The Future of Education

Preparing effective educators who remain in the profession, while providing effective instruction to K-12 students, is essential. As fewer teachers enter the profession, and many leave after three to five years (Darling-Hammond, 2003), institutions of higher education must work with school district partners to make changes to current processes. In a traditional model of teacher preparation, preservice teachers would conclude their coursework with a semester long clinical teaching experience. Changes were made to strengthen programs, but over the decades, teacher attrition has continued (Darling-Hammond et al., 2005). In recent years in the United States, many districts have been forced to hire teachers who were not certified. The state had allowed this due to a limited number of certified teachers, but soon, this practice will no longer be allowed. During this same time period, many universities conducted pilot studies to determine if a year-long, paid residency would be a viable option to effectively prepare preservice teachers. A residency involves a year-long commitment, and residents, formerly called clinical teachers, are mentored by a certified teacher over one school year. Principal survey data from the last three years demonstrates that candidates matriculating through a residency program are better prepared than clinical teachers. In exit surveys, residents who spent a year preparing to be teachers alongside a certified teacher, have repeatedly shared that they do not believe one semester would have been long enough. Data from clinical teachers and residents from the last three years suggests that residency programs may be a more effective preparation method.