Teacher Education

Our work is Research-Based and Part of a National Strategy

In January 2010, the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) formed an expert panel on clinical preparation and partnerships, signaling the beginning of a sea of change in the preparation of our nation’s teachers. The work of the panel - called the NCATE Blue Ribbon Panel on Clinical Preparation, Partnerships and Improved Student Learning - culminated in recommendations for restructuring the preparation of teachers to reflect clinical psychology in Nov. 2010. This was an historic coming together of major stakeholders to make excellent programs the norm in teacher education. Read more about it here.

The redesign of teacher preparation to be more clinically-based and partnership-oriented is framed by the concept that teaching is a practice-based profession akin to medicine, nursing, or clinical psychology. Immediately following the panel’s findings, eight states, including New York, began implementing its recommendations. Joining New York is California, Colorado, Louisiana, Maryland, Ohio, Oregon, and Tennessee.

New York's Statewide Teacher Education Network (S-TEN)

In July 2012, SUNY's Office of the Education Pipeline was awarded $3.5 million in Race to the Top (RTTT) funds by New York State Education Department to develop and implement a comprehensive teacher education initiative with SUNY faculty. The goal of this initiative is to engage higher education faculty and their educational partners in the renewal of teacher and school leader preparation to meet the needs of today’s children.

Participating S-TEN SUNY colleges and universities are listed below by region:

Western NY Network (6): SUC* Brockport, SUC Buffalo, SUC Fredonia, SUC Geneseo, SUNY Empire State College, University at Buffalo

Central NY Network (6): SUC Cortland, SUC Oneonta, SUC Oswego, SUNY Cornell: Ag & Life Sciences, SUNY Empire State College, University at Binghamton

North Country Network (5): SUC Plattsburgh, SUC Plattsburgh Queensbury, SUC Potsdam, SUNY Empire State College, University at Albany

Downstate Network (5): SUC Old Westbury, SUNY Empire State College, University at Stony Brook, SUC New Paltz, SUNY Urban Teacher Education Center (SUTEC)

(*SUC - State University College)

An introductory webcast was held on August 22, 2012 to set the stage for the comprehensive initiative for SUNY teacher education, educational leadership, and arts and sciences faculty through an award of Race to the Top resources by the State Education Department. Through this award, SUNY and external experts will provide the information, resources, support, and research opportunities needed to prepare the next generation of teachers and school leaders through clinically-rich programs in key areas of New York’s education reform agenda; in particular, common core standards, performance assessments, clinical-based teacher education and data-driven instruction.

We invite you to view the archived copy of this webcast and download the related presentation.

And don't forget to check out the new S-TEN Frequently Asked Questions!

Campus Teacher Education Network Team (C-TEN)

To accomplish our goal, we will establish Campus Teacher Education Network (C-TEN) teams comprised of various stakeholders vested in the field of teacher education and school leadership who will serve as change agents on each campus and in each region. The campus-based teams will be dedicated to renewing the preparation of teachers and school building leaders to effect change in student outcomes. 

Goal: The goal of the C-TENs is to bring about campus and regional change by leading campus faculty and their education partners as they implement clinically-rich teacher and leader preparation strategies, including the implementation of Common Core Standards, data-driven instruction, and knowledge of teacher and education leader performance assessment, both before and after certification.

Composition: It is suggested that each team will consist of approximately 7 to 12 members, including representatives from arts and sciences, PreK-12 principals and teachers, superintendents, teacher education and educational leadership faculty, and related agencies in the community (e.g., community college representative). Each campus team will be unique based on the needs of local constituents, but should be formed with “change” in mind, rather than with maintaining the status quo. Campus leaders of the professional education unit (PEU) should be members of the team in order to help move the team’s work forward and to issue invitations to team members. When forming the C-TEN, you should focus on members who are skilled in leading change. There will be many opportunities for interested parties to participate in specific areas of this project beyond membership on the C-TEN team.  We also ask that each campus designate a “lead person” on their team so that we can use this as a primary contact.

Commitment: Each C-TEN team member will be responsible for participating in four all day, regional network meetings that will be centered around four topic areas: Common Core Standards, performance assessments, clinically-based teacher and leader education, and data-driven instruction. These regional network meetings will be convened over late fall 2012 and early spring 2013. During each of the regional meetings, C-TEN teams will hear from experts on the focus topics and then work in local teams to develop a campus action plan based on the information presented and the local context. 

Specific Goals and Deliverables:

Operational Goals

• The overarching goal of the C-TEN members is to lead change on campus and regionally to implement the necessary curricular review and prompt campus faculty to revise teaching (e.g., syllabi) related to the four areas (i.e., clinically-rich teacher preparation, data-driven instruction, performance assessment (edTPA & APPR), & Common Core Standards) in the disciplines and in teacher/leader education. This initiative is to insure that candidates are more effectively prepared to ensure that every P-12 student succeeds in their classroom.

• At the close of each regional meeting, C-TEN will share a campus action plan that will identify the changes and strategies planned to further partnerships and collaborations in the focus area.

• Following the last regional meeting on the four focus areas, the C-TEN will develop a composite campus action plan that includes actions, dates, deliverables, measurable objectives, and names of people responsible in each focus area.

Deliverables

• Following each seminar day, each C-TEN will provide the campus action plan related to the topic of the day.

• A comprehensive action plan to produce change (e.g., curricula review and syllabi revision) by relevant faculties (e.g., content disciplines and teacher/leader education) by May 2013.

• Identifiable changes in four areas (i.e., clinically-rich teacher preparation, data-driven instruction, performance assessment (edTPA & APPR), & Common Core Standards) in content disciplines and in teacher/leader education by December 2013.

Compensation: Each campus will be allocated $15,000 for the work of the C-TEN team, including participation in regional meetings. Outside of providing for team attendance at regional meetings, the campus will determine how their allocation will be used. It can be used in any way that will further the work of the project, such as holding meetings, revising courses, travel, etc. Because the funds are provided by the New York State Education Department through their RTTT award, money may not be used to provide food. All receipts and invoices will be submitted to SUNY for reimbursement or direct payment (forms and instructions to be provided).

Submission of C-TEN Membership: Once you have determined who will be on your C-TEN team, use the Member Submission Form to provide information for each member. Please then send the form to STEN@suny.edu, with the subject line "C-TEN", by October 15, 2012. Questions regarding network teams should be submitted to STEN@suny.edu. 

The Future of Teacher Education at SUNY - The Urban Rural Teacher Corp

A SUNY Urban Rural Teacher Corp is under development to train teachers to meet the unique learning needs of students in urban and rural schools through rich academic and clinical experiences. Stay tuned for more information!