preparation programs are in need of data armor. it is vital that programs systematically collect and report on sound and convincing data that demonstrate positive impact in the public sector. much of the evidence for national accreditation focuses on operational quality, internal to the functions of preparation itself. a strategic focus on parallel evidence of the program?s contribution to the public by way of its design is called to task as a way forward. for example, programs that are able to articulate the immediate and ongoing transformative value of their programs on partnering schools and the profession are better suited to guide professionalization.   drawing from the tenets of social entrepreneurship, martin and osberg (2015) address the value-enhancing approach of any enterprise seeking to drive social change. they refer to the approach as an enabling ?methodology? that allows programs with an existing asset to generate even more meaningful value from said asset to disrupt existing equilibrium. such is the aim of continuous improvement. moreover, networked leadership that brings programs together in collaborative work stands the chance of adding value exponentially. one example of an enhancing methodology developed from networked leadership through practice and policy advocacy is the professional development school (pds) model. this model grew out of efforts beginning in the 1980s to reform teacher education and to restructure schools. the holmes group, a network of education deans from research institutions, proposed a methodology for coherent and long-term clinical experiences. through this methodology, ?practicing teachers and [p-12 school] administrators would work collaboratively with university faculty to improve teaching and learning for their respective students? (easley, ankrum, mcconnell, & girard, 2017, p. 47) . the aascu survey reveals that 88.5% of responding deans do not believe teaching is viewed more positively than 10 years ago. these results cry for a value-enhancing approach. one aim of pds methodology is to apply learning sciences to improve the skills of future teachers and practicing teachers alike, while simultaneously increasing student learning. programs, like pdss, that embrace systematic methodologies focused on transforming the profession during teacher preparation exemplify a value-enhancing way forward to professionalization.  focus on equit y work   the racial achievement gap in the u.s., while showing some shrinkage in recent years, persists. the core purpose of teacher preparation is to ensure that program completers entering classrooms have developed the requisite knowledge, skills, and commitment to meet the academic and socio-affective needs of all students in their classrooms. unfortunately, state polices for meeting this aim are uneven. for example, despite the growing population of english language learners (ells), there is no generally accepted approach for preparing teachers to work with this particular group of students (berdecía & kosec, 2011). making matters more challenging, there are notable inconsistencies across states for the knowledge and skills regarding ells during 32 easley| a way forward teacher preparation (ballantyne, sanderman, & levy, 2008). while some states make general reference to the special needs of ells for initial teacher licensure, others make no mention at all.   the number of non-white and ell students attending public schools continues to grow. in fact, minority students represented 30 percent of this population in the 1980s, but is now half (putman, hansen, walsh, & quintero, 2016). a recent report by mcfarland et al. (2017) indicates the percentage of multi-racial and non-white public school students will surpass that of the white population by 2026. these shifts in demographics challenge teacher preparation in pursuit of the aforementioned aim.  the racialized teacher gap and the black-white achievement gap, are tip of the iceberg issues of equity. issues of rural education and the intersectionality of the socioeconomic conditions of the many student populations that have been minoritized and marginalized, also shape the need for programs to fashion their work based on equity. additionally, the national shortage areas such as special education, foreign language, science and mathematics (u.s. department of education, 2016) further compound the importance for equity-based programing in teacher education. this is particularly telling, as trends for many of the shortage areas disproportionality reflect equity-based needs of particular student groups that are systematically placed at risk by ableism, sexism, racism, xenophobia, funding inequities, and other social and political constraints. moving the dial on professionalization is largely dependent upon dismantling inequities for p-12 student achievement and wellbeing. deans responding to the aascu survey highly favor performance assessment to a tune of 92.6% as the most valid mechanism for measuring student achievement. only 36.9% view current standardized testing as a valid measure. though the debates churn, suggesting that standardized testing overwhelms schools and question testing's value to the teaching and learning process, it is incumbent upon teacher preparation programs to demonstrate positive impact on schools. both conventional and novel means to explicitly bespeak equitable outcomes across groups of students resulting from teacher education are needed. collective and impactful actions by preparation programs to foster equitable learning experiences for p-12 students and learning outcomes reflect a way forward in pursuit of professionalization.    advancing professionalizat ion progress has indeed been made in the field of teacher education, yielding standards, roadmaps, and commission reports to guide accreditation, clinical practice, and more. the findings of the aascu task force on teacher education unearth certain critical correspondences. in turn, these represent opportunities for furthering the professionalization of teacher education. networked leadership engenders democratic practice. it requires leaders to be empathetic to the needs of other entities, to find common ground, and to commit to collaborative learning for policy and practice. networked leadership is perhaps the greatest lever for professionalization, as it is the conductor for scaling innovation, agency, and capacity. networked leadership can also serve as the catalyst for institutionalizing effectiveness and improvement in teacher education more broadly. yet, in the absence of focusing on the right issues, network leadership may benefit some while disenfranchising others, thereby hindering the potential for professionalization that is just. methodology for value-enhancing change is a means for social impact via teacher education. by virtue of its design, teacher education is a community practice. clinical practice alone is community based, generating a footprint on student learning and development. while noble, such impact is not enough. the core purpose of programmatic teacher preparation should ultimately be to improve systems for overall 33 easley| a way forward educational effectiveness at all levels across the p-16 continuum. this includes improving the social and political conditions that inform educational effectiveness. the hardest part yet, is equity work, as it pertains to the professionalization of teacher education. it is necessary that programs collectively address the equity imperative to ensure that all student populations and their communities benefit masterfully from teacher preparation. while networked leadership might dismantle existing systems, value-enhancing change might dismantle the siloed benefits of educational improvement, a focus on equity dismantles implicit biases and core status quo practices that advantage some over others. this outlined way forward aimed to advance the professionalization of teacher education, is by no means exhaustive. nor are these three suppositions, born out of critical correspondences, intended as a panacea individually. this way forward is not without its challenges operationally, conceptually, and politically. nonetheless, these suppositions, as a collective way forward, has its merits for furthering the institutionalization and systemization of professionalism in teacher education. references aascu. (n.d.). preparing teaches in today?s challenging context: key issues, policy direction and implication for leaders of aascu universities. retrieved from https://www.aascu.org/academicaffairs/tea cheredreport.pdf  ballantyne, k. g., sanderman, a. r., & levy j. (2008). educating english language learners: building teacher capacity. washington, dc: national clearinghouse for english language acquisition. retrieved from https:// files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ed521360.p df berdecía, a. i., & kosec, c. (2011). cultural and linguistic connections: linking what matters to families to what matters for school success. trenton, nj: thomas edison state college.   capps. (2018). public policy agenda. west hartford, ct. author. retrieved from http://www.capss.org/page.cfm?p=582&ne wsid=159  commission on higher education and employability. (2017). proposed recommendations. new england board of higher education. retrieved from http://www.nebhe.org/info/pdf/events/conf erence/december2017/commission_propos ed_recommendations.pdf easley, j., ii. (2011). the audacity to teach: the impact of leadership, school reform, and urban context on educational innovation. lanham, md: university press of america. easley, j., ii., ankrum, j., mcconnell, b., & girard, n. (2017). professional learning through p-16 partnership design: emergent lessons learned toward improving and sustaining partnership development. school-university partnership journal, 10(1), 46-56. easley, j., ii., & tulowitzki, p. (2017). educational accountability: a response to critique, furthering the international point of view. nsw, australia: international congress for school effectiveness and improvement. mcfarland, j., hussar, b., de brey, c., snyder, t., wang, x., wilkinson-flicker, s., gebrekristos, s., zhang, j., rathbun, a., barmer, a., bullock mann, f., & hinz, s. (2017). condition of education 2017 (nces 2017144). u.s. department of education. washington, dc: national center for education statistics. retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp ?pubid=2017144.   martin, g. l., & osberg, s. r. (2015). getting beyond better: how social entrepreneurship works. boston, ma: harvard business review press.  pasquarella, l. (2016). higher education should be 34 https://www.aascu.org/academicaffairs/teacheredreport.pdf  https://www.aascu.org/academicaffairs/teacheredreport.pdf  https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ed521360.pdf https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ed521360.pdf http://www.capss.org/page.cfm?p=582&newsid=159  http://www.capss.org/page.cfm?p=582&newsid=159  http://www.nebhe.org/info/pdf/events/conference/december2017/commission_proposed_recommendations.pdf http://www.nebhe.org/info/pdf/events/conference/december2017/commission_proposed_recommendations.pdf http://www.nebhe.org/info/pdf/events/conference/december2017/commission_proposed_recommendations.pdf https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2017144.   https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2017144.   easley| a way forward a public good, not a private commodity. washington post. retreived from https://www.washingtonpost.com/ne ws/in-theory/wp/2016/10/20/higher-educati on-should-be-a-public-good-not-a-private-c ommodity/?utm_term=.b1f19112dd00  sawchuk, s. (2015). states slow to shut down weak teacher education programs. huffington post. retrieved from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/3 1/teacher-education-school-closures_n_6401 316.html  sawchuck, s. (2016). teacher-prep accreditation group seeks to regain traction: caep standards in force this fall. education week. retrieved from https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2016/0 8/24/teacher-prep-accreditation-group-seek s-to-regain-traction.html  u.s. department of education (2016). teacher shortage areas nationwide listing 1990-1991 through 2016-2017. washington, dc: office of post secondary education. retrieved from https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/ pol/tsa.pdf  35 https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/in-theory/wp/2016/10/20/higher-education-should-be-a-public-good-not-a-private-commodity/?utm_term=.b1f19112dd00  https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/in-theory/wp/2016/10/20/higher-education-should-be-a-public-good-not-a-private-commodity/?utm_term=.b1f19112dd00  https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/in-theory/wp/2016/10/20/higher-education-should-be-a-public-good-not-a-private-commodity/?utm_term=.b1f19112dd00  https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/in-theory/wp/2016/10/20/higher-education-should-be-a-public-good-not-a-private-commodity/?utm_term=.b1f19112dd00  https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/in-theory/wp/2016/10/20/higher-education-should-be-a-public-good-not-a-private-commodity/?utm_term=.b1f19112dd00  https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/31/teacher-education-school-closures_n_6401316.html  https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/31/teacher-education-school-closures_n_6401316.html  https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/12/31/teacher-education-school-closures_n_6401316.html  https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2016/08/24/teacher-prep-accreditation-group-seeks-to-regain-traction.html  https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2016/08/24/teacher-prep-accreditation-group-seeks-to-regain-traction.html  https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2016/08/24/teacher-prep-accreditation-group-seeks-to-regain-traction.html  https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/pol/tsa.pdf  https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/pol/tsa.pdf  microsoft word 5alvarado-final-revised.docx vol. 3, no. 1, dec 2014, pp. 55-64 moving multicultural education forward in teacher education: integration of cognitive learning theory jose luis alvarado, california state university, monterey bay valerie ooka pang, san diego state university easter finley, southwest high school, sweetwater union high school district abstract multicultural education as a field of study in education is intimately connected to teacher education. most frameworks in multicultural education are primarily centered on the inclusion of cultural and linguistic diversity in schools. this often results in the integration of heroes and holidays within the curriculum, however this orientation can present a simplistic aspect of culture and does not address the process of learning. the purpose of this article is to explain why cognitive learning theory must be an essential element in frameworks of multicultural education and multicultural teacher education. teachers need to understand the principles of learning theory to create classrooms where students become self-regulated, successful learners. 56   j. l. alvarado, v. o. pang, & e. finley   introduction today, multicultural education is an integral part of teacher education. one of the major aims of both fields is to train culturally-competent educators who believe in the values of equity, democracy, freedom, and social justice. to do so, the fields must include strong philosophical and pedagogical theories forming a belief system or framework that supports the development of effective, culturally and linguistically diverse schools. any belief system put forth must include cognitive learning theory because teachers need to know how children and adults learn. the first section discusses a short history of multicultural education. the second portion describes three major frameworks that have been posed as a foundation for multicultural education. the third section discusses the integration of multicultural education into teacher education. within this context, multicultural education and teacher education have two major goals. first, scholars in both fields are dedicated to the development of highly effective teachers who hold a strong value of social justice in schools. they believe that all students should be provided equal educational opportunities and outcomes within an atmosphere of respect for human diversity. educators also must hold high-academic expectations for all students regardless of their cultural differences such as religious affiliations, disabilities, sexual orientation, race, gender, social class, culture, and language. the second goal is to address the achievement gap between white students and culturally and linguistically diverse students. these goals and core values have been advanced by numerous multicultural teacher education researchers (alvarado, pang, & naranjo, 2014; banks, 1984; sleeter & grant, 1987; gay, 1994; banks & banks, 2010; gay, 2010; nieto, 1996; bennett, 2001; pang, 2010; pang & park, 2011). multicultural education as a field has a strong history in curriculum development and educational legislation. though many educators believe the field rose out of the political and social movement for civil rights, historically the field has roots in the intercultural education and intergroup education movements of the early 20th century (pak, 2006). pak documented how intercultural and intergroup education evolved out of the great depression and resulted from increased immigration to the united states. many immigrants left civil strife in home countries such as poland, england, and ireland, but also hoped for economic opportunities in their newly adopted nation. the intercultural education and intergroup education movements were founded on the importance of intercultural relations and an inclusive democracy (pak, 2006). these reforms from the 1920’s to the 1950’s took place when there was a national emphasis on an enhanced view of democracy. during this period, people in the united states grappled with the concept of who should be considered an “american” (pak, 2006). today, educators often take for granted the belief that diversity is an accepted value of our nation, however, this orientation was not generally agreed upon by most people at that time. there were race riots in detroit and harlem during the 1930’s and 1940’s that placed attention on the issue of racial inequality. during this time period educational leaders like rachel david dubois worked toward implementing an “ethnic studies” approach that focused on adding information about various racial and ethnic communities to the school curriculum (pak, 2006). the intercultural and intergroup education movements were bolstered by a societal force now called the civil rights movement. civil rights advocates placed more emphasis on our national values of democracy and social justice in areas such as voting rights, employment, housing, and education. the intercultural education and intergroup education movements had already placed importance on the inclusion of the history, values, and beliefs of diverse racial multicultural education 57 and cultural groups in curriculum areas such as social studies and literature, however there were and are many scholars who continue to call for higher levels of inclusion in all disciplines. multicultural education scholars in the early 1970’s such as james a. banks, geneva gay, carl a. grant, and carlos cortés saw civil rights legislation as a core foundation for multicultural education. within that context, they primarily focused on the inclusion of diverse communities into the school curriculum. these multicultural education and teacher education specialists believed in the integration of racial and ethnic history, knowledge, and contributions into textbooks and traditional academic disciplines. they also advocated for the addition of information, history, and role models of women and individuals from lower-income families. these and many other multicultural scholars believed that teaching about racism was highly connected to issues of sexism and classism. later, multicultural education scholars pointed out the need for equalities for those who are members of diverse communities due to their exceptionalities, sexual orientations, and religious affiliations; these areas have been added to what is now defined by many educators as culturally diverse communities (alvarado, pang, & naranjo, 2014). one of the best vehicles to ensure that we build a society based on social justice was to infuse multicultural education into teacher education. teachers are key social agents who could bring a culturally diverse curriculum into education and ultimately bring about much needed policy changes to schools. multicultural education: diverse definitions geneva gay, one of the founders in the field of multicultural education, identified various definitions and orientations (1994). though many scholars believed in social justice and equality, there were many different assumptions and values that educators held about the field. gay explained them as follows (1994, 3-8): • a philosophy emphasizing the importance of diversity in the lives of individuals, groups, and nations; • “a reform movement that changes all components of the educational enterprise...to reflect cultural pluralism;” • institutionalization of "the philosophy of cultural pluralism within the educational system, which is grounded in principles of equality, mutual respect, acceptance and understanding, and a sense of moral commitment to social justice;" • a humanistic concept based on the strength of diversity, human rights, social justice, and alternative life choices for all people; • an approach where democratic values are at its core and the curriculum targets educational equality; • an education that includes study of the experiences of cultural groups who have endured continual social oppression, prejudice and alienation; • policies and practices respecting cultural diversity and individual differences in all aspects of education; and • a process of comprehensive school reform and basic education for students that challenges all forms of social oppression. these definitions show that multicultural education scholars hold slightly different positions about the goals and principles of the field. the goals range from teaching democracy to total school reform that reflects the cultural and linguistic diversity of the nation. the next section discusses three major frameworks in multicultural education and why scholars will be in 58   j. l. alvarado, v. o. pang, & e. finley   a more compelling position to move the field forward if they include a strong cognitive learning foundation to their philosophical framework. three major types of frameworks for multicultural education the field of multicultural education has three major frameworks; they include a curricular approach, an orientation that challenges economic and political inequities, and a democratic approach that weaves together several overarching philosophical and cognitive theories. curricular framework. the first is a curriculum reform orientation (bennett, 2001) that was developed between the 1970s and 1980’s. since the field arose out of the intercultural education movement that primarily dealt with curriculum (pak, 2006), this led to a curricular framework that called for the inclusion of historical, cultural, political, psychological, and sociological information from diverse cultural and linguistic groups (banks & banks, 2010; gay, 2010). james a. banks designed a conceptual framework that included five dimensions: 1) content integration which involves the infusion of multiple ethnic perspectives and discipline knowledge into the school curriculum; 2) knowledge construction refers to understanding the assumptions used in choosing discipline knowledge included in schools; 3) equity pedagogy involves the integration of teaching styles so that all students learn; 4) prejudice reduction requires teachers and students to examine their biases and to address their prejudices and stereotypes throughout the curriculum; and 5) an empowering school culture, which necessitates that schools provide equal educational opportunities for all students. this is the framework that is often referenced in traditional teacher preparation programs. critical multicultural education framework. as the field of multicultural education evolved, in the 1990's sonia nieto (1996) intensified the call for social justice by advocating for a critical theory orientation based upon the work of paulo freire. nieto believed in schooling where students and teachers question and challenge the status quo of institutional inequalities and personal prejudices. though other scholars discussed the need for teachers to train students to examine power and authority issues, nieto clearly put forth a multicultural education framework with a more political and advocacy orientation. critical multicultural education developed because educators felt scholars should consider the political nature of education; nieto believed the call to integrate culture and language into the curriculum was not enough to result in total school transformation. other educators such as marc pruyn organized a group of social studies teachers in new mexico who were dedicated to social justice. they developed an approach called critical multicultural social studies (cmss) with curry malott (the borderlands collective for social justice, 2006). their pedagogical orientation was based upon the importance of integrating social justice and equity in the teaching of social studies and history. the educators called themselves the borderlands collective for social justice; their goal was to create a powerful and alive curriculum by teaching students how to become actively involved in social issues through readings, questioning, collaboration, dialogue, and community service. however, educators found it difficult to teach about social stratification when schools are shaped by testing, federal legislation, and initiatives such as no child left behind and race to the top. these rigid programs often leave culturally and linguistically diverse students, students with disabilities, and students from low-income families “behind.” most students are not taught higher order thinking-skills or how to address social problems. rather they are encouraged to learn knowledge that will prepare them for the workforce and a corporate agenda (the borderlands collective for social justice, 2006). in addition, teachers are extremely multicultural education 59 concerned when teacher effectiveness is primarily measured by student achievement on highstakes standardized and standards-based tests. this policy orientation does not allow for extensive time teaching civics, citizenship skills and the discussion of social problems. comprehensive framework. the third framework integrates several overarching philosophical and cognitive theories. pang (2010) developed the caring-centered multicultural education framework; this framework connects the educational philosophies of dewey (1916) and noddings (1984) and the social-cognitive theory of vygotsky (cole, 1996). the interrelated theories focus on relationships, culture, and community (citizenship). this orientation moves beyond curriculum integration of history, literature, the arts and social categories such as social economic status, sexual orientation, and disabilities. this framework acknowledges the complexities of society and posits a belief in the intersectionality of various aspects of individuals; this orientation is opposed to the separation of students into one distinctive category such as race, ethnicity, or social class. students come to school as complex people with varied beliefs and experiences. for example it would not be accurate to place a young gay student from a lower-income family, who has been identified with asperger’s syndrome and speaks spanish, english, and japanese, into a single category of being latino because his mother is from colombia. this would be a narrow way to view his rich life. the caring-centered multicultural framework brings to the forefront the cognitive theory of vygotsky. teachers must focus not only on the integration of ethnic, cultural, and linguistic discipline-content into the curriculum, but they must know how to develop instructional strategies based on cognitive research. vygotsky believed that social interactions, language, and culture form the foundation of learning. this connects with noddings’ ethic of care theory where social relationships are also believed to be the underpinnings of learning and personal development. the ethic of care focuses on the importance of developing trusting, reciprocal relationships; respectful and sincere relationships must be created between teacher and student, teacher and teacher, student and student, and teacher and parents in order for the full potential of students is to be achieved. as noddings has theorized, trusting, reciprocal relationships are at the core of effective learning communities, especially in a democracy which supports the philosophy of john dewey. much focus is placed on the creation of a compassionate and cooperative public where members address issues of social oppression and public policy using a social justice lens. relationships along with cultures are seen as crucial elements in teaching and learning because social interactions are foundational to the cognitive process. within this framework, teachers can utilize student-lived experiences and knowledge as building blocks in the learning process so that students construct meaning themselves (pang, 2010). the more comprehensive caring-centered framework for multicultural education is culture-centered and relationship-centered with foundations in educational psychology, the ethic of care, and citizenship education. though other multicultural educational frameworks do not include cognitive theory, in order to address achievement issues, it is critical that teachers have strong knowledge of how students learn. integrating the work of vygotsky guides teachers to understand the importance of social interactions as core to learning. teachers use language, cultural models, and examples from the lives of students as tools which act as bridges between what students know and what they are learning. within this process, teachers serve as knowledgeable mentors who can assist student performance as she/he develops her/his potential (glassman, 2001). 60   j. l. alvarado, v. o. pang, & e. finley   multicultural teacher education if the goal of teacher education is to prepare teachers who can deliver rigorous instruction to all students including diverse learners, then the professional development of teachers must be intimately connected to multicultural education. educators know that teaching demands content knowledge mastery and pedagogical knowledge expertise; however, many agree that new teachers complete their pre-service credential programs not fully trained to effectively reach socioeconomically, ethnically, and linguistically diverse students. many educators believe that if teacher education preparation programs are to produce highly-effective multicultural teachers, they must include culturally responsive and relevant education in their k12 curriculum and instructional preparation (banks & banks, 2010; bennett, 2001; gay, 2010; pang, 2010). hence, pre-service teacher preparation programs must guide teacher candidates to reflect on their instruction not only as being culturally relevant but also as transformative, an educational experience that focuses on social change. in order for teaching and learning to be transformative, teachers must realize that students are not empty vessels; instead, they must accept that students arrive at schools with beliefs, values, abilities, social group identities, and social norms – the students’ cultures, which define who they are and shape their thought processes and behaviors (gay, 2010). this is what gay refers to as culturally responsive teaching where teachers use cultural traits, experiences, and perspectives of students as assets and means by which to leverage teaching, thereby making learning more personal and relevant. in order to enhance the professional development of teachers, multicultural teacher education frameworks must include cognitive theory. for example, vygotsky’s theory includes not only discussion of developmental maturity of the learner, but also the importance of learner culture as part of social interactions (wertsch & tulviste, 1992). the addition of learning theory can assist teacher educators in two ways. first, vygotsky’s cognitive theory calls for teacher selfregulation which begins by mentors questioning, scaffolding, modeling, and providing feedback to apprentice teachers (tharp & gallimore, 1988). this self-regulation is followed by a period of extensive reflection. teachers learn to make decisions about their instructional strategies based on knowledge of vygotsky’s cognitive principles. educators are able to think about their own practice, and develop structures and instructional strategies that enhance the learning of their students based upon vygotsky’s theory. teachers believe that learning is, initially, a social process, and therefore students develop individualistic functions of the mind (wertsch & tulviste, 1992). the second way that vygotsky’s theory assists teachers is that they learn how to reflect on the lived experiences of their students. teachers are taught to consider and create ways to structure connections for students in the learning process; teachers may use many local examples, cultural models, and student knowledge from the lives of their pupils in order to assist them in making connections between the known to the unknown (tharp & gallimore, 1988). programs that consider students’ lived experiences and effectively utilize culturally relevant approaches to teaching and learning can range from mathematics instruction to early childhood education. the algebra project is one example of a culturally relevant and transformative curriculum; it grapples with the relevance of algebra by declaring that algebra is inaccessible to many students of color, and therefore constitutes a civil rights issue. according to moses and cobb (2001), mathematics must become a tool of educational and political liberation; they believed that math literacy and economic access give hope to young generations. why algebra? according to moses, algebra provides the means by which the hidden language of mathematical symbols is visibly manifested, which in turn, has an effect on one’s success in the workforce. multicultural education 61 what makes the algebra project culturally relevant is its transition curriculum which uses cultural models and real-life situations such as riding the subway, and converting their informal talk about an event into formalized mathematical language. one of the math and science concepts taught by moses was displacement, and the construct is not only culturally relevant but can be modified depending on the region in which algebra is taught. students become selfregulated learners whose performance and mastery of the content increases as a consequence of being taught by teachers who use a culturally and transformative curriculum in the learning process. another example of vygotsky’s sociocultural theory of learning can be seen in the kamehameha early education project (keep). the central goal of keep was to develop literacy and cognitive development in native hawaiian children who were not doing well in school; this included sight vocabulary development, analytic phonics, and comprehension (tharp & gallimore, 1988). the research program included kindergarteners through grade-three students from hawaii. teachers were the more knowledgeable mentors who assisted students in developing language skills and cognitive processing. in these classrooms, teachers carefully listened to children and simplified their own language if students did not understand lessons that they were conveying. the educators in this program provided students with opportunities to interact with each other. teachers discovered that students were most comfortable working together rather than studying independently. the students did not want to present themselves as individual “stars.” students were more secure encouraging and interacting with each other; they liked learning in teams. this cultural orientation became an important structural element of the classroom. the research demonstrated that specific cultural practices did make a difference with native hawaiian children, and also the overarching use of culturally-relevant instructional strategies can be utilized with many different populations. conclusion multicultural education is a field in education that focuses on the integration of the values of social justice, equality, and culture. since teacher education is a field that is highly aligned with multicultural education, it is the professional responsibility of teachers to learn about and expand on their philosophical and knowledge base of multicultural education. it is crucial that multicultural teacher education includes a framework that builds in cognitive theory such as in the caring-centered multicultural framework. the inclusion of learning theory provides a much needed foundation for teachers who must reflect upon and decide which strategies of learning are most effective with their students. teachers must take a comprehensive orientation towards multicultural education which includes understanding how people learn. in this way educators will create environments where students become engaged in the learning process and create their own meaning of what is being taught while becoming self-regulated, successful learners. educators must put into practice theoretical understandings about cognitive development to ensure that all students have the opportunity to achieve and develop their individual potentials regardless of their linguistic diversity, gender, social class, ethnicity/cultural backgrounds, racial memberships, disabilities, sexual orientation, and/or religion. cognitive theory must be a core facet of multicultural teacher education. 62   j. l. alvarado, v. o. pang, & e. finley   references alvarado, j.l., pang, v. o., & naranjo, m. (2014). multi-culturalism and education. oxford bibliographies in childhood studies. oxford university press. http://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780199791231/obo97801997912310108.xml?rskey=hsvzzi&result=1&q=multiculturalism+and+education#firstmatch banks, j. a. (1984). teaching strategies for ethnic studies. boston, ma: allyn & bacon. banks, j. a. & banks, c. m. (eds.) (2010). multicultural education: issues and perspectives (7th edition). ny: john wiley & sons. bennett, c. 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(2001). dewey and vygotsky: society, experience, and inquiry in educational practice. educational researcher, 30 (4), 3-14. moses, r. p., & cobb, c. e. (2001). radical equations: civil rights from mississippi to the algebra project. boston, ma: beacon press. nieto, s. (1996). affirming diversity: the sociopolitical context of multicultural education (2nd edition). new york: longman. noddings, nel. 1984. caring: a feminine approach to ethics and moral development. berkeley, calif.: university of california press. pak, y. (2006). multiculturalism matters: learning from our past. in v. o. pang (ed.), principles and practices of multicultural education. westport, ct: praeger, pp. 3-22. pang, v. o. (2010). multicultural education: a caring-centered, reflective approach (2nd ed.). san diego, ca: montezuma publishing. pang, v.o. & park, c.d. (2011). creating interdisciplinary multicultural teacher education: courageous leadership is crucial.” in a. ball and c. tyson (eds.), studying diversity in teacher education. washington, dc: american educational research association and american educational research association and .boston, ma: rowan and littlefield, pp. 63-80. sleeter, c. e., & grant, c. a. (1987). an analysis of multicultural education in the united states.” harvard educational review, 57, 421-444. tharp, r. g., & gallimore, r. (1988). rousing minds to life: teaching, learning, and schooling in social context. new york, ny: cambridge university press. 64   j. l. alvarado, v. o. pang, & e. finley   wertsch, j. p., & tulviste, p. (1992). l.s. vygotsky and contemporary developmental psychology. development psychology, 28, 548-557. educational renaissance vol. 9 (2020) the tcsefp hybr id ement or ing model: a dist ance educat ion ment or ing model mar jor ie bock , edd. emporia state university email: mbock1@emporia.edu mar i caballero, phd. emporia state university email: mflake@emporia.edu kelly o'neal-hixson, phd. emporia state university email: koneal@emporia.edu feature article the history of public education in america is a story of transformation (schneider, 2018). our schools have evolved from crude one-room schoolhouses to multi-graded consolidated schools (cordier, 1992). teachers have played a critical role in facilitating these profound changes in our educational system. initially, those who taught our children were women, many of whom had limited education and no formal teacher preparation (cordier, 1992; schneider, 2018). as our educational system evolved, states adopted specific content area curricula, set graduation standards, and established professional teacher licensing procedures (schneider, 2018). the development of professional teacher licensing procedures highlighted the pivotal roles teachers have played in our educational system. it also led to the creation of post-secondary preservice and, more recently, inservice teacher preparation programs (mitchell & king, 2016; schneider, 2018) as well as a professional literature replete with studies investigating teacher preparation practices (mitchell & king, 2016). our professional literature highlights the importance of field experiences in teacher preparation programs (mitchell & king, 2016). numerous studies have noted that ?strong [teacher preparation] programs? require students to spend extensive time in the field throughout their programs (darling-hammond, 2000, 2006, 2009, 2010; darling-hammond & bransford, 2005; darling-hammond, et al., 2002). these programs abst ract this article describes a hybrid ementoring model used to support fellows during an 11-month fellowship program, the teachers college special education fellowship program (tcsefp). the tcsefp is a residency in teaching (rit) induction program that leads to the completion of a high incidence special education endorsement and a master?s degree in special education. during the fellowship, each participant receives extensive, explicit mentoring from onsite and off-site mentors. this hybrid ementoring model, developed as a part of the tcsefp, is facilitated in part via distance technologies. this article extends the residency in teaching professional literature to special education teacher preparation programs delivered via distance education. the tcsefp hybrid ementoring model extends residency in teaching university-school partnerships to k-12 schools in remote rural regions. mailto:mbock1@emporia.edu http://mflake@emporia.edu mailto:koneal@emporia.edu bock, caballero & o'neal-hixon| the tcsefp hybrid ementoring model are increasingly rejecting traditional teacher training models that provide preservice teachers with pedagogical foundations followed by supervised student teaching in favor of alternate pathways to teacher licensure (sandoval-lucero et al., 2011). two common alternate pathway models to teacher licensure in university teacher training programs are the professional development school model and the residence in teaching model (sandoval-lucero et al., 2011). the professional development school (pds) model is a collaborative partnership model between university teacher training programs and p-12 schools. it focuses on ??preparing [preservice teachers], providing current educators with ongoing professional development, encouraging joint school-university faculty investigation of education-related issues, and promoting the learning of p-12 students?? (national association of professional development schools, 2008, p. 1). the residence in teaching (rit) model is an induction model that includes planning and collaboration between teachers in residence and other teachers throughout their schools as well as p-12 schools and university teacher training programs (darling-hammond, 2003; fulton, et al., 2005; guha, et al., 2016; smith & ingersoll, 2004). induction models, like rit, support teachers throughout their first year of teaching; from their first teaching experience through their adjustment to all the roles and responsibilit ies associated with teaching (guha, et al., 2016). wong, britton, and ganser (2005) note that induction programs, including rit programs, share several attributes in common: high structure, focus on professional learning, and extensive collaboration between university teacher preparation programs and p-12 schools. in addition, rit models combine a one-year, coteaching clinical component with the completion of a master?s degree (guha, et al., 2016; han & doyle, 2013). while these alternate pathway models (i.e., pds and rit) vary in design, scope, and requirements, they typically reduce requirements in pedagogical preparation and put preservice and inservice teachers in charge of classrooms during their field experiences (rosenberg et al., 2007). in addition, they incorporate collaboration between p-12 schools and university teacher training programs. moreover, mentoring for preservice and inservice teachers is a critical component of both models (darling-hammond, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2010; fulton et al., 2005; guha et al., 2016; han & doyle, 2013; smith & ingersoll, 2004). in both pds and rit, mentors provide invaluable modeling and coaching for preservice and inservice teachers. with guidance from mentors, preservice and inservice teachers learn to connect theory to practice. they engage in the ?practice of practice? ultimately developing into accomplished teachers (babes, 2016; darling-hammond, 2000, 2006, 2010). thus, our professional literature clearly indicates that experiences in classrooms, under the mentorship of expert teachers, greatly enhances preservice and inservice teachers? growth and development (national council for accreditation of teacher education, 2010). these partnerships help preservice and inservice teachers develop professional dispositions, which positively impacts all students (council for the accreditation of educator preparation, 2018). consequently, quality clinical experiences that include effective mentoring are integral to effective teacher preparation programs (darling-hammond, 2006; guha et al., 2016; mercer & meyers, 2014). the purpose of this article is to describe an effective hybrid, i.e., face-to-face and virtual, ementoring model for special education teachers participating in an rit program, the teachers college special education fellowship program (tcsefp). the tcsefp: a dist ance educat ion rit model the teacher?s college special education fellowship program (tcsefp) is a distance education residency in teaching induction program for high incidence special education teachers (bock, 2019; bock & o'neal-hixson, 2016). the tcsefp serves the state of kansas. participants in this fellowship program must have either a k-6 or a 6-12 general 24 bock, caballero & o'neal-hixon| the tcsefp hybrid ementoring model education teaching license, a gpa of 3.25 or higher on the final 60 credit hours of undergraduate coursework, and a recommendation from their employer. each fellow is hired as a first-year special education teacher with a provisional special education license from the kansas state department of education. during the 11-month fellowship, each fellow completes a 24-credit hour graduate high incidence endorsement. the endorsement coursework maximizes professional learning for the fellows. it includes two on-the-job practicums that have been revised in collaboration with our k-12 partners. the fellows finish their special education master?s degree during their second year of teaching. all university coursework is taught via distance technologies (e.g., course websites, lecture captures, video conference programs, email, and phone). similarly, all k-12 and university partnership activities occur via the same distance technologies. this includes extensive, highly structured ementor training and provision of ementor support for fellows throughout the fellowship from both onsite mentors as well as university faculty. k-12 school administrators also serve as mentors for each fellow throughout the 11-month fellowship program. the k-12 administrators and university faculty also select a special education teacher with a minimum of 5-years special education teaching experience to serve as an ementor for each fellow. university faculty work with k-12 school administrators throughout the 11-month fellowship to facilitate continuity of mentoring activities across the k-12 schools and the university. in addition, university faculty train the ementors and coach them throughout the 11-month fellowship program. figure 1 the tcsefp hybrid ementor model. as figure 1 shows, our hybrid ementor model surrounds each fellow with a tiered mentor system. this tiered system includes both on-site mentors (i.e., the sped mentor and the building administrator) and ementors (i.e., university faculty). table 1 highlights the mentoring activity provided by each mentor. table 1 hybrid ementor roles and responsibilities. 25 sped mentors university faculty building administrators meet weekly with fellow schedule all fellow activities communicate with university faculty communicate with building administration complete online mentor training coach fellows complete fellow evaluations meet monthly with fellows work with mentor to schedule fellow activities meet monthly with mentors communicate with building administrators teach & observe fellows complete fellow evaluations collaborate with university faculty on tcsefp meet quarterly with university faculty recruit fellows recruit mentors observe fellows twice a semester work with mentors to schedule observations complete fellow evaluations bock, caballero & o'neal-hixon| the tcsefp hybrid ementoring model ement or handbook the tcsefp ementor handbook provides the structure for the ementoring component of our rit fellowship program. we developed this handbook in collaboration with our k-12 administrators. they include our partner special education directors and university faculty members. figure 2 is the tcsefp mentor handbook table of contents. as is clear from the table of contents, the handbook provides a description of the tcsefp, clarifies roles for all partner members, provides monthly checklists of activities each sped ementor completes with their fellow, and provides requisite forms the sped ementors? use as they complete these activities. the monthly sped ementor checklists are aligned with k-12 annual academic calendars as well as university practicums i and ii course assignments. in short, these monthly checklists ensure a tight alignment between k-12 academic calendars and university practicums i and ii course assignments. figure 2. table of content for the teachers college special education fellowship program mentor handbook. sped ement or training university faculty created a canvas course shell for the sped ementors. this canvas site structures sped ementor activities throughout the fellowship. sped ementors log in to the canvas site at the beginning of each month. they complete an online sped ementor training session. the session contains a lecture capture and related quiz. the lecture capture provides explicit instructions regarding the activities sped ementors are to complete during the month, deadlines for the activities, and directions sped ementors will follow when completing required forms and assessments during the month. the training modules may also include youtube videos, journal articles, and resources related to successful first year teacher mentoring programs. these modules are arranged by months. each module includes a ?to do list? as well as copies of all required forms and assessments needed to complete the monthly activities. figure 3 is a screenshot of a portion of the august 2019 module in the sped ementor canvas course shell. figure 3. august 2019 module activities on the ementor canvas course shell sped ement or coaching university faculty provide explicit sped ementor coaching throughout the fellowship. the faculty host monthly sped ementor meetings via a video conferencing program. these 45-minute meetings facilitate ongoing communication among sped ementors and university faculty. a portion of each meeting is spent answering questions posed by sped ementors regarding monthly activities. university faculty provide instruction specific to various practicum assignments, e.g., creating 26 bock, caballero & o'neal-hixon| the tcsefp hybrid ementoring model direct instruction/universal design lesson plans using the university lesson plan template. this lesson plan integrates direct instruction (di) and evidence based instructional strategies for students with disabilit ies with universal design for learning (udl), a framework to differentiate instruction to meet the unique needs of each learner. both di and udl are cornerstone instructional techniques used to work with students with disabilit ies. this lesson plan template incorporates the use of both. as is typical for teachers in residency positions, the tcsefp fellows present challenges creating and implementing effective lesson plans (sandoval-lucero et al., 2011). the sped ementors? role in helping the fellows learn how to create and implement effective lesson plans for students with disabilit ies utilizing direct instruction and universal design for learning cannot be overstated. however, without ongoing coaching from university faculty, it is unlikely the sped ementors would be able to help the fellows with this challenging task as successfully. during an ementor zoom session, university faculty presented the di/udl lesson plan template. faculty discussed the template and shared a sample, completed lesson plan using the template with the ementors. this resulted in the ementors successfully guiding the fellows through the development of effective di/udl lesson plans for students with disabilit ies. consequently, the monthly sped ementor meetings are a critical component of our sped ementoring coaching. in addition to the monthly sped ementor meetings, university faculty provide regular individualized support to sped ementors via the video conferencing program, email, and phone calls. through these ongoing interactions with sped ementors, university faculty help each sped ementor customize the ementoring component of the tcsefp for each fellow, each fellow?s specific special education teaching assignment, and the many and varied unexpected events that happen throughout the fellowship. through this multi-faceted coaching model, i.e., the sped ementor handbook and website, the sped ementor monthly meetings, and the sped ementor individual communication, university faculty facilitate dynamic, explicit, and highly structured ementoring for each fellow in the tcsefp residency in teaching program. tcsefp hybr id ement or ing pit fal ls the tcsefp began in june of 2016 (bock & o'neal-hixson, 2016). over the past three years we have experienced two pitfalls related to the hybrid ementoring component of the tcsefp: distance technology phobia sped ementor/fellow overload distance technology phobia the university faculty teach solely in an online graduate special education program. consequently, they are quite familiar with and accustomed to using a variety of distance technologies. however, within the first few months of this grant-funded project, they quickly realized that they would need to help some of the fellows and nearly all of the sped ementors and building administrators learn how to use various distance technologies. a portion of the fellows were noticeably uncomfortable using the course websites, participating in video conferencing class sessions, and creating videos of their micro-teaching lessons. university faculty and instructional technology staff supported the fellows as they learned to use these distance technologies. by the end of their summer coursework, the fellows had mastered the distance technologies associated with our program and used these technologies with ease. as the faculty began working with the sped ementors they found that many of these mentors used few distance technologies regularly either at work or in their lives outside of work. faculty encouraged the fellows to help their sped ementors learn how to use the sped ementor canvas site as well as the video conferencing program. university instructional technology staff jumped in to help as needed. this pitfall improved notably following the first year in part because we had experienced sped ementors return to the 27 bock, caballero & o'neal-hixon| the tcsefp hybrid ementoring model program for a second year. the returning sped ementors helped the new sped ementors. also, university faculty and instructional technology personnel provided explicit technical support for sped ementors via email and over the phone at the beginning of both years two and three. once the sped ementors mastered the distance technologies associated with this program, they helped the building principals master these distance technologies. sped ementor/fellow overload this issue occurs with our rural partners fairly regularly. our sped ementors who work with rural school districts often mentor more than one fellow at a time. this is necessary as there is often only one qualified person to serve as the sped ementor in our partner schools located throughout the remote, rural regions of the state. not only are these sped ementors working with more than one fellow, their fellows are often located in different school districts within a special education cooperative. these school districts can be 30-45 miles apart. thus, these sped ementors can experience some pretty extreme challenges completing the weekly meetings with their fellows. in addition, they can find it difficult to schedule the teaching observations for their fellows. the university faculty have encouraged the sped ementors experiencing these scheduling challenges to ?think outside the box? and consider using the video conferencing program for a portion of their weekly meetings with their fellows. at this point, most of the sped ementors in this situation remain less then comfortable with this possible solution; however, those who have tried this solution report that it is working. these sped ementors are encouraging the others to try this approach to solving this problem. no other solutions have been proposed. tcsefp hybr id ement or ing prom ises in spite of the pitfalls we have experienced with the tcsefp hybrid ementoring model, we see great promise with this model. our hybrid ementoring model is integral in helping our fellows achieve target level performance on all kansas state department of education program assessment activities (bock, 2018). it also plays a critical role in the fellows? praxis performance. to date, all fellows have achieved a passing score on the praxis special education: core knowledge and mild to moderate applications 5543 test without the need to retake the test (bock, 2019). our school partners note that the hybrid ementoring component along with the graduate tuition support affiliated with the tcsefp help them recruit and retain k-6 and 6-12 special education teachers for students with high incidence disabilit ies. they also say that, in general, the fellows are better prepared to teach special education then most of their other entry-level special education teachers (bock, 2019). they attribute this to the explicit, structured virtual mentoring the fellows receive throughout the 11-month fellowship. moreover, the collaboration supporting the tcsefp creates transformative practice for the university teacher training program; the university program is now closely tied to the realities of teaching high incidence special education throughout the state of kansas. all of our graduate courses leading to the high incidence endorsement now contain field-based assignments derived from typical on-the-job activities performed regularly by high incidence special education teachers throughout kansas. and finally, we have found this virtual mentoring component to be so beneficial for the fellows that we are now transitioning to a virtual mentoring model for all of our students, i.e., all of our other students in our traditional graduate program. however, by far the greatest promise of the tcsefp virtual mentoring component is its impact on special education services throughout kansas. the fellows who participate in this project evolve into effective special education teachers during their fellowship. they learn to manage the paperwork associated with special education. they learn to work effectively with parents of students with disabilit ies as well as professionals both within and outside schools who work with these same children and their families. they learn to 28 bock, caballero & o'neal-hixon| the tcsefp hybrid ementoring model implement individualized, evidence-based interventions and best practice assessments to evaluate the overall efficacy of these interventions. university faculty watch fellows progress from overwhelmed, novice special education teachers to confident teachers who develop individualized learning activities aligned with iep goals and state educational standards. the fellows finish their fellowship with confidence knowing that they can effectively teach children with disabilit ies. what is the key factor in this transformation? as one of the fellows recently said, ?the university faculty are great, but my ementor was amazing!!! i can?t imagine getting through this year without her.? footnote since this article was written, we along with the rest of the world are currently experiencing covid-19. little did we know at the time we developed this ementoring model how critical it would be as our state and the country battle covid-19. the hybrid ementoring model described in this article helped our program adjust quickly to the many and varied virtual teaching models our school partners implemented to work with students with high incidence disabilit ies in their homes. university faculty hosted additional zoom sessions to help the fellows develop effective virtual learning and assessment activities for their k-12 students with high incidence disabilit ies. university faculty continued to observe the fellows and evaluate their teaching using distance technologies. the k-12 mentors also continued to mentor their fellow throughout the stay-at-home orders. they simply mentored their fellows virtually rather than face to face. covid-19 highlighted the strengths of the hybrid ementoring model described in this article. references bock, m. (october, 2018). 2018 the high incidence special education report for the kansas state department of education. emporia state university bock, m. (february, 2019). february 2019 high incidence special education report for the kansas state department of education. emporia state university bock, m., & o'neal-hixon, k. (february, 2016). the teacher?s college special education fellows program ($332,125 4-year kansas teacher education competitive grant program funded grant). kansas board of regents, emporia state university. cordier, m. h. (1992). schoolwomen of the prairies and plains: personal narratives from iowa, kansas, and nebraska, 1860s-1920s. university of new mexico press. council for the accreditation of educator preparation. (2018). caep handbook initial-level programs 2018. caep. darling-hammond, l. (2000). teacher quality and student achievement: a review of state policy evidence. educational policy analysis archives, 8(1), 1-44. darling-hammond, l. (2003). keeping good teachers: why it matters, what leaders do. educational leadership, 60(8), 6-13. darling-hammond, l. (2006). powerful teacher education: lessons from exemplary programs. john wiley & sons. darling-hammond, l. (2009). the flat world and education: how america?s commitment to equity will determine our future. teachers college press. darling-hammond, l. (2010). teacher education and the american future. journal of teacher education, 61(1-2), 35?47. darling-hammond, l., & bransford, j. (2005). preparing teachers for a changing world: what teachers should learn and be able to do. 29 bock, caballero & o'neal-hixon| the tcsefp hybrid ementoring model jossey-bass. darling-hammond, l., chung, r., & frelow, f. (2002). variation in teacher preparation: how well do different pathways prepare teachers to teach? journal of teacher education, 53(4), 286-302. fulton, k., yoon, i., & lee, c. (2005). induction into learning communities. retrieved from http://www.ncaf.org/documents/nctaf/nctaf_ induction_paper_2005.pdf guha, r., hyler, m. e., & darling-hammond, l. (2017). the power and potential of teacher residencies. phi delta kappan, 98(8), 31?37. guha, r., hyler, m. e., & darling-hammond, l. (2017). the teacher residency: a practical path to recruitment and retention. american educator, 41(1), 31?34. han, g., & doyle, d. (2013). teachers-in-residence: new pathways into the profession. ask the team. center on great teachers and leaders. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ed555664 mercer, d., & myers, s. (2014). history and future of professional development schools in kansas. educational considerations, 42(1), 55-60. mitchel, a. l., & king, m. s. (2016). a new agenda: research to build a better teacher preparation program. bellwether education partners. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ed577709 national association for professional development schools. (2008). what it means to be a professional development school. napds. national council for accreditation of teacher education. (2010). transforming teacher education through clinical practice: a national strategy for preparing effective teachers. report of the blue ribbon panel on clinical preparation and partnerships for improved student learning. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ed512807 rosenberg, m. s., boyer, k. l., sindelar, p. t., & misra, s. (2007). alternative route programs for certification in special education: program infrastructure, instructional delivery, and participant characteristics. exceptional children, 73(2), 224-241. sandoval-lucero, e., shanklin, n. l., sobel, d. m., townsend, s. s., davis, a., & kalisher, s. (2011). voices of beginning teachers: do paths to preparation make a difference? education, 132(2), 336?350. schneider, j. (2018). marching forward, marching in circles: a history of problems and dilemmas in teacher preparation. journal of teacher education, 69(4), 330?340. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ej1188459 smith, t. m., & ingersoll, r. m. (2004). what are the effects of induction and mentoring on beginning teacher turnover? american educational research journal, 41(3), 681-714. wong, h. k., britton, t., & ganser, t. (2005). what the world can teach us about new teacher induction. phi delta kappan, 86(5), 379-384. 30 https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ed555664 https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ed512807 bock, caballero, & o'neal-hixon (2020) proof print page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 greinke (2017) final.pdf educational renaissance vol. 6 (2017) why didn?t anyone tell us what it would really be like? how exper ienced secondary teachers make sense of their role russell greinke, phd, universit y of cent ral missour i email: greinke@ucmo.edu abst ract historically, teacher retention has been a more significant issue than teacher recruitment. this study looks at how teachers become ?comfortable in their own skin.? to be successful in their chosen careers, teachers undergo a process of teacher identity formation that blends one?s educational philosophy, teaching style, and personality. finding one?s own voice, one that is less imitative of influential teachers from one?s past, occurs in those ?borderlands? where the personal and the professional meet, where who you are as a person and who you are as a teacher coalesce. via an interview-based phenomenological study, this paper uses the cumulative wisdom of successful, experienced teachers to look at how they ultimately make sense of their position and overcome obstacles to identity formation. the findings may offer guidance to new teachers and teacher educators. research article int roduct ion this research study focused exclusively on the question: how do experienced full-time teachers make sense of their role of teaching on the secondary level? there is a need for such a study. the narratives of teaching in kane (1991), for example, followed the formula of beginningteacher-experiences-frustrations-but-then-liveshappily-ever-after, whereas the reality may be quite different. the national council of teachers of english, in an issue of the council chronicle (2005), reminded readers that, regarding beginning teachers, ?nearly half will leave teaching within their first five years? (p. 2). this attrit ion rate assuredly has many causes, yet it suggests the need for a research study that goes straight to teachers themselves in order to peel back the layers and discover the center of their lived experience. allen (2000) used an analogy to dorothy from the wonderful wizard of oz to recall her first year as a teacher: like dorothy, i had ended up in a place inhabited by people i didn?t recognize from my past experiences as a student and intern teacher. unlike dorothy, i had no idea where to begin looking for a wizard who could help me learn how to teach struggling and reluctant secondary school readers . . . . so i began counting the days until i could resign. (p. 1) that is just one example of why it could prove insightful to understand, and capture the reality of, classroom teaching by going directly to experienced teachers. allen (2000) recalled a meaningful dialogue she had with new teachers, which highlighted the incongruity between teacher expectations and reality: greinke | why didn?t anyone tell us i recently had the opportunity to work with fifty teachers who were in their first year of teaching. i said to them, ?what would you like to ask me now that there is no one in the room who is evaluating you?? they had one heartfelt response to that question: ?why didn?t anyone tell us what it would really be like?? (p. 88). that is what this study seeks to do, from the perspective of teachers who know. such research may enlighten teacher training programs as it discovers the center of teaching as it is experienced by teachers who are there or have been there. they would seemingly possess the wisdom that comes from transforming theory into practice. tremmel (1999) recalled that ?once, in a methods class, when we were reading a realistic account of a teacher?s struggles, one of my students burst out with enthusiasm over having finally read something in a university course that seemed real and not contrived to present an idealized view of students or teaching practice? (p. 42). those who train teachers might use this study?s findings to more finely calibrate what they emphasize regarding how working teachers experience the classroom. background a terrible mistake was made and i was offered a position teaching a writing workshop. . . . like branding steers or embalming the dead, teaching was a profession i had never seriously considered. i was clearly unqualified, yet i accepted the job without hesitation, as it would allow me to wear a tie and go by the name of mr. sedaris. --david sedaris,?the learning curve? in me talk pretty one day there are substantive constructs that buttress a phenomenological study focusing on the lived experience of secondary teachers and how they make sense of that role. social identity theorists (e.g., tajfel & turner [1986]) have argued that part of our identity derives from the groups (e.g., secondary teachers in the case of this study) we feel connected to. boss, doherty, larossa, schumm, and steinmetz (1993) explain that ??identities? refer to self-meanings in a role? (p. 145) and that ?roles are shared norms applied to the occupants of social positions? (p. 147). social identity theorists, then, try to understand individuals within the context of their roles in groups. allport (1937) explained that the social influence is relevant to a study of identity formation because social constructs can ?become interiorized within the person as a set of personal ideals, attitudes, and traits? (p. viii). our way of being in the world is partly explained by the social roles we occupy. alsup (2006) focused on pre-service teachers to test her hypothesis that the formation of a teacher identity means blending the professional life of a secondary teacher with the unique human being who inhabits that role. her study found that learning to live in the space where those two identities overlap, which she labeled ?borderland discourse? and defined as ?discourse in which disparate personal and professional subjectivities are put into contact toward a point of integration? (p. 205), is a necessary ingredient to settling into the role of teacher. she focused on the experiences of six pre-service english teachers to learn how they underwent the transition from student to teacher. the three neophyte teachers who made the least progress in establishing a sense of teacher identity were the three who did not take teaching jobs, a possible cause/effect relationship that alsup found significant. a research study by mccann, t., johannessen, l., and ricca, b. (2005), which centered on ?three student teachers and eight other novice teachers? (p. 8), identified a trend that pre-service teachers? expectations of what secondary teaching is like are often discordant with their experiences once they have their own classrooms. the mccann et al. study offered various findings, including charges that beginning teachers often underestimate the workload and thus have difficulties with time management, they have less autonomy/control over their own classroom curriculum than they had imagined, and they find it challenging to form positive relationships (as opposed to mere crowd 27 greinke | why didn?t anyone tell us control) with their students. of particular interest is their treatment of what they term a ?teacher persona,? a ?public self,? or a ?public persona.? the study acknowledges the significant learning curve beginning teachers face in finding a comfortable fit with the role of teacher. met hods research design, researcher role, and assumptions this qualitative study takes a phenomenological approach, because the study, as creswell (1998) defined phenomenology, ?includes entering the field of perception of participants; seeing how they experience, live, and display the phenomenon; and looking for the meaning of the participants? experiences? (p. 31). it involves asking individuals about their lived experiences. participants the interviews were conducted with fifteen experienced secondary teachers from multiple disciplines since the experience of being a secondary teacher was the focus of this study. as such i was ?identifying at least the initial elements of what will be the final sample? (lincoln & guba, 1985, p. 234). the participants ranged in age from the latter 20s to the mid-60s. most were from the humanities. twelve were female; three were male. the data was derived from interviews. participants are given pseudonyms. data sources the data i drew on came from interviews with the participants, technical literature, and nontechnical literature. my own experience as a teacher gave me a grounding in terms of understanding the context of the data. since i sought the lived experience of secondary teachers, observations were not a data source. i wanted the teachers to describe how they made sense of the job, not make conjectures based on what i saw. analysis procedures seidman (1998) identified interviewing as the ideal vehicle for obtaining analyzable data in a phenomenological study because ?at the root of in-depth interviewing is an interest in understanding the experience of other people and the meaning they make of that experience? (p. 3). when patterns in the interviews became clear, i cross-referenced with the nontechnical literature. i used inductive analysis (see hatch [2002]), ranging from reading the data to coding to rereading the data to triangulating categories with the data to searching for negative cases to identifying emergent themes within and across categories to mapping themes to pulling evidence to support findings. result s the central hypothesis i find in my study is that secondary teachers who stay in the profession form a ?teacher identity? that blends who they are as individuals with their role as teachers. this ?identity formation? has a number of aspects to it, and there are factors that help, and others that hinder, this creation of a professional identity. def in ing teacher ident it y a teacher identity is a self-image that successfully incorporates the job of teacher with the actual person who holds that job. it?s like wearing a suit of clothes that fits and one feels comfortable in. here is how jane described the process of realizing that being a secondary teacher was an integral part of who she is as a person: that was a really cool transformation. when i first started teaching, i was basically a building sub for 3 1/2 years in ____ because you just couldn?t find a job and the more that i looked, it was just so disheartening because i couldn?t find anything. and that teacher identity was not really there? i was just the sub. you know, even though i was in a school that really liked me and i really liked them. but i still wasn?t full-fledged. you know, i was on the outskirts, on the cusp. so for the first couple of years, it was like i really couldn?t see myself that way. you know, it wasn?t just a job, but i didn?t identify myself, you know, as teacher. contrast that with jane?s earlier work experience, when, to use my metaphor, she tried on suits of clothes that did not fit: 28 greinke | why didn?t anyone tell us i spent 13 years in retail and a couple years in the military, and i never really looked at myself, well, i was in the navy so i wasn?t really a soldier, but i never really, you know, thought of myself that way. as far as my identity as a retail person, i always knew there was something else out there. it didn?t really fit. even though i was in management, it just didn?t fit. this [secondary teaching] fits for me, and it fits more and more every year. physical presence the way a teacher physically occupies a classroom is part of identity formation. in teaching, this physical presence includes the aspect of dress. alsup (2006), part of my literature review, believed that oftentimes teachers underemphasize this factor because ?as academics, we are used to living lives in our heads? (p. 92). she cited ginsburg?s 1988 study, with its ?emphasis on ?socially constructing an image of professionalism? through clothing? (p. 93). alsup cautioned that ?without such attention to the bodily, without admitting that the core identity is not only intellectual or ideological but also corporeal, the new teacher will have a difficult time developing a self-actualized professional identity? (p. 95). her study offered a take-home message to teacher educators: ?this is where the teacher educator must step in with assignments and classroom activities that assist in the creation of a fully embodied teacher identity? (p. 105). survival another aspect of identity formation is the necessity to survive long enough in the profession to form an identity. during this study, it didn?t seem to me that i was uncovering any situations that could be labeled ?negative cases,? that is, participants who did not feel a ?teacher identity.? a random conversation offered an insight. all of my participants have at least five years of experience. in the course of talking to someone who turned out to be a former secondary teacher, who had taught three years before switching careers, i asked her about the concept of forming a teacher identity. she said she never felt she had a ?teacher identity.? that was revealing to me since it suggested that the lack of ?negative cases? was explained by the level of experience of my participants. tremmel (1999) recalled his former student teacher ?linda,? whom the teachers at the school where she ended up working remembered as ?the best teacher any of them had ever known? (p. 58). what made her so remarkable was that ?when she first became a teacher she committed herself, body and soul together, to her students and their learning. she worked twelve-, sixteen-, eighteen-, twenty-hour days. she worked wonders of the sort that are too rarely worked in the schools? (p. 59). unfortunately, she neglected to consider her own survival. ?the classes linda taught were too large, the number of preparations she had was too many, the amount of work it took to do a good job was too great. where other teachers would have pulled back and settled for less, this teacher pushed on, could not figure out a way to survive, and finally left? (p. 59). the lesson tremmel learned from this was ?survival is first. survival is always first? (p. 42). my own participants appeared to have learned the same lesson in their own unique ways. chloe described her first year of teaching as ?terrible. awful. i wouldn?t wish it on my worst enemy. i learned that i need other people to survive. i learned that my survival is the most important thing.? barbara warned that ?teachers are so over worked and underpaid, it 's pathetic. . . . we can't push teachers to give 150% right out of the gate, but that 's what we do.? annette explained why she sees survival as such a crucial factor: ?we have too much to do on top of teaching students on a daily basis and too litt le time to do it. teaching consumes our lives, and if we lose that, you know, the passion that called us to the profession in the first place, it will eat us alive. it will burn us out.? angela remembered how this insight hit her: my mentor teacher, one of the things he told us before we graduated was, ?don?t try to be superteacher.? and he shared a story about one night after a chili supper, the school he was teaching at down in alabama, and he?s mopping up chili. and of course, he had stacks 29 greinke | why didn?t anyone tell us of papers to grade, lessons to plan, and he kind of came to that discovery that, ?if i am going to stay in this profession, in one way or another, i have got to, at moments, just let myself be and not worry about the things that aren?t getting done. because i?ve got to mop up this stupid chili. so his message: don?t worry about being superteacher. be concerned with survival, and you?ll be able to do great things . . . and that helped me because there were so many years where, yeah, staying until 11:00 to clean up the concession stand and having to do all the other duties that pulled me out of, you know, what i really wanted to do. i just had to stop and say, this is part of it and make it through. and say sometimes, i don?t care, i?m not going to grade those papers right now. i?m just going to sit here and be a vegetable for a bit. and that has stayed with me all the way through, that i can only do so much, and then i need to take a litt le breather in there. st udent s yet another important aspect of a teacher identity is the students, a factor that came up repeatedly during this study. atwell (1998) offered her reflections on this dynamic, regarding her middle school students: my kids pretty much look like adults. most are taller than i am. when an eighth-grade girl lets me try on her shoes, often they?re too big. when the shoe does fit? when it?s even a style i?d buy for myself? i forget for a minute that although my students? worlds and my world intersect, they are different. i have to keep relearning the ways young adolescents are like me, and ways they aren?t. (p. 56) the shoes in this case work as a metaphor for finding a teacher identity that fits. beyond t he classroom it is clear that teacher identity plays out while the teacher is in the classroom, as when mccourt (2005) noted that after eight years of secondary teaching, ?i was learning what was obvious: you have to make your own way in the classroom. you have to find yourself. you have to develop your own style, your own techniques? (p. 113). yet this professional identity may also extend beyond the classroom. jane is still her ?teacher self? when she shops: now when i go into wal-mart and, you know, i?m starting to get the brothers and the sisters of kids that i had when i first got here and, you know, i know parents and they remember me. it?s like, ?oh, yeah! you were so-and-so?s teacher,? and ?hi, miss ____, how you doing?? usually there are big smiles and all that kind of stuff . . . that is part of who i am. you know, those kids are, in a way, a mirror identity of me because i am part of them . . . that is part of me there. the consensus among the participants was that they saw themselves occupying a role that truly mattered. helping t he creat ion of an ident it y there are identifiable factors that aid in the formation of a teacher identity; one example is life experience. those teachers who had ?other lives? before becoming teachers felt that impacted their identity. jane explained, ?i do have a much different background than they [fellow teachers] do. and so, i can make connections, i can do things differently because i?ve been out there in a different world a lot longer than they have. i may not be valued for that quite yet [smiling], but i value that.? diane, who noted she was ?45 before she chose this career,? stated, ?i went into my first classroom with the confidence to manage behaviors based on experience. truth is, my college courses did very litt le to prepare me to successfully handle student behavior.? hinder ing t he creat ion of an ident it y there are also factors that hinder the formation of a teacher identity; one example is external demands on the classroom time of secondary teachers. chloe complained that ?first you have to make sure no counselor wants to come in and use your class time to schedule classes for next year. then you have to make sure there are no district 30 greinke | why didn?t anyone tell us or state mandates that require you to teach certain things. then, hopefully, you can finally teach some [content].? diane commiserated about ?government mandated rules that take way too much time away from teaching and make litt le if any difference in education.? can help or hinder sometimes the same factor is identified by some participants as helping, and others as hindering, identity formation. it all depended on the situation. an example is administration. karen happily recalled ?a principal who was really wonderful, and there was no reason that he should have been so nice to me as many mistakes as i made.? angela proudly remembered working ?in a school that hated standardized tests. the administrators would publicly make that comment? that they did not believe in every-year standardized testing. so they did them, but they saw them as just one litt le piece of the whole puzzle. we did online portfolios while i was there, so we were really progressive in the way we looked at assessment.? jackie, however, identified the low point of her teaching career as ?not being able to order a program for three years in a row that cost $300 even after i clearly demonstrated to the principal my need. it cost more than that to outfit a football player, which i pointed out. the answer i got was that football is what passes bond issues.? annette resented that ?our administration has a difficult time supporting us in matters concerning poor student conduct.? edward had experience on both sides of this issue. he found ?the total, complete lack of support from administration? to be the ?most shocking? aspect of teaching. early in his career, though, it was different: ?for two years, i had a principal who had my back, who supported me fully. after i left his care, i never found that again.? synt hesis it seems that successful secondary teachers form a teacher identity that blends who they are as individuals with who they are as pedagogues. edward described the transformation: ?i felt like that when i started, that i wasn't really a teacher.after ten years, however, i am completely comfortable in the role.? diane defined the dynamic this way: ?i think it is important for students to realize you are a person with a regular life and not just a teacher who exists only within the confines of the classroom. it?s like, when they are able to see and hear bits of your life, positive relationships form as they make connections between their lives and yours.? jane had emotion in her voice as she talked about how well the role of teacher fits who she is as a person: i like being a teacher. i think it?s one of the best jobs around. i really do. yeah, it can get to you. yeah, the stress day to day can definitely get to you if you let it. there are those lucky individuals who know how to take care of it better than others. but i can?t imagine not being a teacher. i just can?t. there are days, most days, when i turn my lights off, i look around in my classroom, and it?s all dark and quiet. you know, there are lights coming in through the windows, of course, and it?s all cleaned up. and i look at the posters on the wall, and i check out the desks, and it?s so cool that that?s my classroom. and i feel so privileged, really, even though that may sound so cornball. i do. i feel so privileged to even have a classroom, to have kids sit there, and to want to teach, and to want to learn. . . . i think all of that is just fantastic. discussion ?i used to be like you. i wanted to mold young minds, stretch their imaginations, introduce them to the exciting world of words. make the english language and literature come alive for them. right?? ?exactly,? i agreed. ?you?ll get over it,? he said, abruptly. -louanne johnson, my posse don?t do homework sum m ary and conclusions. one appeal of teacher identity is that the concept makes such eminent sense. protherough and atkinson (1992) noted that in matters of education, 31 greinke | why didn?t anyone tell us there is ?a marked ?variance? between professional and general public opinion? (p. 386). this study may shed new light on teachers? lived experiences so that this gap in understanding between those inside, and those outside, the profession, may be narrowed. and just as the participants in protherough and atkinson?s study found ?personal qualities? (p. 399) significant to their role as teachers (including establishing a personal relationship between teacher and student), my study appears to reinforce their results in finding that teacher identity must incorporate who the teacher is as a person and who the students are. although alsup (2006) also looked at teacher identity formation in regard to secondary teachers, her study focused on pre-service teachers and their fledgling attempts to form an identity. my study may expand on her research in that i looked at highly experienced teachers reflecting back on identity formation. my participants had the added perspective that comes from long practice. they seemed to learn, for example, that the variables that enter into identity formation are multi-faceted and changing. jane, for example, explained that: we always change. you know, if we?re an effective teacher, an effective educator, we do change to meet whatever it is our kids are doing. if we have a group that needs to have more discipline, or needs to go slower, well, that?s part of our identity. we have to be patient. if we have a group that is definitely a lot more fun and can handle a lot more things, well, we respond to that too. that?s just good teaching. i think that whatever it is we teach is also part of our identity. this is an epiphany that alsup?s participants could not yet have articulated. here, for example, is alsup?s participant, carrie, feeling quite unnerved by her lack of experience and how far she has to go to form a teacher identity: i had a hard time viewing myself as a teacher, and as i?m getting closer to graduation i?m having a hard time viewing myself as an adult. because it?s like i?m expected to go out there and get a job and they?re going to give me responsibility, and i just want to look at them and say, look, i?m just a kid! what am i doing here? i can?t do this stuff! so when i was in the classroom, i felt a whole lot more like a student than i did a teacher. (pp. 62-63) pre-service teachers stand to benefit from learning what the participants in my study revealed about how their professional identities evolved. personal identity theory appeared in my literature review to account for the important role personal characteristics play in teacher identity formation. that helps explain chloe?s comment that ?i use humor and story telling . . . as i teach ? that is who i am as a person.? and cindy?s remark: ?i think your personality matters a lot more than your [content knowledge].? jane cautioned that personal characteristics can ?make or break? a teacher: ?just because you?re good at [your subject matter] doesn?t mean you?re going to have a relationship with the kid or a bunch of kids or that you?re going to find this, you know, somewhat fun. because you have to find teaching fun.? the nontechnical literature in my literature review, such as the published memoirs of secondary teachers, allowed me to triangulate the data and compare the oral accounts of my participants with the more carefully crafted remembrances of stories in print. the findings, in both cases, seemed to reinforce each other, as when mccourt (2005) stressed the need for secondary teachers to present an identity that incorporates their true selves in the classroom: you can fool some of the kids some of the time, but they know when you?re wearing the mask, and you know they know. they force you into truth. if you contradict yourself they?ll call out, hey, that?s not what you said last week. you face years of experience and their collective truth, and if you insist on hiding behind the teacher mask you lose them. even if they lie to themselves and the world they look for honesty in the teacher. (p. 203) im plicat ions the most significant implication is that formation 32 greinke | why didn?t anyone tell us of a teacher identity can and should be taught in methods classes. one way to facilitate this is to give preservice teachers room to grow an identity. boxing them in by suggesting there is one correct way of doing things handicaps identity formation. here, for example, is one supervising teacher?s published memory of how she learned to let teachers incorporate their own personalities into the classroom even if it does not match the prevailing orthodoxy of a teacher preparation program: one day . . . i was assigned to observe the class of a young teaching assistant. he met me at the classroom door dressed in a three-piece suit, tie, and polished dress shoes. i assumed that he could not relate to the students and that i would endure a long and tedious hour. he asked the students to move the chairs from the discussion circle in which they rested to straight rows from front to back. i considered that a mistake, like his formal attire and stance in front of the class. but as he talked, with very proper diction, his excitement about the material became increasingly apparent. i looked around and saw that students were paying close attention and taking notes. when he paused and requested questions, many hands went up. the students asked good questions, he responded well, and then returned to his lecture. . . . as part of my job as observer, i asked the instructor, with about 15 minutes remaining in the period, to leave the room so i could discuss his teaching with the students. as soon as he left, the students spontaneously began to praise him. i was skeptical: "wasn't he too formal? do you really relate to someone like that in a three-piece suit?" but indeed they did . . . they truly liked and respected his enthusiasm for the material. that experience overturned many of my prejudices about teaching. i decided to teach more in line with my personality. . . . i had learned a crucial lesson: most students possess superb radar that quickly locates phoniness . . . thus, every teacher has to figure out who she or he is, how best to appear before a class, and what material to teach. and in long teaching careers, every instructor should have three-to five-year checkups and revise their dress, approach, and material as their personal values and circumstances change. teaching is a highly individual endeavor, and each instructor should work according to what personally feels most comfortable. (sperber, 2005, p. b20) lim it at ions regarding phenomenological studies, moustakas (1994) warned that ?knowledge does not end with moments of connectedness, understanding, and meaning. such journeys open vistas to new journeys for uncovering meaning, truth, and essence? journeys within journeys, within journeys . . . each stopping place is but a pause in arriving at knowledge? (p. 65). i do not live under the illusion that this study is anything more substantial than a mere ?pause.? there are ways in which my study had limitations. i could have sampled a more heterogeneous mix of participants. that would have allowed me to consider the impact of gender, ethnic, or age differences in the teachers i interviewed (or how those same differences play out when applied to the students who occupy their classrooms), and the possibility that urban versus rural schools, or private versus public schools, or well-funded versus financially strapped schools could reveal significant variables. interviewing may have limitations. do teachers necessarily ?walk their talk?? final thought s the popular author c. s. lewis coined the word ?shadowlands? to describe the belief that the earth is a mere reflection of a more perfect, and more real, world that lies beyond. many teachers, i believe, begin their careers with the notion that their goal is to, as closely as possible, model the ?ideal teacher? that they have envisioned from their methods classes. what my participants 33 greinke | why didn?t anyone tell us seemed to say, though, is that they do not live in a platonic shadowlands where teachers imitate an idealistic vision situated outside themselves, but in what alsup (2006) called the ?borderlands? where personal and professional spaces overlap. references allen, j. (2000). yellow brick roads: shared and guided paths to independent reading 4-12. portland, or: stenhouse publishers. allport, g. w. (1937). personality: a psychological interpretation. new york, ny: holt. alsup, j. (2006). teacher identity discourses: negotiating personal and professional spaces. urbana, il: national council of teachers of english. atwell, n. (1998). in the middle; new understandings about writing, reading, and learning. (2nd ed.) portsmouth, nh: heinemann. boss, p. g., doherty, w. j., larossa r., schumm w. r., & steinmetz, s. k. (1993). sourcebook of family theories and methods: a contextual approach. new york, ny: plenum press. creswell, j. w. (1998). qualitative inquiry and research design: choosing among five traditions. thousand oaks, ca: sage publications. fontana, a., & frey, j. h. (2000). the interview: from structured questions to negotiated text. in n. k. denzin & y. s. lincoln (eds.), handbook of qualitative research (2nd ed). (pp. 645-672). thousand oaks, ca: sage publications. hatch, j. a. (2002). doing qualitative research in education settings. albany: suny press. johnson, l. (1992). my posse don?t do homework. new york, ny: st. martin?s. kane, p. r., ed. (1992). the first year of teaching: real world stories from america?s teachers. new york, ny: mentor. lincoln, y. s., & guba, e. g. (1985). naturalistic inquiry. newbury park, ca: sage publications. mccann, t. m., johannessen, l. r., & ricca, b. p. supporting beginning english teachers: research and implications for teacher induction. urbana, il. national council of teachers of english. mccourt, f. (2005). teacher man. new york, ny: scribner. moustakas, c. (1994). phenomenological research methods. thousand oaks, ca: sage publications. protherough, r, & atkinson, j. (1992). how english teachers see english teaching.research in the teaching of english,26(4), 385-407. provenza, p. (director). (2005).the aristocrats[motion picture]. united states: thinkfilm. seidman, i. (1998). interviewing as qualitative research: a guide for researchers in education and the social sciences. new york, ny: teachers college press. sperber, m. (2005, september 9). notes from a career in teaching.the chronicle of higher education, b20. tajfel, h., and turner, j. c. (1986). the social identity theory of inter-group behavior. in s. worchel and l. w. austin (eds.), psychology of intergroup relations. chicago, il: nelson-hall. tremmel, r. (1999). zen and the practice of teaching english. portsmouth, nh: boynton/cook. appendix a sam ple int erview quest ions * what is it about your life story that has you in a position to be able to talk about what it is like to be a secondary teacher? * what journals/periodicals related to your job do you read regularly? why? * what is an example of a high and a low point in your secondary teaching career? what was learned from both? * what is an example of an epiphany you had as a teacher, and what inspired it? * did your teacher preparation classes adequately prepare you to be a teacher? why or why not? * why does the profession have a high dropout rate? 34 greinke | why didn?t anyone tell us * what are the three most important books, whether fiction or nonfiction, for a teacher to have on his or her bookshelf? why? * of the attempts that have been made to depict what teaching is really like, whether in the form of a book or a film, whether it is fiction or non-fiction, which one do you believe comes closest to ?telling it like it is?? why? * what will the secondary classroom look like 10 years from now? * what conferences, if any, do you find most helpful to your job? why? * would you recommend this profession to a young person who is considering it for a career? why or why not? if you could start over, would you choose it again for a career? * what is it really like for you to be a secondary teacher?