Education Commission of the States Working Together to Address a Common Need: Partnerships for Teacher Quality Bruce Vandal Director, Postsecondary Education and Workforce Development Education Commission of the States August 11, 2009

State Partnerships for Quality Teacher Preparation Partnership with National Center for Teacher Transformation at St. Petersburg College Partnership with National Center for Teacher Transformation at St. Petersburg College Funded by Fund for Improvement of Postsecondary Education Funded by Fund for Improvement of Postsecondary Education Engaged K-12 and postsecondary leaders Engaged K-12 and postsecondary leaders

The Question: To what extent can states facilitate strong partnerships between teacher preparation programs and school districts that result in continuous improvement of both teacher preparation programs and public schools?

Current Reality Greater accountability for public schools and teacher education. Greater accountability for public schools and teacher education. Longitudinal data systems that can link student achievement to teachers. Longitudinal data systems that can link student achievement to teachers. Focus on teacher quality as most important variable in student performance. Focus on teacher quality as most important variable in student performance. Limited resources for both postsecondary and K-12 institutions demand greater bang for the public dollar. Limited resources for both postsecondary and K-12 institutions demand greater bang for the public dollar. Development of performance based teacher standards. Development of performance based teacher standards.

Our Paradigm Customized training/Workforce development Customized training/Workforce development The school and school district as “customer” of teacher preparation programs. The school and school district as “customer” of teacher preparation programs. The customer articulates qualities and skills required of teachers. The customer articulates qualities and skills required of teachers. The teacher education program adapts its programs to meet the needs of the school district. The teacher education program adapts its programs to meet the needs of the school district. Shared data and responsiveness to market forces. Shared data and responsiveness to market forces. Partnership where the customer and the teacher education program work together to improve quality of their efforts. Partnership where the customer and the teacher education program work together to improve quality of their efforts.

The Framework Value-added student achievement data connected to teachers and colleges of education Competency-based teacher standards Field experiences and professional development partnerships that inform continuous improvement Competency-based assessments for teachers Effective Partnerships for Quality Teacher Preparation

The Key Effectively Integrating All Components into a System for Continuous Improvement

Key Lessons: US DOE Title II HEA Partnership Program Partnerships are mission driven and have formalized systems of cooperation. Partnerships are mission driven and have formalized systems of cooperation. Support from key institutional leaders–university presidents, superintendents, deans of arts and sciences. Support from key institutional leaders–university presidents, superintendents, deans of arts and sciences. Teacher education faculty in residence lead to more support for teachers and principals. Teacher education faculty in residence lead to more support for teachers and principals. Teacher education faculty attend to internal accountability of their program. Teacher education faculty attend to internal accountability of their program. Greatest collaboration between teacher education and schools is the support of new teachers and evaluation instructional practices. Greatest collaboration between teacher education and schools is the support of new teachers and evaluation instructional practices. Partnerships based on previous relationships are most effective. Partnerships based on previous relationships are most effective. Partnerships must have measurable goals. Partnerships must have measurable goals.

Models Louisiana Board of Regents Value Added Assessment Model. Louisiana Board of Regents Value Added Assessment Model. Ohio Teacher Quality Partnership Ohio Teacher Quality Partnership Renaissance Group Renaissance Group Arkansas Educational Renewal Zones Arkansas Educational Renewal Zones The Boston Teacher Residency Program The Boston Teacher Residency Program Anne Arundel Community College’s TEACH Institute Anne Arundel Community College’s TEACH Institute

Strategies Assess teacher performance through both student achievement data and performance assessments. Assess teacher performance through both student achievement data and performance assessments. Track data back to teachers and the institutions that prepared them. Track data back to teachers and the institutions that prepared them. Build the capacity of school districts to measure the impact of their teachers against the skills and competencies they are taught in teacher education programs. Build the capacity of school districts to measure the impact of their teachers against the skills and competencies they are taught in teacher education programs. Customize professional development based on teacher skills positively aligned with student achievement. Customize professional development based on teacher skills positively aligned with student achievement. Leverage partnerships to evaluate state teacher performance standards. Leverage partnerships to evaluate state teacher performance standards. Include partnerships in state accountability standards for school districts and teacher education programs. Include partnerships in state accountability standards for school districts and teacher education programs.