Literate Nation Urges Colleges to Provide Better Teacher Preparation to Improve Student Outcomes

BALTIMORE, June 20, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In response to a benchmark report released by U.S. News & World Report and the National Council on Teacher Quality (NCTQ) that grades teacher preparation programs across the country, Literate Nation calls for reform starting at the college level to improve educational outcomes in the U.S.

According to the report, successful, high-performing schools are far outnumbered by those that fail to prepare their teaching candidates for the challenges of real classrooms.

Cinthia Coletti, CEO of Literate Nation (www.literatenation.org), a nonprofit organization that aims to empower our nation's citizens with the literacy skills needed to thrive in the dynamic, global environment of the 21st century, released this statement regarding the review:

This is a landmark publication for education reform, offering insight into how teacher preparation must advance and how the field can begin to regulate itself — as other institutions such as law, medicine and business do.

Never before have we been given such a clear picture of both our challenges and our opportunities. These ratings reveal not only the inefficiencies of our current education system but they also illustrate that many students' reading struggles are not their fault or the fault of their teachers. These ratings indicate where we must next concentrate our efforts.

While a comprehensive education overhaul is needed for all students to achieve literacy and academic success, change must originate at the top — from within colleges and their teacher preparation programs. Insufficient professional preparation does these teachers and their students a terrible disservice. Only after teaching candidates have been adequately prepared can they exercise the most positive influence on their students. If a teacher's preparation is subpar, their students' learning outcomes suffer.

The NCTQ's findings are disappointing but they also reveal important opportunities for improvement. Today's modern technology and a high degree of interconnectedness give us the power to make rapid gains in educational reform. The will and the capability are there; we simply need to garner attention and keep up momentum. Shocking reports such as this are a powerful way to reach the public. The NCTQ's report underscores the dire problems facing our nation's youngest citizens, and reminds us that we all have a responsibility to be agents for change.

SOURCE Literate Nation