* what does it mean to you to be a secondary teacher? 35 educational renaissance vol 12 (2023) research article “i feel sad”: the cultural politics of white emotions in pre-service teachers’ response to literature abstract this paper details a critical ethnography i conducted in my own classroom—an undergraduate children’s literature course for pre-service elementary educators—in which i analyze white students’ emotional responses to multicultural children’s literature through the lens of a cultural politics of emotion (ahmed, 2015; zembylas, 2008). in my paper i use critical whiteness studies and critical emotion studies to analyze the effects of these emotional responses, complicating the assumption that emotions are a bridge to empath and exploring how white emotional performativity often serves to deflect from authentic critical discourse, reinforcing white supremacy in educational spaces. i look reflexively at my own pedagogy as a white educator, noticing the ways in which my failure to critically interrogate white emotions contributed to a classroom culture that valued majority voices over the voices of students of color. i conclude with the impacts of this study on my own commitments as a teacher-researcher. keywords: children’s literature, empathy, critical whiteness studies, critical emotion studies in the dim basement of an old high school, now home to the curriculum and instruction department of the university of minnesota, college students share their responses to children’s literature about immigration and refugees. “i feel sad,” one white woman shares, referring to the high number of refugees who are children, details she read about in that day’s assigned scholarly literature (observation, november 20, 2019). other white students echo her thoughts, and most responses move between feelings of sadness for refugees and questions about how to teach children’s literature about immigration and refugees without getting too “political,” a common concern in the course. the discourse clearly positions the identity of immigrant and refugee as other, despite the fact that there are five women of color, four of whom are also immigrants, in the room. the students are sharing in a circle, and when it’s her turn to share her thoughts, hope , a black female with a soft voice who had mentioned a few weeks ago that she is an immigrant, says that there are often traumatizing reasons people have for coming to the united states from other countries, and when we teach this literature we need to support those students (observation, november 20, 2019). the room is quiet after hope speaks, as hers is the first voice to disrupt the white discourse at work, the feelings of sadness for that had been circulating the room. i—the instructor for this course—find myself nodding, appreciating the perspective hope provides to our discussions, until i experience a reflexive shift. i understand, in a moment, that hope is not providing a suggestion for how to take up immigrant and refugee literature with young students, but is implicating our class in a failure to take trauma into account when discussing this literature ourselves, here and now. i realize that, despite my ideologikristin bauck, m.ed, abd phd. curriculum and instruction, university of minnesota bergs257@umn.edu mailto:bergs257%40umn.edu?subject= bauck | 12 i feel sad cal and pedagogical commitments to critical theory and social justice, i have enacted a pedagogy that assumed students were reading these texts as windows into cultures and experiences not their own, as opposed to mirrors of their own identities (bishop, 1990). though the development of empathy through engagement with literature is a goal i have for my students, the emotions circulating the room prior to hope’s comment were instead examples of empty empathy (zembylas, 2008). the class moves on, but i stay in this moment. this reflexive shift happened towards the end of data collection for a critical ethnographic study i conducted in my own classroom, a children’s literature course for pre-service elementary teachers that focuses explicitly on multicultural literature, critical literacy, and social justice. until this moment i had been feeling very stuck in the “messy zones” (fine, 1994a) of my first engagement with qualitative research, unsure of what i was looking for, questioning my positionality, and worrying about the ethics of trying to answer my research question by observing and making judgments about others. i knew, intellectually, that critical ethnographers are implicated completely in our research, but i had not yet lived out this knowledge, or experienced how it feels to suddenly understand the intrinsic connection to both the problems and possibilities within research. this paper details the process of my critical ethnographic study and the analysis that came from this reflexive shift. i use critical whiteness studies (cws) and critical emotion studies (ces) to analyze the effects of white students’ emotional response to literature, complicating the assumption that emotions are a bridge to empathy and exploring how white emotional performativity often serves to deflect from authentic critical discourse, reinforcing white supremacy in educational spaces. i look reflexively at my own pedagogy as a white educator, noticing the ways in which my failure to critically interrogate white emotions contributed to a classroom culture that valued majority voices over the voices of students of color. i conclude with the implications of this study for educators and researchers as well as its impacts on my own commitments as a teacher-researcher. theoretical framework this study is grounded in critical theory, a broad theoretical framework that has influenced many more specific critical qualitative research methodologies and analytic lenses, including critical whiteness studies (cws) and critical emotional studies (ces). what cws and ces have in common— what connects them to critical theory—is their dedication to challenging systems of power, oppression, and hegemony, to attempting to “confront the injustice of a particular society or public sphere within the society” (kincheloe & mclaren, 2005, p. 305). in this paper i use critical whiteness studies and critical emotion studies to examine the ways in which white students’ emotional response to literature impacted and interacted with white hegemony in the classroom. in addition to these critical theories, i bring to my research and analysis a poststructural understanding of self/other, knowledge, and power, which significantly influences how i come to understand my own entanglement in my research findings. critical whiteness studies critical whiteness studies (cws) is a field of scholarship that aims to “reveal the invisible structures that produce and reproduce white supremacy and privilege” (applebaum, 2016). cws approaches issues of systemic oppression from the perspective of whiteness in particular, seeking to “deconstruct, challenge, and transform whiteness” (yeung et al., 2013, p. 18) as a project of antiracism. according to matias and mackey (2016), cws uses a “transdisciplinary approach to investigate the phenomenon of whiteness, how it is manifested, exerted, defined, recycled, transmitted, and maintained, and how it ultimately impacts the state of race relations” (p. 34). jupp et al. (2016) explain that, in the field of education research, white teacher identity studies seek to “prepare and conscientize a predominantly white preservice and professional teaching force for teaching and learning across cultural differences in public bauck | 13 i feel sad schools” (p. 63). the first wave of white teacher identity studies, which took place in the 1990s and early 2000s, emphasized “white privilege analyses and identified all the ways that white teachers denied, evaded or diminished the salience of race in teaching and learning” (jupp, 2017, p. 17). second-wave studies, in contrast, are “race-visible” (jupp et al., 2016; jupp, 2017), and provide a more critical examination of the complexities of whiteness and race. second-wave scholars work to understand “how oppression and white supremacy function within individuals, institutions, and systems, in complex, socially contextualized and historicized ways” (boehm-turner, 2020, p. 64). while not every scholar writing within cws identifies as researching within second-wave teacher identity studies, the field has impacted whiteness studies within education significantly. i believe that my own positionality as a white woman educator, which i will explore in more detail below, necessitates that i approach issues of race, racism, and systemic inequality from a place that both acknowledges and continues to challenge my own implications in these systems as a white person in education. in my analysis i use cws to examine the ways in which my white students’ emotional response to multicultural literature, as well as my own failure to interrogate those emotions, contributed to multiple missed opportunities to disrupt white hegemony in the classroom. critical emotion studies critical emotions studies (ces) is an emerging field of analysis that connects to the “affective turn” (clough, 2007) present in recent cultural studies and social science scholarship, which brings together psychoanalysis, theories of embodiment, political theories, and critical analysis of affect and emotion (zembylas, 2016). according to trainor (2006), ces specifically “represents various disciplinary forays into the relationship between emotion and whatever it is that a particular discipline studies, from brain chemistry to teacher education to election results” (p. 645). in this paper i take up ahmed (2015) and zembylas’ (2008, 2016) understanding of emotions as things that do rather than things that are, and define emotions as performances that produce action within specific social and political contexts. specific concepts i explore related to ces in this paper include the dangers of sentimentality (zembylas, 2008) and the complications of empathy, which reveal the ways in which the performance of emotions such as love, care, and concern can lead to passive empathy (boler, 1997), false empathy (delgado, 1996; matias & zembylas, 2014) or empty empathy (zembylas, 2008), as opposed to active, or transformative empathy. matias and zembylas (2014) explain that in false empathy, for example, declarations of caring or empathy are often inauthentic because they fail to be accompanied by action: “the object of compassion exists primarily within an imaginary realm that sentimentalizes the other and avoids any action that shows caring in practice” (p. 321). this sentimental framing of the other’s suffering remains at a superficial level and fails to acknowledge that this suffering is in part effect of socioeconomic relations of violence, oppression, and poverty. but most importantly, such expressions of caring fail to recognize how they are embedded in modalities of racism and social inequality that are perpetuated by assuming that declarations of caring are enough to alleviate the other’s suffering. (matias & zembylas, 2014, p. 322) methodology throughout this study i practiced critical ethnography, a research methodology that “begins with an ethical responsibility to address processes of unfairness or injustice within a particular lived domain” (madison, 2020, p. 4). in this case, the lived domain was a children’s literature course for pre-service teachers that is explicitly committed to critical literacy and social justice. i began my research study with a broad question: what are the complexities and contradictions that arise in a children’s literature course explicitly committed to critical literacy and social justice? i found critical ethbauck | 14 i feel sad nography, with its focus on examining systems, social interactions, and culture as a way of making meaning and effecting change, to be the most appropriate methodology with which to explore that question. critical ethnography also emphasizes the importance of relationships within the lived domain (madison, 2020), and conducting research in a class that i taught over a full semester allowed me to engage in “deep hanging out” (geertz, 1998) with students in our shared context over a significant length of time. in terms of methods, i used data collection methods common to critical ethnography including class observations, two semi-structured interviews with two different interlocutors, and document analysis of relevant student work. class observations were gathered in a handwritten notebook while i simultaneously taught and facilitated learning. after each class i captured my immediate observations and reflections in a field note, and then i traced my reactions and developing analysis through analytic and reflexive memos written after each field note. over the course of my data collection, my research question shifted and narrowed as i traced patterns of discourse, and i ultimately found myself most interested in the ways in which the performativity of emotions in response to multicultural literature served to neutralize, and even shut down, real critical engagement of oppression and injustice. my own entanglement in the research process—as both instructor and researcher, as a white woman engaged in social justice research—led to many “speed bumps” (weis & fine, 2000) that caused me to reflexively reconsider the ways in which i was also implicated in the whiteness-at-work, or the “discursive strategies that create paradoxes among teachers’ beliefs, intentions, and actions” (yoon, 2012, p. 587) i was observing among my students. ultimately, my reflexive and embodied participation in the research process itself allowed me to “work the hyphen” (fine, 1994b) between self/other, joining other qualitative researchers to “probe how we are in relation with the contexts we study and with our informants, understanding that we are all multiple in those relations” (p. 72). as a result, my own identity and positionality, described in more detail below, are intrinsically connected to my research findings and analysis. the research setting children’s literature for educators is an undergraduate multicultural children’s literature course within the education department of the university of minnesota. it is required for all pre-service elementary teachers, but because it also offers a writing credit, many students from outside of the college take the course as well. during my study the class met once a week for three hours at a time, and throughout the semester students read a variety of diverse children’s literature, from picture books through young adult novels, organized into units focused on sociocultural issues such as race, gender, class, and disability. students also read and responded to popular and scholarly articles that analyze how each sociocultural topic or identity is represented in children’s literature. i taught one of the three offered sections of the course, and chose that as my research site in large part because of the authentic relationships with the students that i had developed prior to my data collection, as well as the intimacy with which i knew the course materials and goals. relationships are an essential tenet in critical ethnography (madison, 2020). i knew that i would be more successful at working the hyphen between self/other (fine, 1994b) if i was already an authentic member of the community, with relationships extending in front of and beyond the research study itself. of the 17 students in children’s literature for educators, 12 were white, and nine of those white students were women. there were three white men and five women of color. most of the students were in their early 20s, but a few were non-traditional students either coming to education as a second career or taking the course for extension credits. because of the differential in power between myself as an evaluating instructor and my students as participants in a graded university course, consent forms for participation in my research study were collected but sealed in an envelope until after grades for the bauck | 15 i feel sad course were submitted. ultimately, all students consented to participation. researcher identity and positionality throughout my study my identity as a white woman educator was entangled with my research, influencing the questions i asked, the discourses i centered, and the pedagogical choices i made. my whiteness was ultimately present in my findings and analysis as well, as it became clear that, despite my commitment to social justice education, as a white educator i am frequently complicit in the failures of education to disrupt oppression and injustice. i have been raised to value neutrality over discomfort. while ideologically i align myself with fine’s (1994a) activist research projects that “seek to unearth, interrupt, and open new frames for intellectual and political theory and practice” (p. 23), this research revealed to me the ways in which i instead enact a neutral pedagogy, working “against [my] antiracist efforts, since [i] literally and ideologically cannot be in two places at once” (grinage, 2019, p. 141). this understanding erased any boundaries that might have been left between self/other in my research, spurring me towards deep reflexivity of what i myself must confront and change in order to more fully live out my values and beliefs about the emancipatory and anti-oppressive goals of education. findings and analysis my research revealed that emotions of white pre-service teachers were performed for two objectives: to indicate morality and to maintain neutrality. i will examine each of these, using data collected from my observations, interviews, and document analysis to explore the impacts of white emotions on the criticality of classroom discourse and culture, particularly the ways in which these performances are evidence of the dangers of sentimentality (zembylas, 2008). emotions as indications of morality throughout my research and my reflexive analyses i realized that much of the supposed empathy circulating in our classroom was superficial and empty (boler, 1997; delgado, 1996; matias & zembylas, 2014; zembylas, 2008), lacking the active qualities necessary for it to have any impact on the project of social justice. i explore two examples found in classroom discourse and written reflections below. each week my students wrote short discussion posts in response to that week’s readings. in her written response to the topic of immigration and refugees in children’s literature, samantha, a white female, wrote: the post about migration makes me very sad. i did not realize the amount of people the us has been deterring in terms of refugees, and it makes me feel like we are not doing a good job as a country loving on people who need care. as somebody who wants to care for humans as a living, i think that there needs to be more value placed on human life and making space for refugees. (online reflection, november 14, 2019) megan, another white female, wrote that the article about refugees “broke my heart,” and that “for them to be removed from everything they have known to a world of unknowns and fear, especially in this current political climate, must be completely terrifying and traumatic for them.” she goes on to express gratitude for the people “out there doing this work” to support refugees. (online reflection, november 19, 2019). while an initial read of these two responses indicates emotions of empathy and compassion, a closer analysis reveals that these expressions of sadness and broken hearted-ness––absent any critical examination of the wider systems and structures that create refugees as well as what it would really take, beyond support, for us to no longer have a world where refugees exist––serve to normalize and reinforce existing paradigms and create objects of the refugees. in her exploration of the cultural politics of pain, ahmed (2015) explains that in an emotional response to literature: bauck | 16 i feel sad the negative emotions of anger and sadness are evoked as the reader’s: the pain of others becomes “ours”, an appropriation that transforms and perhaps even neutralises their pain into our sadness. it is not so much that we are “with them” by feeling sad; the apparently shared negative feelings do not position the reader and victim in a relation of equivalence. . . . rather we feel sad about their suffering, an “aboutness” that ensures that they remain the object of “our feeling.” (p. 21) ahmed contends that “stories of pain involve complex relations of power” (p. 22), and both samantha and megan’s responses are evidence of this neutralization of pain into emotions about the other that reinforce rather than challenge the power differentials between the students and the objects of their feelings. these emotions indicate a proper morality, yet fail to move students towards what spelman (1997) calls co-suffering. in a different unit focused on indigenous representation in children’s literature, three students read and discussed when we were alone, a picture book written by david a. robertson and illustrated by julie flett. the book is about an indigenous grandmother’s forced attendance at government mandated residential schools during her youth, arguably a heavy and emotionally weighted topic. chloe, the only white female in the group, read the book aloud, often stopping to make comments about the book and talk through her interpretations and reactions. it was clear that she didn’t understand the context of the story, despite the unit’s explicit focus on indigenous representation and our class discussions of indigeneity and decolonization that preceded this small group discussion. as she read, chloe paused and said, “it looks like she went to a private school,” then, “that looks like her grandma,” and at one point, “oh that’s so sad” (observation, november 6, 2019). in the end chloe summarized that the young children are lucky they can speak their [indigenous] language and wear whatever they want, as the grandma couldn’t in school. in addition to a lack of understanding of the experiences faced by indigenous students forced to attend residential schools, this response was an example of empty empathy, where chloe’s moral sadness only served to reinforce the power dynamics at work in the historically unequal relationship between white and indigenous peoples rather than challenge it. it also positioned chloe as a moral spectator in the “distant suffering of victims and perpetrators” (zembylas, 2008, p. 9), one of the dangers of sentimentality outlined by zembylas (2008) in his critique of trauma narratives in education. it is important to note here my own complicity in the discourse of empty empathy that often circulated in our classroom. as an educator, it is my job to help develop students’ dispositions of empathy, and reflexive analysis of my own choices in terms of pedagogy and facilitation revealed the ways in which i allowed empty empathy to stand as adequate indication of morality instead of pushing students towards active empathy. in many moments my entangled identities as both teacher and researcher led me to simply observe when i should arguably have intervened, worrying about my own influence on the data i was collecting but forgetting that “intellectual questions are saturated in biography and politics and…they should be” (fine, 1994a, pp. 30-31). upon reflection i realized that my failure to interrogate superficial sentimentality was also evidence of another way in which whiteness was at work (yoon, 2012) in the classroom: the primacy of neutrality and feelings of comfort over the uncomfortable disruption of injustice. maintaining neutrality throughout my observations it became clear that my students were preoccupied with concerns about the difficulties they might face when incorporating diverse representations in children’s literature in their future classrooms. moments of potential for active empathy were often stymied by the pre-service teacher’s desire to remain neutral, to avoid situations that might be deemed “controversial,” a word that often circulated in our class discussion. one week i opened class with a discussion based on a quesbauck | 17 i feel sad tion i’d received after the previous week’s unit on lgbtq representation: “how can we teach lgbtq literature without feeling like we are pushing our beliefs?” jonathan, a white male, was the first to respond. he shared that in his education courses he’s been taught to try to be “objective,” avoiding interpretation and just stating things as they are, as fact. chloe chimed in, suggesting that you could, for example, do a unit about family, and include books with two moms and/or two dads (observation, october 23, 2019). at this point both students’ tones were pretty hesitant—they weren’t sure how to answer this question, and they were clearly taking a careful approach. abigail, a white female who also identifies as jewish (interview, november 25, 2019), raised her hand and said she thinks it’s “totally fair to educate” children on “specific lgbtq topics.” it “shouldn’t be controversial” to talk about real kids and real families (observation, october 23, 2019). two more students, both white females, spoke up in agreement, saying that if you are grounded “in your own reason for teaching” and bringing lgbtq books in the classroom then you’re positioned to answer any questions from parents about why you teach what you teach, and that these issues “should be talked about and normalized” because you “can’t avoid hard conversations, and young kids can make sense of anything” (observation, october 23, 2019). my observation notes detail that all three of these students were much more engaged in this topic vocally and with their bodies than the first two, and that they “positioned themselves in opposition to ideas of objectivity or neutrality, in opposition to jonathan” (field notes, october 23, 2019). erik, another white male, joined the conversation to argue that diversity can be objectively taught in a classroom but that it “gets tricky when you are talking about values” (observation, october 23, 2019). this assumption that values are “tricky” appeared again for erik a few weeks later during our focus on disability in children’s literature, when he qualified disability as a non-controversial topic because it’s not about “values” (observation, november 13, 2019). erik’s understanding that some of the sociocultural topics the class covers are more controversial than others, that some are about values and others aren’t, reveals to me the whiteness-at-work (yoon, 2012) in the assumption that whiteness and heterosexuality are normal and everything else is different, and therefore difficult. the ways in which some students, including erik, focused on teaching with a neutral stance reveal the primacy of feelings of comfort over hypothetical moments of discomfort, such as when a teacher is challenged to defend their choice to include non-majority representations in classroom literature. ahmed (2015) theorizes the dominant white heteronormative space as a sanitized “comfort zone,” arguing that “normativity is comfortable for those who can inhabit it. the word ‘comfort’ suggests well-being and satisfaction, but it also suggests an ease and easiness” (p. 147). the cultural politics of comfort at work in these discourses clearly values ease and easiness over moments of uncomfortable disruption. my students’ concerns about controversy also reveal yoon’s (2012) whiteness-at-work, which “can be difficult to pinpoint because it is often a normative, unspoken assumption of how things are” (p. 607). yoon details a study group that investigated white teachers’ problems of practice, where reflection was limited because teachers failed to talk about their own identities or question their own privilege, instead positioning themselves in “non-racial and culturally neutral terms” and “positioning students as generically ‘different’” (p. 607). in this group the facilitator’s intervention only served to excuse the participants from talking about race explicitly. it is clear to me that my students who were concerned about controversy positioned themselves in alignment with white normativity, and therefore positioned the diverse texts and the identities they represented as that which was different. as i mentioned earlier, despite my ideological commitments to social justice education, this research study revealed to me the ways in which i also enacted neutrality. i found that i often valued my own embodied comfort and “easy” alignment with white normativity over the more discomforting, but much more bauck | 18 i feel sad important, work of justice. as zembylas (2008) argues, “schooling is not a neutral ground” (p. 7), and both pre-service and more experienced white educators must continually push ourselves to tear down the facade of neutrality and commit to antioppressive education. implications classrooms all over the united states, from k-12 through higher education—including teacher education programs such as the setting for this research—use literature for the purpose of increasing students’ experience with textual mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors (bishop, 1990). students read to get to know themselves and others. however, beyond the initial inclusion of representative and inclusive texts in classrooms, this study demonstrates the vital importance of pedagogy. as much care, attention, and education needs to be given to how inclusive texts are taken up in classroom spaces, especially when those classroom spaces are majority white. following are two pedagogical praxes, developed from critical emotion studies scholars, that provide educators with ways to enter and move through affective classroom spaces intentionally and directly. critical emotional praxis according to zembylas (2008), a politics of emotion does not only involve risks for educators but also offers possibilities for a renewed criticality that might serve to produce new understandings and ways of being in the world. critical emotional praxis, or cep, is zembylas’ suggestion for a “critical mobilization of emotion” (p. 5). according to zembylas, cep is grounded in an understanding of the role of emotions in power relations; it consists of the ability to question emotionally charged and cherished beliefs, “exposing how privileged positions and comfort zones” (p. 12) inform perspectives and actions. cep translates these emotional understandings into relationships, teaching practices, and enactments of social justice. my analysis demonstrates the need for cep in teaching and learning, specifically in courses such as mine that explicitly ask students to engage emotionally with identities different from their own. one way that i have aimed to practice cep in teaching settings after this study is to guide students through critical reflections about their positionalities in relation to course material, as well as how they are affectively responding to both texts and classroom interactions over the course of the semester. when students name their positionalities and investigate how their multifaceted identities are impacting their cognitive analyses and emotional responses, it allows for a more complex and critical exploration of their responses to literature. in addition, these reflections have given me as the educator the opportunity to better know and respond to each student, asking questions and inviting them to consider their emotions in relation to explicit course goals around social justice. a pedagogy of discomfort a pedagogy of discomfort (boler, 1999; boler & zembylas, 2003; zembylas & boler, 2002) is an explicitly antiracist method of teaching that “requires that individuals step outside of their comfort zones and recognize what and how one has been taught to see (or not to see)” (zembylas & boler, 2002, n.p.). a pedagogy of discomfort involves the investigation of emotions and “critical reflection that informs changes in hegemonic beliefs and habitual yet harmful actions and practices” (ohito, 2016, p. 458). in a pedagogy of discomfort, moments of tension revealed at the nexus of racialized interactions and their inscribed traumas should be welcomed, even designed. it is only when feeling and facing our discomfort that white pre-service and practicing teachers can begin to re-vision our affective reactions, habits, and behaviors within systems of white supremacy. in my own praxis, the ability to practice a pedagogy of discomfort has begun with developing my own critical awareness of my responses to emotions, many of which have been socialized in me bauck | 19 i feel sad from family dynamics and social norms since childhood. it has been essential for me to develop my own comfort with discomfort, to sit in moments of tension instead of trying to resolve them, and to be okay myself with times that discomfort circulates in classroom spaces. only after developing that personal praxis have i been able to welcome—and as ohito (2016) names, even design—opportunities for discomfort in curriculum and pedagogy. after a recent course lesson that was full of tension, where students were challenged to investigate their own thinking in relation to power and community change, students’ reflections revealed that, while some did not enjoy the experience in the moment, they later realized that the conflict itself was a learning moment, a spark that challenged their held assumptions and ideas of is and what can be. in sum, i believe that pre-service education programs as well as in-service professional development should draw from cep and pedagogies of discomfort in order to support teachers’ understanding of the powerful role of affect in the classroom, as well as the vital role teachers hold in noticing and disrupting emotions such as empty empathy when they circulate. conclusion emotions are and will always be at work within education. this critical ethnography demonstrates the dangers of these emotions when they fail to move past sentimentality and empty empathy, and when they value the comfort of white educators over the challenging but essential enactment of antiracist pedagogies. those interested in the role of emotion and affect in education should look towards critical emotional praxis and pedagogies of discomfort as methods by which to explicitly challenge white supremacy in education, as well as develop antiracist dispositions within white educators. teacher-educators, myself included, must not let ourselves lapse into neutrality, but must instead interrogate our students and ourselves, reflexively uncovering what our emotions are enabling and what they are preventing. as described above in the implications, it is essential that educators—especially white educators, in this context—embark on a critical reflexive practice to consider how to design, invite, and respond to moments of affect in the classroom. when teaching inclusive children’s literature, it is important to plan not just for the course itself, but for the affective, emotional responses that will inevitably come up. practices like having students keep a self-reflexion journal have significantly increased my own ability to guide students through naming and examining their own emotional responses, considering what those emotions do (ahmed, 2015) to reinforce or disrupt the norms of white supremacy culture. instead of simply teaching literature, i now teach literature and attempt to facilitate multiple opportunities for students to consider and discuss their personal and collective response to literature. more than any tangible recommendations, however, this study reveals the personal work white educators must do to make possible real learning around social justice. when i look back at what i learned over the course of this research process, i realize that all my important growth was born not of comfort, but of discomfort. when i failed to interrogate my white students’ emotional responses to literature and the shallow emotions circulating in our classroom i failed as an educator to provide them opportunities for growth. realizing my own role in the data from this research was certainly not comfortable—but it was essential. the reflexive process of conducting this research and practicing writing as inquiry has opened up new commitments and possibilities for myself as an educator. as ahmed (2007) describes, “every experience i have had of pleasure and excitement about a world opening up has begun with such ordinary feelings of discomfort” (p. 163). bauck | 20 i feel sad references ahmed, s. 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(2002). on the spirit of patriotism: challenges of a “pedagogy of discomfort.” special issue on education and september 11. teachers college record. https://meganboler. files.wordpress.com/2016/02/on_the_spirit_of_patriotism_challenges_o.pdf zembylas, m. (2008). trauma, justice and the politics of emotion: the violence of sentimentality in education. discourse: studies in the cultural politics of education, 29(1), 1-17. https://doi. org/10.1080/01596300701801278 zembylas, m. (2016). making sense of the complex entanglement between emotion and pedagogy: contributions of the affective turn. cultural studies of science education, 11, 539-550. https://doi. org/10.1007/s11422-014-9623-y farr & saltmarsh (2018) proof 2.pdf educational renaissance vol. 7 (2018) pr im ing your environm ent for grow t h through a collaborat ive model of inst ruct ional coaching wendy j. far r , phd. arizona state university, mary lou fulton teachers college email: wendy.farr@asu.edu sarah salt m arsh, edd. arizona state university, mary lou fulton teachers college email: sarah.saltmarsh@asu.edu feature article background as educators, we feel strongly that crucial attention needs to be paid to the quality of public education that is provided for english language learners (ells) in schools. essa (2017) defines an english language learner (ell) as an individual who, among others things has difficulties in speaking, reading, writing, or understanding the english language that may be sufficient to deny him or her the ability to meet challenging state academic standards. teachers have always had ells in their classrooms; however, they may not have been labeled as such or specifically supported. approximately 10% of students in public schools are non-native english speakers, yet less than 1% are trained to work with ells specifically (childs, 2013). the needs of ells in the united states are currently not being met (gándara, 2010). teacher preparation programs need to think in new and innovative ways to build knowledge and skills for pre-service teachers, so they can implement lessons that will support language acquisition and development of content knowledge. arizona state university?s mary lou fulton teachers college (mlftc) is one of the largest teacher preparation programs in the country graduating approximately 600 teachers per year for certification. of these 600 students, however, less than 1% of the teacher candidates graduate with a specialized language endorsement. mlftc is situated in a state where ells have lower achievement outcomes than their peers, and this institution has dedicated itself to address the significant challenges these learners face. schools in arizona are home to a multitude of students abst ract teacher preparation is complex in nature. students in k-12 education comprise of an increasingly culturally and linguistically diverse population. standards have significantly evolved with state and common core state standards that now place a greater emphasis on academic discourse both in written and oral forms. to better prepare the next generation of teachers to address these shifts in expectations, we are examining the influence of instructional coaching at the university level. the work encompasses professional development on research-based ell principles to support the changing populations of students in conjunction with coaching sessions to enhance coursework. the results of this study were statistically significant and have set the stage for our next steps in sustainable change at the university level. farr & saltmarsh | priming your environment for growth with different cultures, languages, and experiences. from 1994-2010, the percent of ells in the us grew by over 63% and has grown steadily since (national clearinghouse for english language acquisition, 2011). in arizona, 87,607 students identified as ell (oelas, 2017). the 2013-2014 ell demographics indicate that 79% of the state?s ells are in grades k-5, while 13% are in grades 6-8 and 8% are in grades 9-12 (arizona department of education, 2015). ells often miss out on key opportunities to gain (1) content knowledge in core subjects, (2) the academic language skills required for learning in schools, (3) and higher level literacy skills that are important for individual academic successes (moll, 2010). a federally funded team within mlftc has focused their efforts on improving outcomes for diverse learners. this paper focuses on three key areas to help students in arizona?s schools: instructional coaching, faculty institutes, and problem-based enhanced language learning (pbell). 1. instructional coaching: one-on-one collaboration in university classrooms and partner school classrooms to support faculty members and teacher candidates as they implement these principles. 2. faculty institutes: on-going, job-embedded professional development for mlftc faculty on the key principles of effective english language instruction. 3. problem-based enhanced language learning (pbell): an interactive teaching approach that provides 100% of students with access to 100% of the content. three key innovat ions inst ruct ional coaching & facult y inst it ut e leveraging coaching practices with educators that intrinsically motivate, allow for input, and retain a sense of autonomy, while still maintaining a focus on student outcomes, can enhance the persistence necessary to meet the ever-increasing demand in our nation?s schools. one way that these concerns can be addressed is through instructional coaching using the impact cycle. this cycle was developed by jim knight and his associates at the instructional coaching group in kansas (knight et al., 2015). instructional coaching is a partnership where coaches work alongside teachers to ensure the incorporation of research-based instruction (blanchard, 2011; knight ,2007). a partnership approach to instructional coaching embodies four major components and the execution of a collaborative coaching conversation after each observation (coaching cycle): (1) content planning, (2) developing and using formative assessments, (3) delivering instruction, and (4) community building (knight, 2007; knight, 2015). iteachells iteachells modified the impact cycle of coaching. rather than focus on all four of components of the impact cycle over the course of a semester, the iteachells instructional coaches concentrated their efforts on (1) content planning and (3) delivering instruction. the iteachells instructional coaching approach is comprised of three key steps: identify, learn, and improve (knight, 2015). each step is outlined below with a brief description of how iteachells utilized it with the faculty they worked alongside. figure 1. impact cycle of coaching (knight et al., 2015) ident ify. iteachells began with the instructional 24 farr & saltmarsh | priming your environment for growth coach and the instructor working together to develop a ?clear picture of the current instructional reality? (knight et al., 2015, p.12). the conversation focused explicitly on the content of instruction rather than instructional pedagogy, a fact that contributed to the overall success of this project. in this initial conversation, the focus was on the instructor?s current course syllabi and whether or not it provided opportunities for teacher candidates to learn how to effectively address the needs of culturally and linguistically diverse students. based on what was discussed, the instructional coach and the instructor then agreed upon a realistic target for infusion of new content. learn. two main components define this step: (1) the instructional coach clearly explained the newly identified instructional content, and (2) the instructional coach modeled one way the instructor might implement the instructional content into his or her course. knight (2015) and his colleagues offered multiple different methods of support including: modeling with students, modeling without students, co-teaching, visits to colleagues? classrooms, and video observations. iteachells facilitated this new learning through a series of professional development sessions entitled faculty institutes. within each faculty institute, one or more research-based instructional strategies were discussed and modeled by an instructional coach, and times was given to instructors to reflect on an upcoming class to establish a ?change they would like to see in student behavior, achievement, or participation,? and the actions that (s)he could take to create this change" (knight et. al, 2015, p.12). for example, the first faculty institute focused on the explicit planning and teaching of discipline-specific discourse for culturally and linguistically diverse students. the iteachells instructional coaches modeled a mini-lesson focused on the discourse of argumentation and shared a resource knows as the academic language function toolkit (kinsella, 2010). as recommended by knight et al. (2015), iteachells instructional coaches would also offer to model (with and without students) and co-teach the new strategy alongside the instructors. the learn step includes implementation. im prove. this step of the impact cycle allows the instructional coach and instructor to ?modify the way they use the identified teaching strategy? towards the accomplishment of their previously identified goal (knight et. al, 2015, p.18). these modifications are discussed and planned during a reflective conversation between the instructional coach and the instructor. the reflective conversation utilized a structured set of questions, on both ?how the strategy was implemented? and ?how student achievement was impacted.? table 1 iteachells instructional coaching & faculty institute outline the model outlined in table 1 is different from more traditional coaching models in multiple ways: first, it is intentionally designed for use in a higher education setting. second, a key element includes content planning, where educators learn new content and develop a plan for implementation. third, implementation is followed up with a coaching conversation that allows educators to reflect on the benefits and challenges of the new learning and determine what future implementation will look like. unlike the traditional step actions 1. identify partner to identify the need select a strategy to address the need 2. learn: faculty institute part 1: coach clearly explains the identified strategy part 2: coach models how to implement the strategy (in classroom, out of classroom, co-teaching, visiting other classrooms, video) 3. improve monitor implementation of the strategy. (observe implementation, review student work & assessment data) reflective conversation 25 farr & saltmarsh | priming your environment for growth ?reinforcement and refinement? model, the impact cycle of coaching developed and utilized by iteachells allows the instructor to reflect on their own practice and direct future implementation. the focus is less on instructional pedagogy and more on content learning that is designed to enhance the preparation of teacher candidates. problem -based english language learning (pbell) iteachells has developed a new instructional model that combines the elements of problem-based learning with the key principles of english language learning methods. pbell is a unique approach to instruction that starts with problem-based learning and enhances the student experience by explicitly incorporating and supporting specific language skills. although space limits prevent depicting a full example of pbell in this article we do offer a white paper that expands on this topic as well as sample lesson plans for teachers (asu mary lou felton teachers college, 2018). in pbell experiences, a student utilizes language collaboratively in order to access prior knowledge, research new topics, brainstorm and discuss potential solutions, and present new findings to an audience. in a classroom using pbell, all language is considered an asset in supporting rigorous learning opportunities (bostick, lund, & saltmarsh, 2017). a pbell lesson entails: (1) meaningful problem development, (2) language and content in tandem, (3) assessment of content and language, and (4) specific support and strategies. utilizing the example above on discipline-specific discourse, iteachells supports instructors as they identify the most appropriate discourse to plan for and model as they simultaneously work to expose their students to rigorous content. the academic language function toolkit (kinsella, 2010) would be one example of a teacher support used to purposefully plan and teach the most appropriate discourse associated with the meaningful problem (grounded in content). the iteachells team recognizes the workload teachers have and challenges educators to start small and incorporate two basic components into their daily lessons. we feel if learning can be grounded in real-life and relevant experiences as well as recognizing that language is a tool and needs to be specifically taught and modeled in all learning experiences then we may begin to see positive change for these unique learners and all students with diverse learning needs. successes & challenges the iteachells team has experienced some significant successes as well as encountered some challenges throughout its inception in 2015. the three shown below specifically stand out as related to the content discussed in this paper. table 2 iteachells successes and challenges conclusion instructional coaching, as outlined in this paper, is sporadically implemented in the pk-12 educational setting and rarely utilized in higher education. a search was conducted by the iteachells team, and one example of a coaching program situated in higher education found was at harvard?s derek bok center for teaching and learning. this center successes challenges ability to provide individual coaching to both campus faculty and mentor teachers at school sites creating a ?culture of change? within a college and on public school campuses. specific lesson plan development to support teacher and students who are identified as ells. changing direction as new initiatives and college needs change building awareness and increasing conversation to improve the educational climate for diverse learners creating sustainability after project completion 26 farr & saltmarsh | priming your environment for growth partnered with faculty members to provide professional development and support for their teaching (harvard university, 2017). empirical research studies on coaching faculty in higher education were particularly limited. mentoring in higher education was more common, but still limited (chavez-thibault, 2017; knippelmeyer & torraco, 2007). it is our opinion that if this model were applied more broadly across higher education settings it would have a positive effect on supporting some of our most critical instructors. support for instructors in higher education beyond the initial years tends to diminish in many instructional environments. the impact cycle for coaching could enhance the practices of teacher preparation programs, providing much welcome support and inform our field?s desperate need to focus on retaining talented educators by providing experienced teachers time to both develop others and be developed (sutcher, darling-hammond, & carver-thomas, 2016). references asu mary lou fulton teachers college. (2018). iteachells teacher quality partnership grant. retrieved from https://education.asu.edu/iteachells arizona department of education. (2015). ell demographics 2013?2014: percent of ell students by grade level. retrieved from http://www.azed.gov/english-language-learners /ell-data/ell-demographics-2014/ blanchard, k. (2011). situational leadership ii ? the article. retrieved from https://kenblanchard.com/situational-leadersh ip-ii bostick, b., lund, s., & saltmarsh, s. (2017). problem-based enhanced language learning: ensuring access to both language and content. retrieved from https://drive.google.com/file/d/0b3wd2tdv3_jp zvpvwmu1rm93cw8/view chavez-thibault, m. (2017). instructional coaching in higher education: partnering to infuse ell instructional practices into social studies courses. retrieved from https://repository.asu.edu/attachments/186214 /content/thibault_asu_0010e_16716.pdf. childs, b. (2013). esl teacher shortage. retreived from https://certificationmap.com/esl-teacher-sho rtage/ essa (2017). retrieved on january 27th, 2018 https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/uscode-2011-title 20/pdf/uscode-2011-title20-chap70-subchapix-pa rta-sec7801.pdf. gándara, p. (february 2010). meeting students where they are. educational leadership, 67 (5), 24?30. harvard university. (2017). derek bok center for teaching and learning vision and mission. retrieved from http://bokcenter.harvard.edu/vision-mission kinsella, k. (2010). academic language function tookit. sweetwater district-wide academic support teams. retrieved from https://sweetwaterschools.instructure.com/course s/1080113/files/31344925 knight, j. (2007). instructional coaching: a partnership approach to improving instruction. thousand oaks, ca: nsdc. knight, j. (2015). better conversations: coaching ourselves and each other to be more credible, caring, and connected. thousand oaks, ca: corwin press. knight, j., elford, m., hock, m., dunekack, d., bradley, b., deshler, d., & knight, d. (2015). 3 steps to great coaching: a simple but powerful instructional coaching cycle nets results. journal of staff development, 36 (1), 11-18. knippelmeyer, s., & torraco, r. (2007, february). mentoring as a developmental tool for higher education. paper presented at academy of human resource development international 27 https://education.asu.edu/iteachells http://www.azed.gov/english-language-learners/ell-data/ell-demographics-2014/ http://www.azed.gov/english-language-learners/ell-data/ell-demographics-2014/ https://kenblanchard.com/situational-leadership-ii https://kenblanchard.com/situational-leadership-ii https://kenblanchard.com/situational-leadership-ii https://kenblanchard.com/situational-leadership-ii https://drive.google.com/file/d/0b3wd2tdv3_jpzvpvwmu1rm93cw8/view https://drive.google.com/file/d/0b3wd2tdv3_jpzvpvwmu1rm93cw8/view https://repository.asu.edu/attachments/186214/co ntent/thibault_asu_0010e_16716.pdf. https://repository.asu.edu/attachments/186214/co ntent/thibault_asu_0010e_16716.pdf. https://certificationmap.com/esl-teacher-shortage/ https://certificationmap.com/esl-teacher-shortage/ https://certificationmap.com/esl-teacher-shortage/ farr & saltmarsh | priming your environment for growth research conference in the americas, indianapolis, in. moll, l. (2010). mobilizing culture, language, and educational practices: fulfilling promises of mendez and brown. educational researcher, 39(6), 451-460. oelas (2017). retrieved on january 27th, 2018 http://www.azed.gov/oelas/el-demographics 2013-2014/ sutcher, l., darling-hammond, l., carver-thomas, d (2016). a coming crisis in teaching? teacher demand, supply, and shortages in the u.s. learning policy institute-research brief. this material is based upon research supported by the department of education (doe), teacher quality partnership (tqp) grant: ?integrating stem, literacy, and language to prepare all teachers to work with english language learners.? any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of doe. 28 http://www.azed.gov/oelas/el-demographicsgoff (2019) proof final educational renaissance vol. 8 (2019) reaching and teaching st udent s in pover t y: st rat egies for erasing t he oppor t unit y gap mar ia hernandez gof f , phd. california state university, fresno email: mgoff@csufresno.edu reaching and teaching students in poverty: strategies for erasing the opportunity gap (2nd edition) by paul c gorski teachers college press $76.00, hardcover (isbn: 978-0807764213) $29.95, paperback (isbn: 978-0807758793) $23.95, ebook (isbn: 978-0807776728 ) book review overview the book is divided in eleven chapters, but overall can be described in two sections. the first section, or chapters one through seven, describes equity literacy, challenges readers to (re)examine their understanding of people experiencing poverty, and connects to historical data and research to support gorski?s argument that educators must take a structural, not deficit view, if we truly want to erase the opportunity gap in education. the final four chapters offer explicit strategies teachers and leaders can enact in their classrooms, schools, and districts to dismantle the opportunity gap. starting in chapter three, each chapter begins by identifying the principles in equity literacy the chapter addresses, and each chapter ends with reflection questions and exercises, helpful for individual or group reflection. chapt er synopses ?education is the great equalizer? (p. 1) is the adage gorski begins with in the introduction. this belief is echoed throughout media, politics, and teaching. it is argued that if educators just work hard enough, we can eliminate barriers faced by so many of our students. however, throughout the text, gorski argues that this adage is false. instead, gorski points out the existing structures in our society and schools that perpetuate inequalities. chapter one outlines and defines important terms used throughout the rest of the book (socioeconomic status, poverty, working class, income and wealth.) additionally, gorski distinguishes between a structural view of poverty and a deficit view ? a key distinction necessary for the reader to undertake the work needed to develop equity literacy. in reaching and teaching students in poverty: strategies for erasing the opportunity gap, 2nd edition, author paul c. gorski advocates for the development of equity literacy among educators to reshape schools to reach and teach students and families impacted by structural inequalities. gorski challenges educators? understandings of the opportunity gap that students in poverty face and offers a number of strategies to be implemented at the classroom, school, and district levels for schools to develop equitable opportunities for students. mailto:jonidegner@gmail.com goff| reaching and teaching students in poverty chapter two describes the equity literacy approach and the principles of equity literacy that frame the remaining chapters. equity literacy is defined as, ?the knowledge and skills educators need to become a threat to the existence of bias and inequity in our spheres of influence? (p. 17). gorski supplements this definition with four abilit ies equity literacy educators can foster to develop and maintain their own equity literacy. gorski draws from a number of scholars and their research in the development of the twelve equity literacy principles for educators. chapter three delves into the history and assumptions of poverty in the united states. gorski presents research and data from an intersectional lens (one of the principles of equity literacy) and discusses poverty in terms of gender, race, sexual orientation, (dis)ability, and region. chapters four and five dismantle the deficit and mindset views of poverty. building on the history and research presented in chapter two, gorski challenges many of the buzzwords and stereotypes commonly held by educators such as, grit, growth mindset, culture of poverty, and mindset of poverty. the author describes how developing a structural view, instead of a deficit view, will foster equitable education. educators who have experienced the deficit view first hand either as students themselves, in teacher education or in professional development may find these chapters particularly challenging. these chapters prompt the reader to confront these deficit views and begin (or continue) the work needed to dismantle this way of thinking. chapter six outlines out-of-school inequities, such as employment, healthcare, nutrition, housing, environment, recreation, local services, childcare, additional learning opportunities, and society. gorski describes how each of these impacts what happens in schools. chapter seven challenges the deficit language of the achievement gap and presents the structural view, reframing the achievement gap as it really is ? the opportunity gap. gorski returns to the opening adage and describes how, rather than being the equalizer, the educational opportunity gap creates more divisions among students by affording greater educational opportunities, both in and out of school to wealthier students. chapter eight begins the chapters on actionable strategies teachers and leaders can implement. however, gorski reminds readers, educators cannot enact these strategies without the committing to the work of reframing required from chapters one through seven. to enact equity literacy, educators must take on the structural view and leave behind the deficit view so often entangled in schools. gorski offers eleven strategies and includes a number of texts teachers can use to foster equity. chapter nine, tit led, ?the mother of all strategies? (p. 143) describes the importance of developing relationships between educators and students and their families. in this chapter, gorski extends the principles of equity literacy into eight ?equity-informed relational commitments? (p. 144) aimed at supporting the relationships between educators and students. in each of these commitments, gorski details why the commitment is important and necessary and how to enact each commitment. for example, the fourth commitment, ?broaden our notions of family engagement? (p. 151), challenges stereotypes and deficit views of families experiencing poverty, and instead, listen and learn what families are already doing and reframe what educators mean by engagement. chapter ten speaks directly to school and district leaders and describes how educators in these leadership roles can reframe not only their perspectives of students experiencing poverty but also lead the institutional shift to an equity literacy perspective. chapter eleven grows educational equity literacy to outside the school and district level and into other policy areas of educational equity and social justice. 2 goff| reaching and teaching students in poverty discussion gorski?s central argument is that in order to educate students experiencing poverty, we need to develop educational equity literacy. and, to do this, we must eliminate the deficit mindset many in education hold and instead adopt the structural view poverty and inequality. this book will challenge many teachers and leaders thinking, whether they hail from upper, middle, or working-class backgrounds. as gorski describes, the deficit view is so embedded in our educational system, it will take consistent work on the part of educators to dismantle its stance. to this point, in the conclusion gorski offers readers an example how he still works on reframing his own thinking at times. this book will work well for teachers, leaders, and teacher educators to work through these chapters in small group or whole school settings ? the reflection questions at the end of each chapter are good starters to begin the work of undoing deficit thinking and developing instructional strategies and policies to support students and their families. references gorski, p. c. (2018). reaching and teaching students in poverty: strategies for erasing the opportunity gap (2nd ed.). new york, ny: teachers college press. 3 goff (2019) proof final page 1 page 2 page 3 fall 2014 conference abstracts abstracts co -teaching in student teaching: a curriculum redesign that works! .................................................... 2 the complexities of assessment systems: developing a plan to close the continuous improvement loop ........................................................................................................................................................................... 2 the cornerstones and keystone of effective assessment ................................................................................. 3 depth of knowledge in action: how might methodology classes reflect partnership school practices? ................................................................................................................................................................ 3 developing highly qualified teachers through professional pre-service teaching opportunities 4 development and implementation of and edtpa online tagging system .................................................. 4 efforts to embed linked learning principles in the single subject credential program through faculty inquiry and learning communities ............................................................................................ 5 an electronic assessment system to monitor teacher candidate progress: lessons in in development, implementation, and planning for the future ........................................................... 5 expanding teacher education at emporia state university with a 1-1 mobile initiative .................... 6 a hybrid approach to teacher preparation: nevada state college two track program .................... 7 impact of the conspiracy against educator preparation: multiple measures to counter-act the doe, caep, and nctq ....................................................................................................................................... 7 panicked and out of ideas: politics of education reform .................................................................................. 7 partnerships between higher ed and k-12: affecting all aspects of the institution ............................. 8 pre-service teacher knowledge of and readiness to teach to the common core standards: comparing pre-service and inservice perspectives in the common core standards ............. 8 rigor and engagement in online instruction .......................................................................................................... 9 scaling up the edtpa: quick wins, spilt milk, and other lessons learned ............................................... 9 student perceptions of teacher testing: what they think and ho w universities can help.......... 10 teacher performance assessment in california .................................................................................................. 10 co -teaching in student teaching: a curriculum redesign that works! dr. nancy melser, asst. professor of elementary education, ball stateuniversity co -teaching in student teaching is a recent curriculum revision that really works. at ball state university, the majority of student teachers are now placed in classrooms where coteaching with the classroom supervisor occurs. in co-teaching, student teachers co -teach and co-plan for the children in the classroom along with their veteran teachers. they work together, bounce ideas off of each other, and share new strategies for successfully teaching their students. as a result of co-teaching, teachers are more willing to accept student teachers in their classrooms, since they do not have to give up total control, and student teachers no longer feel abandoned when their teachers leave the classroom. this session will focus on the positive aspects of co-teaching, the ways that teachers and student teachers are trained in this process, and concerns/questions about the co-teaching process. the complexities of assessment systems: developing a plan to close the continuous improvement loop dr. judy a. abbott, dean, stephen f. austin state university dr. jannah s. nerren, associate dean, stephen f. austin state university dr. tracey c. hasbun, ncate/caep co-coordinator, stephen f. austin state university ms. haley c. gillen, assessment technologies coordinator, stephen f. austin state university this session will address strategies for closing the assessment and continuous improvement loop, which includes effective methods for collecting data, garnering faculty buy-in for assessment, and assessment for accountability and improvement – as they are one in the same. the use of assessment data to monitor and improve student-learning outcomes is at the very core of the education profession. measuring student learning for the purpose of assessing performance, enhancing curricular effectiveness, and raising institutional standards are considered the primary foci of learning assessment and continuous improvement. this presentation will shed light on the process of building an effective assessment infrastructure, which includes the balancing of collecting assessment data on measureable outcomes and managing and administering a system to improve offerings for students. attendees will see how the collected assessment data can be used to then drive improvement at the program level. our program has moved and continues to move from a compliance-focused program to a continuous improvement for learning model. our focus is on addressing the learning that occurs while in college and being able 2 to measure and assess the knowledge and skills students possess. with such a philosophy in place, we have developed a process of assessing students’ acquisition of knowledge and skills as a component of their learning experiences through direct methods of assessment, by which the results of doing so have led us to enhancing the quality of programming we provide. the cornerstones and keystone of effective assessment dr. lance tomei (retired june, 2013) director for assessment, accreditation, and data management at university of central florida assessment continues to grow in importance, and expectations regarding the quality of assessment data continue to rise. as a result, most colleges and universities are actively engaged in auditing and/or redesigning their assessment system. what does it take to ensure success in this important work? there are several key components and characteristics that serve as the cornerstones of an effective assessment system. this presentation will provide an overview of those cornerstones and suggest a "best practices" approach to effective assessment. there is also a keystone upon which the integrity of the entire assessment system depends--the quality of assessment instruments. specific examples of commonly seen weaknesses in assessment instruments will be discussed along with strategies to help avoid those common problems. depth of knowledge in action: how might methodology classes reflect partnership school practices? dr. lisa nyberg, professor, california state university, fresno webb's depth of knowledge (dok) framework (2005) provides a common language to determine the cognitive demand or "rigor" intended by the standards and assessments. partnership teachers are beginning to apply the dok framework to student performance assessments. teachers are also working to meet the expectations of the common core state standards as well as science standards. come see how the common core state standards (ccss) and the next generation science standards (ngss)...or state science standards...may be taught applying the depth of knowledge framework. 3 see how methods courses may move the theory into practice by reflecting the dok framework. developing highly qualified teachers through professional pre-service teaching opportunities dr. nancy akhavan, assistant professor, california state university, fresno ms. nichole walsh, doctoral candidate, doctoral program in educational leadership, california state university, fresno a particular area of concern in developing teachers for middle school classrooms is in respect to achievement trends of adolescent learners. data from national studies on middle school achievement show performance deficiencies persist in the middle grades, whether students attend a kindergarten through grade eight school model, a traditional seventh through eighth model, or a modified grade six through eight model. a study conducted in 2014 examined the success of pre-service teachers during a summer academy. pre-service teachers were given a pre and post survey before teaching in the academy to measure their self-efficacy, academic ability and desire to teach, the control group included pre-service students who did not participate in teaching during the summer academy. the findings revealed pre-service teachers attitudes and confidence levels in their preparation to teach, and the differences between pre-service teachers’ attitudes and confidence levels between candidates with and without summer teaching experience. findings will be discussed in view of teacher development and effective pre-service teaching program experiences. development and implementation of and edtpa online tagging system dr. mary herring, associate dean, university of northern iowa at the caep spring conference, ray pecheone spoke to the needs of edtpa 2.0 & esa ‘cumulative’ system of assessment and accountability. this session will share the process used to establish a cumulative, reliable and valid evidence for candidate learning and program accreditation, and a new technology solution to support an evidence-based accountability system. 4 efforts to embed linked learning principles in the single subject credential program through faculty inquiry and learning communities dr. nancy akhavan, assistant professor, california state university, fresno dr. colleen torgerson, professor, california state university, fresno ms. cindy brown, director of student pathways, porterville unified school district since 2008 fresno state has been working with several other california state universities to implement programs focused on linked learning in california. california's central valley is unique in the high poverty and low education rates of the citizenry. to focus on increasing students' success in school as a way to address poverty and education, fresno state has been committed to infusing linked learning principles in the secondary teacher preparation program. focus of this work has been to inform preservice teachers about linked learning as a way to improve student engagement, ensure students meet 21st century skills and graduate with career ready skills. in 2014, efforts were redoubled at fresno state to infuse linked learning across the entire single subject credential program. from engaging faculty across all schools and colleges, to forming a faculty learning community, the school of education faculty launched a systemic plan to embed linked learning into the credential program. this effort resulted in a collaborative inquiry which began with faculty working together across the university to develop understanding and need and resulted in faculty involvement in a robust programmatic focus on linked learning including school visitations, doctoral student research, and a partnership with a school district for teacher and administrator credentialing. an electronic assessment system to monitor teacher candidate progress: lessons in in development, implementation, and planning for the future dr. tony kirchner, director, educational technology, western kentucky university dr. jacqueline pope-tarrence, associate dean, accountability and research, western kentucky university dr. tony norman, director, educational leadership doctoral program, western kentucky university educators at all levels have seen increasing demands for accountability in all facets of their work. these demands come from federal and state legislatures, national and state accrediting agencies, parents, and students. higher education in particular has received particular scrutiny because of its impact on so many different aspects of society. the consumer driven society has pushed higher education to provide evidences of student learning and the impact institutions have on students and others in the community in which they serve. this scrutiny has increased the need for teacher preparation institutions 5 to address these accountability mandates effectively and provide defensible evidence of their accomplishments. the national council for accreditation of teacher education (ncate) and the teacher education accreditation council (teac), now under the umbrella of the council for the accreditation of educator preparation (caep), are the primary organizations responsible for accrediting educator preparation programs and ensuring that they consistently produce quality educators. both have standards that address all major aspects of educator preparation, and many institutions struggle with the large amount of data needed to address these standards. this presentation will outline one institution’s efforts to develop and implement a web-based accountability system that meets present ncate and future caep requirements. after a brief introduction to the accountability structure and capabilities, focus will be on unit decisions, tools, and processes related to (a) “worthwhile” data collection, (b) reporting for program evaluation, accreditation, and continuous improvement, and (c) coordinating with state agencies to gather pk-12 student impact and other data in light of new caep expectations. expanding teacher education at emporia state university with a 1-1 mobile initiative dr. lori mann, associate professor/elementary education faculty, emporia state university dr. ken weaver, dean/teachers college, emporia state university dr. matt seimears, chair/dept. of elementary education/early childhood/special education, emporia state university one of technology’s impacts on teaching and learning in p-12 schools in kansas is students’ increased use of mobile technology in the classroom. in a kansas state department of education 2014 digital learning report, 49% of 210 responding districts were currently implementing a 1:1 initiative. this rapidly increasing usage has implications for preparing teachers to engage students using devices. emporia state university’s 1:1 mobile device initiative called hornet connected learning was created to require elementary education majors to obtain and bring their ipads to education courses starting this fall semester, to provide faculty with the training to become competent with using the device and expanding their pedagogy to teach effectively using the device, and to develop supports for both faculty and students as this initiative unfolds this year. this one-year old project is now launched with an assessment plan in place to evaluate the effectiveness of faculty and student use of the device for teaching and learning. what started in one program appears to be growing into a model for other programs around campus. in this session, presenters will share the steps in developing and implementing hornet connected learning, the training and supports for faculty and students, and the assessment 6 plan. the session will conclude with questions on how the 1:1 initiative is changing the culture of kansas schools, the challenges for school principals and superintendents, and the long-term effectiveness of the device’s impact on learning. a hybrid approach to teacher preparation: nevada state college two track program dr. v. james garofalo, dean school of education, nevada state college with a pre-service teacher certification student population that is first in their family to attend college, over ninety percent female, with an average age over twenty-five years, attending college part time while working at least thirty hour a week and sharing family responsibilities having completed their k-12 education in systems that are rated in the bottom five in the country, nevada state college prepares successful in-service teachers for the nevada public schools. this presentation describes the two track program employed and identifies indicators overlooked or negatively rated by the "quality" of teacher preparation program gurus. impact of the conspiracy against educator preparation: multiple measures to counter-act the doe, caep, and nctq dr. susan tracz, graduate coordinator, school of education, california state university, fresno dr. paul beare, dean, kremen school of education and human development, california state university, fresno this presentation will discuss the impact that the caep selectivity standard could have on the profession. participants will learn the replicable methods of assessment used to demonstrate the benefits of teacher preparation and examine the differential effect of various pathways using questionnaires, tpas, and forms of p-12 achievement data. panicked and out of ideas: politics of education reform barmak nassirian, director of federal relations and policy analysis, american association of state colleges and universities for nearly three decades, a coalition of critics and politicians on both sides of the aisle has breathlessly warned of a massive failure of public education in the united states. as each grandiose national remedy to the (largely) manufactured crisis has collapsed, the education reform movement has opted to double down on the set of solutions it initially offered as a panacea: a mechanistic, test-driven approach combined with a blistering critique of 7 teachers and public schools. the paucity of results in the successive k12 initiatives, far from discrediting reformers, has instead turned their attention to higher education and teacher preparation programs. the remainder of this administration’s tenure and the pending reauthorization of the higher education act will provide multiple opportunities for supporters and critics of teacher preparation programs to make their respective cases. partnerships between higher ed and k-12: affecting all aspects of the institution dr. paul beare, dean, kremen school of education and human development, california state university, fresno dr. colleen torgerson, director, partnership programs, california state university, fresno dr. susan tracz, graduate coordinator, school of education, california state university, fresno dr. james marshall, associate dean, california state university, fresno this presentation will focus on the multiple levels of partnership between a university and six local school districts leading not only to better prepared teachers and higher k-12 achievement, but a plethora of services and involvement between institutions at multiple levels. data in the form of principal surveys, tpa scores, and p-12 achievement will be discussed. pre-service teacher knowledge of and readiness to teach to the common core standards: comparing pre-service and inservice perspectives in the common core standards dr. raymond lorion, dean college of education, towson university dr. eugene schaffer, chair, department of education, university of maryland at baltimore county in spring 2014 surveys were conducted across maryland's 24 school systems of nearly 10,000 teachers and school leaders and 650 pre-service interns across public and private teacher education programs concerning the respective samples' familiarity with and readiness to teach the maryland college and career ready standards. in fall 2013 comparable samples of teachers, school leaders and district office staff were surveyed concerning their views of transitioning from existing curricula standards to the common core. the presentation compares the fall 2013 and spring 2014 surveys of maryland's educators and reveals interesting shifts in perspectives over time. comparison of current and future (i.e., interns) generations of teachers reveals both progress and challenges for 8 the successful transition to the common core standards. the survey represents a portion of the investigators involvements as evaluators for maryland's race to the top initiatives. rigor and engagement in online instruction dr. glenn devoogd, professor, california state university fresno dr. karen devoogd, professor, california state university, fresno dr. walter ullrich, professor, california state university, fresno online instruction can engage the learner in intellectual ways not available in the face to face classroom. in discussion boards and interactive sessions, if the instructor evaluates posts with audio and video responses using a rubric that focuses on the readings, originality, depth, and significance to classroom instruction. in this workshop, we will demonstrate how professors evaluate online discussion and engage students through personal interactions using audio and video feedback. scaling up the edtpa: quick wins, spilt milk, and other lessons learned ms. lynn lindahl, director, office of field expriences, uw-whitewater dr. melanie agnew, assistant dean, uw-whitewater ms. marie benson, student services coordinator, uw-whitewater wisconsin department of public instruction has recently adopted the edtpa (teacher performance assessment) for licensure endorsement. the edtpa is designed to evaluate authentic teaching evidence using specific content area rubrics. over the past two year (august 2012-2014), the college of education and professional studies (uw whitewater) has engaged in a variety of strategies to support this initiative.to date, we have piloted over 80 students in the edtpa across 11 programs. early analysis of pilot data indicate that the greatest areas of support needed for teacher candidates is in assessment of student learning, use of academic language, and reflective critical writing in response to their teaching performance. key strategies include increasing leadership capacity, policy development, faculty development, teacher candidate support, curriculum development and program redesign. 9 student perceptions of teacher testing: what they think and ho w universities can help dr. nancy melser, asst. professor of elementary education, ball state university as teaching certification and licensing changes, pre-service teachers are required to complete new and different tests in order to be certified as teachers. in indiana, the testing procedure has recently changed, and many students are concerned about this process. this presentation will share the results o f a recent survey that asked pre-service teachers their perceptions of new teacher testing. it will examine their concerns, issues, and how universities can better prepare future teachers for the successful completion of these tests. teacher performance assessment in california dr. conni campbell, associate dean for teacher education, point loma nazarene university dr. carlos ayala, dean of the school of education, sonoma state university this study describes one of those multiple measures of pre-service teachers, the teacher performance assessment (tpa), and the various models of teacher performance assessments currently implemented. it examined the perceived value of teacher performance assessments from the perspective of 1000 teachers across california now employed and teaching in their own classrooms as beginning teachers. analyses were completed by university leaders of teaching performance assessment implementation of various models at both public and private universities with the support of graduate student researchers and school of education staff. the research team found that most teachers surveyed reported an enhanced understanding of key teaching aspects through the tpa assignment, at the same time they reported the teaching performance assessment to be unacceptably time consuming, stressful during clinical practice, and void of meaningful feedback. 