Make teacher programs harder to enter, intense and free
In an addendum to my blog post below on better-prepared teachers, here’s a related New York Times op-ed by Susan Engel, a senior lecturer in psychology and the director of the teaching program at Williams College.
These are her relevant comments: (Go here to the NYT to read her full piece.)
Our best universities have, paradoxically, typically looked down their noses at education, as if it were intellectually inferior. The result is that the strongest students are often in colleges that have no interest in education, while the most inspiring professors aren’t working with students who want to teach. This means that comparatively weaker students in less intellectually rigorous programs are the ones preparing to become teachers.
So the first step is to get the best colleges to throw themselves into the fray.
These new teacher programs should be selective, requiring a 3.5 undergraduate grade point average and an intensive application process. But they should also be free of charge, and admission should include a stipend for the first three years of teaching in a public school.
Once we have a better pool of graduate students, we need to train them differently from how we have in the past. Too often, teaching students spend their time studying specific instructional programs and learning how to handle mechanics like making lesson plans. These skills, while useful, are not what will transform a promising student into a good teacher.
Meanwhile, students should learn their craft the way a surgeon learns to operate: by intense supervision in a real setting with expert mentors.
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22 comments Add your comment
DeKalb Conservative
November 4th, 2009
12:56 pm
“But they should also be free of charge, and admission should include a stipend for the first three years of teaching in a public school.”
What happens after the third year of teaching when that stipend would end?
Privat4e School Guy
November 4th, 2009
1:10 pm
The sad part of this is going to a better school in no way means you can get a better teaching job. Those doing the hiring in many cases don’t know a mediocre school from a great one. Private schools do make this distinction but public schools do not.
jim d
November 4th, 2009
1:17 pm
Once again only focus on new teacher training.
Unfortunately you could train them to do what it is you want. But when they get in the real world of teaching they will almost assuredly fall under the influence of their peers and start doing things the way “THEY’VE ALWAYS BEEN DONE”
Looks like a wasted effort unless we can somehow effect the older about to retire in a few years, stuck in the mud, hate change old timers.
EducationCEO
November 4th, 2009
1:29 pm
Jim D, people also fail to realize that some strange things go on inside of schools (not referring to students), in terms of administrators. Teachers are bogged down with unneccessary meetings, for the sake of saying they had a faculty meeting; filling our unneccssary paperwork, etc. It’s not that teachers can’t teach, they are not given the time to teach. There is a difference. It’s amazing how so many people who have NEVER been in a classroom believe they have the solution…kinda like Arne Duncan being in charge of Education when he has never taught. Just my thoughts.
jim d
November 4th, 2009
1:31 pm
Ed CEO,
are you saying that new teacher morale is uneffected by those that have been there awhile??
Reality 2
November 4th, 2009
3:03 pm
I agree with jim d. All the discussion about evaluating teacher preparation programs never include the field components. We know that collaborating teachers during student teaching is THE most significant influence on preservice teachers. So, by sending them out to the field, teacher education programs are really sabotaging their own efforts.
People who have never taught as classroom teachers can still have very important insights that teachers who are stuck in their own classrooms will never have. Neither one is complete, but we can’t ignore either one, either.
ScienceTeacher671
November 4th, 2009
6:20 pm
I believe schools of education used to have what were called “lab schools”, where preservice teachers learned to teach by doing it. They were teaching under the supervision of their professors, rather than “out in the wild”…maybe teacher training schools would make good charter schools?
