Department of Curriculum and Instruction

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Professional Development Schools

The UNCG School of Education began its Professional Development School (PDS) Programs in Elementary and Middle Grades Education in 1991. The Department of Curriculum and Instruction identified three basic goals for these programs:

  • to improve preservice teacher education
  • to enhance professional development of on-site educators and university faculty
  • to promote research on teacher development and school improvement

Since 1991, the department has made significant progress toward these goals. Elementary and Middle Grades majors now have internship experiences that span the four semesters preceding student teaching. By the time they begin student teaching, they have spent more than 400 hours in classrooms. Courses and seminars link the study of teaching with these internships. Members of the faculty have assisted with staff development at each of the 21 PDS sites and have benefited from more opportunities to teach in K-8 classrooms. Teams of faculty, teachers, and administrators have completed studies of partnership activities and have reported these studies at conferences and in professional journals.

The department's approach to teacher preparation is based on inquiry teams, each of which works with two or three professional development schools. Inquiry teams are composed of 25-30 preservice teachers, a faculty team leader, and a 50% FTE doctoral student. Each team typically has a focus (e.g., science, reading, technology) which is often determined by the expertise of the faculty team leader. Preservice teachers spend 10 hours per week in schools during three semesters (junior year and fall of senior year) and complete full-time student teaching during the spring of their senior year. Preservice teachers usually spend three mornings in the schools each week. Since 1994, UNCG has been working with a local high school to develop a secondary PDS program. This program began to crystallize in 1996 with the establishment of a professional year sequence.

In many respects, these programs have been successful. CUI graduates are highly sought by school districts. Principals have reported high rates of success among first year graduates. Annual evaluations of the program have documented strong support from preservice and inservice teachers.

List of Professional Development Schools:

Elementary Grades

  • Archer Elementary
  • Claxton Elementary
  • Guilford Primary
  • Hunter Elementary
  • Jamestown Elementary
  • Jesse Wharton Elementary
  • Kernersville Elementary
  • Liberty Intermediate
  • Lindley Elementary
  • Moss Street Elementary
  • Pilot Elementary
  • Reidsville Elementary
  • Thomasville Primary
  • Union Hill Elementary
Middle Grades
  • Guilford Middle
  • Jackson Middle
  • Jamestown Middle

High Schools

  • Smith
  • Western
  • Ragsdale

 

Page updated: 02-Nov-2007

Accessibility Policy

Department of Curriculum and Instruction
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Curry Building, PO Box 26170
Greensboro, NC 27402-6170
VOICE (336) 334-3437
FAX (336) 334-4120
EMAIL cui@uncg.edu