New Article on Preparing Teachers for the Early Grades

This month’s issue of Educational Leadership magazine, published by ASCD, features an article I wrote, “Preparing Teachers for the Early Grades.” In it I share findings and recommendations from my policy paper, “Getting in Sync: Revamping Licensing and Preparation for Teachers in Pre-K, Kindergarten, and the Early Grades.”

I write about the problem of many early-grades teachers lacking training in either the cognitive development of young children or in content areas such as science, history, geography, math and reading:

 Disparate preparation of early-grade teachers has set up an either/or scenario: Young children either have a teacher who understands how they learn but lacks subject-area expertise, or they have a teacher who understands what knowledge and skills they need but lacks insight on how they soak up new knowledge and skills. Either way, these teachers are missing important pieces of what they need to be effective.

As one way to spur improvement in teacher preparation programs, I propose that states rethink their licenses for teachers:

Most states offer two overlapping licenses for teachers of young elementary students: a K-5 or K-6 license to teach in elementary schools and an early childhood license to teach pre-kindergarten and the early grades. A new approach would be to offer one license that spans pre-kindergarten through 3^rd grade and another license that begins a 3^rd or 4^th grade and extends into middle school. This shift would drive change in colleges of education that would better ensure that all teachers are equipped to education the children in their classrooms.

Changing states’ teacher licensure polices is just part of the solution; preparation programs also need an overhaul. Prospective early grade teachers need more practical experiences working with students and effective teachers at different grade levels, and in a variety of settings.

Read my full article here.