In with teacher apprenticeships, out with colleges of education

(The Daily Signal) – Two persistent problems beset American schools.

First, teachers must leave the classroom and become administrators or counselors to earn above the standard teacher salary.

Second, colleges of education can’t prepare new teachers nearly as well as an apprenticeship under a veteran teacher who has consistently demonstrated mastery of the craft. Thankfully, K-12 education can rework how it prepares new teachers and rewards quality veteran educators to solve both problems simultaneously.

Let’s begin with the second problem.

A common complaint among teachers is how far removed the professors in the education programs are from the K-12 classroom. Most haven’t been classroom teachers in at least a decade and have forgotten what that was like. Some have never been a teacher at all. They found that many lofty ideas and great-sounding theories fail and crumble in a room full of energetic children looking to them for clear direction and guidance.

Utilizing current classroom teachers would remove that complaint entirely. Nobody knows better about classroom teachers’ challenges and struggles than those who have been in the position for years.

As apprentices, aspiring teachers could observe and learn how the veterans handle unruly students, constant interruptions, unhappy parents, broken copy machines, dismissive administrators, and rained-out recess. Gradually, the mentor could hand over tasks and responsibilities over the year to allow the apprentice to apply some of the learned techniques.

Another complaint I often hear from teachers is that the classes they took in their education programs needed more useful information. Rather than teaching them about pedagogy or ensuring they had a solid understanding of the content they would be teaching, many of their classes focused on courses like child psychology, social foundations of education, and educational philosophy. While it might be interesting for educators to know about these topics, it is not necessary to become effective teachers.

Effective welders needn’t know the finer points of thermodynamics of metallurgy. Knowledge of pedagogy certainly helps, but teaching is an applied science, and practical knowledge about classroom management, for example, is far more urgent in the early years.

A teacher preparation model that utilizes experienced teachers who demonstrate a clear understanding of their content and use the prescribed curriculum with efficacy addresses the issue of relevance. Of course, the curriculum will vary, but aspiring teachers can see what it looks like to follow the plan. Observing this may deter them from venturing onto the internet to find more “fun,” “engaging,” and less effective curricula once they have their own classrooms.

Those suggestions address issues related to teacher prep programs, but they simultaneously address the issue of great teachers who deserve recognition and compensation for their skill and dedication to the profession. School leaders should strive to keep effective teachers in the classroom where they will have the most significant impact on students.

States should stop paying college professors who haven’t been in the classroom for years six-figure salaries to float lofty ideas of utopian classrooms to bright-eyed students.

Instead, they should jettison requirements for prospective teachers to get state-certified through ineffective colleges of education in favor of teacher apprenticeships.

At the same time, states and school districts should move toward merit-based pay systems rather than paying teachers based on the length of time they’ve served in the classroom, rewarding excellent teachers who demonstrably improve student learning.

In most states, there is currently a student-teacher model similar to this. However, it is generally not an entire year, requires rising teachers to delve into child psychology, and doesn’t adequately screen or compensate the participating veteran teachers.

There is a new program that was introduced in recent years that has promise, however. The Registered Apprenticeship Programs (RAP) allow aspiring teachers to glean wisdom from and work alongside experienced educators before taking on the responsibility of a classroom of their own.

“Since the K-12 Teacher Registered Apprentice occupation was first approved in 2021, 30 U.S. states or territories have registered at least one K-12 Teacher RAP,” according to an apprenticeship guidebook, and these options have begun to show their success.

K-12 education has faced unprecedented scrutiny in recent years, and problems that remained dormant for decades suddenly became undeniable. Teacher preparation programs are the root of so many of those problems. Meanwhile, great teachers who should be applauded for their dedication to children and commitment to education for decades are leaving in droves because of a lack of autonomy or clear pathways for professional growth. It is time to stop complaining about the issue and start looking at practical solutions.