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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 14, 2000

Statement

Statement from NEA President and National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education Chairman, Bob Chase on Teacher Preparation Report

"It's no secret that children learn best with a quality teacher in the classroom. As president of the National Education Association (NEA) and chairman of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), I can attest that teachers and other educators are vigorously involved in strengthening teacher preparation programs.

Many of the suggestions in a recent AFT report are already on a fast track. In fact, the performance-based standards developed by NCATE 2000 will be implemented this year. The result will be strengthened teacher preparation, higher standards for content knowledge, and enhanced classroom experience for student teachers.

Tests, like those recommended in the report, are in place in many states across the nation. What we need to have is all states implementing these tests and to set the bar high for passing them. The development of a new test may delay this progress.

Additionally, it is a sad fact that two-thirds of schools of education are not NCATE accredited. This must change. The need for rigorous, uniform standards is too urgent to defer action.

The NEA and NCATE are also working toward expanding classroom experience, raising entry standards, recruiting minority teachers, and enhancing schools of education with stronger curriculum.

To improve quality and attract the best and the brightest to the profession, we must also focus attention on compensating teachers for their work. Teachers are still paid less than professions that require comparable education and skills. Until this fact is addressed, all other attempts to improve the quality of teachers will ring hollow."

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The National Education Association is the nation’s largest professional employee organization, representing more than 2.7 million elementary and secondary teachers, higher education faculty, education support personnel, school administrators, retired educators, and students preparing to become teachers.