Teacher Training Program Lauded By State Association
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 15, 1999
Joe Wills
530-898-4143
Teacher Training Program Lauded By State Association
California State University, Chico’s Tri-Placement Program, which offers students an intensive apprenticeship in teacher training, has won a prestigious award from the California Council on the Education of Teachers.
The program received the Quality of Education Award for Distinguished Service to Children and the Training of Teachers at the council’s spring conference in San Jose March 19.
Assistant Professor Nancy Williams and Margaret Mow, distinguished teacher in residence, were present at the conference to receive the award. Both are in the professional studies in education department of the College of Communication and Education.
Each year, the council chooses programs to honor in keeping with its conference theme. This year’s theme was “Challenges and Opportunities in School/University Partnerships.”
CSU, Chico’s Tri-Placement Program requires prospective teachers to work in at least three different classrooms four and a half days a week for one school year. The program collaborates with more than 80 teachers in eight schools in the Chico Unified School District and Durham Unified School District.
Along with apprenticing with cooperating teachers for a full year, Tri-Placement students take special courses preparing them for their extended practice teaching and work closely with CSU, Chico faculty during their time teaching in local schools. Approximately 20-25 students annually take part in the program.
Professor Williams, who has been working with the program since 1982, said roughly one-third of the cooperating teachers in the Chico and Durham districts are graduates of the program.
Tri-Placement was started at CSU, Chico 20 years ago. The program also won the distinguished service award from the council 10 years ago.
The California Council on the Education of Teachers, established in 1945, has a membership of teachers, teacher educators and administrators interested in a statewide dialogue on education. The council holds conferences annually in Southern and Northern California and publishes the journal Teacher Education Quarterly.
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