1. The wording of NCATE PDS Standard I: Learning Community is as follows: “The PDS is a learning-centered community that supports the integrated learning and development of P-12 students, candidates, and PDS partners through inquiry-based practice. PDS partners share a common vision of teaching and learning grounded in research and practitioner knowledge. They believe that adults and children learn best in the context of practice. Learning supported by this community results in change and improvement in individual practice and in the policies and practices of the partnering institutions.

The PDS partnership includes principal and supporting institutions and individuals. The principal PDS partners are members of the P-12 schools and professional preparation programs who agree to collaborate. The supporting PDS partner institutions include the university, the school district, and the teacher union or professional education association(s). Arts and sciences faculty, other interested school and university faculty, family members, community members, and other affiliated schools are important PDS participants in the extended learning community” (NCATE, 2001 National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education. 2001. Standards for professional development schools., Washington, DC: Author.  [Google Scholar], p. 9).