AACTE Presents Recommendations to National Mathematics Advisory Panel

CONTACT:
Jade Floyd,
amangino@aacte.org
or 202.478.4596 

Washington, D.C. (September 6, 2007) Today, Dr. William Tate, IV, the Edward Mallinckrodt Distinguished University Professor in Arts & Sciences and Chair of the Department of Education at the Washington University in St. Louis, provided comments on the behalf of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) before the National Mathematics Advisory Panel in St. Louis, Missouri.

AACTE’s comments are focused on elementary and middle school (K-8) mathematics education, according to the Panel’s charge, and particularly address the training, selection, placement, and professional development of teachers of mathematics in order to enhance student learning in mathematics.

Dr. Tate gave the Panel eight policy recommendations from AACTE:

1. Support syntheses and wide dissemination of the best research available
2. Support research on critical mathematics teacher/teaching issues
3. Encourage consensus-building efforts to develop high-level student mathematics standards
4. Support the development of student data systems with links to teacher preparation programs
5. Support teacher preparation reform at both state and federal levels
6. Eliminate out-of-field teaching
7. Encourage investments in mathematics teacher recruitment and retention efforts
8. Correct the inequitable distribution of high-quality teachers

“The recommendations presented by Dr. Tate provide policy support for the challenges that AACTE member institutions are ready to address. We are prepared to engage through professional and political partnerships, and we realize the benefits these recommendations hold for teacher education students and the students they will serve,” says Dr. Sharon P. Robinson, president and CEO of AACTE.

Recently, AACTE released a publication, “Preparing STEM Teachers: The Key to Global Competitiveness”, which highlights more than 50 teacher preparation programs across the country dedicated to increasing the number of effective K-12 educators in the STEM fields—science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

For more information, please contact Jade Floyd at jfloyd@aacte.org or by phone at 202.478.4596. 
For more information on the National Mathematics Advisory Panel, please visit http://www.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/mathpanel/index.html.

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