Teacher Training in the United States began in 1794 when the Society of Associated Teachers was formed in New York City to establish qualifications for teachers in that city. The Free School Society, established in 1805, also in New York City, began training teachers using public funds and organized a teacher-training course. In 1885, Brown University began to offer students courses in pedagogy, establishing one of the first university-level departments of Education. When the study of teaching methods began to receive recognition as a valid program in the twentieth century, the certification standards for teachers increased throughout the United States.

By the end of the twentieth century, almost all American teachers received preservice training in institutions of higher education with programs that complied with state guidelines for certification. These institutions usually have separate schools or departments of education, and prospective teachers are education majors. Nearly every teacher holds a bachelor's degree, and the vast majority have additional credits, with more than half holding one or more advanced degrees. Many states require graduate education for permanent liscensure. Education students must take courses in pedagogical techniques, and prospective secondary teachers need a specified number of credit hours in the specific subject they plan to teach. Training includes a student teaching requirement, a period of classroom teaching under the supervision of a certified teacher. States vary in their course content and credit requirements. Since the 1980s, the expanding role of computers in the classroom has made familiarity with high technology almost mandatory for teachers, and organizations such as the National Teacher Training Institute offer them instruction on how best to integrate new technology into lesson plans.

Critics of teacher training programs cite an over-emphasis on methods and psychological studies, the neglect of academic subjects, the need for accountability to ensure that training and certification are based less on academic credits and more on ability to function in the classroom, and the lack of uniform requirements among states. A Nation at Risk, the 1983 report of the National Committee on Excellence in Education, appointed by President Ronald Reagan, alerted the American public to the need to attract high-quality teaching candidates and to improve their training. By the mid-1990s, most states offered alternative routes to certification to mid-career people and liberal arts graduates via programs that provide on-the-job supervision. On the federal level, the Troops to Teachers program helps qualified retired servicemen and servicewomen begin second careers as teachers in public schools. The Teach for America program, supported by private, corporate, and government donations, trains recent college graduates at summer institutes. Program participants then teach for at least two years in rural and urban low-income areas.

Bibliography

Britzman, Deborah P. Practice Makes Practice: A Critical Study of Learning to Teach. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1991.

Edwards, Elizabeth. Women in Teacher Training Colleges, 1900–1960:A Culture of Femininity. New York: Routledge, 2000.

Leavitt, Howard B., ed. Issues and Problems in Teacher Education: An International Handbook. New York: Greenwood Press, 1992.