Education >
Education (Other)
Get a Widget for this title
RSS FeedShould teacher candidates undergo a two-year internship leading to an MA?
Results so far:
| Yes | 53% | 30 votes | Total: 57 votes | |
| No | 47% | 27 votes |
Yes
Write now
Print
Invite a writer™
Add to FavoritesWhen most people think of teaching they think of someone standing at the front of the class dispensing knowledge and instructions.
Teachin g, however, is a more complicated activity. Teachers need a knowledge base to be able to impart it to their students and even with a good degree, teaching is a life long learning process for the teacher. The old saying the teacher learns more than the pupils is true because teachers have to be at least a couple of steps ahead.
It is no good having a solid amount of knowledge if the teacher cannot maintain order in the classroom. This is an exhausting activity because it means keeping a large group of individuals of varying abilities and interests, interested in the material and willing to cooperate. This involves being inventive in ways to capture their curiosity. It means gaining their respect through being seen to be fair, in discipline, marking work, giving appropriate help, having a sense of humor - that is knowing when to acknowledge someone has done something funny - and developing a professional relationship with the students. This is a complex collection of activities. At face value this seems easy but when a new teacher is juggling how much work to set, establishing themselves with the students, the time factor of the length of a lesson and learning to cope with individual personalities it is possible to see the number of skills required.
With an internship, leading to an MA, the teacher will have a structured program to help them come to terms with all these differing aspects of the job. It used to be that teachers were ashamed it they had discipline problems, or weren't sure how to present a particular subject. These are all part of the learning process for the teacher. Expertise comes with practice and sometimes the help and support of experienced professionals is all that is needed to turn an able teacher into a great one. Above all, learning should be an activity that is fun and when a subject is well taught, the students are unaware of how much they are learning. Everyone remembers certain teachers because they were either inspiring or put us off completely.
Modern educational philosophy is now beginning to ensure that the psychological understanding of the different ways we learn are taken into account in the classroom. The old chalk and talk' is not the best way for everyone. Doing is always the best way to learn. Knowing how to hook into the individual learning methods of each student ensures they learn effectively and even enjoy the subject.
With an internship, the new teacher will be more closely monitored and supervised. Irritating perhaps, but all jobs take time to learn, and teaching is a complex activity. Merely having a degree in a subject does not qualify someone to be able to impart the information effectively. It is the beginning which allows development of the teacher and offers a reward for the work.
Learn more about this author, Rosemary Redfern.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.
No
The first question I would ask is why do teachers need more training? Is it because they seem unprepared for the classroom? Is it because statistics say many new teachers leave within the first 5 years? Is it because there are problems with our education system, and it must be the teachers lack the training needed to cope with today's students? Before advocating such a measure we should consider why such a measure is needed. Then we would need to look at the repercussions of such a requirement. I am just curious to know why we are debating this issue.
As a long time teacher, I personally have no problem with stepping up the requirements for teacher education. When I came into the field, only certified teachers could teach in public schools. Now, however, many young teachers have a degree but no education courses. They sign up at one of the local colleges for a special program that allows them to take a few educations courses during the summer and teach for a year to acquire their certification. Advisers and mentors are encouraged to get these folks through the system because of the shortage of teachers. I know this because I have been asked to work as a mentor for such a "teacher". Because of the teacher shortage, even conventional teacher education and preparation is being set aside. What is the point of increasing this certification requirement? State legislators will respond to the lack of highly qualified teachers by filling classrooms with unqualified teachers.
When people lack the training and dedication needed for a demanding job, they become frustrated. People often come to teaching thinking it is a simple job. "How hard can it be to tell a bunch of kids what to do and they do it? That's what their teacher did." I've heard too many first year teachers, student teachers, and teachers in special programs whine (or even come to me in tears) saying that the students treated them disrespectfully. If they are the least bit dedicated, they are overwhelmed by a sense of futility when they spend hours planning lessons that have to be set aside because resources are not available to accommodate the completion of said lesson. They are inundated with paperwork that has little to do with what goes on in their classroom, and no one has explained to them how it should be done. it is no wonder they leave within the first five years. The only reason many come back for a second or third year is because they are told it will get better. It doesn't.
I can see how an internship might help new teachers experience and observe veteran teachers handling these situations, but who has the time to supervise these interns? Teachers who are already overworked and overwhelmed themselves, administrators who could take advantage of a low paid intern, or college professors who are seldom seen and often like fish out of water in a real school situation. It is not unusual for schools to employ a college student still working on a degree as a "full time" substitute teacher, or the school has lost a teacher at semester and have a student teacher fill that position. It can save the ISD a lot of money because they pay the people a much lower wage than a qualified teacher. Who would oversee such a program so that interns get the experience they need and without others taking advantage of them? Who pays them? What are their responsibilities?
It is true that our education system is in crisis. There are many trying to remedy the situation. There is a push to train new teachers and retrain older teachers to handle today's students. Administrators of troubled schools must go to many hours of workshops and training as well. The US probably has the best trained teachers and administrators in the world. Our schools are still in crisis. An internship program sounds great, but will it make a real difference?
Learn more about this author, Brenda Obert.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.
Difference of opinion? Debate now.
- Education (Other)
- Has school choice improved public schools?
- Is the No Child Left Behind law beneficial for children?
- Do children learn better in single-sex schools?
- Are teacher evaluation systems fair and effective?
- When schools offer free or low-cost laptops to students, should these laptops be restricted?
- Should college students be required to mentor younger children?
