Abstract
The USA has been facing several new reform initiatives in education that directly impact the instruction and assessment of elementary and secondary students (P-12). There have not been so many changes at once in recent history. Some are calling this the "perfect storm" in education or an "educational tsunami." Emerging from the recent "Race to the Top" federal initiative, came the creation of the Common Core, a set of college and career ready standards for kindergarten through 12th grade in English language arts/literacy and mathematics, adopted by a majority of the States. These standards were designed to ensure that students graduating from high school are prepared to take credit bearing introductory courses in two- or four-year college programs or enter the workforce. The implementation of these standards has been controversial and far-reaching. What and how students learn, are taught, and assessed are a few of the ways that P-12 students are affected. Teachers are re-examining the curriculum, instructional strategies and materials, and assessment techniques as well. In addition, these reform efforts have led to changes in the ways in which teachers and administrators are evaluated. Finally, these those involved in preparing the workforce of future educators (i.e., teachers, administrators and other school personnel) have had to review, re-examine, and revise their programs to meet the overall goal of these changes - to improve student performance. This session will examine the ways that educator preparation is addressing these changes with examples of promising practices.
Author Information
Karen A. Verbeke, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, USA
Harry M. Shealey, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, USA
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