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The rationale driving alternative route programs is that many excellent teacher candidates have made other life or career choices but would be open to becoming teachers if presented with the right offer.
In light of the great need for specific subject-area teachers (e.g., in science), the recruitment efforts of most programs target individuals who are already steeped in the relevant content because they have majored in it and have been working in that field. Included in this category are many midcareer professionals and early retirees.
This targeted approach reflects the mission statements of many alternative programs. For example, the program in Hillsborough County, Florida, seeks to “expand the pool of educators to include non-education majors committed to making a positive impact on student achievement and providing quality educational opportunities.” New York City's program rests on a similar assumption, that “there is a substantial pool of talented individuals who have chosen other career options and who are capable of and interested in becoming excellent teachers.”
While trying to recruit widely, programs must also be selective in the candidates they admit, ensuring that those who enter an alternative route program have the necessary knowledge, skills, and personality to quickly become effective teachers. So how does a program target its recruitment efforts to ensure a strong applicant pool from which to select tomorrow’s best teachers? Successful programs have found a variety of ways.
Six programs report that word of mouth is by far their most effective recruitment tool, particularly because it typically yields candidates who are similar to previously successful candidates. Moreover, satisfied candidates and school systems are likely to spread the word without any special effort on the part of their program.
Other, less personal advertising approaches, such as radio and television spots and local newspaper advertisements, have also proven fruitful, especially for newer programs. New York uses a print advertising campaign to inspire dissatisfied professionals to become teachers. Subway posters send provocative messages to burned-out or disillusioned professionals. “Tired of diminishing returns? Invest in NYC kids” was just one of many Madison Avenue-inspired invitations. News coverage has also proven to be a boon to alternative programs. When the New York Times, for example, ran a story about the
district's alternative route program, 2,100 applications flooded in over the next six weeks.
Information sessions and recruitment fairs are another way programs inform interested people about their alternative route processes. Such information sessions help potential applicants self-select, recognizing early whether the high demands of the alternative approach fit their skill and energy levels.
Once a highly motivated group of people has shown interest in becoming teachers, programs must decide how to manage the application and selection process to ensure that they get the best candidates in their programs. The first level of screening involves setting application requirements [such as] a bachelor’s degree. In general, traditional admissions criteria such as GPA and letters of recommendation are of little help when applicants are career changers or have been out of school for many years.
What may be most telling for alternative route program applicants are solid content knowledge and the ability, by virtue of life and work experience, to relate content to the real world.
Some programs require that applicants have a job with one of their partner districts or a job offer contingent on their program participation. Other programs accept candidates whom they judge to be highly likely to find a placement on their own. Still other programs work directly with
districts in making their selection decisions, with the goal being to fill chronic vacancies.
No matter what approach is used, the program must have an excellent relationship with the school district(s) it serves. Program administrators must consistently place highly successful candidates; otherwise they cannot build the trust necessary to sustain the program. Successful placements are also key to building the kind of reputation that fuels highly desirable word-of-mouth recruitment.
*Excerpted from the U.S. Department of Education article entitled, “Innovations in Education: Alternative Routes to Teacher Certification.” The entire article can be found at: www.ed.gov/admins/tchrqual/recruit/altroutes/report_pg6.html#recruit.
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