Changing Directions

I originally wanted to flesh out my research on tracking here, but in the last two years I've changed my topic. I'm still interested in tracking and will come back to it from time to time, but my current focus is on teacher education programs. The issue in my head is that the first year of teaching is hard for everyone and the second year is exponentially easier. First year teachers spend way too many hours outside the classroom and don't feel adequately prepared once they're there. Students take advantage of first year teachers. Parents don't want their children to be taught by first year teachers. Principals know that along with hiring a first year teacher comes a higher level of need for direct supervision and coaching along with difficult conversations around every corner. So I'm going to take a look at what teacher preparation programs actually prepare teachers for and figure out what should they be doing so first year teachers are more prepared. There should be some lessons that teachers learn in their first year that are learned during their own education. Some of it needs to be learned on the job, as with every job, experience is key, but there are key standards for effective teaching that just aren't being addressed in teacher preparation programs.

And we're off...