New Report: Preparing All Education Personnel to Address Barriers to Learning and Teaching

Posted by on September 8, 2008

[posted from Promising Practices in After School list]

From: Howard Adelman & Linda Taylor, Co-Directors of the Center at UCLA

Re: Update National Initiative: New Directions for Student Support
New: HIGHER EDUCATION INITIATIVE

As schools, districts, and state departments around the country grapple to prevent and ameliorate the many barriers to effective learning and teaching, there is a growing need to transform policy and practice related to school improvement and personnel development. In this context, a frequently asked question is:

How are pre-service preparation programs for teachers, support staff, and administrators focusing on addressing barriers to learning and teaching?

With a view to clarifying implications for policy and practice related to the National Initiative: New Directions for Student Support, our Center has begun to focus on this matter. To anchor our efforts in the reality of current personnel preparation programs, we are initiating a series of Leadership Institutes for representatives from university departments of education. The first of these was held on Friday, June 27, 2008.

Attached is a report entitled: Preparing All Education Personnel to Address Barriers to Learning and Teaching.

The report also is online at http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/pdfdocs/preparingall.pdf

ABOUT THE NATIONAL INITIATIVE: NEW DIRECTIONS FOR STUDENT SUPPORT

For details about the National Initiative: New Directions for Student Support, go to – http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/summit2002/ndannouncement.htm

Superintendents Initiative. With respect to district leaders, widespread outreach mailings were sent including a range of brief resources and with follow up materials sent to those who responded. As of August, 2008, the focus on connecting with superintendents will be expanded into a formal Superintendents Initiative.  The initiative will be inaugurated with national distribution of a Center report entitled: Transforming School Improvement to Develop a Comprehensive System of Learning Supports: What District Superintendents Say They Need to Move Forward.

Higher Education Initiative. With respect to higher education’s role in personnel preparation for educators, July 2008 inaugurated a Higher Education Initiative. This began with a first Leadership Institute for Higher Education Personnel Preparation and with the national distribution of the report entitled: Preparing All Education Personnel to Address Barriers to Learning and Teaching.  In addition to policy makers, a key audience for this report is deans, department chairs, and faculty in personnel preparation and leadership programs, district personnel responsible orientation/induction, inservice, and continuing education.

Each year, the Center has continued to produce resources and tools for those ready to move in New Directions for Student Support (e.g., see the online toolkit at http://smhp.psych.ucla.edu/summit2002/resourceaids.htm)