New state rule forces changes in education school graduation requirements

New proposed Indiana Department of Education rules will require IU's School of Education to change graduation requirements.

Starting July 1, 2010, the Indiana Department of Education will put into action their proposed rule revisions for educator accountability. The rules make sure teaching students take more classes in the area of the state where they will eventually teach.

The revisions to the current license regulations hope to insure that “the next generation of Hoosier kids have teachers who have a deep understanding of the content of the material they teach,” said Cam Savage, Communications Director of the Department of Education.

Savage said that the most important thing if these reforms go through is that future teachers have a much deeper content knowledge and understanding of what they teach.

While Savage feels that this revision is an opportunity for the IU School of Education students to be leaders, some faculty of the IU School of Education are still uneasy about the goal and outcome of the changes.

"Teaching is much more than understanding content,” said Assistant Dean for Teacher Education Jill Shedd. “Teaching is about children and students and how they learn while making content applicable to students.”