The Office of Educational Research and Improvement funded nine projects exploring whether partnerships could help improve teacher education and induction. It created consortia of state education agencies, state agencies of higher education, teacher education colleges, and local school districts to collaborate on improving teacher education and…

This brief addresses four areas of opportunity to influence teacher quality. These areas of opportunity are used to create a framework to help state and district policymakers comprehensively address teacher quality. There are a number of policy levers or strategies that can be used as part of a comprehensive approach to improving teacher quality.…

A review of Indigenous education was undertaken in the Northern Territory, Australia, to determine the educational views of Indigenous communities, key issues affecting educational outcomes for Indigenous children, and supportable actions to improve those outcomes. Data collection included 126 targeted interviews, 40 public meetings, 106 formal…

This article considers two policy initiatives that address the dilemma of increasing special education teacher numbers and improving quality: the No Child Left Behind law and the plan laid out in the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future policy blueprint. It then discusses teacher attrition and retainment strategies. (Contains…

This paper identifies demographic changes in the areas of poverty, single-parent families, teenage pregnancy, and educational achievement, with emphasis on increased vulnerability of minority populations. It also notes related challenges to the educational system in personnel recruitment and preparation, effective delivery of educational services…

The national supply of teachers has risen to meet the demand, largely because of the growing interest in alternative programs of teacher preparation. An overview is given of alternative teacher certification that has allowed many districts, especially large urban districts, to fill their vacancies. (SLD)

Presents results of a qualitative study of alternatively certified teachers from a large urban district in the Southwest, focusing on reasons for choosing alternative certification. Interviews with 100 teachers reveal a variety of reasons for choosing teaching and indicate that the alternative program increases the pool of qualified teachers. (SLD)

Describes the Minority Affairs Project Outreach Program (MAPOP) of the University of Kansas. MAPOP initially provided services to promote college attendance for high school students in Kansas City but was redesigned to focus on academically capable elementary and junior high students. Interventions enable students to complete secondary school and…

This document reports on the purpose, implementation, and outcomes of a policy forum on strategies used to address the disproportionate number of students from minority ethnic/racial groups receiving special education. Participants included representatives of state education agencies, local education agencies, the university/research community,…

Each year the Faculty of Education, University of Toronto (Ontario, Canada), receives applications from potential teachers with excellent profiles but who lack teaching experience. These applicants are possible candidates for the Teacher Apprenticeship Program (TAP), an alternative teacher education program. Those selected are placed in regular…

This document describes "Teach for America," a program which recruits outstanding college students who may not otherwise have considered teaching, provides them with an intensive training program, and places them for 2 years of teaching in inner-city and rural school districts with persistent teacher shortages. The report addresses: (1)…

This report describes the following five areas of compliance in the Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) public school Remedial Plan for Services to Asian Limited English Proficiency (LEP) students: (1) counseling services; (2) assignment of students to English-as-a-Second Language (ESOL) Levels 1 and 2; (3) pupil support committees (PSCs); (4)…

This project was designed to enhance and enlarge the pool of black teachers and to demonstrate the extent to which this intervention model could be effective in achieving this goal. The major activities of the project consisted of a series of faculty development workshops designed to hone faculty skills in test item analysis and construction, and…

This report contains a transcript of the hearing discussing federal efforts in science and mathematics education held before the Subcommittee on Veterans Administration (VA), Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and Independent Agencies of the Committee on Appropriations. Spokespersons for the Executive Office of the President--Office of Science…

This paper reviews all of the 50 state plans required under Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in order to identify state initiatives dealing with the recruitment and retention of special education personnel. The beginning of the report explains the requirements under IDEA relevant to recruitment and discusses the…