Alternative Certification

Why It Matters
Teacher shortages are a major issue in some areas of the country, particularly in urban school districts. Across the nation, the demand for new hires is expected to increase by 2 percent per year for the next several years, with a need to hire approximately 2.5 million teachers over the next 10 years.

Alternative routes into the teaching profession are becoming increasingly common as a strategy in order to meet the demand for more teachers. Alternative certification programs vary greatly on many dimensions, including scope, size, duration, and intensity. However, little research-based knowledge exists about the links between various characteristics of the programs, the performance of program participants in classrooms, and, ultimately, learning outcomes for students whom the participants teach.

What We’re Doing
To identify normative standards for effective alternative certification programs, the Center for Education Policy at SRI International conducted a three-year study that explores the components of various alternative routes to teacher certification and their relative effectiveness in preparing teachers for the classroom. SRI selected seven alternative certification programs and sub-contracted with the Center for Teaching Quality to research NC TEACH, a North Carolina state alternative route to teaching.

The study focuses on three aspects of alternative certification programs:

1. Program inputs and how they vary across alternative certification programs

• What are the characteristics of program participants, and how do they vary across programs?
• How does the state policy context affect the design and implementation of alternative certification programs?
• How does the local policy context affect the design and implementation of alternative certification programs?

2. Programmatic characteristics of alternative certification programs

• What are the underlying purposes and structure of the program?
• What theories of teaching and learning underlie the program?
• What are the characteristics of program faculty?

3. Program effects

• Did the program meet its goals and address the issues it was designed to address?
• What contributions did the alternative certification program make to participants?
• What contributions do alternatively certified teachers make to student learning?

Research methods include a survey of program directors from a sample of programs, in-depth case studies of seven alternative certification programs, and an analysis of existing data on alternative certification programs and student achievement.