January 29, 2002
BY PAT MILHIZER SUN-TIMES SPRINGFIELD BUREAU
Aspiring teachers would have to pass a basic skills test before declaring their college majors, and current education students would have to pass a test in their specialty areas before student-teaching under new standards outlined in an Illinois Board of Higher Education package obtained Monday by the Sun-Times.
These key changes meant to improve the caliber of new teachers will go before the governing board of state universities early next month. They come in response to a Sun-Times series showing thousands of instances in which teachers in Illinois classrooms had failed to pass state exams designed to test their basic skills and knowledge of their subject matter. "The issue--framed succinctly by the Chicago Sun-Times--is one of the most fundamental a parent faces: 'Who's teaching my child?'" the board's proposal on teacher preparation and competency stated. The board report also said the State Board of Education should consider setting a limit on the number of times someone seeking a teaching license can flunk basic skills tests. And, it called on state lawmakers and the Chicago School Board to re-examine a state law permitting the city school system to employ substitute teachers who have not passed any state certification exams. "The series was a positive contribution to the climate of opinions surrounding quality teaching," said Keith Sanders, executive director of the Illinois Board of Higher Education, which released its findings at an education summit hosted Monday by Gov. Ryan. If the board adopts these changes at its Feb. 5 meeting, those wanting to teach math, for example, would have to pass a math test before student teaching, something that isn't required now. Most students do their student teaching as the last course before they graduate, yet they often haven't passed their state-required subject-matter tests before entering the classrooms as teaching apprentices. Some leading education advocates hailed the proposals, particularly those explicitly targeting teacher training in colleges across the state. "In the past, schools of education have been looked at as the easy major," said Barbara Radner, director of the Center for Urban Education at DePaul University. "This makes them a sophisticated major because you have to know your stuff. . . . It's saying that content comes first." The emphasis on teacher training echoed discussion during the gathering of state educators and lawmakers to help chart education policy in the General Assembly's spring session, which gets under way today."Our children are struggling, and unfortunately, so are some of our teachers," Ryan said.