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This year-long, multiple case study followed a small group (N=6) of graduates from an initial licensure Education Preparation Program (EPP) into their classrooms to observe their first year as licensed teachers in United States public schools. The study's purpose was twofold: 1) to explore the extent to which this group used formative assessments in their classrooms to positively impact student learning, and 2) to examine strengths and areas for improvement within our EPP based on our observations of the teacher participants' practice and impact on their students. Multiple data sources were collected and analyzed. Based on participant interviews, survey data, and observations, findings indicate that our EPP coursework and clinical experiences contribute to beginning teachers' effective use of formative assessments to impact student learning. However, findings support recommendations for EPP continuous improvement. This study highlights the importance of completing self-studies to determine strengths of an EPP and areas for improvement so EPPs, teachers, and K-12 students have greater success. To increase the effectiveness of teacher training, EPPs must continuously evaluate the efficacy of their educator preparation programs including evaluating their graduates' ability to transition from pre to in-service teachers and implement effective pedagogical practices that promote student success.

In this article, we describe how our general and special education faculty collaborated to infuse the Universal Design for Learning framework into our special education preparation program, a dual-licensure special education and elementary education (K-6) undergraduate degree program. We describe the curriculum reform processes and outcomes of the UDL curriculum enhancement project, along with specific examples from multiple courses. Additionally, we highlight the need to continuously evaluate such efforts so that areas for improvement can be identified and addressed. For instance, we realized that our teacher candidates still needed more support to transfer what they learned about UDL from their coursework to their planning and practice in student teaching. In sum, we did not just create a plan, implement it, and consider it completed. We recognized a gap in the original plan, made improvements, and re-assessed, just as we would expect our teacher candidates to do when evaluating their own practice.

Across the country, paraprofessionals in cities are primarily Black and Latina women, and they are far more likely than teachers to live in the district and even the school zone where they work. However the percentages of Black teachers in major city school districts across the nation have declined, while the percentages of census-designated Hispanic teachers have broadly held constant. At the same time, many of these districts have served a majority of Black and Latinx students since the 1960s, when educators, policymakers, and teachers unions first began building and fighting for para-to-teacher pathways. Nick Juravich argues that this is a strategy with a long history and tremendous potential for developing a more diverse teacher corps and connecting teachers and their unions with the communities they serve. Paraprofessionals have long sought opportunities to become teachers. Teaching jobs have offered paths to economic stability to working people for over a century, but beyond the economics, paraprofessionals are already educators. They have intimate, firsthand knowledge of what makes a classroom successful and every reason to believe they could succeed as teachers.

In 2007, the Japanese Ministry of Education revised the Education Law to pave the way for the introduction of a teaching license renewal system in 2009. The reform required all teachers to complete at least 30 hours of training in specially tailored university courses as a prerequisite for renewal of their teaching licenses every 10 years. In late 2021, however, the government abruptly announced it was ending the scheme in 2022 in a policy about face reminiscent of the abolition of "yutori kyoiku" ("education without pressure") in 2007. This qualitative study aims to examine the background, outline and issues of Japan's license renewal system in order to understand the reasons for its demise and illustrate the similarities with the "yutori kyoiku" experiment. Drawing on interview data and reflections from the author's experiences with the system over 12 years, it looks at some of Japan's unique training opportunities and, employing examples from other countries, examines what kind of 'training' is needed moving forward. It concludes by calling for a widening of the interpretation of 'training,' and indeed, the license itself, so as to increase diversity in what is a considerably restrictive employment sector.

This study described the BIPA (Bahasa Indonesia untuk Penutur Asing) teachers' readiness to develop the Indonesian pluricultural competence among students. BIPA is a language program designed for non-native speakers of Indonesian who wish to learn the Indonesian language (Bahasa Indonesia) for both written and spoken purposes. The study used a qualitative approach, and data was collected from ten BIPA teachers through in-depth interviews. The important characteristics of the sample included minimum 5 years teaching experience and participation in BIPA teacher certification. Secondary data was collected through the documented archives of BIPA learning devices. The results showed that pluricultural competence was not yet known nor fully understood by BIPA teachers, and BIPA learning activities were used only as part of cultural insight in general. Additionally, pluricultural learning was carried out without being based on cultural awareness and knowledge of pluricultural competence. It was based only on the need to teach the material "ethics" or meet the needs of BIPA student adaptation or the need to avoid the possibility of conflict due to cultural differences in a BIPA class. The study reported that pluricultural competence has not been considered as a competence by BIPA teachers, but only knowledge or repertoire related to Indonesian culture.

