SUNY Chancellor Presents National Model for Clinical Teacher Preparation in Denver

Denver, CO – State University of New York Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher today hosted a featured presentation on clinical teacher preparation and partnerships for improved student learning in urban schools as part of a National Summit underway in the city of Denver. The Chancellor’s presentation focused on how the new national teacher preparation model will help children in urban and rural communities across the country to do better in school.

 “Closing the achievement gap for students in our highest-need schools is critical to the future of our nation’s education system and to the success of all students and teachers,” said Chancellor Zimpher. “Now that we have a national model that addresses this need, educators at every level must take the challenging yet necessary steps toward its implementation and, importantly, we must take the steps together.”

In 2010, Chancellor Zimpher co-chaired the NCATE Blue Ribbon Panel that produced Transforming Teacher Education through Clinical Practice: A National Strategy to Prepare Effective Teachers. The report recommended adding a clinical component to teacher preparation programs at colleges and universities and also called on collaboration by all stakeholders to ensure that the programs are effective.

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.

“The same way a pilot trains inside a simulator before he flies a 747, a teacher must gain ample classroom experience before their first day of school,” said Chancellor Zimpher. “The NCATE convening was an historic coming together of major stakeholders to make excellent programs the norm in teacher education. Now it is our job to make sure that their recommendations see the light of day.”

Immediately following the panel’s findings in November, eight states, including New York, Colorado, California, Louisiana, Maryland, Ohio, Oregon, and Tennessee, began implementing its recommendations.

An Op-Ed by Chancellor Zimpher, Fixing the Education Pipeline, is posted at Education News Colorado.

Today’s panel discussion, which also included Randy Hitz, Dean of the Graduate School of Education at Portland State University, and Beverly L. Young, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Teacher Education and Public School Programs at California State University System, was part of the 4^th annual Great Teachers for Our City Schools National Summit sponsored by Center for Urban Education and Urban Teacher Partnership at Metropolitan State College of Denver.

About the State University of New York

The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive university system in the United States, educating more than 467,000 students in more than 7,500 degree and certificate programs on 64 campuses with more than 2.5 million alumni around the globe. To learn more about how SUNY creates opportunity, visit www.suny.edu 

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