Professionalization
Learning to teach is a developmental process that doesn't end with initial licensure. As with other professions, discrete developmental stages occur throughout a career.
Teaching has tended to not acknowledge these stages and thus the appropriate support, professional growth opportunities, and recognitions are not built into the system.
Teaching Quality will be enhanced if as institutions of higher education we 1) work to advocate for a state-wide system of professional teaching, and 2) develop and model a system within institutions of higher education.
Professionalization of teaching typically has encompassed developmental and experiential acquisition of knowledge, attitudes, and values, standards for which are set by the profession itself. These important teacher characteristics often are associated with self-exploration, self-direction, and self-monitoring within a differentiated, inductive environment.
Creating a statewide system to implement professional standards and to develop such environments in schools also should improve school climate and promote student learning, and should increase retention of quality teachers.
Performance Goals:
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An environment exists for Tennessee educators that acknowledges and supports the development of expertise, offers pathways for advancement, rewards accomplishment, and ensures/ demands professional behavior.
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Teachers are lifelong learners who stay current with and implement the latest research-based instructional strategies, content knowledge, and technology.
Action Steps:
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Adopt the Career Life Cycle Model (adapted from Kappa Delta Pi Teacher Life Cycle Model) to advance a system to recognize and suggest professional stages in teaching.
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Develop the peer review process for the model which must include: well-trained assessors operating within a well-defined and explicit set of rubrics; a process that is transparent to all; a due process component; nonbiased with “blind, peer review;” providing teacher with the opportunity to submit documents outlining the particular educational/school context in which the teacher is teaching; in-depth and detailed indicators/rubric (on a website); result in significant monetary increase; and be seen by teachers as fair in every way.
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Seek significant funding for a minimum of $10,000 raise in salary or bonus with advancement to the next stage in the model.