The Hechinger Report – Jackie Mader
“The Obama administration is hammering for better preparation of teachers in its new budget, including more support for “innovative” pathways to the classroom. The president’s new budget calls for school districts to develop “innovative strategies for recruiting, developing, evaluating, and retaining excellent educators,” just a month after the passage of the new federal education law, the Every Student Succeeds Act, emphasized new pathways for teachers to become qualified. If it passed, the budget would likely mean more support for alternative routes, including sped-up training programs like Teach For America and residency programs where teachers work as apprentices under master teachers while also completing coursework. They’ve been growing rapidly. The number of alternative programs nationwide increased from 70 programs in the 2000-2001 school year to 658 in 2011, according to the U.S. Department of Education. These programs now make up 31 percent of all teacher preparation programs in the nation, although research has yet to show whether or not alternative routes in general create better teachers.”(more)