Gardner-Webb University in North Carolina Selects Teachscape to Help Prepare Student Teachers for Teaching Success

Teachscape to provide school of education with video-based teaching and learning tools to support new textbook-free initiative

SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 1, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Gardner-Webb University's School of Education in Boiling Springs, N.C. has selected Teachscape, the leader in delivering Web-based solutions and expert services to improve teaching practice, to help launch a new textbook-free initiative and prepare students for success in the teaching field. The School of Education will use Teachscape's video-based and online learning tools as an integral part of Gardner-Webb's teaching and learning processes.

"We're committed to continuously improving our program and empowering our students and teachers to continuously improve as well," said Dr. Kelly Taylor, assistant professor and chair of middle grades education at Gardner-Webb University's School of Education. "With the state moving to textbook-free teaching, we need to prepare our students to teach in an environment where content is digital and Teachscape is helping us do this."

The School of Education students will use Teachscape's tools to access courses online, view video examples of best practices in teaching, and better reflect on their own teaching by seeing it in action. These student videos will also provide professors at the School with more opportunities to review students' teaching in the field to inform feedback and better target instruction. Additionally, the School's administration will be able to use the student data collected to effectively evaluate its teacher preparation program as a whole.

Starting this semester, the School of Education will deliver an online curriculum integrating research-based courses from Teachscape Learn, a video-rich professional learning system, to help reinforce key concepts being taught in class. Teachers will use Teachscape Learn to deliver the courses, track and monitor student learning progress, and provide targeted instruction as needed.

Students in the School of Education will also be able to capture video of their own teaching using iPads, and upload their videos to the Teachscape Reflect observation and evaluation system. Students will then use Teachscape Learn to view their own teaching in action and better reflect on their practice. They will also Teachscape Learn and Teachscape Reflect to collaborate with peers on instructional best practices and share videos of their student-taught micro lessons with their teachers to receive meaningful feedback.

"As rising educators, we'll be able to use these new tools from Teachscape to critique ourselves and further challenge the learning experiences we already have in class time and in the field," said Amber Travis, a senior in the School of Education's elementary education program and president of the Student North Carolina Association of Educators (SNCAE). "This initiative will really help Gardner-Webb's education program continue to excel as the gold standard of teacher preparation. I think it promises to open doors to success for myself and my peers as future educators."

To learn more about Teachscape, visit www.teachscape.com.

About Teachscape
Teachscape uniquely combines innovative technology, engaging content and expert services to develop great teachers. From its classroom observation training and technology to its powerful web-based content delivery platform, Teachscape's award-winning products and services have been inspired by its dedication to sparking transformative change in teaching practice.  Since 1999, Teachscape has worked with schools and school districts, charter networks, archdioceses, universities and state education departments to measurably and continuously improve the effectiveness of educators to produce gains in student achievement. Teachscape's partners include Charlotte Danielson, ETS, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Stanford University, and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching to help shape its vision, its products, and its strategies. To learn more about Teachscape and its complete collection of professional development offerings, go to http://www.teachscape.com.

SOURCE Teachscape