Dean named to blue-ribbon panel on teacher preparation reform

The nation’s largest accrediting body for teacher education programs has enlisted UF education dean Catherine Emihovich for a blue-ribbon panel of educators and policymakers charged with bringing major reforms to colleges of education and school districts.

Emihovich is part of the newly formed panel on clinical preparation, partnerships and improved student learning, created by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). The panel comprises some two dozen leaders in education research, policy and teaching and learning. NCATE accredits nearly 700 colleges and programs that graduate two-thirds of the nation’s new teachers.

The panel met in January and will meet again in May before issuing a final report.

The panel’s formation occurs as our education system grapples with an achievement gap that has American students lagging behind other developed countries in math, science and reading achievement. Policymakers fear the cavernous learning gap translates into a less competitive workforce in the global marketplace.

Emihovich said the panel is expected to produce “revolutionary” recommendations for improving hands-on training experiences in the classroom and strengthening partnerships between school districts and the education colleges that prepare their teachers.

“The time has come to reinvent teacher preparation. We must treat teaching as a practice-based profession like medicine or nursing,” Emihovich said. “Teaching induction may become more akin to medical residencies than the traditional model of student internships or alternative certification. Once they enter professional practice, practicing teachers would sharpen their skills throughout their careers with required continuing professional development.”

Emihovich said policymakers expect colleges of education to show hard evidence that their graduates possess the necessary content knowledge and have the ability to improve student learning, from pre-school on up through the high school grades—especially in high-needs schools.

“The University of Florida and many major education colleges are already transforming their teacher preparation programs and assuming accountability for improving teaching and learning in our schools,” she said.

Emihovich cites several cutting-edge programs at UF as Exhibit A, such as Florida’s Master Teacher Initiative, which is a job-embedded master’s degree program for practicing teachers; statewide school-improvement efforts especially for high-poverty schools; and, the UFTeach program which recruits top UF math and science majors into the teaching ranks and trains them.

Emihovich is one of two Floridians on the blue-ribbon panel. (Larry Daniel, education dean at the University of North Florida, is the other one.) NCATE president James Cibulka said Emihovich was chosen because of her reputation as an innovator in teacher preparation and engaged scholarship.

“Dean Emihovich is a leader in developing strong university-school partnerships. The University of Florida has several exemplary programs featuring partnerships addressing urgent P-12 (preschool through 12th grade) needs,” Cibulka said.

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CONTACTS

    Source: Catherine Emihovich, Dean, UF College of Education; 352-273-4135

    Writer: Larry Lansford, Director, News & Communications, UF College of Education; 352-273-4137; llansford@coe.ufl.edu

    Contributor: Jennifer Tormo, Writing Intern, News & Communications, UF College of Education; jtormo@coe.ufl.edu