Visions from Professional Development School Partners: Connecting and Clinical Practice

Rich clinical preparation combined with progressive experiences in professional development school (PDS) settings are proposed to bring about systemic and impactful transformation of educator preparation and professional growth in order to improve and enhance P-12 student learning. In this book, diverse authors describe their efforts to forge PDS partnerships to develop and deliver high quality training and practical experiences for candidates, and simultaneously provide professional development for experienced practitioners in ways that mirror recommendations found in authoritative reports and literature. The authors’ collective wisdom is vividly captured in the multi-voiced chapters that are collaborations between cooperating teachers, school administrators, county and district level administrators, university supervisors, and instructional faculty. The contexts authors write about are recognizable, and the accomplishments they experienced and challenges faced will resonate with institutions courageously undertaking change or renewal. The book will be invaluable to school and university faculty and administrators as they transition to a partnering model of clinical preparation for teacher candidates: it will help stakeholders decide if their schools and institutions are ready to commit to a partnership, and highlight the benefits they stand to gain, but realistically address challenges that may be faced by administrators and faculties as well as teacher candidates in the PDS enterprise.