The
School of
Education and the
Syracuse City
School District
strengthen each other through a
synergetic relationship that
enriches learning, teaching,
and research
By
Amy Speach Shires
If
School of Education professor Patricia Price Tinto
G’90 takes it personally when someone says, “I
hate math,” it’s only because she knows
it doesn’t have to be that way. She has dedicated
her career to teaching math and educating teachers,
and is passionate about exploring student learning
through funded research projects—many of which
are in conjunction with the Syracuse City School District
(SCSD). Tinto recently shared her enthusiasm with
a group of parents and teachers at Syracuse’s
Salem Hyde Elementary School, where she explained
and endorsed the district’s new math program.
“Research shows that kids don’t learn in
a building-block manner, but by making bridges and
leaps,” says Tinto, associate chair of Teaching
and Leadership Programs. Following her presentation,
parents stood three-deep in a circle around her, eager
to learn more. Meanwhile, Tinto’s graduate assistant,
Brian Cohen ’03, G’04, guided a group of
students as they played math games on laptop computers
supplied by the University. “Kids practice many
skills when they play games using numbers,” Tinto
says. “When they learn this way, they are able
to make connections and apply concepts to new situations.
That kind of learning stays with them.”
Mathematics
education is also the focus of another partnership
between the School of Education and the SCSD. Together
with the district’s middle school and high school
mathematics teachers, mathematics education professors
Helen Doerr and Joanna Masingila and literacy professors
Kelly Chandler-Olcott and Kathleen Hinchman ’76,
G’80, G’85 designed a research project to
address issues regarding math and literacy. Titled
“Investigating the Interrelated Development of
Mathematics and Literacy in Urban Schools,” the
three-year initiative received a $1 million grant
from the National Science Foundation. The project
involves teachers and students at Fowler High School
and three middle schools that feed into Fowler, and
places one faculty member and one graduate student
at each school to assist teachers through observation,
discussion, and exploration. “We told teachers
from the beginning that exploring connections between
math and literacy is new stuff that we don’t
have all the answers to,” says Masingila, a Laura
J. and L. Douglas Meredith Professor appointed jointly
in the School of Education and the Department of Mathematics
in the College of Arts and Sciences. “Nobody
does. The beauty of the collaboration is that we’re
supporting each other in discovering something that’s
important to all educators.”
Steve
Sartori
Professor Patricia Price Tinto (upper right) and
graduate assistant Brian Cohen ’03, G’04
meet with mathematics professionals from the Syracuse
City School District. Facing page: Shonté
Carter ’05 assists students at Meachem Elementary
School in Syracuse. |
These
projects represent countless partnerships that bring
together the School of Education and the SCSD to improve
student achievement and teacher development in the
district, while enhancing teacher preparation programs
for Syracuse University students. “The School
of Education maintains strong collaborations with
elementary, middle, and high schools in the Syracuse
City School District,” says Dean Louise C. Wilkinson.
“The purpose of our work is to prepare our students
to teach and to improve student learning in the Syracuse
district. Our projects focus on teacher development
and enhanced curriculum, including the integration
of newly available technologies to support student
learning.”
emanphoto.com
Shonté
Carter ’05 assists students at Meachem Elementary
School in Syracuse. |
Benefits
to the district take many forms. Teacher preparation
programs supply host teachers with student teachers
and tutors trained in the most current research-based
methods. Funded research projects provide schools
with instructional materials, technology upgrades,
and other equipment. Faculty experts consult with
teachers and administrators to improve student achievement,
helping the schools address general trends and specific
challenges. In addition, host teachers receive remitted
tuition to SU courses created specifically for teacher
development. “Our relationship with the School
of Education has blossomed, providing continuous opportunities
to enhance learning and adding value to both institutions,”
says Donna DeSiato G’04, who recently earned
an Ed.D. degree from the School of Education and is
assistant superintendent of schools in the SCSD. “It’s
a terrific partnership that could serve as a model
for other colleges and universities.”
Mutual
Support and Enrichment
As is true of any strong partnership, the school’s
relationship with city schools is a reciprocal one.
The collaboration provides many benefits to School
of Education students and faculty, advancing the school’s
goals of enriching the field and addressing the evolving
educational needs of a diverse society. Chief among
these benefits is an improved student-teaching experience.
“For a professional school, active commitment
and engagement with the world is essential,”
says Professor Joseph Shedd, chair of Teaching and
Leadership Programs. “You can’t study education
and prepare to be teachers at a distance. We want
to break down the distinctions between theory and
practice.” Shedd points out that School of Education
students are required to fulfill as many as 11 field
placements, at least half of which must be in high-needs
school systems like SCSD. With more than 550 field
placements a semester, the School of Education is
heavily dependent on the goodwill of area schools.
“We’re not entitled to expect a lot of cooperation
from area schools unless we are committed to supporting
their efforts,” Shedd says.
| Alexander
Koromilas
.
