NCTQ To Release 2018 Teacher Prep Review

Who: National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ), a non-partisan research and policy organization dedicated to ensuring every classroom has an effective teacher.

What: NCTQ's 2018 Teacher Prep Review which rates 567 traditional graduate programs, 129 alternative route programs, and 18 residencies preparing both elementary and secondary teachers.  The Review rates these programs on a number of factors, including how well they cover teachers' knowledge of subject matter, classroom management, and the need for practice. 

Unfortunately, our ratings found that both traditional graduate and alternative route models compare unfavorably with undergraduate teacher preparation models, presuming too much about candidates’ grasp of the subject matter they will be teaching without providing the additional support needed to account for their lack of knowledge. With the high number of new teachers in the workforce, particularly in schools that serve traditionally-underrepresented students who need additional support, it is imperative that programs provide prospective teachers with the proper support from their prep programs to become effective first-year teachers. 

Programs rated in the top 10 nationally include INSPIRE Texas (top alternative route elementary program), CUNY - Hunter College in New York (top graduate secondary program), and Richmond Teacher Residency (top residency program). 

About the National Council on Teacher Quality:

The National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) is a nonpartisan research and policy group, committed to modernizing the teaching profession and based on the belief that all children deserve effective teachers. NCTQ is the nation’s expert on the quality of teacher preparation programs and evaluates national teacher education against evidence-based criteria. More information about NCTQ can be found on our website, www.nctq.org.

Featured

  • William Penn Charter School

    Richard A. Balderston OPC’69 Lower School

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. The Richard A. Balderston OPC’69 Lower School has been recognized with an EDS 2026 Grand Prize award in the category of New Construction.

  • Classical building columns display digital data streams

    The Campus Nervous System: Why Facilities Risk Is Now a Leadership Issue in Higher Education

    Facility performance now intersects with safety, compliance, on-campus experience, institutional reputation, and financial resilience. That places it firmly on the leadership agenda.

  • Planning with Clarity: Using AI to Make Better Campus Decisions, Not Just Better Designs

    Higher education leaders are being asked to make increasingly high-stakes decisions about campus facilities amid greater uncertainty than ever before. Social and economic pressures, shifting enrollment, and evolving learning models compete with growing deferred maintenance needs to strain even the most robust infrastructure budgets.

  • Arlington High School

    Arlington High School

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. Arlington High School has been recognized with an EDS 2026 Grand Prize award in the category of New Construction.