NEA and MSTA on ABCTE
The push to deregulate and de-professionalize teaching is growing as ABCTE continues its push to earn recognition for its testing-only approach to licensing teachers. So far, its “Passport to Teaching” – a fast-track shortcut to teacher certification – has been approved as part of the licensure standards in six states. ABCTE’s efforts ultimately will weaken the standards of the teaching profession.
The ABCTE approach to certification of new teachers undermines teacher quality. It proposes that college graduates can become licensed teachers by passing a background test and a computerized, multiple-choice test. Seasoned educators know that teaching is far too complex to be measured by a single test.
1. Every child deserves a well prepared, caring teacher.
- Teacher quality is vital to student achievement.
- Research shows that ensuring an adequate supply of well-prepared teachers is essential in closing achievement gaps.
- Only well-prepared teachers have the skills to teach every child, from every background.
2. ABCTE's short-cut approach to teacher licensing short-changes America's children.
- Higher student achievement requires a well-prepared teacher in every classroom.
- All too often the least-prepared teachers are placed in schools where students face the greatest challenges.
- Poorly prepared teachers don't last, creating a "revolving door" in America's neediest classrooms.
- Well-prepared teachers stay in the profession and help maintain stability in the school and in the community. That's critical if we want to close achievement gaps.
3. We need higher standards, not lower ones.
- There is no shortcut to excellence.
- Teaching is far too complex to be measured by a single test.
- ABCTE has refused to meet accepted industry standards in developing its tests.
- Strong professional teacher education programs equip new teachers with the FULL array of skills they need to help students learn.
4. Research tells us what it takes to make an effective teacher.
- Subject knowledge is important but teachers also need training and supervised teaching experience before entering the classroom.
- Teaching is more than telling – it's understanding how children learn and finding ways to reach them.
- ABCTE fails to provide new teachers with skills in planning, classroom management, and instruction.
5. NEA supports alternate routes to licensure, not “instant teacher” schemes that are unproven and untested, based on no research and no technical reports.
- We support alternative routes to licensure that ensure people are fully prepared to teach. Content knowledge is vital, but so is understanding how children learn, how different children learn differently, and how to tailor instruction accordingly.
- Good alternative routes to licensure include help from veteran teachers and hands-on experience.
