Complicating the Case for Teacher Education: Asking Different Questions

In this retrospective case study, the author describes the process of initiating a new partnership between the Master of Education in Teaching (MET) program at the University of Hawaii and a public elementary school, which would service as the field site for the student cohort in this two-year field-intensive certification program. Included in the article are descriptions of the context of the new partner school, components and characteristics of the MET professional development school (PDS) model, and the major themes and issues that arose in the first year of establishing this new PDS -MET style

The professional development schools (PDS) model has evolved in its 30-year history. Originating from the Holmes Group (1986), the PDS framework was designed to be “a new institution”—one that broke down the divide between PK–12 schools that educate youth and schools of education that educate future teachers—through the development and implementation of genuine and mutually beneficial partnerships. Three decades later, the PDS model is increasingly relevant to its various school and university constituents. Hundreds of school-university partnerships across the United States follow the model, and PDS has been highlighted as an exemplary approach to teacher education. In this chapter, we make the case for PDS as an exemplary format to consider in “rethinking school-university partnerships.” To make this case, partnerships based at four universities that follow the PDS model are featured in vignettes, presenting PDSs-in-action: George Mason University, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, University of South Florida, and SUNY Buffalo State. Each represents a different region of the United States and different levels of development toward the PDS model. The vignettes highlight the unique strengths and mutually beneficial elements of each PDS partnership by focusing on one NAPDS nine essentials (Brindley et al., 2008).

Professional development schools (PDSs) have become an important component of preservice teacher preparation. Researchers investigating the effect of the PDS model on the principal stakeholders (preservice teachers, classroom teachers, students, and university faculty) have reported many positive effects. The role of the PDS in special education teacher preparation, however, appears to be less well defined. This article focuses on PDS participation of special education teacher preparation programs and addresses the apparent reluctance to embrace the PDS model.

The article presents in its first part the partnership model – PDS (Professional Development School) for teacher education that developed in the 1970s in the United States following criticism and re- search findings that indicated lack of satisfaction with the traditional teacher education programs. In its second part the article presents findings and discussion of a multi-year study conducted over seven years, from 2010 to 2016, in the first and up till now the only PDS partnership incorporated into teacher training program in research university in Israel. The multi-year study focused on stu- dent teachers’ evaluation of the contribution of the teacher training components of the university- school partnership model (PDS) to their learning of teaching: the practice teaching in the school and the school mentors; the groups of student colleagues as learning communities and their weekly meetings and the university coordinators. From the perception of the PDS partnership as a dynamic and developing process and from the approach of evidence-based practice, the importance of this multi year study lies in the identification of the essential strengths in the process of the practical experience expressed in the partnerships for their empowerment. In addition the importance of this research is in the identification of the essential weaknesses and challenges, for the purpose of en- quiry and learning in the learning communities who take part in the PDS partnerships, and the rais- ing of the necessary courses of action and changes. The importance of the research study in the in-ternational aspect lies in the presentation of an additional profile of partnership for the extension of the shared discussion about dilemmas and challenges that arise from the implementation of different partnerships in the training of teachers.

<p>Achieving educational goals is based on the skills and competence of teachers; therefore, professional development of teachers is important to policy and decision-makers. Worldwide, the percentage of teachers who leave the profession within their first years of teaching is high therefore, professional support is essential to ease on their integration. Previous research indicates a positive and significant correlation between teachers' self-efficacy and their attitudes toward the teaching profession. Our study included three hypotheses: 1) teachers' pedagogical applications serve as mediators for the relationship between teachers' self-efficacy and their attitudes toward the profession; 2) participating in a professional development school (PDS) training program interacts with teachers' self-efficacy in predicting their attitudes toward the profession; and, 3) participation in a PDS training program will positively affect the two variables. A close and open-ended questionnaire was replied by 300 novice teachers, some of whom participated in the PDS program and others who did not. Findings indicate that the relationship between teachers' sense of self-efficacy and their attitudes towards the teaching profession was partially mediated by: applying constructivist pedagogical practices; matching to differences between learners; collaboration between fellow teachers; accountability; planning and teaching management; and academy-community relationships. Participation in a PDS program was not found as a moderator variable for this relationship, but novice teachers who participated in this program had a significant higher sense of self-efficacy and more positive attitudes towards the teaching profession. Findings are important for designing novice teacher training programs with an emphasis on the implementation of specific pedagogical practices.</p>

