Field experiences are critical components of educator preparation programs. The opportunity for a teacher candidate to collaborate with an experienced mentor in an authentic classroom environment can be of great benefit to the teacher candidate, the cooperating teacher, the students in the class, and the reciprocal partnership between the educator…

In this policy brief we examine the initial licensure process of all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and classify each licensure process as traditional, transitional, or transformative, based on criteria suggested by a panel of expert practitioners and university faculty from the field of educational leadership. The expert panel…

This article examines the relationship between principals' training experiences and perceived school quality in seven U.S. states. Current school principals were surveyed regarding their perceptions of the comparative effectiveness of field experiences in the principal preparation program (PPP) each attended. States were selected to represent…

The 2010 report from the National Research Council on teacher education programs in the United States, "Preparing Teachers: Building Evidence for Sound Policy," reported that "the empirical evidence on effective teacher preparation [is] nearly nonexistent" (p. 99). The publication later that year of two major studies, one on…

There are many barriers to the implementation of new practice standards. To implement practices that both prepare and inspire their students, preservice teachers need opportunities to enact reform practices: to prepare and be inspired themselves. These opportunities are found in students' content courses, methods courses, and field placements. In…

State government is taking a more active role in defining field experiences and requiring input from professional and consumer groups. It is also monitoring the programs and practices of teacher education programs more actively. (Author/IRT)

Colleges and universities that train teachers for early childhood education were asked how changes in state certification requirements have affected their programs and about the types of field experiences they offer. Significant program changes during the past five years are reported. (PP)

A study determined critical attributes of the nation's exemplary, leading, or innovative (ELI) career-technical education teacher preparation programs. National experts identified 13 critical attributes of an ELI teacher preparation program. Researchers conducted site visits to 5 institutions--University of Georgia, University of Minnesota, The…

The Office of Educational Research and Improvement funded nine projects exploring whether partnerships could help improve teacher education and induction. It created consortia of state education agencies, state agencies of higher education, teacher education colleges, and local school districts to collaborate on improving teacher education and…