The author's statement to the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions on the challenges faced by America's classroom teachers focuses on a few of the factors that lead to teacher frustration and burnout that higher pay, however well-intended, does not change. They include, but are not limited to, poor teacher preparation,…

Amaya Garcia of New America talks with Kappan about grow-your-own programs, in which school districts partner with teacher preparation programs to recruit and prepare community members, often current students or school staff, to teach in local schools. A recent 50-state scan shows that there is a great deal of variety in how these programs are…

It appears that a teacher shortage is on the rise in the nation's schools. This is not a new issue or concern; teacher shortages have occurred off and on for some time for a variety of reasons. But this particular shortage of qualified teachers does appear to be important and different than previously reported shortages ("The Washington…

In this commentary, we revisit "NCLB and the Demand for Highly Qualified Teachers: Challenges and Solutions for Rural Schools," an article we published in this journal in 2005. We consider the predictions we made then about the impact of the Highly Qualified Teacher mandate on special education teacher (SET) shortages in rural states and…

Teacher educators work diligently to prepare future teachers while navigating the surrounding political realities that challenge our schools. Demands placed on teacher educators are growing and are increasingly more complex. Well-prepared and successful teachers are exiting the profession at alarming rates in several places in the world, including…

Introduction: For some time now the field of medical education has been criticized by many of its stakeholders. Countless debates have been presented in the literature regarding the quality of medical education research, adequacy of methodological rigor, and other concerns. Methods: At present, the views expressed have largely come from physicians…

The policy reforms over the past 15 years have placed all the responsibility for reading achievement on teachers, with little, if any, support. What many have achieved is declining achievement in comparison with other countries. Moreover, there are increasing teacher shortages, as promising individuals choose other careers and teachers leave the…

The under-representation of Black male teachers in special education has significant consequences. Historically, Black males account for the disproportionately high number of children served in K-12 special education programs (Talbert-Johnson, 2001). Often, the children are evaluated using racially-biased assessments (Cartledge & Duke, 2008).…

Peer-assisted learning as "de rigueur" is reverberating in medical institutions around the world. Anatomy classroom activities are challenging and different, and the stressful environment of dissection rooms poses a greater challenge than what can be addressed through peer-assisted learning. It is here that "near-peer role modeling" is not only…

The first article in this special issue is about the doctoral programs, the suppliers of new doctoral graduates in special education. It focuses on one component of a larger effort, the Special Education Faculty Needs Assessment (SEFNA) project, which investigated many aspects of the supply of new doctoral graduates as well as the demand for new…

Each semester during student-teacher seminars, the author invites local administrators to come to campus and participate in mock job interviews. These practice interviews provide students an opportunity to prepare for a successful interview and give administrators the chance to meet graduating students who will help alleviate Arizona's teacher…

David Stern argues that some basic features of the American high school must be modified if it is to serve all students successfully. He notes, for example, that only three-quarters of U.S. high school students graduate four years after beginning ninth grade and that the National Assessment of Educational Progress found no improvement in reading…

With both high retirement and high attrition rates among educators and a nationwide increasing student population, more teachers are needed. With the impact of a teacher shortage, educational systems began to examine the alternative certification methods. Alternative routes to teacher education profoundly impact the teaching force. The "Ways…

This report explores issues raised by the "2006 MetLife Survey of the American Teacher: Expectations and Experiences." focusing on the belief of the majority of education leaders and principals responding to the survey that a shortage of qualified teachers will be a serious problem in the near future. The brief explores what research says about…

Anatomy education in Pakistan is facing many of the same challenges as in other parts of the world. Roughly, a decade ago, all medical and dental colleges in Pakistan emphasized anatomy as a core basic discipline within a traditional medical science curriculum. Now institutions are adopting problem based learning (PBL) teaching philosophies, and…