Leading reform in elementary teacher preparation
The Center’s Project Adept develops better elementary-school teachers through a higher standard of pre-service excellence.
Project ADEPT
Imagine a blueprint for training that readies teachers-to-be for a greater impact on student learning, especially in subgroups that have shown patterns of underachievement.
The Center’s Project ADEPT (Advancing the Development of Pre-service Teachers) will change the way pre-service elementary teachers prepare for the field through the following goals:
Deepen K-5 pre-service teachers’ subject matter knowledge by strengthening the sequencing of subject matter course work in the program. Through collaboration with subject matter experts in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in four core disciplines, Project Adept will provide interdisciplinary content subject matter institutes for pre-service teachers, university supervisors, and mentor teachers.
Improve pre-service teachers’ classroom readiness by training instructors, mentor teachers, and university supervisors in Fast Start and Data Driven Decision Making skills by highlighting these skills in coursework and clinical assessments.
Increase the number of highly qualified mentor teachers for culminating field experiences by collaborating with the Alachua County Public Schools to refine the selection and preparation of mentor teachers.
Embed two Professors in Residence in the target Title I schools in order to facilitate the integration and enactment of Project ADePT goals.
Improve the quantity and quality of feedback to pre-service teachers during the culminating field experience through the Instructional Coaching model, developed by the Lastinger Center for Learning. Project Adept will also apply a cloud-based video recording system to provide detailed and on-going feedback to pre-service candidates.
Continue to include all pre-service teachers in the schools’ pre-planning activities.
