To the Editor:
A recent article about teacher-prep standards (“Colleges Grapple With Teacher-Prep Standards,” August 29, 2018) reports that teacher-prep programs are still grappling with CAEP Standard 4, which measures the program’s impact on P-12 student learning and development. However, over the past eight years, we at Miami University have developed and validated a simple, cost-effective way to meet parts of this standard.
Campus Mentors is a single-room alternative school for secondary students located on a college campus and supported by teacher candidates, either as academic tutors or one-on-one mentors. The model can accommodate various pedagogical or curricular innovations for K-12 learners, as well as provide flexible roles for teacher candidates (e.g. tutoring, small-group lessons, demonstrations, one-time programs). Teacher candidates receive real-life experience engaging with youth at risk, and colleges can easily demonstrate direct impact on youth, which can enhance accreditation data, teacher candidate recruitment, and community relations.
Campus Mentors saves colleges of education thousands in administrative and transportation costs by setting up a placement system whereby teacher candidates and faculty do not need to drive to school-based placements. Schools also save thousands with its free tutoring and mentoring that have been recognized by AACTE and CAEP to improve student grades and behavior. Miami University will be providing free technical assistance to up to five colleges of education nationwide wishing to implement this model for the 2019-2020 school year. More information can be found at campusmentors.org.
Leah Wasburn-Moses
Professor, Educational Psychology, Miami University
Director, Campus Mentors
Oxford, Ohio
