A Back To School Conversation with Education Dean Donna Wiseman

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Education Dean Donna Wiseman took time from her busy schedule to once again take a look at the new school year and discuss her expectations, hopes, and challenges. The questions this year also reflect her goals for the 2009-2010 school year as she works to implement the strategic plan for the college.

Q: You've been dean of the College of Education for nearly a year now - how would you assess the College at this point and the changes you've made?

DW: A major accomplishment during my first year as dean was to complete a strategic plan for the College of Education that parallels and intersects with the campus plan. Developed and supported by our faculty, the plan focuses on diversity, globalization, policy, and technology, and integrates these themes throughout the College's top priorities -- undergraduate and graduate programs, research initiatives, and partnerships. For example, in response to the teacher workforce needs of our State, we are directing our energies toward increasing the number of teachers specializing in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics), expanding faculty and student opportunities for international experiences, increasing our research and grantsmanship in new areas such as brain imaging, and infusing new technology in our existing classrooms and curriculum.

In addition, we have several new collaborative efforts indicative of the interdisciplinary focus within the college. Currently we are cooperating with the iSchool on plans for developing new curriculum that links the pedagogy of education and the knowledge of information sciences. We are also working with the Department of Computer Science to develop the first teacher certification in computer science in the state of Maryland. Prior to this, we collaborated with the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (AGNR) on a new teacher certification in Agricultural Education. That same collaboration resulted in a course offering on American Education Processes that is part of a program AGNR offers to Taiwanese students through distance learning.

We have a great responsibility to prepare our students for teaching and learning in the 21st Century. We've therefore, during the past year, made major physical changes in the Benjamin Building -- home of the College of Education -- enhancing our existing facilities to accommodate technology rich classrooms and provide a modern environment for our students.

These changes have occurred while we tackled a restricted budget, a year-long hiring freeze, and campus reallocation of resources. Despite these challenges, the College has continued to thrive, grow, and excel. Thanks to the impressive work of our faculty and students, we remain one of the Top 25 colleges of education in the country, according to the U.S. News & World Report rankings. Our Department of Counseling and Personal Services is ranked number one in the nation for the tenth straight year, and our Educational Psychology program -- ranked seventh last year -- moved to fourth. In addition, all of our other ranked specialties were ranked in the Top 17 (the full list of specialty rankings within the College is available at www.education.umd.edu ) .

Q: Congress is in the throes of reauthorizing the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act -- what is your perspective on how the legislation needs to change to ensure success for every child?

DW: Due to the current focus on health care, it might be a while before Congress gets around to making changes to the No Child Left Behind Act. However, if NCLB is debated in the near future, there are a number of controversial provisions that should focus our attention. For example, one of the most difficult issues has been how the law tracks the progress or growth or students when determining if a school or school district made adequate yearly progress (AYP). If over two years, schools don't make AYP, they can be identified as "schools in need of improvement," subject to sanctions and further requirements under the law.

The current law also focuses on student subgroups (e.g., those who are economically disadvantaged, English language learners, or require special education), who must score "proficient" on the achievement tests. If students' scores do not indicate proficiency, the entire school is deemed a "school in need of improvement." This is an area that needs to be reviewed. Critiques of the law suggest a "growth" model that looks at whether student groups improved on their tests scores in the same subject in the next year's testing. The model would also allow states to use other factors besides achievement tests in deciding if a school made AYP -- for example, improved attendance or graduation rates, college enrollments rates, and tests in other subjects like history and writing. These changes would be a positive step toward ensuring success for every child, however, states would need to develop a strong data base to track the achievement of individual students.

Q: What is the College doing (e.g., programs/initiatives) to promote and train STEM teachers? Do you find increased interest from career changers?

DW: Responding to heightened national concern regarding the quality and quantity of the STEM workforce, this year has been a time of renewed emphasis on the preparation of STEM teachers. We were awarded federal and state grants for programs dedicated to increasing the number of STEM teachers, with particular focus on encouraging individuals considering teaching as second careers. For example:

• The Transition from the Laboratory to the Classroom (TLC) program is a partnership with Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) where highly-trained doctoral and post-doctoral scientists, and mathematicians with extensive laboratory experience, are prepared for careers as secondary science and mathematics teachers with MCPS
• The Maryland Science and Mathematics Resident Teacher (MSMaRT) Project is a new program that will recruit career changers and recent college graduates to teach middle grades mathematics and science at high needs middle schools in Prince George's County Public Schools (PGCPS).

The College is working closely with Maryland school districts on custom programs that respond to their specific teacher shortage areas in STEM. Outreach courses and workshops are held on-site at schools and centers at times that meet educators' schedules. In addition, faculty from our Science Teaching Center have partnered with Montgomery County Public Schools, the College of Chemical and Life Sciences , and the Department of Physics to develop a masters' degree program with an emphasis on Middle School Science Teaching and Learning. The primary target audience for this program includes elementary-certified teachers responsible for teaching science at the elementary and middle school level.

We also collaborate with UM Mathematics faculty in promoting strong mathematics preparation for elementary education candidates. Our efforts in this area have been nationally recognized. In its June 2008 study examining the mathematics preparation of America's elementary teachers ( No Common Denominator: The Preparation of Elementary Teachers in Mathematics ), the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) identified the College of Education at the University of Maryland as one of only 10 schools, in a sample of 77, that rose to the top in terms of overall quality of preparation in mathematics for elementary education majors.

The University of Maryland has joined a nationwide network of public universities and university systems committed to the Science and Mathematics Teacher Imperative (SMTI) . One of Maryland's initiatives in response to this is the Terps Teach program, which will recruit and advise mathematics and science majors to become teachers, offer them experiences in public school classrooms during their freshman and sophomore years, and provide campus-based teaching accompanied by formal university courses that support and integrate the teaching experience. Currently the Terps Teach program is seeking financial support for mathematics and science majors who commit to teaching, and will offer ways for them to connect and interact with selected master high school teachers.

Finally, as the flagship University for the State, part of our contribution to STEM is to prepare teacher researchers and teacher educators for other universities in the state and the nation. The College offers M.A. and Ph.D. programs for future mathematics education researchers and teacher educators. Our graduates have gone on to assume mathematics teacher education positions in Maryland (e.g., Towson University, Morgan State University) and other places nationally.

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