During my twenty-two years in teacher education, I have seen my
share of weaknesses in teacher preparation in private as well as public
institutions. And there is no legitimate excuse for most of the
problems that exist in teacher preparation today.
High educational standards and expectations of students — along
with hard work — can produce a strong program where a weak one has
existed for years. However, it takes consistency of expectation and
commitment from faculty and administrators — including the president
— to develop a sound foundation and maintain a strong teacher
preparation program.
It is with a great deal of professional interest, therefore, that I
am observing the national trends in proposed and adopted legislation
affecting these programs. One of the most salient proposals was
recently made by U.S. Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.). If approved, this
piece of legislation would radically change the face of teacher
preparation.
Bingaman’s bill links institutional eligibility for Title IV
student financial assistance to the performance of its students on
their state licensing exams. But surprisingly, this proposal has
created quite a stir. Most teacher educators and administrators are
fearful of the potential monetary consequences of this bill.
A few of us, however, are pleased that such a “radical” proposal is
being considered. Of course, none sees the amendment as a panacea for
all of the problems of weak teacher preparation programs. Still, the
bill is one of the most significant pieces of legislation proposed in
recent years.
Teacher preparation programs can no longer be exempt from the kind
of standards expected of any other profession in our nation. If a
teacher preparation program cannot prepare its students to meet even
the minimum standard of passing a licensing exam, the program should be
deleted from the college or university offerings.
Surprisingly, lack of accountability continues to be the hallmark
of many administrators of teacher preparation programs, even though
accountability is addressed in almost all reports critical of teacher
preparation.
