Two Abilene Christian University faculty members have been selected to participate in the inaugural Inquiry Initiative sponsored by the Association of Teacher Educators.
Dr. Dana Mayhall, assistant professor of teacher education, and Dr. Amy Spiker, associate professor of teacher education, are two of just 80 university- and school-based teacher educators and education scholars from around the nation chosen to participate in the initiative, a first of its kind collaborative exploration of teacher education practices and research, focused on opportunity gaps in education.
Opportunity gaps are defined as the unequal or inequitable distribution of resources and options individuals or groups encounter in schools, colleges and universities, and employment and professional contexts.
“ATE is committed to exploring ways teacher education scholars and practitioners can impact the pressing teaching and learning challenges of our time,” said Rachelle Rogers, president of ATE. “The Inquiry Initiative is a unique, sustainable and collaborative structure we believe can have that impact.”
The initiative aims to cultivate and support collaborative research inquiries across geographic and institutional contexts over a three-year span. Imagined as an alternative to the traditional mode of professional engagement available via most academic conferences, it will include sustained and sustainable professional partnerships that result in pedagogical innovations, research reports and presentations, and education policies.
The Association of Teacher Educators is the nation’s oldest professional organization dedicated to the preparation of teachers. It aims to promote advocacy, equity, leadership and professionalism for teacher educators in all settings and supports quality education for all learners at all levels. An individual membership organization, ATE enhances quality teacher education through both exemplary clinical practice and research.
Learn more about ACU’s Department of Teacher Education.
— Wendy Kilmer
July 29, 2022