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COMMUNITIES FOR LEARNING: LEADING LASTING CHANGE
(Formerly Center for the Study of Expertise In Teaching and Learning)

Organization Directory Page

• Organization description

• Source of official student records

• Titles of evaluated learning experiences

• Descriptions and credit recommendations

Source of official student records President, Communities for Learning: Leading Lasting Change, 249-02 Jericho Turnpike, Floral Park, New York 11001. 

Descriptions and credit recommendations

Curriculum and Assessment Design, Professional Development Design, or Action Research
Location: Fellowship program administered through the offices of Communities for Learning: Leading Lasting Change (formerly CSETL). 
Length: 150 hours (seven full-day sessions per academic year for two years and five full-day sessions over two summers). 
Dates: September 2000 - December 2007.
Objectives: Deepen one's ability to investigate and understand the key elements of best learner-centered, standards-based teaching and assessment practice; design and implement educational materials and processes that incorporate best learner-centered, standards-based teaching and assessment practices as teachers, professional developers, and school/district administrators; systematically reflect on one's own practice; and hone one's ability to facilitate adult learning by sharing one's best practice expertise with the educational community.
Instruction: This is the first phase of the Fellowship program. Each session consists of the following: a lecture/plenary discussion; mini-sessions led by a faculty member, invited guest, or Fellow regarding a particular area of expertise; one-on-one conferences with a faculty member to discuss design activities;  research and design work sessions, during which each Fellow pursues his/her research and/or curriculum, assessment, or program design, while having access to the resources that the organization's professional community provides, including collegial collaboration, feedback and inquiry, and faculty critique/feedback; and peer review conferences among the Fellows and staff. During this component, Fellows complete a baseline portfolio, consisting of an educational philosophy statement, context/background statement, analysis of professional strengths and weaknesses, goals for professional work, and explanation of their motivation to pursue the fellowship. In addition, the portfolio includes annotated experience/lesson sample(s), which can be in the form of a text document, video, or other media, that shows the applicant's achievements as an educator with an accompanying reflection. Fellows then begin work on the summative assessment, by completing a standards-based curriculum/assessment prototype, a professional development prototype, or an action research study. Each of these is designed, field tested, and then revised until ready for publication and dissemination nationally and internationally. Topics covered include: Attributes and components of learner-centered, standards-based curriculum, assessment, and instruction; action research processes and design; attributes and components of professional portfolios; attributes and components of professional learning communities; arts integration in curriculum design; strategic learning; critical thinking strategies, questioning strategies; building collegial inquiry; systems thinking; and self-regulation and strategic learning. Outside work involves readings and assignments, research work leading to the strategic learning. Outside work involves readings and assignments, research work leading to the design phase, and drafting and refining the curriculum, professional development or action research prototype.
Credit recommendation: In the graduate degree category, 4 semester hours in Education (11/04). NOTE: This course and Certification of Professional Expertise must both be completed to benefit from the credit recommendation for either course.

Certification of Professional Expertise
Location: Fellowship program administered through the offices of Communities for Learning: Leading Lasting Change (formerly CSETL).
Length: 80 hours (seven full-day sessions during one academic year and five full-day sessions over one summer).
Dates: October 2002 - December 2007.
Objectives: Use learner-centered, standards-based curriculum and assessment as defined by current research; present oneself as a professional; use reflection upon practice; and commit and be willing to share one's expertise.
Instruction: This is the second phase of the Fellowship program, which builds upon and adds to the first phase. Each session consists of the following: a lecture/plenary discussion; mini-sessions led by a faculty member, invited guest, or Fellow regarding a particular area of expertise; one-on-one conferences with a faculty member to discuss design activities;  research and design work sessions, during which each Fellow pursues his/her research and/or curriculum, assessment, or program design, while having access to the resources that the organization's professional community provides, including collegial collaboration, feedback and inquiry, and faculty critique/feedback; and peer review conferences among the Fellows and staff.  After successfully completing the first phase, Fellows begins the process of completing a certification portfolio that systematically documents his/her professional expertise and includes evidence from the Fellow's practice, reflection, and research of each of the learning objectives listed above. Specifically, Fellows refine or replace artifacts included in the baseline portfolio to demonstrate achievement and growth as a professional and to showcase the use of learner-centered curriculum and assessments that are informed by current research on best practice; Fellows refine artifacts to showcase their ability to present oneself as a professional, by providing a rich multi-faceted portrayal with a unifying theme, metaphor, or question that ties all the pieces together, and that incorporates technology, media, or art into the portfolio presentation; Fellows refine the portfolio to demonstrate a commitment to questioning and re-thinking practices to improve them; and Fellows refine the portfolio to include artifacts that demonstrate sharing of expertise and which reveal the fellow's commitment to the profession. Topics are a continuation of the first phase and include: Attributes and components of learner-centered, standards-based curriculum, assessment, and instruction; action research processes and design; attributes and components of professional portfolios; attributes and components of professional learning communities; arts integration in curriculum design; strategic learning; critical thinking strategies, questioning strategies; and building collegial inquiry.  Outside work involves readings and assignments, research work leading to the design of the certification portfolio, and drafting and refining the certification portfolio.
Credit recommendation: In the graduate degree category, 3 semester hours in Education (11/04). NOTE: This course and Curriculum and Assessment Design, Professional Development Design, or Action Research must both be completed to benefit from the credit recommendation for either course.

Updated 6/23/08

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