A Different Kind of Graduate School
The mission of The Charles Sposato Graduate School of Education (Sposato) is to prepare unusually effective first-year teachers, who train as residents and associate teachers in high-performing public schools in Boston, to succeed in high-poverty schools. Through Sposato, we aim to uncover new insights about the nature of great teaching and then develop, validate, and disseminate innovative approaches to teacher preparation.
You might have looked at our homepage and wondered, "Where's the quad?" "Where are the people sitting in circles in the sunshine and talking about stuff?"
Many people describe the first year of teaching as the most difficult in your life. We think that the rigor of the preparation year should match the rigor of the first-year experience. We offer a different kind of training, one that is more closely aligned with the intensity and rigor of teaching in a high-performing school serving a low-income population.
What Makes Sposato Unique
| TRADITIONAL EDUCATION SCHOOL APPROACH | SPOSATO APPROACH |
|---|---|
| Coursework focuses on a range of pedagogical areas. | Program is direct and prescriptive in its teaching of specific pedagogical “moves” and habits. |
| Most of the time in courses is spent thinking about teaching. | Coursework involves high dosages of simulated teaching practice and feedback that is facilitated by expert coaches. |
| Students receive several coaching sessions over the course of their student teaching. | Students receive individualized feedback after every day they student teach. |
| Faculty is primarily composed of researchers. | Faculty composed entirely of practitioners (i.e. experienced classroom teachers and school leaders). |
| Assessment is based primarily on performance in coursework. | Assessment is based upon coursework as well as teaching performance. |
| Preparation is aimed at a wide variety of student populations across many types of schools. | Preparation is focused on serving low-income students in high-performing college-preparatory public schools. |
| Most people who start the program finish with a degree and a teaching license. | Only about two thirds of people who start with Sposato complete the program. |
| Graduate students finish their degree then get contacted by the alumni office for donations. | Sposato continues to provide ongoing coaching to its students during their first year of full-time teaching. |
| The traditional graduate school have optional career counseling, job fairs, and students are free to apply to jobs wherever they would like. | Sposato serves as a broker to support placement in our wide network of partner schools. 100% of students are placed as first-year teachers. |