This study compares knowledge as measured by grade point averages and Praxis II scores between first-year special education teachers who completed one university's alternative teacher preparation program (ATTP) and those who completed the university's traditional teacher preparation program (TTPP). A total of 33 teachers, 15 from the ATTP and 18 from the TTPP participated in the study. Findings indicate that teachers from both programs had similar outcomes on the Praxis II licensure exam and final grade point averages. Although the sample was small, findings of this study indicate that both programs adequately prepared teachers to work with special education populations. Read more....

A study was conducted to examine the relationship between first-year teachers' self-efficacy and their participation in e-Coaching designed to positively influence development of mathematics content knowledge, development of pedagogical content knowledge, and teacher retention. Teachers who most frequently participated in e-Coaching, on average, reported lower levels of self-efficacy at the start of the school year and a greater annual gain in self-efficacy than teachers who participated in e-Coaching less frequently. Study findings suggest that with careful planning and collaboration, e-Coaching can be used as a virtual and distributed context for supporting beginning teachers' self-efficacy development. Read more....

The purpose of this paper is to share a description of the process used by Fort Hays State University (FHSU) as a self-study of the FHSU alternative certification program, known as Transition to Teaching. Team members used the Quality Indicators designed as a part of a Department of Education Transition to Teaching Grant called the KNOTtT Project. KNOTtT is the acronym for Kansas, Nevada, Ohio, Texas Transition To Teaching. Read more....

Central to the debate regarding the effectiveness of alternative and traditional teacher certification programs is the question of providing high quality teachers for high need schools. The Robert F. Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program, funded by the National Science Foundation, supports both alternative and traditional routes to teacher certification nationwide and has similar requirements for all teacher candidates. It, therefore, provided a unique opportunity to compare alternative and traditional programs in terms of their perceived effectiveness in encouraging potential STEM teachers to teach in high need schools. Data came from a comprehensive, mixed methods evaluation of the Noyce Program and included 434 surveys completed by Noyce scholars, and 19 interviews with school district representatives. Comparisons between alternative and traditional programs were made based on scholars' demographics, affective characteristics, background experiences, and beliefs about teaching. Results demonstrated that Noyce scholars from alternative and traditional programs were similar in 27 demographic and most affective characteristics but different in background experiences and beliefs about teaching. Moreover, the data suggest that alternative routes might attract more candidates who are more likely to teach in high need schools. Read more....

This paper explores whether information collected about teacher characteristics at the time of hire can predict student outcomes. Read more....

It is important for new teachers in alternative certification programs to ensure all of their students receive quality education, particularly in mathematics education. Mathematics is a gatekeeper subject in which strong quantitative skills lead to increased opportunities. This article addressed support new alternative certification teachers need as well as the support they could provide to students in diverse mathematics classrooms. Alternative certification teachers in the New York City Teaching Fellows (NYCTF) program were surveyed, among others, to determine their attitude toward student learning in diverse classroom environments in mathematics education. It was found that while NYCTF teachers did not score differently from traditionally prepared teachers on the survey instrument, NYCTF scored higher than another cohort of teachers. NYCTF teachers indicated highest agreement with the idea that students from underrepresented groups are just as capable of engaging in higher level mathematics as White and Asian male students and teachers should take student interests into consideration when teaching mathematics. Read the report here.

It is important for teacher educators to understand new alternative certification middle and high school teachers' mathematical problem solving abilities and perceptions. Teachers in an alternative certification program in New York were enrolled in a proof-based algebra course. At the beginning and end of a semester participants were given a problem solving examination and were required to reflect upon their students' and their own problem solving abilities. There was a significant improvement in problem solving abilities for the teachers over the course of the semester, and there was a direct correlation between standardized content knowledge test scores and problem solving examination scores. Furthermore, teachers perceived that although their students had improved somewhat in their problem solving over the course of the semester, student problem solving abilities were generally weak due to not understanding how to start a problem, lack of persistence, and poor literacy skills. Teachers perceived that they shared similar problems as their students, but the algebra course and their teaching of problem solving helped them with their own problem solving abilities. Read the report here.

Proper nutrition, adequate amounts of physical activity, and sufficient amounts of sleep are three important variables for healthy children. Alternative certification teachers quickly enter the classroom at the beginning of their programs and may encounter disengaged students who lack the energy needed for quality learning and achievement. Commonly, classroom management issues are the biggest challenges faced by new teachers in alternative certification programs (Evans, 2010). Children who receive proper nutrition, adequate amounts of physical activity, and sufficient amounts of sleep could be more receptive to learning and have the energy levels needed for dynamic and engaging classroom experiences. This article addresses nutrition, exercise, and sleep for students in the context of new teachers in alternative certification programs. Alternative certification teachers in the New York City Teaching Fellows program were surveyed to determine their attitude toward student health issues in the schools and it was found that teachers indicated student health issues to be important to them. Read the report here.

This article describes a fifth year program evaluation of a private provider program for teacher certification in Louisiana. The study sought to evaluate the success of the Teach Louisiana Consortium program in terms of teacher placement, teacher retention, administrative satisfaction, teacher attitudes, and teacher pedagogical knowledge. Initial teacher provided data, state provided data, teacher survey data, and administrator survey data were used in the study. Overall, it was found that the program was positively perceived by both teachers and administrators and it was successful in terms of teacher retention. Areas that need to be addressed as the program develops include diversity, assessment, classroom management, and attrition of teachers from high-need areas. Read the report here.

This dissertation focuses on beginning mathematics teachers from alternative certification programs and their perceptions of what is required to be successful. Read the report here.

