Institute For Teacher Development And ResearchThe School of Education's DePaul Institute for Teacher Development and Research, begun in the Fall of 2003, is housed and directed by faculty in the Department of Educational Policy Studies and Research. The Institute is grounded in support for the moral and intellectual life of teachers and the multiple dimensions of thoughtful and committed teaching. The Institute’s focus is the quality of teacher’s work life, professionalism, the impact of high stakes testing and standards on teaching and learning, the social context of urban schools, and issues of equity and social justice. The Institute focuses on these issues with the goal of contributing to teacher development, research, and policy to improve urban schools. A defining feature of the Institute is its partnerships with community based organizations and organizations of teachers whose perspectives are generally excluded from policy-making decisions about urban schools. Three interrelated core activities define the Institute’s work: continuing professional development, research, and policy.The Institute’s professional development activities are directed to deepening teachers’ knowledge about, and supporting their reflection on, the multiple dimensions of teaching, including professional collaboration, on-going intellectual work, and thoughtful deliberation about curriculum, pedagogy, human development, and the moral, ethical and social context of the schooling process. A central goal is to help teachers understand the relationship between urban school policy, particularly accountability reforms, and teacher professionalism and their effects on teaching and learning. The Institute is an approved provider of State of Illinois Continuing Professional Development Units and Continuing Education Units. Professional development activities includes workshops, seminars, field trips, teacher research projects, colloquia, invited talks by various experts, panel discussions led by teachers, community-based dialogues with parents and students, and workshops led by community-based organizations. The Institute’s research supports its programs of teacher learning and development and informs debates about professional development, teaching, and education policy. A major research focus is an investigation of the policies, social contexts, and intellectual and professional conditions that support the attraction and retention of intellectually and ethically engaged teachers committed to teaching in urban schools. This includes teacher research projects and collaborations between University researchers and teachers and community organizations. The institute’s programs and its research will inform discussions about critical issues facing teachers, the conditions of schooling in Chicago, and urban education policy nationally and be the basis for the Institute’s participation in public policy discussions and debates. ©2002 DePaul University, 1 E. Jackson, Chicago, IL 60604 | Disclaimer | Site Index |