The educational landscape requires an increased variety of teachers entering the field. The Early Childhood Education Bachelor of Individualized Studies program is a new online program within a teacher preparation institution located in a comprehensive university on the east coast of the United States. It is designed for students who have earned their Applied Associate of Science in Early Childhood Education (ECE) from a community college to pursue teacher licensure. This teacher education program was developed to respond to a statewide teacher shortage for teachers who already had earned an Early Childhood Associates degree from a state community college. This program advocates for non-traditional students and continues to be refined as we (the researchers) continue to work to find better ways to support our students. This online early childhood program aims to increase access to students who have valuable attributes to contribute to the field of education (Kaplan & Bellwether Education Partners, 2018). The purpose of this study was to understand the students' sense of community in the online educational environment. As a faculty community of practice, we, the researchers, created and sent out a qualitative survey to students (N=31) to gather participants' perspective of community and perceived barriers of an online licensure program in which 24 students completed the survey. To enhance our knowledge about the sense of community, we utilized Rovai's (2002a) Classroom Community Scale (CCS) to collect data from the most recent cohort of students (N=17). The data suggest that both senior and junior students perceive a relatively high level of Connectedness and Classroom Community, with mean scores above 40. The mean score for Learning was slightly lower, with both groups scoring below 23 on average. In addition, the following themes emerged from the result of the qualitative study followed by interviews: (1) there is a transition period for non-traditional students from the community college to the University online setting; (2) it is important for faculty to be intentional in creating a culture of care and sense of community; (3) licensure assessments are a key barrier; and (4) coaching and mentorship are critical for students' success.

This study aimed to investigate the performance of teachers who have been certified and those who have yet to be in professional teacher certification programs in Jombang Regency East Java Province. The type of research is quantitative. Data were collected using questionnaires and a Likert scale with 5 answer choices. Data analysis was performed using a t-test for independent samples using SPSS. The respondent comprised 370 teachers, including 185 professional and 185 non-professional certified teachers. The findings revealed a difference in performance between certified and non-certified teachers. Teachers who have been certified perform better than teachers who have not. Based on the present study's findings, it is suggested that the government maintain teacher certification, with continuous improvement and innovation for better development. This research has implications for the government that teacher certification programs and policies are still worth for continuing, although they need to be enriched with innovation and creativity, technological developments, stakeholder needs, and strengthening religious culture.

Needs analysis is a critical step to undertake when executing the design and development of a course. This quantitative research aimed to investigate the engineering students' reasons for taking the TOEIC Listening and Reading Test and their needs for English language preparation for taking the test. The participants were 83 voluntary and anonymous engineering students. The instrument was the researcher-constructed needs analysis questionnaire. The gathered quantitative data were statistically analyzed, and responses to an open-ended question were examined through thematic analysis. The results revealed that the participants would take the TOEIC Listening and Reading Test to fulfill one of the requirements to obtain an official teacher's license. As for the need for English language preparation, the participants wanted to be prepared with English listening, reading, vocabulary, and grammar essential for achieving the expected TOEIC scores at a high level. According to the short answers obtained from the open-ended question, it was found that the participants mentioned their significant concern of being unable to understand words' meaning. In addition, the participants expressed their interest in developing communication abilities simultaneously with test-taking preparation. Consequently, the information provided in this study can be the basics for designing and developing a training course that enhances the linguistic knowledge necessary for test-taking and communication.

