STEM Alternative Certification

1. STEM Alternative Certification Issues for Practitioners Morton M. Sternheim UMass Amherst mort@umassk12.net www.stemtec.org/act

2. Barbara Austin, Northern Arizona University Wendy Frazier, George Mason University Anita Greenwood, UMass Lowell Judith Hayes, Wichita State University Charmaine Hickey, UMass Lowell Kathy Shea, UMass Lowell Morton Sternheim, UMass Amherst Yijie Zhao, UMass Amherst Report Authors

3. What is alternative certification? • Programs to put “career changers” in classrooms quickly? • Anything other than 4 year undergrad program? • Antoinette Mitchell (NCATE): These programs range from 5th year programs for students without education backgrounds, to programs especially designed for career-switchers, to programs designed for specific sectors of the community such as military personnel and para-professionals. • Need a continuum of teacher preparation and support programs to support varied needs.

4. National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) holds alternative certification programs to the same standards required of all programs in NCATE-accredited institutions as a way of making institutions accountable for the quality of their programs and for the quality of the educators they prepare. Program Standards

5. Alternative Certification Candidates Judith Hayes, Wichita: • There’s been a dramatic shift in the profile of people studying to be teachers through alternative routes. • A greater percentage of older, life-experienced people wanting to enter the teacher profession when compared with traditional preparation models.

6. Alternative Certification Candidates • More of these mid-career switchers are male and/or are minorities interested in teaching in high-demand areas, in positions generally not sought by young, white females coming out of traditional schools of education.

7. Partnerships Research indicates that teacher candidates working in alternative licensure programs with strong district – university partnerships perform better and stay in the profession longer.

8. Partners • Primary partners • Hiring school districts, state licensing authority, higher ed institution • Other partners – funding/recruiting • Corporations, e.g., Raytheon Teaching Fellows Program • Federal agencies: NSF (Noyce Scholars), DOE, … • Troops to Teachers, Teach for America, …

9. Recruiting and Selecting Candidates • Depend on nature of the program • Selecting and recruiting the right candidates for admission to a particular program is important for the program’s success, because “investing resources in candidates unlikely to succeed is a lose-lose situation.”

10. Selection • Usually require at least bachelor’s degree • Screening process – tests, interviews, evidence of content mastery, short demonstration lesson • Often highly selective • Some programs are committed to serving all provisionally certified teachers in an area. • Humphrey et al: most alternative certification programs bet on education background, work experience, previous classroom experience, or some combination of the three

11. Recruiting • Many approaches, reflecting the programs • Texas A&M: scholarships, job fares, recruiting in grad programs • UT: All students in the College of Natural Sciences are recruited. They receive a letter about it upon admission, hear about it during orientation, receive mailings each year. Student group presentations, media reports …

12. Recruiting • Teach for America: Representatives visit many campuses, focus on selective colleges, accept only a small fraction of applicants • NYC Teaching Fellows program targets mid-career professionals as well as recent college graduates • Troops to Teachers program provides information and support to retiring military personnel, with offices in 32 states

13. Candidates • Four groups of candidates • Undergrads where there in no traditional certification option • Recent grads who opt to teach • Career switchers or retired military • Teachers who need courses to become “highly qualified” in another subject • These groups have different needs • Must match candidates and structure of the program

14. Need: Practical Teaching Knowledge • All need practical knowledge about navigating the current school environment: information about legal and ethical responsibilities, teaching to diverse populations, inclusion issues, and classroom management • Less important for group 4, those already teaching

15. Need: Pedagogical Content Knowledge • Teachers not only need to understand science but teach in a manner that is consistent with what is known about how people learn science, and reflects significant insights from recent educational research • Discipline specific pedagogy issues – how to teach difficult concepts in a particular subject • Laboratory safety knowledge – chemicals, biomaterials, etc. – is critical if teachers will be willing to do hands-on science

16. Need: Content Knowledge • Federal law mandates that teachers must have sufficient content knowledge as the major provision of being “highly qualified” • Mainly a need for group 4, teachers who need courses to become highly qualified

17. Needs: Income, Non-traditional Delivery • Career changers and recent grads often need income during their training • Stipends, scholarships • Non-traditional course delivery • Summer immersion before placement • Subsequent summer courses • Evenings • Distance learning

18. Mentoring • Mentoring support provided to AC teacher candidates while they are in training • Key part of new teacher induction • Research: good induction programs cut attrition • Should reflect lack of education courses • Mentors involved in AC programs need different training from those in traditional certification programs so that they can address the subject specific needs of these individuals • When there is consistency between mentor and mentee in the conception of the mentor’s role, the mentoring relationship is productive

19. The Challenge • Teaching and teacher education are inherently complex and are not reducible to simple prescriptions for practice. • Much of what is believed to be associated with program excellence with regard to particular goals cannot currently be supported with empirical evidence Ken Zeichner, Wisconsin:

20. Oversimplified Views of Excellence (Zeichner) • Attempting to connect the surface features of teacher education programs (e.g., their length) to various teacher and student outcomes without accounting for the characteristics that candidates bring to their preparation. • Attempting to define the characteristics of good teacher education programs by the mere presence or absence of certain program elements without addressing how these elements are defined and used and for what purposes

21. Characteristics of Effective STEM ACT Programs • Needs-based design of the program • Tailored to needs of district or region • Tailored to needs of participants, backgrounds, etc. • High entrance standards • Screening, appropriate STEM backgrounds • Intensive training focusing on professional expertise • Subject content, pedagogical knowledge and skill training • Pedagogical content knowledge • Multicultural and special education issues

22. Characteristics of Effective STEM ACT Programs • On-site support during training • Comprehensive system of support from experienced, trained mentors once the candidate begins working in a school. • Candidates go through their training in cohorts at school so they have peer support • Candidates have the opportunity of guided practice in lesson planning and teaching prior to taking full responsibility as a teacher

23. Characteristics of Effective STEM ACT Programs • Frequent program evaluation • Continuous monitoring, evaluation, and feedback of individual and group performance to allow for program adjustment • Candidates receive frequent evaluation of their teaching from well-trained mentors and faculty with strong STEM education backgrounds • Faculty receives continual formal and informal evaluation of their instruction from the teacher candidates

24. Characteristics of Effective STEM ACT Programs • High exit standards • Standards tied to state standards for teaching • Candidates demonstrate that they have mastered the knowledge, skills, and dispositions identified in state standards and can have a positive impact on student learning • Ongoing support of graduates after the program. • Structured, well-supervised induction period when the novice receives observation and assistance in the classroom by an experienced teacher • Ongoing professional development and reflection is supported by the school and/or the university through seminars, workshops, courses

25. School – College Collaboration • Colleges, schools and the candidates have constant communication to ensure that teaching theory and practice are effectively integrated to address classroom and pedagogical issues. • School districts provide the teacher candidates in alternative certification programs with a supportive school environment to help them with effective transition to teaching. • The program prepares individuals for specific positions in specific schools, and should place participants in those positions early in the training.

26. Effective STEM ACT Programs: Summary • A program encompassing all these components may be an ideal, but these benchmarks provide a frame of reference for an effective AC program. • These components are not an oversimplified checklist to measure the program quality. Rather, they serve as research directions for an in depth inquiry into the implementation and efficacy of these elements in achieving excellence in AC teacher preparation.

27. More Information • www.stemtec.org/act • Proceedings • This PowerPoint • White papers (coming soon…)