Friday, September 20, 2013
TFA Training.
I know on Wednesday we talked a lot about the Teach for America training. I was wondering- what are your thoughts about people becoming a "qualified" teacher in 5 weeks? It is
kind of insulting to think that a non-education major with 5 weeks of
training is perhaps more or just as qualified as someone who went to
school for 4 years majoring in education. We've already talked in class about how 4 years as an education major still might not prepare you that well to be a teacher. But if teachers in TFA are learning enough in 5 weeks, why don't we implement that kind of training into our bachelor's programs? Teach for America explains their extensive training and the support they offer corps members throughout the two year experience. I really like the idea of having support for teachers during the first two years- even for new teachers who received their license but aren't doing TFA.
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I should clarify the process of "qualification," because I know it can be tricky.
ReplyDeleteEach state has its own laws regarding what constitutes a "highly qualified" certification. In many states, TFA corps members are *required* to work toward their Master's degrees during their two-year teaching commitment, because that is the only legal alternative certification in that state. In Oklahoma, we were not required to work toward our Master's (though the state/TFA arranged partnerships with several universities for those who wanted to) but we did have to be in "good standing" with the organization. This meant attending a certain number of workshops, professional developments, being observed and debriefing with our TFA instructional coaches, etc. All TFA teachers (to my knowledge) take the Praxis or state-equivalent certification tests for subjects.
I think you're right that the TFA model proves, if absolutely nothing else, that new teachers benefit from a wide-range of supports beyond "sit here for eight hours and learn about how your Myers-Briggs score/spirit color/favorite ice cream affects your leadership" kinds of professional development. As I mentioned, TFA's goal is to put itself out of business. That can be done by ensuring teaching becomes a highly-esteemed profession, and by getting people--like those who design traditional education programs--talking about what works best to support new teachers.