Qualification Standards
The expectations
and qualification requirements for educators of children from B–8 vary widely
based on educator role, ages of children with whom they work, and the practice
setting. For example, in some states and settings, teachers may be required to
earn a bachelor’s degree and a particular type of teaching license; in other
places, those with responsibilities for young children’s learning may not be
required to have attained anything beyond a high school diploma. Evidence on
the impact of credentials is sparse and mixed. As the authors of Transforming the Workforce write, “the
available studies alone are insufficient to enable conclusions as to whether a
bachelor’s degree improves the quality and effectiveness of educators, whether
for early childhood settings or for K–12 schools.”
This may be
explained in part by the fact that the focus and overall quality of degree
programs for teachers vary widely. Degree requirements set by state or program
policies, for example, may not include a program design based on the science of
child development and learning or address subject-matter content and
pedagogical strategies.
Nonetheless, wide consensus exists across
states and types of schools that early elementary educators should have a
minimum of a bachelor’s degree. For B–5 early childhood educators, however,
consensus is still needed regarding an “educational floor” despite extensive
research and debate for more than a decade regarding the merits of early
childhood educators having a bachelor’s degree. For an overview of differences in expectations for B-5 and elementary school teachers, see
the chart on page 423.
Disparity between
qualification expectations for early childhood and early elementary school
educators perpetuates perceptions and policies that assume early childhood
educators interacting directly with children prior to kindergarten require
limited knowledge and skills.
Disparities in
qualification requirements foster inequities for children and within the early
care and education workforce. Also affected are the early care and education
labor market and practitioner compensation.
Increased coherence
in the content and process for meeting individual qualification requirements
would improve the caliber of educator practice within settings and across the B–8
education continuum. Raising education standards for early childhood educators
(B–5) could also positively affect recruitment, retention, and compensation.
Similar issues
exist for administrative leaders. Expectations are not aligned with their
responsibilities to foster early learning and development. Current education
and certification
requirements and expectations for directors in early childhood settings outside
of school systems are especially erratic.
To address concerns
regarding program quality, early
childhood (B–5) program accreditation systems and quality improvement
efforts increasingly are being implemented to cultivate increased use of
national program standards and qualification requirements.
Evaluation of Practice Quality
A growing number of
states and programs use evaluation systems to determine quality and figure out
how to increase it. These systems vary considerably in design and intent. For
example, schools and programs use teacher evaluations to increase instructional
skills and child outcomes by differentiating effective from ineffective
instructional practice, and inform ongoing professional
learning.
In states that have
implemented evaluations of teacher practice quality, district expectations
apply to all K–3 teachers who work in public school systems and often to early
childhood-special education programs and pre-K teachers in state funded pre-K
programs. Yet if teacher evaluation systems heavily incorporate data from
student test scores (a controversial trend across K–12 schooling), large
questions arise about the most appropriate way to evaluate teaching in the
early elementary grades.
High-stakes use of
assessment results for children from B–8 is strongly discouraged unless an
explicit connection exists between a test’s stated purpose and its validity and
reliability in relation to that purpose. Children ranging in age from B–8 learn
in ways that differ from the learning of their older peers. Consequently,
instructional strategies and interactions that work well for children in this
age span differ from those that are effective and meaningful for older
children. Further, the younger the child, the more difficult it is to obtain
reliable and valid assessment data.
Evaluation of Program Quality
Quality
assurance systems in the B–8 field include accreditation
systems and quality
rating and improvement systems (QRIS). Their intent is to foster
environments that are good for children, which in turn should mean that they
are ensuring that workplace environments promote quality practice among care
and education professionals. These quality
assurance efforts have the potential to positively affect individual
educators’ knowledge, skills, and behaviors. But they need to offer more than
checklists and instead hone in on practices and provide opportunities for
reflection and continuous improvement.
