Learning Policy Institute President to Visit Montclair State University

Celebrated education thought leader and scholar Linda Darling-Hammond will visit the College of Education and Human Services at Montclair State University on October 24, where she will explore “The Current and Future State of Teacher Education.”

“The fact that Darling-Hammond will give a talk on teacher education at Montclair State reflects our well-earned reputation as a national, top-ranked leader in teacher education innovation and excellence,” says College of Education and Human Services Dean Tamara Lucas. “She is well aware of our cutting-edge Teacher Education program and the excellence of the teachers who complete our programs. She has learned about the exemplary nature of our work most recently as a result of research on our programs conducted by the Learning Policy Institute – as well as from the numerous publications and scholarly presentations of our faculty in national and international venues, particularly the American Educational Research Association.”

Lucas adds, “We expect her presentation to spark further conversations among teacher education leaders and policy makers in New Jersey regarding ways to improve the preparation of teachers for all children in the state.”

Darling-Hammond is one of the world’s most distinguished educational scholars. She began her career as a public school teacher and later was a senior social scientist and director of the Rand Education and Human Resources Program at the Rand Corporation. She then was a professor at Teachers College, Columbia University and the Charles E. Ducommun Professor of Education at Stanford University, where she is a professor emeritus. She was the founding executive director of the National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future, whose 1996 report, What Matters Most: Teaching for America’s Future, sparked sweeping policy changes affecting teaching. Named one of the nation’s 10 most influential people affecting educational policy in 2006, she also led President Barack Obama’s 2008 education policy transition team.

A past president of the American Educational Research Association, which promotes high-quality educational research, in 2015 Darling-Hammond founded the Learning Policy Institute, a leading education think tank that seeks to advance evidence-based policies that support empowering and equitable learning for each and every child. She is the author of more than 500 publications, including award-winning books such as The Right to Learn and Teaching as the Learning Profession.

“We are living in very interesting times both socially and educationally,” observes Montclair State University Center of Pedagogy Executive Director Jennifer Robinson. Teacher Education programs are currently challenged to prepare educators who will teach students of all backgrounds to think critically, address life challenges, learn collaboratively and gain content knowledge, while meeting rigorous state standards and requirements and demonstrating their impact on both teacher and P-12 student learning. Darling-Hammond will address these and other challenges as she explores ways to prepare classroom-ready teachers – now and in the future.

“Darling-Hammond is the foremost expert and spokesperson for excellence in teacher preparation. She has studied education around the world and has a perspective that few of us are privileged to have,” explains Robinson. “While she won’t be reading tea leaves per se, in discussing the current and future state of teacher education, she will probably forecast what may be on the horizon, given our political and social climate. Having her visit Montclair State gives us an opportunity to learn from the best.”

Preregistration is required for this free event, which is sponsored by the Montclair State University College of Education and Human Services Dean’s Office and the Center of Pedagogy and which will be held in the 7th Floor Conference Center, University Hall from 4 to 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, October 24. To register, please visit bit.ly/stateofteachereducation.