House Committee Examines Innovations in Educator Preparation with AACTE Members
On Wednesday, September 25, the Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education Subcommittee of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce held a hearing on “Innovative Teacher Preparation: Properly Equipping America’s Educators.” Witnesses included AACTE members Carole Basile, Ed.D., dean of the Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College at Arizona State University, and Melba Spooner, Ed.D., dean of the Reich College of Education at Appalachian State University. They were joined by Sharif El-Mekki, CEO of the Center for Black Educator Development, and Greg Mendez, Ed.D., principal of Skyline High School in Mesa, AZ.
CEO of the Center for Black Educator Development Sharif El-Mekki, and AACTE Members Melba Spooner, Ed.D., and Carol Basile, Ed.D. during Wednesday’s hearing.
In addition to describing the teacher shortage, which Chairman Aaron Bean (R-FL) likened to a car dashboard warning light for the education system, the hearing focused on solutions. Witnesses and members described initiatives including Grow Your Own programs for high school students, residencies and apprenticeships, and student loan forgiveness. Members raised concerns about teacher compensation and diversity, staffing for special education, trauma-informed instruction, and the affordability and convenience of educator preparation programs. Several members, including Ranking Member Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR), and Rep. Jahana Hayes (D-CT), described legislation they support to address concerns they raised.
A major focus of the hearing was strategic staffing as a systemic approach to redesigning teaching, the school environment, and educator preparation. Basile and Mendez described how a team-based approach to teaching works and the benefits that it conveys to teachers, students, and schools.
This hearing was the brainchild of Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx, Ed.D., (R-NC), who learned about the Next Education Workforce initiative during a visit to Arizona State University. Excited about the potential of team-based education, Foxx asked Basile, “How do you build trust with these districts and convince them to move away from the one-teacher one-classroom model?”
“Change moves at the speed of trust,” responded Basile, adding, “What we’ve seen in schools, they start with one team, and by the end of the year everybody is in teams because the people look in and say, ‘I want to work that way as well.’”
In summary, this hearing was a substantive and respectful conversation about real solutions to the teacher shortage. AACTE will be following up with members of the committee as it develops its priorities and recommendations for the 119th Congress that will convene in January 2025.
The hearing is available to view online.
Tags: advocacy, early childhood education, federal issues
