This article shares a personal story of the evolution of professional development in practice in K-12 schools from three states over a 30 year period. The article begins with reference to general subject area life awarded teaching credentials and concludes with the addition of language addressing prekindergarten, specifically the inclusion of…

U.S. universities have had century-long success in absorbing existing professions into their curricula--by making academe their gatekeeper. These professions often started with apprenticeships and short training courses leading to a certification examination--and were then elevated and "academized" into a comprehensive body of knowledge,…

Presents an interview with the President of the Council for Standards in Human Service Education. Discusses DiGiovanni's participation in the development of the human service field on a national level, and involvement with the standardization of human service competencies as well as the credentialing of human service professionals. (Author/GCP)

Credentialing for psychology in North America will constitute an increasingly important concern in the development of the mental health professions, regardless of specific discipline. This article highlights some major milestones in credentialing in psychology in North America and some of the credentialing issues that health care professionals may…

Criteria for judging the professional status of continuing education include clarification of professional mission, mastery of theoretical knowledge, practical knowledge, self-improvement, credentialing/assessment, public acceptance, and ethical practice. (SK)

The author argues that it is time for the traditional role of staff developer to be strengthened through an enhanced form of personal professional development, professionalization, and promotion of a new professional image. He presents a model program featuring accreditation as opposed to certification. (Author/CH)

Is the traditional model of professionalism appropriate for adult education? Four basic contradictions in this model regarding attitudes towards learners, relationships with learners, credentialing of adult educators, and specialization of adult education suggest that it is not. Six assumptions that should underlie a new vision of the…

Presents an interview with the director of the National Board for Certified Counselors, who provides a history of the organization. He discusses his efforts in establishing unified addictions specialist credentials and offers suggestions for addiction and offender counselors seeking these credentials. He explores the pressing credentialing issues…

The competence of directors and administrators of children's programs is very important to quality, and efforts that seek to bring directors and administrators more support and help them to develop their competencies are worth examination. This paper begins by briefly discussing "A Preliminary Overview of Director Credentialing…

As the child care field moves toward professionalism, it is necessary to consider the ways in which academic instruction may enhance professionalization. One dimension of the definition of a profession is that a profession has control over the key elements of its own destiny. For example, a profession (1) controls entry into the profession, (2)…

Professional preparation institutions are attempting to legislate greater control over the credentialing process. The credentialing system functions most efficiently under a partnership structure in which input is provided by the professional preparation institutions, the organized profession representatives of the market, and the government. (JN)

The development of a regional credential for administrator certification is discussed as a means to increase the supply of qualified applicants for educational administrative positions in the Northeast. Relevant issues are addressed, which include voluntary/mandatory compliance, administrator experience level at which certification should occur,…

Summarizes a report about professional credentials presented to the Australian Science Teachers Association (ASTA). Presents a rationale for the involvement of ASTA in the development of science teaching standards, a summary of the state of teacher evaluation, and a discussion of future options for ASTA's involvement in standards. (DDR)

Suggests that the "fact-shoveling" model of higher education is rendering institutions superfluous in this Information Age. Illustrates the convergence of business and education, and notes that businesses are providing relevant training for free, while a university education remains costly. Discusses the credential problem,…

This paper describes the uses of portfolios for the preparation and continuing professional development of educators, with a focus on the use of portfolios as an important part of administrator development. It looks at the use of portfolios as a way to promote more effective and intensive continued learning among educational leaders. A brief…