Federal

Teacher ‘Residencies’ Get Federal Funding to Augment Training

By Stephen Sawchuk — October 09, 2009 3 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

The recent announcement of $43 million in teacher-preparation grants by the U.S. Department of Education puts the first federal financing behind the burgeoning “residency” model of teacher training.

The agency awarded 28 grants, primarily to university-based partnerships, under a retooled federal program that supports teacher preparation.

The financing, announced Sept. 30, arrives as U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, who has emphasized teacher evaluation and compensation recently, prepares to turn his attention to the nation’s schools of education in several speeches this month.

James H. Shelton, an assistant deputy secretary, said in an interview that the grants support the Obama administration’s overall agenda for teacher quality. “We’re excited that [the partnerships] are stepping up to be thoughtful about how to use the data on student achievement to change their programs,” he said.

The department plans to make additional awards in early 2010 with the $100 million provided for the program in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The funding comes as a windfall for supporters of the teacher-residency approach, which stakes training on a yearlong clinical practicum for teacher-candidates. But because of the relative novelty of the model, the new grants’ effects on teacher retention and on student achievement will likely be tracked closely.

“One of the challenging things is that these grants are for five years, and residencies are very expensive,” said Ada Beth Cutler, the dean of the education school at Montclair State University, in New Jersey, which won a grant to begin a residency program in the Newark school district. “We have to prove together that this will have the projected outcome and will make a difference.”

Eye on Partnerships

Federal lawmakers overhauled the long-standing Teacher Quality Partnership grant program as part of the 2008 renewal of the Higher Education Act. The legislation consolidates three funding streams into a program that puts a heavier emphasis on student-teaching and requires colleges of education to work with local districts to address their specific teaching needs.

Award Winners

Millions of dollars will be doled out by the federal government to reform traditional teacher preparation and create teacher-residency programs. Grantees are to do either or both.

BRIC ARCHIVE

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education

In particular, partnerships were encouraged to consider the residency model, which provides candidates with financial support during their residencies in exchange for commitments to teach in those communities for several years. All but nine of the funded grants include a residency component.

With its reduced coursework but extensive student-teaching, the residency model rests somewhere between traditional preparation pathways and alternative routes. The best-known examples are located in Boston, Chicago, and Denver, and the new grants represent a significant scaling-up.

“It’s a huge shift in the landscape, where you’re seeing universities adopt the work of nonprofit groups” that created the first residency programs just under a decade ago, said Anissa Listak, the managing director of Urban Teacher Residency United, a Chicago-based nonprofit organization that crafts residency standards.

Answering Questions

Supporters of the model say the grants could provide additional data about the approach, such as the ideal size of the residency cohort, an effective sequencing of coursework, and the model’s applicability in nonurban settings.

“I think there is a lot of good reason and good evidence to make us believe this is an effective model, ... but I think what’s up in the air is how far can you stretch the boundaries,” said Jane E. West, the vice president of government affairs for the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, based in Washington. “We have a lot to learn here.”

Bard College, for instance, will use its grant to support a residency program in a combination charter school and education program it operates in rural Delano, Calif. Most residencies are located in large cities.

“There may be more potential for really changing over a community’s attitude toward education in ways that are productive for kids,” said Ric Campbell, the college’s dean of education.

A version of this article appeared in the October 14, 2009 edition of Education Week as Teacher ‘Residencies’ Get Federal Funding To Augment Training

Events

Jobs Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff
Find teaching jobs and other jobs in K-12 education at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.
Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Federal Education Dept. Sees Small Cut in Funding Package That Averted Government Shutdown
The Education Department will see a reduction even as the funding package provides for small increases to key K-12 programs.
3 min read
President Joe Biden delivers a speech about healthcare at an event in Raleigh, N.C., on March 26, 2024.
President Joe Biden delivers a speech about health care at an event in Raleigh, N.C., on March 26. Biden signed a funding package into law over the weekend that keeps the federal government open through September but includes a slight decrease in the Education Department's budget.
Matt Kelley/AP
Federal What Would Happen to K-12 in a 2nd Trump Term? A Detailed Policy Agenda Offers Clues
A conservative policy agenda could offer the clearest view yet of K-12 education in a second Trump term.
8 min read
Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally, March 9, 2024, in Rome Ga.
Former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally, March 9, 2024, in Rome, Ga. Allies of the former president have assembled a detailed policy agenda for every corner of the federal government with the idea that it would be ready for a conservative president to use at the start of a new term next year.
Mike Stewart/AP
Federal Opinion Reading Scores Have Plunged Since the Pandemic. What This Senator Wants to Do About That
How can the nation support literacy efforts? The ranking Republican on the Senate education committee wants to hear from educators.
6 min read
Image shows a multi-tailed arrow hitting the bullseye of a target.
DigitalVision Vectors/Getty
Federal Biden Calls for Teacher Pay Raises, Expanded Pre-K in State of the Union
President Joe Biden highlighted a number of his education priorities in a high-stakes speech as he seeks a second term.
5 min read
President Joe Biden delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress at the Capitol on March 7, 2024, in Washington.
President Joe Biden delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress at the Capitol on March 7, 2024, in Washington.
Shawn Thew/Pool via AP