Content, pedagogy, and technology knowledge are central to effective teaching. Moreover, the interaction and integration of these knowledge bases challenge teachers, especially non-teacher education graduates including diploma professional education (DPE) graduates. Utilising adapted instruments, this study investigated the teaching competence of biology teachers who are DPE graduates, specifically their Technological, Pedagogical, Content Knowledge (TPACK) and Biology teaching competence to design a teacher professional development (TPD) programme. Most teachers were BS Nursing graduates with professional teaching licenses and teaching experience ranging from 3 to 10 years. Also, most teachers received between one to five TPDs focused on biology, pedagogy, and technology. Among the TPACK components, the teachers perceived that they were least competent in pedagogical knowledge (PK) and pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). Although the teachers agreed on their perceived overall TPACK competence, there is still an avenue to strengthen their TPACK. Teachers also believed that they were least competent in biological cellular processes. Need-based teacher professional development programmes are recommended to enhance Biology teachers' TPACK, and ultimately, biology education.

Elementary principals are increasingly responsible for the supervision, support, and evaluation of early childhood teachers and young children. Previous research demonstrated that principals may prefer to hire elementary-certified rather than early childhood-certified teachers and that principals without early childhood preparation may not advocate for developmentally appropriate practices. This study examines elementary principals' preparation for and perceptions of early childhood education, including their knowledge of child development and hiring preferences. We use state certification data to understand principals' preparation and survey data to explore principals' perceptions and practices. Findings indicate that few principals hold early childhood certification while most supervise early childhood teachers and young children. Principals also indicated a lack of commitment to the PreK-3 continuum. Along with previous literature, our findings suggest that principal preparation requirements should be revised to ensure that all who support and evaluate early childhood teachers and young children receive relevant coursework and experiences.

The article describes possible explanations for the relative decline in teacher salaries during recent decades. The article focuses on the Norwegian case, but the situation regarding teacher salaries in Norway is equivalent in many other countries across the globe. Based on comparisons with other professions, three contributing explanations are proposed. All of these contributing explanations relate to a common theme of flexibility. The first proposed explanation is flexibility in certification, while the second and third have to do with flexibility in hiring.

Despite its crucial role in student success, there is scant research on how honors faculty develop teaching expertise and pedagogical authority. This essay considers the ways in which faculty development programs assist instructors by enhancing the critical skills necessary for positive student outcomes and successful honors programs. While honors scholars continue to advocate for institutional support toward faculty development, this essay provides further rationale and a specific example.

This study explored rhetorical devices and their effect on forming coherent and cohesive wholes in the writing of 61 EFL students. When analyzing their writing using the five-paragraph essay format, 57% of students deviated from the format, with some resorting to their L1 rhetorical structures (the indirect group) and others employing rhetorical preferences presumed to be deterministically influenced by their L1 (the hybrid group). Only 43% adhered to the format (the direct group). Neither the indirect nor the hybrid groups were inferior to the direct group regarding the length and quality of the writing; the direct group was not necessarily better received than the other two. The indirect group had a discernible (even if not statistically significant) impact on the length and quality of the writing. The indirect and hybrid groups were found to have slightly stronger control over cohesion indices. The two groups challenged the English-only orientation of the five-paragraph essay by negotiating rhetorical structures, thereby doing translingual dispositions.

Preparation to serve multilingual learners is often required for P-12 teacher certification. Teachers come to this preparation with varied experiences and urgent needs to better serve their students. When teacher preparation courses use a one-size-fits-all approach to satisfy certification requirements, teachers may not find learning meaningful to their current context. Further, without common mechanisms for sharing resources produced through teacher preparation, each novice teacher starts assignments from the beginning rather than learning from, and building upon, previous assignments of peers. Reusable teacher preparation assignments through open education pedagogy (OEP) may address the challenges of providing collaborative, relevant, and optimally challenging state-mandated teacher preparation. However, personalized learning may not be aligned with university course evaluations. Thus, faculty members may be concerned about the impact of personalization on student course evaluations. This exploratory study examined personalization and OEP in a required, graduate-level teacher preparation course by analyzing assignment completion data to explore teacher personalized learning paths and comparing standard university course evaluation items from four course runs pre- and post-personalization (N=230). Descriptive analyses illustrate negative changes in teacher evaluation of course organization, feedback timeliness, and time spent outside of class. Teacher satisfaction increased in the areas of diversity, use of technology, access, and online discussions. Results from examining personalized paths and course satisfaction provide recommendations for designing personalized teacher preparation.

