Teachers for a New Era Project Seeks to Improve Teacher Education

The preparation of teachers has long been a key commitment at Michigan State University (MSU). In 2002, MSU took yet another major step forward when it became part of the Carnegie Corporation of New York's groundbreaking reform initiative known as Teachers for a New Era (TNE).

TNE is an initiative funded by the Carnegie Corporation and the Annenberg, Rockefeller, and Ford Foundations. The $5 million project treats teacher education as a university-wide responsibility that includes general, subject area, and professional education courses, as well as experience in K-12 schools.

An essential aspect of the program is determining the subject matter knowledge that prospective teachers will need to improve student learning. The project emphasizes the use of assessments to strengthen the entire MSU teacher education program. In addition, recruitment of diverse students and the development of a two-year induction program for beginning MSU teachers are important aspects of the project. The ultimate goal of these efforts is to prepare better teachers and to serve as a model for other teacher education programs.

MSU’s Teachers for a New Era initiative anticipates change in five areas of teacher preparation:

• Design new content courses in English, mathematics, the social sciences, and the sciences that are well integrated with education courses focusing on pedagogy and student learning.
• Overhaul education coursework and teacher education field experiences, both in subject matterand teaching methods, so that content and context are central.
• Develop a new two-year induction program for beginning MSU teachers.
• Create a new MSU focus on preparing teachers for urban schools and educating more teachers from groups of people underrepresented in the teaching profession.
• Use assessments to strengthen the entire MSU teacher education program and evaluate its effectiveness.

For more information, contact: Lisa Roy, Administrative Assistant, Teachers for a New Era Project, (517) 432-8253, lisaroy@msu.edu or visit www.tne.msu.edu.

Source: Michigan State University and the Carnegie Corporation’s Teachers for a New Era Web site.