Sustainable Teaching and Learning: Building a Cross-Campus Community of Collaborative Urban Teacher Educators

• In Event: Roundtable Session 20
  In Roundtable Session: Field Experiences for Preservice Urban Teachers’ Learning and Development

Abstract

Traditional teacher education has too often failed to aid in the development of future urban teachers as university-based classroom instruction is ill equipped to expose students to the realities of high-need urban schools and communities. This deficit is being addressed by an initiative at BLIND REVIEW by fundamentally redesigning existing courses to include urban content and clinical experiences in high-need Chicago Public Schools. As students enroll in these courses and gain relevant experience, teacher candidates develop skills and practices appropriate and sensitive to the needs of children from diverse backgrounds. Results from a longitudinal study suggests redesigned courses can play a positive and significant role in developing attitudes and encourage students’ engagement with urban schools and communities.

Authors

• Robert E. Lee, Illinois State University

• Brent Showalter, Illinois State University

• Jennifer O'Malley, Illinois State University