A Study of Promising Features of Teacher Preparation Programs

Contractor: Abt Associates Inc., Chesapeake Research Associates, and Dillon-Goodson Research Associates

Background/Research Questions:

The Department of Education's Blueprint for Reform is focused on a comprehensive approach to improving teacher effectiveness at all points along the continuum, including teacher preparation. One way to affect teacher quality, and thus teacher effectiveness, is by improving teacher preparation in traditional university based settings where the majority of teachers are prepared. The purpose of the study is to provide information about promising teacher preparation program features (such as substantive clinical experience).

The proposed evaluation effort is designed to address the following questions related to teacher preparation, teacher outcomes, and student achievement:

• What is the impact on student achievement of teachers who choose to enter teaching through a traditional university-based teacher preparation program that includes promising preparation features versus those teachers who choose to enter teaching through programs that have more typical features?
• What teacher preparation features are associated with teacher effectiveness for students including special populations (i.e. Special Education students and English Language learners)?

Design:

The impact evaluation will form a pair of new teachers in the same grade at each of the schools included in the study, with one teacher pursuing certification through a program with promising features and one prepared through a more typical program. Students will be randomly assigned to teachers in the pair. A comparison of the outcomes within the teacher pairs, informs the first research question. Exploiting the variation in program coursework requirements within the promising preparation routes included in the sample and comparing with their typical program counterparts provides information about the second research question. The study also includes additional complementary analyses to provide more information about the teaching of special populations using state administrative data enhanced with teacher preparation program information. Data collection will begin in 2012 and includes documentation of the nature and extent of teacher preparation activities, student administrative record information, pre- and post-test scores, and measures of teacher practice.

Cost/Duration: $10,454,503.00 over 4 years (September 2011–September 2015)

Current Status: Contract was awarded in September 2011. Refinement of study design and recruitment is underway. A report on this study will be announced on http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/.