cricket
November 4th, 2009
7:07 pm
Good idea science teacher. Just getting the professors into a real school with real children might help a great deal. It is very easy to plan and write about how to deliver instruction with nicely thought out differentiated groupings when you never have to come into contact with an ACTUAL STUDENT. Imagine how those pie in the sky plans might run a muck for the wise professor in a crowded classroom filled with about 27 more ACTUAL STUDENTS. Add in homecoming spirit week festivities and faculty meetings that start at 6:30 am. How would they mentor these young teachers to handle the frequent reality of wireless service on the blink and burning your hand in that copy machine from the Reagan administration that you must become an expert in repairing should you ever need to make a copy of a piece of paper. Of course, only bad teachers make students use paper and pencils so you will get no sympathy for the ink and toner stains on your clothes. Run by the restroom and wash it off before someone notices……- nice idea but you are 6th in line and your next class starts in 2 minutes. You just used up your 1/2 lunch hour fighting with the xerox dinosaur and now you are going to have to wait until 4 or 5 to pee. Maybe you will find a minute between the technology committee meeting and taking up ticket money at the ball game that starts at 6:00. How would the wise bearded professor man explain to the young teachers that this is part of the educational philosophies he espouses. as perhaps being that golden teachable moment she would never again get back and just then , the directive cam through the email that her datta looks strage. The administrative team entered the area……. An a hush fell all around
cricket
November 4th, 2009
7:24 pm
Good idea science teacher. Just getting the professors into a real school with real children might help a great deal. It is very easy to plan and write about how to deliver instruction with nicely thought out differentiated groupings when you never have to come into contact with an ACTUAL STUDENT. Imagine how those pie in the sky plans might run a muck for the wise professor in a crowded classroom filled with about 27 more ACTUAL STUDENTS. Add in homecoming spirit week festivities and faculty meetings that start at 6:30 am. How would they mentor these young teachers to handle the frequent reality of wireless service on the blink and burning your hand in that copy machine from the Reagan administration that you must become an expert in repairing should you ever need to make a copy of a piece of paper. Of course, only bad teachers make students use paper and pencils so you will get no sympathy for the ink and toner stains on your clothes. Run by the restroom and wash it off before someone notices……- nice idea but you are 6th in line and your next class starts in 2 minutes. You just used up your 1/2 lunch hour fighting with the xerox dinosaur and now you are going to have to wait until 4 or 5 to pee. Maybe you will find a minute between the technology committee meeting and taking up ticket money at the ball game that starts at 6:00. How would the wise bearded professor man explain to the young teachers that this is part of the educational philosophies he espouses. as perhaps being that golden teachable moment she would never again get back and just then , the directive came through the email that her data looks strange. and she would be taken from the ticket table to conference room table. After a typical day in her new carerr Camdon County High School , The administrative team entered the area……. An a hush fell all around $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$““““““
linda
November 4th, 2009
8:03 pm
The field of education doesn’t attract the best and brightest because intellectual rigor and general excellence are NOT the goals of our educational system. Schools say that they are but they behave very differently by rewarding the exact opposite. I completely agree that teacher programs should have much higher entrance requirements. I am truly amazed that someone for whom school was not a success story would end up making education a career, but more often than not that seems to be the case. By the way, colleges of education really fight to keep people in who can’t pass a grad school test because they are “caring” people. We need to decide if those coddlers are the answer or if we want people who understand intellectual rigor. (The combination of both is unfortunately rare.) But what makes anyone think these motivated, highly intelligent people would put up with the discipline problems and the sheeple that are the “administration?” Smart people do NOT want to work for such ignorant boobs. Kudos to the smart/persevering teachers who do your best to ignore them and teach anyway! You are the only thing keeping our culture from disappearing.
V for Vendetta
November 4th, 2009
9:06 pm
jim d,
Gotta side with the CEO on this one. I could give two sh1ts what the other teachers do. I do what I think is right. Let the old crones complain all they want, no one is listening . . . .
Starting with the newbies will ensure that there is a constantly growing number of good, solid teachers entering a given school. I mean, you can TRY to teach an old dog new tricks . . . but we all know where that is going.
high school teacher
November 4th, 2009
9:51 pm
I was snubbed in my college English classes because I wanted to be a teacher instead of a pot-smoking philosopher in an ivory tower somewhere. Yes, there is a negative stereotype attached to being an education major.
In my methods classes, however, I was very fortunate; I was a guinea pig in a teacher/professor exchange. My methods instructor (and the one who completed my observations in student teaching) was actually a real live high school teacher who had traded positions with the college professor who normally taught methods. The college prof went into a high school classroom for a year to practice what she preached (and experienced a great awakening), and I got the benefit of learning from someone who had just left the front line. I truly felt perpared for teaching and had a successful student teaching experience and first year teaching. What a concept, huh?
Sarge
November 4th, 2009
10:49 pm
It must be nice living in a world completely devoid of harsh realities while maintaining all the “Alice in Wonderland” aspects known as the Ideal Plain, the world of reality. Sure, absolutely…we need all these “points of excellence” in education: high standards of selectivity in the teacher ed programs, top notch professional follow-through of all education graduates, etc, etc. And, the esteemed writer espouses, all this excellence should come at a price tag of NOTHING…I believe FREE was the operational word used to describe this pie-in-the-sky view of what the future of teacher education should be. Hey, we can apply this very same philosophy to any and all peofessional fields of endeavor…FREE medical education, FREE business education in accounting and economics, FREE…why the possibilities are endless! Better yet, teacher education could be funded entirely through the ever-popular stimulus monies flowing throughout corporate America.
Please forgive a hint of sarcasm, however, one cannot help but wonder if the writer is suggesting that teacher ed should be entirely funded through yet an additional tax burden on the American worker (that, one would presume, would include the writer).
