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Preparation Programs
In the Spring of 1995, Mr. Hart and Ms. Burr undertook an
extensive on-site review of teacher preparation programs in the CSU.
Augmented by visits to a number of independent college and University of
California programs and conversations with numerous school superintendents
and personnel directors, IER issued the report The Teachers
Who Teach Our Teachers in February 1996. The report, while noting several
examples of exemplary programs within CSU, contained many recommendations
for improving preparation programs. These recommendations centered on
three areas:
- Strengthening K-12 and university partnerships to bridge the chasm
between theory and practice in teacher education;
- A systematic review and revision of internal CSU policies to
encourage better coordination between Schools of Education and Schools
of Arts and Sciences, and to recognize in all university faculty reward
systems the importance of teacher preparation on CSU campuses;
- Revision of state laws and regulations to give teacher candidates
earlier and more frequent opportunities for K-12 clinical experiences,
to simplify credential requirements and require individual candidate
assessments as a condition for receipt of a credential, and reduce the
use of emergency permits.
Emergency Teachers
In 1996 the IER issued a second report, A State of Emergency..In a
State of Emergency Teachers, which documented the alarming increase in
the number of uncredentialed teachers serving in California's classrooms
and contained a series of recommendations for stemming this tide. (It
should be noted that, with the enactment of the sweeping K-3 class size
reduction initiative last year, this situation has grown worse.)
Recommendations in the report called for:
- Creating greater public awareness through the issuance of an annual
state report on emergency credentials and expansion of School
Accountability Report Cards, which every parent receives, to include
information on emergency permit teachers;
- Achieving more rigorous training for emergency permit teachers by
requiring individuals teaching on emergency permits to immediately
enroll in a preparation program and receive mentoring support from
experienced teachers;
- Imposing time limits on emergency permits by limiting emergency
permit teachers to a single five year eligibility term for employment,
during which time they must be making progress toward a credential;
- Expanding support programs for beginning teachers to improve
retention of new teachers and, therefore, limit the need for emergency
permit teachers, the state should substantially expand the Beginning
Teacher Support and Assessment (BTSA) program.
In part due to the IER's A State of
Emergency...In a State of Emergency Teachers report, a series of bills
has been introduced in the Legislature and the prospects are good for
passage of these measures in the 1996 session.
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