Preparing Teachers for Deeper Learning answers an urgent call for teachers who educate children from diverse backgrounds to meet the demands of a changing world. In today’s knowledge economy, teachers must prioritize problem-solving ability, adaptability, critical thinking, and the development of interpersonal and collaborative skills over rote memorization and the passive transmission of knowledge. Authors Linda Darling-Hammond and Jeannie Oakes and their colleagues examine what this means for teacher preparation and showcase the work of programs that are educating for deeper learning, equity, and social justice. Guided by the growing knowledge base in the science of learning and development, the book examines teacher preparation programs at Alverno College, Bank Street College of Education, High Tech High’s Intern Program, Montclair State University, San Francisco Teacher Residency, Trinity University, and University of Colorado Denver. These seven programs share a common understanding of how people learn that shape similar innovative practices. With vivid examples of teaching for deeper learning in coursework and classrooms; interviews with faculty, school partners, and novice teachers; surveys of teacher candidates and graduates; and analyses of curriculum and practices, Preparing Teachers for Deeper Learning depicts transformative forms of teaching and teacher preparation that honor and expand all students’ abilities, knowledges, and experiences, and reaffirm the promise of educating for a better world.

Educators and those who prepare teachers are facing increased scrutiny on their practice that include pressures to demonstrate their effectiveness, meet the needs of changing demographics and students, and adapt to ever-changing learning environments. Thus, there is a need for innovative pedagogies and adoption of best practices to effectively serve the needs of digital learners. The Handbook of Research on Innovative Pedagogies and Best Practices in Teacher Education is an essential research book that takes an in-depth look at the methods by which educators are prepared to address shifting demographics and technologies in the classroom and provides strategies for focusing their curricula on diverse learning types. It takes a look at the use of innovative pedagogies and effective learning spaces in teacher education programs and the decisions behind them to enhance more inquiry learning, STEM initiatives, and prove more kinds of exploratory learning for students. Covering topics such as higher education, virtual reality, and inclusive education, this book is ideally designed for teachers, administrators, academicians, instructors, and researchers.

Extracts from the text:"Why are fifteen million children and youth in poverty not achieving when we know that low-income students excel in the classrooms of “star” teachers (who comprise approximately 8 percent of the teaching force)?" "Whose needs or interests are being met in education reform today?" “In my own institution, there has not been a systematic assessment of the effectiveness of the basic teacher education program since the institution was founded over a century ago as a teachers college. Imagine, not one ever!”"Teachers who empathize with students and the life challenges they face soon realize that the dysfunctional bureaucracies will not permit them to meet the needs of their students. Half of the starry-eyed beginners are gone in five years or less." "Why does teacher education focus on the managerial, instrumental or delivery system aspects of the profession?""The expert advice dispensed by schools of education regarding what future teachers should do is not connected to any theory of learning, or to any reality of life in school classrooms." "Why has the recruitment process resulted in a cohort of teachers who are unable to connect with their students?""Does a qualified teacher equate to a quality teacher?""The best hope of getting more effective teachers from university teacher preparation programs is to base their budgets on the number of their graduates who serve in challenging schools and their effectiveness with children and youth. At the district level, the salaries of hiring officials should be based on how well these officials identify and retain quality teachers."In this book, 12 distinguished scholars provide a hard-hitting, thoroughly researched, historical and theoretical critique of our schools of education, and offer clear recommendations on what must be done to ensure all children can achieve their potential, and contribute to a vibrant, democratic society.