The Memphis Teacher Residency produces teachers that outperform the average veteran teacher in Tennessee with students in grades 4-8, and in mathematics and science specifically, according to an analysis of teacher-preparation programs released this month by Tennessee’s higher education commission.
The MTR, a 3-year-old program that couples an intensive, yearlong apprenticeship for teachers with slimmed-down coursework requirements, and, in social studies, Freed-Hardeman University, in Henderson, were the only two preparers to show positive effects on student achievement and had no negative scores in any subject.
Tennessee officials based their conclusions on a value-added measure that links growth in student achievement to the graduates of particular teacher-preparation programs.