Building A Quality Teaching Force PDF Download

The American Federation of Teachers Teacher Preparation Task Force was established to examine the research on what works and what does not work in the field of teacher preparation as a basis for making policy recommendations. Just as important, the task force considered how best to implement such policy recommendations in a way that takes into account all stakeholders--teacher education institutions, K-12 schools, teacher accrediting agencies, state education boards, federal government regulators, education associations and unions--and leads to real improvement in the field as measured by the quality of new teachers entering the profession. The task force recommends three significant changes that must be made to truly improve teacher preparation and, by extension, improve teaching and learning in schools. These changes include: (1) alignment and coherence of teacher preparation standards, programs and assessments; (2) rigorous and universal assessment; and (3) a profession governed by professionals. To drive these changes, the AFT shares recommendations, and the principles and design features on which they are based, that are essential to building the kind of professionalism, alignment, and coherence needed for high-quality teacher preparation. Appended are: (1) Information about the AFT Teacher Preparation Task Force; (2) AFT Survey of New Teachers; (3) AFT Principles and Standards For Effective Teacher Preparation; and (4) Inventory of State-Level Teacher Candidate Entrance Exams. (Contains 1 figure, 2 tables, and 20 endnotes.).