10 co -teaching in student teaching: a curriculum redesign that works! dr. nancy melser, asst. professor of elementary education, ball stateuniversity the complexities of assessment systems: developing a plan to close the continuous improvement loop dr. judy a. abbott, dean, stephen f. austin state university dr. jannah s. nerren, associate dean, stephen f. austin state university dr. tracey c. hasbun, ncate/caep co-coordinator, stephen f. austin state university ms. haley c. gillen, assessment technologies coordinator, stephen f. austin state university the cornerstones and keystone of effective assessment dr. lance tomei (retired june, 2013) director for assessment, accreditation, and data management at university of central florida depth of knowledge in action: how might methodology classes reflect partnership school practices? dr. lisa nyberg, professor, california state university, fresno developing highly qualified teachers through professional pre-service teaching opportunities dr. nancy akhavan, assistant professor, california state university, fresno ms. nichole walsh, doctoral candidate, doctoral program in educational leadership, california state university, fresno development and implementation of and edtpa online tagging system dr. mary herring, associate dean, university of northern iowa efforts to embed linked learning principles in the single subject credential program through faculty inquiry and learning communities dr. nancy akhavan, assistant professor, california state university, fresno dr. colleen torgerson, professor, california state university, fresno ms. cindy brown, director of student pathways, porterville unified school district an electronic assessment system to monitor teacher candidate progress: lessons in in development, implementation, and planning for the future dr. tony kirchner, director, educational technology, western kentucky university dr. jacqueline pope-tarrence, associate dean, accountability and research, western kentucky university dr. tony norman, director, educational leadership doctoral program, western kentucky university expanding teacher education at emporia state university with a 1-1 mobile initiative dr. lori mann, associate professor/elementary education faculty, emporia state university dr. ken weaver, dean/teachers college, emporia state university dr. matt seimears, chair/dept. of elementary education/early childhood/special education, emporia state university a hybrid approach to teacher preparation: nevada state college two track program dr. v. james garofalo, dean school of education, nevada state college impact of the conspiracy against educator preparation: multiple measures to counter-act the doe, caep, and nctq dr. susan tracz, graduate coordinator, school of education, california state university, fresno dr. paul beare, dean, kremen school of education and human development, california state university, fresno panicked and out of ideas: politics of education reform barmak nassirian, director of federal relations and policy analysis, american association of state colleges and universities partnerships between higher ed and k-12: affecting all aspects of the institution dr. paul beare, dean, kremen school of education and human development, california state university, fresno dr. colleen torgerson, director, partnership programs, california state university, fresno dr. susan tracz, graduate coordinator, school of education, california state university, fresno dr. james marshall, associate dean, california state university, fresno pre-service teacher knowledge of and readiness to teach to the common core standards: comparing pre-service and inservice perspectives in the common core standards dr. raymond lorion, dean college of education, towson university dr. eugene schaffer, chair, department of education, university of maryland at baltimore county rigor and engagement in online instruction dr. glenn devoogd, professor, california state university fresno dr. karen devoogd, professor, california state university, fresno dr. walter ullrich, professor, california state university, fresno scaling up the edtpa: quick wins, spilt milk, and other lessons learned ms. lynn lindahl, director, office of field expriences, uw-whitewater dr. melanie agnew, assistant dean, uw-whitewater ms. marie benson, student services coordinator, uw-whitewater student perceptions of teacher testing: what they think and ho w universities can help teacher performance assessment in california dr. conni campbell, associate dean for teacher education, point loma nazarene university dr. carlos ayala, dean of the school of education, sonoma state university miller proof final educational renaissance vol. 8 (2019) "am i doing what i think i?m doing??: the im por t ance of a theoret ical fram e when int egrat ing tablet s in teacher educat ion libbi mil ler , edd. humboldt state university email: elizabeth.miller@humboldt.edu freder ick peinado nelson, phd. california state university, fresno email: fnelson@csufresno.edu cat hy yun, phd. learning policy institute email: cyun@learningpolicyinstitute.org lisa bennet t , phd. california state university, fresno email: lbennett@csufresno.edu em y lopez phil l ips, edd. university of california san francisco, fresno campus email: ephillips@fresno.ucsf.edu feature article int roduct ion in recent elections for the los angeles school board, a program designed to provide an ipad to every student became a critical issue. since the adoption of the tablet program, l.a. unified, the second largest district in the country, has experienced problems with start-up, planning, and intended use of tablets for learning (blume, 2015). the trend of providing tablet devices to students has migrated to higher education with the hope of transforming student learning and faculty teaching practices (moran, hawkes and gayer, 2010). in early 2014, fresno state committed to making this abst ract in the following self-study, we share our investigation of the shifts in faculty pedagogical beliefs, instructional practices, and curricular decision-making while engaged in a cycle of reflection on tablet-focused teacher education course. we conducted this inquiry into our practice, using technological pedagogical content knowledge (tpck) and the substitution-augmentation-modification-redefinition (samr) model as frameworks to examine data from interviews and reflective writing. we conclude the need for the explicit connection of technology professional development, specifically tablet technology, with a meaningful theoretical framework, in order for faculty to engage in effective integration. we also share our model for examining the development of instructor?s thinking about integrating technology, including influences on thinking and classification of instructional decisions into the samr taxonomy. keywords: tablets, educational technology, teacher education, technological pedagogical content knowledge, samr model mailto:fnelson@csufresno.edu mailto:cyun@learningpolicyinstitute.org mailto:lbennett@csufresno.edu mailto:ephillips@fresno.ucsf.edu m iller, nelson, yun, bennett, & lopez-phillips | am i doing what i think i am doing? move through the development of a tablet program. the tablet program at our institution began as an initiative from the university president, connecting to efforts to reduce costs and integrate technology. we all participated in the program and teach courses in the teacher education program that integrate tablet technology. tablet technology has potential for a significant impact on teaching and learning, but not without appropriate professional development and support. beavis (2014) noted that tablets in the classroom can have transformational impact on learning, but also recognized the need for training and support to facilitate effective use. moran, hawkes and gayer (2010) suggest that students also need preparation in order to increase the success rate for tablet integration. additionally, they found differences in students who used tablets at their own discretion and those who were required to use the tablets. in a study investigating university students? perceptions of technology, van oostveen, muirhead and goodman (2011) found litt le evidence that tablet integration impacts students? attitudes about learning. the researchers of this study contend that despite student familiarity with the technology, that technology by itself cannot lead to the redefinition of educational practice. in a study looking at tablet integration in a teacher education course, geist (2011) found that preservice teachers primarily used tablets for reading ebooks and finding resources through the web browser. the preservice teachers expressed that they hoped to use the technology in their future classrooms. the researcher concludes that there is value in incorporating mobile technology into the classroom and suggests that there is a need for faculty support regarding this implementation. while this study found the tablets to be a useful tool in teacher education, the tablets themselves did not transform the course. expanding on beavis?s (2014) call for training and development accompanying tablet implementation, we assert the need for meaningful reflective practice by faculty on the entire experience. in this self-study, we investigate the impact of our participation in a tablet program and professional development opportunities on our instructional practices and pedagogical beliefs in our work with preservice teachers. purpose the purpose of this self-study was to investigate changes in faculty beliefs and decisions about pedagogy, curriculum and instructional practices in relationship to the integration of tablets into course design. we used two research questions to focus the study. 1. what changes occurred to our pedagogical beliefs, curricular decisions, and instructional practices? 2. what experiences, including professional development, contributed to these changes? these questions were examined through a model for faculty conceptions of reflection developed by nelson (2015), which uses schwab?s (1973) commonplaces as influences on faculty thinking. background the authors of this paper were involved in a campus-wide initiative to integrate tablets in teacher education courses at fresno state, a regional comprehensive public university. the tablet initiative is currently in its third year. the first year of the program included 40 participants from various colleges and departments across campus. the program expanded in its second year to around 70 participants. prior to teaching their tablet-based courses, the faculty involved in the initiative participated in a faculty learning community that met regularly throughout the academic year. during the summer immediately before teaching a tablet-based course, the faculty members engaged in a week-long summer academy. the faculty learning community and the summer academy focused on introducing faculty to tablet technology and different apps that could be integrated into coursework and instructional practices. in the summer academy, the faculty 21 m iller, nelson, yun, bennett, & lopez-phillips | am i doing what i think i am doing? created learning activities and a tablet-based course syllabus. participating faculty members were required to teach one tablet-based course in the academic year following the completion of the summer academy. faculty were supplied with a tablet of their choice ? ios, android or windows ? and also received a stipend and professional development funds. students who enrolled in tablet courses received a subsidy from the university to offset the cost of their tablet. fresno state serves a diverse population. demographics for fall 2015 included 45.8% latino, 22.4% white, 14.0% asian, 3.3% african american, 2.9% two or more, 0.3% native american, and 11.3% other. the federal government has designated the university as a hispanic serving institution (hsi) and an asian american native american pacific islander-serving institution (aanapisi). the university reports that first generation college students make up over two thirds of the undergraduate population. theoret ical fram ework this study draws upon the constructs of technological pedagogical content knowledge (tpck) and the substitution-augmentation modification-redefinition (samr) model as a theoretical frame. tpck, which looks at the intersections between content knowledge (ck), pedagogical knowledge (pk), and technological knowledge (tk), provides a space for these deliberations on curriculum and pedagogy to occur (mishra & koehler, 2006). while historically, teacher education focused on content knowledge, more recently this shift has been to pedagogical knowledge. shulman (1987) claimed that these two areas of ck and pk were not mutually exclusive and could not be treated in such a way, leading to the construct of pedagogical content knowledge (pck), sometimes operationalized as knowledge for teaching (ball, thames, & phelps; 2008). similar to the way that content and pedagogy cannot be considered mutually exclusive, educational technology should also not be viewed as separate from pedagogy and content (mishra & koehler, 2006). tpck requires understanding of technological integration to best support already effective pedagogy and a depth of content knowledge. in addition to tpck, the samr model helps to inform the investigation of technology integration. developed by puentedura (2013), samr serves as a classification system for identifying the level of technology integration based on learning activities. the samr model includes the following four levels of technology integration: substitution: technology acts as a direct substitute with no functional improvement. augmentation: technology acts as a direct substitute with functional improvements. modification: technology allows for task redesign. redefinition: technology allows for new tasks that were previously not possible. for example, simply providing an electronic text without any examination of the new ways of interacting with text afforded by an e-reader would be classified at the substitution level (puentedura, 2013). an evolution in the beliefs and practices of teacher educators must first occur in order for tablet technology to have an impact on tpck and understanding of the samr model when used with preservice teachers. (geist, 2011). met hodology this inquiry takes the form of a self-study, in which we consider our own experiences as instructors implementing tablet technology in a teacher education program. zeichner (1999) called the development of self-study research ?probably the single most significant development even in the field of teacher education? (p. 8). self-study researchers focus on significant issues in teacher education and utilize a variety of methods to reveal and investigate complexities of the field. zeichner (1999) acknowledged that self-study is a form of research that could potentially transform teacher education. for this investigation of our practice, we drew upon reflective processes and self-inquiry in order to situate ourselves at the center of our study. 22 m iller, nelson, yun, bennett, & lopez-phillips | am i doing what i think i am doing? hamilton and pinnegar (1998) define self-study as ?the study of one?s self, one?s actions, one?s ideas, as well as the ?not self?? (p. 238). self-study problematizes the individual along with personal and professional practices with the goal of reframing these practices (feldman, 2002). barnes (1998) identified three characteristics of self-study research: collaboration, openness, and reframing of practice. self-study cannot be conducted in isolation because it involves collective reflection and meaning making. this collaborative component requires that participants are open to sharing experiences and considering the ideas of others. the final characteristic involves applying the new ideas and insights to reframe the individual?s practice. reframing can allow for significant shifts to occur in beliefs and perspectives. par t icipant s at the time of the self-study, the five participants were assistant professors who worked in teacher education at the university, teaching courses in various parts of the teacher credential program. prior to participation in the tablet initiative, the five participants integrated various levels of technology in their instruction, ranging from teaching online and computer-based courses to teaching traditional face-to-face courses. libbi miller taught curriculum, instruction and educational technology in the secondary teacher education program. prior to participating in the tablet initiative, she taught all of her courses in a computer classroom setting and regularly used educational technology as a tool for instruction. she participated in the tablet initiative beginning in its second year. frederick nelson taught courses in science methods and instructional theory and was a member of the first cohort of faculty to use tablets with students. he regularly integrated tablets into his science methods courses over the two years since the inception of the tablet initiative. he also taught an introductory course on curriculum, instruction, and technology. cathy yun taught in the early childhood education teacher education program and master?s program. as part of the master?s program, she instructed an advanced course in educational psychology. prior to participating in the tablet initiative, she primarily used slide presentations, video footage, and websites as tools for teaching and learning. lisa bennett coordinated the elementary teacher education program and taught early literacy methods courses. prior to participating in the tablet initiative, her use of educational technology as a tool for instruction consisted primarily of powerpoint presentations and videos. emy lopez phillips taught curriculum, instruction and educational technology in the secondary teacher education program. prior to participating in the tablet initiative, she served as a director of instructional technology at the k-12 level for the local county office of education. her experiences included training k-12 educators on the use of technology for teaching and learning. she participated in the tablet initiative in its final year of grant funding. met hods we found that qualitative methods of data collection and analysis most closely aligned with the purpose of this study. we conducted self-study focus groups and used critical incident reflective writing as methods of data collection. focus groups we conducted two focus groups which utilized dialogue as a mode of inquiry. in self-study, dialogue is more than a conversation and often involves more than two participants (east, fitzgerald & heston, 2009). dialogue as a method allows for participants to jointly create meaning and expand individual ideas and perspectives (wells, 1999). the act of participating in dialogue can also be can impetus for immediate change in 23 m iller, nelson, yun, bennett, & lopez-phillips | am i doing what i think i am doing? the participants? practices or teaching. in order to meet the scheduling needs of all of our group members, we held two focus groups. there were three participants present in each focus group. one participant attended both focus groups. we followed a semi-structured protocol and used guiding questions to direct the conversation. reflective writing we also used reflective writing as an additional tool for data collection. we drew on the concept of critical incidents to provide a stimulus for reflection. griffin (2003) suggests that critical incident reflection ?provides a deeper and more profound level of reflection because it goes beyond a detailed description of an event that attracted attention, to analysis of and reflection on the meaning of the event? (p. 208). as researcher participants, we individually participated in reflective writing based on the following prompt: identify a ?critical incident? that you experienced at any phase during [the tablet] program that influenced the way you perceive the role of technology in teacher education. prior to our second focus group, each participant read all of the group member?s reflections. we found the reflective writing process to be useful in advancing our focus group discussion. dat a analysis data from the focus groups and reflective writing were dual coded to allow themes to emerge from the data (strauss & corbin, 1990). a list of themes was developed in the initial round of open coding. we conducted a second round of focused coding to solidify the themes identified during open coding (esterberg, 2002). themes were reviewed with all of the participants in the study. trustworthiness we accept the need for an approach that is committed to checking our interpretations with each other to increase the credibility of our conclusions (bullough & pinnegar, 2001; whitehead, 2004). for this project, we used member checking to review our findings and to explore conclusions. we also engaged in peer debriefing to refine and redirect our work. as the inquiry is a self-study, transferability is enhanced through purposive sampling of the participants, since we are all providing rich detail about our experiences (erlandson, harris, skipper, & allen, 1993). we also analyzed data both independently and collaboratively to contribute to trustworthiness of the inquiry. findings we found that our thinking about integrating tablet technology was influenced by several factors that align to schwab?s commonplaces of instruction ? teachers, subject matter, learners, and the milieu (schwab, 1973). this corresponds to nelson?s (2015) model for the development of reflection by teacher educators, where the influences of the commonplaces function as input on personal conceptions of reflection that are then reified in the intended curriculum. in this model, an instructor?s formal education, personal experiences outside of schooling, and professional experiences inside of schooling all inform the teacher commonplace. the influences of learners, subject matter, and the milieu of instruction comprise the other commonplaces. the magnitude of each of these factors is fluid, based on the individual instructor and the teaching episode. figure 1 illustrates this model, with larger shapes indicating greater magnitude of the influence of particular commonplaces. the instructor?s thinking about technology integration, representing tpck (mishra & koehler, 2006), is manifested in the choices made about learning experiences in coursework. these individual assignments can then be classified according to the samr taxonomy (puentedura, 2013). in the following sections, we examine the experience of one faculty member, nelson, in more depth through the application of this model for examining thinking about technology integration. we will also share the thinking of four other faculty members who participated in the tablet project. 24 m iller, nelson, yun, bennett, & lopez-phillips | am i doing what i think i am doing? figure 1. influences of learners, subject matter, and the milieu of instruction shape shifters nelson experienced tension about his instructional decisions, based on his desire to provide a learner-centered experience for students and his lack of expertise in tablet applications. learner-centered teaching is a central aspect of his beliefs about teaching and learning, where power and responsibility are shared with students (weimer, 2013). when teaching the tablet course, nelson experienced dissonance between his belief in learner-centered instruction and his insecurity due to a lack of self-efficacy about his tablet skills. initially, he treated the use of tablets as an ?add on? to his other assignments. the first learning activity in the science methods course instructed students to write a review of an application that could be used in teaching science, a substitution-level activity in the samr model. he focused on technical skills and teaching the students how to use various apps such as evernote and explain everything. while he embraces learner-centered education and constructivist teaching, he experienced discomfort when he realized that the students had a better understanding of the technology than he did. this realization provided the impetus for a shift in the way that he integrated the use of tablets into his course. he no longer the teaches how to use the tablet or particular apps, but he uses the tablet as a tool to engage his learner in collaboration. these tensions that nelson experienced are characterized in his reflective writing: at first, i was anxious about my lack of expertise in these various applications. this should not have been an issue for me, as my instructional decisions are typically very learner-centered and inquiry-oriented. the newness of using a tablet as a pedagogical innovation seemed to cause me to default to a more teacher-centered mode of authority for content. i soon came to the realization that i could not be an authority on all of these applications, but could instead rely on the expertise of my own students, based on their own interests and experience. nelson?s thinking about technology integration in this experience is represented by the model in figure 2. the major influences on his tpck come from the commonplaces of the teacher, the students, and the subject matter. in nelson?s own formal education, a learner-centered approach to teaching had a significant impact, as characterized by this statement from his syllabus about grading on an assignment: ?the community of learners will determine the criteria for evaluating this assignment.? the education influence is, therefore, of greater influence than personal experiences, professional experiences, or the milieu. actually, nelson rejected the influence of tablet technology professional development, instead relying on the expertise of his own students, as indicated by the relative sizes of these influences in the model. finally, nelson explicitly focused on how preservice teachers in the course could use tablet technology in science teaching and learning, including data collection and analysis, as shown by the larger size of the subject matter influence in the model. nelson?s thinking about integrating tpck informs his decisions about the design of learning experiences in his courses. these learning experiences can then be classified into different samr categories. an example of his thinking includes the choices of techniques afforded preservice teachers in the course in the completion of the inquiry lesson plan, such as collaboration via google docs or data collection 25 m iller, nelson, yun, bennett, & lopez-phillips | am i doing what i think i am doing? using wireless temperature probes. these technology tools allow a significant redesign of the task; the modification level of the samr model. while no assignments were categorized in the redefinition level, most fit into the augmentation or modification levels. as with other taxonomies, nelson?s purpose was not to move all activities to the highest level, but rather to engage in thoughtful examination of the diversity of his instructional choices. figure 2. nelson?s thinking about technology integration bennett?s professional experience while teaching in the tablet program also led to a shift in her practice. in the end, the integration of tablets was transformative for bennett?s practice, but this shift occurred in several phases and was facilitated by reflection. the first course bennett taught in the tablet program was outside of the teacher credential program. in this course, she reports using the tablet to remove the focus from herself as the instructor and to create a more learner-centered classroom. however, the next semester when she began using tablets in a teacher credential course, her approach changed. and then the next semester, i taught the tablet course with my credential class, and i had this idea in my mind that i had to shift from using the tablet as a vehicle to helping teachers think about how they would use a tablet in their classroom. and i think it set me back a whole semester because i was starting to use it just as a gadget and not as a transformational tool, so, for example, i taught them a lot of really useful apps... it took me an entire additional semester to then get to the place where i was using the technology in a more transformational way so that the students were engaging differently, and i wasn?t the disseminator of knowledge. initially in the credential course, she focused on teaching her students the applications they could use once they entered the teaching profession. like nelson, she later shifted her teaching approach to become more learner-centered. she stopped teaching her students how to use the tablet and began integrating it into the design of her instruction. the critics both miller and phillips were instructors of educational technology. we found that their education and professional knowledge heavily influenced their experience in the professional development opportunities that were provided in the tablet program. miller found herself critiquing the program?s professional development for its lack of a strong theoretical frame and focus on developing pedagogical beliefs. without these elements, she feared that the tablet initiative would neglect to truly transform classroom practices across campus. in the focus group, she shared her concern: ?i wonder, if we look at how people are using tablets across campus, if they?re really changing what they?re doing. or if it?s mostly just a substitute.? in addition to her education and professional experience, phillips?s critical perspective was influenced by her understanding of our students and the societal milieu along with personal experience in the geographic area. our university serves a high population of disadvantaged students with many residing in rural areas with limited access to technology. phillips was initially drawn to the program because she felt it would provide students living in outlying areas affordable access to technology. the university also has a 26 m iller, nelson, yun, bennett, & lopez-phillips | am i doing what i think i am doing? partnership program, which allows preservice teachers to take classes off campus often in rural areas. she hoped that the tablets would be a valuable resource for our preservice teachers who have limited access to campus, while also serving as a tool during their student teaching experience. once the program stopped funding tablets for students, phillips became concerned about issues of equity and access related to enrollment in a tablet course and the tablet program. the seeker participation in the tablet program provided us with the opportunity to reflect on our practice as teacher educators. we found that the educational theories and pedagogical approaches that we personally value were not always present in our teaching. this led us to begin to shift the theories that influence our practice from being personal to more observable. while this reflective experience was shared by all of the researchers, the impact on yun?s practice was the particularly notable. yun?s educational and professional background is in cognitive psychology, and she indicates that she is always seeking a theoretical frame. while miller critiqued the professional development, yun sought more information, and the tablet program provided a new source of stimuli for reconsidering her practice as a teacher educator. she began to rethink whether or not the instructional practices that she was implementing in her teaching were truly aligned with her pedagogical beliefs. in a focus group discussion, yun reflected on her practice and the growth that she experienced by participating in the tablet program. before i was like, ?yeah, of course i?m a constructivist.? but it?s not like i explicitly sat down and thought about the tenets of a constructivist lesson. i didn?t do that explicitly. my thinking didn?t reach that far. because it didn?t, it was this implicit, vague application of this theory, i was not as critical of my own pedagogy.? the tablet program also resulted in yun seeking a new framework for understanding her teaching and deepening her practice. in the tablet professional development, the samr model was briefly introduced. after initially learning about this taxonomy, yun began to seek out more information about samr. she consulted with colleagues in educational technology and also did additional readings on the topic. now yun uses the samr model as a tool for reflecting on her teaching and classroom activities. im plicat ions our self-study has important implications for teacher education faculty who seek to move beyond simple substitution of technology to a level of redefinition, enabling the creation of new learning experiences that were previously inconceivable (puentedura, 2013). various forms of technology are being implemented across disciplines at universities nationwide. often these tools come with great promises such as the ability to revolutionize teaching, engage students and increase achievement. as faculty engage with these innovations, we conclude the need to carefully consider our own fundamental ideas about teaching and learning. in order for technology to be an integral component of transformative teacher education, it must move beyond technology integration and become entangled with pedagogical content knowledge. without this core, we can become stuck in the ?app? model by focusing on the tools instead of our pedagogical and instructional beliefs. the model for instructor thinking about technology presented in this study (figure 1) is useful in encouraging thoughtful consideration of the ideas and values that faculty bring to their pedagogical and curricular decisions. the model provides a structure for working backwards from enacted learning experiences to examining the samr level and significant influences on the integration of technology. these analyses bring focus to the importance the theoretical and practical rationale that faculty use in the design of instruction, affording a lens into the tpck brought to bear. as we asserted in the introduction to this article, 27 m iller, nelson, yun, bennett, & lopez-phillips | am i doing what i think i am doing? professional development is necessary for faculty to successfully integrate technology into their courses (beavis, 2014; geist, 2011). we conclude that a strong theoretical frame must be present in this professional development. professional development itself does not have the ability to transform practice. we are not advocating on behalf of any particular framework, be it tpck, samr, learner-centered teaching, and so on. we do posit that when the explicit theoretical frame is absent, practice is left to be informed only by personal and professional experiences of the faculty member. learning activities developed based on what has been previously done are unlikely to transform the learning environment. references ball, d. l., thames, m. h., & phelps, g. 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(1999). dialogue inquiry: toward a sociocultural practice and theory of education. cambridge, uk: cambridge university press. whitehead, j. (2004). what counts as evidence in self-studies of teacher education practices? in j. j. loughran, m. l. hamilton, v. k. laboskey, & t. russell (eds.). international handbook of self-study of teaching and teacher education practices (vol 2, pp. 871-903). dordrecht: kluwer academic publishers. zeichner, k. m. (1999). the new scholarship in teacher education. educational researcher,28(9), 4-15. 29 http://www.hippasus.com/rrpweblog/arch ives/2013/05/29/pathstotechnologyintegration .pdf http://www.hippasus.com/rrpweblog/arch ives/2013/05/29/pathstotechnologyintegration .pdf http://www.hippasus.com/rrpweblog/arch ives/2013/05/29/pathstotechnologyintegration .pdf miller proof final page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 page 9 page 10 rich (2020) proof print educational renaissance vol. 9 (2020) teacher candidat es as t he teacher of record assist s par t ner school dist r ict s w it h t he teacher shor t age greg rich, edd. northwest missouri state university email: grich@nwmissouri.edu linda gray sm it h, phd. northwest missouri state university email: lsmith@nwmissouri.edu kr ist i alexander , edd. northwest missouri state university email: kalex@nwmissouri.edu feature article int roduct ion a recent and growing phenomenon at northwest missouri state university is requests from regional pk?12 school districts to hire a teacher candidate as a contracted employee and teacher of record while the teacher candidate completes the degree requirements for student teaching. northwest missouri state university is located in maryville, mo, with a population of approximately 12,000 people in a rural area of the state. northwest missouri state university has approximately 7,000 students including undergraduate and graduate. approximately 100 teacher candidates student teach each semester. during the 2015?2018 terms, 30 teacher candidates (of approximately 700 total placements) were employed as teachers of record during their student-teaching experiences. nationally, there has been a significant decline in the number of students enrolling in teacher education programs. berry and shields (2017) found enrollments in teacher preparation programs dropped 35% nationally between the years 2009 to 2016. in 2016, a report published by the learning policy institute predicted that by 2020 an estimated 300,000 new teachers would be needed each year. in addition, the report also predicted that by 2018, annual teacher shortages abst ract this research essay examined a growing trend in a rural area of the midwest where pk?12 school districts are partnering with a local university to hire teacher candidates (tcs) as the teachers of record (tors). many rural school districts are challenged to address the teacher shortage. as a result, many school districts are hiring tcs as the tor during the tc?s student-teaching experience. due to the limited research on the topic, this paper aimed to determine if appointing the tc as the tor was perceived as an effective practice. the researchers used three data sources to gauge the perceptions of the tc, the tc?s mentor, and the tc?s administrator. specifically, the researchers started with tc interviews. next surveys were sent to tcs, the tc?s mentor, and the tc?s administration. finally, follow-up phone interviews were conducted with randomly selected tcs. meeting the needs of partnering districts and providing quality placements for tcs engaged in the culminating field experience can be mutually beneficial for teacher candidates, the school district, and the university. mailto:grich@nwmissouri.edu mailto:lsmith@nwmissouri.edu mailto:grich@nwmissouri.edu rich, smith & alexander| teacher candidates as the teacher of record could exceed 112,000 positions left unfilled. this national teacher shortage is also evident in the northwest region of missouri. many regional school districts are experiencing teacher shortages. some school districts, especially rural school districts, have significant turnover and are challenged to hire effective educators to serve in their classrooms. during the 2015?2018 school years, 88% of the total number of teacher candidates hired as teachers of record were placed in rural districts; the remaining 12% were placed in urban settings; none were placed in suburban areas. some rural schools are challenged to hire highly qualified teachers and, thus, face teacher-recruiting obstacles (aragon, 2016). these pk?12 school districts frequently consider hiring a teacher candidate to be the teacher of record while simultaneously completing degree requirements and pursuing initial state certification. northwest missouri state university's department of education allows school districts to use teacher candidates as the teacher of record with two possible options. in using the first option, the state can issue the teacher candidate a substitute certification. the requirements for a substitute certificate are transcript documentation of a minimum of 60 credit hours and successful completion of a rigorous background check. the second option is a provisional certificate, which is good for two years. the teacher candidate must be employed in a public school or private school and be within 12 credit hours of completing an accredited degree program. the hiring school district has discretion about which option it prefers or meets their needs (missouri department of elementary & secondary education, 2018). theoret ical fram ework three theoretical constructs influenced this work: 1) teacher development not as linear development through identified stages, but as processes arising from and developed as members of a professional community; 2) the belief systems the teacher candidates themselves bring to the experience matter, and 3) support provided to novice teachers makes a difference, a theory of teacher development views teacher learning as linear, lockstop stages that teacher candidates proceed through in their growth from novice teachers to expert teachers. stage development espoused the notion that teacher development occurred in identifiable stages with the initial focus on the teacher themselves simply needing to first survive in the classroom, second learn and practice basic management skills and content delivery and then being able to focus on student learning (fuller & bown, 1975; katz, n.d.) the construct that undergirds this work is one where learning communities in university classrooms, in field experiences, and in student teaching allows teacher candidates to construct a vision of good practice that is not stage dependent (grossman, 1992; hammerness et al., 2005; conway & clark, 2003). a framework of fluid learning exercising the teacher candidate?s understanding of content, pedagogy, the students whom they are teaching, as well as the contexts of the community where they teach, the ability to practice effective instructional practices as well as tools of the trade. dispositions or habits of thinking a teacher candidate brings to the learning also is a factor in teacher candidate learning. teacher candidates learn, practice, and reflect on each of the components of the framework throughout their university experiences and during their experiences as student teachers and as teachers (hammerness et. al., 2005). a second theoretical underpinning of our work are belief systems the teacher candidates bring to the role of teacher of record. growth mindset, as defined by dweck (2006), include thriving on stretching beyond the understood and the status quo for the individual , being comfortable with making mistakes and learning from them, and putting in the effort to create a reality. successful teacher candidates serving as teachers of record bring personal characteristics of goal commitment as defined need for achievement, and desire to control the outcome (hollenbeck et al.,1989). 42 rich, smith & alexander| teacher candidates as the teacher of record indeed successful teacher candidates as teachers of record bring grit to the position with an ?approach that achievement is a marathon: his or her advantage is stamina? (duckworth et al., 2007). a third theoretical construction is the importance of support systems surrounding the teacher candidate. grossman (1992) argues new teachers have the potential to make great strides toward expertise even as they are novices with the right kind of support. mentors who connect with the novice teachers by building strong relationships with them support the learning of the teacher candidates helping them to reflect on practices they observe and they themselves implement. the support of peers providing teaching resources has been found to reduce the emotional exhaustion of the first year teacher (voss & kunter, 2020). the critical support can come from various sources ?supervisors, teacher candidate education instructors, cooperating teachers, other veteran teachers, and even fellow candidates? (darling-hammond et al., 2005). purpose of t he st udy in reviewing the data for three school years, the number of regional pk?12 school districts that have hired a teacher candidate as a teacher of record to fill a classroom need continues to grow. the purpose of this study was to determine if the practice of having teacher candidates while student teaching is perceived as an effective practice based on the perceptions of both the teacher candidate and of the school personnel, to identify the characteristics of the teacher candidate that lead to their success as teacher of record, and is there a difference in the perceptions of the teacher candidate and of the administrator who work with them. research questions 1. is there a difference between the teacher candidates? and administrators? perception of the teacher candidate serving as teacher of record an effective practice? 2. what characteristics of the candidate were perceived to support their success? 3. is there a difference in the perceptions of success of the teacher candidate between the candidate and their administrator? decline in number of completers in traditional teacher preparation programs between 2009 and 2014, enrollments in teacher-preparation programs dropped 35% nationwide (berry & shields, 2017). a 2016 report published by the learning policy institute predicted that by 2020 an estimated 300,000 new teachers would be needed each year. the report also predicted that by 2018, annual teacher shortages could exceed 112,000 positions left unfilled. lisette partelow (2019) posted ?nationally, there were more than one-third fewer students enrolling in teacher preparation programs in 2018 than in 2010" (p. 5). in some instances, states have responded to the growing shortage of certificated teachers by ?letting any person with any college degree take charge of a classroom? (green, 2019, p. 2). garcia and weiss (2019) write, ?teacher shortage is real, large, and growing, and worse than we thought? (p. 1). nearly every state in the nation has experienced declining enrollment in teacher preparation. according to paul katnik (2019) assistant commissioner in the missouri department of education in a presentation to the state board of education regarding the number of teacher candidates, the total number of completers between 2015-2016 and 2017-2018 in missouri has declined by 21.7% while total enrollment in educator preparation programs has declined by .6%. alternative education programs nationally as of the 2015-16 school year, 8.8% of k-12 teachers in the country were not fully certified, 31.5% of teachers did not have an educational background in their subject of main assignment, and 17.1% did not graduate from educator preparation programs (garcia & weiss, 2019). the numbers of teachers in classrooms who were alternatively certified increased or stayed 43 rich, smith & alexander| teacher candidates as the teacher of record constant between the 2011-12 and 2015-16 school years according to the national center for education statistics (garcia & weiss, 2019). alternative education programs have been seen as ways the numbers of classroom teachers in missouri classrooms can be increased. alternative programs in missouri require a candidate have first earned a bachelor?s degree in a related field and be hired by a school district while earning credit through a university. another avenue toward certification in the state for those holding a bachelor?s degree is the successful passage the state content assessment known as the missouri content assessment or moca in the area of instruction. neither of these programs require student teaching prior to becoming the teacher of record. in the state, katnik (2019) explained, alternative education of teachers in institutions of higher education (ihe) has increased by 8.7% while alternative education of teachers in non-ihe has decreased by 5.7%. darling-hammond is critical of alternative education programs because the success rate of such teachers is less than teachers who graduated from teacher education programs and completed student teaching. darling-hammond explained that ?graduates of teacher education programs felt significantly better prepared and more efficacious,? than did those entering through alternative routes or with no training? (2003, p. 11). another concern cited by garcia & weiss (2019) is based on the report of nces is new teachers without adequate preparation to become teachers leave the profession at higher rates than those who have student taught. partnerships between the school district and the university developing the partnership between the school district and university allows both institutions to meet their needs (reischl et al., 2017). in this case, the school district needs a teacher of record in the classroom while the university needs authentic placements for their teacher candidates. partnerships between school districts and educator-preparation programs provide opportunities for districts to recruit educators and for beginning teachers to learn to more about the district and acclimate to the culture of the district (berman, 2004; education first, 2016). the guiding principles of american association of colleges of teacher education (2018) emphasizes the importance of mutually beneficial partnerships with school districts where both the district and the university support each other in learning. in fact, those partnerships are expected by school of education national accreditors (association for advancing quality in education preparation, 2019; council for the accreditation of education preparation, 2019) this is evidence of a true partnership between the university and the school districts. the desire to meet the needs of the partner districts has resulted in northwest missouri state university school of education constructing mutually beneficial pk?12 experiences to help meet all stakeholders? needs (council for the accreditation of education preparation, 2019). administrators who have hired a teacher candidate as the teacher of record in their school value northwest missouri state university's school of education partnership. the northwest missouri state university school of education works collaboratively with school districts to provide strong support for teacher candidates serving as teachers of record. northwest missouri state university's school of education partners with many rural pk?12 school districts in the northwest portion of the state. although table 1 is not a comprehensive list of all of the school districts that have hired teacher candidates as the teacher of record, many of these pk-12 partner school districts have utilized the teacher candidate as the teacher of record practice and do represent a similar demographic in the northwest region of the state. table 1 depicts the socioeconomic status of partner districts based on the percentage of students who were eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, the racial demographics of 44 rich, smith & alexander| teacher candidates as the teacher of record the districts, and the total district enrollment. table 1 demographics of northwest missouri state university pk12 partners * indicates the number/percent has been suppressed due to a potential small sample size. quality of the preparation program the university education program provides a strong foundation in pedagogy and content knowledge, and has been recognized twice as a recipient of the christa mcauliffe excellence in teacher education award bestowed by the american association of state college and universities (aascu). northwest missouri state university earned the mcauliffe award in 2006 and 2018, making it just the third institution in the nation to receive the award two times since its inception in 2002 (northwest missouri state university). the educator preparation program has been continuously nationally accredited since 1954. the state measure of the missouri education effectiveness system (mees) indicate the candidates meet the standards at a higher rate than students from other institutions in the state. the state survey data of the teacher candidates and of the reporting of principals during the first year of employment also document the strength of training in the department. support during the time when candidates serve as teacher of record is provided by the mentor teacher, the university supervisor, and many times by the building administrator of the superintendent of schools. met hodology the researchers used three qualitative data sources to determine if the teacher candidate as the teacher of record was perceived as a mutually beneficial practice for partner school districts and university teacher candidates. the first qualitative data source was the initial interview questions for approximately 30 teacher candidates who had served or were serving as teacher of record (see appendix a). next, the researchers sent a surveymonkey link to approximately 30 teacher candidates, 30 mentors, and 30 administrators (see appendix b). the researchers received approximately a 32% response rate to the survey. to triangulate the data, the researchers randomly selected six teacher candidates to participate in follow-up interviews. qualit at ive findings northwest missouri state university supports the practice due to a recent redesign of the school of education, northwest missouri state university's teacher candidates are actively engaged in clinical field experiences early and often during their course work. specifically, teacher candidates engage in authentic teaching and learning in a partner pk?12 school in the first 7 weeks they are on campus completing their coursework. as a result, many school administrators have the opportunity to work with teacher candidates early in their development as a teacher candidate. 45 district % f/r race % white % non-white total maryville 33.2 91.9 * 1,401 jefferson 32.2 * * 125 ne nodaway 45.8 * * 205 w nodaway 54.4 * * 232 nodaway holt 46.3 * * 199 s nodaway 47.9 * * 175 n nodaway 45.4 * * 205 albany 59.3 * * 398 savannah 32.2 94.1 * 2,306 n andrew 39.5 * * 356 rich, smith & alexander| teacher candidates as the teacher of record northwest missouri state university partners with many local and regional rural pk?12 school districts to facilitate numerous teacher candidates? clinical field experiences. northwest missouri state university is grateful for the numerous pk?12 school-district partnerships that allow teacher candidates to have these. as a result, northwest missouri state university focuses on a mutually beneficial partnership (caep, 2019) and wants to help meet a critical teacher shortage with local and regional pk?12 school districts. survey and interview data indicate local and regional pk?12 partner school districts are regularly vetting northwest missouri state university teacher candidates during a variety of opportunities, but specifically during clinical field experiences. in addition, partner school district and building administrators are frequently on the northwest missouri state university campus for a variety of activities like career day, education expo, and mock interview day. administrators indicated these are opportunities during which they can continue to vet teacher candidates for job opportunities that are open or may arise. as a result of the evolving increase in hiring teacher candidates as teachers of record, northwest missouri state university established a process to determine if the teacher candidate was prepared to be the teacher of record during the student-teaching experience, documented in northwest missouri state university's student teaching handbook (student teaching handbook, p. 6). first, the teacher candidate should notify the director of field experiences or assistant coordinator of field experiences that an offer has been made. second, the team (building principal, advisor, faculty member, certification officer, assistant coordinator of field experiences, and director of field experiences) meet to determine if the opportunity is a good fit for the teacher candidate, which may include grade level, content, certification areas, and other. the team makes the decision. the director and the assistant coordinator of field experiences meet with the teacher candidate to share the team?s decision. finally, should the team support the teacher candidate?s placement, they will sign and file an agreement (student teaching employment agreement form). should teacher candidates disagree with the team?s decision, they may appeal to the teacher education guidance committee. all decisions are made on a case-by-case basis focused on meeting the needs of both the teacher candidate and the school district. administrators and mentors support the practice when analyzing the administrators? and mentor teachers? survey data, the researchers identified several themes. one theme was the significance of the teacher candidate?s disposition. administrators and mentors believed the teacher candidate?s disposition played a crucial role in the outcome. for example, one administrator responded, ?i believe that our success has everything to do with who we hired; she was exceptional.? inexperienced teacher candidates must have the proper disposition to handle the situation in which they will be placed. in addition to the administrators? opinions regarding the importance of the teacher candidates? disposition as the teacher of record, administrators carefully vetted the teacher candidate through an interview process. the administrators? survey data reflected the importance of extensive discussions with the teacher candidate and personnel at the northwest missouri state university school of education. the administrators? vetting processes were crucial for the success of the teacher candidate as the teacher of record. choosing the correct candidate to complete this experience was of the utmost importance and, with an extensive vetting process, including collaboration between partner pk?12 schools and northwest missouri state university, survey data showed 100% of the administrators and mentors believed teacher candidates as teachers of record were adequately prepared for this experience. one administrator commented, ?i would not have hired either of my teacher candidates as i did without thoroughly checking out references and being very confident they were going to be strong.? 46 rich, smith & alexander| teacher candidates as the teacher of record another theme from the administrators? data documented teacher candidates as the teachers of record often experienced feelings of being overwhelmed. even though administrators indicated they believed teacher candidates as teachers of record were prepared for most content, some teacher candidates believed they were not well prepared for what it was like to be in a classroom all day every day. this uncomfortable feeling often caused stress for teacher candidates as teachers of record. the amount of time required to be successful, including grading, parent communication, colleague communication, and lesson preparation was a surprise to most teacher candidates. one administrator stated, ?our teacher candidate as the teacher of record is wonderful, but she didn?t realize the extra effort it took beyond the teaching aspect.? combined with a feeling of culture shock from not understanding all facets entailed in performing as a successful teacher, administrators and mentors believed teacher candidates? intrapersonal skills improved. after a few weeks, the self-worth of teacher candidates as teachers of record?s increased. self-reflection and assessing student success became a daily occurrence, which was a new phenomenon to teacher candidates as teachers of record. ?on the job? learning carried a sharp learning curve than might have been encountered during a traditional student-teaching experience. although it was not a negative trend, it was a difficult transition. administrators and mentors understood teacher-candidate success was due to the amount of personal stamina of the candidate when addressing adversities and challenges. bandura (1977) wrote, self-efficacy, an individual?s belief in their ability to attain success, was a better predictor of success that previous experiences in similar situations. survey results indicated 100% of the administrative and mentor respondents perceived the teacher of record was a hard worker who did not give up, thereby exhibiting self-efficacy. the amount of guidance extended by the administration and mentor teacher was also a theme these two subgroups believed was important. results showed the mentor assigned had a vital role in the teacher candidate?s positive experience. one teacher candidate commented, ?my mentor made a huge difference. she was always there for me and i knew that.? schools pay mentors during this process to help ensure they give extraordinary attention to the teacher of record. the daily support, genuine caring for success, and the feeling that the teacher of record could turn to the mentor for any reason, played a major role in the success of teacher candidates. administrators also believed the only way this process would be extremely successful was if teacher candidates had a good mentor teacher. survey data showed 100% of administrators and mentor teachers perceived teacher candidates were supported by their mentors with 71% responding strongly agree and 29% agreeing. administrative knowledge of their teachers ranked high so pairings of teacher candidate and mentor were successful. it would be detrimental if a mentor who did not understand the importance of mentoring or did not have sufficient experience was assigned to teacher candidates. these new teachers need guidance and support. lastly, administrators and mentor teachers believed classroom management, depth of knowledge, interpersonal skills/grit, and flexibility were all essential traits for success. in addition, they believed it was dually important if the mentor teacher or administrator believed the teacher of record struggled in any of these areas; it was the mentor?s and administrator?s job to step in and help. as noted by a partner school district superintendent: administrators and mentors must be willing to help these new teachers more than usual; such help may require providing more guidance than they would give a traditional first-year teacher. administration and mentors must be willing to help, support, and stand up for teacher candidates as teachers of record if questioned about their abilit ies to be in a classroom full time before they have graduated 47 rich, smith & alexander| teacher candidates as the teacher of record teacher candidates support the practice the researchers conducted follow-up interviews with six randomly selected teacher candidates who served as teacher candidates as teachers of record. the responses fell into five themes: (a) support they received while student teaching, (b) the amount of time required to prepare and grade, (c) they had areas in which they were well prepared, (d) they had areas in which they were not prepared, and (e) they were glad they ?did it.? teacher candidates received support from a variety of individuals: mentor teachers, other teachers who teach in the same content area, principals, university supervisors, and content professors. in some instances, mentor teachers checked in daily with teacher candidates; others checked in with the building principal ?a lot.? teacher candidates were unafraid to ask questions and did not seem threatened by the building administrator?s interest in them and their teaching. one candidate stated, ?the building administrator made me feel like i was in the right place, doing the right thing, and they were happy i was there.? the survey data indicated that 81% of teacher candidates believed they were supported by the mentor teacher and 100% of administrators and mentors indicated they felt mentor teachers supported the teacher candidates. interestingly, 88% of the teacher candidates felt supported by others than mentor teachers or administrators. of teacher candidates, 81% perceived support from building administrators whereas 100% of administrators and mentor teachers indicated they felt support for teacher candidates. teacher candidates prepared to build appropriate relationships with students, the content knowledge, and classroom management; however, they also indicated lesson planning was different in the ?real classroom? when they needed to meet the instructional needs of the student rather than preparing an isolated plan. although feeling confident in their abilit ies to manage a classroom, teacher candidates indicated the process differed when they managed the classroom on their own. practicum experiences and working in summer camps provided good experiences for one candidate. parent communication and planning for a lesson on a day-to-day basis with the appropriate content was difficult. teacher candidates who were interviewed expressed it was a good experience to ?just jump in and do it.? they learned about themselves and continued to grow. one candidate stated, ?experience helped me grow as i continued to try hard though i perceived many failures every day. by the end of year one i felt confident in what not to do.? one needs to be well organized and able to handle a great deal of pressure. teacher candidates credited the positive experience to principals, other staff members, mentors, and university advisors. being willing to communicate when one felt overwhelmed and to ask questions also emerged as important. the success of teacher candidates serving as teachers of record appeared to support published literature regarding teacher-preparation programs. mutually beneficial partnerships were created that benefitted teacher candidates and the school district (american association of colleges for teacher education, 2018; reischl et al., 2017). teacher candidates were earning a salary and the district had a teacher for their students. teacher candidates themselves demonstrated grit, as defined by duckworth et al. (2007). candidates exhibited the capacity to sustain effort and interest in projects that took months to complete. the survey data showed that teacher candidates displayed self-efficacy (see bandura 1977) in believing they had the skills they needed to teach, even though they had not completed student teaching (survey data). quant it at ive findings in addition to the qualitative data, an analyses of quantitative data provided several results (table 2). we performed a chi square analysis to determine whether a significant difference existed between participants who identified as mentors and administrators and those who identified as 48 rich, smith & alexander| teacher candidates as the teacher of record teachers of record. we performed analyses on several survey items to determine if significant differences existed between groups. the only significant difference that appeared, using an alpha = .05, was found when comparing responses on the item, ?was prepared for the demands of the job beyond the class content on his or her time.? results were significant x2 (1, n = 29) = 4.91, p < .05. teacher candidates were less likely to agree they were ?prepared for the demands of the job beyond the class content of his or her time? than were administrators and mentors. participants responded on a likert-type scale, organized and transformed in excel based on ?agreement? or ?disagreement.? we coded responses of strongly agree/agree coded as ?1? and responses of disagree/strongly disagree as ?0.? we identified the discrepancy between the responses of teacher candidates and the responses of building administrators and mentor teachers. the chi-square results indicated 100% of administrators believed teacher candidates were prepared for the demands beyond the classroom, while 69% of the teacher agreed. the statistical finding was validated by the follow-up survey which indicated that the majority of candidates were surprised by the amount of time they had to put into teaching, including preparation and grading. one candidate indicated spending 70?80 hours per week and two specifically indicated they had to learn to balance their home life with their professional life ?while still giving ample time to both.? although not statistically significant, only 56% of teacher candidates believed they were prepared to collaborate with parents to support student learning; in contrast, 85% of administrators and mentors believed teacher candidates were prepared to collaborate with parents. skills to work in partnership with parents is an area that should be incorporated into the preparation program for teacher candidates. with 29 responses to the question ?i have found the process of teacher candidates serving as a teacher of records as an effective practice,? 28 respondents answered ?yes.? in response to the question ?was a hard worker who never gave up,? all respondents indicated agreement. conclusions despite limited research on the topic of using a teacher candidate as a teacher of record, evidence does exist showing the teacher shortage is real. this study is important because many rural school districts in the northwest region of the state are experiencing significant teacher shortage. the state?s substitute certification requirements align well to the teacher candidate as the teacher of record practice. as a result, a growing number of regional rural school districts are using teacher candidates as the teacher of record to address the educator shortage. this study has several implications, including the need for further research regarding the practice of the teacher candidate as the teacher of record. the three most significant takeaways from this study are: 1) the tcs as tors had habits of thinking, dispositional tendencies, contributing to their success, 2) the tcs were, 2) the tcs were adequately prepared by the university, and 3) the tcs as tors had strong support by both the university and the school personnel. according to hammerness et. al (2005), student dispositions or habits of thinking a teacher candidate brings to the learning also is a factor in teacher candidate learning. teacher candidates learn, practice, and reflect throughout their university experiences and during their experiences as student teachers and as teachers. truly, successful teacher candidates as teachers of record bring grit to the position with an ?approach that achievement is a marathon: his or her advantage is stamina? (duckworth et al., 2007). the researchers determined an important part of the tc as the tor?s success is because the tc was coachable and was a hard worker. specifically, the survey data reflected a strong belief by the mentor teacher and the administrator the tc as tor had personal ?grit?. another important finding is the belief that the 49 rich, smith & alexander| teacher candidates as the teacher of record university adequately prepared teacher candidates to serve as the teacher of record. the concept that supports this work is one where learning communities in university classrooms, in field experiences, and in student teaching allow teacher candidates to construct a vision of good practice that is not stage dependent (conway & clark, 2003; grossman, 1992; hammerness et al.,2005). a structure of fluid learning exercising the teacher candidate?s understanding of content, pedagogy, the students whom they are teaching, as well as the contexts of the community where they teach, the ability to practice effective instructional practices as well as tools of the trade. all three qualitative data sources collected by the researchers indicated the mentors and the administrators perceived the tcs as the tors were well prepared by the university for the p-12 classroom. finally, the perceptions that mentor teachers, university supervisors, and school administrators provided strong support to the teacher candidates as the teacher of record helped to ensure overall success of the teacher candidate. it is important not to underestimate the importance of systemic support for the tc. grossman (1992) argues new teachers have the potential to make great strides toward expertise even as they are novices with the right kind of support. mentors who connect with the novice teachers by building strong relationships with them support the learning of the teacher candidates helping them to reflect on practices they observe and they themselves implement. the critical support can come from various sources ?supervisors, teacher candidate education instructors, cooperating teachers, other veteran teachers, and even fellow candidates? (darling-hammond et al., 2005). the researchers found that not only did the mentors, university supervisors, and administrators strongly support the tcs as tors, but the tcs were supported by other professionals in the building as well. some recommendations for future discussions include: 1. does having a teacher candidate as the teacher of record have an effect on student learning? 2. what specific kinds of support do teacher candidates serving as teachers of record need as compared to traditional beginning teachers? 3. what are the perceptions of other stakeholders like parents, patrons, and colleague teachers of the practice? 4. educator preparation programs, as the teacher shortage continues, should continue to collect data regarding perceptions of the effectiveness, test score data of students in the classes, and retention data for those who served as teacher of record while student teaching. 50 rich, smith & alexander| teacher candidates as the teacher of record references aacte. 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(2019). ?reality shock? of beginning teachers? changes in teacher candidates? emotional exhaustion and constructivist-oriented beliefs. journal of teacher education, 71(3), 292?306. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487119839700 52 https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.74.1.18 https://dese.mo.gov/sites/default/files/ outreachplanjan2020.pdf https://dese.mo.gov/sites/default/files/ outreachplanjan2020.pdf http://ecap.crc.illinois.edu/pubs/katz-dev-stages /index.html http://ecap.crc.illinois.edu/pubs/katz-dev-stages /index.html https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/ what-voters-think-about-teacher-shortage https://learningpolicyinstitute.org/product/ what-voters-think-about-teacher-shortage https://dese.mo.gov/educator-quality/certificati on/checklist-substitute-teachers https://dese.mo.gov/educator-quality/certificati on/checklist-substitute-teachers https://dese.mo.gov/educator-quality/certificati on/checklist-substitute-teachers https://www.nwmissouri.edu/education /mcauliffe.htm https://www.nwmissouri.edu/education /mcauliffe.htm https://dese.mo.gov/educator-quality/certificati on/checklist-substitute-teachers https://dese.mo.gov/educator-quality/certificati on/checklist-substitute-teachers https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/educ ation-k-12/reports/2019/12/03/477311/make- declining-enrollment-teacher-preparation- programs/ https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/educ ation-k-12/reports/2019/12/03/477311/make- declining-enrollment-teacher-preparation- programs/ https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/educ ation-k-12/reports/2019/12/03/477311/make- declining-enrollment-teacher-preparation- programs/ https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/educ ation-k-12/reports/2019/12/03/477311/make- declining-enrollment-teacher-preparation- programs/ https://doi.org/10.1177/0031721717708295 https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487119839700 rich, smith & alexander| teacher candidates as the teacher of record appendix a: teacher of record in it ial int erview quest ions principal/district ? 1. why did you employ a preservice teacher candidate? 2. how did having a teacher candidate as the teacher of record affect student academic achievement (map, eoc, etc.)? 3. in what ways is the teacher candidate as the teacher of record positive for the district of employment? 4. in what ways is the teacher candidate as the teacher of record negative for the district of employment? 5. how does the partnership reshape the culminating field experience from the district / university perspective? 6. anything you want us to know? appendix b: survey quest ions teacher candidates as teachers of record survey you are being asked to participate in a research study. this research is being conducted to investigate the experiences of district administration, mentor teachers, and teacher candidate who are serving or have served as the teacher of record regarding the preparation of the teacher candidates to serve as teachers of record and the support needed and/or provided by the university and the district. the effect of these experiences of the teacher candidate as a teacher of record will be collected from the district administration and teacher candidates who are or have served as teachers of record via questionnaires and follow-up phone interviews of randomly selected teacher candidates, mentor teachers, and administrators. when you are invited to participate in research, you have the right to be informed about the study procedures so that you can decide whether you want to consent to participation. this form may contain words that you do not know. please ask the researcher to explain any words or information that you do not understand. you have the right to know what you will be asked to do so that you can decide whether or not to be in the study. your participation is voluntary. you do not have to be in the study if you do not want to. you may refuse to be in the study and nothing will happen. if you do not want to continue to be in the study, you may stop at any time without penalty or loss of benefits to which you are otherwise entitled. why is this study being done? the purpose of this research is to investigate to investigate the experiences of district administration, mentor teachers, and teachers who are or have served as the teacher of record regarding the preparation of the teacher candidates to serve as teachers of record and the support needed and/or provided by the university and the district. in addition, participants will be asked if they view the practice of placing a teacher 53 rich, smith & alexander| teacher candidates as the teacher of record candidate as the teacher of record an effective practice. the results of this survey will inform practice at the university in the assistance of partner school districts in employing teacher candidate as teachers of record. how many people will be in the study? about 75 people will take part in this study of teacher candidates who are or have served as a teacher of record. within the placement area of the university since 2016. what am i being asked to do? you will be asked to participate in a survey and perhaps a follow-up interview lasting no more than 10-15 minutes. how long will i be in the study? this study will take nine months approximately to complete. you can stop participating at any time without penalty. what are the benefits of being in the study? since this is a voluntary study, there is no direct benefit to you; however, the results of the study may shed light on the practice of placing teacher candidates as the teacher of record for the districts, educator preparation programs, and for the teacher candidates themselves. what are the risks of being in the study? there is no risk involved in this study except your valuable time. participation does not involve any experimental procedures. what are the costs of being in the study? there is no cost to you. the information provided by you will remain confidential. nobody except the principal investigators will have access to it. your name and identity will also not be disclosed at any time. information produced by this study will be stored in the investigator?s file and identified by a code number only. the code key connecting your name to specific information about you will be kept in a separate, secure location. the information contained in your records may not be given to anyone unaffiliated with the study in a form that could identify you without your written consent, except as required by law. to ensure subject confidentiality, all data collected will be kept in a locked file and accessible only by the co-investigators. electronic files will be password protected. will i be compensated for participating in the study? you will receive no payment for taking part in this study. what are my rights as a participant? participation in this study is voluntary. you do not have to participate in this study. you will also be informed of any new information discovered during the course of this study that might influence your health, welfare, or willingness to be in this study. confidentiality whom do i call if i have questions or problems? if you have any questions regarding your rights as a participant in this research and/or concerns about the study, or if you feel under any pressure to enroll or to continue to participate in this study, you may contact the northwest missouri state university institutional review board (which is a group of people who review the research studies to protect participants? rights) at irbnwms@nwmissouri.edu or (660.562.1196). you may ask more questions about the study at any time. for questions about the study, contact linda gray smith (641-234-2715) or at lsmith@nwmissouri.edu. a copy of this informed consent form will be given to you before you participate in the research. authorization i have read and understood this consent form, and i volunteer to participate in this research study. i understand that i will receive a copy of this form. i voluntarily choose to participate, but i understand that my consent does not take away any legal rights in the case of negligence or another legal fault of anyone who is involved in this study. i further understand that nothing in this consent 54 rich, smith & alexander| teacher candidates as the teacher of record form is intended to replace any applicable federal, state, or local laws. survey 1. what was your role in the teacher candidates as teachers of record process? -i was the teacher of record -i was the administrator -i was the mentor teacher 2. what was the teacher candidate?s teaching responsibility (choose all that apply): -elementary -middle school (grade 5-8) -high school (grades 9-2) -sped -k-12 3. would you consider your placement? -rural -suburban -urban 4. please indicate your agreement level with the following statements. strongly agree agree disagree strongly disagree not observed was supported by their mentor teacher was supported by a building level administrator/administration was supported by other professionals besides the mentor teacher or building level administrator/administration was prepared to engage students in his or her content was prepared to collaborate with colleagues to support student learning was prepared by a professional education program that effectively prepared them to serve as teacher of record was prepared to collaborate with parents to support student learning was prepared for the demands of the job beyond the class content on his or her time was prepared to implement instruction that resulted in high-level student learning in the classroom. found the community supportive of them serving as the teacher of record was coachable was a hard worker who never gave up 5. i have found the process of teacher candidates serving as a teacher of record as an effective practice yes no 6. anything else you would like to share regarding the experiences of the teacher candidate serving as the teacher of record? 55 rich (2020) proof print page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 page 9 page 10 page 11 page 12 page 13 page 14 page 15 herrera (2018) proof 2.pdf educational renaissance vol. 7 (2018) voices of resist ance: int erdisciplinary approaches t o chican@ children's l i t erat ure luz yadira her rera, phd. california state university, fresno email: lherrera@csufresno.edu voices of resistance: interdisciplinary approaches to chican@ children's literature by laura alamillo, larissa m. mercado-lópez, and cristina herrera (eds.) $76.00, hardback (isbn: 978-1475834031) $38.00, paperback (isbn: 978-1475834048) $36.00, ebook (isbn: (978-1475834055) book review voices of resistance: interdisciplinary approaches to chican@ children's literature gathers a wide range of experts from diverse academic fields in the analysis of chicanx children?s and young adult (ya) literature. the editors make the case for the urgency of using multicultural children?s literature as a means for empowerment and social justice. the book provides a framework that is useful to multiple audiences?from caregivers, teachers, school leaders, community members, to teacher educators, and beyond. the book highlights the chicanx history of resistance situated in the various us socio-political contexts that have negatively impacted people of color since the country?s formation. the book reminds readers of the important role that literature has on the lives of children, and its potential to either affirm an asset-based perspective connected to their lives, the banning of mexican-american studies and censorship of chican@-authored books in arizona were part of a succession of anti-mexican and anti-chican@ policies that were enacted across the state and in the education system. the counterstories offered through these classes and literature not only created a sense of cultural inclusion, but ignited a political and activist consciousness among the mostly chican@ youth, and reinvigorated conversations among educators about the teaching of race, ethnicity, and culture in the classroom, particularly through youth literature. while most work on youth literature has emphasized ?multicultural? literature as a means of being inclusive, voices of resistance: interdisciplinary approaches to chican@ children?s literature recognizes that our present moment--one that is rife with continued anti-mexican sentiment but that has given rise to our first chicano national poet laureate--demands a more focused study of children?s and young adult literature by and about chican@s. this collection re-examines how we view multicultural and diversity literature and recognize literature that invites social transformation. using multiand interdisciplinary perspectives to critically examine a wide range of chican@ children?s pictures book and young adult novels, this collection reaffirms chicano@ children?s literature as a means to achieve equity and social change. (rowman & littlefield, 2018) mailto:jonidegner@gmail.com https://rowman.com/isbn/9781475834048/voices-of-resistance-interdisciplinary-approaches-to-chican@-children's-literature# https://rowman.com/isbn/9781475834048/voices-of-resistance-interdisciplinary-approaches-to-chican@-children's-literature# https://rowman.com/isbn/9781475834048/voices-of-resistance-interdisciplinary-approaches-to-chican@-children's-literature# https://rowman.com/isbn/9781475834048/voices-of-resistance-interdisciplinary-approaches-to-chican@-children's-literature# herrera| voices of resistance cultural identities, gender constructions, and home language practices of chicanx children and youth or to perpetuate a harmful deficit view. furthermore, the book reminds readers that powerful children?s and ya literature can help raise chicanx children?s consciousness, even from a young age, towards sustaining self-love in the uplifting of chicanx identity, culture, and linguistic practices schools. the book includes a variety of authors from different fields, exploring a collection of children?s books and ya literature along with prevalent chicanx scholarship and theory. it is a celebration of the timeless and critical contributions of thinkers such as gloria anzaldúa and cherríe moraga, and it articulates how their theories prevail in the lived experiences of chicanxs. these theories are used for framing the analysis of chicanx children?s literature. the book is divided into three sections, each given a theme that is further explored and delved into by the chapters that follow. the first section analyzes manifestations of chicanx identity and consciousness, highlighting the complexity of this effort given the diversity in the chicanx experience. the second section focuses on characters in select children?s and ya literature, specifically examining their journeys in constructing their gender identities and negotiating their sexuality. finally, the third section examines culturally and linguistically sustaining pedagogies through the use of children?s literature. the authors in this section explore the fluid gender identities as well as language practices in children?s book that can support its young readers? own sense of self and their linguistic practices. this includes translanguaging, in which speakers draw from a variety of features available in their linguistic repertoires, such as those from spanish and english. for instance, in the chapter, ?translanguaging con mi abuela: chican@ children?s literature as a means to elevate language practices in our homes,? author laura alamillo analyses prominent children?s books, such as grandma and me at the flea by juan felipe herrera and mango, abuela and me by meg medina, and illustrates how grandmothers are often important characters in chicanx children?s stories. alamillo highlights their roles in the negotiation of language practices with their grandchildren. the author argues that language practices that includes translanguaging is common in chicanx families and should also be reflected in the language practices that are honored in schools. one strength of this book is its interdisciplinary undertaking, asserting the importance of reflecting on and examining literature through various lenses. the authors included in the text represent a variety of fields, including education, chicanx and latin american studies, women?s studies, film and visual studies, english, as well as others. the lens represented in the book reflects how these often intersect. the book uses children's and young adult literature as a means for empowerment and identity formation and affirmation, while making the various stakeholders in children's lives?from caregivers to teachers and community members?critically aware of their roles and responsibilit ies. these two elements in the book prompt readers to recognize the heterogeneity that exists within the chicanx population and a variety of experiences, social-economic statuses, sexual orientations, gender identities, family structures and relationships, and cultural and linguistic practices. for instance, one of the books that the authors use in their analysis is maya christina gonzalez?s call me tree/llámame àrbol. the text features a variety of gender fluid characters that are rarely represented elsewhere in children?s literature. in addition, cristina herrera engages readers in an analysis of belinda acosta?s ya book, damas, dramas, and ana ruiz, and shows how two chicanas, a mother and daughter, reinvent themselves as their family structure shifts and continuously challenge gender norms. the text also recognizes that schooling is a powerful establishment in the formation of the self and ways of being; a significant space through which a multitude of (often opposing) perspectives 37 herrera| voices of resistance can be upheld or challenged, though not always in a linear way, and thus can be in perpetual state of negotiation. the book is a call to action. the editors extend an important reminder for readers to collaborate in the effort towards sustaining chicanx youth?s ways of being. according to the national center for education statistics (2015), one in three school-aged children will be latinx by 2023, and in states such as california, new mexico and texas, more than half of the children already are of latinx descent (as cited in gándara, 2017, p. 4). this is a significant increase from the current number of one in four, or 25 percent, of children in k-12 schools in the us that the authors cite. the authors also remind us that the majority of the latinx population is chicanx or of mexican descent. consequently, it is everyone?s responsibility to not only recognize the vast and rich diversity in community, experiences, cultural and gender identities, language practices, and other ways of being that exist within the latinx population, but also the need for these to be normalized. a recommendation for the text is to include an expanded bibliography or list of additional books and resources. this would be a valuable tool for educators who might be looking for additional resources. an additional recommendation for the editors is to explore a wider variety of books and resources, though such an undertaking would reasonably require at least an additional volume to this text. for instance, authors in different chapters examine the same two books: juan felipe herrera?s downtown boy, and maya christina gonzalez?s call me tree/llámame àrbol. each chapter examines the books through a different lens, but readers may be interested in additional book titles and authors. the book asserts the critical need and importance for more authors and editors, such as alamillo, mercado-lópez, and herrera, whose work values and affirms the experiences of young people of color. voices of resistance amplifies the multifaceted and complex stories of chicanxs as they are represented in the literature. that aspect alone makes this book an important contribution for more than just researchers and teachers. it is a valuable text for anyone that seeks to better understand the dynamic identities and experiences of chicanxs and latinx people. references acosta, b. (2009). damas, dramas, and ana ruiz. new york: grand central publishing. alamillo, l., mercado-lopez, l. m., & herrera, c. (2017). voices of resistance: interdisciplinary approaches to chican@ children's literature. new york, ny: rowman & littlefield. gándara, p. (2017). the potential and promise of latino students. american educator, 41(1), 4-11. gonzález, m.c. (2014). call me tree/llámame árbol. new york, ny: children?s books press. herrera, j. p. (2005). downtown boy. new york, ny: scholastic press. medina, m. (2015). mango, abuela and me. somerville, ma: candlewick press. rowman & littlefield. (2018). voices of resistance. retreived from https://rowman.com/isbn/9781475 834055/voices-of-resistance-interdisciplinary-appr oaches-to-chican@-children's-literature# 38 https://rowman.com/isbn/9781475 834055/voices-of-resistance-interdisciplinary-appr oaches-to-chican@-children's-literature# https://rowman.com/isbn/9781475 834055/voices-of-resistance-interdisciplinary-appr oaches-to-chican@-children's-literature# https://rowman.com/isbn/9781475 834055/voices-of-resistance-interdisciplinary-appr oaches-to-chican@-children's-literature# walls (2017) proof ready final w/ author edits.pdf educational renaissance vol. 6 (2017) teacher candidat e percept ions of urban field exper iences linda gray sm it h, phd, nor t hwest missour i st at e universit y email: lsmith@nwmissouri.edu shant el farnan , edd, nor t hwest missour i st at e universit y email: sfarnan@nwmissouri.edu vict or ia seeger , phd, nor t hwest missour i st at e universit y email: vseeger@nwmissouri.edu tim ot hy jason wall , edd, nor t hwest missour i st at e universit y email: timwall@nwmissouri.edu david kiene, edd, nor t hwest missour i st at e universit y email: dkiene@nwmissouri.edu abst ract this paper examines the impact of diverse clinical field experiences on rural teacher candidates? perceptions of their ability to effectively teach urban, diverse students. the literature framework supporting the study builds on nieto?s description of socially-just pedagogy and responsive approaches to diversity while meeting national education program standards despite declining resources. researchers gauged candidates? perceptions of the impact of working with students from race, language and class backgrounds different from their own. findings revealed four significant impacts: increasing capacity to use culturally-relevant practice, boosting ability to differentiate for urban learners? diverse needs, understanding the importance of strong relationships, and raising candidate self-efficacy and desire to teach in diverse schools. research article int roduct ion upon entering an urban school setting, a teacher derisively stated, ?oh, you?ve brought your students here to look at the poor kids.? while taken aback by the statement, most brief teacher candidate experiences in urban settings are just that; nothing more than a cruise through the halls to peer into classrooms full of faces looking very different than the candidates? themselves. educator preparation programs (epp) must shift candidates? mindsets from ?saving the world? (nieto, 2006, p. 1) to focus on understanding and supporting school cultures focused on meeting students? needs through social justice. teacher candidates at a rural, public midwestern university in the united states, 110 miles from an urban area, have limited experiences with learners from racially and economically diverse backgrounds. there are scant proximate opportunities to attend, observe, or teach in ethnically, culturally diverse schools with concentrated poverty. district leaders desire to hire new teachers who are comfortable, competent, and effectively prepared to teach students from marginalized, under-represented mailto:lsmith@nwmissouri.edu mailto:sfarnan@nwmissouri.edu mailto:vseeger@nwmissouri.edu mailto:timwall@nwmissouri.edu mailto:dkiene@nwmissouri.edu smith, farnan, seeger, wall & kiene | teacher candidates perceptions of urban field experiences minority populations reflective of concentrated poverty and diversity. this study investigates the impact of diverse field experiences on the comfort level and awareness of bias of teacher candidates, and the use of culturally responsive instructional practices (see appendix a). collaboration between urban school districts and epp is necessary to provide the opportunity for candidates to be prepared to thrive in urban classrooms. recognizing this imperative, the council for the accreditation of educator preparation (caep, 2016) notes, ?diversity must be a pervasive characteristic of any quality program.? teacher candidates must become skilled at what nieto referred to as, ?becoming a learner of their students? realities? (nieto, 2006, p. 184). strong epp support candidates? experiences in urban settings by encouraging the use of students? life experiences to tailor lessons making connections between the students? contexts and the content. this research article chronicles teacher candidate perceptions of attending a rurally-based preparation program to participate in instruction and observation at diverse, urban schools. the researchers provide analysis of the meaning of diverse clinical experiences using mixed methods to determine the impact of diverse experiences on candidate perceptions. in reviewing the hiring location data at a small midwestern epp, the majority of graduates were hired in rural or suburban locations. the absence of rich, well-designed, authentic clinical practices in urban schools was evident to the researchers, who sought to investigate the impact of the location of clinical practices and their relationship to the location of job placement for preparation program graduates at the institution studied. in order to diversify the skill set of teacher candidates, and to transform candidates' perceptions about where candidates thought they could or would eventually teach, the epp made a concerted effort to solicit an urban school partner. co-developed extraordinary clinical practices and student teaching placements were viewed by the epp as a win-win; the district would experience quality instruction and the university would expand the minds and comfort zones of candidates by engaging them in thoughtfully-crafted, truly diverse clinical experiences. the result was a collaboratively-developed series of experiences providing rurally-based teacher candidates with teaching experiences in urban schools. the effectiveness of the clinical experiences on teacher candidate perceptions of working with culturally-diverse learners needed to be investigated to determine efficacy of the transition from being a student teacher to becoming a full-time classroom teacher. these results were also needed to inform and transform university instruction within the epp. the data are used to influence leadership decisions to fund transportation to diverse sites during an era of significant decline in state appropriations and decreased revenue. after a review of literature examining standards, accountability, cultural values, racial diversity impact on teaching and learning, positive school cultures, biases of teacher candidates, and impact of epp, the researchers? methodology and methods are presented. results are presented related to teacher candidates? perceptions followed by a discussion of how the epp is impacted by the study. st andards and account abil i t y in educat or preparat ion program s the public education system and its leaders are highly scrutinized (senge, cambron-mccabe, lucas, smith, dutton, & kleiner, 2012). since the publication of a nation at risk (national commission on excellence in education, 1983), parents and policymakers have been inundated with reports suggesting that u.s. schools are failing (senge et al., 2012). legislative changes have 11 smith, farnan, seeger, wall & kiene | teacher candidates perceptions of urban field experiences continued to increase educator standards and accountability to meet the needs of all students (o?shea & o?shea, 1997). epp must meet increasing standards while also meeting the needs of k-12 schools and diverse student populations. quality clinical practice affords candidates the chance to teach learners in great need. federal laws including every student succeeds act (essa, 2015) and individuals with disabilit ies education act (idea, 1990) define accountability as how well schools meet students? diverse needs. educational reforms have increased in recent years (goldstein, warde, & rody, 2013). reform focuses on closing economic and other gaps while meeting needs of all children (darling-hammond & snyder, 2015; vannest, temple-harvey, & mason, 2009). yet students from racially marginalized, under-represented minority groups lag behind (skrla, scheurich, garcia, & nolly, 2014). as epp become more aware of the needs of k-12 students, candidates must be prepared to meet those needs. state and federal standards require epp to provide candidates with authentic experiences which create a positive impact on learning for students. clinical experiences are essential in the local context. missouri standards for the preparation of educators (state department of elementary and secondary education, 2013), and specifically standard 3, require that ?field and clinical experiences, offered in collaboration with pk-12 schools, support the development of educators? (p. 4). to meet standards while preparing candidates effectively, candidates must have scaffolded opportunities to practice (izmirli & yurdakul, 2014) in early, middle, and late-program experiences. those experiences must be in diverse k-12 settings while placing social justice front and center (nieto, 2000). a strong sense of social justice can contribute to teacher candidates implementing culturally relevant pedagogy. cult urally responsive teaching pract ices nieto, rivera, quinones, and irizarry (2012) discuss three essential steps to improve schools by implementing a responsive approach to racial and ethnic diversity. epp demonstrate cultural values by 1) building candidates' understanding of how racial diversity impacts teaching and learning, 2) using culturally relevant and responsive pedagogies, and 3) building positive school culture emphasizing capacity-building beliefs that all students can learn (nieto et al., 2012). acknowledgement of an existing widespread problem-of-practice in training culturally responsive teachers resulted in an educational renaissance centered around purposeful collaboration among faculty. ayers (2004) describes teachers who look past ?deficits? within students, and, instead, view their ?assets and capacities, strengths and abilit ies? in order to ?stand with, not above, our students? (p. 35). ayers (2004) calls this process being students of our students. teacher candidates will best learn about students of different races, ethnicities, and cultures by ?learning about the social, cultural, and political circumstances of real students in real schools? (nieto & bode, 2012, p. 30). when candidates have experiences in ?real? schools, they can make decisions about changing what is being done in classrooms and influencing the educational system at large (emdin, 2016). they learn tough lessons about schools and students including how schools must focus on learning that occurs within classroom walls because there is less opportunity to impact students? lives outside of school (emdin, 2016; nieto & bode, 2012), and how ?race and ethnicity have a strong link to poverty? (nieto & bode, 2012, p. 29). these lessons are critical because, while the numbers of students from diverse racial, linguistic, and socio-economic status continue to rise, changing the faces of american classrooms, u.s. teachers are 12 smith, farnan, seeger, wall & kiene | teacher candidates perceptions of urban field experiences predominantly white (nieto & bode, 2012) and middle class. nieto and bode (2012) define social justice as a philosophical belief along with personal actions centered around how individuals are treated with ?fairness, respect, dignity, and generosity? (p. 12). cruise-by experiences are not clinical; they do not change candidate mindsets. epp must build upon the cultural experiences and language talents described by nieto and bode (2012) while emphasizing choices teachers make. collaborative field experiences between universities and k-12 schools within urban settings provide important lessons. culturally responsive teaching (crt) is essential for the success of students in diverse schools and candidates must be prepared to teach using crt (gay, 2002; hawley & nieto, 2010). field work and reflective practice are vital to facilitating conversations which change candidates' perspectives on teaching in diverse schools. crt uses the community in which the students live as the basis for learning. crt requires impactful relationships with students and families (boykin & noguera, 2011; nieto, 2003). students in learning environments where their own community is understood and valued as a learning opportunity are more engaged in learning (burns, keyes, & kusimo, 2005; nieto 2012). instruction is not based on a deficit model but builds on existing relationships and validates extant knowledge. biases of teacher candidat es teacher candidates with very litt le experience with diverse students need support to effectively recognize their own biases. johnson (2006) described the ?the luxury of obliviousness (p. 22)?, like blind spots which create mindbugs (banaji & greenwald, 2013). epp must help candidates identify mindbugs so they do not creep into how students and families are perceived which can impair effective communication occurring (nieto, 2006). teacher candidates learning their own biases and questioning beliefs they hold is important in teaching students of color (hawley & nieto, 2010). lower expectations and bias, particularly toward poor and minority students, can lead to expanding achievement gaps (noguera, pierce, & ahramrd, 2016). sociopolit ical cont ext of educat ion leaders at a rural university prepare candidates for increasingly diverse classrooms (gay, 2000; kritzer & ziebarth-bovill, 2012; yeo, 1999), but struggle to find resources to support travel to diverse schools, though important to candidate development to reach all learners. while the literature suggests that teachers impact students in classrooms (nieto, 2006), race and/or ethnicity may also impact how some students respond to learning opportunities. teacher success in urban schools was not related to licensure examination score or gpa according to buddin and zamorro (2009). experience teaching in urban schools was the most significant determinant of success. met hodology and met hods par t icipant s research participants in this study were teacher candidates enrolled in a beginning practicum-observation seminar, a methods class for special education, and an elementary/middle school literacy methods course during the spring 2017 academic term. candidates comprised a purposeful sample, many of whom were preparing for student teaching the subsequent semester. prior to the field experiences, 64 candidates participated in the pre-survey. following the field experiences at diverse schools, 35 candidates participated in the post-surveys. of the participants, 83% were female and 96% percent were white, three students were african-american, and one was pacific islander/asian; representative 13 smith, farnan, seeger, wall & kiene | teacher candidates perceptions of urban field experiences of the racial and gender demographic of the epp. over half the candidates came into the study with two or more experiences in diverse settings, almost 30% had one experience, and 12% had no prior diverse school experiences. candidates participated in two course-dependent experiences at either elementary or high school level settings. field experiences were designed to introduce candidates to environments with different racial, linguistic, and class makeup from their schools of origin or prior field experiences. clinical experiences were designed to provide a more diverse experience from candidates? previous field experiences. coursework provided pedagogy, theory, and structured interaction with diverse students. clinical experiences were organized to effectively teach students from diverse racial or ethnic backgrounds, many with limited english skills, and high poverty status. through methods and practicum coursework, candidates had access to appropriate planning techniques, contextual supports, and engagement in support of culturally-responsive teaching practices. research design and met hodology this was mixed-methods inquiry (creswell & plano clark, 2011). both qualitative and quantitative methods were used to analyze data from preand postsurveys of teacher candidate perceptions. data triangulation occurred using document analysis, focus groups and survey data until saturation occurred (fusch & ness, 2015). data were analyzed through candidate reflections post-experience, and from focus groups conducted three to six weeks after. all survey questions were identical. additional questions were asked during focus group sessions with the participants: discuss what kinds of changes occurred for you as a result of the experience. what would assist you in being better prepared for lesson planning for diverse groups of students? how can we better prepare teacher candidates for working with students who have limited english language skills? diversity includes culture, religion, gender, socio-economic status, and others.  