Noted Expert on Urban Schools Visiting SOE

On September 26, 2012, Professor Charles M. Payne will be speaking at the UM-Dearborn School of Education. Dr. Payne is the Frank P. Hixon Distinguished Service Professor in the School of Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago, where he is also an affiliate of the Urban Education Institute and a member of the Steering Committee for the Consortium on Chicago School Reform.

Dr. Payne is a leading scholar on urban education and school reform, social inequality, social change, and modern African American history. He recently published So Much Reform, So Little Change (Harvard Education Publishing Group) which is concerned with what we have learned about the persistence of failure in urban districts, and an anthology, Teach Freedom: The African American Tradition of Education For Liberation (Teachers College Press), which is concerned with the “Freedom School” education movement.

The talk will be held 4:30-6:00 PM in the Michigan Room, on the 1st floor of the FCS. This talk is open to all as part of the Conversations on Race series and one of several special lectures this fall as part of the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the formation of the School of Education on this campus.

Please join me in welcoming Professor Payne to our campus!

ECEC Launches New Website

The Early Childhood Education Center (ECEC) has launched a new website that includes new content and features intended to make it more interactive and more useful and accessible to teachers, families, students and the campus community. The site includes information regarding the ECEC philosophy, resources, program, collaborations, and classroom information. The new features include elements such as blogs, documentation, project work, calendars and newsletters, and more.

The website re-design was a collaboration involving Seong Hong, Chris Casey, Debbie Jones, Lia Simpson and all ECEC teachers and staff over a 10-month period. Laura Reynolds-Keefer also assisted by helping to accelerate the launch process in time for the beginning of the fall 2012 academic term.

Please join me in congratulating the ECEC on this accomplishment and in thanking all who contributed along the way!

SOE Rated EXEMPLARY for Fourth Consecutive Year

In late July, 2012, Michael P. Flanagan, Michigan Superintendent of Public Instruction, reported to the State Board of Education the results of the latest round of annual evaluations of teacher preparation institutions in the state.

For the fourth year in succession the Michigan Department of Education (MDE) has designated the teacher preparation program at UM-Dearborn as EXEMPLARY, the highest category available. To make these program designations the MDE uses a complex, multi-faceted evaluation system that includes several different indicators of program characteristics, with special attention to teacher candidates’ content knowledge and preparatory experiences.

This distinction places the UM-Dearborn teacher preparation program among the top in the state. UM-Dearborn is one of only 4 public universities in the so-called “little 12” that have consistently achieved an Exemplary rating over the past three consecutive years.

One accomplishment of special note – we excel at helping our students successfully complete their programs. Among universities rated Exemplary, our program completion rate was 2nd highest of ALL universities (public and private) in the state!

This recognition is a tribute to the hard work of the faculty and staff of the SOE, as well as our faculty and staff colleagues in CASL, and others across the university. Their dedicated work on behalf of our students helps our students to realize their aspirations to become teachers who will in turn influence the next generation of students and shape the future of our state and local region.

Noted Expert in Physics Education Visits SOE

Fred Goldberg, Professor of Physics at San Diego State University, is visiting UM-Dearborn on September 13-14. During his visit, he will be meeting with UM-Dearborn faculty and students in the SOE and in the CASL Department of Natural Sciences. He will also spend time with local area physics teachers.

Dr. Goldberg is a noted expert on physics education, and a pioneer in the area of student-centered, teacher-responsive, inquiry-oriented science education. He has been the PI on 16 major National Science Foundation grants involving research in teaching and learning, curriculum development, and teacher professional development.

He will be speaking to the SOE community on Thursday afternoon at 4:30 in the SOE Conference Room (252 FCS) in the first of the SOE Research Colloquium presentations this fall. Though related to science teaching, his talk will be geared to a non-specialist audience and is entitled, "Responsive Teaching in a Third-Grade Classroom: Promoting Scientific Inquiry by Listening to Your Students."

Please join me in welcoming Professor Goldberg to our campus!

SOE Faculty Member Establishes Special Interest Club for Detroit Students

Julie Taylor, Associate Professor of Social Studies Education, has collaborated with the principal and teaching staff at Douglass Academy for Young Men to establish a History, Art, & Culture Club. Douglass Academy for Young Men is a school that serves grades 6-12 in the Detroit Public Schools district.

The History, Art, and Culture Club will meet once a month at the school from September through June each year. In the next two years, the students will learn about African and African American artists as well as world heritage sites in Africa. In addition, they will engage in writing, map work, and art projects. The club members will visit museums such as the Detroit Institute of Arts and the Charles H. Wright Museum of African-American History.

Please join me in thanking Dr. Taylor for her initiative in making this opportunity possible and in wishing her and the participating students great success!

SOE Faculty Make a Big Splash in the Academic Service Learning Pool!

Three SOE faculty members were among nine across the entire campus to be selected by the Integrated Learning and Community Partnership Office to receive Academic Service-Learning (ASL) Course Designations for their Fall 2012 courses. The designation also comes with a $500 stipend. 

The SOE winners were associate professors Stein Brunvand, Chris Burke, and Gail Luera. [See the UM-Dearborn Reporter for a related story.] 

Additionally, SOE assistant professor Danielle DeFauw was selected to be one of the eight UM-Dearborn ASL Faculty Fellows for the 2012-2013 academic year. Fellows participate in monthly teaching circles consisting of training, design, evaluation, and reflection while working towards the planning of an ASL course for the following academic year.

Please join me in congratulating these SOE faculty members for their interest in providing students with an innovative, experiential learning experience!