Before we go screaming into the night with the worn out refrain of attributing this spare-no-expense approach to our kids’ future, let’s look at a very basic issue. Recent studies have indicated that some 75% of youth are inelligible for military duty. I’m not espousing military service here (that’s another arguement), but rather…THIS IS A FIRST! At no time in history has a nation’s youth been overwhelmingly rejected from the military. Following decades of babying youth with self-esteem programs, dumbed-down curricula leading youth to believe they are somehow smarter than they are, etc, etc…NO AMOUNT OF ENHANCED EDUCATION IS GOING TO MATTER, until we, society, remove from youth this “cloak” of superiority, that they are, somehow, above life’s requirements of “getting dirty”. I’ll not argue all the issues…we’ve read and heard them too many times. BOTTOM LINE: LETS STOP BABYING YOUTH.
Reality 2
November 4th, 2009
11:17 pm
I actually know that many of college professors in teacher education programs can actually teach real kids well. There are others who can’t. Just like real teachers – some are good and some are horrible.
teacher/parent
November 5th, 2009
9:43 am
@high school teacher-You are very lucky to have had such a wonderful and USEFUL certification experience. I rarely talk to a teacher who has good things to say his or her education professors. I know the only professor who helped prepare me in any way was still (at the time) teaching high school as well. Sure we need better teachers, and better training will help, but unfortunatley, there are no ‘grunt work’ positions. There are student teachers and then there are teachers. Perhaps more of the college education should be in the K-12 CLASSROOM in stead of the COLLEGE CLASSROOM.
BTW-nothing is FREE.
ScienceTeacher671
November 5th, 2009
9:34 pm
Most of the education professors I know haven’t been “behind the desk” in a K-12 classroom in years, if at all.
free market educator
November 6th, 2009
1:20 am
I don’t have an education degree, but my home school class just returned from an awesome 17 day ancient history/social studies field trip to the eastern Mediterranean. We were able to see four of the seven sites of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world: Great Pyramid of Giza, Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, Statue of Zeus at Olympia, and the lighthouse of Alexandria. Of course, only the pyramids are still standing. Our cruise began in Athens, Greece, so we were able to climb the Acropolis and tour the Parthenon and Erechteion as well. We also sailed to Crete and visited the Palace at Knossos. We anchored in Alexandria, Egypt and drove to Cairo to see the fabulous King Tut treasures in their historic archeology museum. After leaving Crete we sailed to Santorini Island, perhaps the site of the mythical Atlantis. The island is the rim of the world’s largest caldera which is currently filled with sea water and has become a harbor. Some believe that it was the explosion of this ancient Thera volcano that created a sunami which reached Crete and destroyed the ancient Minoan civilization. Our last stop was the ancient city of Constantinople, now known as Istanbul. It is a beautiful city poised at the entrance to the Black Sea. We had time to visit the magnificent Hagia Sofia, the cathedral built by Emperor Justinian, which is still intact and is now a museum. Some of the original Roman walls built under the reign of Emporer Constantine are still standing! We had studied books about these sites, but nothing compares to seeing them firsthand. This is a trip our family will always remember. Academics plus hands-on learning is always a winning combination.
good idea free market
November 6th, 2009
10:39 am
Hey free market educator, why don’t you tell us about your Armani wardrobe, ski home in Aspen, your S-class Mercedes and your $5 million home while you’re at it? I’m glad you were able to make such a fun and educational trip, but you do realize that such a trip is an impossibility for the overwhelming majority of people, right? Like, probably over 90% of people? Just keep that in mind. And you’re right if you suspect I’m kinda jealous. I wish my parents had/could have done that for us!!!
free market educator
November 6th, 2009
8:58 pm
Good Idea,
No need for jealousy. We live rather frugally and it is because we do not attempt to own a fancy house or car that we had the cash to take advantage of a huge sale on cruises (60% discount). We combined it with several years of frequent flier miles which got us to Athens, Greece for free. My spouse does business in the area so our stay there was free also. A cruise is actually a more economical way to see all the sites as it includes all meals. Our trip didn’t cost much more than a Disney vacation! Everything fell into place and we were truly blessed. If you want to travel, make it a priority and save for it. Then, when a good deal comes along, go for it. We are already plotting how we can cruise the western Med and take in a study of Roman history.
Sarge
November 6th, 2009
9:40 pm
Free Market Educator, this “field trip” sounds like an excellent way to entertain the class. In the days/weeks following this excursion, I’m sure you, as an “educator”, had some means of feedback from your class as to exactly what, outside of the entertainment aspects, was learned; what values were somehow sprinkled upon your students which would, in the end, enable them to become, well…educated. You write of this experience with the same tenor as one would write, on the first day of class…WHAT I DID ON MY SUMMER VACATION. Please elaborate, for the interested public, just how this magnificent “field trip” enabled students, of well-healed parents, to become educated, not entertained, but educated.
