Locating Quality in the Dynamic Educator Preparation Landscape

Christine DeGregory, Ph.D. began her career in education as a middle and high school English teacher, having the opportunity to serve as department chair and school improvement co-chair. She received her terminal degree from George Mason University in Teaching and Teacher Education where her research interests focused on pre-service teachers, veteran teachers' motivations to mentor first year teachers, and new teacher induction. Her time at GMU was highlighted by serving as a graduate research assistant, university supervisor, and as an intern for the American Association for Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE). Before coming to AAQEP, she was a member of the West Point Schools School Board and taught at the United States Military Academy Preparatory School (USMAPS) at West Point, NY. In this role, housed in the Center for Enhanced Performance, she worked with cadet candidates to strengthen their academic skills as they prepared to enter the United States Military Academy (USMA). As Director of Professional Learning for AAQEP, Christine is highly invested in preparing and supporting reviewers and providers throughout the quality assurance review process and finds great joy in connecting members so to collaborate in their continuous improvement efforts. Mark LaCelle-Peterson is the founding President and CEO of the Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation (AAQEP), an accreditation agency founded in 2017 to strengthen P-20 education through excellent, innovative preparation of educators. He has worked in higher education and accreditation for four decades, serving in faculty and leadership roles at several educator preparation programs in public and private institutions of higher education. He served as President of the Teacher Education Accreditation Council (TEAC) and in senior leadership at the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE). He enjoys teaching courses in assessment; the historical, social, and cultural foundations of education; research methods; and Anglo Saxon and Old Norse literature (proving that even Scandinavian Studies majors can be 'gainfully employed'). A native of Minnesota, he holds degrees from the University of Minnesota and from Harvard University's Graduate School of Education. He lives in Rochester, New York. Karen Lowenstein is the Director of Member Services at the Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation (AAQEP). Stephanie Schneider is an Associate Professor in the department of Childhood Education and Literacy in the School of Education at SUNY Old Westbury.

"This is one of the smartest books about teacher education quality to come along in quite a while. The book's major argument is that teacher education quality is deeply contextual, created and changing over time within the dynamic interplay of local programs and their communities, cultures, and environments. This view stands in sharp contrast to the long-standing policy assumption that quality results from adherence to particular models of teacher preparation implemented within specific sectors. Building on three insightful foundational chapters, the core of the book--and the proof of its arguments--is seven widely-divergent cases of "high-quality" educator preparation. Taken together, these cases defy long-standing distinctions about educator preparation types and reveal that teacher educators and their partners are adaptive and responsive change agents, rather than unbending defenders of the status quo, as they are so often unfairly and inaccurately portrayed. This book is a must-read for teacher education practitioners and researchers, school leaders and mentors, and all those interested in policy and practice related to teacher quality and teacher preparation."--Marilyn Cochran-Smith, Cawthorne Professor of Teacher Education for Urban Schools, Emerita, Lynch School of Education and Human Development, Boston College "Locating Quality in the Dynamic Educator Preparation Landscape: Creating Quality in Context provides a compelling and nuanced exploration of how diverse educator preparation programs demonstrate quality within their own institutional and contextual frameworks. By showcasing how various institutions leverage data-driven assessments and programmatic adaptations to ensure excellence, this work underscores the evolving nature of teacher preparation. Rather than relying on one-size-fits-all metrics, AAQEP highlights localized approaches that meet both national standards and specific community needs. This text serves as an essential resource for understanding how quality in educator preparation is constructed, evaluated, and continuously improved in diverse educational settings."--Amy Ginsberg, Ph.D., Dean of the College of Education, William Paterson University "DeGregory and colleagues offer a compelling response to the reductive rhetoric often surrounding teacher preparation in the U.S., instead providing the reader with thoughtful, place-based examples of quality educator preparation that are sure to spark new insights and approaches. With its emphasis on supporting access to the profession, Locating Quality in the Dynamic Educator Preparation Landscape: Creating Quality in Context encourages policy makers, teacher educators, school districts and other stakeholders to be more expansive in their support of models that meet the needs of schools, teachers and children."--Ashleigh Thompson, Ph.D., University Dean for Education, City University of New York