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Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education Study Examines Outcomes of Bank Street College Teacher Preparation Program

The “Bank-Street Approach” Produces Dedicated, Prepared Teachers Ready to Engage the Whole Student to Create Effective, Robust, and Meaningful Learning Experiences
May 31, 2016

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                  

Contact: Ralph Rogers, ralphr@stanford.edu

Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education

650.725.8600

Stanford, CA – The Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education (SCOPE) is pleased to announce the release of a study, Teaching for a Changing World: The Graduates of Bank Street College of Education. Bank Street College of Education is a recognized leader in early childhood education, teacher and leader preparation, and developing innovative practice in school systems across the country.  The study provides insight into the outcomes of Bank Street’s teacher preparation model for developing well-prepared, effective teachers able to create meaningful learning opportunities for physical, social, emotional, and cognitive growth.

Commissioned by Bank Street to determine the impact of its teacher education program, the multi-year, multi-phase study examined the quality of teacher preparation, instructional practices of program graduates, and the influence graduates have on their students’ learning.  Findings demonstrate strong retention rates among Bank Street graduates and that these graduates feel exceptionally well-prepared across subject-matters. Graduates also feel prepared to meet the needs of diverse students, prepared to offer learner- and learning-centered practices, and prepared to offer an engaging, inquiry-oriented curriculum. 

“At Bank Street, we help students develop the skills necessary to create rich, challenging learning environments that inspire a lifelong love of learning,” said Cecelia Traugh, Dean, Bank Street Graduate School of Education. “Our mission is to improve the education of children and their teachers by applying all available knowledge about learning and growth, and by connecting teaching and learning meaningfully to the outside world. We are pleased to see concrete evidence that our master’s level certification programs provide teachers with the tools needed for high-quality classroom practice.”

The following highlights from the study document the influence of Bank Street’s teacher preparation program on graduate students:

  • Eighty-seven percent of Bank Street graduates responded that their teacher preparation program was “effective” or “very effective” vs. 66% of comparison teachers.
  • Bank Street graduates report higher confidence in content area preparation than peers from other schools: an 18% advantage in science, 20% in English language and literacy, and 23% in math. 
  • When asked about the utility of specific aspects of their graduate program in preparing them as teachers, Bank Street graduates were significantly more likely than comparison teachers to report that program coursework (83% vs. 65%), advisement/supervisory support (82% vs. 67%), and the caliber of the instructors (88% vs. 55%) were “helpful” or “very helpful” in preparing them as teachers.
  • When asked about the ability to plan, create, and maintain effective learning environments, Bank Street graduates were significantly more likely than comparison teachers to report they were “well” or “very well” prepared to develop curriculum that builds on students’ experiences, interests, and abilities (86% vs. 54%), use knowledge of learning, subject matter, curriculum, and student development to plan instruction (86% vs. 60%), develop a classroom environment that promotes social/emotional development and group responsibility (86% vs. 58%), and develop students’ questioning and discussion skills (83% vs. 51%).
  • Overwhelmingly, 90% of respondents of the employer survey indicate that Bank Street graduates are “well prepared” as teachers.
  • Bank Street graduates enter and remain in the field of education at high rates, with 87% remaining in the field of education and 57% reporting that they were working as a P-12 classroom teacher (across a survey of one dozen years).

Bank Street’s long-established program for teacher preparation is guided by the philosophy that children learn best when they are actively engaged with materials, ideas, and people. By combining advisement, a process unique to Bank Street in which graduate students in small groups are mentored in their field experiences, with extensive academic coursework, Bank Street students connect theory with practice in ways that directly support their development as critical thinkers and educators.

“The commissioning of this study by Bank Street is a sign of institutional reflectiveness and signals the importance the organization places on evaluating and continually improving its work,” said Linda Darling-Hammond, Ed.D., Charles E. Ducommun Professor of Education Emeritus at Stanford University Graduate School of Education, and one of the co-principal investigators for the study. “This investigation has allowed us to explore the outcomes of a unique, longstanding institution of teacher preparation that has a clear vision of its pedagogical goals and strategies. We found that the Bank Street developmental-interaction approach — identified by many in the field as the “Bank Street approach”— promotes progressive, developmentally grounded education that places children at the center and their learning at the fore of the teacher’s consciousness.”

Ira Lit, PhD, Associate Professor of Education (Teaching), Stanford Graduate School of Education and the other co-principal investigator for the study said, "In order to comprehend and evaluate the impact of an enterprise as complex as teacher preparation, we used a multipronged approach that included interviews, extensive surveys, extended observations, case studies of schools and classrooms, and evaluation of pupil learning gains. This approach resulted in a noteworthy range of findings: Bank Street graduates stay in teaching at high rates and take on a variety of leadership roles; they feel exceptionally well prepared across subject-matter areas and in their ability to meet the needs of diverse students, and employers concur with these perceptions; and, perhaps most significantly, in observing in the classrooms of Bank Street graduates we found evidence of children’s capacities to read, write, analyze, problem-solve, think creatively, and make connections to the broader community in rich and meaningful ways.”

The full study, titled Teaching for a Changing World: The Graduates of Bank Street College of Education, includes five publications:

  • The Threads They Follow: Bank Street Teachers in a Changing World
  • The Preparation, Professional Pathways, and Effectiveness of Bank Street Graduates
  • Learning to Play, Playing to Learn: The Bank Street Developmental-Interaction Approach in Liliana’s Kindergarten Classroom
  • Artful Teaching and Learning: The Bank Street Developmental-Interaction Approach at Midtown West School
  • A School Growing Roots: The Bank Street Developmental-Interaction Approach at Community Roots Charter School

SCOPE researchers analyzed extensive surveys of graduates and employers, large-scale administrative data on pupil learning in New York City public schools, in-depth classroom and school observations, and interviews of graduates, principals, and College faculty to determine the impact of Bank Street’s approach to teaching teachers. The full report is available to download at https://edpolicy.stanford.edu/BankStreet.

About Bank Street College of Education

Bank Street College of Education is a recognized leader in early childhood education, teacher and leader preparation, and developing innovative practice in school systems across the country. For one hundred years, Bank Street’s focus has been improving the education of children and their teachers by applying to the education process all available knowledge about learning and growth, and by connecting teaching and learning meaningfully to the outside world. Learn more about Bank Street’s Children’s Programs, Graduate School of Education, and Division of Innovation, Policy and Research at bankstreet.edu.