Montclair State University is one of the original eight sites in the National Network for Educational Renewal (NNER), founded by John Goodlad. Its practices for the education of educators reflect both the principles embedded in the Agenda for Education in a Democracy, and a commitment to deep partnership with public schools and critical thinking that preceded the University?s involvement in the NNER. The key exemplary practices to be highlighted include:

1. The delivery of programs for the education of educators through a university wide Center of Pedagogy, an institutional structure involving faculty in arts and science, in education, and from the K-12 schools as equal partners in teacher education. This tripartite group is responsible for the simultaneous renewal of the education of educators and the schools.
2. A commitment to a clear, shared vision of its work exemplified in a "portrait of a teacher." The vision includes a commitment to teaching for critical thinking as a vehicle for the enculturation of the young into a political and social democracy, for providing access to knowledge for all children, the use of nurturing pedagogy, and a commitment to stewardship of best practice. The moral dimensions of each of these curricular areas are emphasized. The Portrait is a vehicle for admission, curriculum development, and formative and summative evaluation of candidates.
3. A commitment to partnership with schools through the New Jersey Network for Educational Renewal, a mature partnership of 22 school districts, including urban and suburban settings. The Network supports ongoing professional development that involves university and school faculty as equal partners, teacher study groups to examine critical issues facing individual schools and teachers, and the development of sites for student field experiences that represent best practice. Three high school Professional Development Schools are in operation, and four more will open in the next year. Dozens of Partner Schools also are affiliated with the University.
4. A recognition of the University?s special responsibility to assist in the diversification of the teaching force and more effective teaching in diverse settings. This commitment includes a Higher Education Title II recruitment grant to prepare new mathematics and science teachers for urban schools. Using University resources, a specialized center, the Teacher Education Advocacy Center, designed to support students of color in their pursuit of teaching as a career that employs counselors and a program assistant, has been established. In September 2000, the Montclair State University Pre-collegiate Teaching Academy will open as a new public high school in Paterson, with major support from a corporate foundation, designed with a math science emphasis for students who are considering teaching as a career. Nearly 100% of the students will be people of color. The high school will be jointly operated by the district and the University, and graduates are guaranteed admission to the University.
5. A carefully designed Leadership Associates Program to prepare leaders to support the shared vision of the teacher education program among faculty in the arts and sciences, education and the K-12 schools.
6. The use of critical thinking and a community of inquiry as the pedagogical underpinning of the program.
7. A redesigned faculty reward system to recognize faculty work in schools. This program, the Faculty Scholarship Incentive Program, provides faculty time for scholarship broadly defined, including scholarship of pedagogy, of application, and of discovery and aesthetics. Faculty in the program may have on-load released time for work in the schools.
8. The University offers a doctoral program for classroom teachers who seek to remain in the classroom, the first doctoral program for educators in New Jersey, and perhaps in the nation, for which excellent classroom teachers do not have to make a commitment to leave the classroom. The curriculum is based on the Portrait of a Teacher, with the first specializations in Philosophy for Children and Mathematics Education. The program is administered by the Center of Pedagogy.

In addition, the University is an active member of the Holmes Partnership and the UNITE project, is a center for field testing NCATE?s PDS standards, and is one of the seven sites in the National Education Association?s Teacher Education Initiative. The University, through a USIA Grant, is in partnership with Kirovograd Pedagogical University, Ukraine, to develop approaches to enhance the role of public education in democratization.

Institutional Mission and Context

Montclair State University is a publicly assisted comprehensive university in Northern New Jersey, fifteen miles west of Manhattan. It enrolls 13,500 students. most of them commuters. The University sits in a suburban community, but is within 15 minutes of Newark and Paterson, two of the state?s largest urban areas, and has a strong commitment to outreach through service learning and other forms of involvement in the community. The University is committed to a strong liberal arts education for undergraduates through an extensive general education program. Professional and applied programs and all traditional liberal arts majors are offered through five Colleges and Schools.

Partnerships

The key partnership vehicles are the Center of Pedagogy and the New Jersey Network for Educational Renewal, described above. Through partnership in a series of networks, the University retains close contact with universities and schools across the country with similar commitments. In every instance, the teacher associations in the schools in partnership with the University are key players in each collaboration.

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