[speedgibson] Speed Gibson: WSJ on Teacher Certification

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Posted by Speed Gibson:
WSJ on Teacher Certification
http://speedgibson.powerblogs.com/posts/1229301284.shtml


   The Wall Street Journal has a new perspective on what they titled
   [1]The 'Certified' Teacher Myth.

     Harvard researchers Paul Peterson and Daniel Nadler compared states
     that have genuine alternative certification with those that have it
     in name only. And they found that between 2003 and 2007 students in
     states with a real alternative pathway to teaching gained more on
     the National Assessment of Educational Progress (a federal
     standardized test) than did students in other states.

   In other words, teachers in "closed shop" states don't perform as well
   as those in "union shop" states that embrace alternative
   certification. As the article notes, these results held across all
   demographic groups. The standard union certification curriculum is not
   the predictor of success claimed.

     Teachers learn by teaching, not by mastering the required
     "education" courses associated with state certification.

   As Spectre #3 Rosa Kleb observed, "Training is useful but there is no
   substitute for experience."
   Alternative certification simply opens up the field a little. College
   degrees are still required. Teachers are just as free to unionize.
   This is especially important to us in diverse districts.

     [There ] is broad agreement that minority students tend to benefit
     from having a minority instructor, who can also serve as a role
     model. And it turns out that black and Hispanic college graduates
     are much more likely to take advantage of alternative paths to
     certification.

   More teachers. Better teachers. Better results. What's not to like?

References

   1. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122912779960403217.html