This volume in the Research in Professional Development Schools book
series considers the role professional development schools (PDSs) play
in expanding opportunities for linking research and clinical practice.
As in past volumes of this series, PDS practitioners and researchers
make a compelling case for the power of micro-level initiatives to
change practice. Contributors share ideas to expand PDS work beyond
site-specific contexts to include a broader macro-level agenda for
clinical practice. Authors hope to inspire large scale PDS reform
through replication of successful initiatives featured in this volume.
Evoking change is not easy. Nonetheless, series editors and contributors
conclude that PDSs generate a critical mass of PK-16 educators willing
to form partnerships to address enduring educational dilemmas.
This volume represents a cross section of PDS stakeholders engaged in
research along with innovative projects that uncover the richness of
clinical practice. Higher education faculty, school practitioners, and
preservice teachers featured in these chapters explore the ways PDSs
deepen clinical practice while enriching teaching and learning. We begin
with the discussion by Beebe, Stunkard, and Nath on the National
Association for Professional Development School's (NAPDS's) role to
support teacher candidates' clinical practice through the cooperative
efforts of university and school-based personnel. The authors explain
NAPDS' history and advocacy over the years to promote a context for
school-university partnerships to thrive and expand. As the premier
association guiding the work of collaborative P-12/higher education
partnerships, we welcome the insightful perspectives provided.