This paper reports on research conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the Certification Modular Model 2.0 (CMM 2.0) offered by the Teacher Quality Institute of the Australian Capital Territory. The research evaluated the extent to which the CMM 2.0 was attractive, sustainable and developmental. The data was collected via two surveys conducted with, teachers who were prospective applicants to the CMM 2.0 and current and former certification participants. A case study method was used to conduct this research. Coding and systematic analysis were applied to the data by using the three selected categories attractive, developmental and sustainable. Most participants appreciated the developmental nature of the Modular Model and saw this approach as affording them with opportunities to gain professional recognition. This study contributes to knowledge about modular approaches to teacher certification and has potential to have influence on certification design and implementation in the Australian context and internationally.

Teacher certification exams are supposed to assess if a student is likely to succeed in teaching. What if an exam seems to be inappropriate? This article is an inquiry of the New York State Content Specialty Test for Early Childhood Candidates, particularly the math section. It raises the issue of whether we are asking the right questions and ascertaining the right data to decide if someone has the appropriate math knowledge and is ready to teach math to young children.

Aims: The Central Bicol State University of Agriculture (CBSUA) takes responsibility and leadership in the Bicol region's agriculture and allied technological sciences field. This study determined the possibility of offering short-term courses in Organic Agriculture at the Central Bicol State University of Agriculture. Study Design: Descriptive design was used in the study. Place and Duration of the Study: The study was conducted in Pili, Camarines Sur, Philippines, for six months in 2019. Methodology: A survey questionnaire was used to determine the demographic profile, motivations, reasons, and learning areas of interest among prospective enrollees on short-term courses in organic agriculture. The respondents were selected using purposive sampling, including 30 SHS teachers, 58 School Administrators, and 91 home gardeners. The data were tabulated through frequency count and percentage. Results: Results revealed that most prospective enrollees are from the old age bracket (42.25%), interested in home gardening (50.84%), want to learn about basic competencies of organic agriculture (29.05%), and earn a National Certificate for teaching purposes (25.69%). Their main reasons if they are to enroll in the program was health or personal well-being (22.91%). Most respondents wanted to learn about crop and animal production (44.69%) among the learning areas in organic agriculture. Conclusion: This study indicates that short-term courses in organic agriculture have the possibility to be offered at the University.

The "Science of Reading" (SOR) has gained traction due to public media, resulting in a nationwide prioritization of teacher training and changes in the way reading is taught. The nationwide emphasis on the SOR led to new teacher certification requirements in Texas. Although teacher candidates already take a content exam to demonstrate proficiency in English Language Arts and Reading (ELAR) Standards, a new "Science of Teaching Reading" (STR) exam has been added to certification requirements. The purpose of this manuscript is to examine SOR's impact on the Texas ELAR and STR standards and certification exams in order to determine how literacy skills have been categorized by the Texas Education Agency.

Many educators and policymakers have long recognized the need to transform schools and classrooms to better support students' academic, social, and emotional needs. The increased stress, mental health challenges, disconnection and disengagement, and inequities observed during the pandemic have reaffirmed the need to create safe, welcoming learning environments for students and educators alike. A whole-child approach, which prioritizes the full scope of a child's developmental needs--academic, social, emotional, cognitive, physical, and psychological--is an important step toward this end. This approach can improve student and school outcomes. When it becomes part and parcel of educator preparation, it can also overcome major hurdles such as the teacher shortages nearly every state is facing.

With three school years touched by the pandemic so far, the extent of the damage to this generation of students is coming into focus. Three concerns are top of mind for state and district leaders: making up for disrupted learning, ensuring that schools have enough quality teachers and staff to lead this work, and building a diverse teacher workforce. Many states are tempted to lower requirements for teachers in the hopes that it will address some of these concerns. Before signing on to such changes, state boards of education should seek evidence about the exact nature of the problems a policy change is designed to address, whether the change is likely to help, and what the unintended consequences might be. Is there evidence, for example, that lowering teacher requirements will bring more teachers into the schools that are struggling to hire them? And what inadvertent harm will students suffer at a time when their learning recovery is most fragile?

