Dr. Ellis Hurd, professor in the School of Teaching and Learning, led the revision process for the Association for Middle Level Education (AMLE) Middle Level Teacher Preparation (MLTP) Standards.
The Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) recently approved the revisions, and Hurd serves as the AMLE CAEP coordinator.
This revision marks an important milestone for the MLTP Standards, which were last revised in 2012, ensuring teacher candidates are specifically prepared to educate young adolescents during a developmentally critical time in their education. The revision also ensures the MLTP Standards’ alignment with AMLE’s landmark position paper on best practice in the middle grades, “The Successful Middle School: This We Believe.”
Hurd could not overstate the importance of the revision. “Revised AMLE MLTP Standards use contemporary and asset-based language and research, developmentally responsive pedagogies, equitable, culturally relevant, and sustaining pedagogies, and anti-racist and social justice frameworks,” Hurd said. “The changes are structured around a holistic approach to understanding the standards versus an ordinal one. This holistic organization of our revised standards also provides a way for teacher preparation programs to understand and use the standards and their components for teacher candidates progressing through programs for middle level teacher preparation.”
AMLE believes that the specialized professional preparation of teachers of young adolescents must be a high priority of teacher preparation programs and is committed to ensuring that all young adolescents are taught by highly qualified teachers.
“I am so grateful to all of the passionate educators who dedicated time and effort to carefully crafting these revised standards,” said Stephanie Simpson, AMLE CEO. “This revision shows that AMLE continues to be the leader in promoting responsive policies, practices, and programs for young adolescents and their teachers. We’re proud to make these available to our membership in a variety of new, approachable formats.”
For questions regarding the standards, visit AMLE’s teacher preparation webpage or contact Dr. Ellis Hurd.