Syracuse Challenge students visit campus this
spring
Syracuse Challenge
Each spring, eighth-graders in the Syracuse
City School District have the opportunity to
sign a contract with Syracuse University. If
the students meet the contract requirements,
which include enrolling in the district’s
college preparatory program, maintaining an
85 grade average, and scoring 1,100 on the SAT
or 23 on the ACT, they are guaranteed admission
to the College of Arts and Sciences and a financial
aid package that meets their needs. This year,
835 eighth-graders accepted the Syracuse Challenge.
“We celebrated our 10th anniversary of
the Syracuse Challenge with the class that entered
in fall 2003,” says Susan E. Donovan, dean
of admissions. “This year served as a reminder
of our long-standing commitment to students
in the Syracuse district.”
David
Viggiano ’99, who participated in the second
class of the Syracuse Challenge, now works at
the Office of Admissions. “Without the
encouragement and financial support provided
by the Syracuse Challenge, it wouldn’t
have been possible for me to attend SU, my dream
school,” he says. Joseph Personte, SU’s
assistant director of admissions, works with
numerous opportunity programs, including the
Syracuse Challenge. “Students who follow
the challenge guidelines have a clear path toward
achieving their academic goals,” he says.
“Along the way, we work closely with the
school district and communicate with students
and their parents to provide guidance and encouragement.”
The University received 92 applications for
the 2004-05 academic year from current seniors
in the program. “The goal of the program
is to provide opportunities,” he says.
“Whether students choose SU or decide to
attend other colleges or universities, the end
result is the same: We are making a difference.
—Tanya
Fletcher |
According
to reading and language arts professor Columbus “Ted”
Grace G’02, the challenge of any collaboration
between a university and a school district is that,
although the two institutions may share goals regarding
improved learning, they often use different approaches.
“For example, we do research and teach from a
research base,” Grace says. “So when I teach
my SU students how to teach language arts, I draw
from the latest research about how kids learn best.
But in real life, there are many contexts—the
teachers’ level of experience, available resources,
children’s cultural and language differences—that
can make those practices difficult to execute.”
Establishing
a reciprocal relationship with the Syracuse schools
helps address this issue by working to mesh the goals
and needs of both institutions. Tinto oversees the
School of Education’s connections with area schools,
building alliances with those that host student teachers.
“Research indicates that one of the biggest influences
on the lives of new teachers is the classroom they
student-teach in,” Tinto says. “Whenever
there is a good match between what we’re doing
on campus and what the schools are doing, our students
grow more.” One focus of the partnership has
been on consolidating placements in fewer schools.
“This allows us to work with more teachers within
a school,” Tinto says. “We collaborate with
administrators within the schools to identify ways
we can provide the most support. We’re beginning
to have a much richer impact on schools beyond the
support we’ve always given to the host teachers.”
As
part of a New York State Teacher/Leader Quality Partnership
grant, Tinto runs sessions for city elementary teachers
to support the district’s new math program. “She
puts extraordinary energy into that,” Shedd says.
“She made the commitment that if the district
adopted a new research-based curriculum, the School
of Education would ensure that each student teacher
we provide would be grounded in the curriculum and
prepared to help implement it in the classroom.”
Feedback from teachers indicates that SU students
have played a major role in helping adopt the new
curriculum. “It’s an exciting experience
for student teachers to have such a big impact,”
Shedd says. “They have the sense they are playing
an important role.”
Brian
Cohen observed, tutored, and taught in several SCSD
classrooms as an undergraduate student in the Inclusive
Elementary and Special Education Program. As a graduate
student, he assisted Tinto in her research efforts
in SCSD classrooms by presenting lessons on laptop
computers that were purchased through funding from
the Lucent Foundation. “I had some outstanding
experiences that I hated to see come to an end,”
says Cohen, who earned a master’s degree in elementary
education in May. “It was important to me to
feel useful in the classroom. I learned a lot, and
I gave a lot, too. I developed wonderful relationships
and still remain in touch with some of the teachers
I worked with.”
Through
the city schools partnership, School of Education
faculty members develop strong relationships with
teachers and administrators that enrich their research
efforts. “You have to build trust with school
administrators, who, after all, are allowing you to
come into their buildings,” Grace says. He does
research in the schools on literacy engagement—ways
to keep kids excited about learning—and believes
a good teacher must entertain and engage students.
One way he both engages students and builds relationships
with schools is through storytelling performances
for student audiences. “My performances are a
mixture of storytelling, music, and poetry—all
coming from the African and African American experience,”
Grace says. “That’s my way of giving back
to the schools. It’s a part of the research partnership
that I really take a lot of pride in because it establishes
a sense of rapport that allows me to collect better
data. And that helps us all know more about how kids
learn best.”
emanphoto.com
 Inclusive
elementary and special education major Shonté
Carter ’05 works with a Meachem Elementary
School student. |
Everybody
Wins
The
effectiveness of the partnership programs reveals
itself in many ways. Some results are immediate—and
even measurable. For example, achievement scores on
state exams for fourth-grade math students show a
marked increase at schools where School of Education
faculty consistently collaborate with teachers. “We
kept track of every hour we spent interacting with
every teacher,” Tinto says. “And in the
schools where we spent the most time, test scores
went up. It makes sense, because there was a real
focus on mathematics in those buildings.” Positive
results like these, Tinto says, encourage funding
sources to continue investing in SU research projects.
