All next week, Michigan Radio will air a special series of reports looking at teaching and how well Michigan’s colleges and universities are doing at turning out effective teachers.
There is wide agreement among education experts that teacher quality is the most important school-based factor in how students do in school. But how do we define what makes a good teacher?
Through the series, “Learning to Teach,” Michigan Radio reporters will examine a variety of topics including training teachers specifically for urban classrooms; classroom management; and measuring teacher effectiveness in the classroom.
“Learning to Teach” reports will air during Morning Edition (M-F, 5:00-9:00 am) and All Things Considered (M-F, 4:00-6:30 pm), Monday, March 30-Friday, April 3, 2015, on Michigan Radio. The reports will also be available online here.
During the same week, Michigan Radio’s daily talk show, Stateside with Cynthia Canty, will feature a special complementary series of interviews on the topic; from how Michigan compares to other states in relation to teacher evaluations, to teacher pay and retention.
Additionally during Stateside, Michigan Radio’s special project M I Curious will answer the question, “Where do our lawmakers’ kids go to school?” on Wednesday, April 1. And, on the Thursday, April 2, edition of Stateside, The Next Idea will present the academic perspective from the Dean of the University of Michigan’s School of Education, Deborah Ball.
“We talk a lot as a state about school funding, about what kids need to learn in school and about what types of schools do the best job. But we don’t talk as much about what makes a good teacher,” said Tamar Charney, Michigan Radio’s Program Director. “I’m pleased Michigan Radio is adding to the dialogue about education by asking overlooked questions about how we train teachers to do their jobs of educating Michigan’s children.”
