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Information for Future Teachers:

WEST OHIO ALTERNATIVE LICENSURE PROGRAM

Goals

• Provide an alternative route to teaching licensure responsive to the needs of second career professionals;
• Devise preparation experiences meeting the needs of alternative track teachers for science and mathematics specific pedagogy.

Activities:

Wright State University has supported the West Region EXCEL alternative licensure experiences since the beginning of West Region funding in January 2003.  At WSU, alternative licensure programs had been offered through the College of Education and Human Services since 2000 and the intent of the West Region EXCEL activities was to not duplicate the same program.  The existing program in essence was the Professional Educators Program (leading to an M.Ed.) that all high school teachers participated in their 5th year of preparation, with required courses offered up front and subsequent courses offered after the alternatively licensed teachers was placed in a school.  West Region EXCEL found a need for a more flexible program tailored to the differing needs of alternatively licensed teachers, and a need for more science and mathematics specific educational experiences due to the backgrounds and dispositions of second career professionals.  Therefore, the West Region EXCEL program required students to be accepted to WSU’s graduate school, but did not require them to enroll in the MEd program.  Advising for the MEd and the MST (Masters of Science in Teaching offered through WSU’s College of Science and Mathematics) was provided, but students were not required to enroll in either program, thereby reducing the multiple application processes involved in obtaining licensure (graduate school, graduate program, financial aid, application to ODE, and applying to school districts). The required courses for alternative licensure (methods, adolescent psych, and field experiences) were coupled with learning and/or teaching experiences in science and mathematics in a variety of ways.  Students could choose to participate in a science or mathematics teacher professional development institute and classroom-based academic year follow-up, field-based curriculum development and piloting at DECA, or assisting teaching in science or mathematics courses for future early or middle school teachers at WSU.  In all cases, the experiences involved experienced teachers, mentoring, practice designing curriculum and teaching, and science and/or mathematics pedagogical content knowledge.  For many participants, the focus on science or mathematics content within the context of teaching was a way to help them transition from a content orientation to an integrated content and pedagogy orientation.

Results:

Since the inception of the alternative licensure experiences at West Region EXCEL with funding in January 2003, student support for 20 alternative licensure candidates has been provided.  Out of these, two quit the program for monetary reasons and three of the students are officially part of WSU’s Charter College of Education, which now houses the original alternative licensure program (leading to MEd) at WSU.  Of the 15 remaining students, 12 are currently teaching (one out of state), with 6 having started in high-need school districts.  Difficulties encountered include lack of support for recruitment, conflicting recruiting and programs (due to having two alternative licensure programs at WSU), poor support from high need school districts during application and hiring procedures and mentoring of alternatively licensed teachers, and possible saturation of the Dayton area market of second career professionals.