Event Summary: On June 1, 2000, NEGP Chair Gov. Tommy Thompson (R-WI) and NEGP member and host U.S. Senator Jim Jeffords (R-VT) held a public hearing and received testimony regarding the important role of teachers in helping all students achieve. Presenters included educators and researchers in Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts and Vermont speaking about state and local efforts to train new teachers and offer effective professional development. Much state and national attention is focused on assessing student achievement; the Vermont hearing focused on what teacher policies are needed to secure a teaching force equipped to help students learn.

Panel One

Presenter: Vartan Gregorian, President, Carnegie Corporation
Topic: "The Need to Redesign Undergraduate and Teacher Education"
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Vartan Gregorian, president of the Carnegie Corporation of New York, addressed the importance of the higher education community in efforts to prepare graduate and undergraduate students to become teachers. Despite the strengths of the American higher education system, Gregorian sees the need for university leaders to elevate the importance of Schools of Education within the university. Click here to view materials referenced by Dr. Gregorian during his presentation.


Presenter: Richard Askey, Professor of Mathematics, University of Wisconsin- Madison
Topic: "Matching Teacher Education in Mathematics With What Students Need to Know"
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Dr. Askey presents research conducted by Liping Ma on Chinese and American teachers' knowledge of math. Compared to their Chinese counterparts, American math teachers were much less able to calculate problems that they needed to know and teach their students. Dr Askey concludes that although American teachers are behind their Chinese counterparts, it is possible to raise their level of math knowledge, and to look to other countries' educational systems for best practices. Click here to view materials used by Dr. Askey during his presentation.


Presenter: Joan Baron, Researcher and Author
Topic: "Teacher Policies and Reading Gains in Connecticut"
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Joan Baron was commissioned by the National Education Goals Panel to study how Connecticut increased its reading achievement. The study, Exploring High and Improving Reading Achievement in Connecticut, credits the creation of strong local ownership and accountability for student reading growth as well as the linkage of teacher evaluations to student achievement and extensive professional development opportunities for teachers, resulting in one of the best-educated, best-trained and certainly best-paid teaching corps in the country. Click here to view materials used by Dr. Baron during her presentation.


Presenter: David Wolk, Vermont Commissioner of Education
Topic: "Implementing Standards-Based Reform in Vermont"
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David Wolk, Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Education, describes an interrelated set of Department initiatives designed to improve education and offer support to teachers in Vermont.


Questions for Panel 1
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Panel 2

Presenter: Bea Johnstone, Deputy Superintendent, Community School District 2, New York City
Topic: "Professional Development for High Performance Learning Communities"
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Bea Johnstone is Deputy Superintendent of Community School District 2 where professional development has played a key role in school improvement. The district serves 22,000 students, of which 69 percent are minorities and 52.8 percent are from families below the poverty line. Teachers are given extensive professional development and support in a variety of models, including team teaching and in-house development staff. Development initiatives focus on literacy and math instruction. This previously low-ranking district now ranks second in the city in reading and math performance. Click here to view materials used by Bea Johnstone during her presentation.


Presenter: Alice Angney, Superintendent, Lamoille South Supervisory Union
Topic: "Special Education in Vermont: The Role of Teachers and Parents"
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Alice Angney is the Superintendent of the Lamoille South Supervisory Union which has a student enrollment of 1800 students, pre K-12, with 162 students eligible for special education across three school districts. LSSU employs 19 special education staff, including four speech/language pathologists, one school psychologist and 15 consulting teachers. LSSU includes special education students in mainstream classrooms. No students are placed in residential or alternative programs. In fact, 98 percent of students on Individual Education Plans have received 100 percent of their education in the mainstream classroom. Schools invest in staff development to enable all teachers to gain the skills needed to work with special education students. They are also focused on standards-based educational plans for their students. Click here to view materials used by Alice Angney during her presentation.


Presenter: William Henderson, Principal, Patrick O'Hearn Elementary School, Boston
Topic: "Meeting High Standards in an Inclusion School"
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The O'Hearn School is a small elementary school serving children from early childhood through fifth grade. Located in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston, the school serves: students who have mild, moderate and severe disabilities, students considered talented and gifted and students involved in regular education all learn together and from each other in integrated classrooms. O'Hearn focuses on literacy, using Boston's Citywide Learning Standards. Staff are involved in professional development activities designed by the Instructional Leadership Team, and the school works closely with local universities, businesses, agencies and neighborhood groups to help all students succeed.


Questions for Panel 2 and closing remarks
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