District Leader Discussion: How to Better Support Alternatively Certified Teachers
| by Hannah Sparling
Some sobering stats:
- 79% of U.S. public schools reported difficulty filling teaching positions for the 2023-24 school year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. For high-poverty schools, it was 86%.
- 45% of public schools reported feeling understaffed for that same school year, 57% for high-poverty schools.
Schools across the country are having a difficult time finding (and keeping) the teachers they need. And that means hiring directors are looking more and more at alternative routes to certification.
Moreland University hosted a panel discussion (facilitated by Joseph A. Pearson, Head of Community at Moreland) with several district partners on how to better support and retain alternatively licensed teachers. Below are excerpts from that conversation, edited for length and clarity.
Panelists:
- Selena Blankenship, Assistant Superintendent for HR, Clarke County School District (GA)
- Jennifer Duvall, Human Resources Director, Corvallis School District (OR)
- Valerie Holzer, Professional Pathways Coordinator, Pendergast Elementary Schools (AZ)
Compared to teachers who took a traditional path to certification, where do you see alternatively certified teachers shine, and where do you see them struggle?
Holzer: They tend to excel in creativity and flexibility, which is essential in today’s world of education. They tend to be more innovative. They also tend to engage students more.
Where we see a need for more support is in instructional planning and even just in the language of education. The terminology and the vocabulary that we use — (alternatively certified teachers) sometimes need to be brought up to speed.
Blankenship: The other thing we find is that, in general, they’re very coachable and very responsive to feedback.
We find that the content is usually not an issue for our alternatively certified teachers. But you know, just learning about life in school and the “alphabet soup” (educational acronyms) is sometimes a little like drinking from a fire hose.
Holzer: And definitely, we can see trends in (struggling with) classroom management, as we do with most beginning teachers.
Blankenship: What we see is they have an understanding of a need for routines and procedures, but they don’t often understand how granular they need to be with that with their students.
What specific strategies do you use to support alternatively licensed teachers?
Blankenship: We provide a lot of detailed information about the certification process. We have multiple check-ins with them and really guide them through that process.
But most recently, we have been partnering with Moreland University for our teacher runway… We worked with them to develop a short course to provide some classroom essentials to help (teachers) really go into the classroom prepared — or better prepared, I should say. I’m not sure anything truly prepares them for the classroom.
Duvall: We are somewhat unique in our district in that we are surrounded by several universities that have teacher ed programs. However, some of those programs are your traditional programs. So, we are really needing to look for programs that have more flexibility.
That’s one of the things I appreciate about Moreland. The individuals we’ve had who have gone through the program have talked about the rigor of the program, appreciation for that flexibility, and actually being able to do the work within their job of teaching.
Blankenship: Part of our onboarding process is helping them prepare for licensure exams. Our teachers have cited that as a big benefit to being here in our district.
The other thing we do is make sure they have a strong mentor assigned at the very beginning. And those mentors really help to guide them as well.
We have the ability to waive certification. So, truly, people are coming into the classroom with absolutely no teaching experience or educator preparation at all. So that support we provide them is critical, because about 30% of our teaching staff is alternatively certified.
Holzer: One of the things I check with (our alternatively certified teachers) is, what is your biggest success right now? What is your biggest challenge? And how can I also support you with your professional goals at this time?
I have found that I can really get down to basics with those check-ins and get clarity with each of the teachers I support. It’s been very helpful.
Your teachers can earn professional certifications in as little as 9 months with Moreland University’s TEACH-NOW Teacher Preparation Certificate Program. Partner with us to close the certification gap, enhance teacher effectiveness, and improve student outcomes.