Report on the CITAL Workshop, Baton Rouge, June 1998

VISION

The following points were made in the "Vision Statement":

Some of the themes that shaped this project. Most important: network---or web. Actually, we have two kinds of network in mind. One is the electronic web---or internet---that has the potential to connect us all in a new way. But more significant is the web of personal and institutional connections that tie together all those whose job is educating. And this project is about making that network stronger and more inclusive, increasing the number and kind of connections, changing some one-way streets into boulevards.
Whatever grand conceptions we have, they are grounded in specifics. Let me mention some of the goals that were explicitly defined by the Board of Regents in soliciting proposals for CITAL grants.
- Teacher preparation
- K-3 reading and math
- Technology
- At-risk populations
We do not need to restrict what we do to these areas of concern, but we definitely must address them; otherwise we will not do what we promised.
Roles of different parties:
- Project Leaders: value the work of all contributors; provide resources; listen to new ideas; help make them work.
- Teachers. share your experiences with teachers in training; find time to experiment with new content and classroom structures; where you see a way to use technology to accomplish you goals, use it---and for goodness sake, think of the university as
- Pre-service Teachers---give meaningful feedback to university; challenge your professors, mentors
- Administrators: facilitate through imaginative scheduling; break out of boxes, take some risks (you can't get sent to the principal's office)
- University Faculty: learn about teachers and schools; model good teaching practices; increase the accessibility of the intellectual resource that reside in the university.
- Everyone: link up

WHERE ARE WE NOW?

Conference participants worked in groups to identify problem areas. Their findings were compiled during a combined discussion, in which all groups cooperated in order to complete a statement representing a grand consensus. It is significant that the entire structure of this "work list" emerged from the minds and concerns of the "ground troops" in education---public school teachers, principals and university-based educators. Here is a summary for what they found:

IMPEDIMENTS TO LEARNING
- Time
  - planning
  - teaching
  - implementing change
  - professional development
  - connecting and communicating
- Student diversity
  - motivation
  - background (social, intellectual)
  - support (family, community)
- Classroom
  - size
  - composition
  - discipline
- Consistency
  - teaching
  - reporting
  - mandates from state/parish
  - curriculum
- Deficits
  - teacher training (in methods and assessment)
  - materials
- Expectations
- Family support/communication
WAYS IN WHICH STUDENTS DIFFER
- Valuing education
- Learning style
- Background
- Ability to connect concepts/generalize
- Need for approval/support
- Risk-taking
- Expectations from family/community/peers/society (including discrimination)
WHAT CAN WE DO TOGETHER?
- University personnel: become more active "in the field"; visit schools, classrooms; get to know the school system
- Classroom teachers: seek more input from the university
- everyone--visit other classrooms/schools
- conceptualize together
- network for staff development

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