Teaching's future

NEA Today, Apr 1999

In his annual State of American Education speech in February, U.S. Education Secretary Richard Riley highlighted his plan for elevating the teaching profession:

irst, a new teacher would be granted an initial license for up to three years after passing a written exam of content and teaching knowledge and an assessment of teaching performance....

Second, I suggest the creation of a professional license. The standards for this new license, developed at the state level, would be higher than those for an 'initial' license, and would involve peer review by a panel of teachers and a supervisor....

The third part of my proposal would be a voluntary advanced license such as the advanced certification that now exists through the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards.

Riley will discuss his vision for the future of education in the May issue of NEA Today.