Trivializing Teacher Education

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. -- Michael W. Apple, John Bascom Professor of Curriculum and Instruction and Educational Policy Studies, University of Wisconsin, Madison; author, 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... -- Richard L. Allington, University of Tennessee
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. * Reference and Research Book News *
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. * CHOICE *
Some books simply have to be written. Trivializing Teacher Education is one of these. * Journal Of Education For Teaching *
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! -- Marvin Klein, Western Washington University
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. -- Richard L. Allington, University of Tennessee