Trivializing Teacher Education: The Accreditation Squeeze

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1 The NCATE Brand Chapter 2 Interviews with "Stakeholders" Chapter 3 NCATE's Origin, Governance, and Processes Chapter 4 The Standards Chapter 5 NCATE's Positions, Policies, and Projects Chapter 6 NCATE and High-stakes Testing Chapter 7 NCATE's Lack of Research Chapter 8 NCATE Economics Chapter 9 Recommendations and Conclusions

About the Author :
Dale D. Johnson, Ph.D. University of Wisconsin - Madison, is a professor of Literacy Education at Dowling College in Oakdale, Long Island, New York. He was a professor at the University of Wisconsin for 20 years, served as the Dean of the College of Education and Human Development at the University of Louisiana at Monroe, spent several years as an elementary and middle school teacher, and is a past president of the International Reading Association. Dr. Johnson's research centers on vocabulary and comprehension development and on sociopolitical factors affecting public schooling. He is the author of 14 books, numerous scholarly articles, and instructional materials for children, adolescents, and adults. His most recent books are Vocabulary in the Elementary and Middle School (Allyn and Bacon, 2001) and High Stakes: Children, Testing, and Failure in American Schools (Rowman & Littlefield, 2002). Bonnie Johnson, Ph.D. University of Wisconsin - Madison, is a professor of Human Development and Learning at Dowling College in Oakdale, Long Island, New York. She has taught at all levels from preschool through graduate school. Dr. Johnson has been awarded the Distinguished Teacher of Teachers Award by the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has published widely in scholarly journals. Dr. Johnson's research focuses on the unequal funding of public schools and its effect on student test scores. Her most recent books are Wordworks: Exploring Language Play (Fulcrum Publishing, 1999) and High Stakes: Children, Testing, and Failure in American Schools (Rowman & Littlefield, 2002). Stephen J. Farenga, Ed.D. Columbia University, is an associate professor and former chairperson of the Department of Human Development and Learning at Dowling College. His research has appeared in major journals in science education, technology, and education of the gifted. Dr. Farenga has taught science for 15 years at the elementary and secondary levels and has served on the Commissioner's Advi

Review :
In this important and provocative volume the authors demonstrate how bureaucratic interests work under the guise of providing assistance and upholding standards. They show the loss of democratic deliberation and the human costs - to real people inside many of our institutions of teacher education - when unreflective policies dominate how we think about and evaluate each other's work. And they do this in a way that challenges us to step back and think about alternative policies and possibilities. This book is an indictment of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). At the core here is the lack of evidence that institutions earning NCATE accreditation routinely prepare teachers who are substantially (or even modestly) more effective or more knowledgeable than teachers prepared in institutions without NCATE accreditation. This is an important book. Many readers may wonder why it took so long for a book of this sort to appear. The authors ask hard questions. Of NCATE.Of deans of colleges of education. Of teacher education faculty... Do NCATE standards create better teachers? Not necessarily, according to the editors, all of whom hail from Dowling College. In fact, they believe the lack of research supporting the notion that NCATE accreditation is a positive force in creating qualified teachers is reason alone for institutions to reconsider whether they should invest the time and money it takes to go through the process. This text is a must read by administrators and faculty involved in accreditation processes at their institutions ... The authors make valid recommendations for institutions to consider. Highly recommended. Some books simply have to be written. Trivializing Teacher Education is one of these. This much-needed, in-depth treatment takes on one of the behemoths of higher education and is not afraid to hold it to the fire. Trivializing Teacher Education is a hard-nosed, thoughtful, and well-researched work that should be required reading for anyone involved in the NCATE accreditation process. Highly recommended! This book is an indictment of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). At the core here is the lack of evidence that institutions earning NCATE accreditation routinely prepare teachers who are substantially (or even modestly) more effective or more knowledgeable than teachers prepared in institutions without NCATE accreditation. This is an important book. Many readers may wonder why it took so long for a book of this sort to appear. The authors ask hard questions. Of NCATE. Of deans of colleges of education. Of teacher education faculty.