Advancing the Profession

Two papers from the Erikson Institute show that state-based teacher preparation standards and teacher education programs do not adequately address the developmental and educational needs of diverse groups of children.

This report on the Characteristics of Teachers in State-Funded Pre-Kindergarten Programs is the first in a series examining state-funded pre-Kindergarten programs on the ground from the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER).

The National Task Force on Early Childhood Education of Hispanics describes how the requirements of Prekindergarten teachers vary by setting.

The study documents the current state of staff qualifications, stability, turnover and compensation in state-funded prekindergarten programs, and to identify the conditions under which Pre-K initiatives promote a more skilled and stable, and better compensated early care and education workforce.

Concerns about the qualifications, turnover, diversity, and compensation of the early childhood workforce are growing as more children attend private and public preschool programs.

Common explanations for low wages for early education and care work are inadequate and misleading.

This commentary by the Foundation for Child Development’s previous staff, published in Early Childhood Research Quarterly, challenges recent research that finds no relationship between PK teacher qualifications (degree, major, or certification) and child outcomes.

Providing Tools Towards Quality: The Status of P-3 Teacher Preparation Programs in New Jersey, assesses whether PreK-3rd teacher preparation programs are preparing prospective teachers to teach the continuum from Prekindergarten to Grade Three, reviews how new PreK-3rd programs are aligned with other certification programs in universities, and examines how the overlap of the PreK-3rd and K-5 certificates has impacted other university programs.