Here are my notes about this wonderful presentation:
- Teacher quality programs are varied around the nation.
- 62% of new teachers felt they were unprepared for the classroom
- Duncan is stunned that there's been no feedback given to teacher prep programs on how well they're doing
- Duncan stated that 1.6M teachers will retire in the next decade- this is a huge opportunity and warrants better
- Outcomes-based accountability coming to teacher preparation programs, get ready!
- Currently our programs serve no one well - improving education can not be deferred!
- America's teacher and students deserve world class teacher prep programs
The program roll out as defined by Duncan:
- Reward good programs
- 3 elements: reduce reporting burden, but help with data collection, reform financing service to pre-sevice teachers, and provide support for institutions that prepare teachers from diverse backgrounds.
1. reduce reporting burden, but help with data collection
- report on outcome measures (student growth, job placement, retention rates, survey programs of graduates)
- 2/3 of teachers say they are not ready for the classroom
2. reform financing service to pre-sevice teachers
- provide high achieving students with scholarships
3. provide support for institutions that prepare teachers from diverse backgrounds.
- 40m budget request for minority serving institutions
- work with congress to build a "world class" teacher prep program
The next portion of the live webquest was presented by Dennis Van Roekel, President, National Education Association.
- The NEA advocates for educational professionals, fulfill promise of education, and prepare every student to succeed.
- 6 core values, one is professionalism.
- Work to build the profession
- 47% of teachers, leave within the first 5 years of teaching!
- No student should have a teacher who is ill- prepared.
- Applauds extra efforts to put best teachers in most challenging schools and diversify workforce
- Invest in induction programs
- Meaningful professional development
- School districts should be stronger in selecting new teachers
- Identified what successful teachers do differently
- Move towards a collaborative world of teacher improvement
- Just as great teachers are made, not born, so are great teacher providers
- There are differences across and within institutions who prepare new teachers
- There is a need for measurements of such things as whether a teacher can lead discussions within the classroom
- Need to focus upon the product, not the process! There are many different ways to reach success.
- Support and challenge people to be great
- No one enters in this educational business because they want to be unsuccessful - everyone wants to be successful
- Leadership is the key
