U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan wants teacher-training programs to be held accountable – too many, he says, are mediocre. Kate Walsh, the president of the National Council on Teacher Quality, has complained that the level of teachers coming out of these programs is deeply dissatisfying. Enter U.S. News & World Report. They’ve undertaken the assignment of grading more than 1,000 teachers’ colleges throughout the country, including Columbia, Harvard and Northwestern, using a rating system familiar to those in academia. Exceptional colleges will get an A and poorer performing schools will receive an F. The project, which is being underwritten by Carnegie Corporation and the Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation, is expected to cost $3.6 million and will be completed next year. Critics, including several prominent deans, have pushed back, arguing that the methodology being used to assess and rate their program's performance is flawed. The researchers dismiss the critiques as a "bit of a red herring" and stand by their methods. How should we assess the way teachers are taught? Is an objective and meaningful standard possible?
Guests:
Kate Walsh, president, National Council on Teacher Quality
Ada Beth Cutler, dean of the education college of Montclair State University
Mary Brabeck, dean on New York University’s school of education.
Brock Cohen, 11th grade Humanities teacher at Grant High School (a Title 1 School) in North Hollywood. He is a blogger for Huffington Post