Research Colloquium addresses accountability in teacher preparation

Suzanne Wilson, the Neag Endowed Professor of Teacher Education at the University of Connecticut, will speak about accountability in teacher preparation at this week’s Research Colloquium, 12:30-1:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 23, in Aderhold Hall Room G5.

In this talk, Wilson will give an overview of how accountability has increased in the teacher preparation system, including the new CAEP standards, new assessments like edTPA and NOTE, and the movement toward value-added assessments of teacher preparation programs. She will consider how these efforts to increase the use of evidence and continuous improvement can contribute to our efforts to improve teacher preparation, as well as the unintended consequences of such evidence-driven accountability.

Wilson invites us to critically consider the promise of “high quality indicators” and a “robust accountability system,” including anticipating unintended consequences and proactively encouraging genuine reform rather than superficial conformity and/or compliance. If we are to nurture genuine improvement during this age of intense scrutiny, it behooves us to be as wise as possible in the face of the promise and potential pitfalls of this new accountability.