During their studies, education students are required to engage practice-based experience in a collaborative model: Professional Development School (PDS), where there are many options for building professional and personal development processes. Through this experience, students formulate professional identity and perceptions about teaching. This study sought to examine the impact of this experience model on Arabic-speaking education students attending a Hebrew speaking college. The effect of the practice-based experience was examined on both the concept of teaching as a profession, the process of teaching instruction and social and cultural aspects. The findings of the study showed that PDS practice-based experience directly and indirectly contributes to the way students perceive teaching, the role of the teacher, the education system, as well as the importance of the practical experience in the teaching training process. However, there was no significant contribution of PDS practice-based experience to students’ perceptions of multicultural aspects of campus life.

The reemergence of the professional development school movement in North America may mark the beginning of a paradigm shift in clinical teacher education. Conceptual and structural obstacles to student teacher learning in practicums that must be addressed if the professional development school is to achieve its goals are discussed. The conceptual barriers result from inadequate conceptions of reflection that neglect teachers' practical theories, values, the social conditions of schooling, and the social aspects of reflection. The structural barriers include the placement of student teachers in single classrooms rather than schools, the selection of placements, supervisory relations, and the lack of multicultural placements. Professional development schools offer an opportunity to overcome these obstacles by altering the power and role relationships in the practicum.

The major aim of this research was to investigate the environment of a secondary school as it began to become a professional development school. Using the theoretical dynamic of technical cultures, open systems theory, and organisational learning as background, the use of quantitative and qualitative data describes the practical dynamic of a learning environment at the initial stage of becoming a professional development school. This article uncovers instructors' perceptions of teaching and learning in a secondary context, offers a framework to investigate the school's teaching and learning environment, and suggests ways to use such investigation to understand the evolution potential of learning communities.

We examine the work of one professional development school by studying the question, "What characteristics support change in a professional development school?" We suggest six guiding principles: (a) Role shifts of members of the school's steering group need careful nurturing; (b) the nature, direction, and pace of change need to evolve from the school community participants; (c) school community strengths need to serve as the foundation for change; (d) the expectation of continual growth needs to be established in the school community; (e) a balance needs to be struck between supporting and challenging professional development efforts; (f) the school community needs to acknowledge and embrace the complexities of curriculum and instruction.

The importance of professional development for teachers cannot be overstated. In recent years there has been much debate on how to raise standards in schools and it is now recognised by theorists, policy-makers and practitioners that the professional development of teachers is an important factor in this context.For professional development co-ordinators and senior management, knowledge and understanding of the nature of professional development roles and human resource management theories will provide a framework for practice.This book includes chapters on:*managing professional development in a human resources context*government policy*initial teacher training*the school development plan*appraisal*middle management*leadership skills.It will be of interest to co-ordinators of professional development in schools and across local education authorities, and to anyone who is part of a school's senior management team.