what would assist you in being prepared for working with students in all areas of diversity? participants indicated they had been changed as a result of the collaboration experiences in diverse school settings. in addition, the teacher candidates responded on reflection sheets to the following prompts: ?what did you learn about teaching and learning in a diverse school setting today?? and ?what did you learn about your response to students from diverse populations?? the researchers used chi square to detect significant differences in expected outcomes compared to actually-observed results. surveys used a four-point likert scale. responses were organized and transformed in excel based on ?agreement? or ?disagreement?. responses of strongly agree/agree coded as ?1?. responses of disagree/strongly disagree coded as ?0?. researchers identified that the most important outcome would be if a teacher candidate changed item response from disagreement to agreement (or vice versa) after the clinical experience. surveys the preand postsurveys gauged how field experiences impacted candidates' perceptions of teaching diverse students in diverse schools (appendix b). the researchers attempted to identify changes in preand postperceptions from candidates after observations and interactions with diverse learners. the survey consisted of 16 items. items were developed by 14 smith, farnan, seeger, wall & kiene | teacher candidates perceptions of urban field experiences synthesizing tacit knowledge from one researcher who previously served as a district administrator with several similar surveys from the literature and articles on candidates' perceptions (causey, thomas, & armento, 1999; hairston, 2011; marxen, & rudney, 1999; northwest missouri state university, 2007). table 1 data sources narrative responses from preand postsurveys were analyzed using axial coding. open-ended questions were coded for themes and sub-themes. reflection sheets completed after field experiences were analyzed thematically. focus groups convened four times to probe candidates' perceptions. additionally, six novice teachers hired by the district responded to an email survey to discover the impact of clinical experiences on decisions to accept offered teaching positions in the district. researchers worked independently while open coding. researchers notated important phrases and discovered emergent themes. included terms served as foundational data to develop cover terms in data categories (spradley, 1980). each researcher?s themes/notations were compared for consistency and ranked by prominence. result s researchers discovered three significant candidate perception changes when analyzing preand post results. the results indicated significant differences in candidates' agreement in self-perception changes in efficacy and beliefs about diversity. specifically, data analysis revealed candidates were: 1) more likely to use curricular materials and instructional practices fostering diversity, 2) more aware of (k-12) students? experiences and cultural backgrounds, and 3) noted diverse schools were ?very different? than those they attended. chi square analysis table 2 chi square showing a significant difference from expected outcome. note. * indicates statistically significant at the 0.05 level. from a practical perspective, this experience mattered. it expanded candidates' experience in diverse settings and changed their perceptions of students, schools, and their own efficacy to effectively instruct and reach students from diverse backgrounds. findings indicate candidates were more likely to use student experiences and backgrounds when planning for instruction after having a diverse clinical experience. this indicated data source description pre-experience survey the pre-experience survey consisted of 16 questions using a scale for responses. the survey included three open-ended questions requiring narrative responses. post-experience survey the post-experience survey asked identical questions as the pre-experience survey. post experience reflections post-experience reflections required narrative responses by the candidates. e-mail survey an email survey was used with six first and second year teachers working in the district where the field experiences occurred. post experience focus groups four focus groups were conducted over the course of a week on different days/times. response pearson chi-square degrees of freedom p-value preand post * schools in a diverse setting are very different than the one i attended. 4.466 1 .035* preand post * i am aware of the students? experiences and cultural backgrounds at the school where the field experience will occur. 4.457 1 .035* preand post * i can use curricular materials and instructional practices that foster diversity. 4.743a 1 .029* 15 smith, farnan, seeger, wall & kiene | teacher candidates perceptions of urban field experiences candidates understood the need to know the students and build classroom community. candidates revealed diverse schools are indeed different than schools attended by candidates when they were pk-12 students. despite differences, and perhaps because of them, candidates believed they could effectively plan for and reach diverse learners? needs. in this finding, there is overlap with qualitative results. specifically, forming strong, positive cross-cultural relationships are essential for success in teaching diverse learners. the quantitative results indicate after a diverse clinical experience, candidates were more likely to differentiate instruction to benefit diverse learners. three themes extracted from qualitative data in teacher candidates? reflections and post-survey responses included: 1) relationships built between teachers and students impact teaching and learning; 2) differentiation is vital in diverse settings, and, 3) diversity, when acknowledged, enriches school culture. in addition, the reflections provided insight into ways the epp can improve candidates' experiences to be prepared for reaching diverse learners. table 3 teacher candidates? perceptions by theme what about relat ionship-building is im por t ant ? i learned, more than anything, relationships matter. a routinely-surfacing theme from candidates' responses to open-ended questions was that developing relationships with students was paramount. candidates recognized teachers in diverse settings strived to know their students, families, and communities. students wanted to attend school and often it became a safe place. school met educational needs while serving as a haven where students were fed and discussed their lives with teachers and counselors. candidates recognized that relationships required truly knowing the pk-12 students: ?...(being) informed on their lives and experiences so they [school setting and teachers] are able to provide the necessary assistance.? candidates acknowledged that respect must be earned, and it is difficult for students to learn when respect for teachers is missing. candidates demonstrated understanding that respect includes sensitivity to students? out-of-school experiences. when candidates acknowledge such experiences, they become keys to learning how to interact with students, helping to build respect in the classroom. ?it?s? all about the relationships you build with your students. the students won?t learn if they don?t respect who they are learning from.? an important part of the teacher?s job was building relationships: ?...it is the teacher?s responsibility to create the relationships? in order to help students learn. candidates indicated that teachers must adapt to students? needs, preferences, and interests to build a community. this idea was reflected in statements including, ?there are always changes going on for the good of the students,? which demonstrates candidates' recognition of the work the teachers and administrators do to provide students theme subtheme relationships need to respect all students and where they come from building relationships assists teachers in meeting all learner needs specifically, addressing learning styles relationships (or lack of them) impact other classroom factors differentiation scaffolding accommodating and modifying using a variety of strategies adapting making instructional changes diversity backgrounds cultural differences 16 smith, farnan, seeger, wall & kiene | teacher candidates perceptions of urban field experiences opportunities. ?these kids just want to be loved and cared for and that?s what this school is doing for them.? candidates acknowledged that students came from challenging economic situations; moreover, candidates learned economics are less important than human rights as a candidate noted: some [students] ?? may not be heard at home,? and noted many students have challenges that could impact learning. building relationships was a critical factor occurring within the walls of school. relationship-building impacts engagement, management, learning expectations, participation, and student motivation. effective practices targeting classroom management, for example, were perceived as compromised if a teacher was unable to build a successful relationship. candidates recognized risk-taking behaviors (like participation) are unlikely when teachers don?t know students; effective teachers ?...make students feel comfortable enough to make mistakes and take risks? in order to learn. a candidate noted, ?students thrive on relationships;? while another observed fewer ?disciplinary issues when they feel loved, respected, and important.? finally, candidates recognized relationships take time to build and lamented the diverse clinical experiences, although impactful, were too brief. upon reflection, one candidate considered student learning needs unmet since the candidate was unable to relate ?to them like we should.? another candidate summarized: ?i need to learn more about diverse populations in order to better connect with these students.? what did you learn about t eaching and learning in a diverse school set t ing t oday? i learned that students learn things differently, so you need to differentiate the instruction to meet all the students? needs. candidate responses produced differentiation as a theme. although various terminology was utilized to describe differentiation for students, this theme saturated responses. one candidate reflected, ?i learned that the way you approach one student is going to be different from the other. i also learned that you have no idea of the student?s ability until you ask and seek answers.? this finding influences epp leaders to support additional, deeper clinical experiences. statements about meeting students? needs were broad, ranging from, ?i learned that you have to be ready to fix your lesson plan on the spot, in order to accommodate to your students that you have? to more generalized statements about needing additional pedagogy to meet students? needs. candidates' responses addressed changes including lesson accommodation, modification, or adaptation to reach all learners. candidates described individualized instruction: ?you need to meet their needs; it is your responsibility? and ?you will need to change instruction.? a recurring comment was, ?it?s about meeting students? needs.? open-ended responses to post-survey results shed light on candidates' reflections. many addressed diversity broadly, promoting differentiation as needed: ?i learned that not all students are the same and they all learn in different ways,? and ?i learned that every student will react differently.? recognition of diverse learner needs surfaced: ?i learned that there are more diverse learners, so you have to make sure you are meeting the needs of each student.? the theme of differentiation was revealed often, and in surveys, focus groups, and reflections. how do t eacher candidat e biases af fect st udent learning? today i learned that although i may have personal biases, it is easy to set these aside in the 17 smith, farnan, seeger, wall & kiene | teacher candidates perceptions of urban field experiences classroom and help these students learn. it can be challenging to identify our personal biases and then even more challenging to set them aside. unconscious biases creep into our everyday interactions. this candidate recognizes the biases they have but perhaps has not yet fully developed an understanding of the complexities of the biases. field experiences provide discovery of candidates' internal biases which can impair relationships. despite good intentions, mindbugs/implicit biases affect work with diverse students (banaji & greenwald, 2013). candidates demonstrated reflection on their biases: ?i want to help all students regardless of race or religion grow and learn new things, and i hope to serve as a role model to them.? a candidate wrote about checking bias at the door: ?i won?t say i didn?t have any misconceptions or stereotypes, but it was easier to question. when i saw a girl who was pregnant, i made assumptions, but i was able to watch myself.? the candidates had good intentions to serve the needs of the students; however, asset-based view of the community and its students may not be fully developed. how does diversit y benef it st udent s, classroom s, and schools? i now want to work with students from diverse populations. candidates indicated increasing desire to promote diversity, as it enriches school culture. a candidate noted, ?diverse background can affect a child?s learning, but with the right teachers, structure, procedures, etc. it [sic] doesn?t make a difference.? another stated, ?it?s up to us to reach all students. i have learned that listening to diverse students, i can learn from them. great things are possible...? a candidate provided synthesis: ?teaching in a diverse school setting is one of the most challenging things you may ever do in your life, but it is also the most rewarding.? diverse clinical experiences were designed to provide candidates with rich experiences. many originate from rural areas with limited diversity, and for those the urban clinical learning provided a transformational experience. some candidates were originally apprehensive about diverse experiences: ?i was nervous but realized there was nothing to be nervous about. they are just like us, just in a different school setting?. another candidate echoed: i had no experiences teaching in an urban setting, so i was a litt le apprehensive. what i realized though, is that kids are kids no matter where they live or their background. they need love, a listening ear, and education. a rural candidate recognized, ?... it is exciting to see students that are different (than i am) but still have that same passion for learning?. this transformational experience holds implications for epp leaders and faculty. discussion how did t he st udy inform epp program m ing and funding issues relat ed t o st andards and accredit at ion? i needed a better plan for how diverse (on different learning levels) my group was. epp strive to meet or exceed the ever-expanding demands of the teaching profession to reach all (ayers, 2004). for the university research site in this study, data gleaned during the study provided impetus for change: 1) ongoing curricular redesign, 2) expanded resources in support of urban clinical experiences, 3) opportunities to hear candidates' voices on diverse settings (ayers, 2004). a curriculum redesign underway for three years included an advisory council with current candidates and recent epp graduates. council voices echoed those of candidates studied. a candidate stated, ?i don?t have background 18 smith, farnan, seeger, wall & kiene | teacher candidates perceptions of urban field experiences knowledge needed to teach in diverse backgrounds.? the program needed more (early and ongoing) experiences in diverse, urban settings and this knowledge heavily influenced the content of redesigned courses. because of this study, the epp will implement more frequent, brief experiences and ongoing embedded field experiences. candidates will begin these experiences as freshmen, and the experiences will exceed epp accreditation requirements (caep, 2016). for leaders of a rurally-located, traditional epp, this study suggests that resources to support clinical experiences are impactfully, wisely spent. data from this study support expansion of diverse experiences because they expand candidates' thinking while improving self-efficacy to reach all learners. what is the impact on university partnerships? one candidate commented: i fell in love with [school] and that completely lead [sic] to my decision to teach not only in this kind of setting and community, but more specifically this school. i have always felt like my hands and heart were needed most where students have to show grit to succeed. the study focused on one unique urban partnership. true partnerships leave both parties on solid footing. trust exists, and from that there is possibility to develop more complex, extended experiences within district, including an extended summer school practicum. the district now expressly seeks university candidates for teaching roles, often a year before graduating. in this study, emailed follow-up interviews were conducted with recent graduates now teaching in the district. their responses demonstrated a powerful impact of diverse clinical experiences for rural candidates in urban schools. this experience is excellent to prepare candidates for student teaching and helps determine where candidates could/should student teach. without exception, when novice teachers were asked what epp experiences contributed to deciding to teach in-district, each wrote that the urban field experiences were the deciding factor: ?these settings aren't for everyone, but it just made me realize how much i wanted to help students in high-poverty areas and how much i loved working with students from all different backgrounds.? as a result of the rich partnership developed, other districts in highly-diverse areas now seek out partnerships with the rurally-located university; a significant transformation in epp culture. discussions are underway to replicate the diverse clinical experiences for freshmen and sophomores. our curriculum redesign requires partnership expansions and augmented placements in diverse settings, with rigorous opportunities for candidates to teach and observe. how are diversit y and collaborat ion addressed in t he fut ure? everyone is different and it?s all about being prepared and flexible. candidate responses about developing strong relationships inform our work. we must increase candidates' knowledge (and efficacy) to work with diverse students and improve our collective impact on relationship-building, even in brief experiences. epp faculty are engaged in reflective, sometimes challenging, discussions about early experiences and the need for deeper, more meaningful engagement with diverse students and partners. we must ensure faculty prepare candidates to teach anywhere. we must support diversity, equity, and inclusion and build experiences to deepen it for candidates, and ourselves. all epp faculty agree that the diverse clinical experiences reflected in this study are critical to preparing candidates well-versed in understanding nuances 19 smith, farnan, seeger, wall & kiene | teacher candidates perceptions of urban field experiences of diversity and how to effectively collaborate to meet student needs in diverse schools. conclusions combining the qualitative and quantitative results of this study, diverse clinical experiences change candidates? beliefs, mirroring findings from nieto (2006), and blankstein & noguera (2016). diverse experiences for candidates positively impacted instructional practices, differentiation, and self-efficacy. this study suggests that a rurally-based epp can collaboratively improve teacher candidate preparation to reach diverse learners, promoting a socially-just challenge to candidates' preconceptions about their ability to differentiate instruction, collaborate, and reach learners. through a partnership with an urban-located district with significant ethnic, racial, and economic diversity, a rural epp developed a reflective practice to support candidates' ability to reach marginalized, underrepresented students while shifting mindsets (through evidence and practice) to know they make a difference for all learners. references ayers, w. 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(1999). the barriers of diversity: multicultural education and rural schools. multicultural education, 7(1), 1?7. retrieved from http://www.caddogap.com 22 https://dese.mo.gov/sites/default/files/mospe2 0-400440orderchanges11-2012.pdf https://dese.mo.gov/sites/default/files/mospe2 0-400440orderchanges11-2012.pdf https://www2.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/esea02/in dex.html https://www2.ed.gov/policy/elsec/leg/esea02/in dex.html http://www.caddogap.com smith, farnan, seeger, wall & kiene | teacher candidates perceptions of urban field experiences appendix a research question is there a difference in teacher candidates? perceptions of comfort level, awareness of their own biases, and the use of culturally responsive instructional practices following field experience(s) in a building of racial diversity and high levels of poverty? appendix b pre-experience survey 1. what is your gender? 2. how would you describe your racial heritage? 3. what is your ethnicity? 4. please indicate how many field experiences that you have had that could be considered racially diverse and high poverty. please rate your agreement with the following statements (strongly agree, agree, disagree, strongly disagree) i have experience in a racially diverse k-12 school setting. i am comfortable teaching students in a racially diverse setting. i feel comfortable teaching students who have no english-speaking skills. i consider the diversity of the students when wording questions and responses. i can use curricular materials and instructional practices that foster diversity. i can use curricular materials and instructional practices that make each student feel valued. students in the classroom are good sources for information on which to base lessons. i can plan lessons to capitalize on students? cultures and experiences. i am aware of the students? experiences and cultural backgrounds at the school where the field experience will occur. i am aware of my own bias regarding differences in culture. i expect students in a racially diverse environment to be disruptive during instruction. i expect to feel unsafe when teaching in a racially diverse setting. the community in which the field 23 smith, farnan, seeger, wall & kiene | teacher candidates perceptions of urban field experiences experience occurred will look very different than the community from which i graduated. students in a diverse setting are different than students in settings with less diversity. schools in a diverse setting are very different than the one i attended. i believe it?s important for each student to have a fresh start each day. i would like to teach in a building with racially diverse students. post-experience survey 1. what is your gender? 2. how would you describe your racial heritage? 3. what is your ethnicity? 4. please indicate how many field experiences that you have had that could be considered racially diverse and high poverty. please rate your agreement with the following statements (strongly agree, agree, disagree, strongly disagree) i have experience in a racially diverse k-12 school setting. i am comfortable teaching students in a racially diverse setting. i feel comfortable teaching students who have no english-speaking skills. i consider the diversity of the students when wording questions and responses. i can use curricular materials and instructional practices that foster diversity. i can use curricular materials and instructional practices that make each student feel valued. students in the classroom are good sources for information on which to base lessons. i can plan lessons to capitalize on students? cultures and experiences. i am aware of the students? experiences and cultural backgrounds at the school where the field experience will occur. i am aware of my own bias regarding differences in culture. i expect students in a racially diverse environment to be disruptive during instruction. i expect to feel unsafe when teaching in a racially diverse setting. the community in which the field experience occurred will look very different than the community from which i 24 smith, farnan, seeger, wall & kiene | teacher candidates perceptions of urban field experiences graduated. students in a diverse setting are different than students in settings with less diversity. schools in a diverse setting are very different than the one i attended. i believe it?s important for each student to have a fresh start each day. i would like to teach in a building with racially diverse students. 25 educational renaissance vol 12 (2023) book review anti-racism and universal design for learning: building expressways to success abstract antiracism and universal design for learning: building expressways to success by andratesha fritzgerald is a valuable resource for educators, researchers, and policymakers interested in addressing racial disparities in education. the book expertly weaves together theoretical frameworks from antiracism and universal design for learning to provide a comprehensive understanding of how to create inclusive and equitable learning environments for all students. as a guide for preservice teachers, fitzgerald breaks new ground on addressing racism and the success of black and brown students. keywords: universal design for learning, antiracism ibram x. kendi explained in how to be an antiracist (2019) that antiracism is a transformative concept and points us to liberating new ways of thinking about ourselves and others. universities also ask this of preservice teachers as they prepare to become educators. we ask that they think of education, racism, and themselves in new ways. to be prepared to become better and more inclusive within the education systems that exist, and to push those systems to continued change. in her book, anti-racism and universal design for learning: building expressways to success, andratesha fritzgerald begins with a foreword by samaria rice, mother of tamir rice. in her foreword rice asks the question, “are you ready to admit that black and brown children have been geniuses sitting in broken systems that are not built to see the brilliance they bring?” (fritzgerald, 2020, p. xi) fritzgerald takes this question and with honesty, examples, and the framework of universal design for learning (udl) (cast, 2023) gives teachers specific pathways to implement change in their classrooms. one of the strengths of this book is fritzgerald’s ability to connect antiracism theory to practical applications in the classroom. she provides concrete examples of how udl strategies can be used to support the academic success of students of color, or as she describes them "our beautiful black and brown students" (fritzgerald, 2020, p. 152), and how these strategies can be integrated in the classroom. the author also offers a valuable critique of the limitations of current universal design for learning models and provides suggestions for how they can be adapted to better address the needs of students of color. fitzgerald’s writing style is clear and engaging, making the book accessible to a wide audience. kimberly coy, edd, kremen school of education and human development, fresno state kcoy@csufresno.edu anti-racism and universal design for learning: building expressways to success by andretesha fritzgerald $29.99, paperback (isbn: 9781930583702) $29.99, epub (isbn: 9781930583719) mailto:kcoy%40csufresno.edu?subject= coy | 9 anti-racism and universal design for learning the book is well-researched and draws on a variety of sources: scholarly literature, personal anecdotes, and interviews with educators. the author also includes reflection questions and activities at the end of each chapter, which provide readers with opportunities to apply what they have learned to their own practice. the intended audience for fritzgerald’s book is intentionally broad. while the specific classroom examples apply to teachers, the work itself, a first book that uses the power of antiracism and udl, is useful to all of those interested in education for everyone. parents, community members, and policy makers could use this as a blueprint for what to expect and encourage in our classrooms. until real change is enacted in the way we teach black and brown students, an unequal systems will continue to exist. this book is one way future teachers can learn how to honor the brilliance these students bring to the classroom. overall, antiracism and universal design for learning is a valuable and timely contribution to the field of education. it provides a comprehensive and practical approach to addressing racial disparities in education, and is an essential resource for anyone interested in creating inclusive and equitable learning environments for students of all races. coy | 10 anti-racism and universal design for learning references cast (2023). udl: the universal design for learning guidelines. https://udlguidelines.cast.org/ fritzgerald, a. (2020). anti-racism and universal design for learning: building expressways to success. cast. kendi, i. x. (2019). how to be an antiracist. one world. https://udlguidelines.cast.org/ evans 2022 proof educational renaissance vol. 11 (2022) par t ner ing in pr incipal preparat ion program redesign t o develop a cont ext -specif ic theory of act ion st acy legget t , phd. western kentucky university email: stacy.leggett@wku.edu marguer it a desander , phd. western kentucky university email: marquerita.desander@wku.edu sam evans, phd. western kentucky university email: sam.evans@wku.edu feature article we know that "principals, through their actions, can be powerful multipliers of effective teaching and leadership practices in schools. and those practices can contribute much to the success of the nation's students" (manna, 2015, p. 7). we also know by directly impacting the classroom conditions, school conditions, and the teachers in their building, principals indirectly influence student achievement (seashore louis et al., 2010). principals develop instructional and organizational capacity by providing content focused, job-embedded, collaborative, sustained teacher professional development based on principles of adult learning theory. they can further develop capacity through coaching, expert support, and dialogue focused on feedback and reflection (darling-hammond et al., 2017). principals must lead their organizations to improve learning environments, climate, and culture where needed, and they should ensure robust multi-tiered systems of support to address students' needs (darling-hammond & cook-harvey, 2018; seashore louis et al., 2010). the challenge for principal preparation programs is how to best develop the necessary knowledge and skills in principal aspirants to meet these demands. for two decades, the wallace foundation educational leadership unit focused philanthropic abst ract research findings have identified the importance of university/district partnerships in the preparation of principals along with points of dissatisfaction of traditional preparation programs outcomes. while change had and was occurring in some programs, impactful change in the quality of programs and program completers must involve all stakeholders including partnering districts and state agencies in the redesign of preparation programs. this paper examines the local and state context as foundational to the redesign process and the engagement of one university?s use of wallace foundation funds to engage area school districts and the state professional standards board in the re-envisioning of its principal preparation program. keywords: partnerships, principal preparation, program redesign mailto:stacy.leggett@wku.edu mailto:marquerita.desander@wku.edu mailto:sam.evans@wku.edu leggett, desander, & evans| partnering in principal preparation program redesign efforts on the relationship between effective principals and student success. as part of this work, the wallace foundation launched a series of initiatives, notably the principal supervisor initiative (psi) and the principal pipeline initiative (ppi) ? both focusing on district-level development of school leaders and ensuing positive impacts (gates et al., 2019; goldring et al., 2020). their investment in principal pathways led to significant findings relevant to principal effect on student achievement. the focus on the development of school leaders through the psi and ppi allowed the wallace foundation to engage others in research around principal preparation programs (p3s). one theme emerging from this research was the importance of university-district partnerships in preparing principals and these relationships' inconsistent existence and quality. the report also surfaced that most superintendents believed policies requiring university-district partnerships were the most powerful state lever for improving p3s. another theme was district leader dissatisfaction with traditional p3 models, which they perceived as often failing to connect theory and practice. in a survey disseminated by the american association of school administrators (aasa), 80% of superintendents responded, "improvement of principal preparation is necessary" (wallace foundation, 2016, p. 6). when superintendents ranked the preparedness of principal aspirants around 15 job responsibilit ies, four of the lowest-rated areas were among the most critical: "instructional leadership, team building, problem solving/decision making, and relationships/collaboration" (wallace foundation, 2016, p. 7). some university p3s went through significant transformation in recent years, but 96% of respondents reported planned changes over the next two years, and over half planned moderate to significant changes (wallace foundation, 2016). these findings, coupled with district leader dissatisfaction regarding program quality and their beliefs that policies requiring universities to collaborate with districts were the most valuable lever to improve principal preparation, reinforced the importance of partnerships. psi and ppi outcomes paved the way for the next wallace foundation initiative, the university principal preparation initiative (uppi), which launched in 2016. the uppi challenged and supported universities in collaborating with exemplary p3 partners and local district leadership to transform p3s to meet the unique needs of the university's service area or region. the nature of the local context (rural, urban, suburban, town) influenced partnership selection and development. the uppi-supported partnership between each university and its state agency reviewed program accreditation and principal licensure policies. these state stakeholders also engaged with universities as partners in program redesign (wang et al., 2018). state stakeholders provided a valuable perspective to p3s in understanding the complex problems of equity and school improvement as presented in state and local contexts. the uppi was the next step to understand the importance of quality p3s and effectuate meaningful change by developing a triumvirate partnership among the state education agency, the local education district, and the university that serves the needs of both. in 2016, the wallace foundation selected western kentucky university (wku) as one of seven universities to take part in this $47 million initiative to develop models nationwide for exemplary p3s. the premise for the initiative was simple: principal preparation requires partnerships and stakeholder input to create programs that reflect evidence of best practices for preparing principal candidates. work completed in siloes would not adequately meet the challenge. this article chronicles two concurrent work streams in kentucky resulting from the uppi: the policy context, which included the statewide work, and the program redesign occurring at wku. bryk and colleagues (2015) described the first principle of improvement science as "make the work problem-specific and user-centered" (p. 21). wku, 18 leggett, desander, & evans| partnering in principal preparation program redesign supported by program partner urban university (uu, pseudonym) sought to redesign our program by applying improvement science principles. we also sought to embed these principles within the program to substantiate continuous improvement. the uu cycle of inquiry model and previous redesign experiences influenced the process as they facilitated our effort. the first step of uu's model, "identify root cause problems" (cosner et al., 2015, p. 21), led us to collect and review multiple data sources to understand program strengths and opportunities for improvement. data collection and analysis supported problem identification. after understanding root cause problems, we surfaced our beliefs and constructed our theory of action. this work reflected the first organizational principle of p3 redesign: "program philosophy as a clearly articulated theory of action" (university council for educational administration, 2012, p. 2). the spectrum for understanding and evaluating public engagement (international association for public participation, 2014) offered a framework to describe the partners' engagement. the spectrum includes five levels providing the public with increasing impact on decisions: inform, consult, involve, collaborate, and empower. this article considered wku's partner engagement in the initial redesign phases through the lens of the framework's first four levels. our goals at each level of engagement were to: inform, we sought to provide partners with information about our program's strengths, problems of practice, and viable solutions; consult, we sought to understand our problems of practice and context better through the unique perspectives of our partners and garner their feedback before making final decisions; involve, we sought to engage partners directly in our work. this participation might be attending uppi professional learning communities alongside us or providing input on the design of clinical experiences; collaborate, we sought to work with partners to develop and identify solutions. in working with our partners, we created a program to serve our principal aspirants, districts, and, subsequently, p12 students by better reflecting the work of the principal. underst anding t he policy cont ext of kent ucky an underlying principle in this work was the importance of context, both state and local, in redesigning our program. while wku participated in the wallace foundation uppi work, rand corporation concurrently engaged in research to learn lessons from the collective efforts of the seven uppi programs. this project elevated the work of state entities in transforming p3s as the seven uppi programs engaged with the state agencies responsible for approving and monitoring programs. gates and colleagues (2020) also noted the informal influence of political officials, boards, and nonstate entities in this relationship. their work identified the following levers for states to improve p3s: principal standards, program recruitment, licensure, evaluation, professional development requirements, and data systems to inform improvement (gates et al., 2020; grissom et al., 2019; manna, 2015). all states in the study engaged in setting standards, encouraging the use of those standards, establishing prerequisites to p3s, and determining licensure pathways and requirements (gates et al., 2020). knowing the importance of quality p3s and even realizing some levers might lead to substantive change did not always mean doing. challenges faced by the seven state entities included limited personnel and funding at the state level to specifically address principal preparation, political issues related to the boundary between state and local control, and prioritization of other educational concerns (gates et al., 2020). within these levers and challenges, the rand research identified three primary ways states can influence principal preparation, "setting direction through legislation and funding, shaping the direction 19 leggett, desander, & evans| partnering in principal preparation program redesign more precisely through regulation and oversight, and providing resources and services" (gates et al., 2020, p. xiii). wku's invitation to join the uppi was based partly on the willingness of the education professional standards board (epsb) to change policy and adopt research-based standards, one of the uppi program selection criteria. kentucky's statewide commitment to preparing school leaders dated back to the kentucky education reform act (kera, 1990). according to o'day and smith (1993), kera started a reform movement in kentucky to address the need for developing new policies, content standards, authentic assessments, and an ambitious curriculum along with changes in teacher preparation and reducing regulations governing the profession. those changes increased the emphasis on the school leaders' roles and preparation. in 2006, reform efforts associated with school principals included separate but aligned initiatives. one initiative was related to the preparation of school principals. the second set of initiatives focused on the roles and responsibilit ies of the principal via an amendment to existing legislation (16 kar 3:050). the amendment addressed university-district partnership efforts, including screening candidates, identifying mentors, and the co-construction and delivery of courses based on district needs. in 2011, kentucky leadership programs went through another redesign which moved principal certification to a post-master 's degree program as another step toward reform. in 2013, programs required aspiring leaders to take 30 additional credit hours above a master 's degree to become certified. during that period, wku made significant changes to the curriculum and program structure, including adopting a curriculum aligned to the interstate school leaders licensure consortium standards, a hybrid delivery model, and a co-teaching model to partner faculty with exemplary practitioners in the field. the reform initiatives of the early 2000s resulted in an overhaul of the preparation of school leaders at all 11 universities housing kentucky's school leadership programs. nevertheless, ten years after this reform began, few, if any, of the state's p3s were working with districts beyond screening candidates for admission and identifying and selecting mentors to support students. despite wku embracing a co-teaching course delivery model using practitioner partners, there was litt le further interaction with districts for co-constructing curriculum based on actual problems of practice or understanding contextual issues unique to the region and state. likewise, the national council for accreditation of teacher education (now council for the accreditation of educator preparation) accreditation requirements did not motivate or facilitate partnership, only compliance. therefore, educational leadership programs focused on aligning with standards and accreditation requirements, assuming this alignment met the needs of the districts served. kentucky has taken a leadership role in preparing school leaders, and conditions and policies in the state have been supportive of a transformational process (wallace foundation, 2016). from kera to the present, constituent groups across the commonwealth have developed and implemented policies associated with p3s. this spirit of stakeholder collaboration has provided a solid foundation for the transformation of programs across the commonwealth. transform ing policy in t he com m onwealt h epsb and the kentucky department of education (kde) engaged with wku in the uppi work from the very beginning. perhaps even more importantly, they facilitated a parallel stream of transformative work among the 11 kentucky p3s as wku faculty and stakeholders engaged in their program redesign. the transformation process in the commonwealth of kentucky included input from multiple statewide stakeholder groups and a review of all school and district leadership regulations and standards. at the beginning of the uppi, kentucky had five different regulations for preparing educational administrators based on 20 leggett, desander, & evans| partnering in principal preparation program redesign the following roles: superintendent, supervisor of instruction, director of pupil personnel, director of special education, and principal. stakeholder groups included representatives from all higher education institutions preparing principals, regional educational cooperatives, school administration professional associations, higher-education agencies, and business and industry. epsb and kde posed the following questions to the stakeholder groups to inform their work: what skills do principals need, current and future? what skills, strategies, and practices do principals need? what do you see as the current gap between practice and what is needed? (e. proffitt, personal communication, september 10, 2018) epsb and kde staff facilitated monthly meetings with representatives from each of kentucky's programs and consulted with attending stakeholders on the state policies related to the preparation of school leaders. at regularly scheduled meetings, stakeholders reviewed the kentucky administrative regulations for the five leadership certificates and provided input (epsb, 2018a). after the review process, the uppi stakeholder committee on advanced educational leadership provided recommendations to epsb (epsb, 2018a). recom m endat ions subm it t ed t o epsb the recommendations developed and submitted by the statewide committee appeared in the agenda book of the epsb as an action item. these recommendations included combining all advanced leadership programs under one set of regulations, aligning all programs to one set of standards, and mandating uniform testing requirements for all programs. these recommendations eliminated the kentucky specialty test requirement, references to dimensions dispositions of school leaders document, and the post-master 's degree requirement for principal certification. the board accepted the recommendations in december 2018, 18 months into the initiative (epsb, 2018b, action item a). kentucky now required all advanced education leader programs to align with the professional standards for educational leaders (psel) and all individuals seeking certification to meet the testing requirement. the structure remained five certification areas but became one regulation entitled advanced educational leaders. the rank structure that included rank i and ii options and was associated with pay increases remained, as did the bi-level certification process. engaging partners in program redesign to prepare ready-to-lead principal aspirants wku's p3 redesign did not occur due to kentucky's revising regulations of advanced leadership programs. instead, both streams of work occurred concurrently. at times, the concurrent nature mandated shifts in thinking about the program framework. this section describes two phases of the redesign conducted by faculty and partners that required us to make the work problem-specific and user-centered and resulted in our program's theory of action. although described in a linear sequence, the work was not linear. also, the shift in kentucky regulations to remove the rank ii requirement expanded our thinking to include a master 's degree option for the program. make the work problem-specific and user-centered the initial phase of redesigning the program focused on the first principle of improvement science, "make the work problem-specific and user-centered" (bryk et al., 2015, p. 21). bryk and colleagues instructed those teams leading improvement to understand how contextual factors shape their work. wku partnered with uu to define the work context, establish norms and processes, identify goals, and collect data. we developed a shared understanding of what data were available and relevant. we reviewed data and artifacts including student surveys, stakeholder 21 leggett, desander, & evans| partnering in principal preparation program redesign interviews, course documents, standards for school leaders, feedback from district and state leaders, background readings from uu, artifacts from uu's work, and accreditation requirements. wku and uu developed a shared understanding of our program and state and district context in our initial meetings. understanding the nature and influence of state policies, the role of the green river regional educational cooperative (grrec, our regional educational cooperative), and how these differed from uu's state and local context was essential for their facilitator role. understanding the context of the program helped guide decision-making processes and the development of strands to align the program more tightly. wku p3 faculty used data sources to evaluate the program and identify problems of practice. the quality measures (qm) baseline program assessment, a self-assessment conducted by the university program and created by the education development corporation in 2013, required the engagement of state and district partners. the process involved program faculty informing partners of their self-ratings and evidence of the ratings in the following areas: candidate admissions, course content, pedagogy and andragogy, clinical experiences, performance assessments, and graduate outcomes. stakeholders then provided their input on the ratings. our first qm assessment used the 2013 qm tool kit. each uppi team participated in this process. wang and colleagues (2018), in their evaluation of the uppi, described "the qm exercise as a foundational experience that helped partners learn about one another 's organizations and perspectives and that facilitated relationship-building" (p. xiii). positive findings from a data review included a strong focus on instructional leadership throughout the program, the cohort and hybrid format, and authentic partnerships with districts and practitioner-instructors. stakeholders agreed on the anchor assessments as the most catalytic experiences, but implementation varied. though a program strength, there was a need to update these assessments to scaffold learning across the program, ensure assessment reliability and validity, and calibrate grading and feedback. the university and stakeholders agreed on the following problems of practice that guided much of the work: our program needed a more intentional focus on equitable leadership and diversity. assuming the program embedded equity throughout meant that only a limited number of assignments explicitly addressed equity issues. we also needed to refocus on organizational management. district partners perceived the 2013 program as developing instructional leaders but perhaps neglecting some skills required to create effective building managers. when asked to prioritize the skills needed to lead and manage schools, our partners ranked relationship development, strategic planning, communications, and fiscal management as the most important. finally, faculty sought greater program coherence through vertical and horizontal alignment with a logical learning progression across all semesters. develop a theory of action not only did the work adhere to bryk et al.'s (2015) initial stage of improvement science, procedures mostly aligned to the university council for educational administration's (2012) curriculum mapping guide for p3s. we surfaced our current program theory and assumptions. we explored national educational leadership preparation (nelp) and psel standards and identified essential learning. essential learning strands that emerged from group activities were instructional leadership, equity, and cycles of inquiry. the instructional leadership strand would address the question, "what will learning look like?" the equity strand would address the question, "how will we make sure all students succeed?" the cycle of inquiry 22 leggett, desander, & evans| partnering in principal preparation program redesign strand will answer the question, "how will we use data to lead continuous improvement?" superintendents were particularly concerned about the communication skills of new principals leading to a fourth strand, communication, that would answer the question, "how will we communicate with all stakeholders?" included in this concern were abilit ies to build internal and external relationships, but especially the skills needed to engage in difficult conversations. the program developed from these questions a conceptual framework conveying the curricular emphasis and intended outcomes (see figure 1). after identifying this vision of what our program graduates would know and be able to do, we crafted a logic model of where we were currently and then updated that to reflect the goals for our program (see figure 2). we were not alone in developing logic models. each uppi team developed a logic model to guide their work that included both informing and consulting partners (wang et al., 2018). the envisioning work cultivated team building and a greater shared understanding of the entire initiative. after identifying problems, surfacing core values, and making initial structural decisions, the team proceeded with a theory of action. a theory of action involves more than a vision statement. according to the university council for educational administration (2012), p3 theories of action should include a clear understanding of the following components and their intersection: leadership principles, effective andragogy, and experiential learning. wku faculty and uu colleagues revisited the core characteristics of a logic model to frame our theory of action and surface program theory and assumptions about preparation and candidate outcomes. specifically, we explored the power and utility of how a logic model can quickly communicate program values and structure to our partners. uu shared concrete examples of their logic models to stimulate our thinking. faculty members from wku took the first steps in developing an organizing framework for our program. we developed a theory of action and logic model around our vision for the program. the external facilitator took information from our context and developed a draft theory of action of the current program. each faculty member critiqued and refined the document, considering numerous theoretical perspectives and how the program might bridge the gap from theory to practice. the final iteration stated, the wku principal preparation program in partnership with schools, districts, and state agencies prepares and develops school leaders for rural and urban districts in kentucky. the program admits qualified post-master 's degree applicants into a cohort-based program. applicants are selected based on their experiences as effective educators as well as their demonstration of equity-driven values and norms, student-centered instructional leadership, and aspirations to lead schools to improve student learning outcomes. the program is committed to engaging leadership candidates in a range of challenging on-line, face-to-face, and site-based performance assessments that develop and assess their leadership learning capacities through 23 figure 1. wku program conceptual framework authors adapted this figure from the wku program's working documents, rubrics, and presentation slides. faculty used the following four overarching themes to develop program coherence: learning leader, relationship builder, equity engineer, and innovative problem solver. communication and reflective practice served as encompassing themes. leggett, desander, & evans| partnering in principal preparation program redesign required, elective, and personalized experiences. courses are sequenced to ensure that students are developing their abilit ies to lead people and systems to support continuous school improvement and are thematically organized to develop candidates' proficiency in (a) instructional leadership, (b) leading improvement, (c) leading for equity, and (d) effective communication. program graduates are prepared to lead schools to respond to the cultural, economic, and educational challenges of the 21st century. (s. tozer, personal communication, june 14, 2017) the final theory of action that guided our p3 redesign was organized into inputs, processes, and outcomes (see figure 3). final thought s and out com es our work included engaging partners at three levels: our district partners, our state partners, and our peer institution partners. the work began with the leaders who fostered collaborative engagement. leaders across the uppi institutions facilitated relationships at each stage, the dedication, enthusiasm, management, and team-building skills of these leaders kept the initiative on track. there was a strong emphasis on building and nurturing relationships among partners. most partners recognized that openness, trust, and a culture of collaboration within teams were essential when working toward change. in part, this was accomplished by establishing a common vision. (wang et al., p. xv) our partnerships with districts during this initiative resulted in collaboration that moved beyond superficial feedback to becoming true partners in co-constructing a p3 and institutionalizing data-driven cycles of inquiry to continuously improve our program. district partner participation throughout our work allowed us to (a) reflect more honestly on our program, (b) better understand the context-specific role for which we were preparing aspirants, and (c) learn with our partners the 24 this figure is adapted from the uppi logic model developed by wku faculty and contained in program working documents and presentations. figure 2. wku uppi logic model leggett, desander, & evans| partnering in principal preparation program redesign theory and practice relevant to effective school leadership. now that we have fully implemented the redesigned program, we continue to partner with districts in (a) identifying and selecting candidates, (b) refining our curriculum and ensuring its relevance by co-teaching with practitioner partners, and (c) addressing problems of practice related to the principal pipeline as they arise. from our peer institutions in this work, we were able to adopt and adapt processes and products from their work related to improvement, design, and cycles of inquiry. we were in a unique position through the uppi to partner with peer institutions but engaging with peers encouraged us to slow down our work to learn ?fast to implement well? (bryk et al., 2015, p. 7). at a larger scale, our state partners formed the policy context in which our work is situated and provided understanding of our context at the state level. most programs recognize curricular changes are needed to equip principal aspirants with the necessary capacity to improve k12 student achievement. most superintendents also recognize the need to improve principal preparation (wallace foundation, 2016). we know the principal role is important, and research demonstrates that principals are second only to the teacher in influencing student achievement (manna, 2015). therefore, we must ask why more programs nationally are not engaging with partners to improve their practices? the principles guiding our work are neither new nor innovative. for almost two decades, the keys to success for designing effective university-based principal preparation programs have been in plain sight (davis et al., 2005; davis & darling-hammond, 2012), and the work of other institutions provides us with vicarious learning experiences (cosner, 2018). programs serve their own unique context which impacts the problems of practice and viable solutions partners may bring to the table, so the redesign process and outcome will differ. nevertheless, the immutable role that partners play is in bringing a greater depth of understanding as to what future principals should know and be able to do and where gaps between knowledge and practice occur during those critical first years of school leadership. 25 this figure is adapted from the theory of action developed by wku faculty and contained in program working documents and presentations. figure 3. wku p3 theory of action leggett, desander, & evans| partnering in principal preparation program redesign references bryk, a. s., gomez, l. m., grunow, a., & lemahieu, p. 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page 6 page 7 page 8 page 9 page 10 page 11 gronseth (2018) proof 2.pdf educational renaissance vol. 7 (2018) inclusive design for online and blended courses: connect ing web cont ent accessibil i t y guidelines and universal design for learning susie gronset h, phd. university of houston, college of education email: slgronseth@uh.edu feature article designing for all learners variability in learners is the norm, rather than the exception. some students have disabilit ies in visual, auditory, physical, social/emotional, and focus/organizational dimensions, and all learners differ in areas of language, motivation, interests, learning preferences, study skills, and schedules. it turns out that the conception of an average learner rarely characterizes the complex make-up of varying combinations of characteristics in any learners (rose, 2015). these differences can become barriers to learning when the scope of course design is limited to just an average learner. designing for the average, therefore, is likely to produce mismatches between the designed instructional strategy and most learner needs. further, accessibility of digital educational materials continues to be of great concern for higher education (brown, 2018). in a 2010 ?dear colleague? letter issued jointly by the u.s. department of justice and the u.s. department of education, accessibility is framed as a civil rights issue (perez & ali, 2010). referencing the americans with disabilit ies act of 1990 and section 508 of the rehabilitation act of 1973, the letter advocates for college students with disabilit ies to receive all of the educational benefits of the instructional technologies that are incorporated into their learning experiences. it also argues that if incorporated technologies are found to be inaccessible, accommodations and modifications should be equivalently effective and integrated. section 508 of the rehabilitation act of 1973 was amended in 1998 to specify that accessibility involves comparable access, that is ?access to and use of information and data that is comparable? to that provided to individuals abst ract course accessibility is a priority in higher education, particularly in the design and delivery of digital learning experiences. proactively addressing accessibility as part of online and blended course design meets the needs of all learners, including those in the margins. inclusive design for online and blended courses connects the web content accessibility guidelines (wcag) and universal design for learning (udl) framework in order to address learner variability as an intentional part of course design. inclusive design fosters expanded options in the ways that learners access learning materials, engage in learning experiences, and demonstrate the knowledge and skills they have learned. this paper describes practical applications of wcag and udl for the design and facilitation of inclusive online and blended courses in the post-secondary setting. gronseth | inclusive design for online and blended courses without disabilit ies (29 u.s.c. §794 (d)). information and data should be accessible either directly or through the use of assistive technologies, like screen readers. comparable access relates to both the content of information as well as the timeliness in which access is provided. web cont ent accessibil i t y guidelines (wcag) within 508, section e205 specifies that electronic content should conform to the web content accessibility guidelines (wcag). at the time of this writing, the wcag 2.0 guidelines are currently in effect, and proposed revisions are in the process of being reviewed and approved (kirkpatrick, o?connor, & cooper, 2018). the guidelines characterize accessible design of electronic content in terms of it being perceivable, operable, navigable, understandable, predictable, compatible, distinguishable, and adaptable (see figure 1). what is key for higher educators to know is that the guidelines address making web content more accessible for individuals with visual, auditory, physical, speech, cognitive, language, learning, and neurological disabilit ies, as well as greater usability by older individuals with changing abilit ies due to aging. workable design for such groups promotes greater access across a greater range of users, and this inclusive design approach serves to reduce barriers for learners on digital platforms (kumar & wideman, 2014). figure 1. accessible instructional design areas addressed through wcag. inclusive design of online and blended course activities and materials involves accessibility for learners with specific disabilit ies, as well as benefits for all learners (dalton, 2017). for faculty and course designers, accessibility should therefore be viewed not as an add-on, but rather as an integral facet of instructional design. elevating accessibility in course design supports customization in areas such as participation and content presentation that enable learners to select options aligned with their learning preferences (rogers-saw, carr-chellman, & choi, 2018). for example, captioning video and audio components is of particular concern to designers of online courses as it is necessary to support accessibility for students with hearing impairments (cifuentes, janney, guerra, & weir, 2016). quality captions can also be beneficial to students who may be watching the videos in noisy places and language learners (vanderplank, 2010). the captioning serves as an additional available option for how the content is represented, promoting accessibility and enabling learners to select format options that best meet their needs (tobin, 2014). universal design for learning (udl) designing for all learners from the outset is at the core of the universal design for learning (udl) framework, a set of curricular principles and guidelines that identify how to incorporate flexibility in the design and delivery of instruction. the framework was developed by rose and meyer (2002) and was built upon the premise of three brain networks ? affective, recognition, and strategic. affective networks pertain to caring and prioritizing and are the why of learning. recognition networks involve how content is represented and are the what of learning. strategic networks relate to learner activity and are the how of learning. the philosophy of udl is more than just ensuring access to the content; it addresses how learners are supported and challenged during learning experiences. tied to each of the three brain networks are the udl principles of (a) provide multiple means of engagement, (b) provide multiple means of 15 gronseth | inclusive design for online and blended courses representation, and (c) provide multiple means of action and expression (meyer, rose, & gordon, 2014). the udl framework thus has a horizontal orientation in which each principle supports different aspects of student learning. the recent release of version 2.2 of the udl guidelines also makes evident a vertical orientation, in which each principle has three levels ? access, build, and internalize (center for applied special technology (cast, 2018). similar to the foundation of a building (as illustrated in figure 2), access is foundational in the udl framework, as it supports learners to be able to build and internalize. the ultimate goal of the framework is equipping learners to become purposeful and motivated, resourceful and knowledgeable, and strategic and goal-directed (cast, 2018). figure 2. access as the foundation of udl the udl framework can be applied to the learning goals, materials, methods, and assessments of a course, as it involves thinking about how options can be incorporated into each course aspect. first, the ways in which course information is presented can vary, such as through text, image, animation, audio, video, and demonstration. second, students can show their learning in different ways, such as through speaking, writing, drawing, acting, building, or even singing/rapping. finally, different strategies can be used to focus student attention, sustain their interest and motivation, and ultimately empower them to self-regulate to persist throughout a course. connect ing wcag and udl in online and blended courses, applying wcag and udl guidelines can positively impact the learner experience, especially for those in the margins (black, weinberg, & brodwin, 2015). there are also legal implications regarding accessibility of digital learning experiences when users with disabilit ies experience inequitable access (u.s. department of justice, 2015, 2016). accessibility is a worthy goal to pursue, as inclusive design strategies that follow wcag and are grounded in the udl framework can address the varying needs of all learners (national center on accessible educational materials, 2018). the wcag areas can be simplified into the mnemonic pour, which stands for perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust, and strategies and corresponding udl connections to the guidelines are described next. perceivable. course materials and the interfaces of course websites and tools should be presented to learners in ways that they can perceive. users with sensory challenges, for instance, may experience barriers to accessing information when it is presented in certain formats. providing equivalent format alternatives connects to the udl principle of providing multiple means of representation and enables users to choose the formats that best meet their needs. text alternatives for auditory and visually represented information supports greater flexibility in how learners can read or hear the content. the information can be accessed in multiple ways, such as through text-to-speech, large print, braille, symbols, and language translation or simplification. the perceivable aspect is enhanced when displays offer options for user adaption and customization. this corresponds to the udl representation guideline of providing options for perception through personalization and alternatives of how 16 gronseth | inclusive design for online and blended courses information is displayed. individuals with sensory challenges may have difficulties distinguishing characteristics such as shape, color, size, visual location, orientation, or sound. when content involves these characteristics, descriptions can be provided so that the information is presented in varying formats. for example, color in graph elements could be presented in hue, by color code, or through varying patterns. perception is also supported when content features are distinguishable. the important aspects of content can be made more distinguishable through enhancing contrast and learner capability in separating the main content from any background imagery or sounds. educators and course designers can address this area by incorporating greater contrast, allowing user control over turning sound on/off, supporting resizing of text, and avoiding presenting text as images only. enabling user control in this area minimizes distractions (under the engagement principle) and optimizes perception (part of the representation principle). operable. students access course materials and activities in different ways, and some students may use assistive technology like screen readers and switch controls to operate course tools and website interfaces. in addition, there are also navigation differences that now exist among the great variety of device types that learners may use to access course content, from laptops and smart tvs to mobile technologies such as tablets and smartphones. addressing the operable area connects to the udl principle of providing multiple means of action and expression and optimizes access for those using assistive technologies. operability is enhanced through keyboard navigation functionality, a gateway to access through multiple devices. adjustable timings can also be applied, as they provide users with sufficient time to read and use content. flashing page elements should be limited, as they can be not only distracting and bothersome to users, but more than three consecutive flashes in a second can induce seizures in individuals with photosensitive epilepsy (harding & harding, 2010). another component of operability is navigation. consistent and clear organization of course sites and materials can enable students to navigate the provided information and locate assignments, activities, and course content. when users know where they are in a course and how to find materials, they are better able to self-manage the information and their progress, thus supporting their empowerment and self-regulation. navigation practices that enhance usability include titling web pages to describe their topic or purpose, using section headings to organize content, and creating meaningful links that effectively communicate the content of the link through the link text (for example, wcag 2.1). underst andable. clearly written course materials and intuitive tool interfaces aid in understanding. from the stance of recognition networks and the udl principle of providing multiple means of representation, course materials that are written in understandable ways to users support comprehension and enable users to better plan how they might accomplish what is expected of them. to do this, educators and instructional designers should consider learner reading levels and background knowledge to comprehend abbreviations and jargon in written instructions and handouts. defining vocabulary and providing related resources for students to reference can support in this area. digital course materials and activities are likely to be more understandable when they appear and operate in ways that students expect. this helps students not only locate course items but also reduces extraneous cognitive load, enabling users to direct more of their focus, time, and attention towards engaging in course activities (çakiro?lu & aksoy, 2017). predictability in course design connects to the udl action and expression guideline of providing options for executive functions through contributing to how students manage course information and resources. to support this, consistent navigation should be used, including consistent headings, labels, and ordering 17 http://www.w3.org/tr2018/cr-wcag21-20180130/ http://www.w3.org/tr2018/cr-wcag21-20180130/ gronseth | inclusive design for online and blended courses of items and activities on handouts and course site pages. robust . the use of the word robust in this discussion refers to the capacity of the designed materials and technologies to perform for a diverse user base. robust course materials, websites, and tools are compatible with the technologies that learners use to access them, including assistive technologies. compatibility with assistive technologies facilitates options for perception and access, which addresses the udl action and expression guideline of providing options for physical action. a practical way that instructors and course designers can check compatibility is listening to course materials using a screen reader function. this may illuminate areas that could be better formatted for improved access and clarity. built-in accessibility checkers are available within microsoft office and adobe acrobat, and grackle (https://www.grackledocs.com/) is a chrome extension that can be used to check accessibility in google docs, sheets, and slides. the web accessibility evaluation tool (wave) (http://wave.webaim.org/) can be used to check webpage accessibility. instructors and course designers can also view course materials and try out tools on tablets and smartphones, as display and operability on mobile technologies may differ when touch is used for navigation as compared to access through a desktop computer with a keyboard and mouse. pract ical applicat ions for inclusive design inclusive design for online and blended courses can thus involve wcag and the udl framework in order to support varying learner abilit ies, preferences, and needs. specifically, practical applications of these guidelines include strategies relating to the udl framework areas of engagement, representation of content, and learner action and expression. proactively addressing learner variability through strategic design decisions can reduce barriers to access and participation in learning activities, facilitate personalization in course experiences, and promote student interest and engagement (smith, 2012). engagem ent . regarding engagement, the overall goal is for learners to become more purposeful and self-regulated. providing learners with supportive structures as part of the course design can equip students with study skills resources they may need to be able to more purposefully direct their time and attention to the course activities. for example, rubrics offer students specific guidance as to the expectations for open-ended demonstrations of their learning. the criterion areas can specify the components of a project that relate to the learning objectives and describe qualities of performance in those areas. student engagement can also be enhanced through multiple options for recruiting interest (coy, 2016). connecting course activities with authentic contexts and real-world problems can naturally produce a range of viable directions for students to select and experientially learn. course conversations can be expanded beyond the walls of the classroom through online forums and social media. for instance, students can engage in larger book study and twitter chat conversations offered by relevant professional organizations and professional learning networks (plns). students can use a variety of tools to follow and post to the conversations, and contributions can be posted in real-time or pre-scheduled for greater timing flexibility. represent at ion of cont ent . enhancing how content is represented involves considering information formatting and incorporating media flexibility. content can be communicated in multiple ways, including text, visuals, videos, and audio. for example, course announcements can be distributed as text emails, audio recordings, or even videos. web-based tools and mobile apps, like blabberize (https://blabberize.com/), can be used to create talking images, with text-to-speech or recorded voice-over (marcovitz, 2012). see figure 3 for an example of a blabberized course announcement. it should be noted, though, that 18 https://www.grackledocs.com/ http://wave.webaim.org/ https://blabberize.com/ gronseth | inclusive design for online and blended courses such tools vary in accessibility, and instructors are advised to check for accessibility statements from the developers. providing multiple options for tools and formats can enable students to select ones that best meet their needs and preferences. figure 3. example blabberize video announcement featuring a talking cougar. video content should be closed-captioned. video storage and sharing sites, such as youtube, provide auto-captioning features that can make captioning faster and easier. captions can be loaded from video transcripts and adjusted or created through transcription within the video storage and sharing platform. similar to content in a video format, graphical content should also be accompanied with descriptive text alternatives, so that the visuals and text alternatives provide equivalent information. learner act ion and expression. applying headings and using descriptive text for hyperlinks throughout syllabi and handouts ensures clarity for those accessing content with screen readers. headings provide the capability to create tables of contents so that all users (instructors included) can more easily navigate to any section of a document. heading links can facilitate navigation from a to-do list table to detailed instructions in another part of the document or in another handout. incorporating options into how students express what they know promotes student ownership of what they create within the scaffolds of instructor-provided expectations (mino, 2004). an array of learning demonstration options may make evaluation of student learning more interesting and enjoyable for instructors, who are able to view a variety of products and formats that reflect varying learner skills, preferences, and interests. a course integrative challenge, for example, is a way for students to demonstrate how three topics relate to each other and their areas of interest (see figure 4). figure 4. example of expanded options for demonstrating learning through a course integrative challenge. emerging technologies for online discussion and course communications can be used to support idea generation, sharing of drafts, and reflection (gronseth & zhang, 2018). digital whiteboards and bulletin boards, such as realtimeboard (https://realtimeboard.com/) and padlet (https://padlet.com/), are collaborative spaces for groups of learners to collectively brainstorm and link to related resources (byrne, 2014). ideas can be posted as bubbles or sticky notes on the digital board space, and the tools offer options for arranging postings, controlling sharing and security settings, and customizing the theme and color scheme of the board. in addition to text, audio and video discussion postings are also possible through tools such as voicethread (https://voicethread.com/) and flipgrid (https:// flipgrid.com/). instructors provide a prompt in text, audio, video, and/or images to start a discussion (see figure 5), and the audio/video recording, threaded reply, and emoji reaction features help to organize conversations and expand the ways that students can engage in academic conversations (mahmoudi & gronseth, 2018). 19 https://realtimeboard.com/ https://padlet.com/ https://voicethread.com/ https://flipgrid.com/ gronseth | inclusive design for online and blended courses figure 5. prompt for video-based discussion in flipgrid. recom m endat ions instructors and course designers can promote accessibility in online and blended course materials and activities by applying inclusive design practices. a recommended place to start is in the area of navigation by considering the clarity and consistency of how materials are organized on a course website. this first step is likely to make a noticeable difference in supporting all learners to be better able to access course content so that they can make strides toward becoming more self-regulated. the next priority area to address relates to how learners perceive course materials and activities. instructors and course designers should reflect on possibilit ies for how course content can be communicated through multiple format options. for instance, content delivered through readings could be similarly communicated via multimedia resources, such as infographics, podcast episodes, and video clips. care should be taken to ensure that accompanying text descriptions, captions, and transcripts are available and provide equivalent information. students can be involved in advancing an inclusive curriculum by converting historic learning documents and creating new materials (everett & oswald, 2018). a third action step towards more inclusive design in online and blended courses involves incorporating multiple means for how learners demonstrate what they have learned. project-based learning allows learners to individualize based on their own unique makeup of prior experiences, personalities, and talents. structured project options can provide opportunities for learners to integrate newly acquired knowledge. project-based learning can also foster collaborative learning partnerships and authentic applications of course content (koh, herring, & hew, 2010). as a baseline, making sure that learners with disabilit ies have comparable access to online and blended course materials and 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(2014). increase online student retention with universal design for learning. quarterly review of distance education, 15(3), 13-24. u.s. department of justice. (2015, august 6). justice department settles with louisiana tech university over inaccessible course materials. retrieved from https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/ justice-depa rtment-settles-louisiana-tech-university-ove r-inaccessible-course-materials. u.s. department of justice. (2016, october 17). miami university agrees to overhaul critical technologies to settle disability discrimination lawsuit. retrieved from https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/miami-unive rsity-agrees-overhaul-critical-technologies-s ettle-disability-discrimination. vanderplank, r. (2010). déjà vu? a decade of research on language laboratories, television and video in language learning. language teaching, 43(1), 1-37. 