Top Story
February 24, 2011
Metropolitan State University of Denver
Summit addresses demands of urban schools
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| The 4th Annual Great Teachers for our City Schools National Summit will be held April 27-29 at the Embassy Suites Denver-Downtown Convention Center. |
Colorado First Lady Helen Thorpe will read from her best-selling book, “Just Like Us: The True Story of Four Mexican Girls Coming of Age in America,” at the 4th Annual Great Teachers for our City Schools National Summit to be held April 27-29, 2011 at the Embassy Suites Denver.
Sponsored by the Center for Urban Education (CUE) at Metropolitan State College of Denver, the summit aims to build and strengthen a national network where urban educators can share research findings, instructional practices, program strategies, policy initiatives and other resources aimed at developing and supporting the best and most effective teachers for students in high-need urban schools.
Thorpe’s book addresses a timely subject for urban schools across the country, in particular in Colorado as the Senate Education Committee, on Feb. 17, backed legislation that would provide in-state tuition to undocumented students in the state.
CUE Director Esther Rodriguez says Thorpe will read sections that “highlight challenges that immigrant students face to complete high school and prepare to enter college.” Her presentation will be followed by a discussion with Colorado U.S. Rep. Jared Polis on the current political environment to provide educators the resources and tools necessary to effectively prepare immigrant students for college and careers.
It is one of many topics to be addressed at the conference. Nearly 70 proposals from 40 cities around the U.S. have been submitted for the 15 concurrent session slots available for presentations at the summit, which has attracted more than 600 urban educators since 2008.
The response speaks to the national concern about the demands teachers face when working in urban schools throughout the country, according to Rodriguez. “We have the only national conference or summit with a focus on teaching in urban schools.”
Other featured presentations slated for the summit include the following:
Clinical Teacher Preparation and Partnerships for Improved Student Learning in Urban Schools: Panel discussion from members of the NCATE Blue Ribbon Panel that produced Transforming Teacher Education through Clinical Practice: A National Strategy to Prepare Effective Teachers. Access NCATE's Blue Ribbon Panel Report here.
It's Who You Teach, Not Just What You Teach: Preparing Culturally Competent Teachers: Sonia Nieto, professor emerita of language, literacy and culture, School of Education, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, will share her research and analysis on preparing and developing teachers to serve the educational achievement needs of culturally and linguistically diverse learners.
Together We Can: Building Effective Learning Teams for Deeper Student Learning. In this session, Kathleen Fulton, director of Reinventing Schools for the 21st Century at the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future, will challenge the group to take the latest research on learning teams and move it into practice.
Click here to access the 2011 summit’s preliminary program. Information about the summit’s fees is available at registration. The early bird registration date is March 1.
CUE Background: The roots of the Center for Urban Education (CUE) are based in Metro State’s Urban Teacher Partnership (UTP), founded in 2004 as part of a comprehensive effort to prepare teachers to effectively meet the academic needs of urban school students. Today, CUE partners with 18 Denver schools to support teaching and learning beginning in pre-school through high school and into postsecondary education.
