Solutions to public problems are good
Teaching needs teachers. Teachers are good.
Public school teaching, it pains me to say, is a modern problem. The path is problematic, overly regulated, time-consuming and I haven’t even mentioned the problems that the pay scale brings about. On top of this is the fact that there doesn’t seem to be any upside to this anachronistic process:
We use six years of data on student test performance to evaluate the effectiveness of certified, uncertified, and alternatively certified teachers in the New York City public schools. On average, the certification status of a teacher has at most small impacts on student test performance.
This is a serious and real problem! Interest in teaching is plummeting.
But I want to focus on a solution that is already underway for this problem, the Registered Teacher Apprenticeships.
In a nutshell we all know the basic concept of apprenticeships. You work alongside experienced mentors, you earn your trade, and then you enter the workforce. Apprenticeships are good. They are coming back, and public school education needs it.
Teaching apprenticeships are getting a major boost from the Labor Department, which last year began offering them federal certification, a distinction that gives them access to millions in job-training funds, and now over 20 states and counting are on board, meaning more teachers, more inspiration, and ultimately, more learning.
Teacher apprenticeships:
Supercharge teacher prep: Learn by doing and grow with guidance.
Shake up the system: We're talking fresh perspectives, innovative approaches.
Open doors for everyone: Allow passionate individuals to do what they are passionate about..
Spark student success: Imagine every kid having a dedicated mentor-teacher who knows their stuff and truly cares about their growth.
Traditional teacher prep may have served us well once, but times changed. Teacher apprenticeships are exciting, effective, and needed.
Apprenticeships are and have been good. They are coming back into favor and no sector of our life is going to benefit more than the public school system.
This is a good thing.
For more on this I recommend:
As a new public school teacher, I learned as much from my seasoned colleagues as I did in education classes. Sounds GOOD!