Instrumentalism and teacher education in the United States: an analysis of two national reports

Abstract

Teacher education in the USA lives in a policy shadow world that is jumbled and unfocused because decision‐makers do not see teacher education as a public good in and of itself. Rather, it is viewed as an instrument to achieve other, more important, policy goals. Consequently, teacher education policy tends to be parsed across fields and levels of instruction, compartmentalized, and often isolated; these circumstances thwart development of consistent and coherent policy on how teachers are prepared. This article considers whether two recent national reports, A Test of Leadership: Charting the Future of U.S. Higher Education and Tough Choices or Tough Times clarify or further confound teacher education policy directions, and concludes with the caution that both reports continue the instrumental definition of teacher education, a situation that will hinder development of comprehensive and more effective policy options.

Keywords:

• teacher education
• policy
• commissions
• higher education

Notes

1. It is important to note that in the USA, the term college generally refers to postsecondary institutions that award only, or primarily, a bachelor’s degree. Universities are institutions with substantial graduate and professional programs. There are some exceptions when the term ‘college’ has historical importance to the institution – such as the College of William and Mary in Virginia. To further complicate things, schools and colleges may exist within universities such as those with a college of education or a school of law. For this article the terms college and university are generally used together to encompass those institutions that offer at least a bachelor’s degree. Postsecondary education institutions that award a two‐year degree, usually called an associate’s degree, are called community colleges. In the USA, students attending any form of postsecondary education from community college to university are known as college students.

2. The matter of teachers’ academic quality is a contentious political issue that is rarely informed by evidence. There are 3.5 million teachers in the USA and one finds the same variation in ability among them that one would find in 3.5 million college graduates with the same demographic profile as teachers. See Zumwalt and Craig (2005) for a description and analysis of research on teachers’ academic ability.