While alternative teacher certification was once the road less-traveled, now more and more prospective teachers are choosing fast-track programs over more traditional models. But is life in the fast lane the best way to go?
In their study of 13 fast-track alternative-certification programs, Harvard education professor Susan Moore Johnson, education consultant Sarah Birkeland, and Heather G. Peske found that fast-track preparation is deceptively simple. While faster and thus more convenient, these programs often do not adequately prepare candidates for life in a real classroom, nor are they able to provide new teachers with the support system they need once they enter the teaching profession.
In this Education Week Commentary, Johnson and Birkeland address the question: What teacher-preparation models work best or worst? What do you think?