Children across the nation lack access to high-quality pre-K programs that can support their development and build foundational skills for elementary school. The pandemic set pre-K enrollment and funding back further, with an enrollment decline of nearly 300,000 children and state spending remaining relatively flat. As children and families return to public pre-K, state policymakers must focus on investing in program expansion and strengthening quality. Those efforts should start with a pre-K teacher workforce that is well prepared and fairly compensated. Teacher preparation is quickly changing, with new models emerging to develop more accessible, affordable, flexible pathways. We will describe four of these approaches: allowing community colleges to confer bachelor's degrees, supporting paid work-based training through registered apprenticeships, funding grow-your-own programs that remove barriers for teachers within communities, and encouraging institutions of higher education (IHEs) to collaborate on developing aligned, articulated pathways. [This article was written with Cara Sklar.]

Given the call by Krashen (2012) and others advocating for shorter, easier to digest research papers, we provide a shorter than usual summary of the World Language edTPA via empirical findings from the Stanford Center for Assessment, Learning, and Equity and researchers in the field. We argue in favor of abandoning the World Language edTPA for manifold reasons in favor of placing world language teacher preparation and subsequent teacher candidate recommendation for certification and licensure where it belongs--in the competent hands of the teacher educators who prepare these individuals.

The need to support those teaching in English-medium instruction (EMI) classrooms is becoming increasingly acknowledged, and faculty professional development (PD) is recognised as an important element of that support. This study, a replication and localisation of an international study by Macaro et al. (2020. "English Medium Instruction in Higher Education: Teacher Perspectives on Professional Development and Certification." "International Journal of Applied Linguistics" 30 (1): 144-157), investigates the experiences and attitudes of faculty members teaching in EMI programmes in South Korea and Japan towards EMI related PD and certification. Survey findings (South Korea n = 234, Japan n = 92) indicate that few faculty members have experience with pre-service PD, and that EMI-related in-service PD is rare in South Korea but on the rise in Japan. Preferences for PD and attitudes towards certification differed between the two populations sampled, and there are indications that the disciplinary and language backgrounds of the professors may influence this. This highlights the need for local, context-appropriate approaches to supporting faculty in EMI programmes.

In 2016, the Middle Level Education Research Special Interest Group (MLER SIG) of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) published "The MLER SIG Research Agenda," a white paper identifying critical issues and concerns facing the field of middle level education. Since its release, much has changed. This manuscript is a revised version of "The MLER SIG Research Agenda." More than 40 researchers from across the globe collaborated to develop an agenda for future middle level research that illuminates strategies for moving middle level education forward in support of young adolescents within the current state of affairs. The research summarized in this manuscript represents eight focus areas: (a) middle grades curriculum; (b) middle grades pedagogies; (c) middle level certification and licensure; (d) middle level leadership; (e) middle level schools, classrooms, culture, and learning environments; (f) middle level teacher development; (g) social and emotional wellbeing; and (h) young adolescent identity and experiences. Each group summarized the current literature in their area and developed a list of questions to guide future middle level education research. This manuscript is intended to start conversations, generate ideas for research projects, and contribute new knowledge to the field of middle level education.

Language teacher identity (LTI) plays a significant role at various stages of a professional career. Yet, teacher preparation programs address LTI differently. The Certificate of English Language Teaching to Adults (CELTA) is the most widely recognized initial qualification. Examining how LTI is constructed during and after the acquisition of the CELTA is needed to expand understanding of the LTI knowledge base associated with these programs and the complex nature of LTI in general. Framed within situated learning perspective, this longitudinal study conceptualizes LTI as an interplay between language teacher cognition and teacher learning. It aims to advance LTI research by utilizing the reflective conversation heuristic to examine the LTI construction of a novice teacher during and after the CELTA. Findings reveal changes at the three levels of the reflective conversation heuristic and point to the utility of the heuristic as a novel approach to supporting identity construction.