Steve Farkas and Ann Duffett of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute just released a fabulous new report, Cracks in the Ivory Tower? The Views of Education Professors Circa 2010.
I graduated from two large schools of education (University of Pittsburgh and the University of Virginia) and find the report to be spot on.
? [Professors of education] are far more likely to believe that the proper role of teacher is to be a ?facilitator of learning? (84 percent) not a ?conveyor of knowledge? (11 percent).
? Asked to choose between two competing philosophies of the role of teacher educator, 68 percent believe preparing students ?to be change agents who will reshape education by bringing new ideas and approaches to the public schools? is most important; just 26 percent advocate preparing students ?to work effectively within the realities of today?s public schools.?
? Only 24 percent believe it is absolutely essential to produce ?teachers who understand how to work with the state?s standards, tests, and accountability systems.?
? Just 39 percent find it absolutely essential ?to create teachers who are trained to address the challenges of high-needs students in urban districts.?
? Just 37 percent say it is absolutely essential to focus on developing ?teachers who maintain discipline and order in the classroom.?
? The vast majority of education professors (83 percent) believe it is absolutely essential for public school teachers to teach 21st century skills, but just 36 percent say the same about teaching math facts, and 44 percent about teaching phonics in the younger grades. (p. 9.)