22 https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-settles-louisiana-tech-university-over-inaccessible-course-materials https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-settles-louisiana-tech-university-over-inaccessible-course-materials https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-settles-louisiana-tech-university-over-inaccessible-course-materials https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/miami-university-agrees-overhaul-critical-technologies-settle-disability-discrimination https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/miami-university-agrees-overhaul-critical-technologies-settle-disability-discrimination https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/miami-university-agrees-overhaul-critical-technologies-settle-disability-discrimination stobaugh 2019 proof final educational renaissance vol. 8 (2019) st udent teacher engagem ent in co-teaching st rat egies rebecca st obaugh, phd. western kentucky university email: rebecca.stobaugh@wku.edu kim ber lee everson, phd. western kentucky university email: kimberlee.everson@wku.edu feature article to prepare teacher candidates to work with diverse populations of p-12 students, teacher educators are incorporating a variety of clinical-based experiences into teacher preparation and introducing teacher candidates to authentic instructional practices before entering the teaching field. co-teaching, defined as ?two or more professionals working together to deliver instruction to a diverse, or blended, group of students in a single physical space? (cook & friend, 1995, p. 14), is recognized as a promising delivery model to support the development of inclusive classrooms, (strogilos & tragoulia, 2013; thousand, villa, & nevin, 2007) as well as an auspicious approach to prepare teacher candidates. co-teaching has long been implemented with a special focus on satisfying the needs of diverse learners, such as students with disabilit ies and english language learners in general educational settings (hughes & murawski, 2001; isherwood & barger-anderson, 2008; murawski & swanson, 2001; pardini, 2006). in recent decades, co-teaching served as a beneficial approach for student teachers by facilitating teacher candidates? understanding of subject-specific pedagogy and the value of collaborative planning in clinical practice (bacharach, heck, & dahlberg, 2008; rytivaara & abst ract recently there has been increasing emphasis on co-teaching experiences for teacher candidates. despite the significance of collaboration between cooperating teachers and student teachers, limited empirical attention has focused on student teachers? co-teaching experiences. the following study utilized survey data to ascertain if student teachers? use of different co-teaching strategies changed over the course of their student teaching semester, as well as, compared student teacher use of co-teaching strategies in elementary, middle, and secondary program areas. pilot study survey data revealed that approximately one-fourth of the student teacher?s time is spent teaching alone. however, the student teacher survey data indicated that the team teaching co-teaching strategy increased more than any other co-teaching strategy in all program areas. the study concludes that as teacher education programs seek to maximize the benefits of the co-teaching model, student teachers and cooperating teachers need additional training in ways to utilize all the co-teaching strategies to maximize student learning. keywords: student teaching, teacher education, co-teaching mailto:rebecca.stobaugh@wku.edu mailto:kimberlee.everson@wku.edu stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies kershner, 2012). given various types of effective collaborative models identified in the literature (zigmond & magiera, 2001), the present study is concerned with a group of student teachers? self-reported use of co-teaching strategies at various points of time during the student teaching semester. specifically, we investigate if and how the professional roles and responsibilit ies of the student teachers changed over the course of their clinical involvement. we also identified the unique features of the ways that co-teaching models were employed at elementary, middle, and secondary levels. lit erat ure review the following literature review explores research detailing the effectiveness of co-teaching and its various models in practice. the challenges of co-teaching and lack of parity in such efforts are also documented, followed by a discussion of the impact that co-teaching during pre-service has on future teaching at the in-service level. as the popularity of the co-teaching model increases (kentucky administrative regulation, 2012), research has documented the positive effects of co-teaching, such as the increased flexibility in scheduling, more observed positive social interaction, and the cultivation of a sense of collegial support for professionals involved (dugan & letterman, 2008; zigmond & magiera, 2001). in addition, findings show that educators engaged in co-teaching practice are better able to provide accommodations to meet the diverse needs of learners (mchatton & daniel, 2008). for instance, mageria and zigmond?s (2005) observational study on student-teacher interactions reported that students with disabilit ies interacted significantly less than students without identified disabilit ies with the general education teacher, but these students received more individual instruction during co-teaching. further research found that students in co-taught classrooms statistically outperformed students in traditional class settings in reading and math in the minnesota comprehensive assessment and the woodcock-johnson iii psychoeducational battery tests of academic achievement (bacharach, heck, & dahlberg, 2008). co-teaching also encouraged teacher candidates to reflect on their own personalities and engaged in healthy interactions and negotiations with mentors when differences in personality occurred (kamens, 2007). in addition, co-teaching experiences provided a context for advancing both co-teachers? professional learning and leading to a joint knowledge construction that may result in new ideas in practice. the collaborative nature of co-teaching enables teachers to share and create knowledge through experimenting with innovative ideas in practice and reflection. teachers are also able to implement the principles of cooperative learning during co-teaching. co-teaching may also support teachers to meet their professional responsibilit ies more efficiently, since these seemingly small experimentations can be significant steps toward a bigger change in a teacher?s thinking, beliefs and practice? steps in their professional development (rytivaara & kershner, 2012). co-teaching st rat egies the extant literature has also highlighted several different strategies for co-teaching that work in a variety of settings, depending on the degree of the collaboration (friend & cook, 2010; villa, thousand, & nevin, 2013; zigmond & magiera, 2001). for example, friend and cook (2010) indicate that co-teaching includes the professionals planning and delivering instruction using seven approaches and variations of them. these approaches to co-teaching include: 1. one teach, one observe: one co-teacher leads large group instruction, while the other observes and gathers social, academic, or behavioral data on specific students or the class group. 2. one teach, one assist: one teacher leads instruction, while the other co-teacher circulates among the students and provides 31 stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies individual assistance. 3. station teaching: the instruction is divided into three non-sequential parts. students are divided into three groups and rotate from station to station. two co-teachers teach at two stations, leaving the third group to work independently. 4. parallel teaching: each teacher is with half the class group and presents the same material with the primary purpose of fostering instructional differentiation and increasing student engagement. 5. alternative teaching: one teacher works with the majority of the students, while the other works with a small group for remediation, enrichment, assessment, or other purposes. 6. supplemental teaching: students are divided into groups based on their assessment data, with one teacher working with a large group of students and the other working with the rest of the students to provide further challenge or remediation. 7. team teaching: both teachers lead large-group instruction by both lecturing, illustrating two ways to solve a problem, representing opposing views in a debate, or various other strategies where both teachers have equal amounts of control and input in the teaching and learning process. it is recommended that teacher candidates and mentors should use various co-teaching strategies depending on student needs and instructional intent (friend & bursuck, 2009; friend & cook, 2010). within these seven approaches, co-teachers can provide varied and differentiated instructional practices to meet the individual needs of students (friend, 2014). the most prominent and most frequently cited co-teaching model according to scruggs, mastropieri, and mcduffie?s (2007) meta-synthesis study was the one teach, one assist co-teaching model and its variations. the less frequently implemented models were team teaching, station teaching and alternate teaching. co-teaching dur ing st udent teaching traditionally, the student teaching is defined as ?a master teacher who gradually releases responsibility of classroom instructing to the student teacher, often with an extended period of ?take-over?? (guise, habib, thiessen, & robbins, 2017, p. 374). cooperating teachers provided space for student teachers to implement instruction and receive feedback. st. cloud state university pioneered the co-teaching model in the student teaching context (heck, bacharach & dahlberg, 2008). this format of co-teaching is defined as two teachers, a cooperating teacher and a teacher candidate/student teacher, working together in a classroom with groups of students, while sharing the planning, organization, delivery and assessment of instruction, as well as the physical space (heck, bacharach, mann, & ofstedal, 2005). the co-teaching practice at the pre-service level has generated increasing research interest. the existing research on teacher candidates? co-teaching training highlighted student teachers? negative reflection and anxiety toward their co-teaching practices (strogilos & tragoulia, 2013), while some studies showed that student teachers could overcome their initial concerns about co-teaching and build stronger partnership with their cooperating teachers (e.g. kamens, 2007). during student teaching, teacher candidates reported they became more open-minded and embraced increasingly positive attitude toward the collaborative internship (shin, lee, & mckenna, 2015; strogilos & tragoulia 2013). the changing nature of teaching and learning and the power dynamics between the cooperating teacher and student teacher may lead to the complexity of co-teaching practices. for instance, the cooperating teachers were often positioned as the evaluator and the ?supervisor of practica? (borko & mayfield, 1995, p.9), while student teachers may subsequently assume a subordinating role. the power differential in these environments may influence the degree of the collaboration in planning and instruction (gardiner 32 stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies & robinson, 2009) and the formation of co-teaching relationship with ?co-respect and co-responsibility? (guise, habib, thiessen, & robbins, 2017, p. 372). roth and tobin (2004) presented a praxis of co-teaching and co-generative dialoguing that was particularly suited for analyzing complex practices and the nature of cooperating teacher and pre-service teacher?s debriefing. during type of dialoguing, both co-teachers engage in the discussion and collectively generate solutions to problems (scantleburg, gallo-fox, and wassell, 2008). according to roth and tobin (2004), co-generative dialoguing has potential for ?enlarging the subjective possibilit ies? and ?produces recommendations for concrete actions and change that teachers experience as an opening of their possibilit ies? (p. 175). the recent study from guise, habib, thiessen, and robbins (2017) proposed a continuum of the relationship between the cooperating teacher and the student teacher based on the degree of student teachers? involvement of co-teaching. according to the role of co-operating teachers in mentoring a pre-service teacher and power differentials of two parties involved, the co-teaching practices were observed fell into four categories? traditional student teaching, blended experience, forward momentum, and scaffold and grow. the first one involved mainly solo teaching and unidirectional learning, while the last one was framed as a social practice with a more equal power dynamic that allows both co-operating teacher and the student teacher to mutually engage in a co-generative dialogue and form a community of learners (guise, habib, thiessen, & robbins, 2017). arshavskaya (2014) argued that though the novices can obtain the on-the-spot critical emotional and professional support through the shared co-teaching and co-reflecting experiences with mentors, dialogues sometimes revealed certain contradictory beliefs, which the pre-service teachers continued to hold even at the end of the teaching practicum. as previous studies have indicated, educators in a co-teaching team use a variety of co-teaching strategies and the responsibilit ies of each team member varies (pancsofar & petroff, 2016; villa, thousand & nevin 2007), recent scholarship began to focus on the frequency of teacher candidates? use of co-teaching strategies and its variation among different grade levels or program areas. in stobaugh and gichuru?s study (2016), the researchers investigated how elementary, middle, and secondary student teachers engaged in different co-teaching models using self-reported data. the study examined student teachers? and cooperating teachers? perceptions of co-teaching. data showed there were no significant differences between the student teachers? and cooperating teachers? perceptions. the researchers pointed out that some of the previously proposed co-teaching model descriptions did not clearly reveal the experiences of student teachers. for instance, with the one teach, one observe model, the cooperating teacher could lead instruction while the student teacher observes or the student teacher could instruct with the cooperating teacher observes. specifically, stobaugh and gichuru (2016) refined the descriptions of one teach, one observe and one teach, one assist models and divided the descriptions of original two models into three: student teacher teaches alone (solo teaching)? the student teacher has the primary instructional responsibility while the cooperating teacher gathers specific observational information. (formerly one teach, one observe) student teacher observes? the cooperating teacher is the primary teacher while the student teacher gathers specific observational information. (formerly one teach, one observe) student teacher assists? the cooperating teacher has primary instructional responsibility of leading instruction while the student teacher assists students with their work, monitors behaviors, or corrects assignments. (formerly one teach, one assist) 33 stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies this revised instrument, utilized in this study, revealed the complexity of co-teaching models in the context of student-teaching. to further the understanding of the dynamics within a co-teaching union, more research on different aspects of the professional collaboration between student teachers and cooperating teachers is critically needed to precisely identify and address variables influencing co-teaching implementation at different grade levels. in all, despite the significance of collaboration between the cooperating teachers and teacher candidates, limited empirical attention has focused on teacher candidates? co-teaching experiences (shin, lee, & mckenna, 2015). to date, only the handful of studies mentioned above (pancsofar & petroff, 2016; stobaugh & gichuru, 2016; villa, thousand & nevin 2007), have specifically examined the frequency of student teachers? use of different co-teaching strategies and the variance among grade levels or program areas. this gap needs to be bridged to gain a more comprehensive picture of how co-teaching can be effectively implemented in classrooms and to maximize co-teaching effectiveness in teacher preparation programs and beginning teacher internship training present st udy cultural psychologists believe that people learn through participating in daily sociocultural activity (bruner, 1996; vygotsky, 1978). lave and wenger?s notion of situated learning (lave & wenger, 1991) and social constructivism (bruner, 1996; vygotsky, 1978) served as the theoretical framework for this study. lave and wenger (1991) offered a social practice theory and viewed learning as a situated activity, since ?learners inevitably participate in communities of practitioners and that mastery of knowledge and skill requires newcomers to move toward full participation in the sociocultural practice of a community? (p. 29). they introduced the notion of legitimate peripheral participation to describe how newcomers become experienced members of a community of practice or collaborative project. situated at the periphery of communities, social beings are not yet full members. they learn the culture and norms of the social group by observing and through apprenticeships. they become increasingly competent through their evolving participation and eventually gain membership or access to the community. this changing participation leads individuals to take on new identities that are necessarily bound up with new knowledge and skills (lave, 1996). student teaching is considered a form of apprenticeship and other teacher candidates are learning how to become experienced professionals through the collaborative relationship with cooperating teachers in a variety of education settings. in the current study, we employ lave and wenger?s (1991) notions of situated learning as a lens to examine teacher candidates? changing participating in co-teaching activities throughout their apprenticeship. this research study utilized survey results to determine student teachers' use of different co-teaching strategies prior to student teaching and during student teaching along with the comparison of the use of co-teaching strategies among student teachers? respective teacher education program areas such as elementary, middle, and secondary education. due to no statistically significant differences between the cooperating teachers? and student teachers? perceptions of co-teaching in (stobaugh & gichuru, 2016) this study focused exclusively on the student teachers? perspectives rather than both the student teachers? and cooperating teachers? perspectives. the following research questions guided this focus: 1. how do student teachers (as delineated by their respective program areas: elementary, middle grades, and secondary grades) differ in their use of the eight co-teaching strategies during student teaching? 2. how do student teachers (as delineated by their respective program areas: elementary, 34 stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies middle grades, and secondary grades) differ in their use of seven co-teaching strategies prior to student teaching compare to the use of strategies during student teaching? 3. how do student teachers (as delineated by their respective program areas: elementary, middle grades, and secondary grades) vary in their choices of seven co-teaching strategies during student teaching? met hod the teacher preparation program that provided the context for this study is a four-year bachelor program in a large, comprehensive, and public university in the southeastern region of the united states. as a part of the kentucky school statute, all teacher candidates are required to have 200 hours of clinical experience prior to student teaching. in addition, the state required all cooperating teachers who host student teachers to be trained in the various co-teaching approaches by 2013. kentucky administrative regulation 5:040 states that the educator preparation institution shall provide opportunities for the student teacher to assume major responsibility for the full range of teaching duties, including extended co-teaching experiences, in real school situations under the guidance of qualified personnel from the educator preparation institution and the cooperating elementary, middle, or high school. (kentucky administrative regulation, 2012) as result of this kentucky statute, the university trained all cooperating teachers, student teachers, and university teacher education faculty on the co-teaching model. before student teaching, teacher candidates utilize co-teaching strategies as they teach lessons, observe teachers leading instruction, lead small intervention groups, and assist teachers. during the student teaching semester, teacher candidates are placed throughout neighboring k-12 schools. prior to receiving their teaching certificate, student teachers must complete the final semester of coursework in this placement by working with their cooperating teachers who serve as their mentors to refine their teaching skills. at the time of data collection, all participants were enrolled in the culminating undergraduate teaching methods course offered through the school of teacher education during their student teaching semester. dat a collect ion and sam ple two sets of survey data were collected: (a) the pilot survey; and (b) the student teacher survey. the pilot survey, administered in the middle of the fall 2014 student teaching experience, aimed to present new labeling for the co-teaching strategies (see figure 1). student teachers were to identify the extent of their exposure and involvement by reporting the time spent on each co-teaching strategy. the pilot study used the revised eight co-teaching strategies proposed by stobaugh and gichuru (2016), including student teacher teaches alone (solo teaching), student teacher observes, student teacher assists, station teaching, parallel teaching, supplemental teaching, alternative teaching, and team teaching. participants identified their certification level: elementary, middle, or secondary. the survey then asked participants to identify the number of hours student teachers and cooperating teachers planned together per week from one to six hours. finally, participants were asked to assess the percentage of time they spent engaging in each of the seven co-teaching strategies from 0% to 100% in ten percent increments. as a reminder to the participants, the co-teaching strategies were defined at the bottom of the survey. the pilot survey was given only in fall 2014 to determine if the proposed eight co-teaching categories provided a richer data source to analyze the co-teaching practices of student teachers. the measures in the pilot study investigated whether there were any differences of co-teaching approaches over the course of teacher training. the intention was to examine the relationship between co-teaching strategies and different uses in program areas. 35 stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies the participants in the pilot student teacher survey included: elementary education (n=55), middle grades education (n=20), and secondary education (n=14) student teachers, with a total of 89 participants. the response rate was an acceptable 61%. the second set of data was collected through the student teacher survey (see figure 2). the student teacher survey is administered at the close of the student teaching semester, so all teacher candidates could reflect on their use of the co-teaching strategies in clinical experiences prior to their student teaching and during student teaching. completion of this survey was required by the teacher education department and has been in place for several years. an addition of co-teaching items to the survey occurred in 2012 to assess the level of co-teaching during student teaching. the survey, administered fall 2012 through spring 2016, represented four years of data. the seven co-teaching strategies used on the survey included: one teach, one observe; one teach, one assist; station teaching; parallel teaching; supplemental teaching; alternative teaching; and team teaching. student teachers were asked to evaluate the implementation of the co-teaching strategies both before and during student teaching using the following rubric indicators: extensive exposure? very comfortable with the model and successfully used it during student teaching (4 level); moderate exposure? somewhat comfortable with the model and tried to use it during student teaching (3 level); minimal exposure? not comfortable with the model and did not use it during student teaching (2 level); and none at all? limited or no exposure to the model (1 level). the participants in the student teacher survey included elementary education (n=567), middle grades education (n=148), and secondary education (n=316), for a total of 1,031 participants (table 1). the survey, administered fall 2012 through spring 2016, supplied four years of data. the response rate was slightly higher at 67% than the pilot survey response rate of 61%. table 1. characteristics of study samples var iables in the pilot survey, the co-teaching strategies were interval scales as participants were assessing the level of implementation of each model during the student teaching semester based on 10 percent increments. in the second instrument, the student teacher survey, the variable was also an interval scale, with student teachers rating from 1 to 4 on a rubric their level of implementation of each of the co-teaching strategies. analyses to answer the first research question, which used the pilot data, beta regressions were conducted (ferrari & cribari-neto, 2010). the dependent variable is a percentage at the individual response level which is inappropriate for a typical linear regression or analysis of variance-based (anova) model. the beta regression approach used a regression structure but assumed the dependent variable followed a beta distribution. this model incorporated the additional estimation of a parameter ? , or precision parameter, which related to the shape of the beta distribution best fitt ing the data. its? value is immaterial to 36 survey and number program area sample size pilot survey (n=89) elementary education 55 middle grades education 20 secondary education 14 student teacher survey (n=1031) elementary education 567 middle grades education 148 secondary education 316 stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies interpretation of results in this research project. with this approach, homoscedasticity or non-normality of residuals were irrelevant. outliers or multicollinearity could be problematic, but were not issues in this study. the betareg package (cribari-neto & zeileis, n.d.) in r software was used to estimate the beta regressions. the remaining research questions were answering using mixed anovas. mixed anovas included both repeated measures (preand post-ratings) and independent measures (program area). regression models were not appropriate because of the repeated measures. a multi-level model with time-point as level 1 could have been used, but the mixed anova was chosen in this case due to its greater simplicity. result s the results of the pilot survey addressed research question #1: how do student teachers (as delineated by their respective program areas: elementary grades, middle grades, secondary grades) differ in their use of the eight co-teaching strategies during student teaching? based on the pilot survey completed by student teachers in elementary (e), middle (m), and secondary (s), the highest percentages were in the same three co-teaching strategies: student teacher alone, student teacher assists, and team teaching (table 2). student teacher assists (e =21.1%; m=19%; s=18.8%) was the highest percentage for elementary student teachers. the co-teaching strategy student teacher alone (e=19.7%; m=23.5%; h=26.1%) was the highest percentage for secondary student teachers. for team teaching (e=16%; m=28%; h=21%), middle grades student teachers reported spending the most time utilizing this co-teaching strategy. there were negligible levels of parallel teaching and alternative teaching reported for all levels. table 2. pilot study percentage of student teacher use of strategy utilizing the pilot beta regression data displayed in table 3 below, the only statistically significant difference was between elementary and secondary student teachers on station teaching. elementary teachers reported higher levels of station teaching than secondary teachers. to answer research questions 2 and 3, mixed model anovas were used to examine the interaction between program area and seven co-teaching strategies for both the prior to student teaching and during student teaching data collections based on the end of the semester student teacher survey. in both cases, the anova assumption of sphericity was violated (greenhouse-geisser estimate, ? = .758, .803). this suggested that variances or covariances across groups may be non-equivalent, potentially leading inaccurate p-values and, therefore, wrong conclusions. a correction to the degrees of freedom, the huynh-feldt estimate, thus was used (field, 2013, p. 548) to assure p-values were accurate. 37 elementary middle high student teacher alone 19.7 23.5 26.1 student teacher observes 10.6 9.5 9.0 student teacher assists 21.1 19.0 18.8 station teaching 12.5 6.0 4.6 parallel teaching 4.4 5.5 4.4 supplemental teaching 12.0 5.5 11.7 alternative teaching 3.7 3.0 4.4 team teaching 16.0 28.0 21.0 stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies table 3. pilot beta regression 38 estimate std error z p-value student teacher alone intercept -1.187 0.088 -13.486 0 secondary vs. elementary 0.024 0.159 0.15 0.881 middle vs. elementary 0.139 0.208 0.671 0.502 phi 5.257 0.551 9.543 0 student teacher observe intercept -2.218 0.121 -18.306 0 secondary vs. elementary -0.259 0.242 -1.067 0.286 middle vs. elementary -0.088 0.181 -0.487 0.626 phi 4.856 0.617 7.875 0 student teacher assists intercept -1.333 0.072 -18.615 0 secondary vs. elementary -0.155 0.134 -1.155 0.248 middle vs. elementary -0.032 0.175 -0.184 0.854 phi 9.544 1.021 9.345 0 station teaching intercept -2.078 0.128 -16.229 0 secondary vs. elementary -0.793 0.25 -3.175 0.001 middle vs. elementary -0.733 0.189 -3.89 0 phi 3.882 0.523 7.428 0 estimate std error z p-value parallel teaching intercept -3.124 0.165 -18.979 0 secondary vs. elementary -0.066 0.186 -0.354 0.723 middle vs. elementary 0.248 0.245 1.013 0.311 phi 5.082 0.84 6.049 0 supplemental teaching intercept -2.01 0.102 -19.799 0 secondary vs. elementary -1.067 0.241 -4.427 0 middle vs. elementary -0.167 0.169 -0.991 0.322 phi 4.856 0.617 7.875 0 alternative teaching intercept -3.29 0.168 -19.598 0 secondary vs. elementary -0.079 0.245 -0.322 0.748 middle vs. elementary 0.086 0.185 0.464 0.643 phi 5.804 0.985 5.893 0 team teaching intercept -1.856 0.127 -14.594 0 secondary vs. elementary 0.276 0.193 1.431 0.152 middle vs. elementary 1.094 0.254 4.297 0 phi 2.695 0.314 8.569 0 stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies the prior to student teaching data indicated that the interaction was statistically significant (f (99.64, 18.34) = 9.569, p < .001). similarly, the interaction was statistically significant during student teaching (f (142.61,19.43) = 13.36, p < .001). these results suggest which co-teaching strategies were used more or less frequently varied by program areas and specifically provides results for research question #2: how do student teachers (as delineated by their respective program areas: elementary, middle grades, and secondary grades) differ in their use of co-teaching strategies prior to student teaching compared to the use of strategies during student teaching? the use of the one teach, one observe strategy increased in all program areas. all program areas reported mean ratings above 3.0 for the observe co-teaching strategy as student teachers reported consistently high use of this strategy for both prior to student teaching and during student teaching, thus the reasoning for the strategy resulting in (a) the most utilized strategy overall, and (b) the least increased strategy of all program areas. student teachers reported the one teach, one assist strategy as the second most utilized strategy overall. the use of this strategy increased from prior to student teaching to during student teaching. however, the gain was a minimal increase of a 1.6 supporting the interpretation that the assist strategy is frequently used throughout the undergraduate teacher education program as well as the student teaching experience. the largest increase in the assist strategy occurred in the mge program moving from a 3.1 to 3.7 with a gain of .6. eled student teachers increased their use of the station teaching strategy more than in any other program area with a rise of a .5 mean rating between prior to student and during student teaching. the mge and sec student teachers reported the least used strategy in both prior to student teaching and during student teaching. all program areas increased in the use of the parallel teaching from prior to student teaching to during student teaching. nevertheless, the parallel strategy was reported as the least used strategy overall. mean ratings for the parallel strategy remained below 3.0 in prior to student teaching and during student teaching in all program areas. student teachers in eled and mge programs exhibited more increase in the use of the supplemental teaching than the other program areas with mean ratings of 3.0 and 2.9, respectively. the supplemental strategy is reported as the second least used strategy overall with the parallel strategy remaining the least utilized co-teaching strategy. student teachers reported a low use of the alternative teaching in both prior to student teaching and during student teaching. this strategy rates as the third least used co-teaching strategy overall. there was, however, an increase in use from prior to student to during student teaching with a mean rating increase of 1.6. the use of the team teaching increased more than any of the other strategies in any program areas with a rise of 2.1. the eled program showed the most gains with a .5 increase in the use of the team strategy from prior to student teaching to during student teaching. the team strategy was the third most utilized strategy overall. research question #3 addressed: how do student teachers (as delineated by their respective program areas: elementary, middle grades, and secondary grades) relate to their choice of seven co-teaching strategies during student teaching? overall, student teachers reported the one teach, one observe strategy the most utilized strategy in all program areas with the one teach, one assist strategy rating the second most used. both the observe and assist strategies produced mean ratings of at least 3.5 and above in all program areas. the eled student teachers utilized observe and assist more than any of the other strategies with each strategy resulting in a mean rating of 3.5. the parallel strategy was the least employed strategy by eled student teachers with a mean rating of 2.7. 39 stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies the mge program indicated that one teach, one assist strategy was the most used with meaning ratings of 3.7. the least used strategies in the mge program was the supplemental strategy with a 2.7 mean rating. the sec program data revealed similar results as observe and assist were the most used strategies with 3.6 and 3.5 mean rating and parallel was the least used strategy during student teaching by sec student teachers with a mean of rating of 2.5. the sec program student teachers made the least use of the supplemental strategy when compared to the other program areas with a mean rating of 2.6. in addition, the sec program utilized the alternative co-teaching strategy less than the other program areas with a mean rating of 2.7. discussion this research study examined the frequency of student teacher use of co-teaching strategies along with the variance of the strategies among teacher education program areas. the purpose was to gain insight on how co-teaching strategies could be more effectively implemented in (a) student teaching experience, (b) p-12 classrooms, and (c) teacher preparation programs. finally, as expected with each teacher education initiative, the goal was to contribute to improved student achievement in p-12 classrooms (willis, 2015). the three research questions provided a focus for the data collection and analysis as well as a lens to determine study outcomes. the research questions are reviewed below along with the discussion relevant to each question. the first research question related to student teachers (as delineated by program areas) and their use of the eight co-teaching strategies during student teaching as measured by the pilot survey results. in stobaugh and gichuru?s study (2016), student teachers at all grade levels engaged primarily in one teach-one observe, one teach-one assist, and team teaching. by using the eight versus the seven co-teaching strategies, the pilot survey revealed a clearer picture of student teachers? actions. comparing the data from stobaugh and gichuru?s research (2016) with the pilot study results, revealed that student teachers engaged in less observation. so, perhaps the higher numbers for the one teach-one observe strategy in stobaugh and gichuru?s study (2016) represented a mixture of the cooperating teacher observing with the student teacher teaching and other times the student teacher observing with the cooperating teacher teaching. with the extensive number of clinical hours required prior to student teaching, student teachers should be spending few hours observing, unless those are targeted observations such as observing questioning skills or discipline strategies. the new co-teaching strategy student teacher alone included in the pilot survey revealed a clear picture of the percentage of time student teachers led instruction. when the co-teaching model was first introduced, many cooperating teachers had concerns over whether student teachers would be adequately prepared to lead their own classroom if they continually had support from the cooperating teacher. the pilot survey data revealed that in all levels, approximately one-fourth of the student teachers? time was spent teaching alone, thus independently utilizing necessary skills to lead classroom instruction and handle classroom management issues. in both the pilot study and stobaugh and gichuru?s research study (2016), results indicated high levels of team teaching and was reported as one of most effective strategies with a classroom teacher and a student teacher collaborating, learning from one another, and advancing as professionals (murawski, & dieker, 2004). additionally, in both the current study and stobaugh and gichuru?s research (2016), alternative and parallel teaching were used infrequently. kloo and zigmond (2008) recommended the use of a variety of co-teaching strategies including more advanced co-teaching strategies such as alternative and parallel, which often require advanced training to understand the best ways utilize the strategies (mastropieri et al., 2005). the second and third research questions 40 stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies measured how student teachers differ in their use of the co-teaching strategies prior to student teaching compared to the use of co-teaching strategies during student teaching as noted in hartnett, weed, mccoy, theiss, and nickens (2013), a traditional model of student teaching includes classroom observations by the student teacher with more instructional responsibilit ies added to the student teacher?s role with the progression of time. therefore, it should not be surprising that the co-teaching strategy, one teach, one observe, increased in all program areas from prior to student teaching to during student teaching. the survey items did not afford student teachers the opportunity to indicate the role of the student teacher while utilizing the observe strategy, that is if the student teacher was observing the cooperating teacher or was the person being observed [name deleted to maintain the integrity of the review process]. however, the results revealed that the observe strategy is the most used strategy overall and its historical use must play a part in the frequency of its use. these results supported scruggs, mastropieri, and mcduffie?s (2007) findings by indicating the one teach, one assist strategy as the most frequently used co-teaching strategy both prior to student teaching and during student teaching. according to keeley (2015), teachers utilizing the assist strategy in a co-teaching model research study perceived the strategy as the easiest co-teaching strategy to implement, which could contribute to the frequent use of the strategy identified in this study. notable, though, were keeley?s (2015) findings through the student responses that one teach, one assist did not improve learning when compared to station teaching, parallel teaching, or team teaching. the mge student teachers reported an increase in use of the assist strategy from prior to student teaching to during student teaching. during student teaching, mge teachers seem to be either team teaching, solo teaching, or assisting. there is less utilization of the other co-teaching strategies to support diverse learning needs. student teachers in the eled program reported use of the station strategy both prior to and during student teaching. this is not a surprising result as early childhood programs have utilized stations, or its variation mostly known as learning centers, for many years (lara-cinisomo, fuligni, daugherty, howes, & karoly, 2009). the mge and sec student teachers reported a low use of station teaching. typically, stations or its variations, are not used as often in the secondary program as in early learning programs such as elementary. elementary teachers must provide developmentally appropriate learning experiences for students and stations are effective methods to do so. the mge and sec students can learn at more independent levels, thus the apparent need for stations or centers may not seem as necessary as for early learners. however, the opportunity to differentiate instruction through the co-teaching station strategy should not be overlooked by any grade level. the results revealed the parallel teaching as the least used strategy overall. the parallel co-teaching strategy requires more planning and collaboration between co-teachers than some of the other co-teaching strategies. due to the nature of the strategy, co-teachers must know the learning needs of students as well as ways to differentiate content to implement the parallel strategy effectively. it is possible that the cooperating teachers may need more training on this strategy to collaborate effectively with the student teacher [name deleted to maintain the integrity of the review process]. supplemental teaching requires one co-teacher to work with a group of students at grade level, while the other co-teacher supplements the content through reteaching, remediation, or extension (st. cloud university, 2009). it is somewhat surprising that student teachers reported the supplemental co-teaching strategy as one of the least utilized strategy both prior to student teaching and during student teaching. a reason for the lack of implementation of the supplemental strategy could be a lack of co-teachers? understanding of how to 41 stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies prepare for and implement this strategy. another reason for the lack of implementation might be that the planning time for the supplemental strategy could be more involved than some of other co-teaching strategies, therefore, cooperating teachers may not be able to devote extra time for planning and collaboration with the student teacher. alternative teaching is another strategy in which student teachers reported minimal use in both prior to student teaching and during student teaching. the alternative or differentiated co-teaching strategy includes two different approaches to teaching the same content with the same learning outcomes for all students (st. cloud university, 2009). a possible rationale for the low use of this strategy would be like the low use of parallel and supplemental co-teaching: (a) lack of training, (b) more time required for preparation, and (c) lack of initial training in the co-teaching strategy model for both the student and cooperating teachers. the results indicated that team teaching increased more than any other strategy in all program areas, which could indicate a positive outcome from the 2013 mandated co-teaching training for all cooperating teachers. moreover, due to the state?s high stakes accountability assessment system (kentucky department of education, 2017), cooperating teachers could be hesitant to ?turn over their classroom? to the less experienced student teacher, thus, employing the team teaching strategy, which would afford the cooperating teacher and the student teacher to be equal parts of the teaching and learning process with the cooperating teacher still able to support the student teacher?s professional growth. lim it at ions there are several limitations with the present study. although we have a sufficiently large sample size, the participants were from one university, which limits the generalizability of the findings. another limitation is the lack of prior research on this topic. many teacher education programs utilize the special education model of co-teaching; however, this study focused on student teachers in a variety of program areas rather than exclusively focusing on the special education and general education teaching pair. we examined the co-teaching model through student teachers enrolled in three program areas. additionally, this data is self-reported data which was not independently verified. self-reported data has some negative aspects including participants having selective memory or exaggeration. fut ure research the purpose of this study was to gain insight on how co-teaching strategies could be more effectively implemented in student teaching, p-12 classrooms, teacher preparation programs, and first year teacher internship programs. maintaining the study?s purpose, future research could focus on utilizing the pilot study?s eight co-teaching strategies. this instrument identified the level of time student teachers are teaching alone and assisting to obtain a clear sense of student teachers? actions in the clinical experience. this concentration may inspire researchers to evaluate the strategies in and among themselves that is to examine exactly how the strategies are implemented in ways to differentiate instruction and assessment and better meet student learning needs. building on this study, additional research may be done exploring the reasons for the increase in the assist strategy for mge student teachers. this could help identify ways to support student teachers as a move to more sophisticated co-teaching strategies. additionally, future research can investigate ways the co-teachings strategies are implemented in the teacher education programs using developmentally appropriate practices prior to student teaching. for example, early learners enrolled in introductory education courses could begin with stobaugh and gichuru?s (2016) student teacher observes and student teacher assists strategies. 42 stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies moreover, university faculty may consider a heavier emphasis on the team teaching co-teaching strategy in the undergraduate teacher education clinical experiences to better prepare teacher candidates for the use of the strategy throughout the student teaching semester. the cooperating teachers may benefit from 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(2001). current practice alerts: a focus on co-teaching. use with caution. dld alerts, 6, 1-4. 45 stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies figure 1. pilot student teacher survey wku co-teaching mid-point checkpoint student teacher form 46 student teacher?s name: school name: level: (preschool, ele, ms, hs) how many hours a week do you co-plan with your teacher? circle the number of hours below. 1 hour 2 hours 3 hours 4 hours 5 hours 6 or more hours what percentage of the time are you engaged in each of the co-teaching strategies? make sure your total amount of time equals 100%.for example, 50% team teaching and 50% alternative (50 + 50 = 100). student teacher teaches alone (solo teaching) 0 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% student teacher observes 0 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% student teacher assists 0 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% station teaching 0 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% parallel teaching 0 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% supplemental 0 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% alternative 0 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% team teaching 0 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% co-teaching strategies st udent teacher teaches alone (solo teaching)? the student teacher has the primary instructional responsibility while the cooperating teacher gathers specific observational information.(one teach, one observe) st udent teacher observes-the cooperating teacher is the primary teacher while the student teacher gathers specific observational information.(one teach, one observe) st udent teacher assist s? the cooperating teacher has primary instructional responsibility of leading instruction while the student teacher assists students? with their work, monitors behaviors, or corrects assignments.(one teach, one assist) st at ion teaching? the cooperating teacher and student teacher divide the instructional content into parts. each teacher instructs one of the groups, then the groups rotate. parallel teaching?the cooperating teacher and student teacher instruct half the students.the two teachers are addressing the same instructional material and presenting the material using the same teaching strategies. supplem ent al?the cooperating teacher and student teacher plan and implement a task/activity where one teacher works with students at their expected grade level, while the other teacher works with those students who need the information and/or materials extended or remediated. alt ernat ive?the cooperating teacher and student teacher plan and implement two different approaches to teaching the same information.the learning outcome is the same for all students however the avenue for getting there is different. team teaching?well planned, team taught lessons, exhibit an invisible flow of instruction with no prescribed division of authority between the cooperating teacher and student teacher.using a team teaching strategy, both teachers are actively involved in the lesson.from a students? perspective, there is no clearly defined leader ? as both teachers share the instruction, are free to interject information, and available to assist students and answer questions. stobaugh & everson | student teacher engagement in co-teaching strategies figure 2. student teacher survey co-teaching models one teach, one observe: one teacher has the primary responsibility while the other gathers specific observational information on students or the instructing teacher. the key to this strategy is to have a focus for observation. one teach, one assist: one teacher has primary instructional responsibility, while the other assists students with their work, monitors behaviors, or corrects assignments. station teaching: the co-teaching pair divides the instructional content into parts and the students into groups. groups spend a designated amount of time at each station. parallel teaching: each teacher instructs half the students, addressing the same instructional materials and presents the material using the same teaching strategy. supplemental teaching: one teacher works with students at their expected grade level while the other teacher works with those students who need the information and/or materials re-taught, extended, or remediated. ·lternative or differentiated teaching: provides students with different approaches to learning the same information. team teaching: well-planned, team-taught lessons with no prescribed division of authority. quest ion 1: to what extent were you were exposed to the co-teaching models during your coursework and field experiences pr ior t o student teaching experience? quest ion 2: to what extent were exposed to the co-teaching models dur ing your student teaching experience? extensive exposure moderate exposure minimal exposure none at all very comfortable with the model and my ability to use it during student teaching somewhat comfortable with the model and was ready to use it during student teaching not comfortable with the model and would not use it during student teaching limited or no exposure to the model one teach, one observe 4 3 2 1 one teach, one assist 4 3 2 1 station teaching 4 3 2 1 parallel teaching 4 3 2 1 supplemental teaching 4 3 2 1 alternative or differentiated teaching 4 3 2 1 team teaching 4 3 2 1 extensive exposure moderate exposure minimal exposure none at all very comfortable with the model and successfully used it during student teaching somewhat comfortable with the model and tried to use it during student teaching not comfortable with the model and did not use it during student teaching limited or no exposure to the model one teach, one observe 4 3 2 1 one teach, one assist 4 3 2 1 station teaching 4 3 2 1 parallel teaching 4 3 2 1 supplemental teaching 4 3 2 1 alternative or differentiated teaching 4 3 2 1 team teaching 4 3 2 1 47 stobaugh 2019 proof final page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 page 9 page 10 page 11 page 12 page 13 page 14 page 15 page 16 page 17 page 18 nerren & hasbun proof with author edits.pdf educational renaissance vol. 7 (2018) collaborat ion and connect ions: invest igat ing t he use of teacher candidat e-creat ed prot ocols t o connect research t o classroom pract ice in an educat or preparat ion program jannah ner ren, phd. sam houston state university, college of education email: jannahnerren@shsu.edu tracey covingt on hasbun, phd. stephen f. austin state university, james i. perkins college of education email: tlcovington@sfasu.edu feature article int roduct ion numerous studies have been conducted on the importance of teachers being knowledgeable about research-based practices and how to use that research to guide their instruction in the classroom (buysse & wesley 2006; henderson, meier, perry, & stremmel, 2012; hoppey, morewood, & bolyard, 2010). there are also several studies that show the positive effects that research-based instruction has on student achievement (marzano, pickering, & pollock, 2001). winton, buysse, rous, lim, & epstein (2012) stated that while evidence-based practices are important strategies to use in instruction, they should be integrated with ?practitioner experience and deeply held beliefs with research findings in ways that inform decisions and actions? (p. 6). this integration takes skill, experience, and expertise in many areas. while a veteran teacher might not find this difficult, it could be problematic for pre-service teachers or teacher candidates, who are just beginning to gain experience in the classroom and an understanding of research and theory. while pre-service teachers or teacher candidates may learn about researchbased practices in their college classrooms, they are not always placed in field experience or clinical placement sites where abst ract this study investigated the effects of using teacher candidate-created observation protocols based on current research on classroom practices to connect research to practice. the study examined the extent to which mentor teachers modeled current research-based practices as measured by the protocols and explored the frequency with which the practices were observed. findings indicated that teacher candidates had a positive experience applying research to practice, that utilization of the protocols created an awareness of best practices being used, and the importance of individualizing the practices to meet student needs. individualization of utilization based on mentor teacher personalities was also observed and many practices the teacher candidates selected were utilized in the mentor classrooms, particularly in the areas of lesson planning and reading instruction. nerren & hasbun| 2 collaboration and connections they can observe or use research-based practices. this is particularly concerning as, while some aspects of the knowledge necessary for becoming a teacher can be taught in college classrooms, several decades of research indicate that a number of crucial elements of professional practice can only be learned in the context of the classroom under the guidance of a strong mentor (ball & cohen, 1999; feiman-nemser, 2010). to further complicate matters, even for the pre-service teachers or teacher candidates that are placed with strong mentor teachers, identifying research-based practices in action can be difficult (roehrig, duggar, moats, glover, & mincey, 2008). some of the literature on the topic indicates that many pre-service teachers or teacher candidates are unable to distinguish when a mentor teacher is using the most effective practices (roehrig, et al., 2008). finding a way to help pre-service teachers or teacher candidates become familiar with research-based practices, identify those practices in action, and then discuss what they did or did not see modeled is one way to begin bridging the gap from research to practice with these novice educators. theoret ical fram ework while several theoretical frameworks could be applied to the area of pre-service teachers or teacher candidates learning to connect research to practice through self-created protocols, observation, and modeling by mentors, this study is based upon bandura?s social cognitive theory (bandura, 1977; bandura, 1986) and portions of kolb?s experiential learning theory (1984). social cognitive theory (bandura, 1977; bandura, 1986) emphasizes the idea that learning occurs in a social context, particularly through observation, and that an individual?s continuous functioning or learning is due to ongoing interaction between behavioral, cognitive, and contextual elements. this relates to the observations and social contexts in which teacher candidates in this study were engaged. kolb?s experiential learning theory (1984) presents a cyclical model of learning in which participants engage in an experience, observe and reflect, abstractly conceptualize, and then test in new situations. in this study, teacher candidates actively engaged by reading research-based articles and creating an observation protocol. they then observed their mentor teacher with the protocol and reflected upon and discussed the elements they saw, or did not see, in practice. finally, they were asked to conceptualize answers to questions such as why do you think this action was not observed, why do you think this action was observed the most, and why do you think this action was observed the least. they were not asked to complete the fourth step in kolb?s (1984) cycle during this study. however, it is important to note that many teacher candidates informally stated that they applied the fourth step by implementing research-based practices in their own lessons that were or were not modeled by the mentor teacher. purpose of t he st udy in the current study, teacher candidates were asked to read current research on best practices for elementary classroom teaching, to create observation protocols based on the information they deemed most important in the readings, and then to observe in assigned elementary classrooms for use of the research-based practices by classroom teachers. the study sought to immerse teacher candidates in current research-based readings, to have the candidates think critically about the research to determine key themes, to use this information to collaboratively create observation protocols, and then to subsequently observe the practices and /or strategies of mentor teachers in field experience classrooms to connect the readings to classroom practice. the purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of having teacher candidates collaboratively create observation protocols based on assigned readings of current research on classroom practices, in order to connect research to practice. in addition, the study examined the extent to which mentor teachers modeled current research-based practices as measured by teacher nerren & hasbun| 3 collaboration and connections candidate-created observation protocols. finally, the study explored which areas of research-based practices were observed the most and the least. research quest ions the following research questions will be addressed in the present study: 1. what are the effects of this project on teacher candidates? ability to connect research to classroom practice? 2. to what extent are mentor teachers modeling current research-based practices as measured by teacher candidate-created observation protocols? 3. which areas of research-based practices are observed the most? 4. which areas of research-based practices are observed the least? lit erat ure review research-based pract ices and ef fect s the importance of using research-based practices in teaching or instruction is well documented in the literature (buysse & wesley 2006; henderson et al., 2012; hoppey et al., 2010). in content areas such as reading and mathematics, evidence-based learning has been noted to be of value (committee on the prevention of reading difficulties in young children & the national research council, 1998; u.s. department of education, 2009). evidence-based practices have also been shown to be beneficial with english language learners, students with disabilit ies, and students who are identified as gifted and/or talented (august & hakuta, 1997; vaughn, klingner, & hughes, 2000). repeatedly, studies have shown the positive effects that research-based instruction has on students and on student achievement (marzano et al., 2001). the use of research-based practices is particularly important in the early grades, as it is often a student?s first entry into formal schooling. young children are often learning to read, write, and lay the foundation for future learning and, thus, it is critical that students are taught in a developmentally appropriate way and that teachers have knowledge of what is appropriate (head start, 2008; piaget, 1972; vygotsky, 1978). the national association for the education of young children (naeyc) supports this idea and writes that, ?research gives early childhood practitioners and policymakers essential knowledge to use in making decisions on behalf of young children and families? (2015, p.1). however, they also note that the research should be used in combination with the ?wisdom and values of professionals and families? (naeyc, 2015, p.1). integrating research, values, and wisdom takes experience and skill, which can be a challenge for pre-service teachers or teacher candidates, due to their limited experiences with research and classroom practice. research-based pract ices w it h teacher candidat es classroom lect ure and placem ent s. it would be fair to say that in most, if not all, teacher preparation programs in higher education, pre-service teachers, and teacher candidates are receiving classroom instruction in theory and how children learn best. historically, pre-service teacher education programs have used what zeichner (2010) refers to as an ?application of theory model? (p. 90). in this model, teacher candidates learn theory in a college classroom and then are expected to apply that theory in school classrooms. this could be a positive situation if the teacher candidates are placed with skilled and fully trained mentors who are informed with current, evidence-based practices and who can use his or her wisdom and values to make the best decisions for children and who then allow the teacher candidate to practice and receive feedback on those practices (naeyc, 2015). unfortunately, that is not always the case. in some teacher preparation programs, candidates may receive ample information on theory and nerren & hasbun| 4 collaboration and connections evidence-based practices in the college classroom but may receive very litt le opportunity to observe and apply those theories and practices before they are responsible for a classroom of students (zeichner, 2010). for those teacher candidates that are spending an adequate portion of their preparation in elementary classrooms where research-based practices are used, research has shown that identifying research-based strategies in action can be difficult for pre-service teachers or teacher candidates (roehrig, et al., 2008). it requires practice and support. regardless if teacher candidates complete pre-service teacher education programs that have field or clinical experiences before becoming fully responsible for classrooms or not, there is no guarantee that the field or clinical preparation is of high quality, nor if it has supported the level of professional learning that is needed in order for teachers to be successful (valencia, martin, place, & grossman, 2009). once a pre-service teacher or teacher candidate has mastered the craft of identifying effective practices, they are not always afforded the opportunity to observe, practice, and receive feedback on the practices that the teacher preparation program intends for them to acquire (zeichner, 2010). in some field experience or clinical placement settings, universities may have minimal sites from which to select, due to location. this could limit the number of suitable mentor teachers available, leaving programs to place teacher candidates with mentors who may not use research-based practices, may not be as experienced as they had hoped, or may not even have the desire to mentor teacher candidates. in fact, regardless of location, teacher candidates are often placed in classrooms with mentor teachers who are not knowledgeable on the subject matter that the teacher preparation program intends for the candidates to learn (zeichner, 2010). this creates conflict as it is important that teacher candidates understand research-based practices, be able to observe and identify those practices, and, eventually, be given considerable time to implement those practices. act ion research. one possible way to assist teacher candidates in becoming more familiar with the use of and practice in research-based strategies is through action research. according to the association for supervision and curriculum development (ascd), action research is ?is a disciplined process of inquiry conducted by and for those taking the action. the primary reason for engaging in action research is to assist the ?actor? in improving and/or refining his or her actions? (ascd, 2015, p.1). the idea of action research by classroom teachers in collaboration with other stakeholders, be that university partnerships, teacher candidates, or community activists, is an important part of educational research (cochran smith & lytle, 2009; price, 2001). it has been noted that action research can be particularly important in promoting reflective practice and educational change (price, 2001). however, there is limited research involving pre-service teachers or teacher candidates using research to inform their own individual experiences in field or clinical placements (cochransmith & lytle, 2009; price, 2001). what is documented is the critical nature of teacher candidates being data literate, knowledgeable about research-based practices, and able to understand how to use this information to guide their instruction (hoppey, et al., 2010). noffke (1995) noted that action research ?carries with it the dual potential of helping preservice. . . teachers to seek alternatives to current practice and also of helping them reproduce what already exists? (p. 7). this is important for two reasons. first, if a teacher candidate is placed with a skilled mentor who implements the use of research-based strategies, the candidate can use this action research to help him or her replicate what is seen in the field or clinical placement site. second, if the teacher candidate, does not have the opportunity to observe a skilled mentor who is using research-based practices in their field or clinical placement sites, he or she can reflect on what is observed through the research and seek answers as to why or why not those practices are observed, how he or she can prevent that from nerren & hasbun| 5 collaboration and connections happening in their own practice, and how those practices can be replaced by more effective alternatives. ross and kyle (1990) agree that it is necessary for teacher candidates to engage in educational research and to develop the ability to use and reflect on conflicting research findings. this study is an attempt to further contribute to this line of inquiry. met hodology this was a qualitative pilot study involving nine mentor teachers and fourteen teacher candidates serving as participants. mentor teachers are defined in this project as classroom teachers in p-12 settings who mentor undergraduate teacher candidates seeking educator certification. in this case, the mentor teachers were elementary teachers working with teacher candidates seeking early childhood through grade 6 (ec-6) certification in the state of texas. all mentor teachers in the study were female and ranged in age from mid-20s to mid40s. the mentor teachers had an average of 12 years? experience and served as mentor teachers to teacher candidates enrolled at a local university. the mentor teachers all served on one elementary school campus, located in rural east texas. the elementary school is located in a district that had 1753 students enrolled (texas education agency, 2013a) in 2011. the elementary campus housed 525 students in the 2011-2012 academic year, received recognized status by the texas education agency (tea) in 2011, and served the following student populations: 3.2% african american, 5.1% hispanic, 87.6% white, 1.5% american indian, .4% asian, and 2.1% two or more races (tea, 2012). at the time of the study, the campus was listed as being 61.5% economically disadvantaged (tea, 2012). the study was conducted in the 2012-2013 academic year, making the information noted above pertinent and relevant as it reflects the demographics of the school at the time. the teacher candidates were all enrolled at a regional, accredited university, located 40 miles from the elementary campus where the study took place. the university is located in rural east texas and served 12,702 students in 2011-2012 academic year (stephen f. austin state university, 2015). the college of education, the largest college on the campus, served over 4,000 students during 2011-2012 (stephen f. austin state university, 2015). the teacher candidates serving as participants were elementary education (ec-6) majors in the second semester of their junior year. all were enrolled in their first field experience course, entitled practicum i. these teacher candidates enrolled in practicum i were assigned to the elementary campus involved in the study at their registration for practicum i. they had no prior knowledge of the study and participated in the study as an assignment for the course. all teacher candidate participants were female and were traditional college students in their early 20s at the time of the study. practicum i requires teacher candidates to observe and engage with the mentor teacher and elementary students in their classrooms two hours per day, 4 days per week, under the guidance of a university professor and the mentor teacher. at the onset of the project, teacher candidates were randomly paired into research dyads. each teacher candidate was tasked with reading a series of current literature from research journals on best practices in elementary classrooms. the researchers on the topics of classroom management, lesson planning, reading instruction, writing assessment, and classroom environment carefully selected the articles. each topic was researched and observed individually for approximately two weeks, to allow teacher candidates to focus on each topic individually. after each teacher candidate read the assigned journal articles per topic, they then worked within the dyads to discuss the readings and collaborate to create observation protocols containing what they found to be the critical pieces of information. the protocols were constructed entirely by the teacher candidates and varied from dyad to dyad, based upon their own interpretation of what they found to be the most critical elements. the teacher candidates then used the protocols in the nerren & hasbun| 6 collaboration and connections classrooms to identify the utilization of the research-based practices. each individual teacher candidate used their created protocols to observe within their assigned classroom for use of the practices they included in the protocols on a daily basis as they completed their assigned time. each topic was observed for an average of six to eight class days. at the conclusion of two to three observation periods, the teacher candidates were randomly divided into two focus groups (n=7) to discuss their observations. each focus group was led through a series of semi-structured questions facilitated by a principle investigator. each focus group session was held within one class period and lasted approximately one hour. the focus group questions were created by the investigators and addressed the creation of the protocols, the selection of the elements included on the protocols, the frequency with which the elements were observed, and the teacher candidates? thoughts about the process. the semistructured questions were designed to gauge the participants understanding of the research, the frequency with which they observed (or did not observe) the research-based practices in the elementary classrooms, and their ability to connect the research and practice. each focus group was recorded and transcribed. result s focus group data from this pilot study were coded and analyzed for themes in the participants? responses to the semi-structured questions (see table 1, below, for analysis codes) and produced results that indicate a strong positive response by the teacher candidates to the use of research-based observation protocols as an effective means to connect current research to practice. while the findings indicated variability in the amount of current research-based practices being used in the classrooms in which the observations took place, the results indicate the use of the candidate-created protocols provide a useful catalyst for connecting best practices theory to actual classroom practice, as well as prompt teacher candidate reflection on why or why not best practices are employed. see table 1 for the codes and examples that were utilized for transcript analysis. table 1 codes and examples for transcript analysis research quest ions answered the specific themes that were identified for each of the semi-structured research questions were applied to the corresponding research questions. the pages of transcripts from the focus group sessions provided rich detail into the teacher candidates perspectives on the effects of the codes exam ples mentor teacher models current research-based practices. classroom size, positive relations, consistency, mobility, concrete examples mentor teacher does not model current research-based practices. not utilizing space, attention to mobility issues, language beliefs on factors contributing to low frequency of observed practices. time-consuming, planning issues, scheduling beliefs on factors contributing to high frequency of observed practices. no examples. useful information learned from developing the protocol. what not to do, don?t get complacent least observed-trends/patterns what mentor teacher doesn?t do most observed ? trends/patterns. repeated, same worksheets/monotonous elements selected for protocols list; relevant reading topics reasons cited for selection of elements seen as most important; want in classroom nerren & hasbun| 7 collaboration and connections project on their own learning, the extent to which mentor teachers were utilizing the best-practices that the teacher candidates found to be most important from the readings, and the frequency with which the practices were observed. research quest ion 1. what are the effects of this project on teacher candidates? ability to connect research to classroom practice? the overarching findings for this question indicated that teacher candidates had an overall positive experience utilizing the protocols to observe for best practices. results indicated that this was because of the specificity of the practices for which they were observing. focus group questions revealed that the process of reading the research individually, collaborating with a partner to discuss shared ideas about the important elements, and then observing for those specifically identified elements gave a purpose to their daily classroom observations, and heavily influenced the ways in which they saw the day-to-day classroom operations. the focus group discussions indicated that by utilizing observation protocols with self-selected items from the research provided the candidates the opportunity to seek out best practices and to turn their focus away from thinking about what they themselves should be doing in the classroom, but rather to take full advantage of being placed in classrooms where they could seek out and observe first-hand best practices in action, or when these were not observed in action, to think more critically about why that might be the case. as one candidate stated ?i didn?t know to look for what i didn?t know.? it was also discovered that utilization of the protocols created an awareness of the best practices being used, but also shed light on the importance of individualizing the practices to meet student needs. additionally, a theme emerged that indicated the teacher candidates saw the utilization of the best-practices as influenced by the differing personalities of the mentor teachers. the project indicated that many of the practices that the teacher candidates selected for their protocols were being used in the mentor classrooms. these were most heavily seen in the areas of writing instruction, assessment, and classroom environment. another important finding related to the effects of the project on teacher candidates was the topic areas that were most heavily observed during the project. teacher candidates reflected more on their observations in the areas of classroom environment, assessment, and writing instruction, indicating a greater awareness of the practices in these areas being used in the classrooms. see table 2 for candidates? observations to address the question: what are the effects of this project on teacher candidates? ability to connect research to classroom practice? table 2 candidates? ability to connect research to classroom practice research-based pract ices observat ion classroom management consistency in routine and expectations reinforce a positive student teacher relationship maintain a healthy balance of authority figure and friendship lesson planning what not to do in the classroom utilize educational energizers tailor lesson plans for students give students the opportunity to ask questions reading protocols importance of peer reading and discussion opportunity for different groups: guided group, paired students, individual reading introduce vocabulary concepts ask many questions for gauging comprehension writing protocols teach writing throughout the day guided writing provide lots of encouragement provide the chance for students to share what they are writing make connections to what is being written to the child?s life nerren & hasbun| 8 collaboration and connections table 2 (continued) research quest ion 2. to what extent are mentor teachers modeling current research-based practices as measured by teacher candidate-created observation protocols? the focus group sessions indicated that the teacher candidates observed many of the best practices from the literature. especially important to the teacher candidates was the fact that they were able to see these practices from the readings in concrete, tangible ways. while the results indicated a higher number of best-practice observations in some areas than in others, as one would expect, it was a positive finding to see that some measure of current best practices from the literature was being modeled, to some extent, in every area identified and included on the protocols. additionally, it was interesting to note from the focus group discussions, that the candidates felt strongly that teacher personality was a key factor in influencing the frequency of best practices being utilized, and in what ways. this was important to the candidates, as it caused them to reflect on their own personalities and tendencies when thinking to their own future use of strategies once in the role of classroom teacher rather than pre-service teacher. again, while all techniques were modeled and observed to some extent, research questions 3 and 4 indicate how the extent of usage was distributed. as one might expect, there was minimal usage of some techniques, and more extensive usage of others. see table 3 for candidates? observations to address the question: to what extent are teachers modeling current research-based practices as measured by teacher candidate-created observation protocol? table 3 teachers? modeling of current research-based practices research-based pract ices observat ion classroom environment possible to make do with what you have flexibility is key you can never have enough items on the wall you can never have enough books student teachers more aware of what to look for in a classroom research-based pract ices observat ion classroom management consistency in demands positive teacher interaction healthy balance of nurture and control lesson planning lesson presented in a multisensory way visual aids at every center introduce new weekly topic with anecdote, cartoon, parts of drama, or story movement (physical) repetition with ar books different lessons may be presented in the same format reading protocols exposure to expository text ar books continually engaged in discussions after reading teacher asks questions for comprehension teacher connects the lesson for real life perspective multiple opportunities to engage in reading writing protocols teachers model and prompt students then step back daily journal writing handwriting practice assists students in writing assignments and provides feedback teacher scaffolds and guides them through their thinking teacher assessment journal writing every day running records of each student (notes of progress) teacher provides descriptive feedback teacher engages students in lesson topics and provides constructive feedback nerren & hasbun| 9 collaboration and connections table 3 (continued) research quest ion 3. which areas of research-based practices are observed the most? the area that was indicated as having the greatest amount of best-practice modeling was in the area of reading instruction. teacher candidates cited multiple examples of reading practices that were exemplified in the research articles. additionally, lesson planning was highly referenced as a practice that was on-target with the literature. writing instruction was the third highest in the frequency of observed best practices, with assessment and classroom environment being almost equal in comparison. see table 5 for candidates? observations to address the question: which areas of research-based practices are observed the most? table 4 research-based practices observed the most table 4 (continued) research quest ion 4. which areas of research-based practices are observed the least? the element that was observed the least in a positive correlation to the literature was the area of classroom management. the references in the transcripts regarding classroom management were interesting, in that the teacher candidates gleaned much practical information regarding classroom management to include on the observation protocols but were unable to see the best practices fully modeled in the classrooms. see table 6 for candidates? observations to address the question: which areas of research-based practices are observed the least? research-based observat ion classroom environment multipurpose functioning spaces daily routine to promote student learning organized and well-structured classroom print rich environment research-based pract ices observat ion classroom management classroom management signal system did not observe the neglectful parenting style lesson planning use of manipulatives frequent mobility alternative ways for demonstrating mastery of objectives transitions tailoring lesson to specific groups of learners research-based pract ices observat ion reading protocols teaching instruction then talk about content teacher as facilitator without imposing own interpretations assessing for comprehension peer reading writing protocols collaborative writing students being taught how to write provision of mental, linguistic, and physical tools small group work sharing activity field trip sources teacher assessment formative assessment equal use of formative and summative assessment involving students in the assessment practice gathering evidence of each child's work classroom environment greener classroom class walls didn't always tell a story (inside classroom) color on the walls organization/tools and materials are not labeled nerren & hasbun| 10 collaboration and connections table 5 research-based practices observed the least discussion it is not surprising that teacher candidates found the protocols to be helpful. because the literature indicates that inexperienced teacher candidates may have difficulty recognizing best practices in action, having the protocol could have assisted the teacher candidates in recognizing research-based practices as they were used (roehrig et al., 2008). having something concrete for which to observe could have been the reason the protocols were beneficial to the students. teacher candidates did see all practices observed to some extent in their mentor teachers? classrooms. this could be due to the fact that the campus is consistently rated as an exemplar campus. it would stand to reason that the exemplary campus would employ teachers that are using best practices. it is true that identifying research-based strategies in action can be difficult for teacher candidates and it is possible that some of what teacher candidates in this study observed were not best practices. however, the use of the protocols and the support provided through reflection and discussion could have enabled them to more correctly identify the best practices they noted (roehrig, et al., 2008). it would seem reasonable that candidates would cite observation of best practices more often in reading and writing instruction, as these two are both components of a strong literacy program. another factor that might have influenced the frequency of observations cited for best practices in reading and writing instruction is the fact that these observations took place in primary grades, where literacy instruction is often an area of focus, as the key component of successful future learning in other content areas. it is entirely possible that classroom management was observed the least because many aspects of facilitating optimal classroom behavior is imbedded in within the environment that the classroom teacher establishes early in the academic year, and, therefore, might have been imperceptible to the teacher candidates. research-based pract ices observat ion classroom management classroom management signal system did not observe the neglectful parenting style lesson planning use of manipulatives frequent mobility alternative ways for demonstrating mastery of objectives transitions tailoring lesson to specific groups of learners reading protocols teaching instruction then talk about content teacher as facilitator without imposing own interpretations assessing for comprehension peer reading writing protocols collaborative writing students being taught how to write provision of mental, linguistic, and physical tools small group work sharing activity field trip sources teacher assessment formative assessment equal use of formative and summative assessment involving students in the assessment practice gathering evidence of each child's work classroom environment greener classroom class walls didn't always tell a story (inside classroom) color on the walls organization/tools and materials are not labeled nerren & hasbun| 11 collaboration and connections additionally, if a classroom teacher is masterful at facilitating a classroom environment that effectually reduces instances of classroom misbehavior, there would be litt le opportunity for candidates to observe classroom management techniques to address behavioral issues when they occur. it is also possible that the students did not see strong classroom management techniques but it is not known as questions did not specifically ask if poor practices were used. lim it at ions of t he st udy this was a pilot study, which took place as a semester-long course assignment in a controlled environment. because the study took place at an elementary school located 40 miles away from the university campus, the teacher-candidates may have self-selected into a group of highly motivated participants. although the students had no knowledge of the project prior to registering for the site, the fact that each of the 14 students selected a practicum site located 40 miles from campus indicates a high level of motivation. often, teacher candidates who choose this site are honors students willing to travel a bit further for what they consider to be an optimal field experience location. this self-selection may have created a group of teacher candidates who were particularly committed to utilizing the protocols to the fullest extent possible. the same level of engagement may not be achieved in another group of teacher candidates. nonetheless, the impact on these teacher candidates was evident. additionally, the results on the extent of the usage of the techniques at this school cannot be generalized to other elementary campuses. this particular campus is consistently rated as a tea exemplary school. at a school with this rating, one would expect that many, if not most, of the classroom teachers were modeling current best practices. conclusions this study is significant because it illuminates the importance of the ?application of theory model? (zeichner, 2010, p. 90). many teacher education programs spend ample time immersing teacher candidates in theory and/or in research-based practices in the lecture classroom, but it is equally important that teacher candidates are given adequate time to observe those theories in action (zeichner, 2010). given that it can be difficult for pre-service teachers or teacher candidates to identify research-based practices in action, this study also suggests the importance of using research-based protocols with teacher candidates as they observe mentor teachers in the field, particularly when coupled with reflective discussions as a means of support (roehrig, et al., 2008). based on the results of this study, teacher candidates seemed to be more able to connect research to practice through the use of this combination. this finding could be of particular value to other teacher education programs. additionally, outcomes from this study suggest that teacher candidates observed more research-based practices in reading and writing but fewer in classroom management. given the importance of a positive classroom environment that is conducive to learning, a future consideration would be to have teacher candidates create research-based observation protocols and, at some point in their clinical practice or field experiences, have the opportunity to observe mentor teachers, focusing solely on classroom environment and classroom management practices. finally, this study served as a method to support teacher candidates in thinking critically about current literature in order to determine essential information, and, in turn, to question what takes place in classrooms that contradicts research (ross & kyle, 1990). it also provided an opportunity for teacher candidates to engage in discussions as to what actions to take when one is bound by certain directives or practices that contradict the research (ross & kyle, 1990). this is important as many novice teachers may ?wash out? and discontinue use of effective, research-based practices when overwhelmed, when faced with colleagues who nerren & hasbun| 12 collaboration and connections use less effective practices or leaders who do not support the research-based practices, and when a focus is placed on standardized testing outcomes at the expense of research-based best practices. references association for supervision and curriculum development. 