Posted by:
Reeny Davison
Posted on: May 23, 2001 at 2:47 PM
Message:
Barbara,
We have had strong partnerships with both Duquesne Univ. and the Univ. of Pittsburgh from ASSET's inception. A representative has been on the ASSET board. Over the past 3 we have been able to develop two concrete programs, both of which have and continue to evolve slowly. The first is with the Principals Academy of SW Pennsylvania at the Univ. of Pittsburgh. Its director, Joe Werlinich, saw that the collaborative inquiry we were trying to bring about in classrooms was also the cultural change he had been trying to cultivate over the past 20 years by working with principals. He has conducted Academies, which meet with 20 principals at least 4 times per year plus a retreat. Their focus is how to improve student learning. They try to cultivate an environment in which non-threatening, non-supervisory classroom "walk-throughs" by teachers and administrators together take place. They are preceded by an introduction and followed by a debrief - the focus is on teaching and learning. One insight is that if a visitor has an opportunity to talk with the children in the clasroom, it is probably more student-centered. We now have two joint programs: 7 regional principals study groups that are co-facilitated by a teacher leader and a principal and Joe and/or Vince, our Assistant Director and former elem. principal; an Institute for Inquiry for Administrators that commits participants to 3 days together and a hands-on classroom experience/visit/observation for discussion. We're thrilled but it takes a long time.
The second university partnership with with these 2 universities and Carlow College for pre-service teachers. A committee composed of teachers, science ed professors, industry scientists, and ASSET reps designed a booklet based on the HRI observation protocol that asks students to demonstrate to their professors, their cooperating teachers for student teaching, or a professional scientist, that they can facilitate inquiry learning for students. It's like a cub scout wolf book, in that as you demonstrate a skill, a professional signs off on it. When all the signatures are in, the student meets with one of the ASSET Resource Teachers for an Endorsement Interview, and then we provide a certificate and a letter of introduction to superintendents, who are then encouraged to hire them to teach in hands-on, inquiry-based classrooms. The first year we enlisted 10 students, the second year 15 and this year 30. Next year, we don't know how many because we'll need to start charging for the booklet, and the big hang-up seems to be to get it to the students, i.e., the university mechanism is a barrier. We'll see. The students have loved it, and we see the ASSET role as ensuring appropriate professional development for the cooperating teachers.
Reeny
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