Fact Sheet

MISSION

The mission of the Johns Hopkins School of Education is to generate knowledge to inform policy and practice and educate society to address the most important challenges faced by individuals, schools, and communities.

VISION

The Johns Hopkins School of Education is committed to advancing and disseminating knowledge to increase educational opportunity and transform lives.

DISPOSITIONS OF THE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION

The goal of these dispositions is to illustrate our continued commitment, as a member of Johns Hopkins University, to produce candidates who are aware and ethical in pursuing their chosen practice.

All candidates who complete a certificate, master’s degree, and/or doctorate in the School of Education will be:

1. Research Centered

1.1 Committed to Inquiry and Innovation

Candidates will a) be prepared to foster in others and engage in themselves the pursuit of life-long learning, continuous self-reflection, and research within their own practice or beyond; b) maintain fluency in scholarship in their field, professional knowledge, as well as in effective and ethical practices; c) evaluate and effectively implement appropriate new methods and tools; and d) incorporate appropriate knowledge-building technologies in their practice.

1.2 Committed to Being a Reflective Practitioner

Candidates will a) actively engage in critical, creative, and metacognitive thinking to support conceptual understanding; and b) engage in independent and interdependent problem solving and experiential approaches to learning.

1.3 Committed to Practice-Centered Research

Candidates will a) seek links between research in the field and application in professional practice; b) define their professional identity not only as scholars, but also as producers of research as a method of improving professional practice; and c) seek to understand the context of professional practice to deepen the understanding and application of their research.

2. Collaborative

2.1 Committed to Creating Positive Climates

Candidates will a) promote a climate in which learning is valued and on-going; b) provide choices to enable all to share in and contribute to social and intellectual life; and c) uphold fair and equitable standards for conduct that encourage responsibility, mutual respect, and civic values, and that safeguard the physical, intellectual, and emotional well-being of each and every member of the community.

2.2 Committed to Active Engagement

Candidates will a) actively engage in a community of learners that develop relationships, programs, and projects with colleagues in P-20 schools and educational agencies designed to improve the quality of education for each and every student and education professional; and b) contribute professionally to the field at local, regional, state, and national levels.

3. Socially and Culturally Conscious

3.1 Committed to Fostering Social Justice

Candidates will a) seek to understand their own privileges and/or prejudices, the stereotypes embedded in educational materials, rules/laws, policies and the cultural bias that exist in schools and other education-related or societal institutions; b) work toward a global society where equality is recognized as a basic human right; c) promote social and environmental responsibility; and d) empower self and others to identify opportunities for growth toward excellence and equity.

3.2 Committed to Developing Cross-Cultural Competence

Candidates will a) promote respect for self, students, families, and cultures; b) demonstrate a belief that everyone can learn and values human diversity and equity in the learning environment; and c) examine own biases and prejudices and develop necessary awareness, attitudes, knowledge, and skills for effectively and respectfully teaching and mentoring people whose culture differs from their own.

4. Ethical

4.1 Committed to Acting Responsibly

Candidates will a) act with integrity, are considerate, respectful, punctual, appropriate in appearance, conduct, and in all interactions with students, families, mentors, and colleagues; and b) be creative and self-reliant in finding appropriate solutions to problems and managing dilemmas.

 4.2 Committed to Acting with Integrity

Candidates will a) conduct themselves in a professional manner; b) be honest, open to constructive feedback from others, manage situations of conflict and their own stress appropriately, and take responsibility for own actions; and c) conduct research and practice efforts intended to discover what is rather than to prove what may be anticipated.