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(1972). the psychology of the child. new york, ny: basic books. price, j. n. (2001). action research, pedagogy, and change: the transformative potential of action research in pre-service teacher education. journal of curriculum studies, 33(1), 43-74. roehrig, a. d., duggar, s.w., moats, l. c., glover, m., & mincey, b. (2008). when teachers work to use progress-monitoring data to inform literacy instruction: identifying potential supports and challenges. remedial and special education, 29(6), 364-382. ross, d. & kyle, d. (1990). helping pre-service teachers learn to use teacher effectiveness research. journal of teacher education, 38(2), 40-44. stephen f. austin state university (2015). jack facts. retrieved from http:// jackfacts.sfasu.edu/ibi_apps /bip/portal/jackfacts8 texas education agency (2013a). quick district lookup. retrieved from http://mansfield.tea.state.tx .us/tea.askted.web/forms/viewdirectory.aspx texas education agency (2012). performance reporting. retrieved from http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/cgi/sas/broker u.s. department of education. (2009). assisting students struggling with mathematics: response to intervention (rti) for elementary and middle schools. retrieved from http:// ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/pdf/practice_guides /rti_math_pg_04210 .pdf valencia, s. martin, s. place, n., & grossman, p. (2009). complex interactions in student teaching: lost opportunities for learning. journal of teacher education, 60(3), 304-322. vaughn, s., klingner, j., & hughes, m. (2000). sustainability of research-based practices. exceptional children, 66(2), 163-171. vygotsky, l.s. (1978). mind in society. cambridge, ma: harvard university press. winton, p. j., buysse, v., rous, b., lim, c., & epstein, d. (2012). connect-ing evidencebased practice and teacher research: resources for early childhood faculty and instructors. voices of practitioner, 8(2), 1-7. zeichner, k. (2010) rethinking the connections between campus courses and field experiences in college and university-based teacher education. journal of teacher education, 89(11), 89-99. http://jackfacts.sfasu.edu/ibi_apps/bip/portal/jackfacts8 http://jackfacts.sfasu.edu/ibi_apps/bip/portal/jackfacts8 http://mansfield.tea. state.tx.us/tea.askted.web/forms/viewdirectory.aspx http://mansfield.tea. state.tx.us/tea.askted.web/forms/viewdirectory.aspx http://mansfield.tea. state.tx.us/tea.askted.web/forms/viewdirectory.aspx http://mansfield.tea. state.tx.us/tea.askted.web/forms/viewdirectory.aspx http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/cgi/sas/broker http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/pdf/practice_guides/rti_math_pg_04210%20.pdf http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/pdf/practice_guides/rti_math_pg_04210%20.pdf http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/pdf/practice_guides/rti_math_pg_04210%20.pdf http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/pdf/practice_guides/rti_math_pg_04210%20.pdf danley 2022 educational renaissance vol. 11 (2022) teaching on air lessons dur ing covid 19: highlight ing t he work of t he kmos sum m er classroom angela danley, edd. avila university email: angela.danley@avila.edu case story int roduct ion when the 2020 semester started at the university of central missouri, teacher candidates (tcs) who were in their student teaching semester were eager to be in the classroom working side by side with a mentoring teacher five full days a week. the tcs in the early childhood and elementary teacher education programs already spent two full days in the classroom they were student teaching in during the fall 2019 semester. this transition into the classroom went smoothly because they already had established rapport with the mentoring teacher and students. in march 2020, the student teaching experience suddenly changed due to covid-19. tcs at the university of central missouri either continued to work virtually with their mentoring teacher or put learning packets together for students depending on the district they were placed in where technology was unavailable or where wi-fi was not accessible. waivers for teacher certification were put in place by the department of elementary and secondary education (dese). these waivers allowed tcs to become certified without completing their student teaching experience or passing the required assessment. not only were student teachers feeling the impact of covid 19, but school districts were also facing challenges on meeting the needs of their students. globally, the covid-19 pandemic disrupted learning for 70% of students worldwide (united nations educational, scientific, and abst ract this article provides an example of how a television station and a teacher education program located at the university of central missouri partnered to provide on-air lessons for kindergarten through fifth grade lessons to respond to the academic need due to the school shutdowns in spring 2020 because of covid-19. the article highlights how three teacher candidates who were completing their student teaching semester were invited by the curriculum director of kmos summer classroom to plan lessons to teach onair. the curriculum director of kmos summer discusses the process of selecting the candidates and planning the lessons. the kmos summer classroom perceptions of this project prepared them for their first year of teaching. successes of kmos summer classroom are highlighted along with next steps for implementation of kmos summer classroom 2.0. this article aims to shares an experience other teacher preparation programs can consider when reaching their surrounding communities during a crisis or pandemic. mailto:angela.danley@avila.edu danley| teaching on air lessons during covid-19 cultural organization, 2019). the school closure affected at least 55.1 million students in the united states (edweek.org, 2021). with districts facing challenges due to the abrupt closure of schools, i knew there was something that i wanted to do to help children and the teachers. little did i know that my vision for providing lessons to those without the internet would become a reality. at the end of march 2020, i received a phone call from the dean of the college of education at the university of central missouri asking if i would be interested in being the curriculum director for the kmos summer classroom. i was immediately interested in this opportunity because i wanted to help the children who were not receiving instruction due to the pandemic. i also had a strong desire to help ease the stress off teachers and families. i had a conversation with josh tomlinson, director of kmos (pbs television station) and his vision for the kmos summer classroom. his vision was to air lessons for kindergartenfifth grade during june 2020 which meant planning lessons would need to occur during april and part of may and recording the lessons in the kmos studio in mid-may to the beginning of june. even though this was fast paced planning, this project marked the beginning of a rewarding experience for all involved. background of t he cur r iculum direct or as the curriculum director of kmos summer classroom, i was excited for the opportunity to be involved in not only reviewing lessons across the content areas and multiple grades but also mentoring the three tcs. i have over 25 years of experience in education. i have served as a prek-12th grade special education teacher, a classroom teacher, instructional coach, and an associate professor in early childhood and elementary education. my background includes writing curriculum for summer school programs when i served in prek-12th grade settings. when i served in prek-12th grade settings, i worked collaboratively with teachers on aligning grade level standards to the curriculum. when asked to serve as curriculum director, the former dean of the college of education referred to me as the expert on curriculum. i would never consider myself an expert as much as i would consider myself passionate about providing students educational opportunities to help them reach their full potential. select ing t he candidat es the kmos station is on the university of central missouri?s campus. josh tomlinson wanted to partner with the college of education due to the expertise of teaching and learning. he wanted to get the teacher candidates involved and provide them opportunities to develop in their teaching. as the director of curriculum for kmos summer classroom, i was charged with the responsibility for securing the kmos summer classroom teachers. as the curriculum director, i reached out to three of the tcs who i observed during the fall 2019 senior practicum. i had a strong understanding of their teaching ability and understanding of curriculum. the goal of teacher education programs is to prepare future teachers with skills, knowledge and dispositions in teaching and learning (santoyo & zhang, 2016). having worked with these three tcs during practicum, i knew they exhibited the needed skills and knowledge to plan and teach their lessons in a virtual format. each of the three candidates were excited about the opportunity to be a part of a project that would impact thousands of children across the state of missouri. the three tcs were not fully student teaching due to the pandemic, which allowed them time to be invested in the planning of the lessons. planning t he lessons the three tcs were nervous and excited to begin their planning of lessons. combined, the tcs created 72 lessons. each tc was assigned grade levels to plan for during the month of april and part of may. one tc was responsible for kindergarten and first grade lessons while another tc was responsible for second and third grade. the third tc planned lessons for fourth and fifth grade. there were certain stipulations when 29 danley| teaching on air lessons during covid-19 planning the lessons. not only did the lessons have to be aligned to the missouri state learning standards, but they also needed to be approximately 40 50 minutes due to the kmos schedule. the children?s books and other online resources had to be approved by josh tomlinson due to copyright. the three tcs were encouraged to use the pbs resources to guide their lessons. additionally, the tcs were encouraged to provide wait time just like they would do in a face-to-face classroom. during the questioning in lessons, wait time is an essential part of the learning process (alsaadi & atar, 2019). though the tcs could not gauge the level of understanding of those children viewing the lessons, it still allowed for them the opportunity to think about what was asked. an example of a k/1st grade lesson plan is provided in appendix a. the lessons were authentic and did not come from a purchased curriculum. creating these authentic lessons provided the tcs experience to design lessons by utilizing resources, considering options, and implementing strategies which is all a part of teaching (brown, 2011). tcs require support and guidance, so serving as the curriculum director provided this for them throughout the process. as the curriculum director, i encouraged the tcs to create lessons that they thought would spark the interest of children. i also suggested they use a lesson plan format and structure that worked for them since these would be their guide when teaching on air. the tcs taught lessons which were prerecorded in the kmos studio, and the lessons were aired in june and july 2020. they reached children with a variety of learning needs and interests. the candidates were limited on the educational materials for planning their lessons. educational materials are those curriculum resources considered to assist teachers in making decisions about lesson design (beyer & davis, 2009). though they had limited resources, they were able to use their learning experiences from their teacher education preparation program to design their lesson plans. additionally, as they planned, i reviewed the lessons and answered their questions about the lessons they were planning. reviewed the lessons. the tcs? aired lessons are viewable on the kmos.org website. ms. alli taught lessons centered around kindergarten and first grade. her lessons were focused on math, reading and writing, science, and social studies. for ms. kamryn, she prepared lessons for second and third grade. her lessons were focused on math, reading and writing, science and social studies but were connected to a theme approach. her themes included weather, fraction and fractured fairy tales, and animal adaptations. lastly, ms. ashley focused lessons on math, reading and writing, science, and social studies. allowing them choice in their lessons provided them an opportunity to be creative while making the lesson engaging and meaningful. an overview of each lesson topic is provided in appendix b. kmos classroom teacher percept ions as the curriculum director of kmos summer classroom, i reached out to the three tcs who prepared and taught the lessons to gather their insights on how this experience helped prepare them for their first year of teaching as well as the benefits and challenges of teaching lessons through this platform. two of three candidates responded to the questions sent out via a google form. questions asked in the google form: 1. as a first-year certified teacher, what grade level did you teach during the academic year 2020-2021? 2. during the 2020-2021 school year, were you in a rural, urban, suburban district? 3. what were the challenges of kmos summer classroom? 4. what were the benefits of kmos summer classroom? 5. do you have a success story to share about kmos classroom? 6. how did kmos summer classroom prepare you for instructional planning as a first-year teacher? 7. how did kmos summer classroom prepare you for instructional delivery as a first-year teacher 30 danley| teaching on air lessons during covid-19 8. how did kmos summer classroom prepare you to teach during covid-19? 9. what advice would you provide for teacher candidates or classroom teachers who teach virtually or in an online teaching delivery such as kmos summer classroom? these questions provided insights on their perceptions of preparing and teaching on air lessons as well as how the experience helped them as a first-year teacher. for the two kmos classroom teachers (kmos-cts) who responded, during the 2020-2021 school year, both teachers taught 5th grade in a suburban school district.. for kmos summer classroom, one of the teachers taught kindergarten and first grade lessons while the other teacher taught 4th and 5th grade lessons. the questions centered around the challenges of kmos summer classroom had different responses. one kmos-ct acknowledged this experience allowed for creativity, but the planning was challenging and took her about 2 weeks to break down the standards for two grade levels (4th and 5th grades) to decide what was the most important to teach. she wrote that at the end, it was a rewarding challenge finding the most important standards to focus on for planning. the other kmos-ct stated that making sure the lessons were engaging for students at home was a challenge. she emphasized that holding the engagement of a young child was important since they were viewing the lessons from television or a device. the fourth question focused on the benefits of kmos summer classroom. the kmos-ct who planned fourth and fifth grade lessons was designated as the 5th grade virtual classroom teacher her first year of teaching. she wrote that because of the kmos summer classroom opportunity, she was prepared to teach lessons because she already had lessons planned and ready to teach. she was able to assist other teachers with resources for virtual lessons as well as lead professional development on virtual instruction. the kmos-ct who taught kindergarten and first grade lessons stated that kmos summer classroom helped familiarize her with important curriculum. she found it valuable to pick the missouri learning standards she felt the children would benefit from the most. when reviewing the response of the fifth question about a kmos summer classroom success story, these were focused on being prepared for their interview and first year as teacher. kmos-ct for the fourth and fifth grade was able to take the lessons she prepared and share those in her interview with the principal. the kindergarten and first grade kmos-ct stated she was meant to be a part of the kmos summer classroom experience. she credits this opportunity for her being successful as a virtual and face-to-face classroom teacher her first year. for the two questions connected to how kmos summer classroom helped prepare them for instructional planning and instructional delivery as a first-year teacher, responses were connected to diving into the missouri state learning standards and the curriculum. both kmos-cts stated that this opportunity allowed them an understanding of pulling out the essential standards and selecting resources which would be beneficial to student learning. additionally, both kmos-cts wrote that teaching lessons for the first time can be ?nerve-racking [sic].? kmos summer classroom gave them the confidence to go into their first year of teaching when delivering lessons to their students since they were used to teaching in front of the camera. the eighth question was focused on how kmos summer classroom prepared them to teach their first year during covid-19. the kmos-ct of fourth and fifth grade was assigned the position of fifth grade virtual teacher. she stated she was not nervous about teaching over zoom because she did something similar with kmos. furthermore, she had lessons planned for the fifth-grade level that she was able to easily implement in a virtual classroom. for kmos-ct who taught kindergarten and first grade, she did not know she would begin 31 danley| teaching on air lessons during covid-19 her first-year teaching fifth grade in a virtual classroom. she taught the first semester of her year in a virtual format. she stated she was nervous, but she was able to use some of her resources she made for the kmos summer classroom her first semester as a virtual teacher. the ninth question focused on the advice for someone who teaches online or in a virtual classroom. the two kmos-cts shared that teaching online or virtually can be challenging and hard at times. they both wrote that relationships with the students are important and are possible even through the screen. the kmos-ct of fourth and fifth grade wrote that it is okay to check in with the kids about how they are doing as well as providing an exciting school year. she wrote that you could teach about anything you do face to face in a virtual environment with some creativity and modifications. the kmos-ct of kindergarten and first grade wrote, ?these kids need you, and while it also may be a bit more difficult for some students to learn virtually, you are still making a difference in their education and everyday life.? the nine questions given to the kmos-cts provided some beneficial insights on the challenges and the positive experiences they took away from participating in this project. they walked away from an opportunity that other student teachers were not given. each one of the kmos-cts have a story to share in the future about teaching on-air lessons during a pandemic. they may never know how many children they impacted in summer 2020, but they entered their first year of teaching with confidence that they could teach virtually and most importantly build relationships with their students. challenges kmos summer classroom was a different experience from teaching virtually or delivering instruction in an online format. when teachers are delivering instruction virtually or online, they know their audience. they can build a rapport with the students and understand their learning needs. with the kmos summer classroom, the tcs knew their grade levels they were targeting but did not know who the students viewing the lessons. the tcs had limited experience with teaching in a virtual classroom. the tcs were faced with the challenge of teaching lessons in a television studio and had to learn about lighting and positioning of their visuals. probably the biggest challenge of kmos summer classroom was planning over 70 lessons in a short time frame. the tcs met the challenge and were able to plan their final lessons while recording the first set of lessons planned. it was a short time frame due to the need to air the lessons to help teachers, families, and most importantly the children viewing. another challenge with kmos summer classroom is the tcs were faced with pressure to perform. the three tcs selected were informed to lock down their social media accounts so viewers could not contact them with negative comments. this was one way to protect them under these circumstances. kmos sum m er classroom out reach we may never know exactly how many students across the state of missouri, or the nation were impacted by the kmos summer classroom. there were many ways the kmos reached out to ensure the implementation of the on-air lessons could be viewed not only locally but nationally and internationally. the lessons were posted on air, facebook, twitter, youtube, and the kmos pbs app. one parent and her nine-year-old son sent a personal message to the curriculum director stating that her son woke up every morning to watch the 2nd/3rd grade teacher so he could do the science experiments. his favorite activity was reading thunder cake because he was able to make the cake with his mom. another parent posted on social media that his children viewed the lessons from germany. the work of the kmos summer classroom tcs did not go unnoticed. each of the kmos-tcs were offered teaching positions during the planning and recording of the lessons. additionally, press releases on kmos summer classroom and the collaborative partnership with the college of 32 danley| teaching on air lessons during covid-19 education at the university of central missouri highlighted those involved one of the press releases was posted on the columbia daily tribune (columbiatribune.com). the kmos summer classroom participants were invited to a zoom meeting to highlight their work with ms. paula a. kerger, the president of pbs. additionally in 2021, kmos-tv and the college of education were awarded by public media professionals within two categories: community engagement: local project, and education: covid-19 education. the most profound success was delivering 72 lessons to children to support the classroom teachers and families during a disrupted school year. the three tcs stepped up to a challenge and to see their finished lessons aired in summer 2020 and again in summer 2021 is something that will be remembered for years to come. next st eps the idea of the kmos summer classroom is worth implementing again in the future. with the educational concerns that have emerged due to the pandemic, the kmos summer classroom can assist teachers and families with this free service. in a report from diemer and park (2022), data from 2020-2021 showed that in missouri alone, 95% of urban and suburban students living in poverty were in districts that offered distance education during the first full pandemic academic school year. ten percent of rural students living in poverty learned remotely. it was also revealed that 25% of rural districts in missouri offered access to tablets, computers, and hotspots whereas only 54% of rural districts only offered devices (diemer & park, 2022). remote learning challenged parents from all backgrounds to become educational facilitators for their children (office for civil rights, 2021). kmos summer classroom?s purpose was to assist not only the teachers during the closure but also the parents so they would not need to take on the role of educator. additionally, the purpose of kmos summer classroom was to provide on air lessons that parents could have their children view through the television. the achievement gap from the pandemic is a reality. in the report from office for civil rights (2021), it stated: ?emerging evidence shows that the pandemic has negatively affected academic growth, widening pre-existing disparities. in core subjects like math and reading, there are worrisome signs that in some grades students might be falling even further behind pre-pandemic expectations? (p.iii-iv). renaissance learning (2022) spotlighted significant concerns regarding achievement scores. by late winter of 2020 to early 2021, elementary to middle school students were 8-11 weeks behind the mid-year expectations in math and 6-10 weeks behind in reading. renaissance learning suggested that schools need to observe several consecutive academic years of growth to get students back on track with prepandemic performance levels. the goal is to provide additional opportunities for other tcs to be involved and gain the experience of teaching on-air lessons while giving back to the surrounding community to help close the learning gap. the hope for kmos summer classroom 2.0 is to allow for planning during one semester and recording the lessons the following semester. additionally, kmos summer classroom 2.0 is going to continue the partnership with the university of central missouri?s college of education. the goal is to have five or six kmos summer classroom 2.0 teachers who are interested in planning and implementing lessons for on-air. this experience will allow for other teacher candidates to engage in hands-on professional development when it comes to creating lesson plans and delivering them in a television studio. closure being able to be a part of the kmos summer classroom was a dream come true. i wanted to provide a service to the school communities that would help with keeping the learning gap to a minimum. kmos summer classroom was a perfect opportunity to provide this service and fulfill a need. the goal of kmos summer classroom was to provide learning opportunities for those students who did not have access to the 33 https://www.columbiatribune.com/story/news/coronavirus/2020/05/12/kmos-ucm-provide-summer-school/1210541007/ danley| teaching on air lessons during covid-19 internet through the one telecommunication medium found in homes, the television. fifteen percent of the rural districts in missouri did not provide any means of technology resources to students and 5% of the students were only offered internet (diemer & park, 2022). providing kmos summer classroom, a pbs station was one effective way to reach the students in the homes where internet was not available. moving forward, preparing future teachers to be able to teach in various platforms is necessary. as educators it is important to ?support equitable, effective teaching and learning regardless of the medium through which that takes place? (darling-hammond et al., p. 2, 2020). further, this project opens the door for other universities and schools to think about how they can reinvent schools in times of a crisis or a pandemic. within a short timeframe and no hesitation, the participants of kmos summer classroom saw a need and responded to that need with enthusiasm and dedication. collaborative partnerships such as the one with kmos-tv and the college of education at the university of central missouri was an example of how this is essential to meeting the learning needs of the students. references alsaadi, n. s. m. & atar, c. (2019). wait-time in material and classroom context modes. international journal of contemporary educational research, 6(1), 53-69. https://doi.org/10.33200/ijcer.542495 beyer, c.j. & davis, e. a. (2009). the role of preservice elementary teachers pedagogical content knowledge for science teaching in learning to engage in curricular planning. a paper presented at the april 2009 annual meeting of the national association for research in science teaching, garden grove, ca. http://websites.umich.edu/~hiceweb/pdfs/9.doc (umich.edu) brown, m. w. (2011). the teacher?tool relationship: theorizing the design and use of curriculum materials. in j. t. remillard, b. a. herbel-eisenmann, & g. m.lloyd (eds.), mathematics teachers at work: connecting curriculum materials and classroom instruction (pp. 17?36). routledge. darling-hammond, l., schachner, a., & edgerton, a. k. (with badrinarayan, a.,cardichon, j., cookson, p. w., jr., griffith, m., klevan, s., maier, a., martinez, m., melnick, h., truong, n., wojcikiewicz, s.). (2020). restarting and reinventing school: learning in the time of covid and beyond. learning policy institute. diemer, a & park, a. (2022). the impact of rural and urban school reopening on missouri students. urban institute. https://www.urban.org education week (2021). map: coronavirus and school closures in 2019-2020. http://www.edweek.org office for civil rights (2021). education in a pandemic: the disparate impacts of covid-19 on america?s students. santoyo, c. & zhang, s. (2016). secondary teacher candidates? lesson planning learning. teacher education quarterly, 43(2), 3-27 renaissance learning (2022). how kids are 34 https://doi.org/10.33200/ijcer.542495 http://websites.umich.edu/~hiceweb/pdfs/9.doc (umich.edu) http://websites.umich.edu/~hiceweb/pdfs/9.doc (umich.edu) https://www.urban.org danley| teaching on air lessons during covid-19 performing: tracking the midyear impact of covid-19 on reading and mathematics achievement, at 20(2021). https://www.renaissance.com/ how-kids-are-performing. united nations educational, scientific, and cultural organization. (2019). covid-19 educational disruption and response. https://en.unesco.org/covid19/educationresponse. 35 https://www.renaissance.com/ how-kids-are-performing https://www.renaissance.com/ how-kids-are-performing danley| teaching on air lessons during covid-19 subject: reading topic: retell/beginning middle end (bme) grade: k/1st standards 1.r.1.a.d develop and demonstrate reading skills in response to reading text and read-alouds by retelling main ideas in sequence using key details k.r.1.a.c with assistance, develop and demonstrate reading skills in response to read-alouds by retelling main ideas or important facts 1.r.1.a.e develop and demonstrate reading skills in response to reading text and read-alouds by recognizing beginning, middle and end k.r.1.a.e with assistance, develop and demonstrate reading skills in response to read-alouds by recognizing beginning, middle and end learning target the student will be able to retell the beginning, middle and end of a story. resources and materials bme anchor chart the three little pigs and the somewhat bad wolf by mark teague sequencing slides https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1n-rwfh5k7k6sermd9tmfv-kia22dyivutfkmuftctoc /edit?usp=sharing lesson structure and procedures 1. miss alli will hook students using two sequencing activities: a. plant life: show students the 4 pictures these are the different steps a flower takes to grow. do you think you could put these pictures in order? let?s give it a try! review steps with students and number underneath pictures b. peanut butter jelly sandwich: have you ever had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich? can you think of the order you make a peanut butter sandwich in? i?ll give you a hint? .there?s 4 main steps (give students think time in between each step) i. first, get out bread, pb, jelly and a plate and a knife ii. next, take two slices of bread from the bag and put them on a plate iii. then, with a knife spread the pb and jelly on the sandwich iv. finally, put the two pieces of bread together and enjoy your sandwich 2. miss alli will say we ordered the steps of how a plant grows and how you make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. did you know that books have an order they go in too? every book has a beginning, middle and end. today, we are going to practice retelling the beginning, middle and end of a story. appendix a 36 https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1n-rwfh5k7k6sermd9tmfv-kia22dyivutfkmuftctoc/edit?usp=sharing https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1n-rwfh5k7k6sermd9tmfv-kia22dyivutfkmuftctoc/edit?usp=sharing danley| teaching on air lessons during covid-19 3. miss alli will create bme anchor chart with students 4. miss alli will read the three little pigs and the somewhat bad wolf 5. miss alli will ask students, do you think this story had a beginning, middle and end? you?re right, it did! a. let?s start with the beginning of the story? can you think of any characters that we met? do you remember what happened? b. put up pictures of the story and bme statements ask students if they can match the words to the picture i. b: the three litt le pigs build their houses out of straw, sticks and bricks ii. m: the big bad wolf blew down the first and second litt le pigs houses so they had to go away. iii. e: the three litt le pigs invited the wolf in after he couldn?t blow down the third litt le pig's house and they became friends. c. review bme answers with pictures 6. miss alli will say today, we practiced putting the events of a story in order. recognizing the bme of a story will help you recall what happened in the story. see if you can draw pictures to represent the bme of the next story you read and explain your pictures to someone in your house. 37 danley| teaching on air lessons during covid-19 appendix b teacher : ms. all i (k-1) lesson lesson descr ipt ion 01 (101) the student will be able to recognize that two-digit numbers are made up of tens and ones. 02 (104) the student will be able to investigate how sound can make materials (matter) vibrate and how vibrating materials (matter) can make sound. 03 (107) reading: the student will be able to predict what will happen next in a story by using prior knowledge and asking questions. 04 (110) the student will be able to recognize that two-digit numbers are made up of tens and ones. 05 (113) the student will be able to solve addition problems within 20. 06 (116) the student will be able to observe, identify and describe the appearance of the sun, moon, and stars at different times of the day. 07 (119) reading: the student will be able to retell the beginning, middle and end of a story. phonemic awareness: the student will blend onsets and rimes to make words. 08 (122) the student will be able to accurately solve subtraction problems within 20. 09 (125) the student will be able to recognize and tell the value of a penny, nickel, dime and quarter. 10 (128) the student will be able to recognize what plants and animals need to survive. 11 (131) reading: the student will be able to compare and contrast characters from similar stories. phonics: the student will be able to distinguish long from short vowels in written and 12 (134) the student will be able to collect, organize and represent data with up to 3 different categories from different graphs. 13 (137) the student will be able to name each shape and identify the number of sides and vertices for each shape. 38 danley| teaching on air lessons during covid-19 appendix b teacher : ms. ashley (4-5) lesson # lesson descr ipt ion 01 (103) this lesson will cover how to find the theme or moral within a story using details within the text. 02 (106) this lesson will review the properties of solids, liquids, and gases including their particle movement. 03 (109) this lesson reviews prime numbers and how to find the factors of composite numbers up to 100. 04 (112) this lesson will review how to infer using textual evidence within a reading. 05 (115) this lesson will review how students reference and provide textual evidence when drawing conclusions. 06 (118) this lesson will review where energy comes from. 07 (121) this lesson will review how to generate equivalent fractions. 08 (124) this lesson will review various character traits and how to identify those in the characters of the text. 09 (127) the lesson will review how to identify the climax and resolution in a story using the character developments throughout the story. 10 (130) this lesson will review the sun and stars and their jobs in our solar system. 11 (133) this lesson will review how to compare and order fractions. 12 (136) this lesson will review how authors use figurative language to help the reader create mental pictures and deepen comprehension. 13 (139) this lesson will review how to add fractions. 14 (142) this lesson will review the causes and consequences of the civil war. 15 (145) this lesson will review how to subtract fractions. 16 (148) this lesson will review how text features show important information and how to locate information using text features. 17 (151) this lesson will review how to multiply fractions 18 (154) this lesson will review key economic terms and how economics plays apart in our nation. 19 (157) this lesson will review how to multiply fractions 20 (160) this lesson will review the different types of authors purposes and how to identify each. 39 danley| teaching on air lessons during covid-19 appendix b 21 (163) this lesson will review how to convert large units into smaller units. 22 (166) this lesson will review the causes of the american revolution and why the colonists? 23 (169) this lesson will review how to evaluate numerical expressions involving money. 24 (172) this lesson will review how to recognize foreshadowing within a text. teacher :ms. wil l iam s (2-3) lesson # lesson descr ipt ion 01 (102) what is weather? 02 (105) how do we measure weather? 03 (108) water in the air: all about the water cycle 04 (111) what are clouds? 05 (114) what is extreme weather and how does it occur? 06 (117) thunder cake: personal experiences of extreme weather 07 (120) what is climate? 08 (123) how to graph temperature 09 (126) how to graph precipitation 10 (129) introduction to fractions and fractured fairy tales 11 (132) fractions in the pizzeria and fractured fairy tales 12 (135) comparing and equivalent fractions & fractured fairy tales 13 (138) fractions in the bakery and fractured fairy tales 14 (141) how many whoppers and fractured fairy tales 15 (144) how many candies and fractured fairy tales 16 (147) how much ketchup and fractured fairy tales 17 (150) introduction to animal adaptations 18 (153) types of animal adaptations 19 (156) the desert biome and desert animal adaptations 20 (159) the grassland biome and grassland animal adaptations 21 (162) the arctic biome and arctic animal adaptations 22 (165) the ocean biome and ocean animal adaptations 23 (168) the rainforest biome and rainforest animal adaptations 24 (171) the mountain biome and mountain animal adaptations/review 40 danley 2022 page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 page 9 page 10 page 11 page 12 page 13 educational renaissance vol 12 (2023) case story community of practice, community of support: ihe teacher preparation using a servingness professional development model for creating community abstract in order to humanize and connect future educators across programs, this case study explains how a northern california four-year university created a weekly professional development speaker series, teachers, eduleaders, advocates, and scholars (teas). teas aims to connect future educators to current practitioners to better meet the needs of pk-12 students and use a “servingness” model to meet the needs of diverse future educators. while teas has been successful at connecting educators across programs and humanizing education, an unexpected benefit has been educators that appear more confident in joining the profession. keywords: professional development, community of practice, servingness, hsi introduction & background nationally, new teachers report lack of confidence in intercultural competencies, partially due to damage-centered teacher education (carter andrews et al., 2019). humanizing practices invite preservice teachers and teacher educators to grow together in critical knowledges about the world. carter andrews (2019) adds that “educating students in a manner that affirms and sustains their humanity and raises their critical consciousness about societal injustices should be normative and should provide students with a liberatory learning that contrasts oppressive policies and practices” (p. 5). humanizing practices in teacher preparation allow preservice teachers to build their skills and knowledge of social justice and inclusive teaching practices as opposed to damage-centered practices that describe communities and identities by what they are lacking and their deficits. professional development models of community engagement are one method to achieve humanization, as long as the professional development happens across the community and allows time for reflection (romijn et al., 2021). in addition, learning communities across courses and cohorts are a high-impact practice with significant educational benefit (aacu, 2022). in california there is a teacher shortage one out of every five classrooms having uncredentialed teachers (lambert, 2022). some groups have argued the shortage is only dire in science, math, english, career and technical education, preschool, urban and rural schools, and special education, but that is enough to be felt in every district in the state. there are many reasons for the shortage of credentialed teachers, including; slightly increasing p-12 enrollment; a large number of retirees; lack of people enrolling in teacher preparation programs; and high attrition rates of unprepared teachers (california teacher shortage fact sheet, 2016). equally important, california has a huge discrepancy between the rates of students of color and teachers of color. teacher preparation programs have a responsibility to recruit, amyk conley, edd, school of education, cal poly humboldt amy.conley@humboldt.edu mailto:amy.conley%40humboldt.edu?subject= conley | 2 community of practice, community of support retain, and encourage diverse students to pursue educational careers (garcia, 2020). uncredentialed teachers often enter the classroom without the prerequisite skills neccesary for success in the classroom. madigan and kim (2021) found that unprepared teachers are more likely to leave the profession due to burnout, which includes, “emotional exhaustion (comprising feelings of being emotionally overextended and exhausted because of one’s work), cynicism (a cynical and impersonal reaction toward those around you), and reduced efficacy (no longer feeling like you are competent and successful at work)” (p. 3). humanizing education can help educators feel more prepared and connected; prepared and connected educators are more likely to remain working in education. purpose & setting this case story documents the school of education at cal poly humboldt’s effort to create community across programs and work towards a servingness model for their diverse students. with 5,739 students and 490 faculty members and 59 majors, cal poly humboldt is one of 100 public, 4-year hispanic serving institutions in the united states (hispanic association of colleges and universities, 2022). as the university strives to go from hispanic enrolling to hispanic serving (garcia, 2017), the education department decided to create a professional development program for future educators across majors, credential programs, and graduate programs. preservice teachers exit surveys had found that the cohort model employed by the program led to a network of support for students during their programs. that same cohort model also led candidates to feel disconnected from the greater university community, other future educator groups, and the local education community that they joined at graduation. covid-19 had only increased that feeling of isolation. the teachers, eduleaders, advocates, and scholars (teas) program, which is designed to build community among future educators cal poly humboldt, bridges the gap between preservice teachers and the larger pk-12 education community, enhances intercultural competencies, and improve professional confidence, is an effective way to prepare future educators to be inclusive and just educators who are connected to their communities and have the skills necessary to enter and stay in p-12 schools. students at the university, across many programs, were invited to attend through posters and emails, but the program partially grew due to word-of-mouth. alignment with servingness model teas adapts the cal lutheran university servingness model of capable, connected, and inspired. servingness can include non-academic outcomes that increase diverse students’ sense of belonging to the campus and the profession. for example, cal lutheran university’s model of servingness includes an academic mindset development framework that focuses on students being capable, connected, and inspired (beltran et al., 2020). teas aims to provide participants with connection across programs and with the larger educational community, intercultural competence in order to be inclusive and just educators, and professional confidence to enter and stay in p-12 schools. teas is a weekly university professional development series for future educators and school social workers, serving undergraduates, credential candidates, and masters’ students. community-building with future educators at university statewide program completion surveys administered to credential candidates, across programs, pointed out a feeling of not being connected to the entire school of education, nor the larger pk-12 education community. graduate-level preservice teachers reported not feeling connected to the campus, just their cohort and professors. between fieldwork in pk-12 schools and their night coursework, they rarely met teacher candidates in other programs, other education faculty, future teachers in education pathways, future early childhood educators, or pupil personnel services credential students. many conley | 3 community of practice, community of support graduate-level preservice teachers are re-entry students without strong campus connections through housing, athletics, clubs, or campus events. the teas program was designed to better allow humanizing connections between all of the future educators at the university. liberal studies undergraduates, future content area undergraduates, future school social worker undergraduates, elementary 5th-year credential candidates, special education 5th-year credential candidates, social worker 5th-year credential candidates, secondary 5th-year credential candidates, and masters students in education, along with faculty, all can participate in teas sessions. networking with the larger pk-12 community and professional confidence graduates’ exit surveys also pointed to a lack of connection to the larger pk-12 education community in humboldt county. some reported not meeting any teachers other than their fieldwork mentor teachers, and most were unclear on the services provided by the humboldt county office of education. teas was designed to bring pk-12 classroom teachers and county office specialists into community with the preservice teachers, bridging the gap identified in graduate’s exit surveys. virtual classroom tours allowed preservice educators to see practical classroom design and management and meet teachers from different districts across the county. local education nonprofits have also joined teas, sharing information and service-learning opportunities with students. most teas speakers were local teachers or county office of education specialists that our participants may work with in the future. for example, a local 2nd grade teacher gave a video tour of her classroom to show students how the classroom was organized to nurture student autonomy, which also led to better classroom management. the librarian of the humboldt county office of education showed students resources that teachers can check out for their classrooms, including hands-on and inquiry-learning kits. another local teacher explained teachers’ responsibilities for setting up gender inclusive classrooms. teas also addresses professional confidence through offering career services. the informal interview and application coaching of the first year has evolved into a year-long partnership with the college of professional studies career advisor. in the fall semester, teas participants learn how to shop for their ideal jobs, ask for letters of recommendation, keep track of application requirements, and plan for virtual job fairs. in the spring semester, teas participants work on interview skills for virtual job fairs and job interviews. intercultural competencies cal poly humboldt and the school of education prides itself on fieldwork immersion, social responsibility, and close-knit community. teas was envisioned as a way to connect future educators, current education practitioners, and humanizing ideas about students and their assets. speakers from different cultures and home languages speak to teas about supporting students with different home languages. additionally, in the second year of teas, a partnership with the campus dialogue on race allowed teas participants to also attend sessions in a weeklong series focused on justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion. program features school of education faculty decided to hold weekly teas sessions via video conferencing early in the morning before pk-12 schools started. early sessions allowed future educators to attend as they breakfasted, while driving to fieldwork sites, and before university coursework. while video conferencing was a requirement in fall 2021 due to the pandemic, we found that video conferencing allowed our students in online programs to attend and feel part of the school of education. video conferencing allowed preservice teachers to attend teas no matter how far their fieldwork sites were from campus. conley | 4 community of practice, community of support video conferencing also allowed experts across the state to be our guest speakers. participant surveys in fall 2022 led to teas being adjusted to better fit into students schedules. a key tenet of humanizing pedagogy is not only connecting and growing across teacher education and pk-12, but including time for reflection (carter andrews et al., 2019; romijn et al., 2021). teas sessions were one hour in length and designed with built-in reflection and application time. after a short introduction, guest speakers present on the day’s topic for 25 minutes, followed by an activity or breakout rooms to apply the concept, then questions. in the last ten minutes of the hour, participants thank and bid the speaker goodbye, so that they can reflect together and connect what they learned to coursework, fieldwork, and previous teas sessions. as the name implies, all future teachers, advocates, eduleaders, and scholars are invited to teas. undergraduate students from education pathways including art, kinesiology, history, english, and science education majors; students from the integrated bachelors and elementary program; future social workers in the pupil personnel service credential; early childhood education undergraduates; masters of arts in education, future scholars and administrators; and graduate-level credential candidates in elementary education, secondary education, and special education can all attend teas. some of our participants are first-generation; some are from underserved minority groups. faculty can also attend, and some faculty have been enthusiastic about learning new things alongside our students outside of the classroom. the conversations and connections are richer for that diversity of viewpoints. school of education faculty utilized a developing hispanic-serving institutions grant to fund teas to meet our social responsibility to our community and the pk-12 schools. teas sessions promote intercultural competencies by exploring the cultures, languages, and needs of local pk-12 students. sessions included: yurok language project, what every teacher should know about dyslexia, hmong languages and culture, inclusive physical education and movement, hispanic heritage month, teaching black excellence, restorative practices, and gender inclusive classrooms. we did not talk about achievement gaps, but opportunity gaps that could be addressed by better knowing and understanding our students. many of the topics were suggested by faculty at first, but teas participants soon felt empowered to speak up and request topics they wanted to know more about to improve their teaching and understanding of what it means to be a teacher. requested topics included physical education integrated into the p-12 school day for schools that cannot afford a physical education specialist, resources available from the county office of education, and an entire series based upon teacher emotional regulation, breathwork, mindful classroom practices, and social emotional learning. participants also requested sessions devoted to applying for education jobs and financial planning for teachers. bringing in experts from calstrs and human resources coaches made education a more accessible field for participants who are first generation college students. table 1: sample sessions ____________________________________________________________________________ session title number of participants ____________________________________________________________________________ self-advocacy for children with autism spectrum disorder 14 breathwork/yoga for children 8 incorporating theater and dance into tk-12 7 diverse childrens’ literature 12 forest schools 11 part 1: supporting indigenous youth 14 conley | 5 community of practice, community of support in fall 2022, teas also partnered with the campus dialogue on race (cdor), a campus wide weeklong series of speakers on justice, diversity, and equity. a cdor organizer came to teas and spoke to participants about the schedule of speakers, ways to access the talks, and keynote speaker, cornelius minor. teas participants could attend cdor events and receive teas credit as they developed their cultural and professional confidence outside of teas sessions. teas employed a constant improvement model. every week, participants took part in an attendance process that asked for input on future speakers and processes. the first year a mid-year focus group gathered ideas on sustaining structures, marketing, and requested speakers. at the end of the first year, a post-year survey was conducted with a random sample to consider effectiveness on teas stated goals of connectedness, intercultural competence, and professional confidence. changes to teas made from the constant improvement cycle have increased the number of participants by 100% over the course of its first year. data was also collected on participants’ job outcomes through student reports. the post-year survey will be repeated yearly to guide teas growth and determine its effectiveness. results increased sense of community teas sessions created conversation between undergraduates, credential candidates, faculty, and master of arts students about ideas that humanize education. the local county office of education found the sessions so helpful that they offered to include them on the county calendar of professional development activities. some graduates of credential programs have asked to be able to continue to attend as first-year teachers. of the 63 participants in 2021-2022, eight were randomly chosen for the post-year survey after the school year ended. 75% of participants surveyed claimed they felt more connected to the education community after participating in teas. all of the participants surveyed would recommend participating in teas to future educators at the university. participant statements: • i understand my journey throughout this program was not a smooth one, however the resources, opportunities, and experiences have truly made me feel set and confident to become the educator i know i can be. • i learned a lot from these teas! i hope you have them next year. it was so much fun. • i plan to continue with the teas conferences because they have been super enriching. • i plan on supporting all gender identities, disabilities, and accommodate for all kinds of people in my art classrooms in the future. • i found the meetings lead by current teachers to be the most informative. presenter statements: • it was my pleasure! i loved having this wonderful opportunity. thank you again for inviting me. i look forward to working more with you and the school of ed in the future. • please know that i gladly share the work at [...] preparing teachers with the tools to create equitable environments for all learners. what a huge undertaking and you are doing an amazing job at allowing them to spend time creating a space that allows this level of development. … i love the topic and am looking forward to being with you all again. increased intercultural competence surveys throughout the year showed that participants enjoyed and requested more sessions learning about different cultures in our community and curriculum celebrating excellence like the teaching black excellence and yurok language program sessions. several students used curriculum and ideas conley | 6 community of practice, community of support from teas in their fieldwork. three-quarter of participants surveyed in the post-teas evaluation agreed that “i am confident in my understanding of inequities surrounding race in education” and “i am comfortable addressing issues of inequity,” while 87.5% agreed “i am confident in my abilities to be culturally responsive” after participating in teas. increased professional confidence an unexpected teas benefit was greater professional confidence. after learning about applying for education jobs by participating in teas, teas participants reported shopping for districts they would like to work in, attending virtual job fairs, and asking for letters of recommendation. anecdotally, faculty reported that teas participants seemed more excited and confident about job searching than their peers. all of the participants surveyed in the post-teas evaluation reported that they would incorporate what they learned from teas into their teaching. three-quarters of participants surveyed in the post-teas evaluation reported that participating in teas made them feel more prepared to be educators. conclusion teas enters its second year of programming with ideas suggested by the future educators it serves. the diverse undergraduates, credential candidates, and masters students are co-creating a servingness model of connectedness, intercultural competence, and professional confidence. humanizing education for teas means being responsive to pk-12 students, but also to the university students who want to work in pk-12 schools. teas is a professional development speaker series, but it is also a conversation between faculty and all of the students from different programs about what it means to be culturally competent and about how we show up for each other and students. by bringing together faculty members and students from different programs, teas aims to create a sense of community and connection. this means that people can learn from each other, share their experiences, and build relationships that transcend their individual programs and years of study. finally, teas is about humanizing education, aiming to promote a more holistic and compassionate approach to education, where people are seen as individuals with unique needs, strengths, and experiences. by focusing on cultural and professional competency and community-building, teas is helping to create a more humanized and inclusive education system. conley | 7 community of practice, community of support references carter andrews, d. j. c., brown, t., castillo, b. m., jackson, d., & vellanki, v. (2019). beyond damage-centered teacher education: humanizing pedagogy for teacher educators and preservice teachers. teachers college record, 121(6), 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1177/016146811912100605 garcia, g. a. (2017). what does it mmean to be latinx-serving? testing the utility of the typology ofhsi organizational identities. association of mexican american educators journal, 11(3), 109–138. https://doi.org/10.24974/amae.11.3.363 garcia, g. a. (2019). becoming hispanic-serving institutions: opportunities for colleges and universities. jhu press. hacu list of hispanic-serving institutions (hsis) 2020-2021. (n.d.). hispanic association of colleges and universities. retrieved december 23, 2022, from https://www.hacu.net/hacu/hsis.asp high-impact practices. (2021, august 31). aac&u; #creator. https://www.aacu.org/trending-topics/ high-impact howard, n., wong, p., & freeman grutzik, c. (2021). background information for span participants on the ccte surveys of ca educators, spring 2021. lambert, d. (2022, august 4). nearly 1 out of 5 classes in california taught by underprepared teachers. edsource. https://edsource.org/2022/nearly-one-out-of-five-classes-in-california-taught-by-underprepared-teachers/674906 madigan, d. j., & kim, l. e. (2021). towards an understanding of teacher attrition: a meta-analysis of burnout, job satisfaction, and teachers’ intentions to quit. teaching and teacher education, 105, 103425. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2021.103425 romijn, b. r., slot, p. l., & leseman, p. p. m. (2021). increasing teachers’ intercultural competences in teacher preparation programs and through professional development: a review. teaching and teacher education, 98, 103236. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2020.103236 https://doi.org/10.1177/016146811912100605 https://doi.org/10.24974/amae.11.3.363 https://www.hacu.net/hacu/hsis.asp https://www.aacu.org/trending-topics/high-impact https://www.aacu.org/trending-topics/high-impact https://edsource.org/2022/nearly-one-out-of-five-classes-in-california-taught-by-under-prepared-teachers/674906 https://edsource.org/2022/nearly-one-out-of-five-classes-in-california-taught-by-under-prepared-teachers/674906 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2021.103425 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tate.2020.103236 educational renaissance vol 12 (2023) case story chatgpt as a universal design for learning tool supporting college students with disabilities abstract the potential of chatgpt is explored as an assistive technology tool within the framework of universal design for learning (udl) to provide targeted support for college students with disabilities. as colleges and universities strive to promote inclusive practices, the implementation of udl principles has gained significance. chatgpt’s interactive conversational interface aligns seamlessly with udl, offering personalized assistance, promoting comprehension, and creating engagement opportunities among diverse learners. numerous examples are provided, which align with both the universal design framework and the needs of learners receiving accessible and assistive services on a college campus. this paper identifies the possibilities for chatgpt as an accommodation tool to significantly impact and improve the inclusive and equitable learning experiences of college students with disabilities. keywords: chatgpt, universal design for learning (udl), assistive technology, college students, disabilities background ensuring equal access to education for all students is a fundamental principle of higher education. college and university campuses strive to create an inclusive environment where students with diverse abilities can succeed academically and personally (weiss et al., 2016) accommodations play a pivotal role in supporting students with disabilities by offering tailored support across four main categories: cognitive, sensory, physical, and social-emotional. cognitive accommodations may support students with learning disabilities, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (adhd), autism and other cognitive differences. these accommodations range from extended time on assignments and exams to specialized formats for course materials (toc, 2013). also available on most campuses are assistive technology tools such as text-to-speech software, speech recognition programs, mind-mapping applications, flexible testing options, readers, and distraction-free environments. some campuses, through disability services, offer students a reading software program called read/write gold in addition to screen reader machines (roussey, 2023) sensory accommodations may serve students with hearing and visual impairments, neurodiversity, and other similar disabilities. colleges and universities typically provide real-time captioning and sign language interpreters for lectures and events, making educational content accessible. yuja and verbit are two common programs used for real time captioning. students with visual disabilities are typically supported by the provision of braille materials, audio, screen readers, or tactile graphics (farrand et al., 2022). quiet study areas and sensory-friendly spaces help individuals manage sensory sensitivisandra ayala, phd, school of education, sonoma state university ayalas@sonoma.edu mailto:%20ayalas%40sonoma.edu?subject= ayala | 23 chatgpt as a udl tool ties. physical accommodations may address the needs of students with mobility impairments, chronic health conditions, and other physical disabilities. these accommodations may include wheelchair-accessible facilities, parking, adaptive technology, and accessible technologies (deckoff-jone & duell, 2018) and are considered essential to the success of students. additionally, personalized accommodations may involve note-taking software and assistance, and extended time for exams. some campuses, including my own have a team of employed students who travel with students who request and qualify for such services as note takers and classroom assistants. social-emotional accommodations may include counseling services, disability services centers, mental health resources, and support groups to address emotional needs. flexible course scheduling and reduced course loads can also alleviate stress and provide a better balance for students navigating mental health challenges (jehi et al., 2022). by offering accommodations that address these four categories, institutions demonstrate their commitment to fostering an inclusive learning environment. these accommodations empower students with disabilities to succeed academically, engage socially and contribute to the campus community (gilmour et al., 2017). following the principles of equity and access under universal design for learning (udl) colleges and universities are able to address the needs of diverse learners ensuring that all students have opportunities in pursuing higher education. in addition to this foundation, the integration of accessible technologies and accessible digital educational support systems has further expanded the range of accommodations available for college students with disabilities. this paper will explore how chatgpt—a cutting edge language model program can effectively serve as a personalized accommodation and support system within the framework of udl for students with disabilities. by embracing the principles of udl, chatgpt has the ability to greatly enhance the learning process by catering to ways of presenting information methods of response and instructional settings. in the subsequent sections of this paper, we will delve deeper into the role of chatgpt as an innovative tool in addressing the diverse needs of students with disabilities within the universal design for learning framework. we will explore the functionalities and potential benefits of chatgpt, including its ability to adapt content delivery, offer personalized support, and create inclusive instructional environments. furthermore, we will examine a case study and real-world applications where chatgpt has made a significant impact on the educational experiences of students with disabilities. additionally, we will discuss the ethical considerations and challenges associated with integrating ai-driven accommodations into higher education. finally, we will conclude with a reflection on the future possibilities and implications of chatgpt as an integral part of promoting accessibility and inclusion in higher education. universal design for learning (udl) and inclusivity in higher education many of today’s college campuses utilize the framework known as udl as a means of making instruction equitable, accessible and inclusive. the framework of udl recognizes learner variability and aims to create flexible learning environments that can accommodate these differences (www.cast. org). udl is based on three key principles: providing multiple means of engagement to foster interest and motivation in learning, multiple means of representation to present information in various formats; and offering multiple means of action and expression to allow students to demonstrate their knowledge in different ways. by integrating these principles into instructional design, udl aims to eliminate barriers and ensure opportunities for educational success (smith et al., 2019). essentially udl encourages educators to design accommodating and inclusive learning experiences (rose & meyer, 2002). applying the principles of udl, educators can better address the unique needs of students with disabilities and diverse learning profiles, ensuring that all learners have equitable access to course content, study opportunities and the pursuit of their educational goals. it is a comprehensive approach to curriculum design ayala | 24 aiming to maximize success for every student (smith et al., 2019). implementing universal design for learning (udl) in college classrooms brings advantages for both students and instructors. one major benefit is the creation of a positive learning environment that promotes self-determination leading to improved outcomes and higher retention rates (balfe & trepagnier, 2019; mazzotti et al., 2023). this becomes especially crucial in the covid era when many students experience feelings of isolation and anxiety upon returning to campuses (jehi et al., 2022). by offering multiple means of expression and engagement, udl supports students in developing skills like critical thinking, problem solving and creativity. furthermore, udl empowers instructors by providing them with a framework to design and deliver instruction tailored to meet their student needs. as a result, it reduces the necessity for accommodations specifically related to accessibility for students (www. cast.org) making a commitment to inclusivity and accessibility in education through the adoption of the universal design for learning (udl) framework is progressive for any university. this proactive approach ensures that all students, irrespective of their learning needs, are provided with an equitable opportunity to succeed. some ways campuses may demonstrate effective use of udl include providing faculty with a design template for webpages that already adheres to exemplary standards for accessibility, minimizing potential barriers right from the outset. additionally, an accessible course design template can be made available within the institution’s learning management system, promoting consistency and ease of use. beyond these foundational resources, faculty and technology centers on campus can rigorously advocate for udl principles within the framework of workshops throughout the year integrating udl principles into pedagogy, emphasizing student-centered decision-making. in recognition of the changing educational terrain, more recent workshops have explored the potential of integrating large language models, like chatgpt, into instructional methodologies. this commitment to exploring innovative technologies underscores a forward-thinking approach to holistic, accessible, and universally designed diverse pedagogical strategies. creating an inclusive and accessible learning environment is a crucial aspect of fostering a positive learning environment in academic settings. inclusive environments not only value diversity but also create a sense of belonging and empowerment among all students, encouraging active involvement in their education (nieminen & pesonen, 2022). students can easily recognize when their campus prioritizes inclusivity as it is reflected through posters, websites, the learning management system and various activities and events on campus. these efforts contribute to promoting an inclusive positive school culture. accessibility plays a role alongside inclusivity by ensuring that educational resources, technologies and facilities are designed to consider the needs of all students including those with disabilities. this ensures universal access. by embracing both inclusivity and accessibility educational institutions can nurture an environment of respect, empathy and understanding. this creates a community where every student can thrive and achieve their potential (burdette, 2019). and as campuses begin to embrace artificial intelligence (ai) and tools such as chatgpt, it will be important to align them with accessibility at the forefront. the role of assistive technologies in supporting students with disabilities despite the amazing availability of assistive tools aimed at supporting today’s college students, those with disabilities still encounter distinctive challenges when it comes to their educational experiences. learning disabilities can impact processes and hinder reading, writing or mathematical skills (shaywitz et al., 2019; swanson, 2019). visual impairments can vary from sight to blindness necessitating specialized formats, accessible technologies or assistive technologies for accessing educational materials and visual presentations (jones & hensley maloney, 2015; salleh & ali, 2010). hearing impairments vary in severity and individuals may require accommodations such as sign language interpreters or chatgpt as a udl tool ayala | 25 captioning during lectures. these impairments can also create challenges when it comes to understanding spoken instructions and actively participating in class discussions (cheng & zhang, 2015; mitchell & karchmer, 2004). physical disabilities may limit mobility making it necessary to have facilities and technologies on campus for navigation between services and classrooms (burgstahler & gleicher, 2015). intellectual disabilities can affect executive functioning as well as adaptive behavior often requiring personalized support to ensure academic success (spooner et al., 2012). it is important for universities to acknowledge the nature of these disabilities and adopt practices like udl as a framework for instruction ensuring equal access for all students. additionally, students themselves should advocate for the tools and accommodations they need. many university campuses offer disability support services centers and accessibility initiatives in line with section 508 of the american with disabilities act (2018) which further promote inclusivity and equity among learners. these accessibility laws guarantee that eligible students receive appropriate accommodations and modifications provided by the university. existing support tools and accommodations for students with disabilities cover a range of technology options. these include software, devices and tools that aim to improve accessibility and enhance learning experiences for individuals with disabilities. for instance, text to speech software can be utilized to assist students with impairments or difficulties in reading by enabling them to access written content through spoken words (hetzroni & banin, 2017). screen readers are another tool that converts on screen text into words making it easier for visually impaired students to navigate accessible digital materials (betts et al., 2013). furthermore, speech recognition software provides assistance to students with disabilities by allowing them to control computers using voice commands or assist with using speech for writing (sharma & wasson, 2012). other accommodations may include time during exams, note taking support, captioned videos and classrooms designed for accessibility (page et al., 2021). additionally in the age of covid, students with disabilities had to learn how to navigate assistive supports via computers, zoom, and asynchronous course assignments. it was a significant amount of work for faculty to learn how to get their courses up and running online not to mention getting them prepared to support students with disabilities. the supports included creating small insect videos to provide instruction for assignments and captioned videos as part of assignments. in the spring of 2023, an ai tool name chatgpt come on the horizon and started to provide options for college students who needed support with writing assignments. i took a look at this tool, along with colleagues in the disabilities services center and knew that this new technology was going to play a significant role in supporting college students with disabilities. introducing chatgpt: a new horizon in assistive technology openai’s innovative language model known as chatgpt utilizes state of the art intelligence and learning techniques. chatgpt, which belongs to the gpt (generative pre-trained transformer) family of models is a groundbreaking advancement in natural language understanding and generation (beaver, 2022). it possesses the ability to engage in human like conversations with users. chatgpt can grasp queries, provide explanations, generate text and offer tailored responses based on conversational context. its extensive pre-training on a mass amount of text data (175 billion language items) empowers it with a vast comprehension of language and context. this makes it highly valuable for other applications, including those that provide support for college students with disabilities. for instance, campuses equipped with kurzweil screen reader tools for students with visual impairments will discover that chatgpt already offers an extension to assist this software effectively (beckman et al., 2018). chatgpt aligns seamlessly with the principles of udl (universal design for learning) fostering inclusivity and ensuring equitable learning experiences. researchers have already demonstrated the potential of ai language models like chatgpt in enhancing accessibility for individuals, with disabilities (tajik & tachatgpt as a udl tool ayala | 26 jik, 2023). by offering multiple modes of representation, chatgpt can convert written text into speech providing support to students with visual impairments or reading challenges. furthermore, the interactive and conversational nature of chatgpt allows students to engage with the content in ways that align with their individual learning preferences and cognitive abilities (sohail et al., 2023). chatgpt is highly adaptable and responsive, providing real time support for students facing challenges like learning disabilities or adhd. ai tools, such as chatgpt, play a role in reshaping autonomy for students with disabilities by eliminating obstacles to the flow of information in a manner that mimics human interaction (tajik & tajik, 2023). chatgpt as a paradigm shift chatgpt represents a paradigm shift in assistive technology by distinguishing itself from existing tools offering a centralized, interactive, and adaptive platform for support. chatgpt’s underlying technology, based on advanced natural language processing, enables it to understand and respond to queries with human-like nuance. this means it can provide more personalized and context-aware assistance than many tools that are limited to predefined responses or specific functions (roussey, 2023). for example, while a standard text-to-speech program can read text aloud, chatgpt can rephrase complex text into simpler language or explain concepts in multiple ways, catering to individual comprehension levels. chatgpt is versatile and can consolidate functions that would typically require multiple specialized tools—such as dictation, reading assistance, language translation, and research aid—into a single interface. this integration reduces the cognitive load and technical barriers for students with disabilities who might otherwise have to navigate multiple programs and devices. additionally, chatgpt is adaptive and learns from interactions, which means it can continuously improve its support based on the user’s unique needs and preferences. unlike static tools, chatgpt can evolve and provide students with long-term, tailored support that grows in effectiveness (frackiewicz, 2023). also, chatgpt’s capacity to engage in dialogue offers students the opportunity to clarify their understanding in real-time, providing a personal tutor available at any moment. this immediacy and interactivity facilitate a more engaging and effective learning process, especially for students who might require more time or different approaches to learning (eid, 2023). lastly, chatgpt can bridge gaps in existing support systems. it can guide students through administrative processes, help navigate campus resources, and even offer mental health support by providing coping strategies or directing students to appropriate services. this comprehensive support network, available 24/7, ensures that students with disabilities have equitable access to educational opportunities and resources. chatgpt is a game changer because it brings an unprecedented level of personalized, adaptable, and comprehensive support to students with disabilities, all within a single, user-friendly platform (roussey, 2023). chatgpt as assistive technology within the udl framework chatgpt has emerged as a technology within the framework of universal design for learning due to its versatile language processing capabilities. being an intelligence driven language model, chatgpt aligns well with the principles of udl by providing multiple means of representation, action and engagement (anderson, 2022). chatgpt can act as a dynamic learning companion, offering personalized and interactive experiences that cater to individual learning styles and abilities. it has the ability to adapt its responses and support to meet the needs of students with disabilities ensuring they have access to course materials. moreover, it provides ways for students to interact with the system whether through typing or using voice commands (vasinda & pilgrim, 2023). as a result of these capabilities campuses may need to reassess their approach towards accessibility. chatgpt as a udl tool ayala | 27 chatgpt has the capability to comprehend and respond to questions addressing each learner’s inquiries and requirements. by offering guidance, resources and feedback, chatgpt assists students in navigating challenges more effectively. furthermore, it includes a range of accessibility features and accommodations such as themes for improved contrast visibility, adjustable font sizes and options for keyboard navigation to cater specifically to users with impairments or unique visual preferences (cho et al., 2022). additionally, chatgpt is designed to be compatible with screen readers that assist students who rely on technology for accessing content (rao et al., 2021). chatgpt’s adaptability allows it to provide alternative explanations, step-by-step instructions, and a customizable pace of communication, accommodating learner variability and cognitive abilities (crompton & burke, 2023). by incorporating these accessibility features chatgpt ensures that students with disabilities can effectively engage with the system promoting inclusivity and accessibility in the learning experience. accessibility pertains to the intentional design and adaptation of technologies, in this case chatgpt, to meet the diverse needs of all college students, including those with disabilities. it supports the principle that technology should not merely be usable, but should be inclusive and facilitate equitable learning opportunities (kumar &wideman, 2014). by leveraging chatgpt as a universal design tool, there is an opportunity to bridge gaps in communication, comprehension, and collaboration, ensuring that students with disabilities can actively participate in and benefit from the academic experience. this approach moves beyond mere compliance to embrace a broader vision of an inclusive and beneficial education. additionally, there are opportunities to support students who are linguistically diverse and also managing diverse learning abilities (doran, 2015). chatgpt in supporting college students with disabilities chatgpt offers several key benefits in supporting college students with disabilities. first, its ability to provide tailored assistance caters to individual needs, allowing students with diverse abilities to access highly relevant information and resources (cho et al., 2022). second, chatgpt simplifies language and breaks down concepts into more manageable pieces of information. students can ask chatgpt to explain something to them at a lower reading level and chatgpt will respond accordingly. it can organize ideas and even create quiz questions to enhance comprehension of material (gilmore et al., 2017). third, its interactive nature encourages engagement and motivation among students fostering a positive learning experience (datchuk et al., 2015). chatgpt offers emotional support by being non-judgmental and empathetic towards students facing challenges. when a student shares their thoughts and emotions with chatgpt they will receive responses that incorporate insights from therapists, educators and support systems. these inputs aim to make students feel heard and understood. additionally, chatgpt can suggest technologies and resources tailored to specific disabilities. this assists students in accessing accommodations and support required for their college education. all the adaptive and inclusive features of chatgpt make significant contributions supporting students with disabilities on their academic journey. as students develop independent learning skills, they also gain selfadvocacy skills. chatgpt empowers students to explore topics on their own and seek support as needed. it offers guidance on communicating needs to professors, seeking appropriate accommodations, and accessing support services on campus. being able to advocate for oneself can contribute to building self-efficacy and self-confidence (balasubramanian, 2023). chatgpt has shown significant potential in enhancing comprehension and understanding of content for college students with disabilities. it allows students to ask questions and seek clarification fostering a deeper understanding of content. it provides a rubric, an outline, a summary, a study guide, and various types of practice assessments. it explains a concept in multiple ways and provide examples. it can do this in multiple languages and with supports built in place. in this way, students with disabilichatgpt as a udl tool ayala | 28 ties have better opportunities for greater understanding, and an inclusive learning experience (espulgas, 2023). for students who have difficulties with speech and language, chatgpt is a tool for practicing communication skills. it offers a safe environment to develop and refine conversational abilities (esplugas, 2023). this interactive tool encourages students to participate in discussions, hold conversations, ask questions and receive feedback. students can also clarify doubts, seek assistance, and engage in dialogue at their own pace. this promotes a more accessible learning environment regardless of communication abilities. chatgpt facilitates active involvement by offering features that encourage students to interact with course content. students can ask multiple layers of questions and receive immediate responses or feedback for each one, which can motivate them to be more involved in their learning process. the feedback is personalized and the resources are tailored to individual interests and learning styles. with its user-friendly interface, chatgpt empowers students to be more participatory in working towards achieving their goals (desjardins, 2014). chatgpt in action: a narrative example over the summer we had the opportunity to work with a college student with identified disabilities, who shared their thoughts with us after using chatgpt to research a paper. they said: i really appreciated how it could read documents out loud for me. it felt like having a conversation whenever i asked questions and received responses. i liked it so much that i ended up asking a lot of questions and had to keep track of my thoughts. when i started feeling overwhelmed by the abundance of information, i decided to ask chatgpt to help organize our conversation. it did! it also explained concepts in more simple terms when i needed understanding. it also provided feedback on my writing by suggesting improvements or pointing out mistakes. and, it assisted me in researching a topic and creating an outline for my draft. using chatgpt was genuinely helpful. made the whole process fun and interesting. this student was working on a paper to explain how a student with autism could be successful at college. they wrote down all of the topics they wanted covered from selecting a dorm, dining hall plans, class schedules, study hours, events and activities, disability support services and many more nuanced topics. the writing was fast and furious and there were pages of content in no particular order. at one point there were 75 pages of text and a story being told in a very random fashion. we explained how chatgpt could support this work. we began crafting prompts that would assist with this project. these are some of the prompts: chatgpt, you are helping a college student write a paper about how a college student with autism can be successful on a college campus. i am going to give my list of topics and would like for you to put them in an order that tells the most cohesive story. (chatgpt reordered the topics). are there any topics that seem missing to make the story flow the best it can? (chatgpt suggested two topics that would transition paragraphs in a better flow). the student began cutting and pasting the draft into the different topic areas where they seemed to belong. i am going to copy some text to you and would like to know if i put it in the correct place or if it belongs under a different heading in this paper. here is the first section: the student submits sections of the paper to chatgpt and continues receiving feedback throughout the process for all sections. the student had a number of phrases and catch lines they liked to use but were not really the best use of words for writing this paper. so, the student asked chatgpt: please check for awkward phrases or statements that do not make sense or are repeated. chatgpt began to identify a number of different catch phrases and line that could be removed for better writing. the student went to work learning what those were and removing them. in chatgpt as a udl tool ayala | 29 the process we talked about why and i experienced my student learning about writing from chatgpt. at one point, the student realized they wanted to make a list of ideas for social activities on a college campus that would benefit a student with autism. the student asked chatgpt: can you please make some suggestions of activities on a college campus that would be good for students with autism and tell me why? the student began to choose a few items from the list and add them to the paper. they continued with writing about these selections and why they personally thought they were good choices. the student still needed a summary because they weren’t sure how they wanted to end the paper. chatgpt, can you give me some ideas about how i could summarize this paper? chatgpt begins to suggest a few ideas for a closing statement. something catches my student’s attention and the student begins drafting the summary. chatgpt, i am going to copy a paper to you and ask you to review it for spelling and grammar. chatgpt does a beautiful review of the paper. the student spends time making corrections. we observed that this assignment was more engaging for this student compared to previous work tasks. currently we are committed to observations around at least one university campus that is using chatgpt. the art department is exploring how chatgpt can replicate or explain art. the music faculty is investigating how original music can be composed. the information technology department is looking into the privacy and security issues related to chatgpt on campus. most of all, the faculty technology support center is looking into misuse of this tool by students as well as the current tools in development that will attempt to identify plagiarism. there is also a faculty learning community that is exploring ai tools and how they lend themselves to pedagogy. it’s too early to understand the total impact of chatgpt on the college campus but we can certainly focus on how this tool will assist students with disabilities. discussion this paper has explored the transformative potential of chatgpt as an assistive tool for college students with disabilities, situating it within the universal design for learning (udl) framework. chatgpt’s ability to provide customized interactions aligns with the udl’s emphasis on offering multiple means of engagement, representation, and expression. this resonates with existing literature that underscores the need for educational environments to accommodate diverse learning styles and abilities (smith et al., 2019). the integration of chatgpt into educational settings reflects a broader shift towards embracing assistive technologies that are flexible, responsive, and personalized. unlike traditional assistive tools, which are often static and limited in scope, chatgpt offers dynamic support that adapts to the evolving needs of students. this is a significant advancement over the accommodations detailed by weiss et al. (2016), which, while essential, do not provide the same level of interactivity and adaptability. chatgpt can mitigate some of the limitations of current assistive technologies. for example, while screen readers and text-to-speech software facilitate access to written content, they do not offer the nuanced comprehension support that chatgpt does, such as simplifying complex texts or providing explanations in multiple forms. in this way, chatgpt’s capabilities go beyond mere accessibility, promoting deeper understanding and engagement with academic materials, a key component of udl (rose & meyer, 2002). the ai’s non-judgmental and responsive communication style provides emotional support and fosters a sense of agency among students, which is crucial for their academic and personal growth. this finding echoes the benefits of assistive technologies discussed by mazzotti et al. (2023), emphasizing the importance of student-centered educational practices. chatgpt as a udl tool ayala | 30 the narrative example presented in section 5 illustrates chatgpt’s impact on a student with autism, showcasing the ai’s capacity to assist with research, organization of ideas, and writing processes. this practical example aligns with the theoretical advantages of ai in education posited by anderson (2022) and demonstrates how chatgpt can serve as an effective complement to human support systems. however, the integration of ai-driven tools in education also raises other considerations, such as the potential for over-reliance and the need to maintain academic integrity. the challenge lies in balancing the use of chatgpt as a supportive tool while ensuring it enhances, rather than replaces, traditional learning and teaching methods. in light of the narrative and evidence presented, the implications of chatgpt’s role in education are profound. it offers a new dimension of support for students with disabilities, one that is in harmony with the goals of udl and existing accommodations. as universities continue to navigate the evolving landscape of assistive technology, it will be critical to monitor the long-term effects of ai tools like chatgpt on student learning outcomes and independence. ethical considerations in the use of ai technologies in education ethical considerations and limitations come into play as ai technologies like chatgpt become more integrated in settings. addressing ethical concerns involves dealing with issues such as data collection and storage, particularly regarding students with disabilities and their interactions with chatgpt. it’s important to ensure that ai tools like chatgpt don’t replace human interactions and support but rather enhance existing services (openai, 2021). chatgpt does have its limitations which includes fully understanding gender, cultural and disability biases. the training data used for generating responses may not always be of great quality or quantity leaving the possibility that the responses may be biased or have limited perspective. chatgpt4 strives to reduce these biases by being larger in scope and scale and taking user feedback into consideration. in specialized subjects there is also a chance of producing misleading information. while chatgpt strives to hold human conversations to the best of its ability it may still have limitations in intelligence when providing empathetic support. it’s crucial to recognize and acknowledge these limitations (fuchs, 2023). responsible use to ensure proper use and provide support for users incorporating chatgpt as an assistive technology tool requires certain measures. universities should offer training and guidance to both students and educators on how to effectively use chatgpt to enhance the learning experience (tajik & tajik, 2023). this training should cover discussions about chatgpts capabilities, limitations and ethical considerations. training should also include the pedagogical approach to using chatgpt within the udl framework in addition to the technical aspects of using the tool. additionally, establishing guidelines for usage of chatgpt within educational settings can help ensure that students view it as a supplementary tool rather than a replacement for human assistance (openai, 2021). creating an accessible environment is crucial in maximizing the benefits of using chatgpt as a udl tool. input from students about their needs and experiences using chatgpt within the udl framework should also be an important part of the training experience (rao et al., 2021). future directions and conclusion future research should focus on the longitudinal impact of chatgpt on students with disabilities, investigating how its use affects their academic success, self-efficacy, and transition into the workforce. studies should consider the perspectives of faculty and disability service providers to understand how chatgpt can be integrated into holistic support strategies that align with the overarching goals of udl. chatgpt holds significant promise as a valuable udl tool for college students with disabilities. chatgpt as a udl tool ayala | 31 its ability to enhance understanding of academic content, facilitate effective communication and interaction, promote engagement in learning, and support independent learning and self-advocacy skills makes it an incredibly powerful and adaptable resource (vasinda & pilgrim, 2023). the convergence of udl and chatgpt makes for an important learning experience for students with disabilities, addressing the diverse needs of all students, while ensuring inclusivity and accessibility (rao et al., 2021). further research should delve into areas of improving natural language understanding, enhancing personalized support, and developing ai-driven interventions tailored to specific disabilities. additionally, studies on the impact of chatgpt on learning outcomes and student engagement can provide valuable insights into its effectiveness as an assistive technology tool (zhang & walcott, 2016). presently, chatgpt can transform the way information is conveyed because it has the capability to convert text-based content into spoken words using text-to-speech technology, benefiting students with diverse learning abilities. additionally, chatgpt can simplify complex concepts, which can aid students in understanding intricate subject matter. by providing tailored explanations and breaking down ideas into more understandable terms, chatgpt aligns with udl principles to ensure information is accessible to all. for those who struggle with traditional writing or speech, chatgpt can be used as an alternative means of communication through text-based interactions or voice commands. this supports the udl concept of offering multiple avenues for students to express their understanding and engage with the learning process (frackiewicz, 2023). chatgpt provides an online and customizable platform, which can mitigate noise and lighting issues that arise and act as distractors in some typical college learning environments. timing and scheduling are also important considerations especially for those students who may need additional time or other flexibility. chatgpt can cater to individual schedules and even provide clarity of assignments during preferred working and studying time. chatgpt’s ability to accommodate various modes of information presentation, response methods, and environmental settings aligns seamlessly with the principles of udl. by leveraging chatgpt, colleges and universities can better establish inclusive and equitable learning environments for students with disabilities. as this technology continues to evolve, we may experience a complete paradigm shift in how students with disabilities access and receive higher education. the ultimate aim for all students with disabilities is to achieve academic success and to lead successful, productive, fulfilling, autonomous lives (fuchs, 2023). chatgpt as a udl tool ayala | 32 supplement: provide support to college students with disabilities chatgpt’s brings transformation to the learning experience of students with disabilities in ways that are fundamentally distinct from the experience of students without disabilities. the key lies in customization and the level of interactive support that can be constantly tailored to the unique challenges faced by students with disabilities (smith et al., 2019). for students with disabilities, accessibility and accommodation are not mere conveniences; they are essential for leveling the educational playing field (weiss et al., 2016). chatgpt can provide real-time, adaptive assistance that aligns precisely with the varied and specific needs of these students. for example, when a student with a visual impairment requests text-to-speech support, chatgpt’s response is not just a robotic reading of the text but an intelligent auditory delivery that can emphasize, rephrase, or explain as needed (beckman et al., 2018). furthermore, the nuanced understanding and response generation capabilities of chatgpt make it possible to handle complex queries related to accommodations and modifications, such as breaking down assignments into manageable steps or providing alternative explanations. modifications and adaptations can be crucial for students with cognitive disabilities, who may require multiple forms of representation to understand the same concept (rose & meyer, 2002). for students with autism, the ability to simulate social interactions in a controlled and patient manner allows them to practice and develop social skills without the pressure of real-time human judgment (tajik & tajik, 2023). this aspect of chatgpt is differentiated from the support that might be used by students