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Study of U.S. Teacher Education Programs (STEP)
Background
Teacher quality is widely recognized by policymakers, practitioners, and researchers alike to be the most powerful school-related influence on a child’s academic performance. As a consequence, accountability measures in federal education law are increasingly focused on ensuring that there is a highly qualified teacher in every classroom, and that in turn, the teacher preparation programs housed within institutions of higher education are themselves of high quality.
In this context, H.R. 2673, the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2004, directed the U.S. Institute of Education Sciences to contract with the National Research Council (NRC) to conduct a $1.5 million study of teacher preparation programs in the United States. Consistent with its mission to provide independent, evidence-based advice to government on key public policy issues, the Center for Education of the NRC will bring together a committee of leading experts to provide an assessment and synthesis of the evidence associated with teacher preparation programs, in both traditional and alternative settings.
Approach
The committee will address the following central questions:
-- Who enters teacher preparation programs (pre-service, graduate, and alternative)? What is their academic preparation? What is their educational background? |
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-- What type of instruction and experiences do participants receive in the preparation program? Who delivers it? To what extent is there commonality in content and experiences? |
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-- To what extent is the required course work and experiences in reading and mathematics across teacher preparation programs consistent with converging scientific evidence? |
To conduct its work, the committee will review and analyze existing research and literature; synthesize and analyze data—both existing data and any new data that may have to be collected; and prepare a final consensus report that articulates its conclusions and recommendations.
Timeline and Project Activities
The work will be conducted over a two and a half-year period beginning in June 2005, with release of the final report anticipated in spring/summer of 2007. The committee will meet five times over the course of the project and hold one workshop, likely in the spring of 2006.
Questions and comments are welcome and should be directed to Michael Allen at 202.334.3571.
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