This policy analysis examines recent debates on teacher quality in light of the Renee v. Duncan (2010) decision, the Congressional response to the ruling through the Continuing Resolution bill, H.R. 3082 §163, and President Obama's Blueprint for Reform. Using equity as a framework for the teacher quality debate, the authors explore policy configurations of teacher quality with particular emphasis on inspecting the teaching certificate as a valid and reliable indicator of teacher quality. Additionally, the authors review educational research highlighting the strengths of alternative certification programs and consider how these strengths might be used to leverage policymaking that targets teacher quality reform. Read more....

Many teacher education programs are not meeting the needs of future teachers. To adequately prepare for the projected four million teachers who will be teaching by the 2016 school year, institutions of higher education and alternative certification programs (ACPs) will need to examine the motivations that affect an individual's desire to teach in order to attract and retain competent professionals. This study compares the motivating factors affecting general and special educators' decisions to become teachers. Additionally, a comparison was made of general and special educators' reasons for choosing a nonuniversity-based ACP and what they perceived to be the strengths and weaknesses of the program. By identifying the motivating factors and strengths and weaknesses of ACPs, these programs will be able to better meet the needs of future teachers. Read more....

The teacher shortage throughout the United States, especially in areas considered "at-risk," has reached an alarming level. Novice teachers often decide not to return after one year of service, with the number of teachers not returning doubling at five years. One possible means of overcoming these two problems is alternative certification programs. In order to better understand these problems, six first-year teachers who had received their Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) degree were interviewed using aqualitative case study design. This study focused on: (a) the challenges beginning MAT teachers faced, (b) the MAT teachers' perceptions of their training program, and (c) their attitudes toward their teaching careers. Among the six participants, five wanted to quit teaching in the near future, with only one, an older second-career teacher, deciding to remain in the profession. The information gleaned from this study could help teachers and their administrators understand the challenges beginning teachers face. Read more....

There were 282 special education teachers enrolled in an alternative certification program in education at a university in southern California who were surveyed over the course of two years to determine the extent of their training in working with paraprofessionals and the professional development they received on how to successfully work with the paraprofessionals. The survey revealed limited or no training in this area. In response to these findings, the university hired national experts to provide materials and supports and to conduct a trainer-of-trainer model that could be embedded in the university training program. This article gives practical suggestions on how to embed paraprofessional training into an alternative certification program. Read more....

Nebraska's alternative teacher certification program, Transition to Teaching, is housed at the University of Nebraska at Kearney. After 10 years in operation, program evaluation was deemed necessary to assess responsiveness to the needs of teacher candidates and the school districts within the state and effectiveness in meeting those needs. Results of this study showed both strengths and challenges and provide clear direction for the future of alternative teacher certification in Nebraska. Read more....

This report provides information related to the effectiveness of teacher preparation programs in Florida by focusing on the early professional experiences of teachers who completed three types of programs: Initial Teacher Preparation programs (ITPs), District Alternative Certification Programs (DACPs), and Educator Preparation Institutes (EPIs). Read more....

The purpose of this study was to ascertain the ways former professional scientists who are learning to become teachers understand the planning and implementation of instructional design 1) while they are in a university program learning to become teachers and 2) during their first year of full-time teaching in a secondary classroom. The study used a grounded theory approach and was informed by multiple classroom observations, lesson planning artifacts, and interviews. It was found that during their methods class the teacher candidates employed both student-centered and backwards design principles. However, once the teacher candidates started teaching full-time, they no longer designed instruction and instead adopted lesson plans from veteran teachers, adapting only small parts to become more student-centered. Read more....

Many alternatively certified teachers, as was the case in this study, are employed as the teacher of record while simultaneously enrolled in education courses. Therefore, experiencing the collaborative, supportive, peer mentoring environmental elements that are present in many traditional "fieldwork" settings is not an option. By examining one university's initiative to support the alternatively certified educator via an online mentoring and professional development course offering, this study focused, in detail, upon the characteristics of the course itself, and evaluated from the course participants' perspective, the effectiveness of the newly re-designed course, as measured by the course goals and objectives. More specifically, this study sought to investigate four themes regarding participants' perceptions: peer mentoring and support; professional development in the area of pedagogy; effectiveness of the online course delivery format; and the effectiveness of course specific components. This study furthers the understanding of the methods by which teacher education programs can provide support and professional development opportunities for those educators who have entered the profession via alternative routes. The findings of this study lend support to the belief that teacher preparation programs can effectively utilize well-designed, appropriately structured online coursework to foster the development of professional learning communities designed to provide mentoring and peer support. By incorporating assignments that present content that is meaningful, relevant and applicable to the individual student, online courses of this type can support the professional development of the alternatively certified educator. Read more....

This report uses a longitudinal data base from Florida to examine characteristics of teachers choosing nontraditional pathways. The study analyzes the relative effectiveness of teachers entering the profession through diverse routes. Read the report from the National Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research (CALDER).

The California Commission on Teacher Credentialing reports annually to the governor and legislature on the number of teachers who received credentials, certificates, permits and waivers. This report provides data collected by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing and addresses several questions regarding the supply of teachers newly available to teach in California classrooms. Read more....

Quantitative analysis was used to investigate relationships between sense of class community and perceived learning among alternative licensure candidates (N = 58) based on their scores from two separate standardized instruments measuring the constructs. Study results provide evidence that relationships do indeed exist and that differences between the two constructs can be identified within the data. Low correlations existed between the two constructs; correlations were higher for females than for males. There were no significant gender differences in either sense of community or perceived learning. Implications of these results are discussed and recommendations for further research are provided. Read more....