Another
significant benefit of the collaboration is that it
pairs the School of Education and SCSD in incorporating
technology into schools. A project titled “Using
Technology to Transform Teaching (UT3),” which
was awarded a $1.56 million grant from the U.S. Department
of Education over three years, ensures that future
teachers know how to use technology. “The point
isn’t to dazzle people with lots of digital wizardry,”
Shedd says. “It’s to show that our students
can use technology in thoughtful, well-planned ways
to promote more effective learning.” UT3 is one
of numerous technology initiatives supported by the
Living SchoolBook (LSB). As the School of Education’s
technology research and development unit, LSB plays
a key role in the SCSD partnership.
Fowler
High School teacher Julia Hallquist G’02 affirms
that the collaboration has enhanced her teaching.
She participated in a math and literacy workshop in
2003 and attends biweekly math department meetings
led by Masingila as part of the math and literacy
research project. “SU faculty bring valuable
information to the table and focus on our needs,”
Hallquist says. “It’s been helpful to connect
with teachers across grade levels and school levels
to discuss our methods.” She also values the
availability of equipment supplied through SU collaborations,
including graphing calculators. “Our partnership
with SU helps me continue to grow as a teacher, learn
about the latest philosophies and trends in mathematics
education, and try new ideas in my classroom,” she says.
Barbara
Schrom ’04, who majored in secondary English
education, tutored at Grant Middle School in Syracuse
while taking the required course Literacy Across the
Curriculum. The course was developed as part of a
University Vision Fund project led by Chandler-Olcott
in response to new state regulations requiring all
students in teacher preparation programs to take six
credits in literacy education, regardless of their
concentration. “I tutored two bright, energetic
Bosnian students in English,” Schrom says. “Our
experiences together opened up for me the difficult
challenges faced by students who speak English as
a second language.” Schrom gained a deeper appreciation
for the importance of understanding the needs of a
diverse population in her role as an educator. “This
experience took what we were learning in classes at
SU and brought it into context, highlighting the complexity
and importance of making education inclusive to students
of all backgrounds,” she says.
As
an administrator, DeSiato sees the relationship between
the School of Education and the district come full
circle. “Research influences our practice, and
our practice influences research,” she says.
“Working with SU, where they are passionate about
improving urban education, helps us remain current
by looking at ourselves through the lens of higher
education.” She believes the presence of SU students
and faculty in Syracuse schools also benefits SCSD
children in ways that go beyond improved achievement.
“Seeing a diverse population at SU gives them
hope,” she says. “They can envision themselves
as part of that community.”
Cohen
agrees that there is a mutually beneficial nature
to the collaboration. “The relationship is sort
of a learning triangle that includes the School of
Education, the SCSD, and SU students like me,”
he says. “There’s not a single thing I’ve
done in the schools—as a tutor, student teacher,
or graduate assistant—that didn’t benefit
all three. Whatever you do as part of this partnership,
you are both the teacher and the learner. Everybody
wins.”
Shortly
before this issue went to press, Professor Columbus “Ted” Grace passed away. The article appears
here as it was written prior to his death, as a tribute
to his memory and in honor of his contributions to
the School of Education.
|
CNY
Education Consortium
In 1986, concerned leaders of area elementary
and secondary schools and institutions of higher
education formed the Central New York Education
Consortium to facilitate connections among educational
entities and enhance the quality of education
in Central New York. The group now has 22 members
representing area school districts, Boards of
Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES), and
higher education institutions. “The consortium
is unique to New York State, and perhaps the
nation,” says Phillip Martin G’69,
G’74, chair of the consortium and superintendent
of the Fayetteville-Manlius Central School District.
“The four or five meetings we have each
year are well-attended because our discussions
are pertinent, meaningful, and productive.” Recent discussion topics included technology
and the relationship between education and the
economy. The
consortium sponsors activities designed for
professional development, improvement of individual
organizations, and enhancement of Central New
York educational institutions. The consortium
offers an orientation workshop each fall for
teachers new to the area. In addition, it tackles
problems in the educational systems, recently
working to eliminate a shortage of substitute
teachers. Ronald Cavanagh, vice president of
undergraduate studies at SU and the University’s
representative to the consortium, says the group
effectively addresses Central New York’s
education agenda. “It is a great way for
area institutions to stay abreast of each other,” he says.
Martin
sees the consortium as a much-needed opportunity
to promote synergy among local schools. “The
ultimate testament to the consortium’s
meaningfulness is its 18-year longevity,”
he says. “As a group of willing volunteers
committed to the consortium’s purpose,
we believe we’ve made a significant contribution
to education in the region.”
—Tanya
Fletcher |