without disabilities, who may not require the same level of repetitive practice or stepby-step breakdown of social cues. the capacity of chatgpt to assist with time management and organization can be a game changer for students with attention-related disabilities or executive functioning challenges (balfe & trepagnier, 2019). while non-disabled students may find generic organizational tools sufficient, those with disabilities can benefit from the personalized scheduling and reminder systems that chatgpt can provide, which take into account their particular pace of work and processing. the provision of emotional support by chatgpt can also be particularly beneficial for students with disabilities who may feel isolated due to their challenges. while non-disabled students may use chatgpt for quick informational queries, students with disabilities can engage with it for longer, more meaningful conversations to receive encouragement and strategies for managing stress and anxiety (nieminen & pesonen, 2022). in essence, while chatgpt serves as a multifunctional tool for all students, it functions as a lifeline for students with disabilities, offering them a degree of independence and self-determination in their educational journey that they might not otherwise have (mazzotti et al., 2023). its ability to offer support that is both comprehensive and deeply personalized makes it a game changer in the landscape of assistive technologies (roussey, 2023). the following is a sample resource of how chatgpt can be used to support college students with disabilities including a suggested prompt list. the support topics were selected by doing a thorough review of categories typically supported in a disability services office on a college campus (deckoff-jone & duell, 2018). the rationale for each topic was established by actually using chatgpt to address each of the categories and seeing how it could provide support. the prompts were developed by reading through many resources on how to best prompt chatgpt and determining at least one clear directive as a suggestion for the reader to get started (vasinda & pilgrim, 2023). chatgpt as a udl tool ayala | 33 support topic rationale student sample prompt academic advising chatgpt can provide academic advising by offering guidance on course selection, degree requirements, and career pathways, considering individual needs and accommodations. it can also provide information on support services available on specific campuses. “hey chatgpt, i’m a student in need of some academic advising guidance. can you help me understand course selection, degree requirements, and any general support services that universities typically offer?” accessibility features chatgpt can be designed with accessibility features such as high contrast themes, adjustable font sizes, keyboard navigation options, and compatibility with screen readers. these features can enhance usability for interacting with chatgpt more effectively. “hey chatgpt, does your platform offer accessibility features? i’m looking for things like high contrast themes, adjustable font sizes, keyboard navigation, and compatibility with screen readers. can you help with this?” accessibility chatgpt can recommend and provide information on accessibility resources available on a campus or online. this can include accessible and assistive technologies, specialized software, support systems, or disability services. “hey chatgpt, i’m trying to find accessibility resources available on my campus and online. can you recommend any assistive technologies, specialized software, or support systems? also, do you have information about disability services?” accomodations and modifications chatgpt can adapt its responses to individual needs, such as providing alternative explanations, offering step-by-step instructions, or adjusting the pace of communication to cater to different learning styles. providing multiple means of representation and alternative explanations can enhance comprehension for students with diverse learning needs such as attention-related disabilities, allowing students to better engage and process information. “hey chatgpt, i’m struggling with understanding this. can you give me an alternative explanation or step-by-step instructions? can you explain this to me in a few different ways?” career and transition planning chatgpt can assist with career exploration and transition planning. it can provide information about different careers, educational pathways, vocational training, and available resources for decision making for the future. “hey chatgpt, i’m currently exploring potential career paths. can you help me understand different careers, educational pathways, vocational training options, and any resources that might guide my decisions?” chatgpt as a udl tool ayala | 34 clarifying instructions students with certain disabilities, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (adhd) or autism spectrum disorder (asd), may require additional clarification or repetition of instructions. chatgpt can provide clear and concise instructions, repeat information when necessary and answer questions related to assignments or tasks. “hey chatgpt, i’m a bit confused about my assignment. can you give me clear and concise instructions, and if i still don’t understand something, can you repeat or clarify it for me?” collaboration and communication chatgpt can facilitate collaboration and communication among students, including those with disabilities, by providing a platform for discussion, brainstorming, or sharing ideas. it can act as a virtual intermediary to enhance interactions and promote inclusivity. by using chatgpt as a communication tool, students can engage in group discussions, seek peer feedback, and collaborate on projects, creating a sense of community and collective learning. “hey chatgpt, i’m looking to collaborate with my study group, which includes some peers with disabilities. can you help facilitate our discussions, brainstorming sessions, or idea sharing?” exam preparation and study assistance chatgpt can assist in preparing for exams or studying by providing relevant information, reviewing concepts, offering practice questions, and providing feedback on answers. this can help students reinforce their understanding of particular subject matter and potentially improve their performance. “hey chatgpt, i have an upcoming exam and could use some help. can you provide information on the topic, review key concepts with me, and maybe offer some practice questions? i’d also appreciate feedback on my answers to make sure i’m on the right track.” language and communication skills for students with speech and language disabilities, chatgpt can act as a tool for practicing communication skills. it can engage in conversations, provide language models, and offer feedback on pronunciation, vocabulary, or grammar. “hey chatgpt, i’m looking to practice my communication skills. can you have a conversation with me and provide guidance on my pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar?” personalized assistance chatgpt can understand unique needs and challenges and offer tailored advice, guidance, and support to empower students to overcome barriers, make progress, and achieve academic goals. “hey chatgpt, i need some advice on how to reach my academic goals? if i tell you about my struggles, can you help me figure out how to make progress? chatgpt as a udl tool ayala | 35 research support chatgpt can aid in conducting research for assignments, projects, or papers. it can provide guidance on research methodologies, suggest relevant sources, help refine research questions, and offer assistance in organizing and structuring research materials. it can discuss topics and sort through articles; even help with annotation and summaries. “hey chatgpt, i’m working on a research project for one of my classes. can you help me with research methodologies, and maybe recommend some sources, and assist me in refining my research questions? i also need help with organizing my work, annotations and summaries of articles.” resource recommendations chatgpt can suggest appropriate resources, tools, or technologies such as specialized software, assistive devices, or online platforms designed for specific needs. “hey chatgpt, i’m looking for resources and tools tailored to some specific needs i have. can you recommend any specialized software, assistive devices, or online platforms that might be helpful for me?” simplified language a user can ask chatgpt to use simpler language or break down complex concepts into more understandable terms. this can benefit students with learning difficulties, dyslexia or language processing disorders who may struggle with complex language or concepts. “hey chatgpt, san you use simpler language or break this down for me to make it more understandable?” can you try again and break it down even more?” social skills development for students with certain disabilities, such as autism spectrum disorder or social communication challenges, chatgpt can simulate social interactions, provide guidance on social cues, and offer opportunities for practicing social scenarios in a safe and non-judgmental environment. “hey chatgpt, i have some challenges related to autism and social communication. can you help me practice social interactions and social cues? can we try a few social scenarios?” subject-specific support chatgpt can offer subject-specific support across various disciplines. it can provide explanations, examples, and resources tailored to specific subjects, helping students grasp and apply concepts more effectively. “hey chatgpt, i’m having a bit of trouble with my “chemistry” class. can you provide some explanations, examples, and resources related to “this specific” topic? can you suggest how i can try to apply this concept?” text-to-speech (tts) support chatgpt can convert its responses into spoken words using text-to-speech technology (tts). this feature can help students with visual impairments or reading difficulties have auditory access to responses instead of relying on visual access. tts enables students to access information and engage in conversations more effectively. “hey chatgpt, i am visually impaired. can you use text-to-speech technology to convert your responses into spoken words for me? it would be much easier for me to access information and converse with you that way.” chatgpt as a udl tool ayala | 36 time management and organization students with disabilities, such as attention-related disorders or executive functioning difficulties, may struggle with time management and organization. chatgpt can provide reminders, tips, and strategies for managing time effectively, setting goals, staying organized, scheduling tasks, prioritizing assignments, managing deadlines, and creating study plans. “hey chatgpt, can you give me tips on organizing my work assignments? can you help create a manageable schedule? i need help prioritizing my assignments and deadlines. i might need a study plan. can you help?” writing assistance chatgpt can act as a writing assistant. it can provide grammar and spelling suggestions, help with sentence structure, offer ideas for essay topics, and provide feedback on writing samples, supporting students in improving their writing skills. “hey chatgpt, i’m working on a writing assignment. can you suggest some essay topics? when i have a draft, can you help edit for grammar and spelling and give feedback on my paper? academic support chatgpt can provide academic assistance tailored to the needs of students with autism by offering explanations, clarifying instructions, and providing additional examples or visual aids to enhance understanding. it can also help with organizing assignments, breaking down complex tasks, and developing effective study strategies. “hey chatgpt, i have an assignment on “topic.” can you clarify the assignment for me and provide some visual aids for me to understand it better. and can you break the assignment down into manageable steps for me with a timeline?” autism some individuals with autism thrive on routines and schedules. chatgpt can assist college students in creating and managing their routines and schedules by providing reminders, time management strategies, and organizational tips to help students structure their day and manage their academic and personal tasks effectively. “hey chatgpt, can you help me create and manage my college routine? i’d appreciate strategies for managing my time, and any practical organizational to help me juggle both my academic and personal tasks. i’ll give you my current schedule of classes and activities.” emotional support college life can be emotionally challenging for students, including those with autism. chatgpt can offer emotional support by providing a safe and non-judgmental caring experience. it can listen to students’ concerns, offer encouragement, and provide strategies for managing stress, anxiety, or social difficulties. “hey chatgpt, i’m feeling really stressed and anxious here at school. i don’t have any real friends yet and i am overwhelmed by my dorm and all the noise. can you talk to me?” chatgpt as a udl tool ayala | 37 self-advocacy skills chatgpt can assist college students with autism in developing self-advocacy skills by providing guidance on how to communicate their needs to professors, seek appropriate accommodations, and access support services on campus. “hey chatgpt, i’m a college student with autism, and i’m trying to get better at advocating for myself. can you explain how to ask my professors for accommodations, and how to find and access the support services available on “this” campus?” sensory support sensory sensitivities are common among individuals with autism. chatgpt can provide advice and strategies to manage sensory overload on campus. it can suggest coping mechanisms, such as finding quiet spaces, using noise-cancelling headphones, or developing sensory toolkits to help students regulate their sensory experiences. “hey chatgpt, i have autism. do you have any advice or strategies to help me manage sensory overload? i need coping mechanisms like finding quiet places and regulating my sensory experiences?” transition support transitioning to college life can be challenging for students, including individuals with autism. chatgpt can offer guidance and support during this transition period. it can provide information on campus resources, assist in understanding college expectations and norms, and help students navigate the social and academic aspects of college life. “hey chatgpt, i’m just starting college and i have autism. the transition is a little challenging. can you help me find campus resources here at “this college” and tell me what is expected academically and socially?” accommodations and accessibility chatgpt can provide options for simplified language, visual aids, or alternative formats to enhance comprehension and accessibility. additionally, it can provide text-to-speech functionality for students with learning disabilities who may benefit from auditory reinforcement. “hey chatgpt, i have a learning disability. can you explain this “idea” in an easier way, perhaps with visual aids or in a different format? also, do you have a textto-speech feature i can use?” assistive technology recommendations chatgpt can recommend and provide information on assistive technologies or software that can benefit students with learning disabilities. it can suggest tools for speech-to-text, text-to-speech, mind mapping, or organizational purposes, helping students access resources that can support their specific learning needs. “hey chatgpt, i have a learning disability and i’m looking for assistive technologies or software that might help me. can you recommend any good tools like speech-totext, text-to-speech, or mind mapping? chatgpt as a udl tool ayala | 38 clarifying concepts and instructions students with learning disabilities may struggle with understanding complex concepts or instructions. chatgpt can provide simplified explanations, offer examples, or provide visual representations to enhance understanding. it can break down information into smaller, more digestible parts to support comprehension. “chatgpt, can you break down this information for me in an easier way? can you show me some graphics and give me specific steps to follow for the assignment? individualized learning plans chatgpt can assist in developing individualized learning plans for college students with learning disabilities. it can work with students to identify their specific needs, set goals, and create strategies to address challenges. it can also provide ongoing support and monitoring to help students stay on track with their personalized learning plans. “chatgpt, i’m a college student with a learning disability and i need help creating an individualized learning plan. can you assist me in setting up goals and steps, and creating a check-in system to make sure i’m staying on track?” reinforcement and practice chatgpt can offer practice questions, quizzes, and interactive activities to reinforce learning and provide opportunities for students to apply their knowledge. “chatgpt, i have a learning disability and need some additional practice for studying. can you create practice questions, quizzes, or interactive activities related to my topic so i can study better?” study strategies and techniques chatgpt can assist college students with learning disabilities in developing effective study strategies such as note-taking methods, memory aids, organization techniques, and time management skills. it can also offer suggestions for breaking down complex tasks into manageable steps. “chatgpt, can you help me with study strategies like note-taking, remembering things, and organizing techniques? i’d also like to learn about breaking down complex tasks into smaller steps.” visual aids chatgpt can incorporate visual aids, such as images, diagrams, or charts, to enhance understanding. visual 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(2016). effects of assistive technology on college students with disabilities: an exploratory study. journal of postsecondary education and disability, 29(4), 379-398. chatgpt as a udl tool https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4413921 smith (2019) proof final educational renaissance vol. 8 (2019) the im pact of program redesign on par t nerships and clin ical pract ice linda gray sm it h, phd. northwest missouri state university email: lsmith@nwmissouri.edu sue wood, edd. northwest missouri state university email: suewood@nwmissouri.edu greg rich, edd. northwest missouri state university email: grich@nwmissouri.edu everet t singlet on, phd. northwest missouri state university email: esingleton@nwmissouri.edu tim ot hy jason wall, edd. northwest missouri state university email: timwall@nwmissouri.edu feature article int roduct ion the school of education program at northwest missouri state university did not reflect current best practices; in fact, many courses had not been revised in 20 years. the curriculum offerings were outdated and the state department of education had recently changed compendium requirements that the school of education must offer students to meet requirements for licensure/certification. the program changes required were significant, including additional experiences and credit hours in assessment, literacy, and language-acquisition coursework. simultaneously, university administrators at northwest missouri state university were experiencing state and federal pressure to decrease students? time to degree. state funding had declined over the previous 20 years from 70% to 30% of university costs, resulting in increased pressure to attract students for the cost of attendance. the school of education was particularly impacted because fewer in-state students aspired to become pk?12 abst ract this study investigated the ability of a redesigned teacher preparation program to effectively meet the needs of teacher candidates and partner school districts. the study examined the effects of the redesigned school of education program on perceptions of teacher candidates, administrators, teachers in partner districts, and faculty members. findings from school-partnership districts and the school of education were explored. the goal was to use best practices to meet the needs of teacher candidates and provide rich theoretical and clinical experiences in diverse school settings. findings indicated a change in perceptions of teacher candidates in understanding the importance of equity in the teaching process and of the connection between theory presented in the classroom and application in settings of diverse learners. teachers and principals indicated an appreciation for renewal through the collaborative experience with teacher candidates during field experiences. mailto:lsmith@nwmissouri.edu mailto:suewood@nwmissouri.edu mailto:grich@nwmissouri.edu mailto:esingleton@nwmissouri.edu mailto:timwall@nwmissouri.edu smith, wood, rich, singleton, & wall| the impact of program redesign on partnerships and clinical practice teachers (katnik, 2016). in response to the compendium change, many universities in the state were adding hours to the degree. in response to these changes, the dean of the school of education challenged the faculty, many of whom were new to the university, to think creatively to initiate a redesigned program that would meet the requirements of the state department of education but not raise the number of credit hours. faculty accepted the challenge and began a comprehensive redesign of coursework using a collaborative approach. collaborative inquiry is among the most promising strategies for strengthening teaching and learning (david, 2008). at the same time, collaboration may be one of the most difficult to implement. faculty collaboration does not occur naturally; it evades prevailing norms of teacher isolation and individualistic approaches to teaching. essential elements of effective collaboration are ensuring adequate time to collaborate and adhering to a set of norms fostering a positive culture (david, 2008). the institution possessed both qualities. using the collaborative principles espoused in david (2008), the intensive work of redesign began with 5 retreat days in which faculty members came together to begin the journey to redesign and reinvent the curriculum for the school of education. all faculty from the elementary and early childhood programs, middle and secondary education programs, the assistant director of teacher education, and the chair of the department of professional education agreed the redesign needed to be grounded in research on effective teacher-education programs, aligned with the state teacher standards. further, the new design had to be responsive to the needs of pk?12 schools in the four-state area from which most teacher candidates are recruited. with an emphasis on collaboration in the school of education, content faculty members from the campus-wide professional education unit also needed to be included. best practice, including a report on clinical practice commissioned by the american association of colleges for teacher education (aacte, 2018), indicated that students should be involved in multiple clinical field experiences in a variety of locations to support the application of theory to pk?12 classrooms. in the fall of 2018, the university placed 537 first and second-year education majors in local community districts for clinical observation and early-level field experiences. faculty liaisons collaborated with pk?12 teachers in the field experience sites to design experiences aligned with the coursework delivered in the university educator-preparation program. the university placed first-year education majors in school districts in the first 7 weeks of their program and provided opportunities to observe and work with pk?12 students in well-coordinated, carefully-constructed, scaffolded experiences designed by the pk?12 teacher-partner and university faculty liaison. not only did the teacher candidates participate in field experiences within the 35-mile radius in a rural setting, but they also took part in an additional set of clinical-practice opportunities during their 3rd and 4th years to work in an urban school district, with strong results (linda smith, farnan, seeger, wall, & kiene, 2017). this urban clinical experience featured the chance to work with students from marginalized, underrepresented populations of individuals from diverse ethnicities, students living in systemic or concentrated poverty, and many english-language learners. best practices, informed by theory, guided the redesign. theoret ical fram ework multiple theoretical constructs inspired this study. change theory informs the process used in the redesign of the school of education coursework and field experiences. fullan (2006) defined seven core premises undergirding effective change. these include a focus on motivation over a period of time and the building of knowledge and skills to create the change. meaningful change requires purposeful thinking and change is messy; change takes persistence and comfort with ambiguity. systems seek stability; creative tension arises when the vision is different from the reality (senge, 5 smith, wood, rich, singleton, & wall| the impact of program redesign on partnerships and clinical practice 1990). the reality of increased requirements established by the state department at the same time as the effort to decrease the numbers of hours to obtain a degree undergirded the move toward change. an adaptive culture is needed for change to occur (heifetz, grashow, & linsky, 2009). shared responsibility, development of leadership capacity, and the institutionalization of reflection and continuous learning characterize an adaptive culture (heifetz et al., 2009, p. 165). another framework informing this study is the role of partnerships with pk?12 schools in meeting the educational needs of teacher candidates. in the missouri, the department of education requires 155 hours of field experiences for teacher candidates in their content area or area of emphasis. teacher candidates need partnerships with pk?12 schools to enable them to work in school districts, learn from practicing teachers, and apply the knowledge collected in the classroom to reality. multiple sources support the guiding principles of rich clinical practice including the aacte (2018) report on clinical practice. state education requirements and emphasis from national accreditors? the association for advancing quality in education (aaqep, 2019) and the council for the accreditation of education preparation (caep, 2013)? aided in developing mutually beneficial partnerships. principles and expertise from traditionally excellent education programs that are members of the renaissance group (2018) informed the imperative for mutually beneficial strong partnerships between college and school systems. these principles became driving forces in developing the curricular redesign. specifically, the redesign focused on the renaissance group principle 3: ?the education of teachers incorporates extensive and sequenced field and clinical experiences in various settings with effective supervision.? similarly, principle 7 was influential in our redesign. it called for the continuing professional development of teachers through shared responsibility of the individual candidate, other professional educators (such as partner districts), and university faculty (the renaissance group, 2018). this study was informed by multiple theoretical constructs on equity and student development. using ecological-systems theory (bronfenbrenner, 1979), teacher candidates are introduced to the systematic ways learners develop as social and cultural beings. during the first semester, a phase i course titled, ecology of teaching, provides candidates with the opportunity to explore six bioecological layers that influence the developmental context of learners. a critical social-justice lens supports the bioecological layers to enhance understanding of the impact of development on teaching and learning. the five systemic layers of relationships that influence a child?s development are (a) the microsystem and relationships in direct contact with the child; (b) the mesosystem and the connection between relationships in the child?s microsystem; (c) the exosystem and those structures in which the child does not have direct contact; (d) the macrosystem and larger cultural contexts, attitudes, beliefs, developing and industrialized countries, socioeconomic status, poverty, and ethnicity; and (e) the chronosystem representing changes in time (bronfenbrenner, 1979). candidates then transition to another phase i course titled, developmental foundations, that delves into the tension between constructivism and behaviorism while providing exposure to culturally responsive teaching language and practices (as in gay, 2000). this field experience-based course introduces students to methods of observation and noticing of developmental constructs in educational settings. students learn about educational theorists such as pavlov, skinner, bandura, gesell, bayley, and chomsky. through intentionally designed field work and guided discussion, candidates learn to interpret their observations and attention from the lens of developmental and learning theories. relying on the work of chappuis and stiggins (2017), candidates learn strategies for developing and implementing formative and summative assessments and analyze the resulting student-level data. dweck?s (2006), research on growth mindsets? connection to classroom culture 6 smith, wood, rich, singleton, & wall| the impact of program redesign on partnerships and clinical practice and the relationships between verbal and nonverbal communication and their impact on teacher relationships (see keith, tornatzky, & pettigrew, 2015) were influential in coursework development. purpose of st udy the purpose of this study was to examine the redesign of the school of education program to meet the needs of teacher candidates, the educator preparation program (epp), and the partner districts of the epp. we evaluated two other constructs in the study: (a) the effects of the redesigned school of education program based on the perceptions of teacher candidates, and (b) the effects of the redesigned school of education program based on the perceptions of administrators and teachers in the partner districts. research quest ions 1. how can the educator-preparation program be redesigned using best practices to meet the needs of teacher candidates, the epp, and partner districts? 2. what is the impact of the redesigned education program on teacher candidates, the epp, and partner districts? change theory critical to any major change in an organization is a thorough knowledge of the change process. without change knowledge, the reform will fail (fullan, cuttress, & kilcher, 2005). when examining the literature on the topic of change, the voice of lewin is clear (burnes & bargal, 2017). lewin was committed to making a better world that provided the motivation for all work on social change. lewin defined change as a process including three stages: unfreezing, moving, and freezing. unfreezing means rethinking the status quo and breaking from the current traditions and ways of performing. in this stage, most resistance can occur. in the moving stage, change begins to occur; in the freezing stage, the change is institutionalized and slowly becomes the status quo. according to lewin, during these stages of change, the change agent continually thinks about the mechanism to change the current state to the desired state (burnes & bargal, 2017). par t nerships the guiding conceptual model of the aacte clinical practice brief (2018) places an imperative on high-quality clinical practice supporting quality partnerships. such partnerships are mutually beneficial to classrooms in the partner districts and to classrooms in the university, which is a requirement of national accreditation (aaqep, 2019; caep, 2013). if each partner does not gain from the experience, the partnership will not continue (stephens & boldt, 2004). partnerships between schools and universities where teachers and teacher candidates keep learning benefit both institutions (nobles, dredger, & gerheart, 2012). teacher-education programs benefit from collaboration with professional-development school partners as educators revise curriculum to meet the needs of partner schools (holen & yunk, 2014). the combination of research, theory, and practice benefits the full and equal participation of partner schools (holen & yunk, 2014, p. 4). although reflective practice underlies the renewal of teaching and learning in pk?12 and university classrooms, partnerships between pk?12 schools and universities require ongoing care to ensure sustainability. the caep (2013) and aaqep (2019) standards support such partnerships for educator-preparation national accreditation, addressing collaboration, clinical partnerships, and practice as a way to support the learning of teacher candidates and all pk?12 students. having the university and the school district involved in the planning of clinical field experiences allows the needs of both entities to be met (reischl, khasnabis, & karr, 2017). for a partnership between an epp and a school district to continue, it must become part of the culture of both institutions, rather than an isolated event (zeichner, payne, & brayko, 2015). another facet of the redesign was an intentional emphasis on socially just practices. 7 smith, wood, rich, singleton, & wall| the impact of program redesign on partnerships and clinical practice equit y as the unique student demographics of schools change, requiring culturally responsive teaching pedagogy, candidates must be prepared to teach in districts with racial and ethnic diversity. social justice is a philosophical belief that, along with personal actions, centers on treating individuals with ?fairness, respect, dignity, and generosity? (nieto & bode, 2012, p. 12). candidates understand the importance of using students? cultural experiences and backgrounds to help inform their teaching and learning. candidates gain a deeper understanding of various contextual dimensions such as race, culture, and socioeconomics, and their impact on motivation, ability, and achievement in the classroom. understanding the unique context of students also helps candidates gain better insight into how teachers can use students? cultural experiences to inform learning, teaching, and instruction (ladson-billings, 2001; eckert, 2011; rivlin & robinson, 1968). a deeper awareness and understanding of the unique demographics of various schools and communities that impact them helps candidates adjust their biases and assumptions, and any preconceived notions about teaching. teacher candidates are able to better understand the larger global implications of teaching students from various backgrounds. exposure to rural, urban, and suburban settings provides an opportunity for candidates to immerse themselves in a variety of school settings (merryfield, 2000; ukpokodu, 2010). further, candidates become equity advocates who understand the correlation and connection to student achievement. they understand teaching beyond books and recognize the value of experience in the learning and teaching process. last, they understand the commitment necessary to become an effective teacher and to continue in the field of education. field experiences in urban areas can change the perceptions of teacher candidates who participate in them. involvement in field experiences produced significant changes in how teacher candidates viewed their ability to make a difference and in their beliefs about diversity (smith, farnan, seeger, wall,& kiene, 2017) . after a clinical experience in an urban setting, developed by the rurally based epp and district leaders to promote exchange of ideas and encourage appreciation and promotion of diversity, the findings were apparent: after the urban field experiences candidates were: 1) more likely to use curricular materials and instructional practices fostering diversity, 2) more aware of (k-12) students? experiences and cultural backgrounds, and 3) noted diverse schools were ?very different? than those they attended (smith et al., 2018, p. 6). leaders in the epp and the pk?12 school systems have seen the impact of strong clinical practice, and wanted to build more opportunities to blend theory and practice for candidates. met hodology this study used a nested-case-study approach with concurrent analysis of qualitative and quantitative data sources. the researchers examined one redesigned educator-preparation program to determine how it met stakeholder needs and determine its impact on partnerships and clinical practice. a case study is an in-depth description and analysis of a bounded system (merriam, 2009). the ?what? is a bounded system, a single entity or unit around which boundaries exist (smith, 1978). in this case study, the epp was the bounded system. using the case-study approach, three main data sources were synthesized. first, we drew on multiple measures of teacher-candidate perceptions. next, we analyzed principal and mentor-teacher feedback, as their voices were paramount because the focus of the study involved partnerships and expanded clinical placements in schools at earlier points in the program. finally, we determined how faculty perceived the redesign and development of new partnerships. analysis of teacher-candidate reflections assisted in the search for contextualized meaning, understanding of the 8 smith, wood, rich, singleton, & wall| the impact of program redesign on partnerships and clinical practice impact of redesigning the program, and how the redesign impacted partnerships. when considering methodology, the researchers used merriam?s (2009) technique of purposeful sampling. purposeful sampling builds on the assumption that the investigator wants to discover, understand, and gain insight and therefore must select a sample from which they can learn the most. we triangulated data until it reached saturation, when themes emerged to enable us to clearly depict the impact of the redesign for candidates and the epp, and on partnership development and clinical practice. par t icipant s and set t ing northwest missouri state university in maryville, mo has an enrollment of 6,000 undergraduates, and is located in a very rural, geographically remote, isolated area. maryville, mo has a population of 11,972. the moderately selective university enrolls approximately 1,025 students with education majors comprising 658 elementary teacher candidates and 367 secondary teacher candidates, primarily from a four-state region; each state is within 50 miles of the university. each year, approximately 23% of the teacher candidates are pell grant eligible. in addition, 96% of teacher candidates identify as white with 2% latin(x) and 2% multiracial. finally, 36% of teacher candidates are the first in their family to attend college. of the 21 faculty members of the school of education, 15 were women. only two individuals of color were on the faculty when the study took place. the school of education partners with 12 pk?12 school districts within a 35-mile radius of the university. teacher candidates provided/arranged their own transportation when attending local early and midlevel field experiences. during the 2017?2018 school year, approximately 531 freshmen and sophomore teacher candidates participated in field experiences with 12 partner school districts. in addition to rural field experiences, teacher candidates took part in two early and midlevel field experiences in urban school districts using university-sponsored bus transportation. table 1 depicts the socioeconomic status of partner districts based on the percentage of students who were eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, the racial demographics of the districts, and the total district enrollment. table 1 pk?12 demographics where educator preparation program clinical field placements take place. * indicates the number/percent has been suppressed due to a potential small sample size. realizing that one of the major forces that leads to successful implementation of change efforts (fullan et al., 2005) is developing a culture of evaluation, education faculty members met to design a quantitative/qualitative survey that would speak to the extent to which the objectives set forth in the redesigned program had been met in the first year of implementation. in the spring of 2018, researchers administered the survey to all 256 students who had participated in phase i district % f/r race: % white race: % non-white total maryville 33.2 91.9 * 1,401 jefferson 32.2 * * 125 ne nodaway 45.8 * * 205 w nodaway 54.4 * * 232 nodaway holt 46.3 * * 199 s nodaway 47.9 * * 175 n nodaway 45.4 * * 205 albany 59.3 * * 398 bedford 42.36 95.69 * 465 savannah 32.2 94.1 * 2,306 clarinda 38.34 90.72 * 1,063 n andrew 39.5 * * 356 independence 71.4 56.6 41.1 14,321 st. joseph 71.4 73.6 3.0 11,256 9 smith, wood, rich, singleton, & wall| the impact of program redesign on partnerships and clinical practice courses during the 2017?2018 school year: 77 students responded to the survey. the data collection consisted of (a) surveys of feedback from first-year students on experience in the new program and (b) feedback from students, faculty, and pk?12 mentor teachers and principals. all survey questions were identical. as a component of the coursework, we collected and analyzed reflective narratives for themes from each of the 256 students. we electronically provided narrative surveys with identical questions to 264 pk?12 mentor teachers and principals in the districts within the 35-mile radius who hosted the field experiences, with 26 responses returned and analyzed for themes. we analyzed narrative responses from the surveys using axial coding. we coded open-ended questions to identify themes. we worked independently, identifying important phrases and consistent themes with open coding, using the themes as the designation for data categories. see table 2 for the three data sources we analyzed to obtain our results. table 2 data sources used result s by research quest ion rq1. how can the educator preparation program be redesigned using best practice to meet the needs of teacher candidates, the epp, and partner districts? the process used in the redesign of the education program included faculty work to create a vision of what the program could look like, advisory-council meetings including faculty groups of pk?12 teachers and administrators, and local business professionals answering the following question: ?what are the graduates of the school of education doing well and what do the graduates of the school of education need to do better to serve the needs of the students in the pk?12 schools?? using a backwards-design model of curriculum design based on the work of wiggins and mctighe (2005), the faculty collaboratively worked to fully understand the state professional standards and the state governing rules of epps. site visits of other teacher-education programs built faculty knowledge of extended student-teaching experiences. faculty made connections with university content professors and with community colleges for the seamless matriculation of students. ultimately, the university implemented courses, followed by annual reviews. an additional impetus for programmatic and clinical practice change came from suggestions made by a team of administrators and teachers on the school of education advisory council. as a result of the advisory council?s input, there was a significant increase in the number and diversity of opportunities for clinical field experiences. field experiences start in the first term of teacher candidates? first on-campus year, to make candidates more aware of their chosen career and augment a sense of commitment to the craft at a much earlier point in the program. an increased emphasis on assessment and data literacy emerged, accompanied by strategies to assist pk?12 learners who had experienced trauma in their lives. the advisory council advised additional pedagogy (supporting content while focusing on teaching tools) for secondary candidates. the education of teachers became an all-campus responsibility, undertaken in collaboration with pk?12 school personnel, as described in principle 1 of the renaissance group (2018). course descriptions were approved through the population method university students quantitative and qualitative feedback surveys were electronically distributed. the survey consisted of 13 quantitative and qualitative questions. pk?12 teacher and administrator narrative feedback narrative surveys were electronically distributed consisting of 5 open-ended questions. university faculty narrative feedback narrative feedback forms consisting of 5 questions was electronically distributed at the end of the term. 10 smith, wood, rich, singleton, & wall| the impact of program redesign on partnerships and clinical practice committee structure of the university. educators identified competencies for the courses, and collaborative teams developed the classes. participants identified field-experience sites and built course plans. table 3 shows the sequence of the redesign process. the planning was completed in year 1, course writing in year 2, and implementation of the redesigned courses in year 3. table 3 process of redesigning the educator preparation program based on the dean?s challenge rq2: what is the impact of the redesigned education program on teacher candidates, the epps, and partner districts? the quantitative data revealed the most impactful experiences of the redesigned program. we extracted two themes from qualitative data in the teacher-candidate responses: (a) change in perceptions of the role of a teacher, and (b) understanding of the application of theories learned in the classroom. im pact of t he redesign on teacher candidat es the result of the electronic survey revealed teacher candidates ranked the impact of the clinical field experiences as good or excellent. teacher candidates rated experiences in the large urban/suburban districts as most impactful. participants found experiences during the coursework to be second most impactful, including the poverty simulation facilitated by the children and family center of the local county seat, where participants assumed a role and acted through situations they might encounter in adverse situations of poverty. this experience improved teacher-candidate understanding of the pk?12 students? unique contexts. the experiences, in addition to the revamped curriculum, were highly impactful, especially for candidates? sense of preparation, professionalism, and diversity. as one candidate explained, the newly designed program achieved its goals of changing candidates? perceptions while preparing them to teach with culturally relevant approaches. i was not completely aware that teachers had to take into consideration so many different things about their students including where they came from, what kind of experiences they had, their dispositions, and what type of learning style they have. i also learned that to be a good teacher you have to be prepared to adapt to anything, use your students? experiences to help you teach, and be culturally responsive based on their needs and experiences. (candidate 1) teacher candidates made meaning of their field experiences by recounting specific observations during school visits and the feelings associated with those events. by reflecting on and giving voice year and day process year 1 advisory council input sought day 1 five days? release time for faculty to work (established norms and a monthly time to collaborate) envisioned redesigned program established advisory council ongoing literature review day 2 worked to fully understand the state professional standards for teacher candidates worked to fully understand the state compendium of the governing rules for educator preparation programs day 3 benchmark review of northwest missouri state university regarding student teaching day 4 designed the phase model day 5 involved university secondary partners in reflection on the redesign proposal year 2 connections with community colleges for seamless matriculation of students course development and objective writing advisory council feedback solicited on the model year 3 courses implemented redesigned program implemented 11 smith, wood, rich, singleton, & wall| the impact of program redesign on partnerships and clinical practice to their experiences, early teacher candidates were able to gain a better understanding of the unique demographics and context of rural, urban, and suburban schools, and to provide a glimpse into those schools? worlds. teacher candidates used professional-learning communities (dufour, 2004) and written narratives to reflect on instructional content and field experiences. candidates could then adjust their perceptions about teaching and recognize the value of experience as a tool for learning and teaching. i believe that i personally learned a lot about teaching and the different pieces that combine to make a great teacher. before taking the education courses ecology of teaching and developmental foundations this semester, i had not thought of teaching much past someone in the front of the room simply presenting information to all of the students, but i now realize that there is more to it than that. (candidate 2) it became evident, through analysis of the data, that candidates could apply the knowledge gained when observing in pk?12 classroom settings. evidence from candidate statements included their narrative reflections, recounting their requirement to process the clinical experiences reflectively and deeply. the process required candidates to bridge theoretical constructs to real-life experiences in school environments. participants achieved a more holistic view of teaching by observing, reflecting, discussing, questioning, and connecting classroom learning with various field opportunities. candidates shared their thoughts on school and classroom culture, climate, structure, appearance, assets, deficits, and incidents seen in the pk?12 classrooms. there is a lot a teacher can learn even from students. a life where you never stop learning sounds very exciting to me. throughout my experiences in the kindergarten class i have learned being a teacher is the best possible job a person can have. (candidate 3) comments provided by teachers hosting and collaborating with candidates in clinical practice settings also reflected the impact of the redesigned school of education program. of teachers who hosted field-experience students for 5 hours each of the first 2 semesters, all but one teacher expressed willingness to host and learn with candidates in clinical field experiences in the future. this part of the new process was considerably more successful than previous placements, as clinical faculty engaged in a true partnership, built on a foundation of partnership, theory, and best practices in the preparation and development of future teachers. the process aligned with expectations from the caep (2013) and aaqep (2019) in support of national accreditation and the state?s expectations and directives while honoring the expertise of the teachers: ?i welcome observation, especially if the observer is willing to lend me their perspective. i would love to learn with these students and us their feedback from my own reflection? (representative teacher comment in survey data). yet teachers and candidates were not the only beneficiaries of the redesigned programs. administrators immediately saw improvement in the preparation of future teachers (current candidates) aligned with the survey data. principals of pk?12 that hosted students in the first 10 hours of clinical field experience cited refreshing and renewing concepts for pk?12 teachers (shroyer, yahnke, bennett, & dunn, 2007). during the first year on campus, principals indicated appreciation of the teacher candidates in their classrooms because of the collaborative engagement with their classroom teachers and the fresh ideas evidenced in the interaction: ?we appreciate students talking to teachers, seeing what they are trying to do. it makes our teachers try to implement new things because students are there? (principals? perception). in addition to teacher candidates, teachers, and administrators, another group was profoundly impacted by the effort to redesign our programs and practices. our faculty found great meaning in the work, the change, and the results. 12 smith, wood, rich, singleton, & wall| the impact of program redesign on partnerships and clinical practice facult y percept ions of im pact several faculty members who responded to the narrative survey spoke of the impact of the redesign. responses cited the application of education theory to real-life educational environments. by week 9 of their first on-campus year, teacher candidates were in buildings much different from those from which they graduated and witnessed the effect of caring teachers and structured classrooms. through students? reflection narratives, evidence emerged of their change in sense of agency to impact positive change related to socially just practices and the importance of equity. candidates revealed an increase in awareness of poverty, race, and gender. one faculty member described, in detail, an impactful clinical experience that achieved several goals while assisting teacher candidates to move beyond mere exposure to diversity into an infusion of socially just practice in their lessons, after participating in a field experience in a diverse setting: the overall experience of the field trip was eye-opening for the students. they had the opportunity to observe many things that will impact their future teaching and help develop their own pedagogy. students were able to observe a wide range of disruptive behaviors with the middle school and high school students and how teachers and administrators responded to the disrespect and defiant behaviors in the classrooms. they were able to see what a school impacted with extreme poverty, 100% free and reduced, and high trauma looked like first hand. the students were able to observe a large variety of pedagogies, environments, personalities, and instruction between the three schools. this opportunity allowed students to be culturally aware of populations they may not have had exposure to in their schools, which aids in their understanding the complexities of teaching. (faculty member 1) another faculty member found great value in developing effective partnerships: i personally thought the opportunity for students to see that building trusting relationships with your students is a critical component of teaching was powerful. the co-teaching model at the elementary school seemed to be of a big interest for many students as they had never observed teaching in a non-traditional classroom prior to this experience and how they responded to whether or not they themselves could be an effective teacher working in a co-teaching model. the field experiences resulted in students reflecting on their own assumptions and biases. overall, i believe the field trip was a monumental moment for these future educators. (faculty member 2) discussion the epp now includes a minimum of 555 hours of clinical field experiences beginning in the first on-campus year. candidates observe actual pk?12 classrooms by the 7th week of their first year on campus. field experiences occur in multiple placements in small rural districts, urban schools with elevated levels of racial and socioeconomic diversity, and suburban districts. all education majors take coursework in the same sections of the basic freshmen and sophomore classes, allowing them to learn from each other regarding teaching young children, secondary students, and special-education students. each phase of coursework includes a professional-learning community, guiding students through conversations and reflections based on field experiences where they observe actual practices they have studied in the classroom. the student-teaching experience will be expanded in 2020 to a full-year experience for elementary and special-education majors; middle school, secondary, and k?12 majors will spend 45 hours of field experience in the location where they will student teach prior to the student-teaching semester. students will attend an education capstone class while student teaching with a focus on a delivery system near the locations where they 13 smith, wood, rich, singleton, & wall| the impact of program redesign on partnerships and clinical practice are working, as well as a return to campus for additional professional development. changes to the school of education program occurred in a planned process over a 3-year period. collaborators sought and used input in the design from school partners and from faculty members across campus. an organization must be unfrozen for change to occur (lewin, as cited in burnes & bargal, 2017), and the redesign process attests to the malleable nature of the institutions that are frequently regarded as static: pk?12 school districts and university programs. partnerships with pk?12 schools created an environment where teacher candidates and teachers learned, evidenced by the results of teacher candidate, teacher, principal, and faculty surveys. teacher candidates learned teaching skills by observing in pk?12 classrooms and practicing teachers learned through reflective conversations and collaborative tasks with teacher candidates. through field experiences, candidates were able to understand the concept of equity through poverty simulations, school board meetings, and school visits; candidates were made aware of the unique challenges faced by schools working to meet the needs of all learners. this experience helped students become more culturally aware of the need to become equity advocates for youth in schools. using rich clinical field experiences, candidates began to bridge theoretical constructs in practice to real-life experiences in school environments. educators helped students achieve a more holistic view of teaching by creating a space for candidates to observe, reflect, discuss, question, and connect classroom learning with various field opportunities, thereby democratizing teacher education through rich conversation and experiences (aligned with zeichner et al., 2015). results from surveys of candidates, teachers, principals, and faculty revealed that, as a result of the redesigned curriculum and clinical experiences, candidates found language to understand, then share their thoughts on school and classroom culture, climate, structure, appearance, assets, deficits, and incidents seen in the pk?12 classrooms. partnerships with pk?12 districts are the foundation of the redesigned epp. with heavy emphasis on clinical field experiences, where teacher candidates experience numerous classrooms in settings that may be different from those they attended, candidates gain exposure to more opportunities to reach diverse pk?12 learners than the program was able to offer previously. each candidate experienced field experiences in early childhood, elementary, middle school, and high school pk?12 settings. as a result, some candidates changed their teaching preference and some changed their major from education to other fields. although the literature written on university partnerships with p?12 schools generally begins from formal agreements put into place with the signature of the superintendent of schools and university provosts (holen & yunk, 2014), this epp partnerships largely formed through conversations. the epp and its school-district partners shared a recognition that each is responsible for the creation of the next generation of teachers, requiring mutual trust between partner districts and the university. this collaboration creates strong bonds to effectively prepare educators with deep clinical experience, grounded in ongoing, multilayered reflective practice, and with pk?12 partners committed to sharing their best practices. table 4 illustrates the impact of the redesign in changes to partnerships, culture, clinical practice, institutional commitment, energy, and outcomes. table 4 before and after education redesign before redesign after redesign partnerships: modest, limited, transactional partnerships with limited school systems, usually in rural missouri and usually benefitting northwest more than other school districts partnerships: thriving, multi-faceted, mutually beneficial partnerships with numerous school systems partnerships: predominantly rural for most teacher candidates partnerships: rural, urban, and suburban for all teacher candidates 14 smith, wood, rich, singleton, & wall| the impact of program redesign on partnerships and clinical practice table 4 (continued). note. aascu = american association of state colleges and universities the changes presented in table 4 represent a shift in practices to effectively address the needs of students in pk?12 schools. as programs evolve and begin to solicit, then embrace effective partnerships, faculty and pk?12 partner instructional relationships improve. in-depth clinical experiences enable teacher candidates to thrive. a partnership shift, from modest and limited collaborations, to more robust clinical experiences, was a key feature in the program redesign and consistent with aaqep (2019) and caep (2013) expectations for evidence of quality epps. redesigned coursework and curriculum grounded in culturally relevant pedagogy and rich clinical practices aligned with the aacte (2018) model did indeed create a pivot in our program: teacher candidates were able to gain hundreds of hours of successful, partner-based clinical experiences with pk?12 students in urban, suburban, and rural schools. the purpose was to provide a greater understanding of how to teach with equity and effectiveness, in any setting. a significant expenditure of scarce financial and personnel resources enabled the institution to fully support education redesign. lim it at ions of st udy a limitation of this study is the length of time the redesigned education program has been in place. the school of education was only 3 semesters (just over a year and half) into the redesigned program. we considered only 1 year of data in survey responses of teacher candidates, of partner district mentor teachers, and of principals. the response rate to the survey of pk?12 teachers and before redesign after redesign culture: limited faculty collaboration with many silos culture: faculty collaboration with no silos culture: full and associate professors drove the conversation and held most leadership roles culture: all faculty levels, including instructors and assistant professors, held leadership roles culture: curriculum change occurred predominantly through the official program coordinator culture: curriculum change occurred bottom-up, by the teachers and professors in concert with coordinators clinical practices: limited clinical practice with some variation in cooperating teacher commitment and quality. uncertain exposure to the strongest pedagogy and evidence-based practice clinical practices: robust clinical practices, reduced variance in candidate exposure to strong pedagogy; masterful cooperating teachers using evidenced-based instructional practices clinical practices: sequenced, but less focused on the developmental continuum of pk?12 learning clinical practices: expanded, clarified, and sequenced to impact candidates? knowledge of the developmental continuum of pk?12 learning institutional commitment: limited commitment of human and fiscal resources institutional commitment: strengthened, with additional human and fiscal resources slated in upcoming years to support clinical practice faculty energy: comfortable, but not innovative faculty energy: strong innovative thread with a notable sense of energy permeating the climate and culture outcomes: strong evidence of high-quality educator preparation; gaps in candidate exposure to diversity outcomes: strong evidence of high-quality educator preparation; reduced gaps in candidate use of strategies and skills to promote and enhance diversity outcomes: state recognition of effective educator-preparation programs with some evidence of impact on pk?12 learners outcomes: state and national recognition for educator-preparation-program quality and evidence of positive impact on pk?12 learning; received the 2018 aascu christa mcauliffe award for excellence in innovation in teacher education outcomes: courses taught by content experts in separate content areas outcomes: courses taught by content experts from different content areas as 1 integrated methods course, across several departments and university schools. before redesign after redesign outcomes: secondary teacher candidates loved their content but did not value education courses. teacher candidates went through the program in silos with litt le interaction across majors/teaching levels. outcomes: teacher candidates from elementary, middle, early childhood, k?12, and secondary disciplines move throughout the first 3 semesters as a cohort, leading to shared appreciation for students, teaching, and learning regardless of content or level. 15 smith, wood, rich, singleton, & wall| the impact of program redesign on partnerships and clinical practice administrators was limited to those who returned the survey and may not represent all views from all partners. adjustments in course logistics and structure are ongoing, as with any new program initiative. as of yet, no one has graduated from the program so no evaluation results are available of graduates teaching in classrooms or survey results completed by building principals on the effectiveness of candidates in pk?12 classrooms. conclusions this study holds significance because educators at northwest missouri state university had not significantly revised the previous course of study to meet/exceed state requirements in several years. because of the state annual performance report and the impact of performance results, partner districts were previously hesitant to accept student teachers during the state testing window and some expressed the view that candidates were not sufficiently prepared to teach as pk?12 educators. this lack was noticeable in districts and buildings where many pk?12 students were not from white middle-class backgrounds. the process used to develop this study was designed to adjust the perceptions of teacher candidates and enhance their knowledge of teaching in locations different than their home schools. additionally, the process made a difference in partner districts? willingness to have teacher candidates in their buildings throughout the school year. teacher candidates are now in high demand, even in the first year on campus, despite their relative inexperience. other schools of education can emulate the collaborative process used by northwest missouri state university to meet the needs of teacher candidates, partner schools, and the school of education. the process begins and ends with a spark of 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(2015). democratizing teacher education. journal of teacher education, 66, 122?135. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487114560908 appendix a: st udent survey please rate your agreement with the following statements (strongly agree, agree, disagree, strongly disagree) the value of being immersed in education courses in the first semester was good. i established positive relationships with education faculty the course workload was manageable. the clinical field experiences was important to my learning. i established positive relationships with other education majors. the course work was engaging. the course work was relevant to my future career as a teacher. the course sequence was effective. professional learning communities are important. the courses are rigorous and challenging. rank the following aspects of the redesigned program with 1 being the most impactful and 6 being the least impactful. 1. observations make in p12 schools. 2. field experiences in urban/suburban districts 3. participation in poverty simulation 4. pretention by john antonetti, author in student engagement 5. observation of parent-teacher conference 6. attendance at a school board meeting 18 https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487114560908 smith, wood, rich, singleton, & wall| the impact of program redesign on partnerships and clinical practice appendix b: teacher and adm inist rat or survey 1. the school of education promotes professionalism for our teacher candidates. please comment on whether or not the students met your expectations, what, if any, changes would you like to see? 2. we know that scheduling the observations was challenging, what suggestions do you have for efficient scheduling of observations? 3. please comment on how well prepared students were for the observations. 4. would you be willing to host a student again in the 2018-19 school year? 5. if you could be more involved in our teacher preparation program, in what ways would you like to contribute to the education of teacher candidates? appendix c: survey dist r ibut ed t o facult y considering the components of the redesigned program, what do you believe was the most impactful aspect of the program? 19 smith (2019) proof final page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 page 9 page 10 page 11 page 12 page 13 page 14 page 15 page 16 billen 2022 proof educational renaissance vol. 11 (2022) a bioecological view of cult urally sust aining pedagogy rhet t bil len, phd. california state university, fresno email: rbillen@csufresno.edu monica bil len, phd. california state university, fresno email: mbillen@csufresno.edu feature article the purpose of this paper is to bring together two fields of study that are often separate in higher education, bioecological systems theory (bronfenbrenner, 2005) and culturally sustaining pedagogy (csp) (paris, 2012) and consider how the two theories can be discussed in tandem to allow educators and child and family scientists greater understanding of home and school contexts. as children are influenced by both home and school, the two fields of study should connect in the theories used to understand and study these influences. though the two theories have been linked in the past to discuss the importance of culture, (lee, 2017) a discussion about how csp is rooted in an ecological frame has not been shared. from a bioecological perspective, schools and families share a reciprocal relationship, with schools serving as centers of academic instruction and peer socialization for children, and their families, parents, and home life influencing the school context (newman & newman, 2016). yet, csp recognizes that school environments reflect and are shaped primarily by the dominant culture, resulting in the assets of underrepresented groups being overlooked. families in the united states are becoming increasingly diverse (u.s. census bureau, 2018), but students are entering classrooms with instruction that is heavily focused on mainstream views that do not match or build abst ract culturally sustaining pedagogy (csp) considers the impacts of schools on communities, explicitly calling upon schools to sustain the cultural modalities of communities of color (paris, 2012). in this paper, we argue that one important influence schools should have on families is the awareness and knowledge that families? culture are sustained and viewed as official knowledge (ladson-billings, 1995) in the education system. we do so by including a perspective found in the disciplines of developmental science, family science, and education, bronfenbrenner?s bioecological theory. specifically, we examine the principles of csp from the person-process-context-time (ppct) model within bioecological theory. furthermore, we problematize the traditional practice of assigning homework and offer an implication for reimagining homework from a csp lens. keywords: culturally sustaining pedagogy, bioecological theory, homework, family storytelling, ppct model billen & billen| a bioecological view of csp upon the culture and background of a majority of our students (walker-dalhouse & risko, 2020). professionals who will be working with children in the future, whether from human development and family science (hdfs) or education programs, should be cognizant of families and the education system. in this paper, we begin by providing an overview of the current and projected demographic and cultural landscape in the united states vis-à-vis the current educational landscape. we then provide a review of csp and its recommended use within schools to create a space more inclusive and representative of underrepresented groups. next, we use bronfenbrenner?s (2005) bioecological perspective on human development to examine how csp and bioecological theory can build upon one another. from there, we discuss tensions when considering the two theories together. as the purpose of this article is to be used in higher education, we conclude the paper by providing higher educators with one practical example, namely, homework, as a model for merging bioecological theory and culturally sustaining pedagogy. this example could give higher educators a concrete educational practice to evaluate in theoretical discussions. current landscape the year 2014 was notable in american history as the nation?s schools reached a majority-minority milestone (maxwell, 2014) wherein the diverse population became the majority and the white, non-hispanic population became the minority (national center for education statistics, n. d.). in 2020, it is estimated that 46% of our students are white, 15% black, 28.9% latinx, 5.3% asian/pacific islander and 3% two or more races. by 2060, our nation?s children are expected to be approximately 36% white, non-hispanic and 11.3% of our children are expected to be two or more races (u.s. census bureau, 2018). these shifting demographics have prompted calls to improve our education system to better educate all american children (maxwell, 2014). however, such calls for improving educational outcomes have not considered how school districts and educators may leverage family and community resources to advance children?s learning. a lot of conversations on improving education outcomes focus on how to best manage the achievement gap, or the disparities in standardized test scores among people of color and white students. these conversations often focus on viewing people of color through a deficit lens stating that, ?the parents just don?t care,? or ?the children don?t have enough exposure/experiences,? or ?these families do not value education? (ladson-billings, 2007, p. 318-319). yet, deficit thinking does not seem to be doing anyone any good. scholars have been requesting and arguing to view students? backgrounds as strengths and have called for instruction that builds on their existing culture, literacies, and skills (see delpit, 2006; gonzález et al., 2006; ladson-billings, 1995). similarly, many scholars would argue that the schools in which we send our children and the curriculum that we provide for our children can be more attributed to the gap (see gay, 2004; apple, 1990) as our classrooms are focused on a monocultural, monolingual environment where teachers ?favor mainstream cultural values and norms? (walker-dalhouse & risko, 2020, p. 307). in fact, gloria ladson-billings (2007) stated that just focusing on the ?achievement gap? fails to address the foundational problem. we know that families have a strong influence in their children?s education (smith & sheridan, 2019) and we know that educators should include and engage families in the education of children (weiss et al., 2013). yet, education scholars report to one another and hdfs scholars speak to one another and a framework has not been offered to understand the link between family theory and educational theory. bronfenbrenner?s (2005) bioecological theory helps us understand the influence schools and other contextual factors have on the development of individuals. though valuable in considering these multiple contextual influences, bronfenbrenner did not define well 2 billen & billen| a bioecological view of csp how larger sociopolitical factors fit in at the macrosystem level and how these factors influence development via the micro, meso, and exosystems. culturally sustaining pedagogy gives us a lens in which to view educational practice. understanding how bioecological theory and csp theoretically align, can add to the conversation about how to better educate students. historically, one way that schools have interacted with homes is by providing school work for children to complete at home. we posit that homework, as it is currently enacted, acts as a wedge to further divide diverse families from the dominant culture of schooling. however, we wonder if reimagined homework could be a potential application of bioecological theory and csp. just as educators often ask to bring school work into the home, we should also consider how we can bring the home into the schools. in the following sections we expound on these arguments. overview of cult urally sust ain ing pedagogy culturally sustaining pedagogy (csp) is a new but well known philosophy in the field of education that focuses on fostering the pluralistic cultures, languages, and literacies of children of whom are part of classrooms (paris, 2012). although the term csp is relatively new, csp draws upon previous research and literature that focuses on equity and access. the terms asset pedagogies has been used to describe educational practices that view children?s unique individuality as a resource, a resource that can be drawn upon and used as ?official knowledge? in the classroom (ladson-billings, 1995, p. 483). asset pedagogies focus on building upon the background knowledge of students while teaching them the unfamiliar (villegas & lucas, 2002). several scholars have argued for asset pedagogies to be a major part of our schooling and different terms have been used to describe this work. in a landmark publication in 1995, ladson-billings introduced the term culturally relevant pedagogy through the report and analysis of her research with exemplary teachers. ladson-billings (1995) identified eight teachers in predominantly black communities, who had been identified as excellent teachers by parents and administrators and sought to understand their practice. through her work, she identified effective teachers as those who helped their students become successful in academics, while also becoming culturally competent, and sociopolitically critical. ladson-billings argued that ?teachers [should] systematically include student culture in the classroom as authorized or official knowledge? (p. 483). ladson-billings? work was preceded and influenced by others. au and jordan (1981) used the term culturally appropriate when describing the work they engaged in with hawaiian children. the authors engaged children in a reading program that used teaching strategies that were very similar to those used in their home, and teachers mirrored major speech events called ?talk story?, common in the students? culture. the authors found that the instruction was effective because of the appropriateness and relation to the background of the students. likewise, mohatt and erickson (1981) studied teachers and students and found that teachers who used language patterns similar to those of the students, the child experienced positive academic outcomes. the authors used the term culturally congruent to explain this work as the teachers were focusing on congruence with the children with which they worked. in addition, the terms culturally responsive (erickson & mohatt, 1982) and culturally compatible (vogt et al., 1987) have also been used. though asset pedagogies and culturally relevant pedagogy have been amongst educators? vocabulary for quite some time, almost twenty years after her seminal publication, ladson-billings (2014) no longer viewed her theory as pertinent and argued that it is time for a ?remix? of asset pedagogies (p. 74), and the ?remix? is culturally sustaining pedagogy as presented by paris (2012). various asset pedagogies described above, though influential in their time, were much needed concepts in the trajectory of understanding culture and education. however, these concepts lack the sustaining 3 billen & billen| a bioecological view of csp element of csp. csp is defined by paris (2012) as a pedagogy that ?seeks to perpetuate and foster--to sustain--linguistic, literate, and cultural pluralism as part of the democratic project of schooling? (p. 93). the notion of sustaining culture is quite different than simply trying to connect content to the culture of students, or making content relevant, and it is more than ?checking a celebrating ?culture? or ?diversity? box? (algava, 2016, p.51). when educators aim to sustain the culture of students, the goal is to consider how to foster the various cultures in the classroom rather than occasionally connecting to the various cultures. for example, a culturally relevant teacher in a hmong community might read a book about hmong new year to connect to the culture of their hmong students, yet continue with reading, math, and science curriculum that is rooted in the dominant culture. yet a culturally sustaining teacher would first seek to better understand the community languages and valued practices of all represented cultures and then center these practices across units and projects throughout the school year. paris and alim (2014) stated, ?culturally sustaining pedagogy attempts to shift the term, stance, and practice of asset pedagogies toward more explicitly pluralist outcomes? (paris & alim, 2014, p. 87). focusing on pluralist outcomes requires a shift in thinking; that education is aiming to create a new generation of multicultural and multilingual groups and beings rather than education is aiming to make everyone as much like the white, dominant culture as possible. after shifting to a pluralistic goal, educators can aim to ?fully see their students in order to nourish their whole selves? (doucet, 2017, p. 196). in order to truly see students and sustain their culture, we must understand their heritage and their contemporary practices. ladson-billings (2014) explained this idea very clearly by giving examples of individuals and groups. there are three generations of hmong individuals living in the united states: one generation who spent a lot of their life in laos, the next generation who transitioned from laos to the united states, and the third generation who was born and raised in the united states. the third generation, while inextricably tied to their heritage, also have contemporary culture that is quite different than their grandparents. paris and alim (2014) asserted, ?we believe equity and access can best be achieved by centering pedagogies on the heritage and contemporary practices of students and communities of color? (paris & alim, 2014, p. 87). csp is fluid and supports students? evolving identities while advancing ?pluralistic ways of being? (doucet, 2017, p. 196). additionally and lastly, csp aims to view pluralistic ways of being as important while concurrently providing opportunities to better understand the dominant culture (paris & alim, 2014). while csp educators aim to sustain the culture and language of their students, allowing and introducing the culture and literacies of the dominant culture is important. overview of bioecological theory many who learn about urie bronfenbrenner?s bioecological theory of human development (bronfenbrenner, 2005) associate his work with the visually appealing diagrams representing a person, often a child, nested within concentric circles of contextual influence. the first and most immediate is the microsystem, consisting of the parts of a person or child?s life with whom they may have regular (i.e., daily) contact. examples of microsystems include a child?s place of residence and their classroom. the mesosystem consists of the relationships and connections with a person?s own microsystem, like a parent-teacher conference, and is sometimes represented as a separate circle surrounding the microsystem, and other times is represented through bidirectional lines within microsystem settings. the next circle represents the exosystem, which consists of settings that have indirect influences on a developing person, such as a school district, parent work environment, or neighborhood. next is the macrosystem, which is the broadest social system in bronfenbrenner?s model and consists of 4 billen & billen| a bioecological view of csp culture, systems of governance, and social norms. finally, the chronosystem, often depicted as a directional force encompassing all other systems, includes all of the normative and nonnormative changes and continuities which occur over time within each layer of context. the relationships between each of the nested systems are bidirectional, as well as both direct and indirect, in their effects. the bioecological model, overall, suggests that in order to understand behavior, one must understand the contextual features where the behavior occurs (newman & newman, 2016). however, as noted by tudge and colleagues (2009; 2013; 2016), any use of or reference to bronfenbrenner and ecological systems theory without acknowledging his model of person-process-context-time (ppct) could be considered a misuse of the theory. indeed, diagrams of the bioecological model generally only illustrate the context (c) aspect of ppct. the person aspect of ppct simultaneously emphasizes the backgrounds, physical characteristics, dispositions, and resources of each individual, which are determined both by one?s biology and one?s environment. process (also referred to as proximal processes) refers to any and all interactions between a person and their environment. processes change over time, are cumulative in impact (newman & newman, 2016), and are considered the primary contributors to development (smith & hamon, 2022). time (originally referred to as the chronosystem) can be analyzed and understood within and between each layer of context, generally demonstrating that as children develop over time, so do their environments (bronfenbrenner & morris, 2006). within bioecological theory, time involves ?what happens over the course of both ontogenetic and historical time.? (rosa & tudge, 2013, p. 254). indeed, ontogenetic development is a primary concept in bioecological theory (smith & hamon, 2022) and includes the biological and genetic components of the maturation process. environmental conditions, such as the proximal processes experienced within various microsystems, play a key role in determining which ontogenetic capacities are expressed or suppressed within an individual. in addition, it should be noted that individuals are active participants and not passive recipients within their environments and in their own development. this notion is central to the concept of adaptation, a core concept of bioecological theory (smith & hamon) which accounts for the modifications humans make to their environments in order to achieve specific outcomes. int egrat ing cult urally sust ain ing pedagogy and bioecological theory those who view education through a csp lens view students? background and cultural inheritance as assets to be sustained in the classroom (paris, 2012). bronfenbrenner?s (2005) bioecological theory views children?s development as positioned within multiple contexts with which individuals engage. bronfenbrenner?s theory explicates that an individual?s family and culture impact one?s development, but what if the culture and ways of being are silenced in a school that only values the dominant culture? if students? culture is not represented in schools, then the processes and interaction between systems may interfere with one?s development. csp has been identified as rooted in an ecological frame, ?in the sense that these constructs are asking teachers to take into account aspects of youth?s lives outside the classroom not only as resources, but as targets of learning to be sustained.? (lee, 2017, p. 262). however, in what ways csp is rooted in the ecological frame has not been explicated in literature, nor has csp been integrated with bronfenbrenner?s ppct model. in this section, we use the ppct model from bioecological theory to demonstrate the conceptual and empirical footing of csp in a common hdfs perspective. however, we present these examples in a different order than ppct as a rhetorical device in which we can then segue into our treatment of how the practice of assigning homework illustrates the concept of process 5 billen & billen| a bioecological view of csp within a csp frame. specifically, we integrate bioecological theory and research with csp by highlighting (a) the centrality of context; (b) the importance of identity; (c) the role of sociohistorical time and place; and (d) process as a mechanism of development. the cent ralit y of cont ext as previously noted, context is a key element of bronfenbrenner?s ppct model and is illustrated in the diagram of nested ecological systems. context, then, is understood as both the broadest sources of influence, such as culture and social norms, as well as the most immediate contexts a developing person engages in, such as their family or classroom. the central position of context within a bioecological perspective of a developing person is illustrated by bronfenbrenner?s own efforts when he advocated for a program to fight poverty that would focus on the education of children, their families, and their communities. his endeavors led to the creation of head start (tregaskis, 2015), which has supported low-income children and families in the areas of school readiness, health, and family well-being since 1965 (office of head start, 2018). in order to enact csp in a classroom setting, educators should first be aware of the immediate familial contexts of their students, their heritage, and their modern culture and create a student-led context within the classroom. educators can better understand the fluid nature of students? culture and familial context by asking students to reflect and share about their background. one specific strategy we discuss later which integrates this approach is that of family storytelling (strekalova-hughes & wang, 2019). a student-led context allows for individuals to have a voice in the classroom, which creates a space for various cultures to be a part of the classroom culture. the antithesis of a student-led context is teachers using a scripted curriculum (created by someone from the dominant culture) that explicates what to focus on with one option of what the students should do (e.g., fill out a worksheet). in a student-led context, however, students have choice in what is learned, in what mode learning occurs, and/or in what mode students express learned material. for example, a teacher may have several different topics to be covered in a given semester. to initiate a student-led context, the teacher can ask students to choose a topic that they are most interested in, become an expert in this topic, and teach the rest of the class about the chosen topic. the student can also choose the mode of their creation, (e.g., create a video, slideshow, verbal presentation, play). additionally, a student-led context can also be facilitated by learning more about the students via family storytelling, and using specific attributes of cultures to be used in and across curriculum. in an analysis of four different studies, wynter-hoyte and colleagues (2019) highlighted the importance of creating critical spaces (or contexts) for both children and teachers. within these spaces, csp can be enacted as children and teachers engage in critical conversation and build upon one another?s knowledge. in this space, individuals can ?disrupt the notion that they enter classrooms lacking knowledge and meaningful experiences? (p. 434). context is a crucial element of bronfenbrenner?s theory and csp seeks to connect the context of home in the context of school. the im por t ance of ident it y at the center of every version of the bioecological model is a developing person. bronfenbrenner?s view was that a person consists of three types of characteristics. first, demand features, such as age, gender, skin color, or body type, each of which can either invite or discourage interactions with the environment (bronfenbrenner & morris, 2006; rosa & tudge, 2013). second, dispositions (aka force characteristics) such as motivation, temperament, and self-efficacy, which can influence a person?s own desire and readiness to engage in their environments (newman & newman, 2016). third, resource characteristics, 6 billen & billen| a bioecological view of csp such as intelligence, skills, and abilit ies, which can either limit or enhance the effectiveness of a person?s interactions with their environment. although identity was not a concept explicitly identified in bronfenbrenner?s work, we posit that a person?s identity is formed, experienced, and expressed at the intersection of the three person characteristics identified by bronfenbrenner. as a product of both biology and environment, a developing person?s identity emerges as they interact daily with their environment. according to bronfenbrenner (2005), however, a person plays an active role in their own development. we claim identity formation is central in this process. umaña-taylor and colleagues (2014) identified the variety of contexts relevant to how children develop ethnic and racial identity. navigating multicultural contexts and transitioning from one dominant culture to another during childhood can have profound effects on identity development (baldwin-white et al., 2017; paat, 2013). for example, hayes and endale (2018) demonstrated the advantages of using bronfenbrenner?s ppct model to examine how adolescents navigate their identities as immigrants and refugees. specifically, the authors found that migrant and refugee youth developed a unique newcomer identity as they balance macrosystemic influences from two cultural contexts. similarly, misoska (2014) found that the effects of contact programs meant to promote inter-ethnic understanding among children raised in areas of political conflict varied widely depending on their ethnic identity and the views of the intergroup relations to which they had become accustomed. identity is indeed a central component of the developing person, which is influenced by the complexity of the person?s context and sociohistorical conditions. csp places a heavy focus on the identity of individuals and the inclusion of the multiple identities in the classroom context. in order for educators to actually sustain the culture of individuals, the individual?s evolving identity must be considered in the process. paris and alim (2014) and ladson-billings (2014) both highlighted the notion that we must understand individuals? heritage but must also realize their unique individual identities. what we cannot do, is try to understand the complex identities of various individuals in classrooms as one singular culture. according to ladson-billings (2014) csp, pushes us to consider the global identities that are emerging in the arts, literature, music, athletics, and film. it also points to the shifts of identity that now move us toward a hybridity, fluidity, and complexity never before considered in schools and classrooms. (p. 82). in bronfrennbrenner?s theory, we understand identity to be an influential aspect of development, and csp explicates the complexity of identity while arguing that the whole child must be understood and considered in education (doucet, 2017). the role of sociohist or ical tim e and place the time component of ppct serves as the recognition that people, systems, and the relations between people and systems change over time (rosa & tudge, 2013). a major element in how scholars have incorporated change over time as a vital aspect of properly using bioecological theory has been to encourage the study of children and families longitudinally (tudge et al., 2009; tudge et al., 2016). change over time includes both naturally occurring changes due to biological maturation as well as social changes due to advances in knowledge and technology, declines in resources, and shifts in societal structures such as education (newman & newman, 2016). some examples of changes over time related to the education of children include the desegregation of schools, the implementation of standardized testing, and efforts to end discrimination based on disability. one sociohistorical feature of schools and families in the twenty-first century is the prevalence of digital screens in the lives of children. although some have decried the ubiquity of digital screens in the forms of televisions, computers, and mobile devices as a threat to children, their development, and their relationships within their families (e.g., 7 billen & billen| a bioecological view of csp cleveland clinic, 2019; park, 2019), others have approached the conversation more optimistically, treating screens and technology as an asset and opportunity to