During the last decade, calls for structural and radical reform have inundated American schools (Lewis, 1989). Teacher educators, legislatures, and the general public question the value, productivity, and relevancy of teacher preparation programs (Goodlad, 1990; Stallings & Kowalski, 1990). Strengthening relationships between public schools and higher education through school-university partnerships is one strategy to improve education. Numerous collaborative groups are attempting such efforts (American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, 1996; Berg & Murphy, 1992; Glickman, 1993; Goodlad, 1990; Sizer, 1992). One of the most visible is a group of research institutions, initially called the Holmes Group (1990) and more recently called the Holmes Partnership. A central strategy of the Holmes Group/Partnership is the establishment of Professional Development Schools (PDSs). Diverse in structure, governance, and operation, (Fullan, Galluzzo, Morris, & Watson, 1996; Hardin & Kunkel, 1994), PDSs conceptualized by the Holmes Group are a new kind of public school that would serve itself and professional education the way teaching hospitals serve medical education (Murray, 1996, p. 29). The Holmes Group has established the following guiding principles for these partnerships: teaching and learning for understanding; creating a learning community; teaching and learning for understanding for everybody's children; continuing learning by teachers, teacher educators, and administrators; thoughtful, long-term inquiry into teaching and learning by school and university faculty working as partners; and inventing a new institution (Holmes Group, 1990, p. vii). Numerous institutions of higher education, including the College of Education at Auburn University, Alabama, seek to reach these ideals through school-university partnerships. Forming the Learning Coalition Auburn University initiated its Professional Development School (PDS) and extended collaboration by uniting with other institutions to establish a group of PDS partnerships. In 1993, the dean of the College of Education acquired funds from the Alabama Power Foundation to unite with four other institutions of higher education and their partner schools to form a coalition of PDSs called the Learning Coalition. The partners selected the word coalition because it signifies that partners are equal and able to decide how to organize and operate within a mutually agreed-upon framework (Tushnet, 1993). The aim of the Coalition was to create a community of learners sharing a common purpose, operating in a diverse manner, learning from one another, and being a change catalyst in the state. Initiating the Process of Collaboration The Auburn University dean invited deans of four other institutions to become part of the Learning Coalition by creating PDS relationships at each of their sites. They committed to sharing information, knowledge, and ideas over a 3-year period. The deans joined with superintendents, school systems, principals, and schools to begin the process of collaboration. PDS partnerships exist at five sites: Alabama State University/Carver Junior High School, Montgomery County Schools; Auburn University/Sanford Middle School, Lee County Schools; Jacksonville State University/Southside Elementary School, Piedmont City Schools; Troy State University at Dothan/Ozark and Dothan City Schools; University of South Alabama/E. R. Dickson Elementary School, Mobile County Schools. In addition to the Holmes principles, the partnerships are founded upon six guidelines: * Each partnership will include one or more schools and a university. * Each partner will be considered equal. * Open communication and support will be cornerstones of the relationship. * The partnership will be a long-term commitment. * Partners will meet, share, and support one another and the other four partners. …

The views of university faculty and public school personnel toward collaborative research in the second year of a professional development schools (PDS) partnership were compared by means of a survey and a structured interview. Although participants were involved in a collaborative partnership, they subscribed to a traditional, rather than a collaborative, conception of educational research. Whether a collaborative model of research can flourish in a PDS depends on participants’ ability (a) to develop a common mindset about what collaborative research is and how it relates to practice and (b) to achieve a positive balance of its costs and benefits. It is important in the early stages of a PDS to identify whether school and university faculty have different views about research so they can develop a common research perspective that will enable collaboration to flourish over the long term.

A Professional Development School (PDS) serves as a quality-teaching model. It is a vehicle that generates professional understanding through conversations among university professors, teachers, and teacher candidates. The author illustrates a pilot PDS program that exemplifies the many benefits of transforming the teaching model into a successful collaboration and the lessons learned by PDS participants. The partnership explores classroom culture, collaboration agendas, and quality efforts for building a conceptual framework for mathematics and science teaching and learning with fifth graders.

Professional development schools: Prospects for institutionalization

True education occurs when teachers become learners and learners become teachers (Freire, 2000). This epistemological ideal was achieved through reciprocal learning experiences of a successful Professional Development School (PDS) partnership between one high school and a local university. This chapter presents a model for a PDS relationship that: a) promotes a professional community of learners, b) engenders reciprocal teaching and learning, c) encourages mentoring at multiple levels, and d) positively impacts student and candidate learning. Data analyses indicate significant benefits to all participants due to the unique opportunities created by the partnerships in learning embedded within a PDS setting.