free market educator
November 7th, 2009
9:42 pm
To sum it up, my kids know first-hand that there is a much bigger world out there, filled with people of many cultures, languages and diets (Americans and children were in the minority on our ship). Some cities are crowded and dirty with blind and handicapped people begging on street corners. The center line on a road is sometimes there just for decoration. The horn is used as often as a gas pedal or brakes. There is a McDonald’s near the Pyramid of Giza with signage written in Arabic. Don’t ever give your camera to a camel driver to take your picture in front of a pyramid- it might cost $60 to get it back. Don’t buy an Egyptian “papyrus” print from a street vendor – it is probably pressed banana leaves. Most of the Egyptian vendors prefer dollars and Euros to their own currency. Egyptian school children learn English, French, and Arabic. The female Christian Egyptians do not wear a veil; most Moslem women wear a head scarf, and some wear a burka. Most Egyptians were friendly to tourists and are ardent free market capitalists. On a sad note, we learned about death amidst the tombs. While waiting in line to enter the site of the Sphinx, emergency medics carried out a man on a stretcher. His eyes were closed and he didn’t move. His legs and arms were stiffly bent and his complexion was ghastly pail. His wife walked next to him, eyes wide and rimmed with tears, staring in shocked silence. My immediate impression was that he was dead. Our tour guide later confirmed this and said that he had had a heart attack and had fallen and hit his head. It turned out that they were passengers on our ship. I couldn’t imagine losing a loved one under those circumstances; I felt a little sick to my stomach. The cruise ship chartered a plane to fly the widow and her husband’s remains home. Life goes on. We learned that a cruise ship can go 25 knots if one of its work crew has appendicitis while at sea and needs to get to a hospital in Crete rapidly. It would cost $25,000 for an emergency helicopter to do a dangerous deck landing. Lucky for the captain, the cheaper option worked. A cruise ship can also withstand near-hurricane force winds while crossing the Mediterranean and still serve meals in the dining room. Some passengers are crazy enough to sit in the hot tub on the outdoor pool deck during such a storm- with an hour of lightning to boot! Watching such a storm from the safety of our cabin window brought to mind the Biblical account of Jesus walking on the water during a storm. “Would you jump out of the boat right now?”, I asked my youngest. “I know I wouldn’t. What great faith Peter must have had!” Did you know that cruise ships can parallel park and rotate 360 degrees? There is no Popeye-style giant pronged steering wheel. The ship is steered with only a teeny Nintendo-style joystick. The caldera is so deep at Santorini that no anchor is long enough. Our ship had state-of- the-art stabilizers to keep it in place-a good thing since a volcanic island was starboard and three other cruise ships were port side. From Santorini’s harbor there are three choices of transportation to reach the town of Thera, perched high atop the black volcanic cliffs. The most popular are the cable cars; they are much faster and less smelly than going by donkey or foot up the steep winding path. The picturesque town consists mainly of souvenir shops, restaurants, cliff-hanging hotels, and beautiful blue or white domed Greek Orthodox churches. The largest is filled with stunning Byzantine-style icons of the life of Christ, hand painted by a local artist. The churches welcome tourists and many light a candle and pray for loved ones. Cats are everywhere in Greece and Santorini is no different. My oldest photographed enough of them to make a book or calendar on the “Cats of Greece”. Did I mention that each child brought his digital camera and documented the trip from a kid’s perspective? My youngest made a “short” video of our visit to the Palace of Knossos. Because he was much shorter than the adult tourists, the video was filled with kid’s-eye views of tourist derriere with an occasional view of the palace. And of course, it included a shot of a Cretan feline. LOL! If you take the back side path down from the Acropolis, you will encounter a neatly spray painted graffiti sign, written in English, that says, “What do you call someone who keeps talking when no one is interested? A TEACHER.” Amazing. I took a picture of the sage words with my “students” standing next to it. All this, and I’ve only told a fraction of our “education” abroad. The jet-lag is still kicking in. I’ll leave you with a few words the Greeks love to hear from tourists:
Kalimera- good morning
giassou- hello or good bye
ne- yes (as in “Do you want to buy this souvenir?”)
efcharisto- Thank you
parakalo- You’re welcome or please
poso kani? – how much is it?
kalispera- good evening.
Travel tip: Well-heeled tourists wear Crocs or tennis shoes to the ancient sites. It’s kinda slippery out there.
Sarge
November 9th, 2009
9:22 am
Thanks, Free Mkt…sounds like the kinda stuff I’d talk about over a few pitchers at the bar. Might even throw in a story (true or not) about the harrowing chase over cobblestone streets as street thugs, intent on evil deeds, fired a few rounds before slaming into a lamp post outside a barracks full of drunken sailors. My question remains…as entertaining as this trip may have been, could it, in all honesty, pass as education? If so, I guess my various trips to Baghdad’s “hot spots” could also qualify as education…(I wonder if I could convince some University Registrar to grant credit for that experience)