engage children in new and exciting ways (e.g., lovato & waxman, 2016). from bioecological and csp perspectives, however, the conversation shifts toward the consideration of how the emergence and prevalence of mobile device technology and access to screen-based entertainment is an additional source of social stratification for children from families whose income is in the lowest income bracket. what might be a common social and educational trend during a specific time, such as laptops or tablets for students and smart boards in the classroom (bowles, 2018), may only reflect norms achievable by schools and families with access to sufficient financial resources. paris and alim (2014) explain that csp is focused on sustaining both individual heritage and individuals? evolving culture over time. as mentioned in a previous section, as families immigrate to america, their heritage, while exceedingly important, evolves throughout generations. in other words the culture of a first generation immigrant will be much different than the culture of a third generation immigrant who was born and raised in the country. the authors offered the terms community practices to describe the fluid nature of culture and continued, ?these terms are based in contemporary understandings of culture as dynamic, shifting, and encompassing both past-oriented heritage dimensions and present-oriented community dimensions? (p. 90). culture is fluid and culture shifts and changes over time. though bronfenbrenner specifically discusses the influence of time on the development of an individual (rosa & tudge, 2013), csp focuses on how time influences the lived culture of individuals. process as a mechanism of developm ent bronfenbrenner (2005) referred to proximal processes, or interactions between individuals and their environment, as the engines of development. these constant small interactions are the primary mechanisms that drive a person?s trajectory in life. this same mentality is evident in a quote attributed to booker t. washington, in which he provided his view on the foundation of success: ?success in life is founded upon attention to the small things rather than to the large things; to the everyday things nearest to us rather than to the things that are remote and uncommon.? (as quoted in mccreadie, 2010, p. 46). although the perspectives of bronfenbrenner and washington focused on how day-to-day interactions shape an individual person, others have emphasized the snowballing effects of sustained, collective efforts at broader levels. indeed, the power of small, cumulative efforts to enact major changes is well documented in popular press media such as the tipping point (gladwell, 2006) and freakonomics (levitt & dubner, 2009). first 5 california (2019), a state sponsored initiative of coordinated services and programs for children prenatal through age 5, has prioritized the importance of process during the first five years of a child?s life as demonstrated through their ?talk. read. sing.? campaign, which emphasizes the power of ?three small and free interactions? to promote a child?s brain development. we assert that those who advocate for csp to be enacted in schools are asking to shift the proximal processes as teachers interact with individual children in meaningful ways. more specifically, teachers are focused on sustaining the cultures of their children through daily interactions. as noted previously, educators who seek to sustain the cultures of their students must do more than spend a day, a week, or a month on cultural appreciation. sustaining culture must become a daily endeavor to ensure that schoolwork and learning can become a relatable and familiar experience. the majority of school-aged children spend much of their time at home and at school, each of which then becomes a central part of a child?s microsystem. in the next section we examine homework as an aspect of school-aged childrens? mesosystems which can illustrate how to integrate bioecological theory and csp. 8 billen & billen| a bioecological view of csp connect ion bet ween csp and bioecological theory: ret hink ing hom ework the purpose of this paper is to draw attention to two well-known theories in two separate fields and begin a conversation about how these theories can be discussed together to enlighten educators and family scientists. our aim is that these theories can be used in the field of education and hdfs and taught to college students who will be working with children. one commonly known educational phenomenon, homework, can be used to illustrate the tensions between the two theories and consider how we can reimagine homework to sustain the culture of our students and create a stronger mesosystem for children. our goal is that through this discussion, readers will critically examine other educational practices and how they are connected to children?s culture, identity, and family experiences. homework has been defined as ?school prescribed tasks undertaken by children and usually under the supervision of an adult, most often a parent/parents within the home? (farrell & danby, 2015, p. 250). historically, homework has been used as an avenue to advance educational rigor in our society. at the end of the 19th century, schools focused on recitation and memorization and as students became aware of their duty to recite their lessons in school, children began spending hours preparing at home. some families could afford for members of their family to be engaged in hours of memorization rehearsal, while others could not as they were needed for household duties and chores. throughout the next century, the pendulum swung between the public arguing for and against homework and still the argument continues today (vatterott, 2018). thousands of published peer-reviewed articles have examined whether homework is an effective strategy for promoting student achievement and learning (for a meta-analysis, see ba? et al., 2017). in addition, thousands of other articles have been published examining the roles of parents in promoting, encouraging, and facilitating the completion of homework assignments (for a meta-synthesis, see wilder, 2014). although this level of attention is warranted for the sake of promoting positive student outcomes, what has largely been overlooked is how the practice of assigning homework affects families. attitudes towards homework in the united states have been largely unfavorable for several decades, with certain periods of heightened critique (for a history, see vatterott, 2018). nevertheless, the practice of assigning homework, even in the youngest grades and in the most diverse classrooms, has persisted as a standard pedagogical practice. indeed, teachers and schools continue sending home packets of worksheets and activities for elementary aged students to complete at home and bring back to the classroom (clarke & comber, 2019). according to the family adjustment and adaptation response (faar) model (patterson, 1988; 2004), families become vulnerable when the demands placed upon them exceed their capabilit ies. in general, homework assignments may increase stress and anxiety levels for parents and households. recent studies have shown that homework assignments contribute to the overall sense of strain within a household and can therefore be an undue burden on families (distefano et al., 2020). additionally, homework has shown to cause significantly greater levels of stress and problems for working class parents (clarke & comber, 2019) and for parents with lower levels of self-efficacy and emergent bilingual parents (pressman et al., 2015). as an integral part of a child?s microsystem (bronfenbrenner, 2005), we assert that schools have a responsibility for building the capabilit ies of their students and limiting the demands placed upon them and their families. earlier in this paper we introduced four concepts in the ppct model including, (a) the centrality of context; (b) the importance of identity; (c) the role of sociohistorical time and place; and (d) process as a mechanism of development. we argue that educational practices should identify how they are 9 billen & billen| a bioecological view of csp addressing context, identity, time and place, and process. we assert that the way in which homework has historically been done (clarke & comber, 2019) fails to bolster one?s identity or strengthen their context, and does not adequately consider time and place nor process. additionally, through a csp lens, homework done in this way fails to sustain the culture of most children. we suggest that educating professionals who work with children in the principles of csp using the ppct framework from bioecological theory will encourage us to question if other educational practices consider context, identity, time and place, and process while sustaining the culture of children in the schools. im plicat ions, lim it at ions, and fut ure direct ions implications for educators rather than choosing an avenue to connect school and families that may or may not be connected to academic achievement and may be causing families stress, it seems that other proximal processes are needed to involve families and communities (doucet, 2017). one example, family storytelling, has been used as a culturally sustaining practice and a way to better understand the culture of others (strekalova-hughes & wang, 2019). additionally, we assert that family storytelling considers the major elements of the ppct model (bronfenbrenner, 2005). family storytelling as homework storytelling is one of the oldest ways in which people have maintained their culture over many generations (ladson-billings, 2013). family storytelling is a way in which individuals can engage in intergenerational learning and literacy as individuals tell and retell stories to family members. additionally, family storytelling is a way that educators could learn about the cultures and literacies of their students, as they seek to sustain culture in classroom settings. through storytelling, educators who are not a part of the culture of their students can learn about the heritage and evolving culture of the individual (strekalova-hughes & wang, 2019). in a study of refugee children?s perspectives of family storytelling, strekalova-hughes and wang (2019) identified three families from nepal, somalia, and south sudan and sought to understand the perspectives of children. the researchers engaged the participants in both interviews and family storytelling sessions. children in this study viewed the notion of storytelling as a way to maintain family language and were optimistic about sharing stories at school in hopes of peer acceptance, although none had done so. children and families valued storytelling and noticed differences between the stories their family told and the stories that were told at school. though engaging communities and families in storytelling could be seen as time consuming, if the time spent gathering homework, assigning homework, collecting homework, and grading homework were displaced with truly seeking to understand the cultures within a classroom, it seems it would be time well spent. this could result in children who are more capable of making deeper connections through proximal processes of school and family. this could potentially be accomplished through cultural interviews (grier-reed & williams-wengerd, 2018) or family interviews (algava, 2016). furthermore, it should be noted that family storytelling as a csp-informed strategy is inclusive and therefore benefits all students. white students, who sometimes view themselves as acultural, likely are unknowingly carrying on cultural traditions in their own home, such as wedding practices or foods served during holiday observances. giving students opportunities to tell these kinds of stories can provide a means by which they may make an individual connection to their cultural background. storytelling in the classroom culturally sustaining pedagogy highlights the importance of sustaining the culture of all students in a classroom setting, rather than continuing to only sustain the culture of the 10 billen & billen| a bioecological view of csp dominant culture. the point of storytelling is to allow students to have their unique voices heard. in order to sustain the culture of students, the teacher must first understand the various cultures represented in the classroom. storytelling can be used as an avenue to understand individuals who may be quite different than the teacher. storytelling could be used in a variety of ways as teachers embark on a journey to sustain the cultures of their students. teachers could simply ask students to interview family members, create a family story and share it with the class. this would allow student voice and student culture to at least be a part of the classroom. to take it further, teachers could analyze student stories and find ways to connect those stories to various aspects of the curriculum over the course of the semester or year. for example, if one student shared a story about making tamales during the holidays with their family, a teacher could highlight this family story during a math lesson on measuring volume (e.g. ? cup). storytelling has innumerable uses. however, we suggest that it is one practical strategy for teachers as they seek to sustain the culture of students so that the classroom context can feel more reflective of their home environment. implications for human development and family science scholars scholars in hdfs and family life educators likely are familiar with bronfenbrenner?s bioecological model and the ppct model. in addition, although hdfs scholars and family life educators may be familiar with principles of social justice, equity mindedness, and cultural sensitivity, they are potentially less familiar with csp as an educational framework. though csp is mostly written about in regards to adolescents, we believe it is important for all learners. for this reason, we encourage family life educators and hdfs scholars to integrate principles of csp into their teaching and research practices. in a university setting, professors can peruse their curriculum and identify if their existing coursework has natural spaces to incorporate student culture. toward the beginning of the semester, we recommend finding a way to learn about the fluid culture of students. professors could ask students to engage in family storytelling, an autobiographical piece, or a how-to piece wherein students teach others about how to do something in their culture. allowing the students to share about their background may help students learn about their peers and may help professors better understand how to continually use student background throughout the semester as they aim to sustain culture. for example, after engaging students in family storytelling, the professor could use this experience to explore the concept of developmental tasks from family development theory. the professor may be able to build on the storytelling experience as a way for the learners to understand concepts from other theories students learn in the future, while citing specific examples from students? lives in their specific classroom. this gives students a voice and also helps them better understand how content is connected to their own culture. in family life education settings, educators can heavily consider the community in which they are presenting. similar to professors, family life educators must find ways to better understand the culture of their participants. the content that the educators wish to impart will be much more powerful if connected to the community practices, literacies and knowledge. depending on the structure of the family life education setting, educators could consider sending out qualitative surveys to participants prior to the course. at this point educators can find how the theoretical information and practical strategies can be connected to the culture of the participants while keeping in mind that pluralistic outcomes can be the goal. limitations and future directions we acknowledge that csp and bioecological theory are based in differing epistemological perspectives, with csp operating from a critical epistemology and bioecological theory from a 11 billen & billen| a bioecological view of csp constructivist epistemology. as such, integrating these perspectives is not without certain tensions and limitations. for instance, we discussed specific components of the theories such as culture, identity, and sociohistorical time and place as commensurable between the two. however, given their divergent epistemological orientations, one might contend that doing so overlooks the differences in viewing cultural and identity issues from the lenses of understanding and interpretation (constructivist) versus social justice and empowerment (critical). although these constructs may not be commensurable in all cases, we maintain our position that these two perspectives compliment each other in ways that allow scholars, educators, and other professionals to more fully understand one another 's points of view when working with children, families, and broader social issues that affect them. as hdfs scholars do more to incorporate csp into their research and scholarship and as education scholars find ways to integrate the ppct model from bioecological theory into theirs, we contribute to the increasingly interdisciplinary nature of these disciplines. future scholarship can help refine these and other constructs as they are used within differing epistemological frameworks. conclusion we have shown bioecological theory and csp to be compatible and complementary perspectives for examining the variety of ways that schools, classrooms, and teachers influence students and their families. the synthesis of these perspectives fits within developmental science, family science, and teacher education, whose interests converge around the prerogative to promote child development, particularly for students from underrepresented and underserved backgrounds. although others have framed csp within an ecological view (see lee, 2017), we have specifically identified areas of research and application from bronfenbrenner?s ppct model which coincide with the aims of csp. scholars and educators can benefit from this interdisciplinary integration as they internalize these principles and integrate them into their research and teaching. we postulate that through a recreation of homework, namely family storytelling, educators can better understand the cultures (both heritage and evolving culture) of their children. in this paper, we have also identified implications for the mesosystem connecting teachers and parents. the expectation of understanding and completing traditional homework assignments with young children places demands on families which can tip their family adjustment towards a cascade of crisis (patterson, 2004). our position is that teachers and schools should reconsider the practice of assigning homework, especially for their elementary-aged students. as teachers consider the principles outlined in the bioecological theory and csp, they will be better equipped to work in harmony with families to promote positive outcomes in their children. as our nation becomes increasingly diverse, it is important that we seek to better understand how our education system is meeting the needs of all our students. in the past, relations between schools and families have been characterized as ?worlds apart? 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(2019). disrupting the status quo: exploring culturally relevant and sustaining pedagogies for young diverse learners. race ethnicity and education, 22(3), 428-447. https://doi.org/10.1080/13613324.2017 .1382465 16 https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12196 https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12196 https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2018/cb18-41-population-projections.html https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2018/cb18-41-population-projections.html https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2018/cb18-41-population-projections.html https://doi.org/10.1177/0022487102053001003 https://doi.org/10.1080/00131911.2013.780009 https://doi.org/10.1080/13613324.2017.1382465 https://doi.org/10.1080/13613324.2017.1382465 billen 2022 proof page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 page 9 page 10 page 11 page 12 page 13 page 14 page 15 page 16 graham (2019) proof final educational renaissance vol. 8 (2019) school-based ment or ing for middle schoolers: the im pact on ment ees and their pre-service teacher ment ors tam m y jeaneen graham , edd. the citadel email: grahamt1@citadel.edu renee n. jef ferson, phd. the citadel email: renee.jefferson@citadel.edu feature article int roduct ion while mentoring programs have been in existence for multiple years, program models vary greatly. community-based mentoring programs that provide guidance for youth have been around since the early 1900s with the establishment of big brothers, now known as big brothers big sisters (big brothers big sisters of america, n.d.), and over the past several years, school-based mentoring programs have gained in popularity as a method of supporting academic performance of students (national mentoring resource center, n.d.). while the number of studies focusing on school-based mentoring programs for middle school youth are limited in number, results support their effectiveness in assisting students with academics and behavioral skills (converse & lignugaris/kraft, 2006; lampley & johnson, 2010;mcquillin, strait, smith, & ingram, 2015). converse and lignugaris/kraft (2009) studied an 18-week school-based mentoring program?s impact on 16 junior high school students who abst ract school-based mentoring programs are plentiful in number; however, studies measuring the impact of school-based mentoring for students with disabilit ies are limited. the purpose of this study was to examine the effects of mentoring on the academic and social emotional skills of middle school students with documented disabilit ies, as well as the impact of the mentor-mentee relationship on college-student mentors. the mentoring program paired four college education majors with four middle school males with documented disabilit ies who were identified by their teacher as needing assistance with academic and socio-emotional skills. a mixed-methods study was used to conduct an in-depth investigation of the impact of the mentor partnership. data collection methods included (1) mentor and mentee surveys, (2) observations of mentor-mentee activities, (3) interviews with a science teacher and special education teacher, and (4) science grades. results from the study support the positive impact that mentoring can have on both academic and social-emotional development of middle school students with documented disabilit ies. keywords: mentoring, middle school, students with disabilit ies, pre-service teachers, science education, social-emotional skills mailto:grahamt1@citadel.edu mailto:renee.jefferson@citadel.edu graham & jefferson | school based mentoring for m iddle schoolers were considered at-risk. data included office disciplinary referrals, attendance, student survey responses, and mentor interview responses and log entries. results indicated that participants had a statistically significant reduced number of office referrals, as well as a statistically significant improvement in their attitudes about schools(converse & lignugaris/kraft, b, 2009). lampley and johnson (2010) conducted a study on the linking individual students to educational needs (listen) school-based mentor program. the listen program was implemented after adult mentors were recruited and trained on mentoring. mentors were then paired in a one-one relationship with 54 middle school students who were considered at-risk. the mentor-mentee pairs met an average of twice weekly during one school year. grades, attendance levels, and discipline referrals were analyzed pre-intervention and post-intervention and showed that 49 of 54 participants improved in all three areas, with 51 of the 54 participants showing improvement in their grades (lampley & johnson, 2010). in a study completed by mcquillin, strait, smith, and ingram (2015), 74 middle school students were randomly assigned to a brief school-based mentoring program that incorporated evidence-based counseling and academic practices. after mentors were recruited and received training on the school-based mentoring protocol, one-on-one mentoring sessions lasting 45 minutes were held an average of 8 times over a two-and-a-half-month period.analysis of outcome data indicated a statistically significant impact on the participants? math grades when compared to the 60 middle school students in the control group. additionally, the participants had fewer discipline referrals and higher life satisfaction as compared to their counterparts (mcquillin, strait, smith, & ingram, 2015). despite the numerous school-based mentoring programs available, studies measuring the benefits of school-based mentoring for students with disabilit ies are difficult to find. still, some studies suggest that the impact of mentoring for students with disabilit ies is promising and may benefit academics and psychosocial skills (lindsay & munson, 2018). for example, in an exploratory study of parent, peer, teacher, and mentor social relationships of 228 high school students with disabilit ies, pham and murray (2016) found that?students with greater mentor inspiration scores had greater life satisfaction? (p. 243). additionally, a study completed by leake, burgstahler, and izzo (2011) including 119 survey interviews, 12 focus groups, and 11 case studies across five states indicated that formal and informal mentor/mentee relationships were influential in helping culturally and linguistically diverse students with disabilit ies prepare for transitioning to either higher education or the workforce. furthermore, online participant survey responses in gregg, galyardt, wolfe, moone, and todd?s (2017) study of 189 secondary and postsecondary students with disabilit ies participating in a four-year virtual mentoring program showed participants? satisfaction with the mentoring program and their growth in perceptions of self-advocacy and self-determination. in an effort to support the academic performance and social integration of middle school students with high incidence disabilit ies, professors at a college in the southeast and faculty from an urban public charter middle school established a mentor partnership. the partnership pairs pre-service teachers, some of whom self-reported that they have high incidence disabilit ies, with middle school students with learning disabilit ies, ad/hd, or other similar learning differences. the purpose of this study was to examine the impact of mentoring on middle school mentees? social-emotional skills and their academic performance in science, as well as the impact of the mentor-mentee relationship on college student mentors who were education majors. the academic area of science was chosen due to the school specializing in math and science and due to the mentors providing academic support in science. permission to conduct the study was 49 graham & jefferson | school based mentoring for m iddle schoolers obtained from the college?s institutional review board committee on october 24, 2016. the research questions were as follows: 1. how does a mentoring program for students with disabilit ies impact middle school male students? social-emotional skills? 2. how does a school-based mentoring program for students with disabilit ies impact middle school male students? academic performance in science? 3. what impact, if any, did the mentor-mentee relationship have on college student mentors? met hods participants the participants of this study included four male middle school students from a public charter school in the southeastern united states that uses a project-based learning model with hands-on curriculum in mathematics and science and four male pre-service teachers from a college in the southeastern united states that strongly emphasizes both academics and leadership. each of the middle school participants had a documented disability; had an individual education plan (iep) during the 2016/2017 and 2017/2018 school years; required academic accommodations in their science, math, and english/language arts classes; attended inclusion science class where the science teacher and special education teaching co-taught lessons; received accommodations of small group testing, extra time on tests, and extra time on science lab experiments; and participated in the mentor partnership based on referrals from their special education teacher and their parents. due to confidentiality, the middle school participants? disability categories were not shared with the researchers. three of the middle school participants (student a, student b, and student c) were enrolled in 6th grade and had the same science teacher. the fourth student (student d) was enrolled in 8th grade with a different science teacher than the 6th graders. the students were chosen to participate in the study based on recommendations from their special education teacher, who made the decision based on the following information: the participants were struggling academically and socially, lacked self-confidence and self-advocacy skills, and had no male role-model in their home. table 1 describes the mentee?s demographics. table 1 mentee demographics the four college students were chosen because they were completing a secondary teacher preparation program and were members of a student college club that advocates for k-12 and college students with learning disabilit ies, adhd, and other similar learning differences. two mentors were in the second year of their teacher preparation program, were in the process of completing their third education course, and had completed twenty hours of field experiences in local schools when the mentor partnership began. the remaining two mentors were in the third year of their teacher preparation program, were in the process of completing their fifth education course, and had completed 40 hours of field experiences in local schools. the mentors? demographics and their mentee partnerships are described in table 2. parents or legal guardians of the middle school participants signed a consent form allowing their children to participate in the study. the four 50 ment ee age grade race/et hnicit y student a 12 6 african american/non-hispanic student b 12 6 caucasian/non-hispanic student c 12 6 caucasian/non-hispanic student d 13 8 african american/non-hispanic graham & jefferson | school based mentoring for m iddle schoolers middle school and four college student participants provided written assent. the consent and assent forms described the purpose of the mentoring program, anonymity and confidentiality of all data collected, and the right to withdraw from the program at any time. table 2 mentor demographics and mentee partnerships mentoring sessions when establishing the mentor partnership, professors and the middle school special education teacher worked together to develop objectives for the program. the three main objectives for the program included the following: (1) help the mentees increase their social skills, (2) teach the mentees self-advocacy skills, and (3) assist mentees with improving their grades. the researchers held two training sessions at the college for the mentors. the trainings were based on several ideas from elements of effective practice for mentoring (garringer, kupersmidt, rhodes, stelter, & tai, 2015). key elements that were implemented in training sessions included mentor responsibilit ies (e.g., showing up for each mentoring session on time), ideas for developing meaningful relationships with the mentees, ethical and safety topics, required reporting requirements, and ideas for effectively concluding the final mentor/mentee sessions (p. 35). additional training was held at the school by the special education teacher and was based on the specific needs of each mentee. the special education teacher continued to brief the mentors before each mentoring session as needed, to inform them of any significant challenges the mentees were experiencing, and the researchers debriefed with the mentors on a monthly basis. mentors met with mentees on a weekly basis during the 2017/2018 academic school year, with some sessions being cancelled due to inclement weather, illness, or other activities scheduled by the college or school. initial mentoring sessions followed the protocol of assigned school-based developmental mentoring (anastasia, skinner, & mundhenk, 2012). all mentors and mentees met after school in one room to play board games and complete other activities to enhance social-emotional, self-advocacy, and self-determination goals. as the mentoring sessions progressed during the second semester, sessions were more prescriptive, with mentor/mentee pairs meeting individually in the mentee?s classroom or one-on-one in a conference room, always in the observable view of a school official. the mentors and mentees worked on specific goals in academics, self-advocacy, self-regulation, and other skills requested by the special education teacher (anastasia, skinner, & mundhenk, 2012). individual mentoring goals were developed with each student in mind. table 3 describes the main goals for each student. table 3 individual mentor session goals 51 ment or class race et hnicit y self -repor t ed disabil i t y ment ee par t ner a sophomore caucasian non-hispanic n/a student a b junior caucasian non-hispanic adhd student b c junior caucasian non-hispanic adhd student c d sophomore caucasian non-hispanic n/a student d ment ee object ive student a make eye contact with adults when speaking. student b develop self-regulation skills. student c develop self-advocacy skills. student d interact respectfully with peers and adults. graham & jefferson | school based mentoring for m iddle schoolers materials the impact of the mentoring program on both mentors and mentees was tracked using student outcome measures and formative and summative assessment measures. science grades were used to measure student outcomes. formative and summative assessment measures included (1) mentor survey, (2) mentee survey, (3) mentoring semi-structured observation form, (4) science teacher semi-structured interview, and (5) special education teacher semi-structured interview. the mentor survey included nine questions, six open-ended and three closed-ended questions. mentors were asked to (1) identify positive outcomes and difficulties or challenges, (2) rate the quality of the match between them and their mentees, and (3) reflect on their objectives, needs, and expectations. to assist students with completing the mentee survey, a definition of a mentor was provided with the instructions. mentees were asked if they ever had a mentor, how they felt about having a mentor, and whether they have an older brother or sister. they also were asked to respond to eight sentences about activities they could do with their mentors, circling a smiley face ( ) if they agreed with the sentence or a frowny face ( ) if they disagreed with the sentence. the mentoring semi-structured observation form included five categories: (1) rapport, (2) organization, (3) mentoring methods, (4) personal, and (5) sensitivity. the category definitions for mentors and mentees are provided in table 4. observers were required to familiarize themselves with the definitions, record observable behaviors during the mentor-mentee session, and include comments. the science teacher semi-structured interview and the special education teacher semi-structured interview included 10 short-answer questions about each mentee?s academic performance, social skills, motivation, and behavior during the first month of science class and again toward the end of the science class; instructional strategies, impact of mentoring program on mentee?s behavior in science class, and area(s) of focus for the following year?s program. table 4 observation categories and definitions for mentors/mentees procedures the four mentees? science grades for each quarter and their final science course grades were collected to measure student outcomes. the charter school uses a 10-point grading scale that is mandated by the state?s department of education (i.e., a=90-100%; b=80-89%; c=70-79%; d=60-69%; and f=51-59%). the range and difference scores were used to examine variation among quarter grades. the mentor survey was administered to four mentors during a mentor club meeting during in april 2018. instructions on how to complete the survey were read by the researchers who left the room to remove any anxiety that their presence might cause. 52 cat egory ment or ment ee rapport is respectful, fair, and impartial. provides feedback and encourages questions. shows enthusiasm and asks questions. organization arrives at session at scheduled time. is prepared with materials and activities for the session. is prepared to participate in activities. asks questions and shares ideas. mentoring methods uses relevant methods, aids, materials, techniques, and technology. is responsive to materials presented and methods used. personal displays evidence of self-confidence. maintains professional comportment and appearance. n/a sensitivity exhibits sensitivity to students? personal culture, gender differences, and disabilit ies. n/a graham & jefferson | school based mentoring for m iddle schoolers in april 2018, the mentee survey was administered to the four mentees by the researchers, along with the special education teacher. working collaboratively, they distributed and discussed the contents of the consent form. since testing accommodations were included in the four mentees ieps, the special education teacher was asked to participate to make certain that the mentees received their required accommodations. mentees were asked two demographic questions: if they have older brothers or sisters and if they have had someone be a mentor to them. researchers observed mentoring sessions an average of six times over the course of the school year. the first mentoring session of each semester was observed. additional observation sessions were conducted in the middle of each semester and at the end of each semester. observation categories are listed and defined in table 4. semi-structured interview sessions with the science and special education teachers occurred in april 2018. the science teacher semi-structured interview and the special-education teacher semi-structured interview questions were sent to the science teacher and the special education teacher prior to their scheduled interview dates. after reviewing the interview questions, the science teacher and the special education teacher requested that their interviews be conducted together. the two of them worked as a team to help students and thought a joint interview session would provide a comprehensive view of the mentoring program?s impact on their students. result s student outcome measures student outcomes were measured using science grades. the grades are presented in table 5. the final course grade is the mean of the four quarter grades. based on the state?s grading scale, each student received a passing science grade for the academic year. student b?s science grades had the largest amount of variation (range=20 points), followed closely by student c?s grades (range=19 points). the least amount of variation occurred for student a?s science grades (range=5 points). table 5 mentees science grades for 2017/2018 school year table 6 presents the difference scores among the four quarter grades in science for each student. difference scores were computed between q1 and q2, q2 and q3, and q3 and q4. the largest difference score occurred between q3 and q4 (d=+18) for student c, followed closely by student b with difference scores that decreased between q1 and q2 (d=-16) and increased between q3 and q4 (d=+16). the smallest difference scores occurred for student a with scores decreasing between q1 and q2 (d=-3) and increasing between q3 and q4 (d=+4). table 6 difference scores for mentees 2017/2018 science grades 53 ment ee q1 q2 q3 q4 final grade student a 82 79 80 84 81 student b 88 72 76 92 82 student c 76 70 71 89 77 student d 67 74 78 66 72 ment ee q2-q1 q3-q2 q4-q3 student a -3 +1 +4 student b -16 +4 +16 student c +6 +1 +18 student d +7 +4 -12 graham & jefferson | school based mentoring for m iddle schoolers mentor/mentee surveys the results showed that 50% of the students reported having a mentor prior to entering college. only one of the four college students reported that this was their first time being a mentor to someone. fifty percent reported having an older brother or sister and 50% reported having had a mentor in the past. all four mentees reported that they liked playing games with their mentors. the majority of the mentees wanted their mentor to help with them with homework (75%), read with them (75%), and teach them how to play a sport (75%). the reasons why the college students wanted to become a mentor included (1) wanting to give kids something they did not have in middle school, (2) influencing and helping people to be the best they can be regardless of their situation, and (3) realizing how much having a mentor meant to them and wanting to return the favor and help kids. mentoring session observations six mentoring sessions were observed by the researchers over the course of one academic school year. during the initial mentoring session, all mentors arrived in a timely manner, introduced themselves, shook hands with the mentees, and asked the mentees questions about their hobbies in hopes of making them more comfortable. students a, b, c, and d answered questions and seemed eager to participate. the mentors and mentees began playing a board game to better establish rapport and practice social skills. each mentee participated in the game; however, student d appeared to become agitated waiting for his turn. he kept interrupting other mentees as they were participating in the game, and he eventually stood on the table. to help diffuse the situation, one mentor coaxed student d from the table and walked around the school campus with him while talking with him about his feelings and reminding him of appropriate social skills. the mentor-mentee pair eventually returned to the mentoring room, and student d was able to participate in the remainder of the session. in subsequent observations, the confidence level of the mentors appeared to significantly increase. they arrived at each session on time, had necessary materials for the sessions, shook hands with their mentees, and displayed a caring and comfortable yet professional demeanor with the mentees. each mentee eagerly participated in the sessions and appeared to become more relaxed as the sessions progressed. students a, b, and c always followed directions from their mentors and answered questions respectfully. while student d required gentle reminders to utilize appropriate social skills, the reminders decreased as the year progressed. teacher interviews during the april 2018 semi-structured interviews, the science teacher and special education teacher identified general behavioral descriptions for academic performance, social skills, and motivation to complete classwork. table 7 presents the behavioral descriptions for the three 6th grade students prior to participating in the mentoring program (during the first month of the school year) and after participating in the mentoring program (toward the end of the school year), as described by the science teacher and special education teacher in the semi-structured interviews. changes in specific behaviors were reported for each student. the science teacher saw growth in academic performance for students a and b from the first quarter to the second quarter. prior to participating in the mentoring program, student a would cower in a corner during science class and told the teacher, ?i can?t do anything.? his mentor worked with him on how to greet adults; that is, saying hello, looking them in the eyes, and shaking their hands. when the interviewer arrived to conduct the interview sessions with the science teacher and special education teacher, student a demonstrated the greeting he learned from his mentor. both remarked on the improvement of 54 graham & jefferson | school based mentoring for m iddle schoolers table 7 mentee behaviors displayed at beginning & end of school year student a?s social skills. according to the science teacher, student b grew the most socially, demonstrating a level of maturity that was not evident at the beginning of the school year. while student c increased his self-advocacy skills, progress is still needed. his mentor worked with him on recognizing when he needs help. by the end of the mentoring program, student c would tell the science teacher that he needed help with classwork, but he could not identify the type of help needed. both the science teacher and special education teacher considered this a major improvement. the science teacher reported that her school creates a comfortable environment for introducing middle school students to the wonders of science by embedding science into its mission and using a project-based learning model to provide hands-on curriculum. she shared that the instructional strategies that work best with her students are guided notes and self-notes. for students with an iep or 504 plan, she found dividing the guided notes into small chunks of information and placing the students in small groups to engage in conversations facilitated comprehension of the material. these students also received one-on-one attention, frequent repetition of concepts, and were given instructional materials prior to the lesson. the 8th grader, student d, joined the mentoring program in september 2016 at the beginning of his 7th grade year and had a different science teacher than the 6th graders. the science teacher was unable to be interviewed due to scheduling conflicts. according to the special education teacher, student d displayed similar behaviors as the three 6th graders for academic performance, social skills, and motivation to complete classwork. he displayed a lack of interest about the consequences for not completing classwork, instigated arguments with other students, and showed a lack of respect for adults. student d had more than 30 disciplinary referrals at the end of his 6th grade year. during his first year in the mentoring program, his mentor worked on 55 cat egory st udent beginning of school year end of school year academic a floundering, lost, overwhelmed attentive, succeeding b displayed lack of interest about consequences for not completing classwork made efforts to avoid consequences for not completing classwork c did not follow the time frame for completing assignments noted in iep or 504 plan began completing assignments within time frame noted in iep or 504 plan d relied heavily on accommodations demonstrated more independence and responsibility for class work social skills a involved in minor arguments with other students decrease in number of minor arguments with other students b difficulty controlling emotions informs teacher when upset c had small number of friends made friends with other mentees d disrespectful to adults has become more respectful to adults motivation a lacked motivation to complete classwork showed concern about completing classwork b lacked self-confidence appeared more self-confident c not motivated to interact with other students made statements about looking forward to spending time with mentor and mentees d reported being bullied reported bullying stopped graham & jefferson | school based mentoring for m iddle schoolers building rapport and positive social skills to reduce the number of disciplinary referrals. at the end of 7th grade, the number of disciplinary referrals was 20, a reduction of approximately 33%. the number of disciplinary referrals at the end of 8th grade was three, a reduction of approximately 90% since 6th grade. the special education teacher reported that after two years in the mentoring program, student d began asking questions about the courses he needed to take in high school to apply to college and different types of careers; topics for which he previously showed no interest. he even began helping other students with their classwork. student d has thrived from the extra attention his mentor provides and eagerly anticipates each week?s mentoring session. discussion analysis of participants? science grades revealed no clear pattern of gains; however, all three 6th grade participants increased their performance in science from the 3rd scoring quarter to the 4th quarter. while student a?s science grades increased by 4 points, student b?s grades increased by 16 points, and student c?s grades increased by 18 points. additionally, students a and b passed their general education science course with a final grade of b, and student c passed the course with a final grade of c. although the 8th grade participant?s grades decreased by 12 points from the 3rd to the 4th quarter, he passed his general education science course with a final grade of c. komosa-hawkins (2010) reports, ?outcomes need to be examined in relation to various program-related factors such as intensity and fidelity of mentoring as well as other variables specific to the individual and match that might be contributing to the observed outcomes? (p. 135). while the use of statistical data analysis techniques is important when measuring outcomes of mentor programs, its use depends on the type of research design or methodology. the purpose of this study was to examine the effects of the mentoring program on science performance and social/emotional skills for middle school students individually, rather than collectively. as a result, the impact of participating in the mentoring program from the perspectives of the mentees was assessed primarily by using anecdotal statements made during observations, as well as their responses to three sentences included in the mentee survey. the use of these assessments is based on the recommendations of the special education teacher. due to the accommodations included in the mentees iep and 504 plans, she recommended using minimal formal assessments, especially during the mentees first year participating in the program as 6th graders. since the charter school begins with 6th grade, mentees faced many challenges such as acclimating to a new educational environment, being part of a new social structure, and learning how to manage their exceptionalities. anecdotal information from the science teacher, special education teacher, mentors, and mentees indicate that the mentoring program had a positive impact on mentees? academic performance, social skills, and motivation to complete classwork. the science teacher reported that many positive outcomes resulting from the mentor/mentee relationship were demonstrated by the three 6th grade students in her science class. the most notable outcomes were (1) learning self-advocacy skills, (2) owning their own struggles, (3) accepting who they are, (4) communicating their needs, and (5) accepting that accommodations are not ?bad? but are needed to help them be successful. for the special education teacher, the most notable positive outcomes were related to social skills. the mentees displayed higher levels of self-confidence and informed her that they felt ?cool? because they were involved in the mentoring program. while the degree of impact may be contributed to other contextual variables (e.g., acclimating to the new school environment and becoming more mature), both the science teacher and special education teacher were adamant that the positive outcomes students demonstrated in academic performance, social skills, and motivation to complete classwork resulted from their participation in the mentoring program. 56 graham & jefferson | school based mentoring for m iddle schoolers the mentors reported that the relationships they formed with the mentees and with the other mentors were the most positive outcomes from participating in the mentoring program. mentor b stated, ?i was able to see kids the kids open up with us about their lives, and i was able to learn good techniques in how to mentor.? additional positive outcomes included (1) gaining experience working with kids that will help them become a teacher, (2) participating in the program was a stress relief from college life, (4) learning how to be comfortable with starting and carrying on conversations with mentees to be able to understand their personalities, and what they enjoy doing in-school and out-of-school, and (5) developing genuine relationships and being a person the mentee trusts helps improve their self-confidence and their ability to leave their comfort zone by trying new things and being successful. observations of mentoring sessions and analysis of mentor surveys suggest that the four mentors met the characteristics of ?highly attuned? mentors due to the mutual respect they shared with their mentees, their genuine interest in the well-being of their mentees, and their flexibility to change their plans based on the needs and moods of their mentees (pryce, 2012). additionally, the mentors were observed to become advocates for the students. when student d was demonstrating behavioral difficulties during some early mentoring sessions, the mentors advocated for him to remain in the program, admitting that although it could be difficult working with him in mentoring sessions at times, they felt the sessions were benefiting him. the four mentees reported that they enjoyed having a mentor and spending time with their mentor. however, they reported that the best thing about the mentoring program is having someone who understands them. student a was observed walking around the school grounds with his mentor and reported that he likes talking about video games and getting help with his homework and especially likes listening to his mentor describe what it is like being a college student. student b was observed playing basketball with his mentor in the school gymnasium and reported that he likes when his mentor is able to have lunch with him, that it makes him feel really ?cool? having a college student eat lunch with him. student c was observed playing a board game with his mentor. he reported that he really likes playing board games and loves it when he wins. according to student c, beating his mentor in a board game makes him feel like he can win at anything. one unexpected outcome of the study was the improved behavior skills of student d, as evidenced by a significant reduction in disciplinary referrals. reduction of discipline referrals was also a prominent theme in other studies on school-based mentoring in middle grades (converse & lignugaris/kraft, 2006; lampley & johnson, 2010; mcquillin, strait, smith, & ingram, 2015). student d participated in the mentoring program for two years and reported that the first year he really did not want to get to know his mentor because he knew his mentor would eventually leave. he was observed saying unkind things to his mentor and being disrespectful. when he was assigned the same mentor in the second year of the program, he reported being overjoyed. his mentor had told him that he would return the next school year; however, student d reported that people always say ?things like that? and it is never true. when he saw that he had the same mentor as the previous year, he began displaying a positive attitude and acting respectful to his mentor and other adults. he described his mentor as ?genuine and kind-hearted.? student d reported that the major change in his life is not getting into trouble all of the time. he is very proud that he only received three disciplinary referrals in 8th grade, as compared to over 30 referrals in 6th grade and 20 referrals in 7th grade, and he plans to reduce the number to zero when he gets to 9th grade. lim it at ions while anecdotal information indicates the mentoring partnerships yielded positive results, 57 graham & jefferson | school based mentoring for m iddle schoolers limitations in this study must be addressed. the anecdotal information was limited due to the small number of mentor-mentee partnerships and focused only on the individual impact of the mentoring program. increasing the number of mentor-mentee partnerships would increase the amount of anecdotal information and provide opportunities to use content analysis approaches such as conventional, directed, or summative. another limitation was the use of quarterly grades as the only student outcome measure. there are approximately 9 weeks in each quarter, making it difficult to identify a relationship between participation in the mentoring program and science grades. including grades on tests, quizzes, and homework would provide outcome measures that occur within closer time interval with the mentoring sessions. recom m endat ions there are several future recommendations to make the mentor program stronger. the special education teacher recommends scheduling a meeting at the beginning of the fall term to introduce mentors to their mentees and key personnel who work with the mentees, such as science teachers, middle school counselors, and school administrators. she also suggests that mentors create profiles about themselves to share with the mentees. other recommendations include scheduling a meeting between parents, mentors, school personnel, and college professors to build rapport and to discuss individual goals for each mentees; allowing mentees to tour the college campus and visit a college classroom and lab to provide them the opportunity to see where their mentors attend school and to compare and contrast the college environment with their school; scheduling more opportunities for successes to be celebrated; and recruiting a more diverse pool of mentors. additional studies including a larger number of participants also need to be completed to measure the success of the program. references anastasia, t.t., skinner, r.l., & mundhenk, s.e. (2012). youth mentoring: program and mentor best practices. journal of family and consumer sciences, 104 (2), 38-44. big brothers big sisters of america. (n.d.) 114 years of history. retrieved from http://www.bbbs.org/history/ converse, n., & lignugaris/kraft, b. (2009). evaluation of a school-based mentoring program for at-risk middle school youth. remedial and special education, 3, 33-46. garringer, m., kupersmidt, j., rhodes, j., stelter, r., & tai, t. (2015). elements of effective practice for mentoring (4th ed.). boston, ma: mentor: the national mentoring partnership. gregg, n., galyardt, a., wolfe, g., moon, n., & todd, r. (2017). virtual mentoring and persistence in stem for students with disabilit ies. career development and transition for exceptional individuals, 40, 205-214. doi 10.1177/2165143416651717 komosa-hawkins, k. (2010). best practices in school-based mentoring programs for adolescents. child & youth services, 31, 121-137. doi 10.1080/0145935x.2009.524477 pryce, j. (2012). mentor attunement: an approach to successful school-based mentoring relationships. child and adolescent social work, 29, 285-305. doi 10.1007/s10560-012-0260-6 lampley, j.h, & johnson, k.c. (2010). mentoring at-risk youth: improving academic achievement in middle school students. nonpartisan education review, 6, 1-12. leake, d.w., burgstahler, s, & izzo, m.v. (2011). promoting transition success for culturally and linguistically diverse students with disabilit ies: the value of mentoring. creative education, 2, 121-129. doi 10.4236/ce.2011.22017 lindsay, s., and munson, m. (2018). mentoring for youth with disabilities. boston, ma: national mentoring resource center. retrieved from http://nationalmentoringresourcecenter.org/im 58 graham & jefferson | school based mentoring for m iddle schoolers ages/pdf/mentoring_for_youth_with_disabilit ie s_population_review.pdf mcquillin, s, strait, s., smith, b, & ingram, a. (2015). brief instrumental school-based mentoring for firstand second-year middle school students: a randomized evaluation. journal of community psychology, 43, 885-899. doi: 10.1002/jcop national mentoring resource center. (n.d.). school based mentoring. retrieved from https://nationalmentoringresourcecenter.org/in dex.php/30-topic-areas/182-school-based-ment oring.html pham, y.k. & murray, c. (2016). social relationships among adolescents with disabilit ies: unique and cumulative associations with adjustment. exceptional children, 82(2), 234 ?250. doi: 10.1177/0014402915585491 59 graham (2019) proof final page 1 page 2 page 3 page 4 page 5 page 6 page 7 page 8 page 9 page 10 page 11 page 12 billen (2020) print educational renaissance vol. 9 (2020) #learningt oref lect : preservice teachers? ref lect ions on inst agram monica bil len, phd. california state university, fresno email: mbillen@csufresno.edu feature article although teacher reflection is widely accepted as integral to the field of teacher education, recently the concept has been critiqued and questioned (beauchamp, 2015). some critiques are theoretical in nature while some relate to the practical implementations of the concept (collin et al., 2013). in a review of literature, beauchamp (2015) outlined multiple critiques of reflection including (a) the lack of real reflection, (b) the narrowness of approaches to reflection, and (c) the structural limitations on reflection. some have argued that ?reflective teaching? has become much more of a slogan than actual practice (noffke & brennan, 2005) and may merely be a fictional piece in professional literature (marcos et al., 2011). additionally, the reflective work that is taking place lacks a holistic approach that includes an emotional element (akbari, 2007). last, the hierarchical structure in which reflection is typically encouraged, has also been questioned, especially when less experienced students reflect under the direction of a skilled instructor (enfield & stasz, 2011). the purpose of this research was to better understand if using a different medium of reflection might address these critiques. teacher education programs have placed an emphasis on encouraging reflective practice (calderhead, 1989; laboskey 1994; mccaleb et al., 1992) and many different methods to this end have been considered. some recent practical strategies to influence reflection include collaborative reflection (clarà et al., 2019), processfolios (silveira et al., 2017), video analysis (hollingsworth & clarke, 2017), microblogging (krutka et al., 2014), conversation analysis with action research (hale et al., 2018), reflective interviews (wetzel et al., 2018), and video reflections, (gröschner et al., 2018). other very common reflective methods include journal writing (laboskey, 1994), portfolios (wade & yarbrough, 1996), narrative writing (van halen-faber, 1997), interpersonal seminars abst ract although research on teacher reflection is vast, research on preservice teachers? (psts) use of social media and multimodal reflections is minimal. this study provides greater understanding into how psts used instagram as a platform for engaging in reflection. throughout an academic year, a group of fourteen psts used instagram several times each week to reflect on their field experience rather than writing a reflective paper. i propose that the participants in this study were photoreflecting, which is the process of deep consideration as one transmediates images and print language. the participants in this study photoreflected by (a) photojournaling, (b) noticing, (c) noticing and extending, (d) noticing and problem solving, and (e) noticing and changing. participants photojournaled the most and noticed and changed the least mailto:mbillen@csufresno.edu billen| #learningtoreflect (zeichner & liston, 1987) and in-depth observations (andrew & teitelbaum, 1983). the practical strategies listed above, though beneficial in many regards, do lack several key components and may be connected to the critiques identified earlier. first, the reflective strategies described above may lack an emotional element (akbari, 2007). second, the strategies also seem to be disconnected from teachers? lived experience (dewey, 1938). some have suggested that pre-service teachers (psts) dread sitting down to write (bolin, 1990; yinger & clark, 1981), and i wonder if some strategies may be ?forced reflection? (beauchamp, 2015, p. 127). third, the reflective assignments most often used in teacher education programs have a narrow focus and do not seem to holistically consider the individual. additionally, an apparent absence of visual literacies and multimodal literacies (walsh, 2015) is seen by the heavy use of alphabetic text, prose, and aural communication to represent deep thoughts. visual data ?evokes deeper elements of human consciousness that do words? (harper, 2010, p. 13), yet through my research, mainly prose has been used to elicit pst reflection. third the structure of reflective assignments does seem hierarchal and may include too few reflective moments (mccaleb et al., 1992). for instance, engaging in a seminar or interview several times throughout a semester may not be frequent enough for ongoing reflection. as a teacher educator, i believe that engaging my psts in ongoing reflection is worthwhile. before engaging in this study, however, i did not feel that common practices were an effective medium for deep thought. not only did my psts dread their current journal writing, they hurriedly completed the weekly task without thinking much about what they were writing and confessed it was ?forced reflection? (beauchamp, 2015). i set out to find a better way. i sought a practice that would allow individuals to engage in real reflection that was connected to their life, that more holistically considered the emotional aspect of individuals, and operated in a nonhierarchical community. with the understanding that seven-in-ten americans use social networking sites (sns) regularly and 71 percent of americans ages 18-24 use instagram (smith & anderson, 2018), i considered the use of a sns as a platform for reflection. instagram, a photo sharing mobile device app, seemed to have the potential to elicit real reflection and widen the reflective process to include emotion. additionally, instagram is heavily focused on sharing visual data, a mode that seemed to be lacking in typical reflective work. in this article, i discuss the project and findings from a yearlong study wherein i engaged psts in instagram throughout their field study. the purpose of this qualitative study was to better understand the reflective journey of 14 psts in the midst of a yearlong education internship. more specifically, i sought to better understand how using instagram might influence reflective practice. i sought to answer the question, in what ways do psts reflect using photos on instagram? i begin this article by reviewing literature in regards to teacher reflection, instagram and multimodal literacies. next, i describe the details of the project. next, i discuss the qualitative results that describe how psts reflected on instagram. additionally, i introduce the term that emerged from this work, photoreflecting. i conclude by arguing that the practical implementation of reflection should be considered in teacher education programs. review of lit erat ure reflection teacher reflection can be considered the ?hallmark of professional competence? (larrivee, 2008, p. 341) and some have argued that without reflection, teachers would remain stagnant (fuller & brown, 1975). although it is clear that the term reflection is a popular term used by educators, what one actually means when using the term is less clear (beauchamp, 2015). in this section, i review some scholars have defined reflection and how i define reflection in this study. reflection as thought 2 billen| #learningtoreflect many consider dewey (1910; 1938) to be the pioneer of reflection in education. with his landmark publication, how we think, dewey argued that one reflects in order to understand their surroundings. the process of reflection, according to dewey (1938) is a meaning making process that includes reorganizing and reconstructing experiences. dewey (1938) also explains that while reflecting, individuals make a distinction between the actual experience and the experiencing, or the how one experiences. similarly, zeichner and liston (1987) defined reflective action as ?the active, persistent, and careful consideration of any belief or supposed form of knowledge . . .? (p. 24). dewey (1910) and zeichner and liston (1987) specifically describe reflection as a thought process and careful consideration. other scholars have extended and added to these definitions. reflection as thought and action osterman (1990) maintained that reflection is problem oriented in that individuals are prompted by a problem then engage in a ?dialectic process of thought and action? (p. 134) then seek to improve or develop one?s craftsmanship. similarly, hatton and smith (1995) also connect reflection to becoming more effective in one?s practice. reflection is ?deliberate thinking about action with a view to its improvement? (p. 40). though dewey (1910; 1938) and zeichner and liston (1987) focused on reflection as understanding the world through thought, hatton and smith (1995) and osterman (1990) posited that reflection entails improvement and action. schön (1983) is well recognized for his foundational work on reflection and action as he clarified the definition of practitioners. practitioners are constantly solving problems while engaged in their craft and become ? . . . a researcher in . . . practice . . .? (p. 68). schön identified that practitioners reflect and research while they are engaged and after they have engaged in their craft, coining the terms reflection-in-action and reflection-on-action. schön (1987) argued that professionals harmoniously combine reflection and action to solve problems by problem setting, enduring a state of puzzlement, reflecting, and experimenting. this cyclical process, posed by schön, involves reflection and action. however, in order for one to engage in problem setting, the individual must ?buil[d] up a repertoire of examples, images, understandings, and actions? (p. 138). this repertoire of images greatly influences reflection and stands at the foundation of problem setting. for an individual cannot reflect about a problem that he has not noticed. reflection as critical critical reflection, which ?may be described as the type of thinking that serves to challenge notions of prior learning? (p. 51) occurs when one questions personal beliefs, goals, or expectations. some posit that a major component of reflection should be critical, so that teachers are developing cultural critical consciousness (gay & kirkland, 2010), are reflecting on culturally relevant pedagogy (ladson-billings, 1994), and recognize that teaching is not a neutral act (howard, 2003). smyth (1989) argued that reflection should be critical and identified four steps in which to engage teachers including, (a) describe, (b) inform, (c) confront and (d) reconstruct. francis (1995) also posited that an additional step should be added to the work of smyth (1989)? challenging beliefs and changing action, arguing that actual change of beliefs is part of the critical reflection process. although the term reflection is clearly common in education, the way in which we define the term is less clear. in the preceding section, i identified that reflection can be defined as deep consideration, as change and action, whether it is in action or on action and reflection can also be a vehicle to think critically and change beliefs. throughout this study, reflection was understood as consideration, active, and critical. instagram 3 billen| #learningtoreflect dewey (1938) discussed the importance of connecting life experience to educational experience. he argued that education should be as closely related to the ?actual life-experience of some individual? (p. 89). with current technological advances, it is true that actual life experience of many students now involves avid use of social network sites (sns) (lup et al., 2015). sns include facebook, twitter, pinterest, and instagram, which are virtual collections of personal profiles that can be shared with others (hughes et al., 2012). in june 2018, instagram, a mobile-based photo and video sharing sns, reached 1 billion users, quickly surpassing the growth rates of other popular sns including facebook and snapchat, a drastic increase from the conception of instagram that launched on october 6, 2010. in eight years, instagram grew to a worldwide app with 1 billion monthly users, 500 million daily users, with 50 billion photos shared total (constine, 2018). instagram users between the ages of 1834 account for 65% of the 1 billion instagram users (statistica, 2019). it is very likely that typical college aged teacher candidates use instagram regularly and it is very much a part of their actual life experience (dewey, 1938). besides being directly connected to most young people?s actual life, sns have affordances. sns can encourage learning outside of the classroom, give students purpose in creating content, and allow student collaboration (krutka & carpenter, 2016). in addition, sns offer multimodal texts as it includes images, aural, and print (walsh, 2010). multimodal literacies in a technologically advanced world wherein individuals are constantly constructing, designing, and reading messages with print, aural, and visual information, it is clear why new literacies (leu et al., 2004) and multiliteracies, (new london group, 1996) have become an important component of educational research. additionally, the term multimodal, which means multiple modes of communication, including, reading, writing, talking, listening, and viewing, has become a common term (walsh, 2010). though print writing has been a common mode of communication for the past several centuries the advancement of technology has added additional layers to the way in which we communicate (kress, 1998). in addition to print, we communicate with visuals (bailey & van harken, 2014), photos and selfies (bakhshi et al., 2014), emojis (doiron, 2018), hashtags (veletsianos & kimmons, 2016), and videos (hu et al., 2014). this is not to say that before technology, print was the only form of communication. visuals, for example, have been connected with print for many years; however, the ease with which we can create multimodal text with technology has made multimodal texts even more prevalent (kress, 1998). the specific use and benefits of visual images has been considered and researched by many scholars (lemon, 2007; kress, 1998; new london group, 1996; siegel, 1995). siegel (1995) stated, immersed in a world of words of our own making, we have come to regard our reliance on language as natural and, in doing so, fail to recognize that they are multiple ways of knowing? music, dance, visual arts, and so on? each of which offers a distinctive way of making meaning. (p. 456) although there are many ways of knowing and constructing meaning, most classrooms remain ?deeply rooted in a verbocentric ideology? (p. 473). however, after studying children?s drawings, siegel posited that when one uses signs to express meaning and knowledge, one understands concepts on a deeper level. transmediation, she argues, is the reason for this deeper understanding. transmediation is the process of ?translating meanings from one sign system to another? (p. 455), which encourages more ?opportunities to engage in generative and reflective thinking because learners must invent a connection between the two sign systems, as the connection does not exist a priori? (p. 455). through transmediation, individuals generate new ideas and engage in reflective thinking because 4 billen| #learningtoreflect they are inventing and creating meaning. in discussing the findings of siegel (1995), bailey and van harken (2014), explained that transmediation affords individuals ?an expanded way to comprehend and learn? (p. 242). similarly, kress (1998) specifically discussed the connection of images and verbal language arguing that visuals extend meaning of language and when engaging with multiple modes, one is required to think more deeply in the process. when individuals are afforded the opportunity to engage in transmediation of multimodal texts, individuals may think more deeply about the topic at hand. met hodology the purpose of this qualitative study was to better understand the reflective journey of fourteen pre-service teachers engaged in a yearlong elementary internship. this research focused on better understanding human experience through non-numerical, language data (denzin & lincoln, 1998). more specifically, a qualitative researcher focuses on understanding what participants identify as important and worthwhile through the participants? words, experiences, and stories. this particular study focused on participants? words and stories through the use of photographs and sought to understand lived experience over time (willman, 2008). photovoice is a qualitative methodology that allows participants to tell their story from their own perspective through the use of photographs. it is a participant action research methodology based on the concept that individuals are the true experts on their own life (wang, 2006). this study is heavily influenced by photovoice methodology but does not perfectly align with the stated goals (wang & burris, 1997) or photovoice steps that have been identified (wang, 2006). the purpose of photos in this study is to understand the participants? stories and reflections but does not focus on reaching policymakers or stakeholders. as participant researcher, the participants and i constructed reality together as the investigation unfolded (guba & lincoln, 1994). participants and setting the participants in this study was a cohort of fourteen psts attending a large university in the southeastern part of the united states working toward a master?s degree and a credential as part of a nationally ranked five-year degree program. the participants completed a yearlong internship, working in an elementary classroom under the direction of a mentor teacher four days a week and attended university classes one day per week. as i sought to construct reality together with the participants, i worked closely with the participants throughout the week as a coach in the field and met with them in classes on fridays at the university. however, i was not their instructor or professor. the mean age of the participants was 21. there were 13 females and one male. the participants were split between three local elementary schools. procedures while working with psts, i began wondering when teacher candidates had the opportunity to reflect and in what ways they reflected. after interviewing the participants about their current reflective practice, i held a training seminar for the participants where i introduced instagram and discussed privacy and ethics. after receiving irb approval, approval from the elementary schools, i asked the participants to discontinue the use of their web-based journal (previously used in their program) and use instagram to document their experiences. the psts created private accounts and followed each member of the cohort. i asked the pst to regularly post photos (3-5 per week) from august may. every friday, the cohort would come to class and discuss the photos from the week. throughout the school year, the following data sources were collected. data sources this qualitative study is ethnographic in nature, and included observations, interviews, and documents. as a participant observer, i collected field notes and wrote analytic memos during or after all observations throughout the year. 5 billen| #learningtoreflect participants were observed weekly in the field at their particular school site. this included observation of the participant?s teaching as well as conversation in lesson debriefing. i also engaged in participant observation weekly on fridays throughout the school year in the university setting. this resulted in over 50 pages of field notes. in addition to multiple observations collected each week, i conducted two rounds of individual interviews during the course of the year, in november and april. semi structured interviews included the use of photo elicitation techniques (samuels, 2004) where i used participant photos and asked individuals to expound upon the pictures. this resulted in 60 hours of recorded interviews. i also collected many documents on instagram throughout the year. documents included photos, captions about the photos and comments from peers. on average, each participant uploaded three photos per school week from august through may. this resulted in over 1,800 photos and captions. data analysis as a participant researcher, i engaged in informal analysis throughout the data collection process as i decided what to include, what to pay close attention to and what to ignore (hatch, 2002). all data sources (observations, interview transcripts, documents) were uploaded to a qualitative software package for formal analysis. i engaged in formal analysis of all data toward the completion of the project in may. all informal and formal analysis is inextricably related and influenced from the lens in which i view this work. during formal analysis, i commenced with specific, particular observations and moved to general, explanatory statements. i placed codes into the data and interpreted the data through my own understanding of what was occurring, while constantly checking with participants to ensure correct representation. i did this in three phases (a) coding (b) analytic memos and (c) categories. i started by viewing all data sources and assigning in vivo codes (saldaña, 2009) to the data. in vivo codes highlight the actual words of the participants. for examples, if a participant said, ?this is a photo of a stack of worksheets that i saw my teacher copy for the week. i feel frustrated with the amount of worksheets i have seen.? i assigned an in vivo code of ?frustrated with worksheets?. after assigning in vivo codes, i continued in inductive analysis by continuing to move to more general statements. i took in vivo codes and noted descriptive codes as i sought to condense the participants? words into shorter words and phrases. during all coding, i kept a word processing document of analytic memos open to explore my thoughts and wonderings. this included disjointed sentences, bullet points, and questions that i considered. through coding and analytic memos, i moved from codes to broader categories. throughout all coding and memo writing, i constantly considered my positionality, my influence on the participants, and my assumptions, and how each affected the participants, data, and research findings. during friday conversations and interviews, i engaged participants in member checking to continually ensure accurate interpretations (guba & lincoln, 1994). result s in this study, i sought to answer the question, in what ways do psts reflect using photos on instagram? how teachers reflected through careful analysis, i created several larger categories that described how the psts in this study reflected. the psts engaged in (a) photojournaling, (b) noticing, (c) noticing and extending, (d) noticing and problem solving, and (e) noticing and changing. photojournaling. throughout the year, participants often reported what they had done that day or documented an event. this category, photojournaling, included all photos, comments, and captions where individuals explicated events from the day or an event. these often started with the words ?today i? ? and included pictures from events. for instance, barbie (all names are 6 billen| #learningtoreflect pseudonyms) posted a photo (see figure 1) and stated, ?today we had the students read their spooky stories to the class . . . we also turned off the lights and had spooky music playing in the background as student read them! #halloween?. barbie took a photo of an experience in her day and felt that it was noteworthy to share on instagram. the purpose of this post was to document an event and to share an idea with peers. subsequently, at the university setting a few days later, peers talked about the practical idea and discussed similar ideas to encourage the sharing of student writing. similarly, charlotte posted about an unsettling experience with a child in her class by taking a picture of a necklace (see figure 1) that had been worn by a student and detailing the story in her photo caption. a child had, in the middle of class, taken the necklace and began repeatedly twisting the necklace until he was choking himself. this event was memorable to charlotte as she had experienced something uncomfortable for the first time. in a like manner, pat posted a photo of glasses and described a child who had a fit, threw his glasses and stepped on them and josie experienced mixed emotions when her mentor teacher was absent (see figure 1). each of the posts and conversations that were considered photojournaling, included a description of an event but did not include analysis, questions, or other considerations. noticing. in addition to recording events, participants also noticed things about their experiences and surroundings. these posts and conversations were different from photojournaling because they did not explain an event, rather they were moments when the psts saw something, and thought, ?hmmm?. the psts were trying to make sense of the new world in which they were a part (that of teaching). kimberly noticed something interesting when working with a young girl in her class who speaks german. while observing the girl encode a sentence on a whiteboard (see figure 2), kimberly figure 1 photoreflecting noticed that the girl?s accent influenced the way she invented spelling. kimberly photographed the child?s writing and captioned that it was very interesting that the girl?s accent influenced her spelling. kimberly saw something that influenced her to stop, get her phone, take a picture, and consider but she did not extend her thoughts. likewise, erin noticed some tension in a spelling program that was required in her school. she noted, ?planning a spelling lesson, #lessonsdontflow mentor doesn?t like the flow either, but this is what he was given and was told to use.? she posted a picture of the spelling textbook (see figure 2). in this instance, erin noticed a dilemma in teaching? when teachers are asked to implement a program that does not coincide with their desires. erin did not extend this thought to what, specifically, she wasn?t pleased with, or how it could be improved; she simply made an observation and recorded this observation. this noticing was different from a photojournaling post wherein the procedural information from an event was explicated. likewise, pat noticed a standardized test question (see figure 2) that asked the child to choose a 7 billen| #learningtoreflect picture that most closely aligned with a good citizen. he stated, ?basically, our students must be able to share the same opinion as the test makers. just interesting.? pat noticed that the question was bias but did not extend this noticing with an opinion or question. additionally, moxie posted a photo from the first day of school of two chairs that were away from the other chairs and noticed that two children were already being treated differently while leslie noticed that a child at her school was picked up from school by a tractor (see figure 2). figure 2 noticing noticing and extending. there were times that psts noticed something and extended their noticing through commenting or wondering. in each of these instances, the psts did not stop at their noticing. for example, camille noticed something disheartening when she visited a nearby elementary school. she noticed that the students in fifth grade were doing a lot of seatwork and were completing multiple worksheets. she took out her phone one morning and photographed the stack of worksheets that the students would be completing throughout the next week. in this moment, camille did not just simply notice that large stack of papers (see figure 3), she noticed it, photographed it, and extended with an opinion. camille commented, ?i'm really struggling with giving so many worksheet that really aren't helpful in learning. i know that sometimes worksheets are great! it shows what kids know or what they struggle on. but school can't just be worksheets.? camille noticed something uncomfortable and extended this noticing with an opinion. psts also extended their noticing by creating wonderings. josie posted a photo of student work comparing a student?s writing growth over a period of time, wondering about what influenced the student?s writing growth (see figure 3). ella noticed a child copying down words and repetitively writing the word and wondered if it was appropriate for the child. leslie posted a picture of a post it and wondered how to instill confidence in a child when a student?s mother had called her stupid and camille posted a picture of a child?s necklace that said ?mom? and wondered about the child?s academics while her mother was terminally ill (see figure 3). psts extended their noticings by commenting and questioning. figure 3 noticing and extending 8 billen| #learningtoreflect noticing and problem solving. many times throughout the year, psts noticed a specific problem and created a possible solution for the dilemma. some problems were specific to classroom management issues, some involved student learning, and others included teaching ideas. charlotte recorded a possible solution for student learning when she noticed something about a particular emergent bilingual student who was confident in math but was less confident in literacy. she posted a picture of the student?s math work and stated, ?i am thinking that we need to focus on literacy during math through word problems with more complex math. this will still challenge him in math but focus on his need in literacy.? charlotte identified a possible solution to something that she noticed. at times, the psts reflected while they were in the process of solving a problem. holly noted that she did not feel comfortable asking her fifth grade students to sit down in their desks and popcorn read a textbook, as she had seen her mentor teacher do, but she was commissioned to teach the textbook. she took a picture of the textbook with a blank piece of paper next to it (see figure 4) noting that she did not know how to solve this problem but was beginning the process. similarly, khloe noticed children wanted to speak out a lot and wondered if popsicle sticks could be used to call on children. and rebekah posted a photo of a verb poster from a lesson that did not go well and began considering how to solve the problem (see figure 4). notice that in each of these instances, the pst did not reflect upon actual change. rather, they were reflecting about problems and possible solutions. noticing and changing. lastly, the participants in this study reflected about actual change in their practice. the psts noticed something; problem solved and changed their practice. moxie, while teaching in a kindergarten class, noticed that one student was unable to sit in his seat during independent work time (see figure 5). she stated, ?so yesterday i tried sitting him in this rocking chair at his own private table, and the difference figure 4 noticing and problem solving figure 5 noticing and changing 9 billen| #learningtoreflect was almost insane! he sat quietly, finished the assignment without getting up, and seemed focused on his work?. moxie noted a puzzling situation and changed her practice. additionally, erin noticed that the textbook she was expected to teach lacked authenticity and was disconnected from her students. so rather than continuing, she taught the content with the children?s favorite lunches and their birthdays (see figure 5). likewise, rebekah changed her practice to include student interest (chapstick) and camille changed her science practice to include literacy (see figure 5). throughout the year, the psts engaged in multiple ways of reflecting. although all participants reflected in each of the five ways throughout the study, some reflective techniques were used more frequently than others. i separated the instagram posts to find out the frequency in which the psts used each coded reflection. for example, photojournaling was coded the most with 583 codes, and noticing and changing was coded the least with 152 (see table 1). table 1 frequency of teachers' reflections discussion although research on teacher reflection is vast, research on psts use of sns and multimodal reflections is minimal. this study provided greater understanding into how psts used instagram as a platform for engaging in reflection and why psts felt it was an appropriate mode. i propose that the participants in this study were photoreflecting, which is the process of deep consideration as one transmediates images and print language. photoreflecting includes (a) photojournaling, (b) noticing, (c) noticed and extending, (d) noticing and problem solving, and (e) noticing and changing. in section two of this article, i introduced how scholars have conceptualized reflection including, reflection as thought (dewey 1910; 1938), reflection as thought and action (schön, 1983), and reflection as critical (smyth, 1989). the participants in this study engaged in reflection similarly. the participants showed that they were engaging in thought as they noticed new information such as their environment or teaching strategies. the participants also showed that reflection was also connected to action as they noticed and changed their practice. additionally, the psts also began to engage in critical reflection as they noticed and extended through questioning. it seems that the way in which psts in this study reflected was similar to how refection has been theorized. although the actual content of pst reflection was not qualitatively different than reflection literature, the way they represented their thoughts was unique. the participants in this study engaged in photoreflection through different mediums including, visual, aural, and print representation (walsh, 2010). they used visuals to represent reflective thought, wrote reflective text, and then communicated about the images and text through interpersonal interactions. in this way, participants were reflecting multimodally. in fact, the participants even explained that at times they felt they didn?t need words at all; the image alone was a form of reflection for them. this realization is a promising first step in envisioning classrooms where ?verbocentric ideologies? (siegel, 1995, p. reflective technique frequency percentage photojournaling 583 22% noticing 471 18% noticing and extending 608 23% noticing and commenting 449 17% noticing and questioning 159 6% noticing and problem solving 186 7% noticing and changing 152 5% 10 billen| #learningtoreflect 473) are put to the side and alternate views of communication are celebrated. the participants actively translated meanings from images, texts, and speech, a process known as transmediation (siegel, 1995). although the participants did not use the words multimodal or transmediation in their conversations and interviews, they constantly highlighted the strength of incorporating visuals, text, and conversation and how it added to their reflective thought. they also discussed how images took on new meanings over time and how when viewing their peers? images, a participant would engage in different reflective thought than the peer who posted the image. in other words, as participants ?invent[ed] a connection between the two sign systems? (siegel, 1995, p. 455), different individuals invented new connections. conclusion what is the purpose of engaging psts in reflection? if the purpose is to encourage individuals to craft a well-written essay that they care very litt le about, will never go back and read, and won?t discuss with their colleagues? then writing essays and reflective journal, entries could be a good option. if our purpose in encouraging reflective practice is to encourage teachers to build up a ?repertoire of examples, images, understandings, and actions? (schön, 1987, p. 138), ask why questions (smyth, 1989), and connect thoughts to action (zeichner & liston, 1987), then we should consider if our practical implications match these goals. although, simply changing the way in which we encourage reflective practice is not enough in the quest to creating teacher education programs that prepare teachers to enter the field and enact social justice practices (mcdonald & zeichner, 2009). however, seeking reflective practices that (a) engage psts in real reflection, (b) holistically involve the individual, and (c) discourage hierarchical reflective patterns is worthwhile (beauchamp, 2015). ? references akbari, r. (2007). reflections on reflection: a critical appraisal of reflective practices in l2 teacher education. system, 35(2), 192-207. andrew, a., & teitelbaum, k. 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